American Farmers: Facing a Cutoff at the Start

Chapter 20 The King

Lai stretched out his hand and gripped the still-warm knife handle.

Not only is the warm, smooth texture of the burl surprising, but the overall feel of the knife is even more astonishing.

This heavy Bowie knife, which is 15 inches long and has a thick spine, doesn't feel heavy at all when held in the hand.

The center of gravity is perfectly controlled with the handguard positioned slightly forward.

Lyra flicked her wrist slightly, and the blade sliced through the air with a low "whoosh".

The knife strikes precisely where the wrist moves, stopping and changing direction without any hesitation.

Fett turned around and pulled a solid brass rod, a quarter inch in diameter, from the pile of junk, and tossed it onto the wooden stump covered in knife marks.

"Just cutting paper is meaningless."

He stepped back and raised his chin: "Come on, cut it off."

Leila looked at the bronze rod on the wooden stump, then at the mirror-like, exquisite blade in her hand, and stopped moving.

"Are you really going to cut it?"

She frowned, her voice full of concern: "This knife is made like a work of art... If it chipped, all the effort we put in last night would be wasted."

"Cut without worry."

Fett crossed his arms and said with certainty, "This is high-carbon steel, and that's brass."

"If it can't even cut through this limp copper rod, I'll just throw this knife back into the furnace and reforge it."

Leila took a deep breath and no longer hesitated.

She gripped the knife hilt with both hands, planted her feet firmly in a horse stance, raised the knife high, and brought it down hard on the brass rod.

"when!"

A crisp metallic clang rang out in the garage.

The brass rod snapped in two, the broken end spinning as it flew out and landed on the concrete with a crisp clang.

Leila felt a slight tremor in the mouth of her hand.

She quickly sheathed the knife and nervously examined the blade at the point of impact under the light.

A distinct golden mark was now visible on the originally shiny blade.

"Did something go wrong?" Leila's heart skipped a beat.

Fett stepped forward, extended his thumb, pressed it against the golden mark, and rubbed it hard.

That's actually brass being less hard than steel, leaving copper powder residue on the blade like crayon when it hits.

As Fett moved, the brass residue was wiped away.

The blade beneath remained a gleaming silver line.

There was no chipping, no breakage, not even a scratch.

"My God..."

Lyra stared at the undamaged blade, then reached out her fingertip and, hesitant to touch it, made a tentative, almost imperceptible, tracing a line across the surface. Her eyes were filled with disbelief.

"This is a solid brass rod, it broke in one stroke, and I didn't even feel a jolt in my hand?"

Fett smiled:

"We've agreed that you'll name this knife."

"I believe you will give it a name that deserves it."

Lyra held the knife up to her eyes and slowly spun it in the dim light.

The brilliant deep golden grain of the Osage orange burl, the rugged back of the blade, and the sharp tip exude an invincible spirit.

The clean, decisive cut that just made through the brass was like a monarch's power of life and death over his subjects.

Lyra looked up, her eyes, which reflected the glint of a blade, shining with an astonishing light:

"Look at it, covered in gold, indestructible."

"It doesn't seem like a soldier, it's more like a ruler."

She took a deep breath and spoke solemnly:

"Let's call it 'King'."

Fett looked at the Bowie knife, which gleamed under the light, and pondered the name for a moment.

It's wild and domineering enough, befitting the quality of this top-grade burl and this knife.

He nodded:

"Okay, I'll do as you say."

"Let's call it—King."

Watching Lyra repeatedly trace the burl pattern on the hilt with her fingers, Fett said, "Since you like it so much, it's yours."

"Anyway, there are still a lot of leaf springs left. As you can see, it only takes me half a day to forge a knife."

"I have enough time now to raise the money I haven't been able to pay off the loan by forging knives."

Leila stopped moving.

She looked up, her eyes filled with longing, but she resolutely pushed the knife back:

"No!"

"Even if you can forge more knives to sell and pay off your loan, these are essential for you to enter the knife-forging competition."

"Moreover, this burl is only this big; very few knives of this quality could be made."

"If you sell this knife, given its condition, it'll fetch the price of several knives. That way, you can make fewer knives and avoid working so hard."

She placed the knife on the worktable, her hands behind her back:

"I can't accept this; it's too expensive."

"Then I'll lend it to you."

Fett took the knife and handed it back to him:

"Take it home and play with it for a night."

"Give it back to me in a couple of days, is that alright?"

Lyra looked down at the heavy weapon, bit her lip, hesitated for a second, then smiled and nodded vigorously:

"Okay! Just for one night!"

"I'll take it back and show it off to my dad!"

"It's getting dark, and Dad said the woods nearby aren't safe."

"Let's go, I'll take you home."

Fett turned off the garage lights and pulled down the roller shutter.

The two walked out of the farm gate and onto the gravel road connecting the two farms.

There are no streetlights on the rural roads on a winter night.

Only the cold moonlight shone on the road, casting a pale glow.

On the other side of the road was a dense primeval forest, with dry branches reaching towards the sky like ghostly claws. The dark depths of the forest seemed like a giant black hole, swallowing all light.

After walking only a few dozen yards, Fett realized something was wrong.

It's too quiet.

Since receiving the reward of enhanced hearing, he has become exceptionally sensitive to sound.

At this moment, in this deathly silence, one sound is exceptionally clear.

"Huff... huff..."

It sounded like the breathing of something.

At the same time, a familiar pale blue light screen suddenly exploded on his retina:

[A deadly crisis detected!]

Option 1: [The Cold-Blooded Sprinter]

Abandon Lyra and immediately turn and run at full speed. Lyra will be torn to shreds by the enraged boar, while you will survive unscathed. (Bonus: Slightly increased running speed)

Option Two: [The Unfortunate Bird of a Feather]

They dragged Lyra along as they ran back to the farm. Due to their slow speed, they were severely injured by a wild boar and both ended up in the intensive care unit. (Reward: Lyra Green's favorability +5)

Option 3: [The Brave Fighter]

Let Lyra go first, stay behind alone, and draw your hunting knife to confront her head-on. (Reward: Slightly improves physical attributes, Lyra Green's favorability +15)

Wild boar?

That fishy, pungent smell carried by the wind, and those heavy, labored breathing sounds—it couldn't be wrong.

Fett glanced at Lyra beside him.

The girl was looking at him with a smile, not even looking where she was going.

Option one, run?

He looked at Leila's face and mentally crossed himself out.

He abandoned the girl and ran away.

Although it was completely unharmed, but...

He can't.

Option two: Run together, then end up in the ICU together?

Fett sneered inwardly.

This is America.