Chapter 150
Translator: MadScientist
Chapter: 150
Chapter Title: Female
쿠우우우우우웅!
With an enormous roar, the beast's massive body crashed into the ground.
Even after its breath was cut short, its mass continued to diminish, but its weight was still tremendous.
If it hadn't been for the spiraling force, my beak might have snapped clean off.
But who am I?
A crow with a beak that could pierce the heavens, that's who.
"Kekekak!"
I let out a valiant crow's roar, flaunting my victory.
Hunting down a foe this powerful naturally lifted my spirits.
How could it not?
A strong enemy meant great rewards.
Of course, there was no sub-quest this time, which was a shame, but taking down this beast itself was invaluable.
It might even earn me some favor with the rabbit, the master of this place. And above all, my level had shot up massively.
Nightfall Crow - White Night LV24
Level 24!
Considering it hadn't even been a week since my evolution, this growth rate was absurd.
I'd leveled up bit by bit while hunting those card soldiers, but this beast I'd just felled contributed the most.
"Kak, kekekek."
At this rate, I could aim for another evolution soon.
Of course, without achieving some monumental feat like last time, it felt a bit iffy, but this could count as one in its own way.
I'd taken it down with a spiraling drill, after all. Maybe I'd become something like a Heavenly Drill Crow.
And aside from the levels, I'd gained another reward.
"Kak!"
There on the ground lay the clover emblem.
Spade, heart, diamond, clover.
They say you only get a true windfall once you've collected all four.
Who said that?
Moona, that's who.
파아앗!
Just as the sage predicted, once I gathered all four emblems, the worthless stone began to glow.
What was this object the soldiers had guarded so desperately?
I stared at the stone, brimming with anticipation.
The emblems I'd collected merged together, and the stone reverted to its true form.
Its true form? A snail shell.
"Kak?"
No wonder I'd spotted that spiral pattern from the start. So it was a snail shell all along?
It didn't look like any ordinary shell.
The soldiers had protected it, so it had to be connected to the beast I'd just defeated.
「Lu Karkol's Carapace」
The carapace containing the last remnants of Lu Karkol, the monstrous beast in the form of a snail.
Using it summons Lu Karkol's resentful spirit for a limited time.
Lu Karkol's resentful spirit does not distinguish between friend and foe.
Destroys itself after one use.
It was an item that could summon the same snail—or at least the same species—as the one I'd seen before.
That explained why the soldiers guarded it so fiercely.
Using this item granted snail-summoning magic.
Snail-summoning magic sounded lame, but I'd felt in my bones just how monstrous that snail was.
The downsides were that it couldn't distinguish allies from enemies and was one-use only, but as Cheshire said, this was windfall-level stuff.
I knew exactly where to use it.
Our next destination was Lion Heart King's Castle.
Having seized the castle, they'd have a massive force.
What if I summoned a snail on one of the walls? Their troops would be too busy fighting it to bother with us.
It was an item that could weaken the enemy's forces—plenty useful.
Of course, memory-devouring snails and mindless undead might not mix well.
A Death Knight-ruled castle would mostly field low-tier undead.
But against undead of a certain caliber and above, the snail's power could be devastating.
Higher undead often retained some will or memories, sometimes even basing their actions on them.
What if Lu Karkol devoured those?
It could neutralize even the toughest undead with ease.
And without a cheat crow like me, subduing this thing was near impossible anyway, so it'd do plenty just drawing attention.
Useful in all sorts of ways.
The one-use limit was a pity, but I'd have to live with it.
"Raven, incredible!"
As I inspected the item, Rebecca came rushing over at a speed where her feet were invisible.
She looked human, but somewhat ethereal too.
"Kekek."
What, this? It's nothing special.
"Raven, your wings are all puffed up."
"Kak!"
Guess getting praised did lift my spirits a bit.
"Oh, right, that's not the point."
Rebecca, who'd dashed over, suddenly pulled something from her bosom like she'd just remembered.
It was a brown bird with a faint golden glow.
A kiwi bird with fluffy feathers.
Moona.
"Moona's acting weird."
"Kaak?"
I examined Moona at her words.
He looked normal, but his eyes were squeezed shut.
"Nyaang! It's been like this since that mist spread toward us, nyaang. We're fine, but... I dunno why only the sexy sis is like this, nyaang."
....
Lu Karkol was a memory-devouring snail.
It had turned its slime into mist to absorb others' memories.
I'd stopped it midway, so I figured there'd be no major issues, but apparently not.
I'd thought devouring both my and Moona's memories at once would backfire on it, but maybe it poisoned Moona too?
Like with Cheshire, maybe I could dive into this one's memories somehow...
"Hee-yong...."
"Kak?"
I stared hard at Moona.
That plump butt rose and fell.
No, he was just sleeping?
Peck peck.
You're scaring people. Er, crows.
The epithet given to the wisest being: Sage.
In the entire continent, only one possessed that title.
Even the countless seekers of knowledge and wisdom would angrily reject anyone calling them Sage.
There could only be one true Sage.
In the kingdom of snow where frigid flurries fell.
The Sage gazed coldly at the one blocking her path.
[How could you, the wisest of all, make such a choice?]
Words that rang not in her ears, but directly in her mind.
She instantly knew who it was.
Only those from the same place as her past self could speak this way.
[It's not too late yet.]
[He still holds you in great favor.]
[The seven cannot become six. You must return to us soon.]
Six humans. No, beings born human but now transcending humanity.
The six transcendents stood in her way.
"Indeed, faces I haven't seen in ages."
The Sage spoke in her usual dry, emotionless tone.
The six transcendents flew into a rage at her voice.
[...How dare you!]
[You've abandoned even His power?!]
A ferocious aura erupted.
They'd thought they could persuade her before she spoke.
But the Sage didn't converse on their terms.
They'd amassed wisdom over long ages, if not quite matching hers.
It was obvious she couldn't be swayed.
[Wisest one. Is this truly your will?]
[I cannot comprehend it. How could His most favored do this?!]
[Slay that wicked black bird, and the world will turn white as He desires. Our grand plan nears fruition!]
She stared blankly at their fury.
"The eternal night heralds an eternal winter."
[You... how do you know...?]
"I stood with you only to halt the eternal night. Now that I know your ugly truth, I can no longer join you."
The six transcendents silently drew their weapons.
[So you truly betray us.]
[You will lose your knowledge and wisdom, reduced to a pathetic wretch.]
[This is His curse upon you. It's not too late. Join our great plan, Sage.]
Was this their final plea, after years as comrades?
No, hardly.
Moona couldn't help but smirk at their pathetic display.
"Nothing uglier than the fear of change."
[We understand.]
[No last words?]
The Sage regretted it.
Regretted ever working with them.
Despite their immense power, they feared change.
They didn't seek to stop the eternal night—they planned to twist it into an eternal winter for the world.
No rising sun, the world dyed white.
No change, only their perfect realm.
That was the goal of the six transcendents, the ideal of the being named Snow White.
"I prophesy thus."
The wisest one rejected eternal night.
The Sage desired no eternal winter.
What she wanted was a small change.
"When the gentle breeze stirs, I shall open my eyes once more."
Moona poured her last strength into the prophecy.
A tiny, insignificant one.
"Change begins with the smallest breeze."
The prophecy, too subtle for the six transcendents to notice, became a seed.
Peck peck.
"Mm, little breeze."
Poking that plump butt roused Moona.
"Kekek."
Yeah, good to see you.
"Seems I dozed off. Strange. For a moment, it felt like the snail's power erased my memories..."
I glanced sideways at that.
Wasn't it kinda my fault she passed out?
"No worries. My memories returned right away."
"Kagak!"
Good, can't have issues with our wisdom pouch.
"No, it's not just that they returned. I recovered memories I'd long forgotten."
Moona was a sage, but surprisingly had gaps in her knowledge.
She'd always excused it as lost memories for some reason, and it turned out to be true.
The snail's memory-extracting power must have oddly unlocked some sealed ones.
"Kaak!"
Our already invaluable wisdom pouch just got an upgrade?
"Don't be surprised. Listen well."
I waited eagerly for Moona's next words.
What would the memory-restored sage reveal?
"I believe... I was definitely female."
No, what the hell?!