Chapter 49 Cooperation Xavier clearly sensed his unwelcome attitude...
Catherine raised her hand to separate Tarasco. Her gaze towards him was still somewhat blank, as if she had been dazed by the heat.
Tarasco chuckled, pinching the spot he had just bitten, which earned him a frown in return.
Catherine didn't go out for lunch or dinner today; Tarasco brought them both in. She leaned lazily against a "pillow" made of animal armor, eating her food while giving Tarasco a resentful look.
Tarasco remained as taciturn as ever. The satiated alien spider, under the watchful gaze from above, served him with exceptional attentiveness.
Catherine had been sitting in one position for too long and wanted to shift her position. However, as soon as she moved, waves of discomfort washed over her, and she felt a fine, persistent ache in her lower back.
She couldn't help but glare at Tarasco again.
By the next morning, Catherine was finally able to go out and eat by herself, although she still got up a little later than usual.
As expected, the witch teased him for several times with a playful laugh.
However, Catherine never felt that this was anything shameful to talk about.
The witch didn't get the interesting reaction she wanted, so she only said a few words before changing the subject out of boredom.
However, not long after, Catherine saw the witch beside her suddenly widen her eyes and become excited.
"Hehe! Looks like we have some guests!"
Catherine looked up and followed the witch's gaze, spotting a silver python swimming towards them in the distance. She couldn't help but raise an eyebrow; in the Devil's Forest, she had only ever seen one giant silver python.
Whether he sensed the presence of an enemy or not, Tarasco emerged from the cave.
Catherine unconsciously took two steps back towards Tarasco, making sure she maintained a safe distance from the python.
As he drew closer, Catherine became almost certain of the silver python's identity—it was Xavier.
As a magical beast, Tarasco relies more on scent to identify things and people. His identity was confirmed the moment Xavier appeared.
Tarasco stared at the silver python before him, the kind of snake he hated most, especially since it had a history of kidnapping Catherine. His expression had been extremely unpleasant ever since he emerged from the cave.
Xavier clearly sensed the strong, unwelcoming atmosphere surrounding him.
He appeared completely unconcerned about the danger, remaining as carefree as ever. However, a closer look at his movements revealed that Xavier was proceeding with extreme caution and deliberation.
“Hey, I’m here to talk about cooperation with you guys. No need to stare at me like that…” Before Tarasco could make a move, Xavier said his purpose with a smile.
His current position is quite strategic. He's positioned himself about ten meters outside Tarasco's attack range. This distance demonstrates his sincerity while ensuring his safe retreat the moment Tarasco makes his move.
cooperate?
Upon hearing this, Catherine's eyes flickered slightly. She thought about their past experiences and didn't really believe they had any "friendship" that could be used to discuss cooperation.
Didn't you see Tarasco's bloodshot eyes grow even more ferocious after hearing his words?
On the other side, Benson hadn't remembered who Xavier was—after all, in the eyes of humans, these giant snakes all looked too similar, perhaps only differing in general species and color.
But when Xavier spoke, the familiar voice brought back his memories.
His face darkened instantly, and he gripped the broadsword at his side tightly.
...
Sensing the sudden increase in tension, Xavier cautiously took a few steps back, while simultaneously throwing out a message: "You all felt yesterday's monster horde, right?"
Catherine's heart stirred, and she lowered her eyes, using Tarasco as cover to give Lucas a look.
Lucas instantly understood the meaning and immediately chose to play dumb: "What Warcraft tide?"
Xavier glanced at Tarasco with suspicion, but saw that his face was indifferent and revealed nothing. He smiled, staring into his eyes, and continued, "I felt a summons, and soon after, half of the magical beasts in the Demon Forest began to rush in one direction. I observed that most of them were powerful races, so I believe you must have felt something as well..."
Tarasco gave him no reaction except for a strong urge to kill him.
If Catherine hadn't been holding him back, Xavier had no doubt that the alien spider would have completely ignored what he was saying... or rather, would have likely attacked before he even spoke.
Xavier, however, didn't seem to care. As long as his words piqued the interest of a few of them, that was enough. They would help hold off Tarasco, and that would give him enough time to escape.
But to his surprise, Catherine alone was enough to accomplish this task.
A hint of amusement flickered in Xavier's eyes.
He focused his gaze on Catherine, who smiled sincerely but uttered a string of lies: "But I'll disappoint you, we really didn't feel anything."
Xavier flicked his forked tongue.
How could they be completely unaware of the massive tremors that occurred in Devil's Forest yesterday? Xavier knew perfectly well that Catherine was lying, but he continued talking anyway.
“There’s definitely something wrong with this. Although I don’t know who’s behind this, I know I hate being used as a pawn… and I believe you do too.”
Catherine finally stopped beating around the bush: "So, what are your conditions?"
"Hehehe~ Actually, I don't have any conditions, since we're only cooperating temporarily because of a common goal. But if I don't give you some conditions, you definitely won't believe me..."
Benson, standing nearby, scoffed and interrupted Xavier: "You talk too much nonsense."
Xavier's serpentine eyes narrowed, clearly displeased with the human's actions.
However, Xavier knew that if he took action himself, the cooperation would definitely fall through. And Xavier had always been a very pragmatic person.
He clenched his fists, then chuckled and gave his conditions: "I want you to help me remove the mark."
"that's all?"
"Hehe~ I've said it before, I 'hate' being a pawn."
Xavier made his point very clear, but Catherine didn't agree immediately. She only said they needed to think about it and would give him an answer within three days.
"Okay... I'll come back at the same time in three days."
As Xavier disappeared from sight, Benson frowned: "Can we refuse this collaboration?"
Catherine sighed: "There are too many people from the Papacy..."
So even though this partner was very unsatisfactory, they had no other choice.
Xavier must have guessed this, which is why he came so openly to negotiate with them.
Catherine walked over to the witch. The witch was sitting on a vine, swinging her legs: "Hehe, you need my help, little girl?"
Having watched the whole thing unfold, she was clearly in a good mood.
"Witch, could you help me remove the mark while implanting something that can control him?"
Upon hearing this, Lucas's eyes widened as he looked at Catherine.
Wow, you can actually play like this?!
This was the first time Catherine had addressed the witch in this way, which intrigued the witch. She leaned down, supporting herself on the vines, and asked, "Why should I help you?"
Catherine knew that the witch could easily obtain anything, so she chose to leave this blank space for the witch to fill in: "Whatever you want, I can trade for it."
The witch chuckled and said, "Even if it's your life?"
The atmosphere became tense. Although the witch's tone was flippant, no one dared doubt that she was just joking. Tarasco was about to rush forward when Catherine immediately reached out and grabbed him.
She swallowed hard and looked up at the witch. No matter how clever Catherine was, under such overwhelming force, she didn't know how to answer this fatal question.
Finally, the witch chuckled, breaking the silence: "Hehe~ I thought you were always so calm, looks like you get scared sometimes too~ Okay, I agree~"
After saying that, the witch followed the vines and disappeared into the dense canopy of trees, vanishing without a trace.
Almost the instant the witch's figure disappeared, Catherine felt her legs go weak. Fortunately, she hadn't let go of Tarasco's hand, so she didn't lose her composure and fall.
Tarasko immediately lifted her onto the armor, patting her back gently to comfort her, just as he had done when she first became uncomfortable with raw meat. Catherine shook her head, smiling as she looked up at him: "I'm fine."
Once the witch agreed, Xavier would no longer be completely uncontrollable, and she could use this partner with peace of mind. Although she had received death threats before, Catherine felt that such a good return for a scare was well worth it.
Three days later, Xavier arrived on time as promised.
He glanced at the people standing around, and finally smiled and said, "I wonder which one of you will be performing this 'minor surgery' for me?"
As soon as he finished speaking, the plants around him surged, and countless vines rose up. Xavier immediately took several steps back warily, about to swing his snake tail at the obviously strange clump of vines, when he saw them gather together and merge into a beautiful woman with long green hair.
She glanced at him, as if assessing his worth, before smiling and saying, "It's me, come with me~"
Xavier's eyes flickered. For some reason, everything she had done since her appearance had filled him with a deep sense of unease.
The witch walked in one direction for a while, but when she turned around, she found that Xavier had not followed at all.
"Hehehe, what's wrong? Are you afraid I'll eat you, little python~"
Xavier hesitated for a long time, but finally left with the witch.
The mark on his body was like a time bomb to him, ready to be detonated at any moment, forcing him to work for others. He figured Tarasco and the others at least needed him and wouldn't kill him.
The witch took Xavier away, and Catherine smiled as she watched his retreating figure, eagerly anticipating his return.
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