Episode 5
Three men were walking, deeply engrossed in their conversation.
It was daytime, and the desert blazed like a furnace, radiating intense heat.
These men were snake charmers from a nearby village, out in the desert looking for a rare snake known as Sangchoor.
One of the men was preparing for his daughter's wedding and wanted to gift her a snake pearl as dowry—a tradition among snake charmers.
Though they hadn't found the specific snake, they managed to catch another one and were on their way back.
Suddenly, one of them noticed a human hand sticking out from the sand.
He alerted his companions, and together they began digging.
They uncovered a naked corpse.
Judging by its condition, the body seemed about ten to twenty days old.
It was in terrible shape—the remaining patches of skin had turned black from the desert heat.
Due to being buried in hot sand, the body looked almost mummified.
All three men covered their faces.
The eldest among them stared closely at the corpse, especially one leg.
"This man died from venom," he declared.
The others looked at him in surprise.
"How can you tell it was venom?" one asked.
"Just look at the condition of his leg. This wasn't ordinary venom—it came from a deadly snake," the elder replied.
He pointed to a dark mark on the leg—
A mark that only appears when a snake injects a large amount of venom.
"But here's what I don't understand…" the elder paused thoughtfully.
"If it was a snakebite, why are there human bite marks?"
The others stared at the leg and were shocked to find marks resembling human teeth.
"What kind of venomous human is out here—biting people like a snake and killing them?"
They were baffled.
They reburied the corpse a bit deeper into the sand and headed back to their village, unaware that just a few feet away, another body with identical bite marks lay hidden.
---
Back in the village, the snake charmers shared what they had seen.
Soon, word spread that a poisonous human was lurking near the area—
A creature that killed like a snake.
Nuri heard about it from her father.
She was startled.
"Could it be… Molsak?" she wondered, not afraid—just deeply curious.
"If I see him again, I'll definitely ask who he really is and where he came from…
Would he even recognize me?"
A wave of sadness crossed her face.
---
Meanwhile, Visuri quickened her pace.
She was naked, and she didn't want anyone to see her in this form.
The men chasing her saw the silhouette ahead and ran faster.
By the outline, they could tell it wasn't a man.
Had she stood still, they might've mistaken her for a ghost and turned back.
But her movement gave them courage.
Now realizing she was a girl, their intent turned vile.
Driven more by lust than curiosity, they began running after her like wild dogs.
Visuri, now near her den, couldn't enter in her human form.
She panicked, turned, and ran—
Her only hope was to escape and hide.
They were gaining on her.
"Hey girl, stop!" one shouted.
She ignored them, knowing stopping could mean danger.
Just then, a gunshot echoed through the silence.
The bullet hit the sand just feet from her.
It was meant to scare her.
They shouted again for her to stop.
Seconds later, another shot was fired—
This time grazing her right calf.
She cried out in pain.
It felt like a hot rod had pierced her leg.
Though she didn't stop, her speed faltered.
Her strength was waning, and she didn't realize how far she'd run from her den.
Spotting a dune ahead, she slowed, dove behind it, and buried herself in sand with lightning speed—leaving only her eyes and part of her mouth exposed.
A snake's instincts are sharp, and Visuri's were on high alert.
She could sense their footsteps approaching.
They were near.
She even heard them talking:
"She ran this way—must be hiding here. The other dunes are farther out. If she ran to them, we'd have seen her."
They circled around.
She opened her eyes slightly—
They were right in front of her.
If they looked down, the two glowing specks might give her away.
She shut her eyes again, ignored the pain in her leg, and lay completely still.
Then—one of them noticed the mound.
"What's this?"
He prodded the sand with his gun.
That's when Visuri struck.
With a hiss of rage, she lunged forward, grabbed his leg, and bit deep—injecting venom.
He fell, writhing.
She turned to the second man and leapt before he could react.
She tackled him, bit his neck, and ended his life in seconds.
Both men were dead.
She stared at them with blazing eyes—
Then turned to leave.
After a few steps, she stopped and went back, stripped them of their clothes, wore one set, and carried the other.
Suddenly, a breeze touched her skin.
From years in the desert, she knew what that meant.
A sandstorm was coming.
Wounded, she couldn't run fast, but she walked as quickly as she could.
The storm built up quickly.
Sand lashed in all directions.
Visibility dropped.
If she didn't find shelter soon, she could be buried alive.
For hours, she struggled through the storm.
Finally, the wind died down.
Covered in sand, she brushed herself off and stood.
In the distance, she saw signs of habitation—
And nearby, a small separate settlement.
Her eyes widened.
She recognized it.
The village of the snake charmers—her sworn enemies.
She didn't have the strength to walk farther, but she couldn't risk being seen.
So she turned and crawled toward her den.
The sun was rising when she finally arrived.
---
Meanwhile, Molsak had searched the entire area around the cemetery for years but hadn't found who he was looking for.
He regretted not asking that girl for directions.
Little did he know—the desert he sought lay near her own village.
Tired and frustrated, he finally left the graveyard and wandered off.
He had no idea where he was going.
He only knew he had to keep searching.
Eventually, he reached a place surrounded by sand.
Perhaps, his search was finally over.
---
In Nuri's village, her father was anxious.
The chief, Wadera Hukam, had summoned Nuri to his mansion.
He feared the chief might imprison her.
But he couldn't refuse.
To do so might cost him his daughter—or even his life.
By 9 a.m., he brought Nuri to the mansion.
She was taken inside alone.
As she stepped in, her heart pounded.
The chief's trusted servant led her into an ornately decorated room and told her to wait.
She sat quietly, filled with worry about what was to come…
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