The Misunderstood Traitor
The panicked Violet stammered, trying to get the words out.
“Um… I… well, that’s…”
But the senior incarnation beat her to it.
“I knew something felt off.”
“Pardon…?”
“I heard the whole story from our Constellation. Didn’t you think it was strange too?”
How the Explorer of Sublime Knowledge had known the precise location of the Ruler of Snakes and Darkness’s private prayer room inside the Pantheon.
Even if that could somehow be explained away, how had he managed to snipe and destroy the exact spot where the constellation’s statue stood?
And how could he have predicted that the Underworld nebula would launch an attack on the 72 Demons?
How had he been waiting, ready to counter the moment the Ruler of Snakes and Darkness used Violet’s younger sister as leverage?
Even the way he had anticipated the attack from the One-Armed Mercenary—who had confirmed that his incarnation saw Aisha missing an eye—and arranged treatment in advance.
Nothing made sense. Every last detail was impossible to explain.
“It’s ridiculous. He dismantled every single scheme our Constellation devised as if he knew them all in advance.”
“B-but…”
“There are only two possibilities. Either that constellation possesses some future-sight ability… or—”
The senior incarnation flicked the letter in his hand and smiled nastily.
“Someone has been feeding them information from the inside.”
“N-no, that’s not it…!”
Violet waved her hands frantically, horrified by the absurd accusation.
“What do you mean, no? How else could he act like he knew about every single thing in advance?”
“He’s a supreme constellation, so of course he—”
“Shut your mouth!”
The man roared.
“Does selling out your senior incarnations feel that good?”
“Th-this isn’t… it really isn’t like that…”
“And you were exchanging letters with the bastard who terrorized the Pantheon? It’s a mercy our Constellation ordered me to watch you constantly, or we would’ve been screwed again.”
In truth, what angered the man most wasn’t the betrayal itself but the fact that his constellation had fallen from medium-high to medium-low.
Normally such a drop would bring scouting offers from other constellations, yet because he was among the weakest of the snake’s incarnations, none had come.
Now he was venting all that wounded pride on Violet.
He seized her by the hair and shook her violently.
“Let… let go of me…”
The unjustly accused Violet finally screamed back.
“You read the letter…! There wasn’t any information in it at all…! What are you even talking about…!”
Just as she claimed, the intercepted letter contained nothing but apologies and excuses.
“Because you’d already leaked everything! This was just the apology and plea to be taken back in!”
At last, Violet exploded.
She grabbed his hair in return and yanked hard.
“What information could I possibly have leaked—kyaa!”
With a heavy thud, the man’s kick sent Violet flying.
“This crazy bitch…”
He glared at her, spitting the words through clenched teeth.
“Just wait. You’ll regret this soon enough.”
Naturally, Violet’s letter of apology had reached the Ruler of Snakes and Darkness without a single word altered.
Of course, the slightest logical thought would reveal that Violet could never have leaked information to the Explorer of Sublime Knowledge. But the snake, desperate for an outlet for her rage, did not care about logic.
From the very next day, Violet became the target of her constellation’s fury.
She was forced to brew potions without sleep to repay the cost of the elixir. Or ordered to hunt monsters far above her level while exhausted.
Once the Ruler of Snakes and Darkness gave permission, even Violet’s senior incarnations joined in the harassment.
The two who had been injured by Aisha were especially relentless.
The Ruler of Snakes and Darkness had never intended to stop at mere childish torment. This was only an appetizer; she could not afford to break her new toy too quickly.
She also forced a constellation contract upon Seri, Violet’s younger sister.
The harassment grew steadily more vicious.
What the snake enjoyed most was pitting the sisters against each other—only the winner was allowed to sleep or eat. The loser would be sent on monster quests where death was a real possibility.
Like constellation, like incarnation. The snake’s followers delighted in the same cruelty.
They kept constant watch to ensure neither sister could flee.
Yet, whether by fortune or misfortune, worse torment never came.
Because another constellation soon arrived to claim them.
“Sister…”
The Ruler of Snakes and Darkness knelt on the floor, carefully watching the other’s expression.
Seated before her was the Great Warrior of Tartarus.
The great warrior had always been bold and quick to laugh.
Now she simply stared down at the snake with a blank face, head tilted slightly.
“So.”
“Yes!”
When the long silence finally broke, the snake answered brightly.
The great warrior spoke in a voice utterly devoid of emotion.
“You took my elixir, yet instead of fixing the situation you only made it worse.”
“That’s…”
“You dragged the nebula’s honor through the mud and handed the 72 Demons nothing but gifts?”
Her sneering tone was unlike her usual self. There was no trace of laughter in her voice, and the snake felt goosebumps rise across her skin.
She wanted to snap back that the great warrior had also taken one of the explorer’s incarnations, that every constellation in the Underworld had agreed to her plan. But the snake’s nature—strong against the weak, weak against the strong—made her exceptionally quick-witted before superiors. She kept her mouth shut.
“Whatever. Snake, hand over your two incarnations to me.”
“O-of course! But which ones…”
The demand came without warning or explanation. Though insulting to any constellation, the snake nodded desperately.
If the great warrior demanded repayment for the diluted elixir taken last time, it would be disastrous in her current position. More importantly, having fallen to medium-low rank, she desperately needed allies within the nebula.
If even the great warrior—who had once been relatively close—turned away, the snake would be finished.
“Violet, was it? The incarnation you took from the explorer. Her and the younger sister. Give me those two.”
“Why those two…”
The snake asked not because she truly failed to understand, but because she felt a twinge of regret at losing her favorite stress toys.
“Didn’t the Explorer of Sublime Knowledge declare in the communication window that his next target for revenge would be me?”
“He did.”
“Keeping his former incarnations gives me material for either attack or negotiation.”
Unlike the way you wasted them, the great warrior added silently.
She did not say aloud that returning both the explorer’s former incarnation and the one currently being tormented might earn her the explorer’s goodwill.
Of course, that was mere words. She had no intention of yielding without a fight.
It had been a long time since she met an opponent who truly stirred her blood.
Her interest in the Explorer of Sublime Knowledge had grown far beyond simple curiosity.
“I understand. Oh, sister, about the elixir I received last time—I’ll repay it soon…”
The great warrior cut her off.
“The elixir? There is no need.”
The snake’s face brightened at once.
The diluted elixir was certainly valuable even among constellations, but not impossible for her to obtain if she tried hard enough. What made her expression brighten was the realization that the great warrior still cared enough to waive the debt.
She lifted her head to offer grateful thanks—only for her face to freeze.
The look in the great warrior’s eyes was painfully familiar.
It was the gaze she reserved for things that held neither value nor interest. The same lifeless stare one might give an inanimate object.
The snake knew that look well. She simply had never been on the receiving end of it before.
“W-wait…”
The great warrior rose without another word.
Just as she cherished those she cherished but would not spare a glance for those she did not—even if they died from addiction—the snake had just been pushed beyond the boundary of her attention.
“Please wait! Sister!”
The snake scrambled after her, but three figures blocked the way.
Three girls with fluffy yellow hair and wicked, playful smiles.
“What are you doing?”
“Still here?”
“Sister said she’s not interested anymore.”
They were the high-grade constellation the snake had once considered her rival—the Underworld Watchdog—and her followers. But now the snake was only medium-low while they remained high-grade.
She clenched her fists tightly.
Princess of Frost: Explorer, this princess requires thy aid.
Princess of Frost: Explorer, art thou sleeping?
Princess of Frost: Perchance thou hast need of another incarnation?