Scarecrow No, That's the Totem of the Old Ones

Early morning, the first ray of sunlight pierced through the thin mist, illuminating the roofs of Buena Village.

Lynch stretched lazily and sat up from the bed.

He felt his bones crackle all over, bursting with so much energy that it felt like he could plow ten acres of fields.

Is this the physical fitness of a Tier 2? I love it.

Ever since that final overtime massage yesterday, Felsy's physical recovery progress had finally broken through the 1 percent threshold, and he naturally completed his advancement quest.

Looking at it now, not only had his total mana capacity doubled, but his spirit and vitality had also improved by several levels.

"Not bad at all..."

Lynch hummed a little tune as he got dressed. Just as he was about to head to the kitchen to make breakfast, the elusive system notification sound suddenly rang out in his mind.

Ding!

Detected the host's hard work and selfless dedication yesterday!

The World-Destroying Witch's affection towards you has slightly fluctuated! As a reward, the system is issuing a special Home Defense Construction reward!

Reward: Blueprint - Abyss Gazer

Item Description: This is a watcher totem originating from the ancient abyss. Wherever it stands, all things fall silent, and living beings tremble. Its hollow gaze will constantly watch everything around it. Any hostile intruder, the moment they step into the territory, will suffer a terrifying deterrence and spiritual lashing from the depths of their soul.

"Abyss Gazer?"

Lynch froze for a moment, then pulled up the blueprint.

On the yellowed parchment, a strange structure was drawn: a cross made of a few wooden sticks, draped in a tattered black robe. The head was an empty hood, pitch black inside with nothing at all. At its waist hung a bell shaped like a skull.

Lynch looked left and right, examining it from every angle.

Finally, he slapped his thigh in sudden realization:

"Ah! Isn't this just a scarecrow?!"

"System, really, can't you come up with a more grounded name? What Abyss Gazer, making it sound like a horror movie. Isn't this just the thing we use in the countryside to scare off birds and prevent small animals from stealing fruits?"

Although he complained verbally, Lynch was quite satisfied with this reward.

Recently, his mutated herb garden was growing too well. The purple leaves and fruits of Buena No. 1 not only caught people's eyes but also attracted quite a few silly birds and wild hares from the mountains.

A couple of days ago, he even found digging marks by the fence, clearly indicating a thief had visited.

"Perfect. I'll make a scarecrow and put it at the door. It can prevent birds and also add a bit of... uh, rustic charm to the house?"

He did as he said.

After breakfast, Lynch called over Kuma, who was sweeping the yard (but was actually practicing swordsmanship with the broom).

"Kuma, stop practicing and come help me with something."

"We are going to do a big project!"

Hearing the words big project, Kuma's ears instantly perked up.

Could it be building a magic cannon tower? Or digging a lava moat leading to the center of the earth?

"Coming, coming! Brother Lynch, what are we building?" Kuma excitedly threw away the broom and trotted over happily.

"Building this."

Lynch spread the system blueprint out in front of Kuma. "We are going to set up a scarecrow at the yard gate to guard against those gluttonous beasts."

Kuma took a closer look.

At that moment, she felt a cold, piercing chill shoot straight up her spine to the top of her skull.

In her eyes, which possessed the Eye of True Sight, how was this a blueprint? This was clearly a demonic contract still dripping with black slime!

The lines drawn on it were twisted and bizarre, as if containing some indescribable evil laws.

Just looking at it once made her hear countless vengeful souls howling in her ears.

"Th-this is..."

Kuma's teeth chattered, her face turning pale. "This is a... spiritual pollution totem from the ancient demon realm?!"

"What totem? It's just a scarecrow."

Lynch had already started rummaging for materials in the yard's pile of clutter. "Look, these few rotten logs will be the frame, that old cloak you didn't want to wear last time (which was actually Lynch's own old raincoat) will be the clothes, and then we'll go ask Felsy for a broken wind chime to use as a bell... all done!"

Kuma watched Lynch collect those things, which to her radiated an ominous aura as cursed mediums, like he was picking up trash. She was completely numb.

Too terrifying!

This man actually referred to making such a taboo cursed object as doing crafts?

And he wanted to stand it at the yard gate? Did he think there were too many living creatures around here? This was creating a dead zone where no living person could enter!

Although she was scared to death inside, under Lynch's kind gaze, Kuma still yielded.

"Hold this wood straight, yes, just like that."

"Tilt it slightly to the left, it looks more... uh, artistic that way."

Lynch directed while working with his hands.

For some reason, when Lynch's hands touched those ordinary pieces of wood and cloth, Kuma terrifyingly discovered that the materials seemed to be infused with some demonic nature.

What was originally just ordinary dead wood, after Lynch carved it a few times, unexpectedly had twisted lines resembling a human face emerge on its surface.

That ordinary old black raincoat, after being draped over the frame, actually moved without wind, as if it truly wrapped an invisible ghost inside.

Especially that bell.

It was a rusty copper bell Lynch had dug out from the corner of the warehouse, which originally barely even made a sound.

But after a slight adjustment by Lynch, the moment it was hung up—

Ding...

An extremely faint sound, yet one that seemed able to pierce the eardrums, made Kuma cover her ears on the spot, feeling like her brains were boiling.

"Alright! Mission accomplished!"

Lynch clapped the dust off his hands, took two steps back, and appreciatively admired his masterpiece.

At this time, the midday sun was just right.

Next to the newly built fence in the yard stood a black figure over two meters tall.

It had no face; under the hood was a profound darkness.

The tattered black robe fluttered loudly in the cold wind, and the copper bell at its waist swayed occasionally with the wind, letting out bizarre, crisp chimes.

No matter how one looked at it, it exuded a gloomy and evil aura.

But in Lynch's eyes—

"Not bad, not bad, a unique shape, it really has that... postmodern decadent aesthetic."

Lynch rubbed his chin and commented, "Now those timid birds definitely won't dare to come. Kuma, do you think it looks very imposing?"

Kuma shrank behind Lynch, her tail tucked tightly between her legs, and said with a crying tone:

"Im-imposing... Too imposing... I feel like it's looking at me... Wuu wuu wuu..."

"Silly child, that's just an empty frame, where are the eyes to look at you?" Lynch smiled and rubbed her head. "Alright, good job, go back to the house and rest. I'll go see if Felsy is awake."

Inside the main house.

Felsy was not taking a nap.

From the moment Lynch started working, she had been standing behind the curtains, quietly watching all of this.

As a Tier 9 powerhouse, her perception far exceeded Kuma's.

At the exact moment the totem named "Abyssal Gazer" was completed, Felsy clearly saw it—

A visible, dark-gray ripple of spiritual energy instantly expanded from the scarecrow at its center, covering a radius of five hundred meters.

It was an incredibly high-tier mental law: Fear Aura and Chaos Field.

Enveloped by this ripple, the sparrows that had been chirping outside the courtyard walls instantly lost their voices as if they had been choked, then fell stiffly from the branches, clearly having fainted from sheer terror.

Even a few hundred meters away in the grass, several foraging field mice seemed to go mad, beginning to tear at each other or desperately ramming into trees to commit suicide.

"..."

Felsy withdrew her gaze and looked down at her own hands.

Her fingertips were trembling slightly.

Not out of fear, but because of... shock and incomprehension.

The construction technique of that totem seemed rough and casual, but it actually aligned with some ancient law she had never seen before.

The aura of that law belonged neither to the current human magic system, nor entirely to the scorched earth of the Demon Realm she was so familiar with.

It was older, more chaotic, more... primal.

It was like the traces left behind by the Great Old Ones who wandered the void in legends, long before the Demon Realm was even formed.

"Lynch..."

Felsy murmured to herself, her purple eyes flickering with an unprecedentedly complex light.

"Just who... are you?"

"You clearly have no magical fluctuations of a powerhouse, and you seemingly only know how to cook, grow herbs, give massages, and do other mundane chores..."

"Yet, why do you understand this kind of taboo knowledge that even Demon Kings might not grasp?"

"Casually growing mutated demonic plants, casually building ancient totems..."

"Could it be..."

A bold and absurd thought surfaced in Felsy's mind.

Could he be some primordial demon god who grew tired of conflict, chose to seal his own power, and retreated here to live in seclusion?

Perhaps even older than her father?

Is that why he showed no fear towards the so-called "World-Ending Witch," even treating her like an ordinary girl to take care of? Because in his eyes, even the "Crimson Calamity" was nothing more than a little girl who hadn't grown up yet?

Felsy felt her heartbeat skip a beat.

If that was the case...

Then all the care he had shown her over these past few months, those gentle looks, those clumsy yet sincere attempts to please her...

Were they also just a "game" played by a primordial demon god?

Or perhaps...

Click.

The door opened.

Lynch walked in humming a little tune, wearing his signature, harmless smile.

"Wife, are you awake?"

Lynch walked up to her and naturally took her hand. "It's cold outside. I just made a new gadget to keep the birds away, do you want to take a look? Even though it's a bit ugly, it's quite practical."

Felsy looked at the man in front of her.

His palms were warm and dry, the pads of his fingers bearing thin calluses left from years of manual labor. There was no trace of gloom in his smile, only the full warmth of everyday life.

A primordial demon god?

Felsy shook her head inwardly.

What kind of demon god would be so happy just because he made a bird-repelling scarecrow for his wife?

"Yeah, I saw it."

Felsy held his hand in return, her fingertips gently rubbing his palm. Her tone was a bit softer than usual. "It is indeed... very unique."

"The sound of that... bell, is very nice."

"Right! I also think the bell sounds quite crisp." Lynch looked triumphant. "When the wind gets a bit stronger and the sound travels further, those annoying pests won't dare to come near."

Looking at Lynch's completely guileless appearance, the doubts in Felsy's heart did not dissipate; instead, they transformed into an even stronger desire to investigate.

No matter what secrets you are hiding, Lynch.

Whether you are an ordinary person or some hidden supreme expert.

Since you provoked me, since you picked me up and brought me home, and have taken care of me so wholeheartedly...

Then don't even think about getting rid of me easily.

I will peel back your secrets, layer by layer, until I see the very depths of your soul.

"Lynch."

"Hmm?"

"Tonight... I want to eat fish."

Felsy suddenly changed the subject, a hint of slyness flashing in her purple eyes. "The kind you catch with your own hands."

"No problem!" Lynch readily agreed. "I was just thinking of trying to make boiled fish anyway, though I don't know if I can get the flavor right..."

"Then I'll wait for you by the river."

"Eh? It's cold outside..."

"With you here, I'm not cold."

Felsy said softly, turning around and walking toward the door.

As she passed by Lynch, the corners of her lips curled up slightly, revealing a very faint smile that was enough to eclipse the world.

Lynch stood frozen in place.

After a long moment, he clutched his chest, his face blushing.

"Our wife actually knows how to smile? It seems like this is the first time I've seen it."

"Is this the legendary... teasing and running away?"

"But, she really is beautiful."

In the courtyard, the cold wind was piercing.

The scarecrow named "Abyssal Gazer" swayed gently in the wind.

Ding...

The crisp bell rang once again.

A crow that recklessly tried to approach had just flown over the fence when it stiffened rigidly in mid-air, then plummeted to the ground like a stone, becoming the first sacrifice to this new guardian deity.