The crystal cavern remained silent.
A silence filled with anticipation.
A silence filled with uncertainty.
A silence standing at the edge of change.
Blue mana crystals illuminated the underground world.
Frozen serpents remained trapped beneath layers of translucent ice.
Knights waited patiently.
The ancient serpent woman sat motionless.
And Kel Rosenfeld quietly waited for her answer.
Minutes passed.
The serpent's golden eyes remained lowered.
Lost in thought.
Lost in possibilities.
Lost in futures she had never imagined.
For centuries she had lived alone.
For centuries she answered only to herself.
For centuries she walked her path without companions.
Without allies.
Without equals.
Now...
Everything was changing.
The ancient serpent slowly raised her head.
Her gaze met Kel's.
The young Count remained calm.
Patient.
Unhurried.
Then he spoke once more.
"If you accept."
The woman listened carefully.
Kel continued.
"You will not be my subordinate."
The serpent blinked.
The knights blinked.
The atmosphere changed immediately.
The young Count's voice remained steady.
"You will hold authority equal to mine throughout Frostbound Coast."
Silence.
Absolute silence.
Even Seiren stopped speaking.
The serpent stared.
"...What?"
Kel calmly repeated himself.
"You will possess authority equal to mine."
Another pause.
"You will act as one of Frostbound Coast's guardians."
The woman's eyes widened slightly.
The offer exceeded everything she expected.
Far exceeded it.
Meanwhile...
The knights had entered full gossip mode.
One knight slowly looked toward another.
"...Did Lord Kel just offer equal authority?"
The other knight nodded.
A third knight immediately joined.
"That's basically marriage."
Silence.
Several knights immediately nodded.
"That's what I'm saying."
"Exactly."
"Equal authority."
"Sharing responsibility."
"Living in the same territory."
One knight dramatically pointed.
"The signs are obvious."
A veteran knight covered his face.
"Please stop."
The younger knight ignored him.
"They'll probably build a house together."
"STOP."
Another knight nodded.
"Maybe two houses."
The veteran looked ready to retire.
Meanwhile.
The serpent woman had accidentally overheard everything.
Unfortunately.
Every single word.
Her face immediately became red.
Not because she agreed.
Definitely not because she agreed.
Absolutely not.
But because the knights were impossible.
The woman glared at them.
The knights instantly looked away.
One suddenly found the cavern wall fascinating.
Another began studying a random crystal.
A third pretended to inspect his boots.
The serpent slowly looked back toward Kel.
Then realized something.
The young Count appeared completely unaware.
Not a single reaction.
Not even slight embarrassment.
The realization somehow made things worse.
Far beneath Scarder Lake.
Seiren laughed.
"He genuinely doesn't realize."
The Guardian sounded delighted.
"Not even a little."
Kel ignored her.
The serpent closed her eyes.
Then sighed.
A very long sigh.
The sigh of someone surrendering to fate.
The sigh of someone who knew change was inevitable.
Then finally—
"I accept."
Silence.
The cavern froze.
The knights froze.
Even the mana crystals seemed to shine brighter.
The words echoed softly.
Ancient.
Meaningful.
Final.
The serpent opened her eyes.
"I accept your proposal."
The young Count smiled.
A small smile.
Yet somehow...
It felt genuine.
"Good."
The woman rolled her eyes.
"That's all?"
Kel blinked.
"What else should I say?"
The serpent immediately regretted asking.
Far beneath Scarder Lake.
Seiren laughed again.
The Guardian was having far too much fun.
Then Kel snapped his fingers.
The mana surrounding the cavern shifted.
Crack.
Crack.
Crack.
The frozen serpents slowly broke free.
Ice shattered.
Snow scattered.
Thousands of snakes regained movement.
And immediately—
"HISSSSSSSSSSSSS!"
The cavern exploded.
The noise was deafening.
The serpent woman's eyes widened.
Then widened even further.
Because every snake was staring at her.
Every.
Single.
One.
Then the hissing intensified.
"HISSSSSSS!"
"HISSSSS!"
"HISSSSSSSSS!"
The woman immediately understood.
And unfortunately...
So did the snakes.
The teasing began.
A thousand years of accumulated nonsense erupted simultaneously.
The serpent woman's face darkened.
"No."
The snakes hissed louder.
"No."
Even louder.
"NO."
The hissing became even worse.
Several knights exchanged glances.
One eventually asked.
"What are they saying?"
The serpent refused to answer.
Which immediately confirmed everyone's suspicions.
A nearby snake proudly raised its head.
"HISSSSSSS!"
The serpent woman pointed furiously.
"I DID NOT FIND A MATE!"
The entire cavern froze.
Silence followed.
The knights slowly turned toward her.
The serpent immediately realized her mistake.
Because nobody had mentioned mates.
Not yet.
One knight slowly whispered.
"Interesting."
Another nodded.
"Very interesting."
A third looked impressed.
"Self-report."
The serpent covered her face.
Somewhere nearby.
Kel sighed.
Far beneath Scarder Lake.
Seiren sighed.
Even several veteran knights sighed.
This negotiation had permanently gone off track.
The hissing resumed.
The serpent immediately shouted again.
"I SAID HE IS NOT MY MATE!"
The snakes became excited.
"HISSSSSSS!"
"Louder!"
"HISSSSS!"
The woman looked ready to collapse.
Kel eventually intervened.
"Can you order them to relocate?"
The serpent looked grateful.
Finally.
A productive topic.
She immediately turned.
Then spoke in the serpentine language.
A series of complex hisses echoed through the cavern.
The snakes listened.
The explanation was lengthy.
Very lengthy.
The knights sat nearby.
Watching.
Eating dried meat.
Enjoying the entertainment.
One knight passed food to another.
"This is better than theater."
Another nodded.
"I agree."
The serpents continued arguing.
The serpent woman continued explaining.
The argument intensified.
Then intensified further.
Then somehow became worse.
The woman grabbed her forehead.
"No."
The snakes hissed.
"No."
More hissing.
"No."
Even more hissing.
The knights laughed.
The woman pointed furiously.
"You are moving."
The snakes hissed.
"You ARE moving."
More hissing.
"THIS IS NOT A DEMOCRACY."
The cavern became silent.
Several knights immediately applauded.
The serpent glared at them.
The applause stopped.
Meanwhile.
Kel sat quietly.
Watching the chaos unfold.
The young Count slowly looked toward Seiren through their telepathic connection.
"I believe negotiations are complete."
Far beneath Scarder Lake.
The Guardian laughed softly.
"No."
A pause.
"Now you've adopted another administrative problem."
Kel watched the arguing serpent.
Watched the arguing snakes.
Watched the exhausted knights.
Then sighed.
For the first time since entering the mine...
He realized something.
Reclaiming the Mana Crystal Mine had been easy.
Managing its new guardian?
That would be significantly harder.