“Senior, I didn’t intend to offend your lady. There must be some misunderstanding here,” Charles said calmly as he faced the man before him. In his palm, he gathered energy of three elements: ice, fire, and darkness.
The man before him, named Joshua, was a serpentine warrior whom Charles had once seen gain the upper hand in a battle against Emma. This meant that his strength was equivalent to that of a Level 7 Beast Master!
This was a completely overwhelming difference in power, but Charles had no intention of surrendering. The energy bomb was his most powerful card right now, and if Joshua really intended to kill him…
Even if he had to die, he would make sure Joshua paid for it with at least a broken tooth!
Joshua wielded a sleek, jet-black spear, and his narrow, black serpentine eyes swept over Charles. Noticing the elemental energy fluctuations in Charles’ hand, Joshua felt a hint of surprise.
Ordinary people would have been scared out of their wits, begging for mercy at this point, but this mere Level 2 Beast Master was actually planning to counterattack?
A fleeting memory of the princess’s command flashed through his mind, instructing him not to harm this boy. Joshua clenched his teeth—if he really killed this kid, he might not be able to explain it to the princess.
“Kid, this is your final warning,” Joshua spat coldly. The spear in his hand dissolved into a cloud of black mist. Just as he had appeared out of thin air, Joshua’s figure gradually became insubstantial, fading away right under Charles’ nose.
It was only after Joshua had vanished that Charles withdrew the elemental energy from his hand. During the standoff with Joshua, it felt as though a taut string had been pulled tight within him, and now he was gasping for breath, his chest heaving.
The man seemed intent on killing him, but for some reason, he didn’t dare to strike.
“I’d better find Aria quickly. After all, we’re still in the Ferocious Beast Mountains, and if anything happens, it could be dangerous.”
Charles quietly closed the wooden cabin door and then hurried along the path where Aria had disappeared.
…
After passing through the trees by the pool and following the steep mountain trail upwards, Charles could feel the poisonous gas growing thicker around him.
Charles retrieved several miracle drugs from his storage space and swallowed them in quick succession to resist the encroaching toxic attributes. Only then did he begin to feel slightly better.
Aria’s movements were easy to track.
Everywhere she passed, there were corpses—butterflies, lizards, birds, and even some ferocious beasts… Even the towering ancient trees around her had turned yellow and withered, despite it being midsummer. It looked like late autumn, with large amounts of dead leaves falling to the ground, creating a scene of desolation.
At the end of this lifeless wasteland sat a beautiful young girl, silently gazing out from the edge of a cliff. From a distance, Charles noticed something strange: there seemed to be eerie black markings on her once fair arms.
Just as he was about to approach, a figure suddenly grabbed him from behind and said coldly, “Kid, if you want to die, go ahead.”
Before Charles could respond, the figure pulled him away, leaping to a nearby hill where the poisonous mist was thinner.
Seeing that even Joshua seemed wary of this purple poisonous mist, Charles felt a deep sense of confusion. “Senior, could you tell me what has happened over the past month? How did Miss Aria end up like this?”
“This is a curse that has persisted for over a thousand years, or perhaps it’s a fate she can never escape.” Joshua sighed softly, leaning against a tree beside Charles. His gaze, fixed on the young girl, was filled with affection and pity.
“A thousand-year curse? And fate? What do you mean?” Charles was baffled by Joshua’s cryptic words.
“You are human. I shouldn’t be telling you this, but… it’s just an old legend, so it doesn’t matter if you know.” Joshua fell silent for a moment before finally speaking, his eyes still on the distant girl. In a deep voice, he began:
“A thousand years ago, the serpent people were the weakest tribe in Atacama, on the brink of extinction. In that desperate time, a young girl from the tribe made a pact with a demon.”
“A demon… a pact…” As Joshua spoke, Charles felt a wave of shock. He couldn’t help but recall the mural in the ancient tomb. Could the demon Joshua was referring to be the legendary Medusa?
“After that, the serpent tribe gained control over the power of poison. Several powerful figures emerged, and the tribe became one of the most feared in the area. Atacama not only gained independence from the Stellar Empire but even the northern Genosha human tribes began to fear them. The serpent people flourished and multiplied in this world. However, everything comes at a price…”
At this point, Joshua’s expression turned sorrowful. The once stern, snake-like eyes were now moist with emotion. “That young girl, who became the queen that united the entire serpent tribe, found her power growing increasingly uncontrollable.
Her appearance grew hideous, her long hair turned into venomous snakes, and a purple mist began to spread across the land, turning the once thriving Atacama into a desert…”
“…” Charles swallowed hard. The queen who had once saved her people had become the demon that destroyed Atacama! How heartbroken must she have been, watching her country perish by her own uncontrollable power?
So, what is the relationship between the former Serpent Queen and Aria…?
“After the kingdom turned into a desert, the queen sought out more suitable lands for survival and waged a great war against the Genosha to the north. Her opponent was none other than Ares, the War God of Genosha, who had been the strongest warrior for centuries. Though the queen defeated Ares, she herself perished in the battle.”
“Following her death, a revolt broke out within the entire serpent tribe, and Atacama splintered into factions. The people believed the queen had brought divine retribution upon them, and the royal family was massacred. Aria is the only one left behind by the queen in this world…” Joshua suddenly stopped, realizing he had said too much.
His face turned stern again, and he coldly fixed his gaze on Charles. “You’d better forget what you just heard. If you reveal Miss Aria’s whereabouts to anyone, I will hunt you down to the ends of the earth. Believe me, there’s no one in all of Genosha who can stop me.”
Joshua’s figure turned into a shadow and disappeared before Charles, who was still overwhelmed by shock.
He had suspected earlier that Aria’s origins were anything but simple, and now it seemed his suspicions were confirmed.
No wonder she ended up wandering in the Ferocious Beast Mountains, rescued by a human hunter. She was likely on the run, pursued by those who wanted her dead.
“But the speed at which this girl’s power is increasing… it’s almost terrifying…” Charles turned his gaze back to the edge of the cliff, but the girl had disappeared, the purple mist around her dissipating.
Aria’s power had surged from Level 13 to Level 35 in just one month—a rate of growth that was unheard of among both humans and beasts.
And Charles had never seen her hunting ferocious beasts or undergoing rigorous training, meaning Aria could grow stronger without effort. This effortless advancement was something Charles couldn’t help but envy.
However, everything has its price. Could it be that Aria’s ultimate fate will mirror that of the queen from so long ago, consumed by the curse until she eventually loses herself completely…?
“What did Joshua just say to you?” Charles was still gazing wistfully at the cliff when, before he knew it, Aria had appeared beside him. He almost instinctively took a half-step back.
Noticing the purple mist around her had disappeared, indicating she had regained control, Charles finally breathed a sigh of relief.
Feeling a bit awkward for his reaction, Charles decided to lighten the mood with a joke. Smiling, he said, “Joshua just told me that his lady is so beautiful, intelligent, a great cook, and incredibly strong. Whoever is lucky enough to marry her one day must have accumulated good fortune over several lifetimes!”
“Really?” Aria seemed a bit surprised but didn’t doubt Charles. She continued, “We serpent people are a matriarchal clan, much like mantises or spiders. On the wedding night, the bride devours the groom. If that counts as ‘good fortune,’ then so be it.”
“Uh, what…” The delicate and charming girl before him suddenly seemed a lot more terrifying to Charles. freewёbnoνel.com
Seeing the startled expression on Charles’s face, Aria covered her mouth and giggled. “Alright, I was just teasing you. I’m not that scary! But I guess… no one would dare to marry me anyway, right?”
With a soft sigh, the girl’s clear golden eyes suddenly dimmed a bit. A black mark appeared on the back of Aria’s left hand, and although she tried to hide it, Charles noticed it.
A broken nation, a clan wiped out.
A royal family once revered by all, now exiled and hunted as criminals. With such a tragic fate, if Charles were in her shoes, he might have lost the ability to smile long ago.
Aria gently crouched down, picking up the body of a blue butterfly from the ground and carefully burying it in a small dirt mound. Her teary eyes were filled with guilt.
As she stood up, dusting off her hands, she paused for a moment before turning. She suddenly looked at Charles and said, “You’re my only friend, Charles. No matter what I become, I won’t hurt you. Promise me you won’t hate me in the future, okay? Otherwise, I’ll be very sad.”
With that, the girl raised her fair arm, waved at Charles in the glow of the setting sun, and a flash of light surrounded her. In an instant, she transformed into a serpent nearly ten meters long, disappearing swiftly into the forest.
Charles stood there, staring in the direction where she had disappeared, momentarily lost in thought before slowly pulling himself out of his feelings of sadness.
He and Aria came from two completely different worlds—different kingdoms, different races. Perhaps their paths would never cross again. And with problems that even Joshua couldn’t solve, there was no way he could interfere.
Aria had her path to follow, and Charles had his own.
Clenching his fists slightly, Charles swallowed a miraculous speed pill and darted toward the valley. The trial had less than three days remaining, and time was running out.
The previously quiet valley was soon filled with a whirlwind of dust.
…
[Ding! You have defeated ferocious beast [Green Insect] (Lv19, Silver Grade)!]
[Ding! You have defeated ferocious beast [Roke Lizard ] (Lv18, Bronze Division)!]
[Ding! You have defeated ferocious beast [Little Ginseng Spirit ] (Lv20, Bronze Division)!]
The notifications flashed before his eyes as Charles fought from dusk until nightfall. It wasn’t until Mousie was utterly exhausted, panting heavily on top of his head, that Charles finally stopped.
“Chirp chirp… I can’t take it anymore, if this keeps up, Mousie is going to turn into a dried mouse…” Mousie said with a pitiful expression.
Max, looking equally exhausted, had already jumped into a small nearby pond to soak.
“I’ll make something delicious for you all,” Charles said with a smile as he patted Mousie on the head, then pulled out a grill from his storage space.
Gurgle gurgle…
Steam rose from the pot, and soon, a mouth-watering aroma filled the air.
During the time of making dinner, Charles was not idle. He checked the [forging] section in the system, taking advantage of this moment to familiarize himself with the crafting system’s operations.
As he opened the [forging] feature, a block of pitch-black iron appeared before his eyes…