Despite her exhaustion, May couldn't fall asleep. She was still under tremendous stress. Hundreds of different scenarios that could happen were unfolding in her mind. However, her body finally gave in. It would have been sensible for one of them to keep guard, but none of them thought of it. Zhifang wasn't smart enough, and May's mind was still clouded by the pills.

  May didn't know how long she had been asleep, but she felt that a lot of time had passed. She was awakened by the cold; the fire had long since gone out. She opened her eyes abruptly when she remembered the situation she was in.

  She looked around and, seeing that everything seemed fine, breathed a sigh of relief. She slowly got up and decided to see what the weather was like outside.

  However, she saw something that made her freeze.

  Damn.

  A snake was circling near Zhifang. It was no ordinary snake, but a beast over three meters long, crystal white in color, with red eyes and something red on its head that resembled a crown-shaped plume.

  I've never seen anything like this before. Should I wake him up? No. If I do, God knows how he'll react. If he panics, it might bite him. But what should I do?

  May didn't know what to do. She already hated snakes on Earth and felt a slight fear towards them. However, they made her feel more disgust than fear. But this snake was special and it was much nastier than anything she had seen on Earth.

  I have to do something. If he suddenly wakes up, the snake will definitely bite him.

  May was trying to recall the wildlife shows she had watched on Earth.

  In those shows, they had these special tongs, didn't they? I don't have anything like that... I think they also had a special way of catching them with their hands and holding their mouths shut, but there was no way I would try that!

  Finally, she decided that there was no other choice but to wait. Her only idea was to wait until the snake moved away from the boy, then wake him up and get them both out of there safely.

  May sat down a few meters away, enough to be far from the snake. However, she still had a clear view. Just in case, she took out her dagger.

  She tried to remember if she recognized this type of snake, but unfortunately, the study of wild beasts was not until the second year. In the first year, they only learned plant recognition.

  But judging by its size... This is no ordinary beast.

  Just as cultivators and mages had their own ways of measuring strength, beasts were also classified according to their power. The weakest were the Lesser Beasts. These included wild dogs and cats, something that May didn't consider to be “beasts,” but in this world, they were considered as such.

  Next in terms of strength were the “Beasts.” For example, bears belonged to this category, out of “normal” animals. But they also included more intelligent monsters, such as goblins and skeletons.

  Then there were the “Archbeasts.” An example of this was the griffin they encountered during the entrance exam.

  The classification of beasts was extremely complicated. For example, how to classify a snake? It was not as strong as a bear, but its venom could kill hundreds. Therefore, the classification did not only take into account strength, but various other aspects as well.

  Since we're still alive, that means the snake isn't aggressive, at least.

  However, May remembered a rule she had heard from her mother when she was a child: If a beast looks dangerous, it's probably dangerous.

  And as it happened, this snake looked very, very dangerous. It was like the king of snakes. May thought that if she was bitten, it would be game over for her.

  So she waited calmly, knowing that she couldn't make any sudden movements.

  But then something bad happened. The snake started to move away from the boy, but then it started to head towards her. She didn't know what to do. Should she stand still, start running, or try to fight?

  She stared directly at its slimy body and trembled, and started to back away into the cave. The corridor where they had been sleeping was too narrow. She thought she would have more room to escape in an open space.

  May slowly backed away. The snake seemed to be following her. Their pace was extremely slow, but after a short while they had covered quite a distance. She held her dagger tightly, ready to be attacked at any moment.

  They were getting further and further away. May stood in one of the largest chambers of the cave. She couldn't go back any further, or she would find herself in a dead end. She now had to get past it and get back to where they had come from.

  Is this snake doing this on purpose? May began to wonder. Some beasts, though rare, could be intelligent, but even then they were below the intellectual capacity of humans. May wondered if she should try to communicate with it.

  “Why are you coming closer to me?” she asked, but the snake did not respond. It did not seem to be self-conscious.

  May looked for a moment when she could get out of this situation. Suddenly, however, she heard a scream. It was Zhifang from another room. He started screaming in fear. The snake also appeared to have heard it and was frightened by the sound.

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  The snake backed away and passed May. It was frighteningly fast, and she thought that if it wanted to, she wouldn't be able to keep up with it. Nevertheless, ignoring her thoughts, May decided to see what had frightened the boy.

  She quickly ran towards him. She saw that his entire body was wrapped in a snake. However, this snake looked different, its scales were the color of autumn leaves, and although it seemed smaller in size, it was much longer.

  His entire neck and body were wrapped in the snake, and his face was blue. It was suffocating him. May gathered her courage and tried to pull the snake off his body.

  However, its grip was too strong and she couldn't do anything. At one point, the snake turned its head towards her and seemed to want to attack her. May quickly jumped back, not wanting to be another victim. The boy continued to choke and couldn't catch his breath.

  May wanted to approach again, but she noticed that the second snake had returned. It was easy to spot its bright white body in the gray cave. It was approaching her.

  May was frightened and left Zhifang, heading for the exit. She didn't want to abandon him, but her fear of snakes was stronger. She slowly backed away.

  As soon as she backed up far enough, the white snake also stopped. It looked as if it was just trying to stop her from helping Zhifang. May watched from a distance as the boy desperately fought for every breath.

  Finally, he fainted, but contrary to her expectations, the snake relaxed and began to slither off his body.

  May wanted to get closer to help him, but as soon as she approached, the snake prepared to attack. It was guarding his body.

  Is it waiting for something?

  A second snake joined him shortly after. They both guarded Zhifang, and May felt that there was something extremely sinful about it. Although she didn't like the fact that she had to betray him and run away, she felt that if she didn't leave the cave immediately, something bad would happen to her.

  She decided to leave the cave, walking backwards so that she could keep a close eye on the snakes.

  As she backed away, she finally saw a human figure standing at the entrance. She couldn't see his face; he was wearing a hood. His face was half covered with some kind of material, like a scarf. She froze, terrified by the arrival of this man.

  “Who are you?” she asked, fearing the worst—the parasites. However, she secretly hoped that it was someone from the Inner Court sent to rescue them.

  “Interesting... You're Lily, aren't you?” he asked curiously. He was a man with a very soft voice. If it weren't for his posture, May would have thought he was a little boy.

  May was surprised by the question.

  He's probably not a parasite, but...

  “No, I'm not,” she replied, wondering whether to tell the truth. “Lily is my sister. How do you know her? Is she okay?”

  “Oh, I see. Forgive me, but I haven't seen her and I don't know how she is,” he replied.

  “You didn't answer my question. How do you know my sister? Besides, who are you and what are you doing here?”

  “I know your mother, I met her once with Lily, but she was just a baby then,” he replied. “As for my purpose... I came to take him away,” he said, pointing his finger at Zhinfang.

  The snakes immediately moved away from his body. They seemed to be completely obedient to him. It was not difficult to see that he was their master.

  “Why do you want to take him?” she asked, feeling uneasy.

  Hearing her question, the man fell silent for a moment. May didn't need to see his face to know that he didn't like her question.

  “I didn't expect to meet Horteria's daughter here. I never spare the lives of whoever happens to see me,” he said, revealing a steel sword engraved with runes strapped to his waist.

  “But for your mother's sake, I will spare your life. She saved me once, and now I will repay my debt by sparing you. You are incredibly lucky, young lady, therefore I promise not to kill you.” He said, passing by her.

  He walked past her as if she weren't there and approached Zhinfang, examining his body. Although May felt relieved after his assurance, she had her doubts.

  “Why did you attack us?” she asked, feeling that no matter what she did or said, the man would not harm her. Despite his mysteriousness, May subconsciously felt that he was trustworthy, especially since he promised not to kill her.

  “He's a demon. My pets patrol the mountain and the surrounding forests and are responsible for informing me when similar creatures appear here,” he replied as he checked his head.

  May fell silent. She had heard about demons mainly in fairy tales, but that was basically her only source of information. She didn't know the locals' attitude towards demons, so it was hard for her to judge whether they were really as hated as in fiction on Earth. However, after the man's words, everything suggested that they were.

  “Interesting. You don't seem surprised,” he said after a moment. May felt a slight dread at his perception.

  “I did know that.” she replied, feeling that there was no point in hiding it. “But I also know that he's half human. A cambion.”

  The man paused for a moment. Then he chuckled softly.

  “Yes, but that doesn't change anything. A demon is a demon. You're too young to understand that.”

  “I know he's not perfect, but he's a good man, despite everything. What do you want to do with him?”

  “Kill him.” he replied.

  May frowned.

  “Who are you anyway?”

  “No one special, forget we ever met. If you tell anyone, you could hurt your mother.” He said, picking up the boy and preparing to leave. The snakes began to follow him. May stepped aside thoughtfully.

  “Wait!” she shouted, not wanting to be left alone. The man stopped at the exit.

  “What is it?” he asked.

  “You said my mother saved your life, didn't you?” she asked, thinking about a solution to her problem.

  “Yes, that's true, but don't count on me sparing his life because of that.” he replied harshly.

  “I didn't mean to ask for that,” she replied tersely, though she felt bad for Zhifang. Above all, she wanted to get out of there. To get out of the mountains, she would have to walk dozens of kilometers in the snow. And then what?

  “So what is it?” he asked, turning toward her.

  “You said you ‘paid off your debt’ by not killing me, but that’s not true. Even if you don’t kill me, I’ll die anyway. You never saved me, you just prolonged my life a little, no matter how you look at it.”

  “What do you mean?”

  “Your debt isn't paid at all. Do you know what's going on at the academy?”

  “No. I avoid that place.” he replied briefly.

  “It was attacked by parasites.”

  “Parasites?”

  “Yes. We managed to escape somehow, but if you don't help me, I'll die. And your debt will remain unpaid.”

  "How could the academy have been taken over...? Ah, I see. Everyone's focused on the war with the goblins, huh? Hmm, you're right, a kid like you wouldn't be able to get out of that mountain. The city is over 20 kilometers away, and the road is covered in huge snowdrifts. And even if you did, the city is under siege by goblins... And the Academy has been taken over..." He began to wonder aloud.

  He seemed to be deep in thought.

  “Daughter of Horteria, for your mother's sake, I can help you wait until the situation improves and stabilizes. But if anyone finds out, you will be branded a traitor and killed. Do you still want to seek refuge with me?” He asked.

  She didn't like how he put it, but she doubted she could manage on her own. And he seemed strong and confident. Living with a stranger was dangerous, but here she would at least have a chance of survival.

  She had spent almost all her money and had no way of earning more.

  But for just associating with him, would I be a traitor? Who is he? An evil Cultivator? A traitor to the sect?

  She shook her head and had already made up her mind.

  “I agree. I will be dead if I don't.”

  The man nodded.

  “In that case, you can know my secret, since it's too late anyway.”

  He pulled off his hood, and May's mouth opened wide in surprise. Pointed ears. An elf.

  The man smiled when he saw her expression.