WeTried Translations
Translator/Editor: HidingTurtle
Discord: https://dsc.gg/wetried
◈ I Became the Ophidian of the Apocalypse ◈
Chapter 134: Phantom Thief Snakepang
──────
Hailit Langrey was a very famous hero.
She was one of the Eight Heroes, said to be the most renowned and powerful in the kingdom.
The others were all lofty figures, knights, mages, academy heads, and the like. Hailit Langrey, on the other hand, was a hunter.
Hunters hunted monsters.
Naturally, it was one of the three D jobs, dirty, dangerous, and difficult.
As a result, hunters were not treated with much respect.
Hunters' guilds, where such people gathered, had reputations similar to adventurers' guilds and rogues' guilds.
In other words, they were considered dens of ruffians.
The hunters' guild on the riverbank in Solion Impel's Ninth District was no exception.
Black Den, commonly called the Black Den, operated its first floor as a tavern like any other guild.
The people trimming their nails with daggers there were all hunters.
Every hunter worth their salt in Solion belonged to Black Den, so even those drunk enough to smash their faces into tables were veterans.
And Black Den, usually so gloomy, was now brimming with life.
Its guild master had returned.
“Langrey! Langrey!”
“Bwahahaha!”
She was thoroughly drunk and standing atop a table.
Whenever she returned after catching something valuable, she always threw a party like this.
“Do you know how much I got for it?”
“Langrey! Langrey!”
“Come on, look!”
She held a leather pouch high.
Clink.
The taut, swollen pouch alone made it clear that it held no small sum.
“Ten gold coins to whoever guesses it!”
A thunderous response erupted.
“100 Sola!”
“Fuck, like it’d only be that much! I say 300!”
The equally drunk hunters shouted out amounts at random.
Their excitement kept driving the bids higher, until the total could have bought all of Solion Impel's Ninth District.
“That's right, 500 Sola. I got 500 gold coins!”
“Wooooo!”
The tavern shook with cheers.
500 Sola. An ordinary commoner might never touch that kind of money in their lifetime.
In truth, it was a sum elite hunters like Langrey could earn by completing difficult requests.
“That's insane!”
“Doesn't that make our guild rich now?”
No one here was stupid enough to point that out.
They could not spoil their guild master's sky-high mood.
The hunters shouted words that bordered on worship.
“I'll be loyal to you for life!”
“Ahh! Please spit on me!”
“Wooooo!”
The mood reached its peak.
Then Langrey's drinking habit, which emerged whenever she was in a good mood, kicked in.
“Damn it, you lot. I like you!”
She reached into the pouch and began scattering gold coins.
The force and speed of the flying coins were practically that of thrown daggers.
But the hunters here were no slouches either.
They leaped into the air, snatching up the coins.
Where had she earned the money?
“Bwahaha, I'm a genius after all.”
It was thanks to the special monster corpse Hailit had brought back.
“A Wyvern Queen's hatchling born without wings or legs, which died after falling victim to a crystal-transmutation petrification trap in Pelerian's dungeon, stolen from a wyvern nest.”
Its rarity had earned it a high price.
This was not unusual.
Langrey found objects that caught her fancy, showed them off to everyone around her, then either stored them in her private collection or sold them off after enjoying them to the fullest.
The crystal wyvern taxidermy she had acquired this time had been marked for sale.
“Wow, that creepy thing sold for 500 Sola.”
The hunters who had collected Langrey's scattered coins chuckled among themselves.
“There are nobles who collect bizarre things, you know.”
“Maybe they'll use it as a display piece. If I put something like that in my room, I'd have nightmares. Bwahaha.”
It was covered in crystal, so it should have been beautiful.
But when one looked closely into the translucent crystal, blood and bits of horribly crushed flesh seemed to slosh around inside.
The hunters merely assumed it had been preserved in a pulpy state after being caught in the crystal-transmutation petrification trap.
That was all.
* * *
Day 16 of Evolution.
‘That traitor.’
I would definitely get revenge.
She had praised me so much.
Who would have thought she'd sell me off after just one day?
I felt like an idiot for grinning just because I had been praised for a moment.
-You only figured that out now?
‘Please don't fan the flames when my house is already on fire.’
-And I told you, they weren't calling you pretty from the start.
I had felt good when the beard-stubbled explorers praised me.
But it did not take long to realize that calling their words praise was a little questionable.
‘Amazing!’, ‘Ugh, terrifying.’, ‘This should sell for a fortune.’, ‘Ew, creepy.’
Especially that last one. It definitely did not sound like praise.
-It took you a whole day to realize that. Impressive.
‘Thank you for the compliment, but I'm still furious.’
-That wasn't a compliment... Never mind.
Fine. That much was acceptable.
I only had fifteen more days before my evolution was complete anyway.
But who would have thought she'd sell me off so cleanly the very next day?
Langrey wrapped me in purple velvet and placed me in a high-quality leather case.
Then she took out her guild master's seal and made something like a certificate on the spot.
She brought me to some sort of dealer, then added all kinds of absurd stories.
The dealer wore a monocle over his right eye, then even took out something like a magnifying glass to inspect me.
“It wriggles as though it's alive.”
“It was caught in crystal-transmutation magic. You could say it's half alive.”
“It certainly seems valuable. We will purchase it.”
Langrey practically danced with joy.
Then she left after receiving an enormous fortune.
Wretch.
If we met again, we would be enemies.
I was put into a box and carried somewhere.
After Langrey left, I heard the dealer speaking to someone.
“Isn't 500 Sola too expensive? For something this creepy and crude...”
Who the hell was that?
I was furious at the absurd appraisal and waited for the dealer to say something in my defense.
“True, it's hideously ugly. I can feel ominous mana from it too. Still, even things like this have demand. There are plenty of wealthy eccentrics with strange tastes.”
“Even 300 Sola would have been enough...”
“300 Sola would have been sufficient.”
The humans were putting me down as a pair.
I lost a little confidence.
“But that woman is a hero. If we can maintain our connection with her by showing a little consideration like this, it isn't a bad deal. Besides...”
“Yes?”
“I know the wealthiest and most powerful eccentric of them all. We could resell it to that person immediately.”
“As expected, you had it all planned out.”
Aaaagh. I was going to be sold to an eccentric with awful taste.
And before even a day had passed, I was moved again.
I had definitely been sold once more.
As I wondered where I was being taken this time...
Creak.
The leather case opened, and light poured in.
A man who looked like a servant picked me up while wearing gloves.
He stared at me closely and muttered.
“Honestly, I can't understand the tastes of the nobility. Paying 700 Sola for something this ugly...”
You should count yourself lucky.
If I could use my skills right now, I would have blasted you with Beam immediately.
Still, my price had gone from 500 Sola to 700 Sola.
That was not bad.
The servant placed me on a display stand in a corridor.
It seemed I had arrived at someone's estate.
Its owner had to be incredibly wealthy.
The corridor was extravagantly decorated.
-You've been sold to a high noble's house. Congratulations.
‘Thank you.’
Dozens of display stands lined the corridor, and each one held rare objects.
There were paintings, small sculptures, and mysterious ceramics.
I had become one such decoration.
Hmm.
It seemed this home's owner had decent taste and discernment.
I didn't know what sort of person they were, but I would impose on them until my evolution was complete.
And so, I remained in that splendid corridor.
Servants and various guests passed through many times.
By listening to their conversations, I learned who owned this place.
Court Count Jimier Berolinger.
This was the home of one of the kingdom's most powerful figures and greatest nobles.
* * *
Day 20 since evolution began.
I had spent four days in that corridor.
There had been some progress in my evolution.
Separately from that, my life as a sculpture had been an interesting experience.
I thought it would only be boring, but I heard many things.
A father and daughter passing through the corridor spoke.
“Court Count Jimier is a frightening person. He isn't called the Old Fox for nothing. There could be ears anywhere. Always watch what you say.”
“Then shouldn't we keep quiet here too?”
“It's fine. I'm using soundproofing magic.”
The servants also gossiped in the corridor.
“They say the Third Prince is entering Emerald School. That sickly wastrel.”
“The master will have a lot on his mind.”
“Let's be careful for a while. Still, Lord Obern, whom the master sponsors, is joining the faculty...”
Naturally, I heard all sorts of things.
“What is this ugly snake?”
This was new.
A fat little brat walked up to me.
He was so short that our eyes were level, and his face was full of spite.
“Young master, that is something the master of the house purchased recently.”
“Why did Grandfather buy something like this?”
He seemed to be the Court Count's grandson.
‘Something like this?’
“I believe it is a wyvern hatchling that died trapped in crystal...”
“Hey, idiot. Are you stupid?”
He was awfully rude to a servant who looked three times his age.
“This is obviously a snake!”
At least he was right.
The first person to recognize that I was a snake was this insolent little brat.
“No, it is a wyvern. Apparently, it is a deformed breed born without wings or legs.”
“Ugh, it's even creepier up close.”
“Hahaha, I agree that it is a horribly ugly monstrosity.”
Rude humans.
The young, ugly one reached out to touch me.
“I should smash it.”
Was this brat crazy?
It would not break easily, but I could not tolerate that.
*「You use Transparent Hand Lv. 17.」
Right.
I could use magic now.
Not only that, I had practiced whenever I was bored, so Transparent Hand had already reached Level 17.
Which meant I could strike the back of that brat's head invisibly, silently, and without scent.
Thwack!
“Argh!”
The brat clutched the back of his head and turned around.
He looked utterly unable to understand what had just happened.
“D-Did you hit me?”
“Pardon? Uh...”
Who would think an invisible magical hand had hit the brat?
Both the servant and the child were flustered.
“You hit me!”
“T-That cannot be, young master. You misunderstand!”
Hehe, this was fun.
Also, I had become able to use Crown this morning.
Why not try out my newly acquired skill?
*「You use ‘Crown of Connection Lv. 1.’」
What kind of effect did it have?
Judging from the name, it probably was not an offensive skill. The other Crown skills had been the same.
*「You must touch the target.」
But I could not use Crown of Connection.
It seemed my body had to make contact. Since I could not move right now, it was impossible.
Then I would use something else.
*「You use Crown of Domination Lv. 1.」
Right.
I was trying to use Crown of Domination on a human.
Would it work?
Of course, it would not work if the target's Mental Strength was high or they were clever.
That was why I chose that nasty little brat.
*「You partially succeed in dominating Human Child Lv. 1.」
*「You fail to tame Human Child Lv. 1.」
I had partially succeeded in dominating him.
This was the first time I had succeeded in Domination but failed in Taming.
So what could I do?
By consuming Domination Power, I could move the brat as I pleased for a short time.
“Argh, it hurts! Aah!”
The brat suddenly began pounding his own head with his fists.
“Y-Young master, what is wrong?”
“Aaaah!”
Servants gathered at the sudden commotion.
The brat struck his own face while the man attending him panicked.
Once my Domination Power ran out, the brat's self-beating fit stopped. He burst into tears and ran away.
“What in the world...”
The man stared blankly, then followed after the brat.
I had learned that Crown of Domination worked on humans too.
If my ability became stronger, it seemed like it could be very useful.
I should train harder.
But making the brat suffer also had a major effect on me.
“That is an unpleasant and ominous object. Move it to the storage room.”
An old man who looked like a butler approached and declared that.
A shocking decision to send me to storage!
At a single gesture from the butler, a large man picked me up.
He carried me deep into the estate.
It was a very long walk.
‘This place is a massive estate.’
I could tell just how rich the Court Count was.
After a while, the butler and servant reached a storage room deep within the estate.
“Open the door.”
Soldiers stood guard before the storage room.
They looked like no ordinary guards.
‘Come to think of it, truly valuable things would be kept in storage, right?’
-Ho ho...
With a house this wealthy, the truly valuable objects would naturally be stored away instead of displayed in a corridor.
I was entering the storage room of a rich person's estate. Life certainly brought all kinds of experiences.
Clank.
The magically secured iron door opened on its own.
Inside, all manner of rare objects were displayed on shelves.
There were many fascinating things.
The servant and butler left me among them.
Good. I could stay here until my evolution was complete.
How I would get out afterward was another problem...
That was when it happened.
-My, my. Ho ho ho!
Pelerian let out an amused laugh.
‘Why?’
-That Court Count fellow. He must either be unimaginably rich or thoroughly corrupt.
Unlike me, Pelerian could move. He wandered around the storage room, examining its contents.
‘What do you mean?’
-He seems to be quite an impressive collector.
I had thought the Court Count was just a person who liked strange knickknacks.
Pelerian pointed at one of the dozens of display cases.
-If you sold just this one display case, you could trade it for an entire castle.
Oh, my.
-For reference, 500 Sola would not buy a single object in these display cases.
Sorry to interrupt, but my price had risen to 700 Sola.
More importantly, artifacts.
Was it time to return as Snakepang, the Phantom Thief?
Footnotes:
Snakepang plays on Lupin, the Korean name for Arsène Lupin, the archetypal phantom thief.
Join our discord at https://dsc.gg/wetried
