"Put it on."
A pile of monster hides fell in front of the shivering women by the wall.
The women looked towards the voice. It was 'Shan'.
After dropping the hides, 'Shan' returned to the stone pot.
The women looked at each other.
They didn't know why they had to cover themselves with these things.
After a moment of hesitation, they obediently draped the monster hides over themselves.
As their bodies were covered, the night wind didn't seem as strong.
Their bodies gradually began to warm up.
Unlike the men, they had been confined all their lives and had never seen the outside world.
As long as they obeyed, they wouldn't be beaten.
And they would get good rewards.
Therefore, compared to resisting, their subservience was stronger.
Coupled with their lack of strength,
— The men only had brief encounters with the women when the monsters herded them into the nursery.
And with monsters constantly guarding them, there was no opportunity for anything else.
It would likely take some time before they could stand up for themselves.
...
The soup in the stone pot bubbled, with a layer of oil forming on the surface.
This made everyone, who had been surviving on dry rations for years, salivate.
Saliva uncontrollably dripped from the corners of their mouths.
Their stomachs rumbled even louder.
Gurgle—
Gurgle gurgle— Gurgle—
No one laughed or spoke.
The firewood crackled with a faint popping sound.
Everyone's attention was completely captivated by the contents of the stone pot.
Gurgle~
The one called 'Nian', who was good at catching chickens, swallowed audibly.
He first tested the poison with a small mouse.
Then, he took out a stone bowl as large as a washbasin,
and filled it with a bowl full of soup and meat.
While swallowing his saliva, he handed the stone bowl to Number One beside him.
"Boss, you try it first!"
As for why it was a stone bowl, it was because the monsters did the same.
The little monsters could naturally wait for the stone pot to cool down a bit.
One mouthful, then another.
They quickly slurped it all down.
Everyone watched as Number One took the stone bowl, and they also modestly held up their own bowls.
They could be reckless, like the people from other pots earlier.
They were ready to slurp it down directly.
But their pot was different.
This leader deserved such high-class treatment.
They only hoped they wouldn't be disliked.
Everyone watched Number One expectantly, their gazes sharp.
Number One, however, was not reserved.
He picked up the washbasin-sized stone bowl and blew on it.
He slurped down several large mouthfuls while it was still hot.
The warm soup flowed through his stomach, bringing with it a surge of strength.
It flowed to his limbs and bones.
Number One drank several more large mouthfuls, his dark eyes like the finest obsidian.
"Good!"
The tense faces of everyone instantly broke into smiles.
The atmosphere became lively.
One by one, they crowded around the stone pot, holding up their large bowls.
"I knew it would be delicious! Hurry and give me a bowl too!"
"I've lived so many years and never tasted meat."
"Give me more soup!"
The women and children also received their portions.
Everyone got one bowl each; those with less meat got more soup.
They slurped it down greedily, grabbing the chunks of meat with their hands.
In a short while, the soup in the stone pot was completely gone.
They even licked the bottom of the pot clean.
...
Just as everyone's bellies were round and they were lying down on the spot,
at the distant edge of the sky, a figure with wings appeared.
It was flying rapidly towards the stone wall.
The person on guard rubbed his eyes uncertainly, seeing the figure change its shape from moment to moment.
It was growing larger.
Realizing something, his heart began to pound.
He raised his weapon—one end of which was pointed—and shouted at everyone:
"Attention! Attention! Another one!"
"Another one is coming!"
Hearing the unclear words, everyone was confused for a second.
Then they understood.
They quickly looked up at the sky.
When they were dealing with the monster corpses earlier, several patrolling monsters had returned.
The result, of course, was that Number One had dealt with them.
They had all skinned them together.
To prevent any oversight, they had someone on rotation for guard duty.
... Just like how the monsters usually guarded the stone wall.
They were imitating them.
"Alert!"
Seeing the bird's wings approaching from afar, 'Shan' shouted.
Everyone, who had been lying down contentedly moments before, instantly became serious.
They flipped over and sat up, their hands reaching for their weapons.
Some were stone spikes, others were monster weapons.
Number One also slowly stood up, squinting at the figure in the sky.
... I wonder what a bird-person tastes like.
As he was thinking,
he noticed another figure on the bird-person.
It looked like someone was riding on it.
"Wait, don't attack yet, wait for it to fly closer."
After speaking, Number One leaped a few times and landed on the stone wall.
Everyone remained tense.
Although confused,
they still did not throw their weapons.
They kept an eye on the bird-person in the sky, waiting for Number One's next command.
Whoosh—
Whoosh—
The wings flapped rapidly, creating gusts of wind.
Under everyone's gaze,
the bird-person flew closer, circled once above the stone houses,
and then slowly landed on the stone wall.
At this point, everyone could finally see the bird-person clearly.
It had a bird's body and human wings, appearing to be a girl of sixteen or seventeen.
But her wings and ears were a fiery red, with overlapping bird feathers.
On its back, there was another...
child?
"Number Two!"
Number One on the stone wall's eyes lit up.
"Number One!"
Number Two jumped down from the bird's back.
The two children hugged each other happily.
They had fallen together initially, but their landing spots were tens of thousands of miles apart.
"Where have you been all this time? How did you find your way here?" Number One asked.
Number Two pointed in a direction: "I don't know where I fell, but it was full of strange guys around.
Later, I heard there were people here, and children, so I thought I'd come and see.
I ate something poisonous halfway and almost died."
Number One looked at the 'mount' behind him, finding it somewhat familiar: "This is?"
Number Two also looked at the fiery red bird-person and explained:
"Didn't I almost die from poisoning? I lay on the ground for three days and three nights.
This monster thought I was dead and wanted to bury me.
I subdued it and rode it over."
Bury him?
This operation felt so familiar!
Number One thought for a moment and then realized:
"I remember now! After I fell to the ground that day, she almost buried me too!
What a coincidence!"
In an instant, the brothers' gazes towards the monster softened considerably.