Chapter 45
At the same time, word of the oracle was spreading through the land of the serpent tribe, the Ophidian Empire. Upon hearing the news, Marquis Aesir de Kris quietly smiled, twirling his long black hair around his finger.
He was excited by this curious news thrown into his otherwise tedious routine.
“A human, huh. Just hearing about it is enough to make my mouth water.”
“According to our information network, it seems the cat tribe received word of the oracle about a day earlier than us due to distance, Marquis.”
At his aide Marcel’s words, Aesir flicked his black hair and stepped toward the wall-mounted map. Pointing to Blois, the territory adjacent to his own Kris Marquisate, he slowly licked his lips.
“At a time like this, it should be safe to have a little taste.”
Right now, the emperor of the serpent tribe was too much of a coward to invade other races’ lands, but in this situation, it would be easy enough to come up with a justification to invade.
“Compared to the barren lands of Kris, Blois is beautiful in terms of the environment. And the mines within, too. Heh.”
“Shall I send in spies first?”
“The cat tribe is highly wary, so they might make trouble if we act carelessly. It’s better to attack the closest place directly.”
“Then, which village do you plan to invade?”
“Let’s see…”
Aesir slowly examined the map, then jabbed his finger at the most remote village in Blois.
“This one, surrounded by mountains and far from the center, should be best. If I’m not mistaken, there’s a mine there, right?”
It was a moment of anticipation, wondering what kind of minerals might be buried there. Watching from the side, Marcel gently asked,
“Will you not hunt the human yourself, Marquis?”
“Hmm, well… I’m not sure.”
“From what I’ve heard, His Majesty the Emperor has shown great curiosity about the human.”
“In that case, perhaps I should catch the human for His Majesty.”
“But what do you think the oracle means by ‘the race that claims the human will maintain a longer history’?”
Marcel looked once more at the letter with the oracle’s contents before setting it down and continued,
“I looked up humans in the myths, but couldn’t find any notable abilities.”
He picked up a book of myths lying next to the letter.
“In the myths, it isn’t recorded whether the human was female or male, but if the oracle is referring to union with werebeasts, what would you do, Marquis?”
“Hmm, I didn’t think of it that way. Do you?”
“…Actually, my family has a special record that’s been passed down. I can’t say from which era, but I remember seeing this written.”
“What is it?”
Aesir showed interest in his words. Marcel’s family had served the Kris Marquisate for generations as strategists, and were not only excellent at information gathering but had many trustworthy records. They also collected ancient books as a hobby, so Aesir looked forward to his answer.
Marcel raised his gaze slightly, recalling the memory.
“The moment a werebeast truly dies is not physical death, but the moment their intelligent thought stops. Like a mere beast.”
“…Is there any particular meaning to that?”
“…I too wanted to know, but I couldn’t find related information in any other records. Still, this is what I think. If a werebeast loses the ability to humanize, what difference would there be between them and a wild boar or a bison? So perhaps ‘the race that claims the human will endure’ means that only the race that succeeds in joining with humans will survive, as decreed by the divine.”
Aesir’s curious smile slowly faded. He fell silent, then answered seriously.
“In that case, we’d best hope the human is female. If we can make our bloodline closer to human through breeding, we won’t end up as mere beasts.”
“…So, that’s the way after all.”
“But in the myths, humans are said to be physically inferior. I wonder if a human could withstand the long mating of the serpent tribe.”
“If you help her secrete plenty of pleasure fluids, it should be possible.”
“Of course. A male must always make sure the female is in bliss.”
With a renewed smile, Aesir marked the map and spoke.
“I’ll have to meet with the high priest. There’s no one who knows more about humans. That’s the most efficient way.”
“I’ll send word.”
“It’s unfortunate, but it looks like I’ll have to wait until after meeting the high priest before I can have a taste of Blois.”
“I’ll make sure everything is ready without fail.”
“I always trust you.”
By the time their conversation ended, the place name ‘Vera’ on the map hanging on the wall had ominously changed to red.
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