-----
-----
"Oh, I see."
Venom nodded slowly, then reached out his hand, about to grab the man.
But before he could, Esdeath jumped in front of him, blade raised and gleaming in the snow.
"I knew it—you finally showed your true colors. I'm not letting you eat my father."
Her young face was filled with determination, those icy blue eyes blazing with a fearless, almost reckless resolve.
"You little brat," Venom sighed, looking down at her helplessly. "Who said I was gonna eat your father?"
"Then what were you trying to do just now?" Esdeath frowned, confused. If that wasn't his plan, then what was?
"Obviously, I was going to take you both home."
Venom's tone was pure exasperation. What else did she think he was gonna do? Of course he planned to bring them home. Sure, he had his own reasons—he needed them to guide him out of this frozen wasteland—but still.
Esdeath hesitated, suspicion flickering across her face. Could this guy really be that generous?
While she was still trying to figure it out, a tendril suddenly shot out from Venom's body, wrapping tightly around her ankle and yanking her upside down in an instant.
"You bastard! Let me go!" Esdeath shouted, flailing wildly as she dangled in midair. So much for him being "kindhearted."
Venom ignored her protests and casually scooped up the middle-aged man, slinging him over his shoulder like baggage.
"Put me down right now! You liar! I knew you weren't that nice!" Esdeath screamed, kicking and thrashing with all her strength.
Venom started walking forward, her shrill yelling grating on his nerves. Finally, he snapped.
"Keep it up and I'll smack your butt."
Her eyes went wide. "What gives you the right to smack my butt?!"
"Because naughty kids get spanked," Venom shot back, not even slowing his pace.
....
"I'm not a kid!!!"
A loud shout echoed after the three figures who had just walked away.
…
As they traveled, Venom finally figured out why the two of them had shown up there.
They came from a clan that lived near the northern border—the Baruts tribe, hunters who specialized in tracking dangerous beasts.
The unconscious man slung over Venom's shoulder was none other than their clan leader. And the noisy little girl tagging along was his daughter.
Turns out, her father had been teaching Esdeath hunting techniques. Unfortunately, their prey escaped, and while chasing after it they ran into a mammoth.
The rest went about as Venom had already seen for himself.
After a good ten minutes of trudging through the snow, they finally reached the edge of the endless white wasteland.
Here the snowfall was light, the ground not buried under thick snow. You could even see patches of grass peeking out, along with scattered trees in the distance.
And not far ahead stood a cluster of tents, like yurts, a dozen or so of them.
People moved about between the tents—this had to be the Baruts tribe Esdeath had talked about.
"Let's go, kid."
Venom lowered his head slightly to glance at Esdeath, who was walking beside him while he carried the middle-aged man.
Esdeath pouted at the nickname but nodded anyway. She hated being called that, but he never stopped, and there wasn't much she could do about it.
The two of them picked up the pace toward the tribe.
But the moment they got close to the outskirts, a group of burly men came rushing out, knives in hand, eyes sharp with suspicion as they surrounded Venom.
"Huh?"
Venom tilted his head, confused. What were they trying to pull?
"You monster, put down the chief and the young lady, or we'll cut you down!"
One of the men shouted, his knife gleaming with menace.
"You've got it all wrong, it's not what you think—"
Esdeath quickly ran forward, trying to explain.
"Don't worry, miss! You're safe now, we're here!"
One of the hunters mistook her urgency for fear. After reassuring her, he barked an order to the man beside him.
"Take the young lady back. Leave this thing to us."
"Yes, sir!"
The man obeyed immediately, striding up to Esdeath.
"Miss, it's dangerous here. Please come with me."
Before she could get a word in, he grabbed her by the arm and pulled her back into the crowd.
"…Seriously?"
Venom sighed. Couldn't they at least let her finish talking?
Just as he muttered inwardly, his spider-sense flared. Danger.
He instinctively leapt backward, just in time to see a blade slash through where he'd been standing. A burly warrior stood there, weapon still raised.
"Quick reflexes for a monster."
The man looked a little surprised that Venom had dodged. After all, he was the fastest in the tribe—plenty of beasts never even had the chance to react before he cut them down.
"Hey, hey, that's not fair!"
Venom grumbled. He wasn't even ready yet, and besides, he was holding their leader—what if they accidentally hurt the guy?
"…It talked?"
"No way!"
Gasps rippled through the group.
They'd hunted countless dangerous creatures, but never once met one that could speak.
"Doesn't matter. Kill it."
One of the hunters said coolly, lifting his knife.
The others nodded, weapons raised, ready to strike.
"I didn't want to use violence. But you're forcing my hand."
Venom gently set the unconscious man down, then stepped forward, his body tensing for battle.
"Attack!"
At the command, a dozen men rushed him at once.
Venom cracked his knuckles, crouched low, and then shot forward like an arrow.
"....."