The Snake and the Frogs' False King

A colony of frogs living in a lotus pond had long been troubled by an aggressive young snake who hunted them relentlessly and openly, striking fear into the whole community. When an older, seemingly gentler snake arrived and offered to drive the young hunter away in exchange for being allowed to live peacefully among them, the desperate frogs agreed with relief.

The old snake did indeed frighten off the younger predator, and for a while, life in the pond grew calmer. But the old snake, patient and cunning, began quietly eating one weak or elderly frog every few days, always careful never to take enough at once to alarm the whole colony, presenting himself always as their protector rather than their predator.

A young, observant frog, noticing the colony's numbers thinning steadily despite the apparent peace, began quietly counting and tracking exactly how many disappeared and when, and realized the old snake's visits always coincided with the losses. She warned the colony just in time, and together they abandoned the pond for a safer one entirely, leaving the "protector" snake with nothing left to quietly prey upon.