Through the whispering jungle, through the swamp mist,

The old ghost woman is running, chasing your footsteps. Pen, fun, and www.biquge.info

She's powerful and invulnerable.

She's faster than the wind and scarier than nightmares.

Only by throwing off your companions can you escape the pursuit,

The backward child is destined to be swallowed alive by her.

……

Children chase each other through the streets.

One of the girls plays the role of the old ghost woman, while the rest of the children hide from her and sing merrily.

Roland couldn't help but be skeptical. Do these childish children really understand the meaning of the songs they sing......

He stopped and stretched out his hand to stop the little girl who played the ghost woman: "Little sister, can you talk to me?" ”

The little girl instinctively took two steps back and looked at him warily. Fortunately, the charm of Roland Gundam 24 was fully displayed in the way of a smile, successfully lowering the opponent's vigilance.

"Hello, honorable knight, what do you command?" The little girl bowed to him and spoke politely and politely.

"Can you tell me what game you play?"

"The ghost woman is here!"

"Well, that sounds scary, I heard you singing, who taught you that ballad?"

The little girl shook her head blankly: "I don't know, everyone sings like this, I learned it from the young lady in the neighbor's house......"

"Katyusha!" An older girl suddenly interrupted her sharply, ran over and grabbed her hand, and forcibly dragged her away.

"Am I that scary?" Roland smiled self-deprecatingly, and asked the other children, "If anyone wants to sing that song for me, I'll give him a silver coin." ”

Needless to say, the silver coin was tempting to the poor child, but Roland did not see what he expected.

No one sang to him, and the children refused to even speak to him, all with serious faces, their little mouths pursed tightly, lest they not pay attention to revealing a word.

"Think one silver coin is too little? So how about exchanging it for a gold coin? Roland tried to increase the size, but it backfired, and the children seemed to be frightened by him, and they turned and ran in a swarm, and in an instant they ran away.

Roland frowned, feeling an indescribable strangeness in his heart.

"This place is so depressing...... Let's go to the bar anyway. Bloom muttered under his breath, as if sensing that this seemingly peaceful village was not as rosy as it seemed, and that there was an oppressive atmosphere everywhere.

Fortunately, the atmosphere in the tavern was normal, and as soon as the door was opened, the noise poured into his ears, and the dwarf stood in front of the door and squinted his eyes, and took a deep breath of the unique smell of alcohol and oil, and his tense nerves suddenly relaxed.

"Hey man, bring me all the good food and drink you have here!" The dwarf sat on an empty barrel that served as a seat, slapping the table proudly.

"How about a roast leg of lamb with black pepper sauce? One serving is only six small silver coins! The chubby guy had a smile on his face, and the price of the food was not polite at all.

However, His Royal Highness the Prince of Icewind Dale didn't mind, and waved his hand domineeringly: "Don't talk nonsense, hurry up and serve the food, and prepare one for my brother too, plus two glasses of your best wine here." "This is a reward for you, remember, if you dare to add water to your wine, I'll shove this gold coin into your asshole!" ”

"Oh, my good lord!" The guy exaggeratedly raised his arms, "I swear to God!" If I really do that kind of immoral thing, I don't need your old man to do it, I'll stuff it myself! ”

"Haha! Savvy fellows, grab your tip and do your job! ”

The man nodded, picked up the gold coin, and ran to the back kitchen.

Roland couldn't help but smile, turning his head to look at the middle-aged man who was settling accounts across the bar, he was wearing a snow-white silk shirt jacket and a black satin vest, and his two curled mustaches were obviously carefully groomed, exuding a shrewd and elegant businessman's temperament.

"Good evening, Dear Mr. Knight." Sensing Roland's gaze, the mustache touched his chest with one hand and bowed slightly, "My name is Malik, and I am the owner of this tavern, and I hope you can have a pleasant evening at the shop." ”

Roland took the opportunity to talk to the tavernkeeper. The skill of "negotiation" is his strength, and the "observation of words and feelings" is even more perfect, and he successfully dispels Malik's guard and guides the topic in the direction he is really interested in.

"Malik, I've traveled all over the world and experienced different folk customs, but there's no stranger custom than in Valle Village."

"Why does Mr. Knight say this, I think the atmosphere in this village is normal."

"Well, for example, I just met a bunch of kids outside the tavern, and they were all cute, but they were singing a weird ballad, and when I wanted to know where the ballad came from, they were so tight-lipped and overly nervous, Malik, do you think that's normal?"

The tavernkeeper could not help laughing: "My dear Mr. Knight, you don't know that the children dare not speak to you because the name of the ballad is 'Don't Talk to Strangers'!" If they answer your questions during the game, they will break the rules of the game and will be punished by other children. ”

Roland raised his glass and sipped the cool ale, unbuttoned his collar and changed to a more relaxed sitting position, and said with a smile: "Malik, you have successfully piqued my curiosity and told me the story behind this ballad, why does it warn children not to talk to strangers?" ”

Malik stroked his beard and muttered, "You have a problem for me, in fact this nursery rhyme has been sung in the swamp for many years, and my mother told me to sing it when I was a child, and she heard it from my grandmother, so that it has been passed down from generation to generation, and the provenance has long been untraceable. ”

"The reason why ancient songs can be sung to this day must have their practical significance." Roland was thoughtful.

Malik poured him a full bottle of wine and nodded, "Indeed, as you said, this ballad is about the horrific legend of an old ghost woman who lives in the depths of the Misty Swamp, and people call her 'Agnes', but I don't know where she came from or how long she lived. Ever since she appeared in the area, children have been missing from the village, and it is widely believed that the old ghost woman abducted the poor children and eventually ate them, so the song is still in season. ”

"I see," Roland couldn'......t help but think of Lyudmila's adventure this morning. Grand Druid Rygina appears to her in animal form, warning her to stay away from the Misty Swamp and vaguely mentioning the imminent conflict between the Harvest Ring and the Oni Warband.

The nursery rhymes that have been circulating for many years in the valley village are indirectly proof of Lady Valentina's concerns, and the atrocities of the Ghost Woman clan seriously threaten the sense of security of the local villagers, especially in the hearts of children, who are like a lingering nightmare.

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