Chapter 428 Relative Trial

"This is... Auroa?"

"It's amazing."

Passing through dense forests and hills, wearing clothes made of lion skin.

As dusk approached, Hercules finally found the place the old man had mentioned before.

Before arriving, the young hero had made many guesses about this place.

Primitive fences, a life of eating raw meat and drinking blood.

Ancient and bloody priest dances, or warriors painted with various strange symbols.

This is not something he made up out of thin air, but the rumors among the human kingdom are indeed like this.

These humans in the north of the continent seem to be more talented in the flesh, but because of their barbaric belief in evil gods, they lack the light of civilization.

However, now seeing it with his own eyes, everything in front of him surprised Hercules greatly.

A city built in the mountains and forests, with such a scale, is rare even in the outside world.

Especially the vaguely visible temple in the city... What is the difference between this place and the city-states in the outside world?

"Why, our brave hero seems a little surprised by this?"

The welcoming team sang a melodious tune, and the children with curiosity and longing in their eyes watched from a distance.

Cologne took the young hero to the city and discovered his doubts at the right time.

"Yes, everything here is indeed different from what is circulated outside."

"Especially... these temples and their shapes seem to be a little different."

Stepping into the city gate, he just passed by a tall building.

Hercules was somewhat surprised to find that this was actually the temple of Zephyrus, the god of the west wind.

But what surprised him even more was that the specifications of this temple were obviously different from what he had seen in the outside world, and there were deficiencies in many places.

"Haha, this is not surprising, because including the one you see, they are all temples built a long time ago."

"At that time, the God King had not yet canonized the twelve main gods, and the God of the West Wind was only a close minister of the God King. His temples were naturally restricted in some aspects."

With a calm voice, Cologne introduced like a treasure: "As for why there are so many temples here, it is also a legacy of the past."

"They were like this from the beginning, and have been passed down to this day."

"It was like this from the beginning...?"

Hercules was a little surprised with a slight change in his expression.

In his impression, the God King canonized the main gods, which seemed to be a long time ago.

He didn't even know whether the fourth generation of humans was born at that time, or maybe it was born, but there was no text recording that period of time.

So this is actually a thousand-year-old ancient city, it was built a long time ago, and it was even more advanced than the human kingdom outside at that time.

"Haha, these are all old stories, not worth mentioning."

"Hero who came from afar, I can tell you the history of this city later, but before that, please allow me to entertain you here on behalf of the residents of the city."

"You killed the giant lion that was endangering one side, and everyone in the city is eager to hear your story."

"We have prepared a banquet for you in the center of the city, please don't refuse."

"...Okay."

Although there are still many doubts, Hercules nodded in agreement.

But before that, he asked the questions he had accumulated for a long time.

"Before I came to this forest, I had heard many legends about the giant lion of Nomisa."

"It is said that it is not only cruel by nature, but also controlled by an evil god."

"As a local, have you heard of the existence of an 'evil god' nearby?"

"Evil god? That's not the case."

Shaking his head slightly, the old man seemed very surprised.

"It's probably a rumor. We have lived here quietly for so many years."

"Hero who came from afar, do you think there are evil gods here?"

"... It's not like that."

Everyone lives and works in peace and contentment, and people in various clothes walk in the city.

Looking at the happy and peaceful residents in the city, Hercules still said this despite a sense of weirdness in his heart.

After all, such a city does not look like there are evil gods.

Maybe it's really a rumor... Rumors stop at the wise. After he leaves, he will tell the people of the outside countries everything that is true here.

...

Flames ignited in the center of Auroa.

Walking all the way, he came to the core of the city.

On a high stone platform, Hercules saw a groove that seemed to be filled with animal fat.

The flames burned on it, and the symbol of the goddess of the hearth was engraved next to the stone platform.

It looks a bit like a sacred fire altar, but it is so similar to the altar today... Looking at this scene, Hercules confirmed that this city is indeed a bit old.

"Sizzle--"

The fire was set up, and the meat was emitting oil.

A large amount of food was brought up and filled the temporary venue.

Barrels of wine were poured into cups, and there were many kinds of fruits.

The young hero was surprised again, not only because of the abundance of products here, but also because the people here were obviously not so eager for such a feast.

As the old man said, they were just looking forward to the young hero telling about his experience fighting demons.

This made Hercules feel a sense of being valued, which he had never felt before.

"What a rich city."

With a sigh, the young hero asked:

"How many settlements like this are there here?"

"Of course not many."

Cologne, who looked old, was no longer as tall and strong as he was when he was young, but he was obviously much taller than an ordinary old man.

He picked up the wine glass and said with a smile:

"In fact, there are no other tribes in this forest. Auroa City is the only settlement."

"Within a radius of 100 miles, there are no signs of human activities - you should have seen it along the way, right?"

Nodding silently, Hercules did not see any other signs of human activities.

In fact, if he hadn't seen it with his own eyes, he wouldn't believe that there would be a city here.

But the facts were in front of him after all, so the young hero just smiled.

In front of him, Cologne stood up and raised his glass to invite:

"Hercules, hero from the south of the earth, you have won our respect with your ability."

"Under the witness of God, please allow me to toast you to express my respect for you."

Cologne raised his glass, and the people who came to participate in the banquet also raised their glasses.

Although the two sides did not speak the same language, Hercules still felt their enthusiasm.

There were farmers, priests, and craftsmen; there were old people, teenagers, and children...

The young hero couldn't help but raise his glass when he was revered by so many people for the first time.

He looked at everyone and prepared to say something.

If the Eleusis battle didn't count, this was his first battle since his debut, and it was so memorable...

...?

Hercules raised his glass high, and his smile suddenly disappeared.

He swallowed what he wanted to say, and he looked at the field solemnly, as if he was looking at an enemy.

"Huh?"

Cologne seemed a little surprised. He looked at the hero who was holding a toast and asked:

"Looking at you now, are you dissatisfied with our hospitality?"

"Why are there no women?"

Hercules asked suddenly without turning around after taking a deep breath.

"...This is one of our traditions. There shouldn't be women at such a banquet to welcome heroes."

After a pause, Cologne replied.

"Really? But there are not even girls here..."

Sweeping the field, the strange feeling before became clear at this moment, and the young hero's thinking was unprecedentedly sharp.

"I'll take this as your custom, then please tell me, what is the food here?"

"...Food?"

Cologne was puzzled.

"Is there anything wrong with this?"

"There are no farmlands, no breeding, no villages, and even as you said, there are no other settlements in this forest."

"A lonely city built in such a vast forest, tell me, where does your food come from?"

"...Of course it's because of the existence of gods."

Cologne replied, still smiling on his face.

"The power of God can solve many things... So do you have any questions?"

"If not, please allow me to continue to toast you for the respect of the Oroya people."

"What if I refuse?"

Putting down the wine glass, Hercules asked calmly.

"Refuse... Why refuse?"

Cologne's smile remained unchanged, and there was a hint of inexplicable emotion in his eyes.

"You don't have to do this."

"Yes, why refuse?"

This time, the voice came from behind, and Hercules turned his head subconsciously.

The person who just spoke was a being wearing a sacrificial robe, and he seemed to have the mark of the god of war painted on him.

"This is..."

"Yes... Why refuse..."

Without waiting for a reaction, hundreds of voices sounded at the same time, and Hercules turned around again.

The people at the entire banquet were maintaining the appearance of raising their glasses and smiling at him.

Uniform voices, almost identical smiles.

At this moment, even Hercules felt a chill in his heart.

This does not mean that he is afraid, because this is the instinctive reaction of humans to the unknown.

Living, dead, or not human... There is no such thing as the "uncanny valley" in this world, but the effect is the same.

However, in front of Hercules, everything is far from over.

In the past days, he has never seen such a situation.

"... Yes..."

"... Why..."

"... Why-"

"... Why!"

The voice came from inside the city and from outside the city.

He saw someone standing on the roof and birds flying to the treetops.

Whether it was human or beast, whether on the ground or in the sky.

Countless lives were singing in unison as if they were singing a grand song.

"Why... refuse?"

His expression suddenly changed. This time, Hercules was surprised to find that the voice came from his body.

He lowered his head... What he saw was the fur of the giant lion that opened its mouth to speak.

······

Boom--

The earth shook slightly, and in the corner of the city, a young man was carving a wooden sculpture.

In just three or two cuts, the general outline of a puppet had already appeared.

The loud noise in the city center was like an accompaniment, without affecting the stability of the arms at all.

As if nothing had happened, Ander quietly completed his work.

There is a reason for everything.

Just like the rumor that the Nomisa giant lion was controlled by the evil god, it was also true.

Long ago, when Ander found the lion, his fate was doomed.

After all, although the giant lion has an invulnerable body, it is obvious that Ander has never really relied on the body.

Just like one thing subdues another, for Ander, controlling the giant lion is not even as difficult as controlling a human strongman.

After all, the latter often has a firm will, while the former does not. In this case, the result is naturally needless to say.

Until today, it was killed. But the "line" connecting it has not been broken.

"...In addition to brute force, it seems that he also has some observation skills, but not much."

"But his will is indeed strong. Even if he didn't drink my wine, it seems that even if he did, my "thread" can't do anything to him."

Although he was not at the scene, everything in the city was obviously not hidden from the observation of the young man.

Bathing in the blood of the giant lion and wearing its fur, in a certain mystical sense, Hercules and the Nomisa giant lion can be equivalent in distortion.

Therefore, the "thread" that Ander parasitized on the giant lion also has the possibility of changing its owner.

However, judging from the final result, although the young hero lacked caution, he did have the ability to deal with the trouble caused by his lack of caution.

Of course, this may also be because he has never been exposed to such a weird method, and he didn't know that just bathing in blood would bring such consequences.

"It's OK. If he can't even resist my ability, how can he do what I can't do?"

"If he can't do what I want, then he might as well stay here and replace the lion as my 'gatekeeper'."

Give the wood carving in his hand a rough shape. When its outline is outlined, the rest is to carve it carefully.

So Ander's movements slowed down, no longer as big as before.

At the same time, in the center of the city, like the accompaniment of his carving, bursts of loud noises never stopped.

The young hero used force to tear open the shackles, trying to find the main messenger behind him.

Boom--

Boom...

...

The vibration continued, and the increasingly strong blood rushed into the sky.

Although such power is not as good as divine power, it seems to be much stronger than many of his demigods.

Ander couldn't help but look sideways. This person is still very young, and his potential has not been fully tapped... For a moment, the young man understood why there was a god behind Hercules.

After a long time, the noise in the city center finally died down.

Until one moment, muffled footsteps came from afar, as if approaching where Ander was.