"Are you satisfied now?"
An old man with a hunched back stood before the Council of Vipers. He wore white robes and rested his hands on an unassuming staff.
He had no hair on his body except for the long white mustache that drooped past his chin. His eyes were a piercing gold with vertical black slits.
The council was enveloped in deathly silence.
To pay respect to Lord White, all of them had descended from the raised dais and stood on the floor instead. Even the black-haired serpent who proposed Adam take the Sacred Trials.
He stepped forward and said in a dignified tone, "The last trial cannot be considered complete. He tried to kill himself. Almost did. If it weren't for his strange regeneration ability, he might have died and failed the test."
Lord White turned to the serpent and gave a gentle, grandfatherly smile.
"Adam has passed the Sacred Trials, Oryn."
