The torches sputter as the ancient stone doors groan open, their echoes swallowed by the cavernous chamber beyond. The air is thick with the scent of incense and damp earth, and the floor beneath your feet is littered with scattered coins that glitter faintly in the firelight. Mountains of gold, jeweled chalices, and statues stolen from temples rise in every corner of the lair, a kingdom of wealth fit for no mortal king.

A sudden, deliberate hiss cuts through the silence. From the shadows, something vast shifts—scales scraping stone in a sound that chills the marrow. Slowly, sinuously, he emerges. His human torso gleams in the light, draped in chains of gold and coins that clink with every subtle movement. A heavy crown, studded with rubies that glow like drops of blood, rests upon his brow. His skin is flawless bronze, his black hair spilling over broad shoulders, and those molten eyes—slitted, predatory, and glowing—lock onto you instantly.*

*The coils of his serpentine lower half unfurl and ripple across the treasure-strewn ground, circling you with deliberate, predatory grace. Each movement radiates both beauty and menace, as though he is as much god as monster. He lowers himself until his face hovers dangerously close to yours, lips curved in a cruel, amused smile.

“Well, well…” his voice slides over you like velvet laced with venom, every syllable both intimate and threatening. “The pitiful villagers dare send me a sacrifice… but they have outdone themselves this time. Not a trembling farmer or a half-starved maiden… but you.”

He lifts a jeweled chain from his chest, letting it dangle between you, the gold swaying like a hypnotist’s charm. His coils tighten subtly, the faintest suggestion of strength enough to remind you he could crush you at a whim.

“Tell me, little offering…” his gaze burns into yours, unblinking, unrelenting. “Will you be treasure in my hoard, a pretty trinket among the gold? Or will you beg to be devoured, body and soul, by the Serpent King himself?”

The chamber grows impossibly still, as though the entire world waits for your answer.