I, the prince in distress, send money

Chapter 499 The Strange Snake Man

I'm a bit confused. Has the town of Casarina fallen?

No, I know you might not be able to beat the snake people, but you collapsed way too quickly.

Before anyone could react to their frustration, the players who had launched the frontal assault quickly brought back good news... The news was relayed offline; someone had specifically logged on to deliver it to him.

Players launched a frontal assault on what appeared to be a snake-man's lair, killing hundreds of snake-men and capturing a very special one. They are currently retreating while being pursued by the snake-men.

How special are these snake people?

We don't know yet; they're retreating. The person who reported was in a hurry and didn't give any specifics.

Dissatisfied and unable to play, he began to worry. He gathered all the able-bodied people in the camp and distributed weapons, making every effort to prepare for their arrival.

……

The moonlight, like water, fell coldly on the silent campsite.

The players who were unhappy and all the remaining players, as well as the armed young refugees, all held their breath and stared intently at the dark forest ahead.

The distant flames grew closer, flickering erratically, accompanied by increasingly clear and dense gunfire, explosions, and... the snake-man's unique, angry, and shrill hiss.

Clearly, the retreating troops were fighting as they retreated, with the pursuing forces behind them launching a fierce offensive.

"Prepare for backup!"

Although he knew the snake-man couldn't hear, he was so nervous that his heart was pounding that he couldn't stand it, so he still lowered his voice and shouted.

The players on the wall immediately set up their muskets and aimed them in the direction from which the firelight was coming.

The small cannons mounted on the wooden wall were also adjusted with difficulty, and the gunners, holding torches, waited nervously for orders.

Finally, a group of disheveled figures suddenly rushed out from the edge of the woods; they were the main force of the players who had gone out to launch the attack.

Unhappy and unwilling to play, he raised his eyes to observe. Under the cover of night, the number of assault team members seemed to have decreased. He couldn't tell exactly how, but their formation was still intact. They were firing backwards while slowly and desperately advancing towards the camp.

Seeing this, he felt a little more at ease.

"Wait a minute, let them come over."

After waiting for a long time, the assault team finally approached the camp and entered the fire circle 120 meters away. Immediately afterwards, several snake-men emerged from the darkness and continued their relentless pursuit.

"Fire freely and suppress the snake-men!"

If you're unhappy, don't play; give the order without hesitation.

The muskets on the wall immediately opened fire in succession.

To prevent accidental injury, the muskets on the wooden wall did not fire very densely, and the cannons did not fire.

Even so, the additional gunfire brought the snake people's pursuit to a halt, and the retreating main force of players took the opportunity to rush across the last stretch of open ground, passing through the camp gate in a slightly disheveled manner.

"Close the door quickly, and bolt it!"

If you're unhappy, don't play, just shout it out.

The heavy door was slammed shut, and with the massive bolt slamming down, the snake-men who had been relentlessly pursuing them finally gave up.

But as he watched the snake-man's retreating figure, the uneasy man on the wooden wall felt that these aliens wouldn't just give up so easily.

If you're wondering why I feel this way about not playing the game because I'm unhappy... well, isn't that how the storylines of other games are arranged?
If the snake people just give up like this, what fun will there be in the later activities?

After the players returned to the camp, the formation that had been somewhat orderly immediately collapsed, with many people lying down on the ground and not moving at all.

There were still people shouting.

"Water, quickly give me water... and get me some food too!"

"Medic, I'm bleeding profusely!"

The scene was incredibly chaotic, which frightened some of the young and middle-aged refugees who were assigned to assist. They stood there, bewildered, until some of the players who were leading them cursed at them before they finally began to move cautiously.

No wonder they were scared; the scene was bloody, and the players' reactions were strange, which frightened them.

He was too annoyed to play and didn't have time to bother with such trivial matters, because he saw two or three sneaky players waving at him, one of whom was carrying something wrapped in a sack that looked somewhat human on his shoulder.

"I'm not happy, I won't play!" He immediately realized that this must be the snake-man that the intelligence had mentioned was a bit special.

He then led the three players toward the wooden cabin in the very center of the camp, where it was the safest place.

Upon entering the room, the player carrying the items dropped them on the ground. The creature inside, resembling a snake-man, let out a soft, delicate cry, the gender of which was indistinguishable.

The phrase "If you're unhappy, don't play" came as a slight surprise.

"What is this?"

"Snake Man".

One of the players said this with a strange smile on his face.

"To be honest, I was also shocked when I first saw this thing... Now I'll show you."

The player chuckled and suddenly reached out and ripped open the rough sack.

The sack slipped off, revealing a creature inside that was tightly bound.

Unhappy and unwilling to play, he subconsciously took half a step back, his pupils slightly contracting in surprise.

Is this... really a snake-man?

What came into view was not the twisted, grotesque, scaly snake-like lower body that I had imagined, but a pair of... human legs.

These legs were long and slender, with skin that was pale and bloodless, dotted with a few tiny, mother-of-pearl-like white scales. Far from being terrifying, they gave off an unusual sense of fragility.

Moving the gaze upwards, one sees a slender waist and a slightly thin chest, covered with equally pale skin covered in fine scales, making it impossible to discern any obvious gender characteristics.

Its hands were tied behind its back, its fingers were slender, its nails were slightly pointed, and it also had some scales.

What's most amazing is its face.

Her long, silvery-white hair, as if woven from moonlight, was disheveled and covered part of her face.

The face that was revealed had lines so soft that they almost blurred the boundaries of gender, possessing a transcendent, almost elfin, exquisite and delicate quality.

Its eyes were closed, and its eyelashes were long and snow-white. Only on the sides of its cheeks, forehead, and neck could one see some slightly denser, pearl-white, fine scales, like natural facial markings.

It appeared to be in a semi-comatose state due to the rough treatment, its breathing was weak, and its body was trembling slightly.

This completely overturned my understanding of snake people. This thing is more like a human boy/girl with albinism and some snake-like characteristics, rather than a bloodthirsty and violent monster.

"What...what is this thing?"

The voice that said "I'm not happy, I won't play" was filled with disbelief and astonishment.

"Where did you catch him?"

The player who carried it back, whose ID was "Catch Shrimp", rubbed his hands excitedly.

“Deep inside their underground cave, which they suspected was their lair, after they discovered us, the other snake people attacked us like madmen outside, but this guy hid behind an altar at the very back, guarded by several particularly strong snake people.”

It was obvious that this thing was very important to the snake people, so we went to great lengths, sacrificing several of our brothers, to rush in and snatch it from their hands... Before we got it, we thought it was a human being, a sacrifice to the snake people.

Once we got our hands on it, we realized it was a very strange snake-person; it didn't have a snake's lower body, and it was exceptionally beautiful.

Another player, called the Archaeologist, added.

"And look, it doesn't seem aggressive at all? When we caught it, it didn't resist much, and it was even quite calm, completely different from those mad dog-like snake people outside."

If you're not happy, don't play with it. Squat down and carefully approach to observe it.

This creature, which resembles a snake-man, has hands that are structured like a human's, with five fingers. The tips of the fingers are nails, not claws, and it looks soft and weak, appearing harmless.

Just then, as if sensing the approach of the unpleasant creature, the creature's eyelashes trembled a few times, and it slowly opened its eyes.

Its pupils... were a pale gold, like the purest amber, with vertical pupil lines clearly visible in the dim light.

Those eyes were filled with confusion, and also with an indescribable clarity and tranquility that seemed to belong to this bloody battlefield.

Then, those pale golden vertical pupils slowly focused, not revealing fear or hostility as the players had expected. Instead, like a newborn beast, they swept their gaze quietly over the tense and wary faces of Bu Shuang Bu Wan and the two players beside him with a pure curiosity. Their gaze finally settled on Bu Shuang Bu Wan, seemingly assessing his identity.

Being stared at by such inhuman yet unusually clear eyes, BuShuang felt a strange sense of unease and discomfort, as if he were the one being scrutinized.

What's even more chilling is that it was so calm.

Bound and in the enemy camp, surrounded by humans who had just fought a bloody battle with its own kind, it showed no signs of struggling or fear, only tilting its head slightly as if it were thinking about something.

This unusual calm was more unsettling than any roar or threat.

Just as I was getting annoyed and about to question it, it spoke first.

Its voice was unexpectedly soft, with a peculiar, slightly hoarse rhythm, but the words it uttered made BuShuangBuWan and the two players next to it feel as if they had been doused with ice water, instantly sending chills down their spines.

It was speaking fluent and clear Mandarin!

"you……"

It opened its mouth softly, the sound like a stream flowing over smooth pebbles.

"...Is this the messenger from another world that Mother spoke of?"

This statement is incredibly informative, and being spoken in human language, it has an impact far exceeding the roar of any monster!
"What the hell!?"

"It...it can talk!? And it speaks Chinese!"

The shrimp catcher and the archaeologist were startled and jumped back almost simultaneously, instinctively raising their weapons, their faces filled with shock as if they had seen a ghost.

Even though he was annoyed and didn't want to play, his heart skipped a beat, but he quickly realized what was going on.

Have you been to Minicia?

The strange being seemed somewhat puzzled by their violent reaction; its pale golden pupils contracted slightly, but it maintained its unsettling calm.

"Yes……"

It said softly.

“I was born in the shelter.”

"refuge?"

"If you're not happy, you won't play" and the two players looked at each other in bewilderment. The phrase, spoken in Chinese by such a creature, carried an indescribable sense of eeriness and incongruity.

Isn't the place where the Kingdom of Bagnia is located called the Greek mainland?

You mean a shelter?

Suppressing the turmoil in my heart, I tried my best to keep my tone calm.

"Where are you referring to? Mainland Greece? The Kingdom of Bagnia?"

That strange and beautiful being, who could no longer be simply called a snake-man, nodded slightly, his movements elegant yet with an inhuman stiffness.

"That's what my mother called that land... the last, crumbling refuge."

Its voice remained gentle, as if telling an ancient story rather than a cruel reality.

"It shelters human refugees on earth."

Ancient remnants?

This word made my heart race again, even though I was already annoyed and wouldn't play.

The amount of information conveyed in those few words was so great that he couldn't process it all at once.

Are those ordinary NPCs on the Greek mainland refugees?
"and many more!"

The archaeologist couldn't help but interject, his face filled with a mixture of excitement and bewilderment at discovering such a startling secret.

"Explain yourself clearly, what are you referring to as a shelter and refugees?"
"Why do you snake people keep running towards the Greek mainland? That godforsaken place has no magical elements; you'll be weakened and unable to use magic there. Why do you still go?"

The creature's pale golden vertical pupils turned to the archaeologist, as if it were considering how to explain it.

"We are trying to take refuge, to leave the seeds of our race in the impending catastrophe."

Its pale golden vertical pupils swept over the three shocked players, its voice remaining calm and unwavering, as if stating a perfectly natural fact.

"Magic is not a gift, but a curse, an anchor, a beacon."

It spoke softly, each word instilling a new game setting in the players, which invigorated the three of them.

"It exposes our world to their perception."

"Who are they?!"

Unhappy and eager to continue, he pressed on, feeling as if he were touching upon the core storyline of the game world.

The creature shook its head slightly, and for the first time, a hint of... pity appeared in its eyes?
"Knowing its name is to call upon it; understanding its form is to guide it."

Its voice was lowered, carrying a chilling awe.

“There will always be those who are mentally weak or greedy who will try to use this knowledge to gain power or prolong their lives…and this will only hasten the end of the world, therefore, I cannot speak of it.”

This riddle-like answer made the players eager to know more, but they couldn't bring themselves to physically interrogate this strange snake-man.

Seeing how weak and docile it looks, it's really hard to bring myself to do anything... What if I accidentally kill it?
"Then what you called seeking refuge..."

The archaeologists changed their approach.

"There's no magic in mainland Greece, so they were able to avoid that... natural disaster?"

"A land without magic is like a blind spot in the darkness."

It confirmed this.

"The barrier built by the gods of the Greek continent can largely prevent natural disasters from coming. So Mother guided us there not to conquer, but to seek the last refuge, for the survival of our race."

"And who is your mother?"

The shrimp catcher couldn't help but ask.

When the mother was mentioned, an extremely complex expression seemed to appear on the creature's face, a mixture of reverence, dependence, and a trace of... indescribable fear?

“Mother…is Naghsas.”

It pronounced the name in an almost chanting tone.

"Nagsus!?"

The three players screamed in unison, their faces showing the expression of having heard the most absurd joke!
Naghsas!?
The being that appeared during the Suvano event, whose statue featured a gigantic, half-rotten, terrifying serpent dripping with slime and plague, was actually female!?
The players looked at each other, their eyes filled with disbelief and a strong sense of incongruity.

And she was the mother of this exquisite, serene, and even somewhat divine captive.
"Are you sure your mother is a Naghthus, and that thing is female?"

The shrimp catcher blurted out a question that was a bit off-topic but was indeed very important.

The creature seemed to frown slightly at the vulgar term, but still nodded.

"The mother is the gestator, guide, and sacrifice of the snake people."

Its voice lowered, carrying an indescribable heaviness.

"In order to lead us out of the end times and to resist natural disasters, Mother paid an unimaginable price, changed her form, merged into us, and also bound us."

That's an interesting point.

Countless questions swirled in the minds of the three, leaving them speechless for a moment.

What they captured seemed to be far more than just a special snake-man.

It's more like a key, a key that might unlock the true nature of this world.

Outside the camp, the snake-men's hissing seemed to rise again, this time more agitated and urgent.

(End of this chapter)