WeTried Translations
Translator/Editor: HidingTurtle
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◈ I Became the Ophidian of the Apocalypse ◈
Chapter 116: Three, or Five
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A golem was nearby.
I instinctively narrowed my eyes.
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【Obelisk Giant - Triple Fusion】
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Ah, so it was a triple fusion!
Three golems had merged into one triple-fusion giant.
And a single wyvern had split her head into three, becoming Wyvern Chugota.
Weren't they born destined to fight each other?
A closer look at the golem's status window confirmed it.
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【Traits】
[Guardian], [Golem], [Fusion]
【Skills】
[Stacking Lv. 5], [Trinity Lv. 1], [Super Acceleration Lv. 2], [Smash Lv. 10], [Sturdiness Lv. 10], [Shockwave Lv. 10], [Magic Resistance Lv. 10], [Slash Resistance Lv. 20], [Heat Resistance Lv. 20], [Poison Immunity Lv. -], [Acid Resistance Lv. 5], [Threat Detection Lv. 5], [Self-Repair Lv. 10]······
【Status】
[On Guard]
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It had more than a few impressive-looking skills.
You could call it an upgraded version of Pelerian's Guards A and B I'd encountered before.
Considering the toughness of its material, which wasn't even listed among its skills, it had to be incredibly strong.
There were a few skills I wanted to borrow from it, but this wasn't the time. I hadn't fully mastered Giantification yet, and I might draw its aggro.
“Grrrp.”
Surprisingly, Ta was still alive.
Ta's neck was bent grotesquely as the head let out a cry, pink drool spilling from its mouth.
Ta turned that hostility toward the golem.
-Golems do not die, nor are they unstable. As long as they are not destroyed by external force and receive periodic maintenance, they could live forever.
Pelerian admired the masterpiece they had created in life.
Even the great Heaven-Defier mage couldn't mass-produce a golem like this.
There could only be a handful of Dungeons that had golems of this caliber.
-But do you know what makes a golem inferior even to an unstable Chimera?
‘What is it?’
This didn't seem like the time for a lecture, but I was curious.
-Golems cannot grow. Their creator may add functions, but they cannot develop on their own.
That made sense.
Golems had no levels, so naturally they couldn't level up.
-Super Acceleration, Trinity, and Stacking. Every one of them is an impressive skill. Abilities and techniques worthy of a hero.
The golem's movements, too fast to see, came from combining those skills.
-As you know, combining techniques often has an effect closer to multiplication than addition. That chained technique was designed with that in mind.
Trinity.
The inevitable loss of power when three entities combined their strength.
Heat loss from energy. The unavoidable increase in entropy.
After gaining three heads, Chugota had suffered losses in Mana conversion, as well as severe losses in processing power, perception, and memory.
The three golems, on the other hand, could combine their power without any loss thanks to Trinity.
Super Acceleration was, exactly as its name implied, an upgraded version of Acceleration.
It accelerated at a ridiculous speed, assuming you could withstand the aftermath.
Finally, Stacking.
Using a skill repeatedly and consecutively.
Flesh-and-blood creatures with muscles, blood vessels, and nerves couldn't stack Super Acceleration.
But a golem assembled from inorganic materials could.
The golem used its carefully calculated chained technique once more.
Its eyes glowed red, heat sinks emerged, and cooling water flowed around its entire body as it prepared to accelerate.
The golem's form blurred, then vanished as if it had blinked out of existence.
A moment later, dozens of impacts rang out at once.
Bangbangbangbang!
Chugota breakdanced madly in midair.
Pelerian's golem had struck her dozens of times in the blink of an eye.
All three heads vomited blood like ketchup at the same time.
Her insides had to be pulp by now.
That was overwhelming performance.
Pelerian's golem truly possessed that level of combat power.
The strength of a golem they had made was enough to change how I saw Pelerian.
Still, Pelerian didn't look very satisfied.
-I said golems cannot grow. So it has exactly the abilities it had when I added those functions. If it had developed even a little over time······
‘Then?’
-That wyvern would have burst into hundreds of pieces by now.
Unlike golems, Chimeras and monsters could develop.
They could level up, and their skills could grow stronger.
As long as they survived, they could even evolve.
Golems, on the other hand, couldn't improve beyond what they were at the moment they were made.
Without regular maintenance and inspections, they would only break down.
Creak.
A sound came from the golem's joints.
I understood what Pelerian was dissatisfied with.
‘Still, it's plenty strong.’
-It is.
Even so, the Obelisk Giant was still strong.
“Grrraaaah!”
Chugota roared and tried to take flight.
The golem's form blurred again, followed by another series of impacts.
I hadn't been standing around watching during all this, either.
I poured potions into Wyvern Mom's mouth.
She was so huge that one or two bottles wouldn't get her back on her feet. Before I knew it, I'd used them all.
Still, Wyvern Mom managed to struggle upright.
We needed to escape fast, before the golem turned its hostility toward us.
And we had to get the three wyvern siblings too.
“Grruuu.”
Wyvern Mom slowly spread her wings.
Fortunately, it looked like she could still fly.
Then it happened.
Booom!
When I turned my head, the golem was in midair in a jet kick pose.
Chugota's massive body flew far into the distance.
I didn't know whether she was alive or dead.
Whoosh, whoosh.
Wyvern Mom hurriedly carried me into the air.
The golem's head turned toward us.
It seemed to have decided Chugota, the threat, had been eliminated.
-It's fine! It won't chase us if we move to the opposite side of the Dungeon!
Just as Pelerian, its creator, had explained.
The golem's highest priority was protecting the Dungeon, so it didn't bother chasing us as we fled.
“Grrrooo!”
Despite surviving, Wyvern Mom wasn't happy.
Her cry was filled with grief instead.
Her flock was already falling apart.
The White Wyverns Chugota had brought were tearing apart the Black Wyverns.
‘Damn······.’
White monsters should be joining forces.
But my companions were the black ones now, and the white ones were my enemies.
I hoped the white ones wouldn't hurt the smallest Black Wyverns.
The ground here was white from wyvern guano.
That meant the three Black Wyvern hatchlings would stand out easily.
“Graak!”
Their mother found them before I did.
Seleta shrieked and dropped lower.
Below us, three hatchlings hid in the shadow of a stone pillar.
Even after seeing their mother, they couldn't run to her. They were pressed tightly together, trembling.
Thankfully, all three seemed unharmed.
Wyvern Mom landed so hard she nearly crashed into the ground.
Then she spread her injured wings and gathered her children into her embrace.
Only then did the three siblings chirp and cling to their mother.
She must have been thinking of nothing but getting them onto her back and escaping.
But from the sky, they were far too easy to spot.
Something thick fell to the ground from above.
Drip, splat.
It was bloody vomit mixed with saliva.
Along with chunks of meat that might have been in her stomach for who knew how long, a thick clump of blood splattered across the ground.
I slowly raised my head.
Chugota clung to a white stone pillar above us.
Her once-white body was covered in dark bruises, and blood kept dripping from her mouth and nostrils.
Her entire body was soaked in the blood she had coughed up and shed.
Three heads extended from her upside-down body.
Even though one neck was broken horribly, it was still glaring this way.
“Gugugugu.”
“Grruu.”
“Guk, guuk.”
Their cries were twisted, as though they hated the entire world.
Only then was I certain.
‘That wyvern is insane.’
She was definitely a truly insane wyvern.
Even if she was a monster, she was still technically a beast. After getting hurt that badly and barely surviving, she should have run away.
“Gyaak, gyaaaak!”
Why was she charging at us again?
She flew toward us while repeatedly smashing her body against the stone pillars. That was madness, no question.
The three siblings shrieked and clung to their mother.
Wyvern Mom frantically beat her wings, trying to take off with her children hanging onto her.
‘Hoo.’
It was chaos.
Still, compared to the chaos I'd experienced so far, this was manageable.
Especially compared to that time.
The brawl between monsters before the roots of the World Tree.
Compared to when Centipede Mom had howled while searching for her lost children.
‘······.’
I hoped the same thing wouldn't happen again.
The moment Wyvern Mom finally took us into the air, I jumped down.
I had to draw Chugota's attention.
And I had to reassure Wyvern Mom so she could retreat with her real children.
By showing her how strong I was.
*「You use Giantification Lv. 1.」
I used Giantification.
*「You have fully mastered ‘Giantification.’」
*「Giantification Lv. 1 becomes Giantification Lv. 2.」
The timing was good.
My Giantification experience had built up.
And I had learned for sure that bigger wasn't always better.
There was a size I could handle.
Large enough that I could still leap properly.
Small enough to keep my fangs sharp enough to pierce an enemy's hide.
And one more thing.
Big enough that the insane wyvern wouldn't dare ignore me.
I grew larger.
Chugota looked at me.
“Kieeeeeeek!”
The mad queen screamed.
Then she changed direction and crashed into me.
* * *
「From the Epilogue of the Interview with Mr. Lobanton, Who Returned Alive from the Wyvern's Nest」
······That was how the interview ended safely.
The commotion had been caused when the doctor's trauma was triggered.
Fortunately, no one had been hurt.
It wasn't something that could simply be laughed off, but it didn't diminish the respect I felt for the poor scholar.
After all, he was the person who had survived for over a month in Chugota's nest and returned alive.
Naturally, he carried several mental scars that would never heal.
I gave Dr. Lobanton hot chocolate and honey bread.
Wrapped in a blanket, he drank the chocolate without hesitation.
Then he made a generous offer.
Lo: Ask anything you're curious about. You may include it in the interview or leave it out.
Rep: Ah······.
Lo: An apology for my disgraceful display.
There was something I had wanted to ask.
It was about the exact journey that led to his escape from Chugota's nest.
Dr. Lobanton had given different accounts of that journey several times.
What was the truth?
That was what stirred my curiosity.
Lo: I knew you'd ask that.
Lobanton pulled a bottle of strong liquor from his coat, mixed it into his hot chocolate, and drank.
Lo: Decide for yourself whether what I tell you is the truth or a lie.
Rep: I'll listen.
Lo: The Empire had also taken notice of Chugota's strength and ferocity.
Rep: Ah······ the Empire.
Because the Empire was involved, this story could only now be told as an epilogue.
Lo: Did you know the emperor at the time dreamed of a wyvern knight order? He wanted to create a wyvern knight order to protect his daughter, the imperial princess.
Rep: I heard it was the Beast Emperor.
Lo: That was why they targeted the hatchlings of the greatest wyvern in the Mountain Range. Chugota had four hatchlings. They must have planned to kidnap all four. I don't know whether they originally intended to steal the eggs.
Rep: Then, could it be······?
Lo: I don't know whether they sent rangers or used magic, but they succeeded. They kidnapped four hatchlings in a single night. I awoke then, to the sound of Chugota howling.
Rep: Did you see the kidnappers?
Lo: Probably. I saw humans scattering in four directions below.
Rep: They didn't rescue you.
Lo: No, they did show a bit of mercy. They sprinkled potions over me while I was asleep. How else could I have returned alive?
I didn't know if it was true, but it was an explanation that fit.
With one leg severed and a shoulder pierced through, he would have needed that kind of help to survive.
Lo: Chugota flew off to retrieve her children.
Rep: Then······.
Lo: That thing was impressive too. She somehow brought her children back. She flew in carrying a white, pale hatchling in her mouth.
Dr. Lobanton rubbed his face, looking tired.
Lo: But none of the hatchlings she brought back survived.
Rep: Ah······.
Lo: To be precise, the first one she brought back was still breathing. But it died while Chugota was retrieving the second hatchling's corpse. Chugota wailed so pitifully it could have torn your ears apart. She must have cared for her children. Three more days passed, and when she brought back the third hatchling's corpse, her appearance changed.
Rep: Her appearance changed?
Lo: She evolved, what else could it have been? But······ she changed grotesquely. Her head split, and she gained two more eyes. I don't know whether she became that way to search for her children, but······ she left to find the fourth hatchling.
Did she bring back the fourth hatchling too?
I asked him.
Lo: I don't know.
It was an unexpected answer.
Lo: It had been more than ten days since she brought back the third one, but she never returned. My injuries healed in that time, so I escaped the nest. I haven't seen her since.
Dr. Lobanton's hand shook as he held his cup of chocolate.
He gave a strained, irritated chuckle.
Lo: Who knows? Perhaps she went completely mad and is still searching for the fourth hatchling. That would serve her right.
Dr. Lobanton didn't speak again after that.
That was the end of the interview.
* * *
Crunch!
In my Giantification form, I bit Chugota's shoulder.
I injected a solid stream of Deadly Venom.
I waited for the fierce brawl that should follow.
But then,
Lick, lick.
Chu and Go began licking my head while bleeding.
‘What the hell?’
I couldn't understand what was happening at all.
Footnotes:
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