Chapter 117
“Shut your mouth!”
One of the subordinates struck Hans hard on the head as he kept shouting noisily. At that moment, Aesir stepped forward.
“Wait.”
“Yes, Marquis!”
Hans trembled violently when he saw Aesir approaching, his glossy black hair swaying. Aesir knelt down on one knee right in front of the pale, terrified man and asked with a smile,
“What about black hair?”
There was something about the snake tribe that sent chills down one’s spine just from hearing them speak. The way his split tongue flicked in and out looked as if he were deciding when to inject venom.
“Ugh…”
“You don’t have to be so tense. I’m well aware of the cat tribe’s primitive superstition about black fur. Quite unfortunate, really. Our snake tribe actually considers black to be superior. It’s good for hiding, and it looks impressive too.”
At Aesir’s words, the snake tribe soldiers nearby voiced their agreement.
“That’s right! Those cat tribe fools have no sense of style!”
“If they saw Your Excellency’s beautiful black scales in person, they would surely be in awe!”
Aesir gave them a satisfied smile, then turned his head back and stared at Hans.
“You heard them, didn’t you?”
“…The cat tribe has no need for black fur!”
At Hans’s outburst, the other villagers looked at him anxiously. Although the snake tribe had taken their village, no one had been killed yet.
They had heard the snake tribe was cunning and cruel beyond measure, but perhaps these ones were different? The village head secretly felt great relief that no one had lost their life so far.
However, he was terrified that Hans’s constant rambling might offend them.
The village head wanted to shut his mouth even now, but Hans, lost in despair and beyond control, shouted recklessly.
“Our village has always been peaceful! No disasters, nothing, it’s been a good place to live for generations! And now this has happened because two black-haired people gathered in the territory! And you still intend to ignore the curse of black fur?!”
When Aesir gave no immediate reply, Hans grew even more emboldened. He looked down on the snake tribe, thinking that as long as one avoided their venom, there was nothing to fear.
“The lord himself lost all dignity and became infatuated with some woman of unknown origin just because she has black hair like him! That’s why the territory has been looked down on by creatures like this snake tribe! My daughter said he treats her as if he’d give her his heart and liver if she asked!”
As Hans spoke excitedly, spittle flying, the village head, who had been hesitating until now, finally clamped his mouth shut. Only then did Hans realize he had been revealing far too much to the enemy snake tribe. His face turned pale as he pressed his lips tight, but it seemed too late.
Aesir remained silent, listening carefully to Hans’s words. Something was brushing against his nerves, but he couldn’t yet determine exactly what it was.
Toying with his black hair with his fingertips, Aesir met Hans’s eyes. His pupils, even narrower than a cat’s, contracted sharply, as if threatening.
“Hm. I thought there might be some important reason, but it ends with another black hair superstition? You didn’t risk your life just to vent your complaints, did you?”
His tone was flat, but the meaning was not. Unable to hide his fear, Hans glanced at Aesir and spoke as if making an excuse.
“I heard she isn’t even from the cat tribe… For a lord to become infatuated with a female of another race. Even the snake tribe wouldn’t do such a thing, would you…?”
The villagers, who had been trying to stop Hans from speaking again, fell silent at the mention of another race. Among the beast tribes, crossbreeding with other races was instinctively taboo.
“If it’s another race, which one? Surely not the wolf tribe or the snake tribe…?”
“…My daughter said something strange. That maid, who had no sense of fear, looked straight into the woman’s eyes. And what? She said her pupils were round? What race in this world has eyes like that? She must be some insignificant race that can’t even properly form a clan.”
Still bent on one knee while listening, Aesir slowly rose to his feet. His eyes gleamed with curiosity and delight. Without hesitation, he turned his back and gave his subordinates a throat-slitting gesture.
“Hans, you… Hhk!”
Hans, who had been shouting the loudest, had his throat cut first. Before the severed head even hit the ground, the strong men of the cat tribe lost their lives all at once.
In an instant, the place was filled with screams and cries. Standing in the middle of the chaos, Aesir brushed back his hair and smiled brightly.
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