K-type Mage

The night in the Black Forest is silent, and after the only lamp is blown out, only the sound of breathing can be heard in the cabin.

The rangers prepared the bed for [Jack], while the restless thornbirds flew to other parts of the forest, waiting for the dawn.

There was a rustling sound from a bed in the cabin, and a dim green light lit up from behind the curtain: it was the direction of the forest ranger.

The curtain was lifted silently, and the man stood beside Jason's bed. His unshaven face was illuminated like human skin floating in the air. And shallow young people.

I don't know how much time has passed, and the man's eyes have not moved away. Such almost scorching gaze did not cause any discomfort from the young man, and it seems to be confirmed that he is deeply asleep.

The man moves.

He raised one hand, and in his hand was a sharp knife that shone coldly—this was the knife that had cut up the wild boar before.

The point of the knife was aimed at the person on the bed.

The other party was still sleeping like a dead pig.

So he put down his hand after a while, turned around holding the sharp weapon and walked out the door lightly, almost silently.The floating green light group followed him and left together.

The wooden door was closed with a creak, which was particularly ear-piercing in the silent night; the forest guard stopped outside the door for a while, listening to the movement inside the house, and continued walking after confirming that he was not awakened.

Scattered moonlight leaked from the cracks in the treetops, the green floating light and the silent man did not choose the winding path extending to the exit, the overgrown shrubs and dense trees seemed to absorb the night, showing a kind of Stiff dark brown, like humus that has been deposited for a long time.

They are wriggling, the root system hidden under the ground shrinks and releases, moving the main body up and down like the arms and legs of an octopus, the soil is squeezed and collapsed with a sticky sound, and the plants that should have stood forever are "alive" Come; smoothly and swiftly open a way for the man to the unknown.

The ranger's figure faded into the darkness.

The path was again blocked by shrubs that had been moved back.

……

And in the small wooden house tightly bound by two big trees, the young man who had been sleeping opened his eyes, and calmly got out of bed with a clear and sleepy expression.

The pitch-black room was filled with weird silence, and Jason rubbed his forehead a little irritably.

Of course he would not fall asleep in an unfamiliar environment, especially the Thorn Bird reminded that unsafe things would happen at night.

Whoever thought of it came, there was a creaking sound from the wooden door that was closed from the outside, followed by a soft sound, the wooden door was pulled open a gap, the thorn bird spread its wings to prop the door open, and complained a little displeased , Said: "Mr. Ranger is really vigilant, hey, Jack, are you up?"

At night in the dense forest, its pure black eyes were shining brightly.

"I can't sleep in a strange place," Jason replied. "You have to satisfy my curiosity, dear bird."

"Well, human curiosity will bring troubles. This is a common principle in all life." The thorn bird said, it did not enter the cabin, but retreated and spread its wings, and flew up. He said extra indulgent words, "Then let's go and have a look together, I will protect you, I hope you will not be too scared."

Jason: "...Thank you."

I have accepted some of your touching and awkward supernatural powers like an elder.

Even if you really think so, you don't have to say it.

It looks more and more like the source.

……

They left the cabin, with the thornbird leading the way; Jason didn't know where the ranger was going, so he didn't know the road that opened before the thornbird compared with the trail the ranger took. The road I stepped on was extraordinarily spacious and flat; and the clear moonlight shone down from above, and the whole road was reflected like a river reflecting the bright moon.

—as if they deserved to be illuminated.

But he still felt something was wrong.The plants that move calmly and gently to make way for them have a dangerous aura that makes the biological instinct feel dangerous, but in front of the Thorn Bird, they are as docile as servants and offer their services - he doesn't think he, the player, [Jack] As an outsider, he can make the intelligent (?) plants behave so friendly.

"They seem to like you very much." He broke the silence that was only the sound of footsteps stepping on the dirt on the road and wings beating, and asked tentatively, "Have you been here before?"

"I have to think about this question carefully, because my memory is not as good as before." Thorn Bird said, his voice was still very relaxed, "I probably came here before, but it may also be that I am too popular."

"Everyone likes me very much!" He said this in a proud and ostentatious tone, coupled with a childlike voice, he looked extra childish, and if he was a human, he must have a bright smile on his face.

Jason paused, and couldn't help but think of what Batman told Yuan Shen once said after leaving the amusement park - "Everyone likes me very much."

No one cared about Yuan Shen's words, it was more like some kind of ridicule.

Now the Thorn Bird also said this sentence.People can't help but care and think about it.

——It can't be true, can it?

made people have such an idea.

"I don't quite understand what you mean. Are you popular?" he asked. "Among non-human species?"

To be honest, if Yuanshen is also like this, wouldn't that You En, who is the god of Cthulhu, become close friends with him because he "likes" him?

Hey, just thinking about it makes me feel cold, and goosebumps are about to come out.

"You can't say that." Thorn Bird said in front of him, his voice was a little dissatisfied, "Obviously humans like me very much." Then he answered Jason's question, "Yes, I am very popular Yes, but some want to be one with me, some want to be by my side."

It sighed with some distress, and said: "It's not good to be too popular. I like beautiful things, but ugly things always want to come to me."

Jason touched his arm, and didn't know how to complain about his strong narcissism, or his honesty about the matter.

——He seriously suspected that Yuan Shen would say such a thing, so it seemed that the thorn bird represented Yuan Shen again.

"It sounds like a real headache." He said dryly, "Then how do you usually solve it?"

In reality, I haven't seen Yuan Shen being "popular" in contact with him.

I didn't see the Thorn Bird during the previous journey, including the human forest ranger, and he didn't show too much enthusiasm—he was more like a generous and hospitable man.

Neither did Jason himself.If Yuanshen himself hadn't reminded him, he would still be too wary of the Thorn Bird.

"Because I am strong enough," said the Thorn Bird. "Now, don't try, dear Jack, we are coming."

……

The flat road that was given way has been extended to the end, and at the end is a green lake. The full moon in the center of the lake is clear and bright, like a plate of white jade——

No, it's not.

It was a round plane carved out of white jade-like stone as if floating on the lake, with strange patterns engraved on it, which made people feel dizzy when looking at it, reminding people of the altar needed to worship the gods.

The ranger stood on it, facing the direction of any thorn birds coming, but did not see them.There was an extremely heavy and complicated contemplative expression on his face.

Jason soon discovered that there was a trail that was too narrow in the direction the ranger turned his back on.

The path led by the thorn bird and the path taken by the ranger himself are not in the same direction.

He observed the environment he and the Thorn Bird were in again.The extended path has closed again at some point, turning into densely clustered tall trees, the trunks of which are covered with dark green moss.

The sky is dark blue, and a full moon hangs high in the sky. The reflection of the bright moon that should have been reflected in the center of the lake now completely covers the altar like a white jade plate; at the same time, it also completely envelopes the forest guards , His body was covered with a layer of milky white mist, as if he was inhaling and exhaling with his breath.

"...?!!" Jason, who subconsciously stared at the ranger for a while, opened his eyes wide and his pupils constricted in horror.

——The milky white halo is full of the lively colors of living things!It is not so much dust under the light, but more like tiny microorganisms floating in the air and entering the human body!

It seems that the scene that the forest ranger suffered did not start for too long, because the man who had a heavy expression before gathered more and more milky white light spots, and his expression gradually became ferocious, as if he had suffered a gradually deepening pain. Painful torment.

At the same time, the light from the white jade plate became more and more intense, as if all the moonlight cast by it was injected and absorbed.

It was an extremely ominous light, a light that made creatures feel panic from the bottom of their hearts.

"What's going on?" Jason asked, not too panicked, and still maintained a calm expression, "Is his vitality being absorbed?"

Under his gaze, the face and body of the ranger seemed to be speeding up the passage of time. His dark brown hair became dull and gray, his face was gradually filled with wrinkles, and his back was bent—a young, strong, The man who could beat a wild boar to death was aging at a speed visible to the naked eye.

He turned his head to look at the thorn bird beside him.

The beautiful bird just flapped its wings, and said indifferently, "That's what he has to bear, as long as he is a forest ranger."

It stared at the scene on the altar without sadness or joy, as if the sadness in the language when speaking for the work of the forest ranger did not exist.

Jason didn't understand why he had such a different reaction.

He was sure it was a real emotion.

But he suddenly remembered that Yuan Shen had behaved like this before.

It's like a god sitting high in the clouds, overlooking all living beings from a high position, tired of the pain and boring gaze of all life, so that there is no more emotional indifference.

——That was only once, like a flash in the pan, and soon, it became gentle again.

"It was unbearable pain, but he just wanted to live." Thorn Bird's tone was a little sad, "I don't want to live without life."

—like the Thorn Bird.