NOVEL NEXT Chapter 735: Small World – Brown Village
Isaac's Little World, Brown Village,
In that forgotten corner, there lies such an ordinary yet solitary little village.
The entire village is filled with low houses, as if bent by the weight of time, heavy and pressed upon the Earth.
In the distance, the unending mountains and dense forests appear like the spine of a giant beast, looming with an unyielding majesty.
The houses in the village are all roughly built with coarse wood and hard stones, looking quite shabby.
It seems as if a slightly stronger wind could blow them apart.
Chill seeps through the cracks in the walls, recounting the hardships and struggles of life.
On the roofs, a few broken tiles press against the withered thatch, swaying precariously, ready to fall at any moment.
Adding another touch of sorrow to these already fragile homes.
Most houses in the village are in this condition, as if covered in a gray, gloomy tone.
From the sparse setup outside the straw houses, it's not hard to see how harsh life is for the people here.
In front of the houses, a few strands of fur and jerky sway gently in the wind, with some wild fruits hanging out to dry in a wooden frame.
Those are the spoils of their hunting, and almost the sole source of their livelihood.
The fur is dull, the jerky appears shriveled and small, revealing an indescribable poverty and hardship.
The adults in the village busily move about with numb expressions; the spark in their eyes long gone, leaving only endless fatigue and helplessness.
The women mechanically repeat their tasks, striving diligently for the next meal.
The grown men leave the village early in the morning, going deep into the mountains to hunt.
Their hands are rough and cracked, covered in thick calluses, marks left by long years of labor.
In this barren land, they use their hands to arduously maintain their family's livelihood, yet always seeing no hope for the future.
In the entire village, only the children's faces still retain a bit of vigor, but they dare not make loud noises.
They know how difficult their living environment is, the older children have already started helping out at home.
Only the younger ones play carefreely.
And Belial is among those in between.
His father York being the best Hunter in Brown Village, their family's life is considered quite good in the village.
Compared to his other little companions, at least he has enough to eat.
But Belial is not yet old enough, his strength still small, not yet able to follow the adults out for hunting.
After finishing some chores at home, he has plenty of time to play freely.
However, the atmosphere in the village has been heavy these last few days, even Grandpa Haji the Village Chief has a worried look.
Belial and his little companions also dare not play loudly in the village.
Thus, the children prefer going to the small hill outside the village to play.
That hill is just outside to the east of the village, next to the dirt road leading from Brown Village to Zeke City.
Brown Village, living off hunting, has long since cleared the surrounding areas of beasts.
To find prey, they need to go deep into the mountains to harvest enough game.
So, the adults in the village feel at ease letting the children play near the village.
"Belial, do you know what's been happening lately?"
"I always feel something's off recently, the adults seem to be worried about something?"
"Belial, don't you feel there's something strange about the village's atmosphere lately?"
After playing around for a while, all the children sit on the highest rock of the small hill.
This huge stone has been here for who knows how long, its surface smooth, enough for all the children to sit on.
"I know a little bit."
Belial nodded, speaking softly.
"Ah? What is it, what is it?"
The nearby children, hearing this, quickly asked Belial.
"I heard my father and mother talking, it seems like the tax collectors from Zeke City will be coming this year."
"A couple of days ago, a messenger from Zeke City came to see Grandpa Haji the Village Chief, about this matter..."
Belial thought for a moment, then softly said.
As if not wanting to be overheard by outsiders, though there were only these children here.
"People from Zeke City?"
"I heard the adults say that Zeke City is really beautiful, the city walls are more than ten meters high!"
"But don't tax collectors come every year?"
"There wasn't this kind of situation before, was there?"
The nearby children were chattering.
"Oh, I've heard this year the Hunting Temple in Zeke City will hold the Lune Hunting Ceremony."
"If you pass the Great Hunting Ceremony, you can join the Hunting Temple, receive the God of Hunting's blessings, and wield extremely powerful strength!"
Belial declared firmly.
"Wow!!!"
The surrounding children gasped in amazement upon hearing Belial's words.
The children of Brown Village grew up listening to various stories, most of which were about the greatness of the God of Hunting and the legendary tales of the strong in the Hunting Temple.
The people of Brown Village may never leave here in their lifetime, not even visiting the distant Zeke City.
The children's understanding of the outside world can only be derived from these stories.
They are quite curious about the outside world, especially Zeke City.
"So can we participate in this Great Hunting Ceremony?"
"It seems...maybe..."
Faced with their companions' inquiries, Belial wasn't very sure as he replied.
In fact, what he knows was learned from secretly listening to his father and mother talking.