The Serpent's Whispers: Allies and Shadows
She was the woman who had joined Anasha's group along with me.
Looking at her here, I wondered if they had reached the empire safely.
“…….”
Then who were these people wearing mourning robes?
I didn't recognize a single face from the procession of the grieving. Everyone carried stiff, solemn expressions.
The rigid atmosphere carried an undercurrent of unease. At that moment, Sigilla stepped one pace forward.
“Quillere.”
A grave voice. Why such gravity?
Why was her face so stiff as well? Why was her hand heading toward the hilt of her rapier?
The warning signs crystallized when she spoke her next words.
“Lord Sigilla requests an audience.”
Sigilla belonged to Uristia.
Lord Sigilla meant the leader of one of the city's ruling families.
Yet that place was now steeped in corruption.
Only now did I grasp the depth of her skill.
She was no ordinary person but a battle-hardened warrior of a noble house.
“……She was merely a pawn of the family.”
My realization earned Sigilla's nod.
Meanwhile, disappointment weighed upon me. The corruption of Uristia had been plainly true in the original setting.
Simply seeing the two lords posing with the Snake God was enough to make it evident.
Yet here I was, serving beneath such a base family.
I had thought her taciturn but kind. It had been a delusion.
There might have been some hidden reason, but I cared not.
Beyond that.
“Does the lord seek me?”
“Yes.”
This statement puzzled me.
I had only stayed in the city for a very short time. I had not even approached the family’s vicinity.
The lords who had once acted so similarly now came to mind.
I had been observing that scene as well. Could that have been it?
No, it was certain. Other possibilities did not exist. But why seek me?
Even if they had seen me, they had not spoken with me once.
……Suddenly an ominous thought arose.
“……For what purpose?”
“That will become clear when we meet.”
Her face remained stern and unyielding. She offered no further explanation. Cutting off the conversation felt like evasion.
The ominous feeling grew heavier.
From the beginning this was strange. Simply that Sigilla was here was already odd.
She had clearly followed me.
And bringing subordinates along so quickly meant her actions were far from hasty.
Why had she moved so urgently? Asking without revealing purpose was also suspicious.
There were two possible explanations.
The first was vengeance for the Snake God’s subordinates she had slain.
The creatures that had settled in the city were enemies of the citizens, yet the corrupt lords had been exploiting them.
They would not want the monster to disappear.
Anasha Sheril had declared she would propose the extermination of the Snake God at the relay station.
For her, this was a bad matter, yet Sigilla, a pawn of the family, had been present there as well.
If Sigilla had reported that “intrigue,” what would the lord have done?
He would have wanted to eliminate the thorn in his side, Anasha.
It had been strange how those black snakes had suddenly appeared, but it turned out they were the lord’s behind-the-scenes work.
Yet that plan had failed because of the irregular Quillere.
Sigilla had returned without exposing me fully. The lord, upon hearing that, would have naturally been furious.
Since Anasha had survived, the situation was now unpredictable.
Very unjust, but I could understand why she resented me, the real culprit.
So she had sent soldiers for revenge. If this was correct, the reason Sigilla had not explained everything made sense.
She knew I would refuse, so why speak at length?
If this was the case, it was a terrible matter, but it was better than the second hypothesis.
Why?
Because the second was.
“……”
……The Snow Woman I created was a great existence, but her beauty was unmatched.
She had been crafted solely for looks and atmosphere, leaving no comparable rival.
Even I, who saw her every day, was startled, so what would complete strangers have thought?
On that day, in the city square, one of the two lords had eyed me with interest. At first sight, he had been captivated by my beauty, Quillere.
And corrupted people were always drawn to beauty.
Perhaps Sigilla had not reported it, and the lord might not have known I had slain his subordinates.
He might have developed interest from just a momentary sighting.
So he had sent soldiers to bring me along. If that was the case, what would happen to me if I were taken here……
No! Horror twisted through me.
Both possibilities were the worst. The Sigilla who had come to fetch me seemed like a grim reaper.
Instinctively, I stared at her fiercely.
Though we were not close, we had shared some history. The betrayal stung deeply. She must have known what fate awaited me at the lord’s hands.
With the last thread of hope, I opened my mouth.
“Must you?”
She was no more than an accessory to me, so she had no say. Yet I asked anyway, appealing to her final conscience.
Sigilla nodded firmly without the slightest hesitation.
“Yes.”
“The lord is not an ordinary person. Treat her with courtesy.”
Lacitea had clearly given that order.
Because Orgol and Sigilla’s testimony confirmed she was no ordinary person.
Sigilla had faithfully understood her lord’s command.
Yet she was an orphan.
She had stood out in back-alley fights and been raised by the family, but the education she received was all in combat.
She had never learned communication or etiquette.
“Quillere.”
The instant her name was called, the breathtakingly beautiful woman turned.
Her cold gaze remained as lifeless as ever, as if nothing in the world mattered.
The scene from that day flashed before her eyes, and Sigilla’s hand moved toward her rapier.
It was the instinct of an assassin sensing a target.
Any move that felt like hostility would have been understandable, yet I could not blame her.
After all, Quillere had always worn that cool demeanor. Her words were short, icy. I could not tell whether her heart was good or evil.
She had saved people from the Snake God’s subordinates, but that had been part of the trap I had set for her as well.
It was truly unpredictable.
And what of her power? A blizzard summoned by her, a majesty that rivaled grand magic.
She could have slain me at any moment.
Sigilla stood before her now, risking her life.
“Lord Sigilla requests an audience.”
Quillere considered the words carefully. A fine fracture appeared in her ice-like expression.
The lord’s current situation was far from good.
Even wrapped in mystery, receiving her help would be ideal.
Sigilla remained silent.
She simply waited and waited.
She had delivered the purpose, so now all that remained was to hear the answer. It was her own subtle “consideration,” allowing time to think.
“……For what purpose?”
Her reply came at once.
Quillere’s gaze sharpened further. Sigilla felt a wave of frustration.
Why had her tone grown even colder? An ominous current flowed.
“What is the purpose?” she asked, and Sigilla answered that she was simply carrying out the lord’s orders.
The reason the lord wished to meet her was…… complex.
It stemmed from Orgol, the spirit, and the power that had slaughtered the Snake God’s subordinates. There were undoubtedly further branches from that.
Sigilla found it impossible to explain clearly.
In truth, it was unclear what exactly the lord would say to her.
Adding unnecessary commentary might have ruined the matter.
Her role was simply to bring Quillere.
Everything else had been prepared since her childhood; it was her lord’s business.
“That will become clear when we meet.”
She passed on the thought unchanged.
“That will become clear when we meet.” A candid, honest answer without a single lie.
She had boasted of speaking clearly, yet real-time ripples spread across Quillere’s face.
Equally subtle.
Only someone like Sigilla, whose senses had been honed through endless training, would notice.
She could not read the emotions hidden in those eyes. Positive reactions were absent.
Sigilla frowned.
She could not understand why the reaction was like that. She truly lacked negotiation talent.
Before departing, should she have requested an appropriate person from the lord?
But time had slipped away. She would solve it herself.
Responsibility for failure rested entirely on her shoulders. She would accept blame gladly, yet if the family suffered because of her, she would have no way to atone.
She would complete the mission no matter what.
To do so, she must win Quillere’s absolute trust.
“Must you?”
So, without a flicker of hesitation, she nodded.
“Yes.”
I am a man!
Although I had become a woman, my identity remained male!! A man and such…… things could never happen.
“……I see.”
She answered shortly, leaving the door open.
Fortunately, they seemed to be watching before enforcing force.
Perhaps it was due to the scene they had witnessed when capturing the Snake God’s subordinates.
It was a misconception, but it had proven helpful this time. With this gap, she must prepare a countermeasure.
Fight? Impossible.
The Snow Woman possessed absurdly low combat ability and terrible specs. Against a human, elemental effects would be ineffective.
No instant death, and she could not instantly disable.
Could I even defeat one properly?
Moreover, they were not fools. Especially Sigilla knew I could use magic.
The instant she tried something, a dagger might fly. She could not explode her mana like the black snakes had to summon a blizzard.
Otherwise, her neck would be severed at once.
At that moment, the Catalyst came to mind.
Using this amplification relic would grant a significant advantage in attribute power.
At first I considered the possibility, but…… simultaneously, the agility Sigilla had shown flashed back.
Her swiftness was truly worthy of the name.
With one swing she beheaded four of them without letting the line break, moving left, right, and forward in a blur.
Even with dozens of battles, such skill was not easily obtained.
By contrast, I had no real combat experience. The gap between adult and child was immense.
Fighting was out of the question.
“Will you follow?”
Sigilla’s urging only increased my irritation.
Yet soon panic overtook it. She had to prepare countermeasures at once.
Since fighting was impossible, escape remained.
Fortunately, I possessed an excellent escape technique.
Change into mist and flee; they would follow at once. Once mana ran out, it would end, but escape held more promise than battle.
After the ruin exploration and the recent use of ability, mana remained limited, yet for a short time it should suffice.
It was the moment to cling to the slim possibility.
From behind, someone grabbed her collar, and a voice drifted over.
“Who are these people?”
At that instant.
It was as if cold water had been poured over my head, and my heart sank.