Chapter 235 - 234: Koba Deceivers

Chapter 235: Chapter 234: Koba Deceivers

"Koba Deceivers?"

Gu Su repeated the two words to himself, his gaze falling on the dark-skinned man.

The sheepskin stuck to his body wasn’t secure. Its edges curled up, revealing a patch of strangely colored skin underneath.

The skin was covered in rows of scars. They weren’t from a knife, but looked more like marks left behind after being repeatedly cut open, healed, and treated time and again.

Seeing those scars, only one thought came to Gu Su’s mind.

’Flaying.’

This discovery made something click for Gu Su.

A word appeared in his mind: Koba.

The moment that word appeared, something was unearthed in Gu Su’s memory. He recalled the bedtime storybook, the Koba District Bedtime Story Collection.

He had always thought the book was about Wisconsin, because all the short stories inside pointed to Wisconsin.

’Thinking about it now, the book’s title was "Koba District," not "Wisconsin District."’

’Wisconsin was a place name in the stories, but Koba District was the original name of this land.’

He pointed at the people and asked, "From the Koba District?"

The dark-skinned man’s body visibly relaxed.

It wasn’t a deliberate relaxation, but more like a taut string had suddenly gone slack. His shoulders sagged half an inch, and his breathing smoothed out.

The people behind him stirred as well. One person poked half their body out from the bushes, another revealed their face from behind the base of a wall. They were still tense, but no longer looked like they were about to bolt at any second.

"Yes, we’re from the Koba District."

The man’s voice was a little louder and steadier than before. "It’s wonderful that you know about us."

Seeing him blurt this out so defenselessly, the Koba Deceivers behind him looked on helplessly, one by one rolling their eyes with utterly speechless expressions.

They had only just met, with no time to probe the other party’s intentions, and here he was, casually spilling their core secret. He was far too trusting.

Fortunately, Gu Su had no intention of deceiving or harming them. Seeing their reactions, he just gave a faint smile and didn’t press his advantage. Instead, he softened his tone and began to converse with them, gently guiding them to reveal more information about this area.

From the dark-skinned man’s account, Gu Su gradually pieced together the connection between the Koba District and Wisconsin, and he also learned the origins of these Koba Deceivers.

As it turned out, the Koba District and Wisconsin were indeed the same place, but they were defined in completely different ways. In the eyes of the pure Aberrations, this land was Wisconsin—their territory and hunting ground.

But for these Deceivers who had escaped from the Aberrations’ demonic claws, this place was the Koba District—a home where they struggled to survive, clinging desperately to life.

The reason they had become these half-human, half-Aberration creatures was not by choice. It was because they, or their ancestors, had once suffered a fatal Attack from an Aberration.

Miraculously, they weren’t killed outright by the Aberration. Instead, driven by an intense will to live, they managed to escape its grasp through some little-known, special method.

But because of this, they were tainted with a thick aura of the Aberrations. Over time, they mutated into their current forms—neither fully human nor pure Aberration.

They usually hid among the ruins of abandoned manors, scraping by on whatever supplies they could scavenge. Occasionally, under the cover of night, they would sneak into the Inverted Tower to find food and scarce Resources to stay alive. Life was exceptionally difficult.

The dark-skinned man went on to explain that their physical appearances were actually a subtle clue as to the type of Aberration they had encountered.

Those like himself, covered in various Beast Skins, were all survivors of an attack by the Mill Flayer. The Beast Skins served as both a covering and a mark of their suffering.

As for the scars Gu Su had seen, they were indeed the handiwork of the Mill Flayer.

They were another mark it left on them.

When they escaped from the Mill Flayer, they were already tainted with its aura. From then on, they had to cover themselves in other skins—sheepskin, cowhide, deerskin, anything would do—as long as they didn’t expose their own.

If they did, that thing would come for them.

Hearing this, Gu Su asked, "Do you know of a Princess Bai Xue?"

The dark-skinned man paused for a moment, then smiled.

"Yes, of course," the man said, turning back to Gu Su. "She’s one who survived the Little Butcher. But when she escaped, she wasn’t a little girl anymore. She was a pig—one that hadn’t been slaughtered..."

From the man’s description, Gu Su learned about Princess Bai Xue’s situation.

Unlike with the Mill Flayer, those who escaped from the Little Butcher would slowly turn into pigs.

Normally, children who turned into pigs couldn’t survive for long. After all, they lacked the skills to fend for themselves.

But Princess Bai Xue was different. That girl was incredibly clever.

Not only did she survive, but she also devoured the Little Butcher who had turned her into a pig. She was a formidable being who had survived alone in this land of Aberrations for a very long time.

Her original home was none other than Turbo Manor, the very place Gu Su’s Graveyard Demon had completely devoured.

It was the home she depended on for survival, her only safe haven in this perilous land.

The Graveyard Demon’s consumption of it was tantamount to destroying her home. This thoroughly enraged her, driving her to charge recklessly at the Graveyard Demon, wanting to completely destroy the mobile territory that had ruined her home and get justice for herself.

As he spoke of this, the dark-skinned man’s tone became much more placid, and his face showed no trace of sympathy.

"But we don’t care about any of that. We Koba Deceivers have no deep ties between our manors. We are merely aware of each other’s existence, staying out of each other’s way and focusing on our own survival. Her home being destroyed has nothing to do with us."

After saying all this, the man made a request of Gu Su.

Gu Su could take some things from the manor before them.

But they asked that he not tear the entire manor up by its roots.

They still needed to live here.

Most importantly, although the stables, sheep pens, and cattle sheds here were all abandoned, they would still produce some Leather from time to time, which was essential for their survival.

If those things were gone, they would be doomed.

Gu Su fell silent for a moment at this request.

"Sparing your manor is possible.

But my Graveyard Demon also needs land. I need to know where I can let my Graveyard Demon grow.

Besides, you must be considered an outer manor, right?

Do you have a main city?

If so, can you contact it?"

Hearing Gu Su’s questions, the man fell silent for a moment before replying, "I’ve heard of a city made up of Deceivers, but I don’t know where it is..."