Chapter 29 The Snake Appears He hissed, flicking his tongue: "Finally found you..."
Benson leaned over and took two glasses from the table, then pried open the corks and poured a little bit of wine into each.
"Please, Your Excellency, take a look."
Catherine took a glass but didn't rush to drink it. First, she brought it to her nose and smelled it. The strong aroma of the liquor rushed into her nostrils, and she was already three-tenths drunk before even drinking it. It was a good liquor that even someone who didn't know much about wine could smell.
She raised her glass and took a careful sip, knowing that this stuff was precious even in the city of Vilandel, and that every sip was one less. Naturally, she wouldn't gulp it down like those reckless people who didn't know anything about wine; she just savored it slowly.
Benson sat quietly to the side, watching Catherine slowly drink the wine in her glass.
He smiled casually and said, "Does the Devil's Forest have alcohol? The witch seems to really enjoy drinking."
Catherine glanced at him. Her cheeks were flushed in the candlelight, making her look even more alluring than usual.
The wine they carried seemed to be a gift from nobles in the past; it was fragrant and strong. After several glasses, Catherine, who hadn't drunk alcohol in a long time, looked slightly tipsy. But she answered Benson's questions very quickly.
"Of course. Most of it is brewed by the plants themselves, and then delivered by the elves."
"An elf?"
Sensing the doubt in Benson's voice, Catherine chuckled, resting her chin on her hand. "Hehe, of course not from those temples. The ones in the Devil's Forest are night elves. They're a wicked bunch..."
Her tone was full of "This is common sense, how can you not even know this?"
Benson refilled Catherine's glass, and after she drank a few more glasses, her blush deepening, he spoke again: "You are a witch, aren't you?"
"I am not a witch..."
Benson's eyes widened slightly, a complex mix of emotions flashing within them, seemingly tinged with a hint of joy. But before he could say anything, Catherine burst into laughter and continued the conversation.
"And what is it?"
Benson's heart pounded.
He couldn't tell whether he was disappointed by the answer or relieved that the group had found the real witch.
Catherine's eyes darted around, as if she were already drunk. She glanced at another glass on the table, which was still filled with crystal-clear liquor.
Why didn't you drink it?
Benson paused for a moment, then smiled and declined, "I can't hold my liquor, so I can't drink with you, sir. Besides, this wine is precious; I'll just pour it for you."
Catherine's eyes flashed with a glint: "Really? If you can't hold your liquor, why did you come here with a bottle of wine to drink with me?"
Before Benson could even come up with an explanation, Catherine had already put down her glass. A smirk played on her lips, but her voice was cold: "Could it be that there's something wrong with this wine?"
Benson laughed, "How could that be? This is really wonderful..." The rest of his words vanished into thin air when he met Catherine's knowing gaze.
"How could you..."
"So you weren't poisoned by a potion?" Catherine grinned, revealing her gleaming white teeth. "I'm a witch, you know. Have you ever seen a witch who's afraid of humans using potions? What, you don't believe me?"
She snatched the bottle from Benson's hand, filled the glass beside her, and then, staring intently into Benson's eyes, downed the drink in a few gulps.
She tossed her wine glass onto the table, her tone tinged with regret: "What a waste of such good wine."
Benson's eyes were filled with horror. This was a potion he had specifically requested; it had no other effect than to make people who ingested it speak only the truth.
No one of the human race can resist this potion.
This effect, much like a rule of thumb, makes it very popular even though it only serves a decorative purpose. Moreover, it's colorless and odorless when mixed with alcohol, making it very convenient.
His original plan was to trick Catherine into drinking the potion. Even if she tried to lie, the potion would force her to reveal the truth, and her appearance under the potion would be the best proof that she wasn't a witch. Once the Saturnalia festival began, her true nature would be revealed to everyone.
Even if this fact is disappointing, it's still better than pinning your hopes on a bunch of bubbles.
If Catherine hadn't been poisoned, everything would have been fine, meaning they had found a real witch.
Benson suddenly remembered something. He hurriedly rummaged through his pockets and finally frowned as he pulled something out of the pocket on his chest.
"If you are a witch, then what is this?"
Catherine looked at what he was holding and exclaimed in realization, "Ah, I see! I was wondering the other day where the snake scales in my hand had gone. I thought I had accidentally dropped them somewhere, but I didn't expect that you, you 'thief,' had actually stolen them."
"You admit it's snake scales?!"
"Hahaha, so what? What does it prove if it's snake scales?" Catherine said, sounding a little thirsty, pouring a little of the remaining wine from her glass into her mouth. "Do you think snake scales are something you can just get anytime, anywhere?"
Upon hearing her words, Benson's eyes flickered. He wanted to say something, but then he heard a scream coming from afar, rushing towards them.
"Run!! A snake is coming!"
"Snakes...so many snakes!"
The crowd fled in panic toward them. Catherine looked up and saw the young, strong men and women in the camp, weapons in hand, fighting off a swarm of snakes that seemed to have appeared out of nowhere. And further behind them, there was a dense, seemingly endless swarm of snakes.
Her heart skipped a beat, and a sense of unease rose from the bottom of her heart.
In an instant, this scene pulled her back to the snake pit she had been in before.
The snakes that have now flooded into the camp are not very large, the longer ones are two or three meters long, and the smaller ones are only the length of a finger, like small earthworms, but their numbers are astonishing.
Countless snakes surged in from all directions, so many that in many places, the ground beneath their feet was completely covered by the snakes.
However, the able-bodied men in the camp had all been members of hunting teams. So, faced with this situation, after the initial panic subsided, the attack gradually became more organized.
But Catherine always felt that this was just the beginning.
Sure enough, after the snakes had been mostly cleared away, a series of tremors suddenly came from afar. Everyone looked around in panic, wondering what had happened.
Catherine stood up and took a few steps back with a stern expression.
Benson, seeing her reaction, asked, "Do you know what's coming?"
"I advise you to run right now."
"Wh-what?"
Before he could finish speaking, he heard an exclamation from ahead: "My God! Giant snakes!! And, and more than one!"
Catherine saw her "old friends" from the snake pit come into view. Her prediction had come true...
With a flick of their tails, the giant snakes easily shattered the tents erected nearby. They hissed and spat out their tongues, as if wantonly spreading seeds of terror to humanity.
The young man at the front, holding a long sword, saw the giant snake swimming towards him and instinctively raised his sword to slash at it. However, when the sharp sword struck the snake's scales, it cut a gash first.
This scene, as it unfolded before everyone's eyes, filled them with despair.
These things can't even be cut by a knife, and so many of them have suddenly appeared. Can they really escape from them? Just an hour ago, everyone was happily preparing for the Sacred Heart Festival…
"Strike at their vital spot! The scales at the snake's vital spot are the softest; swords and blades can pierce through them!"
In the instant of silence, a voice suddenly rang out, revealing the giant snakes' weakness.
"Witch-sama!"
"That's the witch's voice!"
Everyone recognized who had spoken those words and, without a second thought, immediately slashed at the vital spot of the nearest giant snake.
They didn't know if what Catherine said was true, but her words undoubtedly gave them a goal in their most desperate moment.
Knives, swords, axes... and some, perhaps just hammers or flails they grabbed, were used as weapons, all slashing at the giant snake whenever they had the chance.
Most of these attacks were dodged by the giant snakes and landed elsewhere, but out of dozens of attacks, three or four hit the target, and the people watched as their weapons actually managed to cut through the scales!
Before the man could even feel joy, the enraged giant snake lashed out with its tail, slamming heavily towards him! At such close range, he had virtually no chance to dodge and was sent flying, crashing straight to the ground, coughing up a mouthful of blood.
The person closest to him immediately went up to help him up and took him to a relatively safe place to prevent him from being swept away by the giant snakes' tails again.
The man forced out, "Attack their vital points! It really works!"
Upon hearing this, the group immediately split into several small teams, with five or six people surrounding each giant snake. Although there were a great many snakes, this arrangement made it easy for them to surround them all. However, given the disparity in strength between the two sides, five or six people was the minimum required.
Seeing the remaining giant snakes circle around to the tents at the back, the old people and children hiding inside gripped their weapons tightly.
Those who have survived to this day in Devil's Forest have generally developed a certain level of self-defense capabilities.
Catherine stood behind the group, peering through the gaps. She stared for an unknown amount of time before a flash of white light appeared ahead, and another giant python broke through the encirclement and arrived at the rear.
Catherine's eyes narrowed. Sure enough, Xavier, the silver python who had kidnapped her before, had come today as well.
Although the number of giant snakes that managed to break through the encirclement was relatively small compared to the overall number, the humans at the rear were mostly not as strong and powerful as the young and middle-aged men at the front, so the resistance was still extremely difficult.
With a sweep of its tails, several giant snakes tore open a gap in the row of people in front of them. Catherine, who had been completely hidden, was instantly exposed to the snakes.
Snakes generally have good memories and are extremely vengeful.
The moment they saw that face, they couldn't help but recall how they had stumbled and fallen before against this weak human race. Such a humiliating thing, once was enough.
Seeing the atmosphere on the other side suddenly turn gloomy, no one knew what had happened.
One of the silver pythons swam out from among them. It stared intently in the direction of the witch, hissing and flicking its tongue: "Finally found you~"
His voice was filled with malice.
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Author's Note: Missing the male lead, my darlings?
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