Chapter 59: A Well-Fed Lizard Makes a Handsome Corpse
Translator: RaidenTL
Chapter 59: A Well-Fed Lizard Makes a Handsome Corpse
The Snake Queen.
I had a vague memory of hearing that name.
Wasn't that what the Confucian dra— no, the Human-faced Bird was muttering about?
Besides, the parrot had said that the Human-faced Bird was the King of Birds.
A snake that the King of Birds was wary of, one with the title of Queen. She had to be at least as strong as the Human-faced Bird.
Furthermore, the fact that there were creatures who served the Snake Queen suggested at least a faith, or possibly even a full-blown religion.
She was, quite literally, a queen-like being.
There was a very high chance she was the master of this jungle.
[Status Effect: You have acquired the Snake Queen's Mark.]
【Gomodo LV9】
HP: 250/990
MP: 173/410
【Status】
「Snake Queen's Mark」
「Snake Queen's Mark」
The Snake Queen is watching you closely. Those who serve the Snake Queen can recognize her mark.
And now, I'd been marked by this being.
"Gekgegegek!"
I was in deep trouble.
Of course, objectively speaking, the mark wasn't a harmful effect. It didn't reduce my health or impose any restrictions.
The problem was that other snakes could now recognize me.
So what if other snakes recognize me? They're just snakes, right?
I wanted to think that, but I had already seen a creature that transcended the very definition of a snake.
The Titanoboa I met in the Silver Dragon Cave.
And the multi-headed monster it had evolved into.
Just as I had evolved into a Gomodo, it seemed the creatures here could evolve into spiritual beasts straight out of mythology.
There was no guarantee that such creatures weren't under the Snake Queen's command.
In the first place, even a fully grown Titanoboa was a tough opponent for me as I was now.
And the being known as the Snake Queen, who commanded them all, had to be absurdly strong.
After all, even that snake from the Silver Dragon Cave hadn't earned the title of queen.
Let's consider my options for survival.
Should I run to Baek Yeon-yeong right now and ask for help?
If I wagged my tail and rolled over to show my belly, would she punish my enemies with a Yeon-yeong Punch?
I could picture the imaginary Baek Yeon-yeong now.
She would deal with the Snake Queen in a single blow and walk steadily toward me.
Then she would whisper.
‘…Huiya. It seems I'll need quite a few scales this time.’
The imaginary Baek Yeon-yeong plucked me like a chicken.
"Gekgek!"
No!
Losing just my scales would be getting off easy. She might even take back my inner core, scolding me for not being able to handle something like this on my own.
Besides, I had no way of knowing where Baek Yeon-yeong even was.
The Yeon-yeong option was a no-go.
It went without saying, but I had to avoid a direct confrontation at all costs.
Then what was I supposed to do?
The Snake Queen.
And the King of Birds.
Their relationship didn't seem very amicable.
Wait, now that I thought about it, the King of Birds kept asking whether dragons were snakes or birds.
The King of Birds was shamelessly pushing the dinosaur-to-bird theory.
Then what about the Snake Queen?
She would, of course, push the dinosaur-to-reptile theory.
And I was an ardent supporter of the dinosaur-to-reptile theory.
Believe it or not, I hadn't broken my will even while being blasted by the Human-faced Bird's destruction ray.
If I played my cards right, I might be able to win over the Snake Queen.
Of course, the possibility of becoming a candied lizard on a stick before I could even explain myself was much higher.
In the end, the best course of action was to avoid the Snake Queen entirely.
The best plan was to get the fortuitous encounter I came here for and leave as quickly as possible.
The Snake Queen was a problem, and so was the King of Birds.
"Gekgegegek…."
The python slithered over and wrapped its body around my leg.
You could have told me sooner.
Is it too late to take back my invitation?
No way that was happening.
But what exactly was this snake's relationship with the Snake Queen?
Was she just a regular follower?
She seemed too overprotected for that. If she were an ordinary follower, the Snake Queen would have no reason to be so angry.
Of course, she could be angry that I stole one of her followers, but I doubted she'd go as far as placing a mark on me for it.
This snake was probably a follower the Snake Queen cherished a great deal.
She couldn't have been cherished for her strength, so there had to be another reason…
Could they be related by blood?
"Hiek!"
Probably not.
It seemed she was cherished for her looks. With a face like that, she was worth cherishing. She was so round and cute.
"Hieeek…."
The python coiled its tail bashfully.
Sigh, why did I keep seeing Tus and Pus in her? It's not like I had a title like 'Beloved by Snakes'.
I had to get the fortuitous encounter and get out of here fast. If I stayed too long, I was sure to meet a bad end.
Sigh, I came looking for a fortuitous encounter, and now look at the mess I'm in.
I was almost killed by the King of Birds and got marked by the Snake Queen.
All I'd gained from this was a single snake with a somewhat cute face.
Looks like I'm in for another rough time.
Couldn't a fortuitous encounter just fall out of the sky?
With that thought, I looked at Swish-Swish.
Couldn't an elixir or something just fall out of her?
I stared intently at Swish-Swish.
For a snake, Swish-Swish had an air of nobility. Every time I looked at her, I got the feeling she was like a sheltered young lady who had yet to taste the bitterness of the world. She had run away to the jungle without knowing a thing, only for things to not go as she'd planned.
And then she met a certain lizard.
I stared very, very, very intently.
In these kinds of stories, the naive girl is usually seduced by the wicked lizard's silver tongue. She ends up spilling all her family's secrets about hidden treasures to the bad boy.
"Gekgegegek…."
Feeling my gaze, the python flinched.
Aha.
So you are hiding something.
I ran a hand over the part of my body that still hadn't healed.
Ah… if only I'd eaten that Oviraptor meat by myself, my injuries would have all healed by now….
"Shh, shhiik!"
The python tried to turn its head away.
"Gekgegegegegek…."
If I don't get an elixir or something, I'm going to end up as lizard sashimi….
[【Ball Python LV14】 is contemplating.]
That's right.
I had a feeling you knew something.
Now, spit it out.
[【Ball Python LV14】 is contemplating very hard.]
Her expression just screamed, "I know about the Snake Queen's hidden treasure."
She was probably weighing her options in her head.
The Snake Queen versus a lizard she just met today.
But usually, these stories end with the girl giving her body and soul to the bad boy.
Shhhk!
I transformed my Dragon Scales once more, changing into a form Swish-Swish would find even more appealing.
"Hieeeek!"
The python was startled again.
[【Ball Python LV14】 is contemplating seriously.]
Time for the final move.
"Swish-Swish."
"If you tell me now, I'll make your rank higher than Tang Soyeong's."
[【Ball Python LV14】 says there is a place she will show only you.]
That's it.
From now on, you're number three in the hierarchy.
*
【Gomodo LV9】
HP: 412/990
MP: 240/410
【Status】
「Snake Queen's Mark」
On the way, I managed to hunt a Protoceratops, which filled my stomach nicely.
But that was the extent of my good fortune.
This jungle was more treacherous than I had imagined.
I occasionally saw the heads of giant sauropods, so massive that I couldn't understand how the Human-faced Bird dared to cause trouble around here. Even the towering jungle trees couldn't conceal their heads.
It looked like they could just bite the Human-faced Bird once and slam it to the ground, and that would be the end of it.
But I guess a real fight is different. If it shot its destruction ray from a distance, there wouldn't be much they could do.
Even setting aside the sauropods, the other creatures were no pushovers.
Predators like the Terror Bird were cute by comparison.
I didn't encounter any carnivorous dinosaurs bigger than them, but the stats on each of the herbivorous dinosaurs were incredible.
Like the one right in front of me now.
【Stegosaurus LV35】
__________________________
【Stegosaurus】
A massive, armored dinosaur estimated to reach a maximum length of 7.5m and a maximum weight of 5.3t.
It has a long, stout body with a unique structure that rises significantly in height from head to tail.
Its tail has two pairs of sharp, bony spikes, which it used to fight off predators.
The thagomizer of a Stegosaurus is powerful enough to break bones.
This guy was a true celebrity.
It was so famous that even people who knew nothing about dinosaurs recognized this armored reptile.
If you didn't know any better, you might think, Isn't it just a common herbivorous dinosaur?
But for starters, this thing was bigger than an elephant.
Right now, if it so much as stepped on me once, I'd literally become a lizard-skin rug.
I was currently locked in a gaze with the creature.
I gulped and watched its every move, ready to react immediately if it decided to charge.
"Hieeeek…."
Was I lucky, or did I actually have some standing in this jungle now?
The Stegosaurus watched me for a few seconds, then simply went on its way.
Well, now that I'm a Gomodo, I suppose I deserve this much respect.
After the Stegosaurus left, I walked a little further, guided by Swish-Swish.
Not far from where the armored dinosaur had been, there was a huge building.
Yes, a building.
The Silver Dragon Cave and other caves could at least be considered natural formations. But the structure before my eyes was not natural at all.
It was what you would call a shrine. Or a temple.
It seemed to have been neglected for a long time, as moss and vines were strewn everywhere. There were several large snake statues, while the bird-shaped statues were broken.
A few herbivorous dinosaurs were living here as well.
They seemed wary of me at first, but soon lost interest and went about their business.
Right. Let's not bother each other.
Believe it or not, this body is blessed by the Snake Queen.
It would have been very troublesome if they had been hostile toward me. Honestly, it would have been extremely difficult to take down even one of them in a head-on fight.
They weren't even guardians of the temple, so why were they standing around so menacingly? And they were all different species, too.
I couldn't understand it, but as long as they didn't pick a fight with me, it was fine.
This had to be the place with the fortuitous encounter Baek Yeon-yeong mentioned.
Seeing the character for 'Heaven' (天) written in various places, it was highly likely that this place was built by someone from the Heavenly Demon Divine Cult.
The snake statues scattered around.
And the place Swish-Swish had cautiously shown me.
It was obvious this place was deeply connected to the Snake Queen.
If I took anything from here, the Snake Queen might become absolutely furious.
But what did that matter?
I was already on her bad side.
I just had to grab what I could and run. Everything would be fine.
Besides, a well-fed lizard makes a handsome corpse.
In an emergency, I could always throw Swish-Swish as a distraction and make a run for it.
"Hieeeeek!"
Just kidding, just kidding.
Alright, shall we go in?
Into the Snake Queen's temple.
I entered through a narrow opening.
The inside was spacious, but there wasn't much to see.
It's cleaner in here than I thought.
Click.
Click?
A chilling sensation washed over me, and I instinctively ducked my head.
Fwoosh!
A rusty iron arrow grazed past my head.
…Right.
So this is that kind of place.
I activated Sprint.
I reverted my Dragon Scales to their defensive form.
I planted my two feet on the ground, ready for the Little Dragon's Sky-Ascending Steps.
"Hieeeek…."
To think they'd try to stop this righteous lizard with something so pathetic.
I'm going to strip this place down to its very foundations.