Chapter 45: Practice
“Uh, same here!” a snake man called out, trying to break the ice.
He left his apartment and ran down the stairs to speak directly to Nith. He didn’t look much older than Nith. His handsome face, paired with short curly green hair and a shining slit green eye, made him appear friendly.
He wore green leather armor.
“You smell like a human, but our Queen must have brought you here for a reason! If no one believes you, I’ll be the first one to do so!” the man said, extending his hand forward. “I’m Xanthus!”
“Nightshade,” Nith replied, shaking the snake man’s hand.
It seemed that only Medusa could see through Nightshade’s prestige, as Xanthus cast a bright smile at Nith and asked if he could call him Night, which Nith didn’t mind. Everyone shortened his nickname to Night these days.
Thankfully, Xanthus carried the conversation. Not only did he speak loudly so that every other snake man could hear them, but he also helped Nith completely avoid awkward situations.
“You must be the new blood our Queen has scouted,” Xanthus said. “Only the strongest here get the privilege of going to the forest’s border. It’s because strength is the best negotiator!”
“I see,” Nith nodded. “It was particularly interesting seeing Medusa kill that bald man.”
“Killing? Our Queen did? She killed the representative of the Inmate Gang?! Wow!” Xanthus shouted so loudly that he clearly wanted the other criminals to hear about their Queen’s feat.
Snake people erupted with cheers upon hearing about Medusa’s achievement.
“Could you tell us how it went?” Xanthus asked.
As he spoke, other snake people discarded their wariness and gathered around Nith, their expressions bright. They were eager to learn about their Queen’s deeds!
“Yeah, sure,” Nith nodded. “Is it okay to talk here, though?”
“Of course! No one will hear us unless you shout,” Xanthus replied.
Retelling what he had experienced at the forest’s border, Nith spoke about Medusa’s battle with the bald man, providing every tiny detail and even adding his own input.
At first, cheers rang out around him, but the more he talked, the quieter the crowd became.
“You’re wrong, Night,” Xanthus said. “Our Queen uses elixirs. It’s a special liquid, not poison.”
Nith looked him in the eyes. “You can’t fool me.”
As he said it with confidence, the snake people exchanged glances and uncomfortably looked around. There was a reason Medusa said she used elixirs, but Nith couldn’t tell what it was.
Her people seemed adamant about it. Had she not brought him here, they would have insisted she used elixirs.
Nith shook his head. “Let’s talk about you. Why did you even get imprisoned?”
Xanthus weakly smiled. “We retaliated. A lot of us did, actually. We were tired of humans hunting us. They’d breach our borders and hunt our people, then lie about it… so we investigated and discovered that those hunters worked for a duke. They caught us red-handed and threatened to wipe us out… all because we weren’t in our territory. Our Queen couldn’t abandon us and… she begged for our tribe’s survival. That’s why we’re all here.”
“I see,” Nith nodded.
The mystery of Medusa being imprisoned with her tribe was explained, but Nith had more questions about her. He wouldn’t learn the answers from these people, so he decided to ask about his room.
It was a small space with just enough room for a single bed. It also had a stone shelf carved into the corner with wooden doors. People bathed in lakes since bathrooms were reserved for high-ranked criminals, and they took care of nature in the forest.
Nith didn’t feel like staying in his room. “Finally, something that has a semblance of a prison, though.”
Xanthus smiled.
Nith turned to him. “Want to practice?”
“Sure!” Xanthus nodded.
It quickly became obvious that Xanthus had misunderstood him. He brought Nith to a makeshift training ground, where at least twenty thick logs rose from the ground.
Each log was worn out, sporting cuts and slashes on its bark. It was late at night, so no one was practicing, but a few snake people followed Xanthus and Nith there.
Xanthus pointed at a single log and told Nith to observe him.
He dashed toward it, midway turning his legs into a thick green tail that slithered faster than his legs could run. He barreled into the log, clawing at it and etching ten thick, deep trails into the bark.
Following this move, he leaned in, his snake torso keeping him balanced. He coiled around the log, attacking from unexpected angles. His form and balance were so difficult to read that Nith suddenly had to focus hard.
Xanthus wrapped his snake tail around the log, lifting himself high. The strength behind his grip caused a few splinters to burst out and fly away. He attacked from above, then recoiled, almost as if turning back time.
Each move carried such strength, flexibility, and agility that Nith wondered how strong Xanthus would be if his poisons worked on others.
That was when a snake woman shouted, “Xanthus is showing off! Don’t let him hog all the glory! I’m next! Watch how the snake tribe wields weapons, Night!”
Despite having her face marred by a scar running across her eye and her left breast gone, the woman smiled and eagerly rushed in to display her swordsmanship on the log.
Nith chuckled. “Your Queen could learn a thing or two from you.”
Other snake people soon joined in. All of them wielded various weapons—swords, clubs, even scimitars. In a strange twist, no one carried a spear. Only Nith did.
As he finally entered the training ground, he conjured his spear and held it single-handedly.
What he was about to do… sounded crazy.
He wanted to mimic the snake people’s style.
Clenching his spear’s shaft, Nith adapted his moves based on what he had learned from watching the others.
Meanwhile, one of the onlookers pointed at Nith’s golden blade and said, “Did I imagine it? I think his spear’s blade parted like a snake’s jaw.”
“Huh? You must be imagining things!”
