WeTried Translations

Translator/Editor: HidingTurtle

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◈ I Became the Ophidian of the Apocalypse ◈

Chapter 31: My First Epithet Should Be Dignified

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031.

Did I really need to rush off and find a Dungeon?

Instead, I could grow steadily here. Somehow level up, meet the evolution requirements, and evolve into something like a Big White Double-Horn Python.

No, that wouldn't do!

First of all, I'd become someone who couldn't be satisfied with an evolution that just slapped "Big" onto my name.

I wanted a Special Evolution where I grew even more horns, or where my Pattern became a hologram or something.

More importantly, there was another reason.

-I can't afford to waste time here.

Pelerian told me that the elves had probably marked me completely.

That psycho elf woman who tried to step on me, then even slashed at me with her sword, was none other than a Golden Leaf Investigator.

When I asked what that was, Pelerian said it was a role given to recognized hunters among the elves, granting them full authority to investigate.

In other words, she was like a one-person, or small-team, major crimes unit. A special investigation bureau or something.

And the elf appointed as a Golden Leaf Investigator, the one who had tried to kill me, was Iris Selena.

Apparently, she had a terrible personality, a rabid dog who never let go once she bit down.

I asked whether Pelerian knew her, but he hesitated to answer. When I pressed him, asking if he hadn't promised to be honest with me, he said it was personal. So I let it go without asking further.

That elf would come after me.

What had I even done wrong?

I'd only killed a Chimera and worn Pelerian's ring.

The Great Forest was enormous. Could she really find me here?

When I said that, Pelerian didn't even smile as he declared that she would.

She'd find me, torture me, then experiment on me to learn exactly what kind of monster I was.

Wasn't that awfully Pelerian-like thinking?

Still, considering the inhuman nature of the elves I'd met so far, it was plenty frightening.

I had to change and become stronger.

Either evolve until that woman couldn't recognize me, or become strong enough that even the elves couldn't capture me.

The latter would be preferable.

"Keessit, kweeik. Chwering Nanaruk!"

"Nanarukmi chweet keessit-tung."

That was roughly what goblin pronunciation sounded like. It was a language that involved quite a lot of spit.

I hid behind a rock and listened to the goblins talking. It seemed they were waiting for a goblin named Nanaruk.

They had a ferryboat large enough to carry ten people pulled up along the riverbank.

It was a primitive boat, pushed into the water before everyone climbed aboard and rowed it.

It was also the tool I needed to cross the river.

'They won't let me ride with them if I ask, will they?'

-Go ask them.

Pelerian seemed to be getting better at jokes.

-I'm not joking.

If a snake appeared, they'd attack immediately.

What was the next best option?

I asked my strategist for a plan.

-Kill them all.

A massacre plan, huh.

It was a shame I couldn't use fire. If the boat burned, everything would be over.

Still, the massacre plan had a problem.

'Then who's going to row? I don't have hands.'

-Leave one alive. Make that one row.

Was he a genius?

Instead of answering right away, I looked over the goblins.

There were six of them.

Their appearances varied. One looked like a grandmother, while several appeared to be young warriors.

One of them stood out.

A goblin with red skin, unlike the others.

The red-skinned Hobgoblin was tall and muscular. They looked like a warrior.

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【Hop Goblin Lv. 10】

【Traits】

[Goblin], [Warrior], [Cautiousness]

【Skills】

[Spearmanship Lv. 7], [Archery Lv. 3], [Shieldsmanship Lv. 3], [Running Lv. 10], [Shouting Lv. 10]

【Status】

[Anxious]

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Hmm.

Spearmanship, Archery, and even Shieldsmanship.

They were definitely a combatant.

I'd still win if we fought.

But...

'Let's try persuading them instead of going with the massacre plan. It'd be better if I could hitch a ride.'

The problem was that the others also carried swords and bows.

I'd fought one-on-one many times, but I had never fought a group. That made me uneasy.

I didn't know whether this goblin named Nanaruk was strong or weak, and Nanaruk might arrive while I was fighting them.

-Yes, that would be better.

Surprisingly, Pelerian approved of my choice.

That meant I had a problem.

How could I approach them without making them panic and attack?

Being a terrifying-looking snake made things difficult.

This world cared about appearances too.

-......

I came up with a method.

* * *

"A, a snake!"

One goblin cried out in alarm.

Everyone except the grandmother goblin sprang to their feet. Some drew their weapons, while others aimed their bows.

As expected, snakes drew a ridiculous amount of aggro just by appearing.

Still, I had already prepared something.

"Wait......"

Sure enough, the goblins hesitated.

"The snake is holding a flower."

I was holding a flower in my mouth.

That wasn't all. I had also placed a flower between my horns.

The goblins were startled by the shocking sight. I could tell because they didn't fire their bows immediately.

"Is there even a snake that walks around wearing flowers?"

"That's suspicious."

Their reactions weren't as favorable as I'd hoped.

-I'm dying of embarrassment.

I was fine, but Pelerian was making a bigger fuss.

Once I got somewhat closer, they flinched and raised their swords again.

Right. I hadn't broken through the wall in their hearts yet.

But I had learned some things after meeting the centipede couple.

Thud.

I wasn't only holding flowers.

Earlier, I had caught a squirrel climbing around in a tree.

I set it down beside the flowers.

"That's a squirrel......"

"I think the snake is giving it to us."

Right, there was at least one goblin with a functioning brain.

I lowered my head in greeting.

The moment the other party returned the greeting, that was when an exchange began.

A few goblins awkwardly started lowering their heads.

That was when one of them spoiled the moment.

"What are you doing? That snake is a monster!"

The speaker was the red-skinned Hobgoblin.

You goblins were monsters too.

"Raise your bows! Why are you trying to greet that snake?"

I didn't like this one.

The mood turned cold again because of that Hobgoblin. Some goblins even began drawing their bowstrings.

-Hoho, this isn't going well.

It couldn't be helped.

Should I wipe them all out?

I could slaughter them outright.

"Jadiram!"

At that moment, another Hobgoblin came sliding down the ridge.

It was a female goblin with her hair tightly tied back. She carried a familiar young goblin on her back.

"What's going on?"

"Nanaruk, a strange snake showed up."

"A snake? Oh my."

She noticed the flower stuck on my head.

"The snake brought flowers."

"Are you going to be like that too? Snakes are dangerous."

"No......"

Then the young goblin and I met eyes.

"That's Ululullulu! Sis, that's the snake! The snake that saved me!"

Ah, was this the reward for doing a good deed?

The young goblin I'd rescued from the pelican had now saved the lives of others.

Not mine, of course. I meant the goblins in front of me.

"The snake saved Letch?"

"Oh my, so it really was true. How fascinating."

The goblin woman named Nanaruk approached me.

"Is there something you want?"

Yes, thank you for asking.

I raised my tail and tapped the boat, then pointed across the river. I repeated the gesture.

They should understand this, right?

"The snake wants to ride the boat with us and cross the river?"

"Absolutely not! What if that snake goes wild on the boat?"

"Would that really be a problem?"

An argument broke out among the goblins.

They said something about us being bewitched by a snake.

Nanaruk and the young goblin were friendly toward me, but the other goblins seemed terrified.

I was worried whether the discussion would go well, when...

"Cough, cough, hack!"

That wasn't goblin language. It was coughing.

The one coughing as if about to choke was the frail-looking grandmother goblin.

The grandmother goblin's entire body was covered in tattoos, making her look surprisingly fierce.

"Jadiram, Nanaruk."

"Yes, Grandmother."

The two Hobgoblins who had been arguing fell silent.

"Since ancient times, snakes have been spiritual animals. Can't you see that the snake understands our words? Cough!"

Well said, Grandmother.

"Let the snake ride. The boat isn't that cramped......"

The grandmother was an ordinary goblin, while those two were Hobgoblins.

It didn't seem that Hobgoblins necessarily held higher status.

The goblin who had been yapping at me shut his mouth.

"That's settled, then. Everyone, get on. Let's cross!"

Nanaruk said brightly.

I promptly climbed onto the boat.

I immediately claimed a first-class seat.

I was at the front, between the kind grandmother and Nanaruk.

"Heave-ho!"

When the boat was pushed from the riverbank, it began rocking with a splash.

Water sprayed everywhere.

The grandmother goblin looked at me, pressed her hands together, and bowed her head.

I bowed back at her.

Thank you.

The river wasn't very wide, but its current was faster than I expected.

The young Hobgoblin rowed diligently.

-Goblins are monsters people look down on, but they aren't as unintelligent as you'd think.

'It seems that way.'

-Of course, their level of civilization varies greatly by tribe, but this place is fairly advanced. They respect their elders, and their relationships seem quite equal.

When I thought of goblins, I had only imagined low-level mobs hiding in the shadows and firing poisoned darts.

I reflected once again on my shallow prejudice.

"Hey."

It was the Hobgoblin woman named Nanaruk.

Her cat-like golden eyes were distinctive.

Come to think of it, my prejudice about appearances had been shattered too.

Ordinary goblins looked much like I had expected.

They were small, with pointed ears, greenish skin, and faces no one could call handsome.

But Hobgoblins were fairly pleasant to look at, even by human standards.

Aside from their slightly red skin and somewhat large eyes, that was.

"What's your name?"

My name?

Good question.

I couldn't tell her the three-syllable name I used in Korea.

Should I make up a cool name?

Jegal Yuryong, Namgung Cheonma, something like that.

Ah, my name is White Double-Horn Python Hwangbo Baeksa.

-Don't answer!

Pelerian suddenly cut in.

That startled me.

-You don't have a name yet, Snake. Names contain important power. Don't make one up carelessly.

'How am I supposed to answer her?'

-......

When you looked closely, Pelerian could be pretty stupid too.

Setting aside the fact that I didn't have a name, I couldn't speak.

I only flicked my tongue.

Nanaruk didn't seem to expect an answer anyway.

"Look at this."

She dipped her hand into the river.

When she pulled it out, a fish was astonishingly biting her finger.

Nanaruk laughed and tossed the fish to me.

I caught it in one bite and swallowed it whole.

"It's a good thing you got on the boat. If you'd tried to swim across, you'd have been reduced to bones in no time."

She had a point.

This was a terrifying river.

The fish had sharp teeth, and Nanaruk's finger was bleeding too.

Still, she only sucked on her finger once and grinned.

I almost fell for her.

She's a goblin, and I'm a snake!

It didn't take very long to cross the river.

Tall grass grew along the opposite bank.

The grass, which reached about a person's chest, swayed in the wind like a summer field of silver grass.

"We're here!"

The young goblin excitedly stood up.

That made the boat rock.

An adult goblin pulled the child back and snapped at him.

"Sit still until the boat stops, you little bastard."

Just as he was about to jump off the boat first...

Huh?

Something shot out from the field of grass.

Thwack!

An arrow pierced the eye of the goblin who had just snapped at the young one. Deeply.

They stiffened and collapsed.

Splash!

Water flew everywhere.

At the same time, I felt a sharp sting in my back.

Thwack!

-Oh, an arrow.

I didn't need Pelerian's explanation to know.

An arrow had lodged in my body.

It hurt! A lot!

"Arrows! It's an ambush!"

Nanaruk shouted loudly as she pressed the young goblin's head down.

All the goblins except the grandmother and the young goblin leaped off the boat.

Ah, why did an arrow have to hit me?

I had been pressed flat against the bottom of the boat, so I was the least likely one to get hit.

My Luck had seemed pretty good lately, but misfortune finally caught up with me.

"Get them! Those crazy bastards ambushed us!"

"Jadiram! Don't go in alone! They're trying to lure us into the grass!"

The arrow hadn't gone very deep.

My skin had become much tougher after evolving.

But the wound in my heart made my fury burn.

-Go.

I too jumped off the boat.

The grass swayed in every direction. The arrows had come from inside.

Arrows flew out sporadically, but it didn't seem like they were trying to hit anyone.

"Everyone, go in together in a line!"

Nanaruk was an excellent commander.

Goblins were small. It wouldn't be easy to find and kill enemies hiding in this grass.

Of course, I was an exception.

'Old man, you can see from above, right?'

-Me? Hmm, I can.

Pelerian could float around within a two-meter radius of the ring.

That meant he could watch the movement of the grass from higher up than me.

'Then tell me which way to go.'

-That's easy enough. Go straight ahead.

I entered the grass.

Unlike the goblins, the grass didn't sway even when I slipped through it.

-More, a little to the right. There are ten of them.

Wasn't it common sense to watch out for snakes while moving through tall grass?

Especially when that snake was a very angry venomous snake.

-Two of them are together.

As I pushed through the grass, I found two goblins holding bows.

So it was you bastards.

Leap.

Acceleration.

Then, into the chest of the unclothed goblin, completely exposed before me.

Tear Apart.

Crunch!

I landed on the ground, and blood burst from the fallen goblin's chest.

The remaining goblin who witnessed it screamed.

"Aaah! It's the Heart-Eating Snake!"

Heart-Eating Snake.

To think that would become my first epithet.

Footnotes:

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