Can Arknights dream about the Knights of the Round Table?

Although I only fled to this village on the ice field the year before last because I couldn't stand the lackeys of the empire, I was already quite familiar with the existence of this terrifying monster and had heard quite a lot about it.

That's right.

【listen】

In fact, I and the current living villagers have not seen 'ears', because those who have seen them have become devoured remains.So although I've been having pretty good luck, I still have to be quite wary of my 'ears'.Human instinct is to survive. When I know that there are such threats around me, I will only be more careful and vigilant.

The same is true for Lars next to him. He is also a member of the village. When he feels that the environment has become dangerous, he will naturally think of the rumors of 'Ears'.I looked at Lars, and the former looked at me invariably. The glances between our companions did not bring comfort, but made the uneasiness in our hearts heavier.

"Do you want to go back?" I asked Lars, but I didn't get an answer right away.

My friend fell silent, holding the crossbow tightly in his hand, his eyes flickering.

Of course I know what Lars is thinking.If there is really a danger of encountering 'ears', then we will definitely give priority to survival over so-called hunting. If we explain it to the villagers, they will naturally understand us.But this is not normal. At this moment, we still have an unresolved survival problem.

Winter in the ice sheet area is far too short, and the alternation between extreme climates will only be faster than the speed of premature ejaculation of love between men and women.Today's coldness can make people go out, but tomorrow's coldness can make people dare not even lift the quilt.In the extremely cold climate, going out becomes a problem, and it is even more difficult to catch prey in the wild.

Now that we haven't seen even a shadow of the prey, Alang and the others must have fallen into the same predicament.As the polar night approaches, tomorrow's climate will only be worse than today. If you want to catch prey, today is the best and last chance.And if there is not enough food reserves, everyone in the village may die of famine before being eaten by the so-called 'ears'.

If I think about it, I would definitely stay, at least grab one end and go back.I can accept the coming of death calmly, but that is limited to death of old age and hanging myself, leaving me to slowly die of hunger, which is really too painful.More importantly, I don't have enough self-control to restrain myself from hunger, and I can't predict whether I will do something unethical.

If this mountain forest can still bring us a glimmer of hope, then I will definitely work hard to get a chance to survive.When I was a child, I admired Casimir's chivalry, which has more or less influence on my current character and values... Yes, I would rather face the end of my life in fighting and killing than in silence. Waiting for death in madness, my personality drove me to make such a choice.

So I waited in silence for Lars’ reply.My old friend knows my character well, and on the other hand, I also know what choices Lars will make.

"The position of the sun...well, there is still time before three o'clock. Today may be the last chance to hunt, and I want to try again."

After a while, Lars gave his answer.I nodded, pleased with that.

After re-confirming the sun and our position, we took a short rest and then headed deeper into the mountain forest.

...Looking back, this is the decision I regret most in my life.

Image: "Moon Landing 1", Location: "Images/1654871150-100310637-108889031.jpg"

Picture: "Moon Landing 2", Location: "Images/1654871160-100310637-108889031.jpg"

ps: Thank you for the selfless dedication of my internet daddy Ikawa Na for many years (guess why it is called selfless)

By the way, Lars is also one of the gay friends. We usually call him Godzilla ()

So I’m going to call this section—the three of us!

With three hundred evil hearts, even the Crow Emperor is at a loss: 15 Evil Darkborn Long-Eared Two

The mountains and forests are far away from the village. Our village is located outside the northern border, on an ice sheet that is inaccessible to civilization.Extraterrestrial evil spirits roam the cold wasteland, and there are even 'ears' attacks at night. Normally, we should not be able to go out during the day, let alone grow vegetables or go hunting.

But the incredible thing is that in this dangerous environment, our village still exists, supporting hundreds of us residents.

Yes, it only took more than ten years for this village to be established.We are not the natives of the North, we are just a group of outsiders who were forced to migrate - those guys who are not blood demons but are better than blood demons make us only choose the two roads of slaves and miners, and these two bifurcated roads are different from each other. But it is connected to the same desperate future.In this regard, we gave up our hometown and civilized territory and chose this almost deserted land of ice.

If you say this is worse than bad, then I have nothing to say, I can only leave everything to fate.At least here we can still live, but there we can only die in pain.

After all, most people are not born with power. We do not have the ability to change the village, and we cannot find other more suitable places to live. To put it bluntly, we should be grateful to God for being alive.

At this point, perhaps because the old people in the village often talk about "luck", I have somewhat contracted this habit; my friends also said that this is a way to relieve stress.

——If you are attacked by 'ears' at night, or encounter other dangers, you have lost God's favor and are unlucky. In this way, you have a balanced mind, and you can't blame anything. If you feel sad, , just sighed a little, and then went to do whatever it was that I had to do.

If you want to live here, you have to think this way and do this.

People can survive to this day all because of gambling. Previously, they gave up their homeland and came to the ice fields. This time, they went deep into dangerous situations to catch prey.So at this moment, I have no regrets about my choice.

..........

..........

..........

After clearing the woods, I stopped and gestured to Lars behind me.The latter quietly came forward, and after he came to my side, I pointed in the direction of downhill.

I saw a one-meter-long wild deer walking slowly towards the downhill stream. It looked like it was out foraging like us.Most of the deer with a body length of more than one meter are male deer. They come out to forage when the cold season is approaching, most likely to provide food for their female deer and cubs... I can't help but speculate on the reasons for my actions.

But killing a stag will leave his wife and children to starve to death?Lars and I have no such concerns.It is for living, and we are also for living. In this case, there is no hesitation. If someone really asks such a naive question, then we have only one answer...

——This deer has lost God’s favor, and it has bad luck.

The buck reached the creek and began to lower his head, and Lars next to me immediately began to take action.He carefully descended the slope, approaching the buck from the side, while I, holding my spear tightly, approached the unfortunate guy who was drinking water from the other direction.After the two sides entered shooting range, I got into a spear-throwing posture.

At this time, my friend moved.He threw a sling made of stones and vines with his left hand, hitting the left front of the stag and causing a splash of waves.The stag was frightened. He kicked his front hooves and raised his upper body high.Seeing this opportunity, I waved my arms without hesitation and threw the spear in my hand towards the stag.

The sharp spear tip cut through the air and pierced the stag's hind thigh in an instant.Not only that, my powerful spear was not satisfied with being full of blood. It smashed the prey's leg bone and penetrated the entire thigh with the spear shaft.

This took away the opportunity for the prey to escape. At the same time, Lars on the other side also moved.When the stag fell to the ground due to his instability, he jumped up with spears in both hands. The adult man used his strength and his own weight to pierce the tip of the spear into the prey's neck.

Blood splashed with the sound of the collision, and I couldn't even hear the sound of bones breaking.After Lars pulled out the spear, I slowly stepped forward to check on this unlucky guy who had fallen out of favor with God today.

The strength brought by the Lasna race was indeed overwhelming. The stag's neck was completely broken under the thrust, and only the skin and meat were barely holding on to the head.I looked at the stag's head again, and the dark pupils of the prey gradually lost their luster. I'm afraid it will never understand what happened to it until it dies.

After confirming that the prey was dead, I breathed a sigh of relief unconsciously, and Lars beside me slowly lowered the spear in his hand.

Hunting is not easy.Although Russ and I just aimed at the deer's legs and neck, in the final analysis, it is an act of killing. Once the prey senses the crisis, our actions will fall short, so we must fight hard. Try your best to pursue a fatal move.

Well... of course, as far as the results are concerned, others may not be able to see it.

I pursed my lips, put away my spear, and lifted the prey in front of me onto my shoulders.And just when I wanted to look up at the sky to confirm the position of the sun, I suddenly felt a shiver all over my body for no reason.

"------"

What...what's wrong with this?

Fear grew crazily in my heart.I know the feeling, it's exactly the same as when I was chased by a three-meter-tall bear a few years ago.Behind me, there is something more powerful staring at me...is it staring at me?

No, no—

My thoughts are messy and I can barely turn my brain to think.I carried the carcass of the wild deer and froze in place, not daring to look back. I could only slowly move the corner of my eye to look at Lars, who had not made a sound since just now.

——It's Lars, that thing is staring at Lars!My friend, why didn't you notice?You are being targeted now!

I confirmed my thoughts, and in addition to fear, I was even more doubtful.In the past few years of living in the ice field, Lars has also experienced many dangerous things. He will only encounter more dangers during hunting than me. But even I feel the crisis at this moment. What about my friends? Can't you feel it?

"Lars...why don't you speak?" I asked, looking at Lars from the corner of my eye, wanting to urgently call my friends to run away together.But the moment I saw Lars, I regretted it.

Because Russ's expression was twisted into a ball.

It was the first time I knew people could make such a frightened expression.The mouth was raised to reveal the teeth under the lip, the nostrils expanded due to exertion, and even the wrinkles on both sides of the bridge of the nose were affected, and the eyes kept widening, as if the eyeballs were about to fall out of their sockets.

He stood stiffly and motionless, only his pupils were shrinking sharply.The frightened expression was so frozen that if it weren't for the movement of the eye holes, I almost thought Lars had died standing up!

"La...Las?" That terrifying sight has never left me, and I dare not look back until now. I can only call my friend's name again, trying to break the dead silence at this moment.

But it wasn't Lars who answered my call, but... a strange tone from behind.

"[——Lars...Why don't you speak.]"

The voice was intermittent like asthma, but it gave people the feeling that they were studying and trying to repeat... Is it imitating my speech?

————That thing is imitating my speech!

The gaze that wanted to devour the person never moved away, as if his head was on a guillotine with fear and despair.My heart was beating fast and I was sweating all over without realizing it, but in this case, the thing behind me started repeating my words like a radio?

"[——La...La...Las.]"

The first 'pull' sound is out of tune and repeated twice, it is indeed learning...or just repeating.But these have nothing to do with me anymore. No matter how outrageous conjectures and thoughts I have, they are all cut off by me at this moment.

Because as the words are repeated, the unknown thing is slowly approaching us!

That thing came from the other side of the stream.There was a sound of water splashing behind me. Based on the rhythm, I knew it was some kind of creature with two legs. But as the sound of water splashing continued to sound, those mixed guesses and thoughts began to get entangled in me again... In short, this is a creature with two legs. A one-legged creature?

How many legs? Three legs?Or a leg?

It has no legs and it swam over...I don't know how it came over.

There's nothing behind me, I need to run away right now...I should turn around and see where the sun is.

I don’t want to look at the moon. It’s not afternoon yet... I came out from home with my prey, but it’s very hot outside. It doesn’t matter if I only kill one person and go back... The people in the village are full, so I have to kill them all. , otherwise summer would not come. Fortunately, the person next door gave me some clothes, so I could continue to sleep. After all, there are no chicken feathers in Sakota, but I still love Kuranta, because the continent of Terra does not poop, and the ice sheet also sheds water. Nosebleed, if the thing definitely didn’t make me forget, I shouldn’t have thought about it, thought about it...

I...what do I want to do? .

"------"

......clatter!

The sound of stones clashing against stones sounded behind.Quietly, the thing had crossed the stream and stepped onto the stone bank.

At this moment, an unprecedented sense of fear took over my mind, erasing all chaotic thoughts.I gained the ability to think, and subconsciously wanted to look behind me, but that weird tone sounded again, and this time it was to my right--that is, in front of Lars.

"[La...Las.]"

The sun, which has not been blocked by the trees, casts cold light from the other end of the stream.The dark figure was stretched extremely long, and two black shadows resembling ears extended from the top, imprinted on the slope in front of me... My dear friend has been completely swallowed by the darkness.

"[La...Las.]"

"——!!!"

I let out a desperate scream.

In extreme fear, my body finally gained strength. I climbed up the slope in front of me like crazy and escaped without looking back.

At this moment, I lost my mind and abandoned everything.The time I spent with my friends, the courage to fight with wild beasts, and the chivalry I longed for as a child... everything was abandoned by me at this moment.

Lars's scream seemed to be heard from behind. The horrifying sound, along with the tearing of flesh and bones, spread the pain and despair of the victim, and eventually resounded through the entire mountain forest.

But to me now, it doesn't matter anymore...it doesn't matter anymore.

With three hundred evil hearts, even the Crow Emperor is at a loss: 16 Evil Darkborn·Long-Eared Three

The air is getting colder.The sun hanging in the sky disappeared into the other side of the mountain, raising an uneasy curtain of darkness.

I forgot how I came back, and I forgot whether I bumped into anyone on the road... When I woke up, I was already back home, curled up in a quilt on the corner of the wooden bed.

I clearly remember everything that happened before, from the encounter with the unknown existence to the time I abandoned Lars and fled alone, I remember clearly... Is that the 'ear' in the rumor?It should be, otherwise I wouldn't be so frightened that I could escape home in such embarrassment...

"..."

No, that's not right... I'm just trying to justify my behavior.

It is human nature to want to live, but this cannot hide the fact that I left Lars behind because of fear.

In front of that 'ear', I ran away in embarrassment.Before I decided to go deep into the forest, I had not expected to encounter 'ears', because the sun was already approaching the afternoon, and we were getting further and further away from the village, so it was natural that the risk would be too high... I regretted my naivety and thought The fear of death inspires my strength, but when faced with a desperate situation, I use that strength to escape.

It has nothing to do with anything anymore... It has nothing to do with the courage to fight in desperate situations, or the so-called yearning for chivalry... It has nothing to do with anything anymore...

Now, I just want to be immersed in the silence of this moment, and I just want time to stop forever... forever...

"------"

I don’t know how long it was silent... When I looked up unintentionally, the window was completely dark.

The cold wind passed through the window bars, bringing the coldness into my home.The harsh winter is coming, and the snow has quietly fallen.This was a precursor to death. I had a premonition of this and became alert because of the familiar feeling.

Something... something was coming.

I climbed up from the bed, picked up my usual throwing spear, and squatted beside the bed, waiting for the arrival of a certain existence.

A village at night is as dangerous as a mountain forest in the wild. Even hiding at home does not mean absolute safety.What happened next also confirmed this.

Huh...huh uh...

唦 唦 唦——

The sound of footsteps came from outside the house... It seemed that the two feet were not lifted, but just dragged on the ground.The sound came from afar, arrived at my door at a rather slow speed, and then stopped.

I didn't dare to look up and just stared at the shadow cast from the window.There is no light source at home, and the dim light projected from the window is my only way to judge the surrounding environment.I heard footsteps outside the door again, and through the light source, I saw two swaying shadows like 'ears' falling on the ground from outside the window.

——The houses in the village are all built very high, and my home is no exception; the height of the windows in each house ranges from [-] to [-] meters.

This is not for lighting, but to save your life when danger comes.

Because according to legend, the 'ears' are more than two meters tall and are extremely sensitive to human eyesight, so you cannot use your eyes to look at any part of their bodies, or their sight will be discovered by them; so for normal villagers, the only way Just look at the shadow cast outside the window.Walls that are too high will block all of their bodies, including their heads. Only the pair of tall, long hearing organs will cross the windows and shine in the moonlight because they are at least two meters six or seven meters high. A bit of a swaying shadow.

In this way, we can know relatively safely whether the 'ears' have arrived.

After that, we must quietly hide in the cellar we dug, wait for the arrival of morning, and pray that the 'ears' do not notice our quiet departure.After all, no matter whether it is earth, stone walls or the ground, they are no obstacle to those monsters. Once discovered, they will die...

And now, they are coming, they are coming again!

After giving me fear and humiliation that I had never experienced in my life in the mountains and forests, it came to the door again.This time, I couldn't scream, and there was nowhere to escape.

"------"

I held my breath and crawled under the bed.Under the bed, there is a cellar that I dug myself. Because I live alone, the depth of the cellar is only two or three meters.I pushed open the upper cover and slipped in quietly.

There is a pull cord on the back of the cover because the structure requires that the cover must be pulled upward from the outside or pushed from the inside toward the outside.As long as I hold the leash tightly in the cellar, people outside will not be able to open the cover and enter the cellar.