Chapter 109
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Translator: MadScientist
Chapter: 109
Chapter Title: Queen of Birds
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I grabbed Swungswung's body and lifted him up once.
"Swung?"
It looked just like hoisting up the heir to a lion's throne.
"Shwoooong!"
Swungswung spread his arms wide and let out a roar.
I had no idea what was going on, but he sure seemed to love it.
"Scary, scary!"
The parrots flapped their wings in a frenzy.
"He looks like him, just like him!"
Moona's expression changed at those words.
He was probably thinking the same thing I was.
"Looks like him? You mean the being you're talking about resembles Rebecca?"
"Rebecca? Looks like her! Looks like her! But different!"
Similar, yet different.
Of course, it couldn't be the same species as the Shadow Lace Queen.
Swungswung had been able to evolve into this form because he'd stuck with me and gobbled up the Tin Woodman's crown whole.
So there was no way it could be the same species as him.
Unless it was a lesser variant, maybe.
"I can't know the exact details, but this simplifies things. If Dabih and Vega really are connected to Rebecca, we'll have the upper hand."
Swungswung wasn't some ordinary lace—he was a queen, no less.
...Though to my eyes, he was just a wobbly sheet of fabric. Still, the status window called him a queen, so there had to be something to it.
"Will you help? Will you help?"
"Help us! Help us!"
The parrots flapped their wings as they spoke.
I'd wondered what it meant for them to talk like parrots, but one look at this scene made it crystal clear.
Moona glanced at my expression, then nodded.
"Very well. We'll help. We needed information on Dabih and Vega anyway."
"Thank you! Thank you!"
The parrots bobbed up and down in gratitude.
I figured I should give it a try too.
Thump thump thump.
...But because of my size, every thump sent the parrots fluttering into the air a little.
"...Too big!"
"Caw."
"Anyway, thank you! We'll cooperate too!"
I'd found a great ally.
The locals of this place.
Or rather, the local birds—they'd surely bring us valuable intel.
"Want an introduction? We'll introduce you!"
"Yeah! We'll introduce you! Thank you!"
An introduction?
Who were they going to introduce me to?
"Caw?"
I tilted my head.
Were they going to set me up with a nice female parrot or something?
Sorry, but that's not my type.
I might look like this, but I like humans just fine.
"The Queen!"
"Our Queen!"
Their unexpected words left my beak hanging slightly open.
The Queen?
"The Queen of the Forest! We'll introduce you!"
...Now, a queen? That changed everything.
*
It was immediately clear that this queen was the leader of these birds.
"The Queen's amazing, amazing!"
"The Queen's beautiful!"
And it was equally obvious how much these parrots adored her.
Putting together their fragmented info, I gathered that their queen had a striking mix of black and white plumage.
She had wings, so she seemed like some kind of parrot-like bird, but certain descriptions suggested otherwise.
"She picked up our fallen chicks with her hands and raised them! The Queen's merciful!"
"She's kind, so kind!"
See what I mean?
Why would they use the word "hands" for a bird?
I was pondering if she might be a bird with actual hands when Moona spoke up.
"Hm. It seems the queen they serve is likely a harpy."
...A harpy!
That made perfect sense.
"A being that has human form but bird traits. Wings like a bird, legs like a bird, yet overall human in appearance. I knew they lived closely with birds, but to be revered as their actual queen... That's intriguing."
The reasons they praised her as queen, and all the features they described—it all clicked once I realized she was a harpy.
"Caw caw."
Harpy.
That word sparked my interest instantly.
The stuff of men's dreams, rivaling even mermaids.
I remembered heated internet debates pitting harpies against mermaids.
Which was better?
Sure, the occasional weirdo would throw reptiles into the mix, but ignoring those outliers, it was about a fifty-fifty split between mermaids and harpies.
Mermaids probably existed here, thanks to tales like The Little Mermaid. But what would harpies be like?
I hoped they weren't straight out of the original myths.
Not those terrifying monsters who snatched men away with their enchanting voices.
From what the parrots said, though, she sounded benevolent.
We followed the parrots' guidance deeper in.
"Amazing, amazing!"
Rain poured in the central area, so flying was out of the question.
The parrots seemed more accustomed to walking on the ground than flying these days.
They could manage short flights, but they shied away from anything prolonged.
But that posed a fatal problem.
If birds couldn't fly, they'd be sitting ducks for predators.
Birds had the advantage of extreme lightness paired with flight; give that up, and they were just easy, lightweight prey.
"The crow's amazing too!"
And that's why they were praising me.
"So cool!"
"So strong!"
Because I'd hunted the massive beast that preyed on these birds.
It looked like a capybara.
But its aggression was off the charts—a single chicken-foot kick had been enough to finish it.
At that size, it could feed their village for quite a while.
They could think of the houses as gifts too.
"Smart and pretty! Noble and scary!"
The parrots showering praise on Moona and Swungswung.
And I was included in that praise too.
"Strong!"
Just one word—strong—but hey, it was something.
With our food haul in tow, we followed them to their destination.
We pushed through the jungle and reached the zone where the rain truly bucketed down.
A perfect circular boundary line marked the edge, and crossing it revealed a landscape utterly different from outside.
The dense forest was shrouded by the downpour, barely visible.
Like gazing at a foggy dawn.
It felt strangely mystical.
In weather like this, even wings that didn't get wet would struggle with flight.
"Almost there!"
"We're here, here!"
The parrots quickened their steps, toddling along.
They might have lost their head feathers, but a parrot was still a parrot.
There was something oddly cute about it, so I just watched in silence.
"...What are you looking at?"
Moona was eyeing me suspiciously.
Peck.
Then he jabbed me with his beak.
"Caw."
What? What's your problem?
"Focus."
"Caw caw."
Why was this guy acting up all of a sudden?
I was tempted to poke at his sulky face with my beak, but instead, I just crouched low.
"Hm..."
Moona made a dissatisfied noise, then naturally hopped onto my shoulder.
"A harpy... There's something nagging at me about this."
He'd called it intriguing earlier—what was bothering him now?
Well, Moona had his own thoughts.
Understanding that sage's mind was next to impossible for me.
He might look like a kiwi bird, but Moona was undeniably a sage.
"We're here! This tree!"
"...It's a secret! Can't tell!"
The parrots stopped in front of a massive tree and bobbed excitedly.
This must be their nest.
They were hiding their home well.
In the wild, exposing your nest was a death sentence—so this was wise.
"Secret! Secret!"
...Though their loud voices made me worry it might give them away, their nest turned out far cleverer than I'd imagined.
From the outside, it was a perfect tree.
No nests on the branches, no woodpecker holes.
But I could sense something inside.
Ordinary creatures wouldn't notice.
Only I, with my Crow's Eye skill, could detect it.
"It's inside here."
"Swung, swungswung."
...And my companions too.
The parrots glanced around, confirmed no one was watching, then pressed their beaks to the tree's center.
The tree began to ripple like liquid.
Shoooo...
"Come in! Come in!"
So that's how they made their nest?
Moona's old nest had used intricate mechanical devices, but this queen's felt laced with magic.
We slipped quickly inside.
A mystical, dreamlike atmosphere enveloped us.
Black and white feathers were scattered everywhere.
Each one the size of a full-grown parrot.
Feathers that big? Definitely a harpy.
A human-sized one would shed feathers like that.
"Oh, you've already arrived? I've heard all about you visitors."
A soft, leisurely voice echoed through.
She already knew about us.
A being worthy of the title queen, indeed.
Her voice alone marked her as extraordinary.
Like the voice of a top-tier voice actress?
Similar caliber to Moona's, but perfectly feminine.
"Follow this vine, please. I'd love to greet you in person, but I've injured my leg."
Swish...
Vines inside the nest began to move on their own.
Was this the queen's power?
Impressed, I followed the vine.
And at last, we reached the queen's chamber.
"I am Saroka, Queen of this forest."
Saroka.
Even the name sounded beautiful.
That was the moment I lifted my head to behold the queen.
"Caaaaw?"
I couldn't hide my bewilderment.
I'd expected a graceful harpy.
It wasn't disappointment in her appearance.
I wasn't here to date anyone—why would I care about that?
My shock had nothing to do with Saroka's face.
【Magpie LV10】
The queen I'd assumed was a harpy was nowhere to be seen. All that limped into view was a single magpie.
"Ufufu. You're bigger than I expected."
You're way smaller than I expected.
What were those huge feathers from earlier?
And how could a magpie speak so fluently?
"Hm."
Moona cleared his throat.
...
Why did that magpie remind me of Moona?
They looked strangely alike.