WeTried Translations
Translator/Editor: HidingTurtle
Discord: https://dsc.gg/wetried
◈ I Became the Ophidian of the Apocalypse ◈
Chapter 100: Mega Evolution
──────
“Quit dragging your feet, you bastards!”
The Guard Captain pressed the soldiers onward.
The soldiers guarding Kalea City were neither lazy nor weak. Of course they weren't. Their city stood directly beside the Demonic Realm known as the Mountain Range.
Having repeatedly held back the monsters that surged in at regular intervals, every elite soldier in Kalea City was tough as nails. Compared to inland guards, each of them could probably take on two or three alone.
“But... what are we even supposed to do if we go there?”
Fear and tension were all that showed on the soldiers' faces.
“It just looked like a volcano erupted...”
“I've never heard that Calea Mountain was a volcano.”
“Can we even check something like that...?”
The Guard Captain smacked down the helmet of a grumbling soldier.
“I saw it, damn it. It was a lizard. A fire lizard!”
“Ah... haven't you been drinking, sir?”
“You think two beers got me drunk? And can't you tell from the fact that even the mayor came out?”
There was a reason the Guard Captain was acting so stern.
The mayor of Kalea himself had come out. He claimed he had definitely seen a fire lizard.
“The dwarves came out of the mine, so that's probably why he followed us.”
“Right, exactly. So shut up and keep in step.”
The Kalea soldiers marched up the mountain in neat ranks.
The mayor followed behind them on horseback.
They eventually reached the place where flames had shot up. Fortunately, or perhaps unfortunately, there was no sign of a fire lizard. If such a thing really existed, shouldn't there at least have been a corpse?
Still, dying embers crackled around them, sending smoke into the air.
And there were dwarves everywhere, dwarves who were notoriously difficult to meet.
The dwarves looked awful. Many were injured, and every one of them was soaked through. The stout, heavily muscled dwarves lay slumped wherever they could sit.
They looked like battle-hardened warriors after a war, making even the Guard Captain swallow nervously.
“Um... we came because there was a disturbance.”
“A disturbance? It's already over.”
“Could you perhaps tell us what happened...?”
Dwarves weren't known for their kindness.
They looked at one another and gave no real answer.
Silence followed.
The Guard Captain asked again.
“Is there someone in charge here?”
“Someone in charge? Hmm, who's in charge of us?”
The dwarves began discussing who their person in charge was.
No one gave a proper answer, leaving the Guard Captain thoroughly flustered.
The brave mayor of Kalea stepped forward and urged them on.
“I'm the mayor of Kalea City. Is the person in charge here?”
Then the dwarves' representative finally appeared.
“It seems I'm the only one here who can act as the person in charge.”
It was a dwarf with a magnificent beard.
The mayor of Kalea recognized her.
“Ah, are you Bluebeard, the Mine Lord?”
Rosena, the dwarf called Bluebeard, immediately scowled.
She stomped right up to the mayor and thrust her beard in front of the frightened man's face.
“Hey, does my beard look blue to you?”
“N-No...”
“If it looks blue, then there's something wrong with your eyes. My name is Rosena.”
“Y-Yes, Rosena-nim. I'm the mayor of Kalea. Then the Mine Lord is...?”
“Bluebeard is dead. Burned to death.”
“Pardon? How did that happen?”
Rosena thought for a moment, then asked him a question instead.
“If flames burst from deep beneath the mountain, would that be a volcanic eruption?”
“Uh... yes? Was Calea Mountain a volcano?”
“I don't know. Didn't you just tell me it was a volcano?”
“Is that so?”
“Then I suppose Bluebeard died because of a volcanic eruption.”
“My condolences.”
“There's no need. It was the end he deserved.”
It sounded like a conversation between idiots.
Rosena let out a deep sigh and unfolded her arms.
“Since I've taken up the role of acting Mine Lord, I'll apologize on behalf of everyone.”
“Excuse me?”
“Because of the fire we failed to control, your property was damaged and lives were lost. As the representative of Red Anvil Mine, I apologize and will do my best to compensate you for the damage.”
Rosena bowed deeply.
The dwarves who had been sitting around rose awkwardly and bowed as well.
“Um... by property damage, I believe you mean the loading dock that burned down...”
The mayor seemed more troubled by the dwarves' apology than anything else.
He called over the Guard Captain and asked what Rosena meant by lives being lost.
“I think Baton died?”
“Baton? Who's that?”
“You know, that bald potbellied man. The one who managed the loading dock.”
“Ah, that bastard!”
Then the mayor laughed heartily.
“Please don't worry about him. He'd been caught skimming fees on the side and was about to stand trial anyway.”
“Still, someone died...”
“Does something like that matter in the middle of a disaster? Don't worry about it. Really.”
The mayor of Kalea didn't seem to feel the slightest regret over the potbellied man's death.
Rosena was almost embarrassed for him.
“We'll repair the loading dock ourselves, so there's no need to worry about that either, but...”
The mayor's voice was so smooth it sounded like he would promise anything.
“Why not reopen your doors on this occasion? Kalea City has long hoped to resume trade with Red Anvil Mine.”
“I was already thinking the same. Stagnant water rots. We want to make and sell new goods too...”
“Really?”
The mayor looked ready to faint from joy.
Rosena nodded.
“Still, much of the mine's equipment was burned in the volcanic eruption. It may take quite some time to restore everything.”
“Time? How long?”
“We're short on funds, you see. It may take at least ten years...”
“We'll help. Neighbors should share one another's hardships.”
“Really? Wahahaha!”
Rosena happily pounded the mayor's back.
He looked to be in great pain, but forced himself to smile without showing it.
“Ah, right!”
Rosena looked around as though she had remembered something.
Then she dragged over Roil, who had been standing awkwardly in the distance.
“I received help from an excellent human. This fellow's named Roin.”
“It's Roil.”
“Right, Roil!”
The mayor's eyes widened.
“This fellow helped put out the volcano's fire. Rode here on horseback and everything. Who knows how many more would have died without this fellow. It would be nice if he could help when we resume trade...”
“R-Roil...”
The mayor already knew Roil.
He grabbed Roil's hand, his eyes filling with tears.
“So you were the blessing of our Kalea!”
Roil smiled awkwardly.
That unpretentious appearance probably made the mayor like Roil even more.
“Then you two should talk some more.”
Leaving the two behind, Rosena quietly stepped away.
She stretched her stiff body and sighed.
Rosena was still a powerful warrior, but she was already old enough.
Acting Mine Lord at her age?
She was too old for that kind of work. All she wanted was to return to her workshop and create her thousand-and-first collection.
Before long, she would have to hand over the Mine Lord position.
But to whom...?
“Rosena-nim.”
“Ah, Dunkel.”
When she entered the mine, Dunkel greeted her.
Dunkel's hands were stained bright red with blood. Dunkel had spent all this time tending to the injured dwarves.
“...You worked hard.”
A snake rested on Dunkel's shoulder.
The snake held its body proudly upright.
Rosena spoke to the snake.
“Was that good enough?”
‘You did really well.’
A pen and paper moved through the air, writing the words.
Mentioning Roil had been the snake's request.
Thanks to that, Roil would be able to handle Red Anvil Mine's trading rights from now on. In the long run, Roil would undoubtedly amass tremendous wealth.
Also...
The snake had one crafty plan in mind.
‘Weapons suited for goblin hands. That sounds interesting.’
Rosena grinned.
So this snake was even friendly with goblins.
It would be very interesting to watch what came next. What a shame, she thought.
Still grinning, Rosena shouted loudly.
“Attention!”
All the dwarves looked toward her.
“You all worked hard. For the time being, I'll take over as Red Anvil Mine's Mine Lord in place of Bluebeard. Anyone with objections, raise your hand now.”
Naturally, no one raised a hand.
Instead, cheers erupted.
Rosena wasn't the type to put off what needed to be done.
Perhaps that was why she immediately dropped a bombshell.
“And I'm considering Dunkel, Bluebeard's son and my adopted child, as the next successor to the Mine Lord position.”
Shock! A bombshell!
Every dwarf's mouth fell open.
Dunkel, who had suddenly been handed such an important position, was the most shocked of all.
“Anyone with objections, raise your hand.”
Naturally, there would be immense opposition.
No matter how strong and respected Rosena was, this was a shocking decision she couldn't simply force through.
The proud dwarves would never accept Dunkel.
“This is ridiculous!”
Just as expected, a voice of opposition rang out.
It came from Dunkel.
“Everyone else is fine with it, so why the hell are you the only one throwing a fit?”
“Huh? Everyone's fine with it?”
Dunkel looked around.
There were no cheers like before, but no one had raised a hand either.
Why?
These were the people who had despised Dunkel so much.
“I'm not saying I'll hand it over right away. Once you become a proud dwarf, then I'll appoint you.”
Rosena tightly gripped Dunkel's hand.
The wounds on Dunkel's palms, skinned while turning the heated valves, stung.
“You worked hard.”
Rosena smiled.
* * *
A many-legged round of applause for the touching conclusion to the story of the dwarf Dunkel.
Clap clap clap.
Unlike a fairy tale, though, the world didn't divide itself so neatly into beginning, middle, and end.
Dunkel would have to endure many trials before becoming Mine Lord.
Not every dwarf had truly come to admire Dunkel.
Dunkel had thrown himself into the flames without regard for his own body and saved Red Anvil Mine, that much was true.
But many hadn't actually witnessed those deeds.
I wanted Dunkel to become Mine Lord.
Dunkel was my friend. It was good when a friend became someone important, wasn't it?
Still, I had something more important to deal with right now.
‘Prepare a warm nest!’
“It shouldn't just be hot. Since they're from the Great Forest, high humidity would be good too. I'll boil some water.”
We were preparing for Kibaemi's evolution.
Everyone rushed around in a frantic mess.
- Is this one evolving, or are you lot evolving?
Pelerian rebuked us, but I couldn't just sit still.
We carefully lifted Kibaemi out of the flowerpot and transplanted them into the underground garden. We even sprayed them with the nutrient solution we used when their leaves wilted.
Kibaemi had been sitting still with their leaves curled up since yesterday.
I was worried because they weren't dancing anymore.
‘I’ll help you.’
- Hmm.
That's right, Kibaemi wasn't evolving alone.
Armed with my many experiences of evolution, I intended to personally assist Kibaemi's evolution.
Normally, that would be impossible.
But it was possible for Kibaemi and me.
‘Kibaema, give me your hand. Hand.’
Silence.
‘Good. Hand.’
Fortunately, one of Kibaemi's curled tendrils slowly unfurled.
The tendril grasped my tail.
*「Kibaemi uses Communion Lv. 2.」
It was thanks to Kibaemi's special skill.
Nothing amazing happened immediately.
‘I’m going to sleep for a bit, so keep watch.’
“Don't worry.”
Dunkel nodded responsibly.
Sleeping was often necessary for evolution.
If we slept together while maintaining Communion, perhaps I could take part in Kibaemi's evolution?
Once Kibaemi finished evolving, I'd give them a name, make the meteoric iron sword, and leave.
Such a perfectly planned J-snake.
One good thing about becoming a snake was that I had become thick-skinned.
It was probably because my Mental Strength was 20.
If I wanted to, I could fall asleep anytime, anywhere.
I was very satisfied with that one thing.
And so...
I fell into a deep sleep.
When I came to, the familiar black space appeared, as though I were dreaming.
‘Success!’
It worked.
Kibaemi was there too.
A single sprout had emerged from the floor.
When Kibaemi saw me, they happily wiggled their leaves.
*「Evolution is possible.」
A message rang out.
*「You have fulfilled the conditions for Special Evolution.」
Then words appeared before Kibaemi and me.
──────────────
【Seedling Chimera Lv. 10】
...
──────────────
Oh... I could see it.
──────────────
1. 【Little Trent】
2. 【Vine Chimera】
...
──────────────
Wow!
As expected, Kibaemi had the World Tree advantage. Their very first evolution was different.
My first evolution options had only included something like a Little Green Snake, but Kibaemi had several options from the start.
A Trent was literally a walking tree race.
Since this was Little Trent, wouldn't Kibaemi become a small tree? I wasn't drawn to that because it seemed too... Trent-ish.
The second option was Vine Chimera.
Kibaemi was really good at using their tendrils.
They used them to hold my hand, and although they still couldn't use them like real hands, maybe they could if they took this path.
Then perhaps I could teach Kibaemi Swordsmanship too?
It was a fairly appealing option.
Everything below seemed to be Special Evolution paths.
I thought Kibaemi's traits, Fire and Bone, had likely been reflected in them.
──────────────
3. 【Skeleton Chimera】
4. 【Flame Moss Chimera】
...
──────────────
Both did look powerful.
But honestly, once Kibaemi became a Skeleton Chimera, they wouldn't be a plant anymore.
I didn't hate bones, but they would lose their cuteness.
And Flame Moss Chimera...
Why moss, of all things?
Would it be able to wiggle around like a slime?
If Kibaemi evolved into a Flame Moss Chimera, I didn't think they could stay stuck to me anymore.
Because they would be hot!
This was so difficult.
It would have been nice if Teacher Pelerian, the expert on monsters and Chimeras, were here at a time like this.
Whenever I really needed Pelerian, Pelerian was nowhere to be found.
Still, as always, it was important to look at the final option.
Kibaemi had eaten a Magic Stone infused with the power of the high demon Paimon.
──────────────
5. 【Demon Hunter's Vine】
──────────────
Even the structure of the name was different.
It sounded like the Epithet of something that had existed from the beginning.
The word vine made it clear this was a plant type.
And if Kibaemi could use vines, that would be good.
Still, the modifier Demon Hunter's was a little unclear.
Would it get stronger when fighting something like a demon?
I didn't know whether we would ever fight demons... and I couldn't even guess what it would look like.
But...
Let's remember Pelerian's advice.
First, Pelerian had said, “There will be paths that remain within the Chimera line and paths that do not. It may be good to advance into something else. The Chimera line surely has its limits.”
That left only Little Trent and Demon Hunter's Vine.
Still, I had heard that Trents weren't a particularly impressive race.
Come to think of it, Pelerian had been helpful!
Then I thought I could narrow the options down to one.
‘Kibaemi, I think I like number five. What do you think?’
I like it too.
Nod nod.
That was definitely what Kibaemi was saying.
Then let's go with number five!
*「‘Seedling Chimera’ evolves into ‘Demon Hunter's Vine.’」
Footnotes:
Join our discord at https://dsc.gg/wetried
