Chapter 24: Mr. or Mrs. Snake?
Lin Anning could hardly believe there was an actual snake wrapped around her leg. Like a freaking living snake.
Sadly, it wasn’t those tiny harmless snakes people saw in documentaries that moved away dramatically. Nope. This one was thick, long and did she mention, alive?
It took everything within Anning to still be conscious after seeing this.
The python remained tightly coiled around her legs, its cold body pressed against her skin. On a normal day, this would have been relaxing but now, Anning could feel her breathing becoming shallow as her eyes moved anxiously around the dungeon.
The sound of rushing water seemed to have grown louder. The dim torchlight in the corner flickered weakly against the wall as though it was about going out.
Now, she finally understood why the maids had looked at her with pity earlier. This could even be called a dungeon by her... This was absolute madness.
Anning swallowed hard, forcing herself to remain still. Every instinct in her body screamed at her to run or at least kick this thing off her. But she knew provoking the snake was probably the stupidest thing she could do right now.
"I cannot believe everything wants me dead at this point." She muttered to herself, shaking her head in disappointment.
She almost got beheaded, slapped and now, they even had the audacity to place her in the same room with a freaking snake. Come on, she didn’t even know this snake.
She bit on her lower lips, her eyes sharpening as she decided something. She refused to die or rather, lose to an animal.
Sure, she might have lost against that annoyingly charming mistress of hers and a bunch of overgrown warriors walking around with swords... but an animal? Never.
Anning slowly lowered her gaze to the snake wrapped around her leg. The python stared right back at her, its black eyes looked cold and empty as its tongue slightly peeked out of its mouth.
Anning took in a deep breath before carefully reaching toward it with trembling fingers.
"Okay..." She whispered nervously. "Let’s both calm down here..."
The moment her hand got close, the snake suddenly lunged forward. Its fangs sunk directly into the back of her hand.
"Fuck!"
Anning cursed loudly as a wave of pain shot through her hand. The snake hissed aggressively while pulling back slightly, its body tightening around her leg again.
Anning’s heart slammed violently against her chest. She decided not to think about what had just happened and swiftly grabbed the snake at the back of its head.
She yanked it away from her leg before flinging it across the dungeon. The python hit the damp floor with a soft thud before slithering quickly to the far back corner of the room.
Now that the snake wasn’t near her, Anning noticed it looked almost five feet long, its scales milky brown beneath the torchlight while it had its dark black eyes fixed solely on her. Its pink tongue flicked out slowly as it moved across the damp floor.
Anning hurriedly pushed herself to her feet, but had to lean against the wall for support when she suddenly felt dizzy.
Her breathing came out a bit uneven as she stared down at the two needle like marks on the back of her hand.
Two small punctures sat there with blood slowly seeping out of them.
"Oh you’ve got to be kidding me..." She said softly.
She had no idea if the stupid thing was venomous or not. Her gaze lingered on the blood for a moment before letting out a tired groan.
"Way to go, Anning." She laughed bitterly. "You almost get beheaded in the morning and now you got bitten at night. I’m really loving the schedule."
After that, the dungeon remained silent except for the sound of water dripping. Anning bit on her lower lip while trying to remember every random survival show she had watched online.
"Okay, okay."
After a moment of thinking, she grabbed the hem of her skirt and tore off a slight thick strip of fabric. Then she proceeded to wrap it right around her wrist, just below the bite mark.
"Hopefully... this actually works..." She muttered to herself.
Once she tied it firmly, she hesitated for a second before lifting the injured hand toward her mouth.
"This is really disgusting..."
But she does not exactly have a choice? Now, does she?
Then she covered the small holes on the back of her hand with her mouth before sucking on the wound.
Warm metallic liquid instantly filled her mouth, alongside a bitter taste that made her face twist slightly. She spat the blood onto the floor immediately before repeating it again.
And again.
She finally stopped when she decided it was enough, her gym hurt slightly and her entire hand throbbed painfully. Anning wiped her mouth with the back of her uninjured arm before slowly turning to the corner where she had thrown the snake earlier.
The python seemed to have moved closer. The difference wasn’t really obvious, but it still made her groan slightly in frustration.
"Oh come on!" She yelled and this made the snake pause, its back eyes fixed on her.
Anning stared at it for a moment before sighing tiredly. Back in the place she was actually from, being disrespectful might just earn her a slap on the back.
But being thrown in the dungeon with a reptile was something she had only seen in movies... What did they even call it?
She couldn’t remember.
"Mr. Snake..." She paused, tilting her head slightly. "Actually, I don’t know if you’re a Mrs. Or Mr. Snake. But I believe it doesn’t matter, right?"
The python blinked, flicking its tongue out again. Anning ran her fingers through her slightly damp hair, leaning closer into the damp wall before continuing weakly,
"But since we were both locked up in here against our will... Can you please stop trying to kill me?" She paused, pouting slightly. "I beg you!!!"
