A Snake’s Life Ch 77

Chapter 77

 

‘Wait a moment… Let’s go over there!’

A particular accessory shop had caught my eye. I pointed my tail stiffly like an antenna toward it.

“You want to go there?”

I flicked my tail, urging him to quicken his pace. The shop sold flower accessories, but what had caught my eye was something else. What on earth is that? It looked like a sculpture made in my likeness. It was carved from pure white stone, with red cubic stones set in its eyes and a blue one embedded in its forehead.

Zerpell must have seen the sculpture too, because he chuckled softly. Don’t laugh! I protested, poking him repeatedly, but his laughter didn’t stop. As we approached, the vendor eagerly began to chatter, trying to sell his wares.

“You’ve got a good eye, handsome young man. This sculpture is modeled after our Divine Envoy.”

O-Our Divine Envoy? So it really was a sculpture of me… I thought it looked familiar. Who even made that? The fact that I used to be a snake must’ve become public knowledge at some point. That explains why there were so many snake figurines around. I had assumed it was due to the water deity’s influence, but it turns out it was because of me. Embarrassed, I covered my face with my tail.

“Ours?”

Zerpell seemed a little irked by the merchant’s choice of words. His hand slipped as he touched the sculpture, and he replied in a chilling voice. The merchant quickly picked up on the mood and changed the subject.

“Ah, just a figure of speech, of course. I’d never presume to call the Divine Envoy ours. Haha. Anyway, it’s a popular item. Quite a seller. Or perhaps you’d like to gift your beloved with one of these lovely floral accessories?”

A glance at the stand revealed plenty of beautiful items—just the kind of things women would like. Not me, though. I had already lost interest, but Zerpell hadn’t. He carefully examined the selection, eventually picking one up and trying to place it on my head.

Are you seriously trying to say this suits me? I smacked his hand with my tail. It was a hairpin adorned with clusters of pink flowers. Pretty, sure—but not for me! Whether because he’d had his fun or had noticed my sulky expression, Zerpell finally put the hairpin down. Then, he took hold of my face and kissed me.

“This one’s quite nice.”

What the heck! He grinned in satisfaction. With me wrapped around his neck, there was nowhere to escape, and he kissed me whenever he pleased. As the kisses continued, my pale scales began to flush red. I eventually covered his lips with my tail, but he ended up kissing the tip of that too.

While we were bickering, a loud gurgle came from my stomach. My belly was throwing a tantrum for food. Master. I’m hungry. I bumped his face with mine to signal him. This part of the market only had merchandise—no snacks in sight. When I stuck out my tongue and opened my mouth wide, pointing inside, Zerpell finally realized I was hungry.

“We’ve looked around enough. Let’s go eat.”

Delighted at the thought of a snack, my body swayed excitedly. Food, where are you? A little further ahead, the scent of food hit us. Delicious smells wafted from all directions.

I sharpened my sense of smell, sniffing at the air. This smell—chicken skewers. Gulp… My mouth watered uncontrollably. Food sold outdoors always tasted different. I want that one! I pointed my tail toward a particular vendor. Zerpell followed my gaze and motioned to Cedric, who was walking behind us.

As expected, my master always understood me perfectly.

He soon presented the chicken skewer right before my eyes. It was piping hot, the steam rising temptingly. He tore off a piece from the end, blowing gently to cool it down. I tried to snatch it up impatiently, but only caught air—no meat.

“Wait a moment. You’ll burn your mouth.”

He insisted on cooling each bite before feeding it to me. I swallowed it greedily, licking the sauce off with my tongue. A snake’s mouth is structured in a way that makes it hard to savor food, since we tend to gulp it down whole. Bit by bit, he continued feeding me until the skewer was empty. I even licked the sauce off his fingers.

Though there was still a mountain of food left untouched, my tiny body was already signaling fullness. No way… I can’t be full already. I begged for more, but Zerpell refused, saying I’d get a stomachache. Disappointed, I let him lead me away from the stalls. Now that I was full, sleepiness began to wash over me, and my body went limp.

“Tired? Don’t fall asleep just yet.”

Huh? I perked my head up at his words, finding them strange.

“We still have flowers to see.”

Oh, right. I almost forgot something important. Even from the inn window, the drifting petals had looked quite beautiful. What would it look like up close? I lifted my head, scanning the surroundings. As we left the market, a petal landed on the tip of my nose. I shook my head to shake it off. The petals that had been floating from afar had now reached us. The stunning sight was right before us.

“There wasn’t a flowering tree, like you said. But there were flowers. They’re in bloom now—lucky timing. I didn’t know such flowers even existed.”

I could feel his eyes on me, but I couldn’t turn to look at him. I was too busy staring, mesmerized, at the scenery in front of me.

“I was worried they might’ve all fallen, but I guess that was needless. Do you like it?”

There wasn’t a single towering tree. But the field was wide open, covered in blossoms, and the breeze scattered the petals beautifully. I had never seen flowers like these before. If I had to name them, they resembled dandelions, though instead of white fluff, the seeds floated through the air in a pale pink hue.

‘Yeah. It’s beautiful…’

As I stood there blankly, gazing at the sky, I sensed his pride, his Adam’s apple bobbing slightly.

“It is beautiful.”

Right? I turned to look at him—only to find him watching me with a warm smile. My pupils trembled violently. The compliment hadn’t been for the flowers, but for me. Embarrassed, and wanting to express my gratitude, I rubbed my face against his neck. His cheerful laughter rang out.

“Let’s come again next time.”

I gave a small nod. Soon, we arrived back at the inn. I crawled into the covers of the bed. His gentle voice became my lullaby as I drifted off to sleep.

[…No… S—Sara…]

A murmuring echoed in my head. What? I can’t hear you. It felt like several voices whispering all at once. I reached out to the fading voices, but they disappeared before I could grasp them. Then I fell.

“Ugh…”

My back hurt, and I jolted upright, glancing around. I had fallen off the bed and onto the floor. Rubbing my sore back—

“I’ve turned back into a human.”

The problem was that I was naked again, but that could be fixed with clothes. Thankfully, I was still in the room. I quickly threw on some clothes and rubbed my stiff neck as I looked out the window. It didn’t seem like much time had passed. The lights outside were still flickering.

“I feel like I heard something strange in my sleep…”

I scratched my head. I definitely heard voices, but couldn’t remember what they said.

“Maybe my powers are coming back? Was it the water deity speaking, like before…? I don’t know. I can’t remember… Anyway, where’s Master?”

I hastily dressed and swung open the door—only to find Zerpell standing right outside. Startled, I stepped back. His eyes widened too, but he quickly scanned the surroundings and shoved me back inside the room. Annoyed by his attitude, I raised my voice.

“Ugh, what was that for?”

“Sorry. There were too many people around. If they found out the Divine Envoy was here, it would’ve caused a scene.”

Ah… I had left the room without thinking. I understood now. Embarrassed, I scratched my neck.

“I just went out without thinking…”

“Have your powers returned?”

I opened my mouth to explain, but he wasn’t listening. He was too busy showing how happy he was that I was human again. I couldn’t help but let out a small laugh.

“At least now we can actually talk. But… where did you go?”

“Just stepped outside for a bit.”

“Alone? Leaving me behind?”

That wasn’t like him at all. I gave him a suspicious look, but he clearly had no intention of telling me anything. Maybe he had his reasons… As I turned to lie back down, my stomach growled.

I’m hungry… I didn’t get to eat much earlier… After a moment of deliberation, I gave him an apologetic look.

“Master… Can we go out again?”

The barely tasted foods floated hazily in my mind. Zerpell, seemingly aware of my intent, let out a deflated chuckle.

“Let’s go.”

“Yes! You’re the best, Master. Night markets are the best.”

“Only when you want something, huh?”

What’s with him? He usually lets this stuff slide. Looking up, I saw an expectant look on his face. He leaned in slightly. Well… it had been a long time since I’d been in human form… Ugh, fine. Like a benevolent ruler, I planted a kiss on his lips.

“There. Happy?”

He chuckled in satisfaction and pulled the hooded cloak off the wall, draping it over me.

“I’ll buy you whatever you want.”

I felt a little guilty about making Cedric’s group delay their rest, but I grabbed Zerpell’s hand and led the way myself, stepping forward eagerly. He followed along behind me, matching my bustling pace.