Marvel Magic Case Files

Chapter 1232 The Long Night (First Update)

Laura Crawford returned twice that night.

The first time was at 9 PM, and the second time was at midnight.

Superuliulmas and the sentries of Camilla's squad moved stealthily past the hall filled with sleeping tribal warriors to meet her and Amon. The former was to confirm the progress of the exploration and report it to the Skysword command center hovering in orbit, while the latter was to ensure that the other members of Camilla's squad were aware of the situation. Laura Crawford was also quite willing to use the Praetorian Guard's powerful language system to solve the puzzle.

The rainforest has a humid and hot climate, so the indigenous people don't need much clothing to keep warm; all their clothing is quite light. This lack of understanding of clothing also meant that the indigenous people rarely invented armor to defend against attacks throughout history. Even during the Inca Empire, they only used helmets made of wood, copper, bronze, rattan, or animal hides to protect themselves, and added some cotton or small wooden boards to their battle robes for extra protection.

But tonight, Unuratu had to order more fires lit to illuminate the darkness. She had to contend with the plummeting temperatures caused by the frequent downpours, soothe the elderly and children awakened by the earth-shaking with warm food, and then force the tribal warriors to continue resting. She declared that tomorrow would be the day of the decisive battle, that the ancient enemy was approaching, and that all warriors must be prepared to fight to the death for their families.

Supiluliumas observed the woman with admiration. He found that Onuratu had done her best within the limited scope of her knowledge. Even though she already knew the facts, she still chose a more inspiring method to boost morale.

"I don't understand why someone with your abilities would be expelled from Paititi by the Kukulkan Order." Supiluliumas's tone was slightly different when he spoke Quechua. All the guards were quite handsome, and even in the dim light, he could still make Onuratu blush. "If you've always been like this, I don't believe Pedro Domigus and the Holy Trinity could have driven you to this point."

“Then I will die on that stone throne, whether Amaru likes it or not.” Onuratu’s light brown face, glistening with sweat in the firelight, was noticed by Supiluliumas in the sorrow lingering in her dark eyes. “Amaru is a puppet, always has been, even if he doesn’t think so himself. It is the Order that is using him, not him using the Order. When he used the Order to dethrone me, he couldn’t escape.”

Supilulimas tucked the garrison spear into his arms, folded his hands, and prepared to listen to the account of the legitimate queen of Paititi. Onuratu continued, "What the Kukulkan Order can give him, it can also take away. I believe Amaru understands this. He wants to rebel, but he cannot succeed, and neither can I. Just as what happened when the Incas saw the Spaniards in their metal armor, history will repeat itself on this land."

"So you've placed your hopes on the next generation, that boy," Supiluliumas said. "I heard you want him to succeed you."

Onuratu nodded, not dwelling too much on how the Imperial Guards learned of the news.

“Etzli was the son of Seri, the previous king of Paititi and my husband. If it weren’t for your arrival, he would have faced a time of war. In the past, when a strange famine struck Paititi, Seri felt it was his responsibility to feed the villagers, so he went hunting alone outside the village, hoping to feed them with the prey. Then he died there…” At this point, Onuratu’s eyes revealed an anger that Supiluliumas had never seen in her before, and even the words that followed were filled with deep-seated hatred. “I don’t know the real cause of his death, because at that time his brother Amaru controlled Paititi. Amaru was heartbroken, but I never saw Seri’s body. He claimed that he had buried his brother in the hiding place where he grew up.”

She had wanted to say something more about Ezli, as the child didn't quite satisfy her. But seeing Supilulius's expression, she fell silent. She was certain the Royal Guard had seen her hand the chainsword they had brought to Ezli. The chainsword resembled the maquawitte used by elite South American warriors, but was far sharper and more brutal. Other tribal warriors had also received their own chainswords, but none were as serrated on both sides as that one; it seemed the Royal Guard had brought it specifically for this moment.

It took her a while to calm down, and Supiluliumama deliberately waited for a while.

"It sounds like a very complicated story. The preliminary investigation report didn't contain any information about Amaru's true identity and status," Subilulimas raised an eyebrow. Onuratu suddenly realized that she had never seen the Royal Guards sitting before; it seemed that standing made them more comfortable. Nevertheless, Subilulimas bowed for her. "Our Lord is not keen on gathering intelligence in this area because the military strength of Paititi and even Peru is quite weak, but he is still willing to resolve the issue peacefully."

"You didn't act on a whim?" This possibility sent a chill down Onuratu's spine. The guards waved their hands frantically to prevent the woman from doing anything irrational in her extreme fear.

"The awakening of Quetzalcoatl is no small matter. Long ago, our Lord was concerned about a catastrophic event that could lead to global extinction and made extensive preparations. This includes the mechanical planet I mentioned, and many warriors and chariots will soon arrive in this forest to fight alongside you against the enemy. However, the opponents of those warriors are not ordinary people, but beings that are far more... far more evil. You must believe that the challenges this planet faces are not limited to Quetzalcoatl; all calamities and evils are enemies of our Lord."

"A warrior like you?" Onuratu said. "I can't imagine what kind of person could create a warrior like you. Tell me about your master, or I might die tomorrow at the hands of the Order, by Amaru or some nameless nobody."

Supiluliumas did not explain the difference between the Praetorian Guard and the genetically modified warriors, because he knew Onuratu wouldn't understand. "You will see the arrival of an era of equality, reason, and science," he said. "Our Lord will fight for this his entire life, as will I. He hopes many people can live in that era, and I also hope you can leave this place and live in the glorious era our Lord has created."

Around 3 a.m., a mysterious figure arrived at the rebel camp, but no one except the still-conscious Royal Guard knew of it; even the equally conscious Camilla squad couldn't see him. The stranger lingered for about ten minutes, then vanished like a bubble in the firelight, disappearing into faint specks. Around 4 a.m., Laura Crawford and Amon returned to the camp. The archaeologist, extremely tired, greeted Amon and, carrying the artifacts and clues she had gathered that night, found a place to lie down and fell asleep, completely unaware of the whispered conversation between Supilulius and Amon.

"We encountered those mysterious creatures called Yaaxil at the Eye of the Serpent. Laura Crawford believes they might be the Pistako." After a brief exchange with Supiluliumas, Amon also solemnly presented the information he had obtained.

The so-called Yasok bears a striking resemblance to the Pistaco mythology of the Andean region of South America, a legend that can even be traced back to the Spanish conquest of South America. There are many reasons for this, including the Andean mythology's belief in human fat, and the stories of Spanish colonists using the fat of local corpses to treat wounds and lubricate guns and cannons to prevent metal from rusting in the Amazon region.

Those people, whom the Paititi people call Yasok, painted their skin deathly white, cut off their lips, and decorated themselves with thorns and animal horns, but this horrific sight was not Amon's focus.

“I saw religion and witchcraft,” he told Supiluliumas. “Those Yasok definitely have a leader. When Laura Crawford led me into a cave, we were attacked by the Yasok, but we had to retreat because of her poor condition. However, they stopped pursuing us after we left. I’m pretty sure what she’s looking for is there. Once she’s recovered, I’ll set off again to kill all the Yasok and find out the truth.”

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(End of this chapter)