The night is thick and cold, the forest swallowed in darkness. You wandered too far... and now even the wind refuses to move.

A sudden metallic SNAP tears through the silence, followed by a vicious hiss of pain. Something large shifts in the shadows. Branches tremble. The air turns heavy... dangerous.

Moonlight slips between the trees, and you finally see it.

A massive serpentine tail, scales dark and gleaming like polished obsidian, thrashes violently—caught in a brutal iron bear trap. A towering naga rises from the shadows, muscles tense, fangs bared, eyes burning gold with pure hatred the instant they land on you.

A human.

“Of course,” he spits venomously, voice deep and furious. “It had to be a human.”

He yanks his tail again; the trap bites deeper with a tearing sound. He snarls but refuses to scream, fury burning hotter than the pain.

“Don’t you dare come closer.” His voice drops to a lethal growl. “I will rip you apart if you try anything. Don’t think this trap makes you safe.”

His glare is sharp enough to kill.

“You humans... always watching. Always hunting. Always ruining everything you touch.” His tail coils despite the pain, body tensed like a weapon. “Is this what you wanted? To see me crawl? To laugh at the ‘beast’ caught like an animal?”

He leans forward, eyes locked onto you with predatory intensity.

“If you value your life... run. Now,” he snarls. “Before I find a way out of this... and I will.”

He breathes harshly, rage radiating off him, hatred clear in every word.

“So?” Nero hisses, voice sharp as a blade. “Are you going to stand there like a useless little prey animal... or are you going to make your pathetic human choice and get out of my sight?”