WeTried Translations
Translator/Editor: HidingTurtle
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◈ I Became the Ophidian of the Apocalypse ◈
Chapter 132: Magic Serpent
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An astonishing fact.
Animals hold funerals.
Not every animal mourns the death of its own kind, but it is behavior occasionally seen in animals with relatively high intelligence that live in groups.
Elephants are a prime example, as are animals like gorillas.
Magical beasts such as wyverns are no different.
When a young hatchling dies, or when a great queen dies, wyverns gather to mourn together.
Of course, the scale varies greatly.
For this many wyverns to gather in one place and mourn a hatchling's death...
Well, it was an exceedingly rare sight.
““Oooooo!””
Their low cries resonated together like a chorus.
A primitive funeral dirge, perhaps.
It was almost impossible for anyone other than magical beasts to witness such a scene.
Even for an elf who lived alongside nature, or a hunter who treated the Demonic Realm as home, it was an opportunity that might never come even once in a lifetime.
Hailit Langrey.
The human woman with a twisted affection for magical beasts trembled.
Her entire body vibrated.
Literally, she was shaking from the wyverns' resonating infrasound.
The cries of the two queens were especially overwhelming.
Those beautiful, dangerous, enormous magical beasts wept.
Then, amid it all.
The elf Iris broke the silence.
"That's good."
At that dry, almost brittle response, Hailit snapped her head around.
Unlike the moved Hailit, Iris wore an utterly indifferent expression.
"It'll be easier to investigate the Dungeon now."
"What did you just say, you lunatic?"
"?"
After witnessing such a magnificent sight firsthand.
All she could say was, "Good, the wyverns cleared away the rubble from the stone tower."
No human could possibly be like that. Then again, she was an elf, not a human. Maybe that was why.
The funeral did not last long.
For seven full days, hundreds of wyverns had carried away broken chunks of rock in their mouths and dug through the ground.
After howling for the dead hatchling, they took off one by one.
That alone was a spectacular sight. In an instant, only the two queens remained on the ground.
Then the hatchling came into view.
Had the wyverns not howled and held a funeral, no one would have recognized it as a wyvern hatchling.
It was a hatchling's corpse, covered in something like hard crystal.
Perhaps it had been struck by magic. Or perhaps it had dried out after dying.
One of the queens had three hatchlings with her. They seemed to be its siblings.
And Pandang, the rogue who had quietly stood in the back until now, saw the crystal-covered magical beast and thought of something.
'Could that be Mr. Snake...?'
It definitely looked different from that snake.
That snake's scales had shone like crystal, but this thing was covered in a thick crystal layer and gave off a completely different impression.
There was no sign of life at all. It simply lay sprawled on the ground without moving.
Inside the translucent crystal, bright red blood and horrifying things were stuck together, making for a grotesque sight.
'It hid in a wyvern egg and was carried off in a wyvern's mouth...'
Only Pandang, who had watched the whole process, could have had that thought.
'Poor Mr. Snake. I don't know what happened, but they ended up dying.'
It never occurred to him that the snake inside might be alive.
It looked that lifeless, and the closer he looked, the more horrifying it became.
It was like unset bloody pudding inside a crystal.
Pandan glanced to the side.
Should he tell them?
That it was probably not a wyvern hatchling, but the snake monster he had met before.
'Why would I?'
There was no reason for him to do that.
Pandang turned away as though he had seen nothing.
The usual Hailit might have noticed that Pandang was hiding something.
But now, her mind was elsewhere.
'It looks just like a snake... Is it a mutant? A taxidermied wyvern hatchling covered in crystal... It might have been caught in a special petrification trap. No, that must be it.'
As someone who hunted magical beasts and made clothes from them herself, Hailit had a collector's obsession.
Sometimes, an uncontrollable urge would rise in her.
This was one of those times. The strange crystal wyvern hatchling made her heart race.
It was the first time since then.
Since she had seen the enormous Polaris Serpent and its tiny hatchling.
Hailit Langrey had insisted on asking that little snake for its scales.
'I want it.'
But how?
There were two powerful wyvern queens. Even for Hailit Langrey, the kingdom's greatest hunter, they were difficult opponents.
Besides, the Black Wyvern Queen eventually picked up the hardened hatchling in her mouth and began to fly away.
The three-headed white wyvern followed after her.
'I'll find a way.'
Langrey was a hunter who never gave up.
She spoke, making her declaration.
"I think this is where we part ways. From here on, you're on your own."
Her journey with Iris ended here as well.
The elf was not flustered by the sudden farewell.
"Thanks."
"Then I'll be going."
At that moment, Pandan nervously cut in.
"Uh, then what about me...?"
"Uh, do whatever you want?"
"..."
It was hard to tell whether Pandang looked pleased or offended.
And so, the three went their separate ways.
For their own purposes.
Though Pandang's purpose was simply this.
'Haah, I should just go home now.'
He decided to go home.
* * *
'No, but why doesn't anyone know I'm alive?'
It was only natural for me to wonder that.
Watching my own funeral while still alive, what was this, some omniscient... Anyway, it wasn't that.
Then Pelerian said something I hadn't expected.
-Didn't I tell you what you look like right now?
'...What do I look like?'
-Like tomato soup in a snake-shaped crystal bottle.
'?'
-Rotten tomato soup with lots of chunks.
That was a horrific state beyond imagining. It gave me chills.
No wonder my status window wouldn't display properly. It felt like I could turn my eyes more than 360 degrees.
'It's a relief I put Isil and the other stuff in the ring.'
Otherwise, I might have left it all behind.
Fortunately, I had packed everything, including Pelerian's journal.
Wyvern Mom, Seleta, carried me away from Delphram in her mouth.
Though she didn't go very far.
Their old nest had collapsed, so they needed to establish a new one.
The site they chose was near Delphram.
Since wyverns had avoided the area because of the Dungeon's golems, there had been no nest there before.
At some point, the golems had disappeared.
Once their leader established a new nest, the other Black Wyverns gathered nearby as well.
Seleta made a huge new nest atop the tallest stone pillar among them.
It was spacious enough for the three wyvern siblings to stay together until they had grown somewhat.
And I was in one corner of it.
It was as if they had erected a statue. Or perhaps I was a tombstone myself.
Thud.
A decapitated eagle fell in front of me.
The one who had brought it was none other than Pipi.
"Kwaak!"
Frogs and all sorts of mountain animals already lay scattered before me.
Some were rotten enough for worms to wriggle through them.
It was a good thing I couldn't smell anything right now.
'Pipi! I told you to stop bringing those!'
"Kwaaak!"
'Argh!'
They were offerings for Pipi's dead youngest big brother.
-At least Pipi is taking care of you.
'I really think Pipi knows I'm alive.'
-Then Pipi must have brought them for you to eat.
It was a mystery.
At least Wyvern Mom clearly believed I was dead.
Just yesterday, I had seen her pull the hatchlings close before bed and quietly cry.
'I think I'll be able to use skills soon.'
This was my third day staying in the nest as a crystal tombstone. It had been ten days since my evolution began.
Going by the evolution process, about a third had passed.
According to Pelerian, I looked like tomato soup with even more chunks now.
'What kind of skill is Crown of Connection?'
It was a new skill I had gained while evolving into a Little Prince Serpent.
The Crown series had three skills: Domination, Seizure, and Overcoming.
Crown of Connection had been added to that list, but I couldn't properly use skills yet, so I couldn't test its effects.
-If it is a skill born from communing with so many wyverns, perhaps it lets you lead a legion of magical beasts.
'Wouldn't that overlap a little with Crown of Domination?'
That didn't seem right either.
Honestly, I was just waiting to escape this place.
It wouldn't be good if they discovered I was alive.
I had absolutely no desire to spend my entire life trapped in a wyvern nest.
'I can use those kids to get out, right?'
I hoped to use Crown of Domination, ride on one of the three siblings' backs, and escape.
-Then take this opportunity to train harder.
That was what Pelerian said.
If I asked how I was supposed to train in this crystal-covered state.
Surprisingly, it was possible.
-You will never again have a chance to train magic this quickly and efficiently.
At least when it came to magic, the efficiency was incredible.
The secret was simple.
My current mana was only about one hundredth of what it normally was.
The mana that normally formed a dense mass in one place, probably my dantian, was scattered through my whole body like soup.
When casting magic, I had to structure my gathered mana as though pulling thread from a skein.
But now, I could minutely control the mana scattered throughout my body.
If mana was electricity, and magic was the method of using that electricity to produce light and operate machines.
Normally, I needed to gather my abundant mana and create a safe, sturdy imaginary power line.
But now, I didn't need to.
I could freely manipulate the faint mana scattered everywhere.
The crystalline substance covering my body served as a medium for mana.
That was all I could explain as a humanities student.
Honestly, I was just repeating what Pelerian had told me.
-It is the same reason crystals are attached to staffs. Crystals are naturally a medium that processes and amplifies mana without loss.
Any mage with dignity ought to carry a cool magic staff.
And my current state was...
-In that regard, you could call yourself a snake-shaped crystal staff.
A magic snake-wand.
Uh, I'm a magic wand myself.
When I drew up my mana, it really began to gather in the crystal covering my entire body.
Then, I manipulated it with great precision...
-Try using the wind magic you are weakest at.
Following Pelerian's exceedingly kind lesson, I worked the mana.
The faint mana flowing through the crystal slowly seeped into the air.
I felt like a mana humidifier.
Then that mana gathered in an invisible form.
I had tried several times already, but hadn't succeeded even once.
-For the record, I succeeded on my fifth attempt.
Was this my fifth attempt?
No, let's call it the fourth.
Through sheer determination, I succeeded.
I made a butterfly out of wind.
If I had a mouth, I would've joyfully hissed.
-Focus!
It wasn't time to let my guard down.
The magic had definitely succeeded.
-This is the beginning of intermediate magic!
Still, no message saying, "You use Intermediate Elemental Magic: Wind Lv. 1," appeared.
This was a literal workaround, after all.
I slowly sent the magic I had created toward the three siblings.
I had shaped it from such a tiny amount of mana that even Wyvern Mom, who was sensitive to mana, didn't notice it.
Then, the moment the wind butterfly touched the back of Pipi's head.
Pop!
Pipi jumped in surprise, as if a balloon had burst.
Considering this was only one hundredth of its usual power, it was an excellent result.
"Kekekeke!"
"Chupuhaha!"
Kei and Chui burst into laughter.
Pipi didn't hold back and lunged at the younger siblings.
I was overjoyed at succeeding with magic.
Of course, I couldn't actually jump.
'I succeeded in four tries. Doesn't that make me a genius?'
-Wasn't it five?
Pelerian didn't sound entirely certain either.
It seemed I could train wind and water magic without arousing the wyverns' suspicions.
The clouds made it look as though rain would come soon, so I decided to train water magic then.
It didn't seem like much, but it was definitely useful training.
Because...
「You have succeeded in manifesting a higher-level spell.」
「The proficiency of ‘Elementary Elemental Magic: Wind’ increases sharply.」
「‘Elementary Elemental Magic: Wind Lv. 8’ has become ‘Elementary Elemental Magic: Wind Lv. 9.’」
The proficiency of wind magic, which had been my weakest alongside water magic, had risen this much in only two days.
-This time, we will raise all your elemental magic to intermediate level or higher.
'Yes, Master.'
-Do not call me that. Ahem.
That was what he said, but Pelerian didn't seem to dislike it much.
At this rate, let's become an excellent spellsword. Master of both magic and sword.
Then it happened.
"Gruu." "Dururu." "Kereek!"
A huge wyvern landed with familiar cries.
'Ah, this one again...'
I'm screwed. Gota's here.
Chugota had arrived.
Seleta, who had risen, lay back down as though accustomed to this by now.
Chugota no longer threw tantrums or raged viciously.
Had Chugota trained her mind while digging at the stone tower?
Chugota simply came here once a day, stared at me, then left.
"Gruu."
It might have been sad to think she came every day to visit her dead child's tombstone.
But as the one who was still alive, I was genuinely frightened.
The way Chugota looked at me was deeply unsettling.
Wyvern Mom now seemed to treat Chugota like an elderly neighbor, but I found Chugota burdensome.
'I need to get out of here soon...'
Whenever this happened, my urge to escape surged.
For now, I would train more magic and wait for my evolution.
Give me just a few days, and I would become stronger.
* * *
An eager, talented student and an excellent professor.
Once the two came together, their studies progressed like a knife through a knot.
After just three more days.
I succeeded in raising all four major elemental magics except water to intermediate level.
Other than nearly setting the nest on fire by mistake, there were no problems.
Then, on a rainy night.
The moment I succeeded in manifesting intermediate water magic.
「‘Elementary Elemental Magic: Water Lv. 10’ has become ‘Intermediate Elemental Magic: Water Lv. 1.’」
I finally shed the label of an elementary elemental mage.
I didn't have time to savor my joy.
Who could've expected three white heads to emerge from the darkness?
It was Chugota.
Chugota appeared under cover of the heavy rain.
The creature that always cried so strangely didn't make a single sound that day.
'Aaah!'
-Gasp!
I screamed internally.
Some wyverns might have been awake, but Chugota had come and gone so often lately that no one was on guard.
Wyvern Mom slept quietly with the hatchlings gathered in her arms.
And so, the bold theft began.
Chugota carefully grasped me in her claws.
Then Chugota took off.
Even the sound of her wings was swallowed by the rain.
'You crazy wyvern!'
The crazy wyvern's obsession with me had still not ended.
At this rate, I might have to stay with Chugota forever.
After stealing me, Chugota would probably hide deeper in the Demonic Realm.
I couldn't relax just because that wouldn't be much different from now.
Chugota was so unhinged that once I completed my evolution, Chugota might slurp me down to make sure I could never be taken away again.
Or Chugota might realize I wasn't her child and attack me.
What do I do? Old Man Pel, what do I do?!
-Do something somehow!
But Pelerian could do nothing but cheer me on.
Right, magic.
But what could I do with magic at one hundredth of its power?
Or, since Chugota was holding me gently because Chugota was afraid I would break, perhaps I could tickle Chugota's side with wind magic and make Chugota drop me...
Even as I considered that, Chugota tried to gain altitude.
Chugota was trying to hide in the rain clouds.
This was seriously driving me crazy.
'Aaah!'
I used the magic I could.
Thwack!
At that moment, an arrow struck Chugota's shin.
I hadn't used arrow-summoning magic.
The arrow, which had barely pierced Chugota's hide, had something like a talisman tied to it.
The Rune Language on the talisman flashed.
Boom!
An explosion erupted.
My body suddenly dropped.
Chugota had lost her grip on me.
"Kwagaak!"
The Black Wyverns woke at the sound of the explosion.
Chugota also let out an enraged roar, but it was too late.
I plummeted through the pouring rain.
No, wouldn't I shatter to pieces if I fell from this height?
I should've just evolved into a wyvern and learned Flight!
Countless thoughts flashed through my mind.
Clink.
But I didn't break.
"Got you!"
Someone caught me.
I never thought I would be this happy to see this human's face.
"You're so pretty up close!"
It was Hailit Langrey, the red-haired hunter.
'Wait. Look up!'
I didn't need to warn her.
Perhaps because of a trained hunter's instincts, she raised her head.
An enraged Seleta was flying toward Chugota.
And Chugota was staring down at Hailit, who had stolen me away, with blazing eyes.
Then all three heads opened their mouths at once.
Whiiiiine!
A pure white glow gathered.
Ah, it had Destruction Beam.
It didn't seem to consider that I would be caught in it too.
Just as I thought of dying again.
Was it an illusion that I saw a translucent wind butterfly between the raindrops?
Boom!
Compressed wind burst, and Chugota's body shook in the air.
Uh.
Was that my magic?
Footnotes:
“Magic snake-wand” recreates a Korean blend of the words for “snake” and “wand.”
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