I watched my scales reflect the shapes and colours of the trees and the ground like a mirror, seamlessly blending my body into the surroundings.

And when Sylrin saw half of body disappear like an apparition, he was scared out of his wits and scurried back in shock and fear.

Grinning in satisfaction, I turned this way and that, watching the colours shift accordingly. My new skill is simply awesome and worth all my effort.

No longer did I have to stick to dark recesses to use [Shadow Shroud], because with [Mimic] I could go around unseen in both light and darkness!

I deactivated it and my scales slowly regained their brilliant metallic lustre as my body became visible again.

Unlike a true mimic who could use the ability nonstop and let it remain active even after their deaths, I could only use it sparingly because of its heavy burden on my MP.

But that wasn't too much of a concern since I had a lot to spare anyway!

And as I turned back to a 'normal' snake again, Sylrin returned to my side with a bounding leap, curious and excited about what I just did.

I waited for him to come close and activated it again, just to watch him scurry off in fright.

Hehehe. This skill was useful in more ways than one.

What a silly lizard, I couldn't wait until he evolved.

Ah… but if he did, he would probably get much bigger than me. So, maybe I shouldn't tease him too much then. At the rate he was going, the next time I saw him, he probably would have evolved already.

I deactivated it, and had to reassure Sylrin that I won't do it again, before he returned to my side.

He'd chosen quite a good spot for his lair. It was high above the forest and quite warm even with the rain, and as I looked down, I spotted the jumping figure of a horned rabbit below. If he wanted to hunt, he just had to go down and pick a bunny.

But prime real estate aside, I was desperate to bring him home with me to witness his evolution. I wasn't losing out over a shabby cave – even a lizard should know to pick friends over property!

Ah!

I exclaimed when the rabbit monster I was watching suddenly dropped dead with an arrow to the head.

A figure in huntsman gear appeared from behind a tree to snatch up the rabbit before retreating. Further below I saw the burning fire pit and a campsite with more figures wearing light armour gathered around the fire, some were unmistakably human, and others were not. I could make out some pointed ears and silver hair among the group.

Their hideout was across from the lizard's lair, in a thick wooded area without flooding, which would've been harder to find if I wasn't so high up. I looked over their retinue with interest.

I wondered if they had supplies, maybe some books I could learn from. But really I was interested in something edible. A fire pit meant cooked meat and other edible foods!

It had been too long since I ate something good. I could almost smell the roasted BBQ in the air, and I had to stop myself from drooling.

I saw one of the figures remove something steaming from over the fire. Was that a baked potato?

Don't tempt me!

Normally I would avoid humans like the plague, but with my new skill, it was almost too good. Maybe I could grab a supply bag if I was stealthy enough.

I activated [Mimic] and was about to head down, when Sensei spoke.

«Are you really so carefree, you don't see the main problem?»

I looked away like it would hide my drool. "What do you mean?"

«Don't simply stare at the obvious. Do you see the river behind them?»

River?

I looked past the group at the campsite and there was indeed a river below the hilly slope. I didn't notice it before because of the trees concealing it, but now that I focused I could make out the muddy water.

But wait, there was something else.

There was a large tree pulled down to one side and a gathering of strange creatures surrounding it.

And that was not all, as I spotted some familiar snakes fighting for survival.

I immediately took off after them with an angry scowl.

Just who told those brats to come out? It was like I needed a way to keep track of their movements at all times.

I was more surprised that I cared if they lived or died.

It was stupid to hold on to anything that could die so easily because everything had been dangerous since I was born.

The lizard saw me speeding off and followed behind me.

In a way the lizard was an exception, as was a certain wasp who appealed to me in a surprisingly human way. They both had power that could assist me, so they were worth caring about. Sensei was also an exception, for obvious reasons.

Compared to them, the nestlings were absolutely useless. They were simply snakes I was born with who were only following me out of fear. Yet, here I was rushing down to save them, like some overbearing parent when the last thing I wanted to do was get attached to something.

Why was I so keen to help them when the people I truly desired, only existed in my old world?

I shouldn't have feelings to spare for those that were not functional.

I had no good reason for it and the anxiety I felt just seemed wrong.

--------------

Meanwhile, the fierce battle raged on across the river.

The spaded snake shrieked as the force of the impact sent her sliding across the tree, but because of Typhon's forewarning, she was able to grab hold of a branch to stop her descent, leaving her tail dangling down to the screeching horde below.

One of the creatures saw her plight and jumped up to bite her but Ophelia reached over and pulled her up in time.

Although the strong impact had damaged the tree, some of its thick roots were holding it down to the ground and keeping it from keeling over completely.

The creatures that managed to climb up were pushed back by the snakes and so far none had made it up the tree. However the danger was still present.

The largest monster of the horde was still at the base of their tree, using its large stinger to stab the exposed roots to sever them further. They could feel the tree tremble and as it dipped further down, the spaded snake burst into tears.

[I know I should've said it soon, but I'm sorry for how I've been acting. I really love you both.]

[Shut up! Use your strength to fight back and survive instead of crying helplessly.] Typhon shot back at the feverish snake.

Ophelia grimaced. What was this silly snake saying? Had the poison gotten to her brain?

She focused her compulsion on the large beast. However, her attempts to influence the creature were rebuffed.

There was a cracked plate of black stone on top of its sightless head that shone slightly and she wondered if that had somehow nullified her attack. Instead of trying to subdue the large creature again, she focused on the smaller creatures around it, controlling some of the group to attack it.

[No, I want to say it, I'm sorry for always being mean. I wish I behaved better towards you both.]

Ophelia was shocked to see the stubborn spaded snake crying, but she couldn't be distracted by her right now. Her head throbbed with a terrible pain, but to control several creatures to attack the fearsome beast, her influence could not wane for even a second.

Ophelia watched as the monster's large tail swept across the swarm, killing many with a single blow. And they were able to get a brief reprise from the battle with it focused on the creatures and not the tree.

[That black plate on its head is somehow protecting it from my attack. We need to find a way to break it.] Ophelia said to Typhon.

Typhon looked down at the monster's head where there was indeed a black plate with some cracks on it. If he could get past the swarm with [Stealth], he might be able to break the plate completely but going down there was simply suicide.

Although the large monster was attacking the others with a frenzy, if he left the tree, Ophelia would have to switch her focus to fighting off the creatures instead, and the result would be very risky if he wasn't able to break the plate soon.

However, he noticed there was some chaos on the banks of the river.

There seemed to be a shortage of the endless hordes of creatures that once covered the banks. The numbers that used to be so many seemed to have reduced to nothing since he last checked, like they'd simply vanished.

The only sign that something wasn't right was the significant amount of blood on the ground, but without any corpses.

Now as he began to look closely, he glimpsed a flash of something moving through the creatures at a fast speed, knocking them down in a spray of blood and body parts wherever it went. Most of the creatures were still unaware until they were either dead or dying.

Typhon tried to figure out what kind of creature it was, but it was moving too fast for him to make out anything.

Ophelia saw his blank stare, and when she looked in the direction he was staring at, her eyes sparkled with a mixture of fear, excitement…and hope.

They just watched as the blizzard-like thing moved around with incredible speed, killing the creatures and making them vanish into thin air as it reached the large monster.

The creature that seemed so powerful until then couldn't even screech as it kept turning its head this way and that, anxiously trying to follow the mystery creature's movements.

And as the snakes watched from the top of the tree, its body was ripped apart in an instant, becoming unrecognisable under the terrifying force of unseen blades, before it fell down in pieces without even a fight.