WeTried Translations

Translator/Editor: HidingTurtle

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◈ I Became the Ophidian of the Apocalypse ◈

Chapter 103: Successor to the Perran School Dagger Arts

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‘Fellow disciple? What’s that?’

I played dumb.

I had learned my Dagger Arts from a hunter named Oliver.

It wasn’t just out of respect for Oliver’s privacy.

What if Oliver and the adventurer standing before me, Pandan, came from the same school?

Wouldn’t that make Pandan my senior?

I might have to call a human I’d just met my senior brother or martial uncle.

Absolutely unacceptable.

“No, but where in the world did you learn those Dagger Arts...?”

I tilted my head like an innocent snake who knew nothing.

Pandan gave a hollow laugh at the sight.

“Honestly, I never imagined you could really use a sword, Mr. Snake.”

Still, simply playing dumb wouldn’t make Pandan drop his suspicions.

“There can’t be many people strange enough to teach Dagger Arts to a monster...”

After thinking for a moment, Pandan’s eyes widened. He leaned closer and asked in a whisper.

“By any chance, was it an old man with white hair and six fingers?”

Who in the world looked like that?

After giving it some thought, I tilted my head again.

‘Maybe? Or maybe not...’

“Ah...”

When you answered like that, people often conveniently misunderstood despite you clearly saying it might not have been true.

Pandan was no exception.

“Could the legendary Cheoin Perran still be alive...!”

I didn’t answer at all.

Perran, huh? That was probably the person who created the Perran School Dagger Arts.

“Would you like to exchange a few more moves?”

‘Sounds good.’

If not for my excellent memory, I would’ve started forgetting the Dagger Arts by now.

If I hadn’t learned them as a skill, I would’ve forgotten them completely.

I demonstrated the Dagger Arts Oliver had taught me.

I flicked the dagger into the air, caught it in a reverse grip, and aimed for my opponent’s shoulder.

“Third Form, Second Variation, Low Falcon Hunt!”

Pandan whispered in admiration so the others wouldn’t hear.

“Everything else is good, but striking in a straight line is surprisingly inefficient.”

“Sssak?”

“Like this. Oddly enough, coming down in an arc is faster.”

I didn’t know whether Oliver or Pandan was stronger.

Unlike Oliver, who had taught me with a bored expression, Pandan was full of enthusiasm.

Then something amazing happened.

*「The proficiency of ‘Perran School Dagger Arts’ increases sharply.」

My Perran School Dagger Arts proficiency had increased.

It happened every time Pandan corrected my technique.

*「Perran School Dagger Arts Lv. 1 becomes Perran School Dagger Arts Lv. 2.」

It had finally leveled up.

Of course, that also meant my Dagger Arts had been lacking by that much.

It couldn’t be helped. I rarely had a chance to use Swordsmanship properly in a real fight.

Ironically, though, I was an excellent swordsman.

“There’s no way to deal with that.”

There was a reason sword control was the symbol of an absolute master.

Imagine fighting a swordsman who used sword control. Say you somehow knocked their sword away.

You’d need to exploit that opening and stab or slash the opponent.

That was how you gained the advantage.

But with no hand attached to the sword, there was nothing to attack.

The same went for me.

My Swordsmanship might have been incomplete, but Pandan had no way to cut me while I stood far away from my sword.

What do you think of my Swordsmanship!

-That’s magic, not Swordsmanship.

Pelerian unfairly criticized me, but I didn’t care.

*「The proficiency of ‘Perran School Dagger Arts’ increases.」

Regardless of that slander, the skill proved I was a swordsman.

“Haha, I think that should be enough.”

Sweating, Pandan sheathed his sword.

From our conversation, I had learned something useful.

Fortunately, the Empire wasn’t exactly like the martial arts world.

There were no sects, and it wasn’t the sort of world found in martial arts novels.

“Do you have a martial name?”

‘I have a few.’

“If you don’t mind, I could give you one, Mr. Snake.”

Still, it seemed to have some of those romantic customs and traditions.

“How about Serpent Dagger Sword?”

‘Serpent Dagger Sword!’

It was a name made using the Empire’s distinctive ideographic characters.

Serpent Dagger Sword didn’t immediately become my Epithet.

Even so, I liked it very much.

“Hehe. Then, are you still thinking of selling those swords?”

‘No.’

Naturally, I rejected him without hesitation.

I had played around enough.

The adventurers had set up camp outside however they pleased, so I returned to where Helmut was.

Helmut had washed up and was resting.

“Whew...”

With a smoking pipe between his lips, he looked up at the sky.

I raised my head as well and saw a beautiful moon hanging overhead.

It was much larger and more beautiful than Earth’s moon.

“...Of all the sword sets I’ve made, this is one of my finest. Take good care of it.”

‘I will.’

Helmut had finished his work, so he would return to Red Anvil Mine.

He was very old. I might never see him again.

“You’re heading into the Mountain Range?”

‘Yes.’

“It’s a very dangerous place. Even if you’re quite strong, going alone would be dangerous.”

Could it really be worse than the Great Forest?

When I showed no sign of intimidation, Helmut snorted.

“Then again, it’s funny to tell a monster to be careful in a Demonic Realm.”

That was true.

“It might not be a bad idea to travel with those humans.”

‘That might be a good idea.’

The human adventurers seemed to have a mission deeper within the Mountain Range as well.

Helmut simply lay down on the flat stone floor.

Using his hard prosthetic arm as a pillow, he began snoring with astonishing speed.

I lay down to sleep too.

Pelerian sat perched atop Helmut’s hammer.

Pelerian spoke to me as I prepared to sleep.

-To reach Delphram, you must pass through the Blade Pillar Zone.

It wasn’t hard to figure out what the Blade Pillar Zone was like from its name.

Stone pillars were pillars of rock.

In other words, it was a region filled with stone pillars as sharp as blades.

-Travel with those humans.

That was the same thing Helmut had said.

I never imagined Pelerian would suggest forming a party.

Pelerian didn’t want anyone discovering his Dungeon, so it was quite unexpected.

‘Is it difficult to get through alone?’

-That’s right. They would make good bait.

Pelerian explained the dangers of the Blade Pillar Zone.

-Do you know how dangerous wyverns are? Among flying monsters, nothing is as troublesome as they are. And there are more than one or two of them.

Since ancient times, I had never gotten along with creatures that had eight legs or wings.

-They dive down at terrifying speed, bite their prey, then carry it high into the sky and drop it. Once the prey has shattered into pieces, they open those long jaws and chew and swallow it.

Terrifying bastards.

I hated flying even more than Swimming.

‘Well, if I travel with humans, the wyverns will target them first.’

-Exactly!

It was a scheme worthy of Pelerian.

Still, I was a little puzzled.

‘Wouldn’t it be better to go in alone? If I move quietly, they probably won’t notice me. Isil is very quiet too.’

I was relatively small, so hiding shouldn’t have been difficult.

Yet Pelerian had an answer ready for that too.

-The ground level of the Blade Pillar Zone is dangerous as well. There are many termites that dig tunnels.

Termites?

They didn’t sound like very dangerous monsters.

Besides, I rather liked the idea of white monsters.

-You’ll understand once you experience them. In any case, if you go alone, the termites will see you as prey and give you a hard time. They have almost no intelligence, so they won’t know fear.

One of my strengths is that I listen to others.

It did seem better to travel with the humans.

But how was I supposed to persuade them?

I had become somewhat close to Pandan, but Jericho and the other adventurers seemed wary of me.

Maybe I could cut a deal with Pandan first...

That was when it happened.

Knock, knock.

Someone knocked on the door.

Was it Pandan?

Maybe he wanted to have a drink because he was bored.

I opened the door with a bit of anticipation.

But Jericho, not Pandan, stood there.

“Ah, um...”

He looked flustered when I opened the door.

I thought he had come looking for Helmut, but that wasn’t it either.

“I heard from Pandan that you’re heading deeper into the Mountain Range...”

‘That’s right.’

“Would you like to travel with us? The Blade Pillar Zone is extremely dangerous.”

What was this?

I had been wondering how to comfortably travel among the humans, yet they had suggested going together first.

* * *

The snake did not answer Jericho’s proposal right away.

Those sharp eyes, that purple tongue flicking with a hiss. And on top of that, the snake was a monster that could speak.

Jericho’s hands and feet trembled.

In the end, the snake accepted the offer that night.

A temporary arrangement had been formed between the snake and the adventurers.

Jericho still wasn’t sure whether it had been the right decision.

“You’re not supposed to casually discuss quests that haven’t been completed yet, but...”

The snake was suspicious.

Cleverly, the snake first tried to find out why the adventurers had come to the Gray Mountains.

“Several adventurers actually entered the Gray Mountains before us. They sent a letter asking for support, and we were on our way to help them.”

That was true.

“We’re the support team, so we don’t know what quest they originally accepted. But we have a rough idea.”

Jericho lowered his voice.

“Beyond the Blade Pillar Zone are several ancient ruins. It seems they’re trying to find some valuable relics there.”

It was a place where many relics were still being discovered.

“Ancient relics are extremely expensive. There’s even a rumor that they’re meant to be sent as gifts for the Emperor’s birthday. We don’t know for sure either.”

The snake showed some interest.

Perhaps Jericho’s orderly explanation had won the monster over a little.

When Jericho returned, the other adventurers immediately asked him.

“Is the snake coming with us?”

“Yeah.”

“Ha, that’s good!”

They were pleased.

It wasn’t because they were oddballs like Pandan, who could befriend monsters.

“How much do you think we could get if we captured the snake and took them to the capital?”

“Wouldn’t the Magic Tower want to buy them?”

They smelled an enormous fortune in the snake.

“Then those swords will be ours too.”

“But what’s that clump of grass stuck to the snake’s back?”

“Who knows? It doesn’t look important. We can just pull it off and throw it away.”

At that moment, Jericho frowned and warned them.

“You bastards.”

He glared at the adventurers.

“Think about what comes first. You know the quest is more important than that snake.”

“Yeah, that’s true.”

“We’ll travel together, then capture the snake if an opportunity comes up.”

Jericho had told the snake, ‘It seems they’re looking for ancient relics.’

But that was a lie.

They were searching for something that wasn’t as rare as ancient relics, but would sell for even more.

And if possible, they could capture that snake as well.

“Keep that thing safe.”

The adventurers had “that thing.”

It was wrapped in oil paper and tucked beside their packs, a tool borrowed from the Empire’s Adventurers’ Association.

Since they were on the subject, Jericho checked his own.

When he unwrapped the oil paper, it revealed a long metal cylinder.

It had a stock that could be braced against the shoulder and a trigger.

It was called a Thunder Net Gun.

It was a weapon with revolutionary performance for capturing and subduing monsters.

Strangely, the snake knew human civilization and could even use a sword, but surely the snake couldn’t imagine what this was.

Guns had only recently been developed in the Empire. There was no way a mere monster would know of them.

The net gun made Jericho feel incredibly reassured.

“Don’t fire it carelessly, even in a dangerous situation.”

“Yes.”

The adventurers grinned.

* * *

‘Wow, there are guns here too.’

When I said that in admiration, Pelerian looked over at me.

-Guns? What are those?

‘That long thing they’re carrying. You know, a device that fires projectiles with gunpowder.’

-Are you talking about cannons? Cannons are large and inefficient.

‘A gun is just a smaller cannon, old man.’

From the look on Pelerian’s face, guns didn’t seem common.

Come to think of it, it probably wasn’t powered by gunpowder.

I could faintly sense Mana from it.

And it looked like a net gun.

One of the adventurers had checked a large round, and there seemed to be a net inside it.

Interesting.

I needed to stay on guard.

If they tried to fire it at me, they were dead.

“We’re entering the Blade Pillar Zone now.”

Pandan said it with a smile.

That grinning face made him seem sneaky too.

At this point, Jericho and the adventurers behind him seemed friendlier.

After parting with Helmut, the adventurers and I arrived at the Blade Pillar Zone.

“Wyverns will appear in the sky, and from here on, we need to watch out for termites.”

That was what Pandan said.

Strangely, the ground in the Blade Pillar Zone was pure white.

Curious, I scratched at it with my tail.

‘Why is the ground white?’

-It’s because guano has piled up here for a long time.

‘Guano...’

Guano was the hardened droppings of bats, birds, and similar creatures that had become rock-like.

So this entire region was covered in wyvern shit.

Suddenly, I didn’t want to crawl along the ground anymore.

I quickly climbed onto an adventurer’s shoulder.

“Eek!”

The adventurer made a strange sound.

Laughter broke out, and Pandan took out a peculiar object.

Inside a round cage was a chicken.

“We’ll use this to find the termites.”

They kept worrying about termites, but how frightening could mere ants be?

Pandan threw the cage ahead.

Flap, flap!

The chicken beat its wings inside the cage and crowed loudly.

Then something unexpected happened.

A hole opened in the white ground as though a lid had flipped open, and something leaped out.

“Keeeeek!”

A termite?

Were ants supposed to be as large as boars?

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【Hell Helm Termite Lv. 32】

【Traits】

[Ambush], [Swarm], [Tracking]

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Huge termites burst from the ground.

Hmm. I should avoid getting off the humans’ shoulders whenever possible.

Footnotes:

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