Chapter 6: Venom Princess Lacerta
Chapter 6:
Venom Princess Lacerta
PART 1
MY HOME RENOVATIONS were finally almost complete. I spent three days tidying up, preparing the walls and floor, and sweeping out all the dust. I piled claybear bricks against the wall and lay graywolf fur carpeting on the floor. I put my handcrafted cooking pots and containers in the corner.
I set stone sculptures on either side of the cave entrance. The clumsiness of my first attempts was long gone; during those three days of crafting, my Ceramic Artisan skill jumped to Lv 4.
Now I was totally prepared for a human caller. Won’t someone show up soon? Once they see such a perfect abode, there’s no way they’ll think I’m some violent dragon.
But in the meantime, I had to get more food. I’d eaten all the jerky I had stored up, and even all the meat that hadn’t dried all the way yet.
If I spent another day working, I’d be left with just the poisoned jerky I made for the orangurangs. They showed up again briefly, but once they saw nothing was left on the trees, they left disappointed. Sorry, losers, I ate it all myself.
It was a good thing I hadn’t left the poisoned jerky out yet. It was hard to tell apart from the good stuff, and I could have easily eaten it accidentally if it had gotten mixed in. Luckily, the color was slightly different, so I could tell if I looked closely.
So after three days inside my cave, I set out on a hunt again. I was really letting my battle practice slide, in favor of renovating. I guess I tend to hyperfixate.
I had no reason to push myself this time. I’d just take it easy and hunt some graywolves. I was craving more jerky.
I was Lv 33 and evolution was drawing nearer, but I still hadn’t racked up any good deeds. I needed to get on that before my next transformation. Laying waste to that narcotic mushroom didn’t really count. For now, though, there was no need to do anything but hunt easy monsters.
And who knew? Maybe the Mr. Chef and Ceramic Artisan skills would be enough to get me off the Evil Dragon path. I could turn myself into a human and live out the rest of my days as an artist. Ha! I bet that would annoy the Divine Voice. It always came off as pretty chill; part of me wanted to see it completely lose its cool and start flooding me with bright red warning text or something. The rest of me was still kind of scared of it.
I was glad I’d gathered so much salt and piperis. I had one pot full of each, which would probably last me at least a year. I was set for seasonings, at least!
My plan was to try to raise my title skills a little each day, and also look for chances to do good, until I gained enough levels to evolve. I’d hunt just as many monsters as I needed to eat. If I got the next evolution wrong, there would be no going back, so I had to be very careful. The Divine Voice had proved itself a manipulator and a liar. I wasn’t going to be deceived by its sweet words again.
As I walked, I used View Status on the forest vegetation. I found nothing but F Value plants, none of them particularly interesting. It was kind of disappointing, really. I’d wanted to try making a potion or something.
Then I spotted some beautiful bright red flowers. I could pull them up by the roots and plant them around the entrance of my cave. Yeah, my next goal could be gardening!
I reached out my hand to use View Status, but some kind of black lump jumped out at me from the brush, sharp fangs aimed right for my undefended arm.
I knocked it aside reflexively, putting some distance between us and dropping into a fighting stance. The thing was a black lizard about two feet long. It must have been hiding in the grass watching me, waiting for a chance to strike.
Species: Venom Princess Lacerta
Status: Normal
Lv: 19/35
HP: 86/108
MP: 117/127
Attack: 52
Defense: 58
Magic: 75
Agility: 128
Rank: D-
Special Skills:
Special Venom: Lv —
Poison Belt: Lv 6
Scale: Lv 1
Undercover: Lv 2
Dark Type: Lv —
Resistance Skills:
Poison Immunity: Lv —
Paralysis Immunity: Lv —
Normal Skills:
Venom Fangs: Lv 3
Venom Claws: Lv 2
Paralyzing Venom Tongue: Lv 3
Double Poison: Lv 2
Roll: Lv 3
Clay Gun: Lv 4
Cure Poison: Lv 1
Surprise Attack: Lv 2
Title Skills:
Bizarre Gastronomist: Lv 5
Poison Master: Lv 4
Cunning: Lv 3
Chicken Runner: Lv 4
What the heck? It’s so fast, and those poison skills seem like bad news! This thing’s beyond my level!
Nah, hang on, maybe it’s closer to an equal match up. It might just look stronger than it is. Its other stats are low, and even though it has a ton of skills, almost all of them are poison-based. There are probably lots of circumstances where it doesn’t have the right skills for the job.
Having dodged my counterattack, the black lizard darted back into the grass and vanished.
Did it run away? No, it’s too soon for that.
I strained my ears. It was probably hiding—it did have the title skill Cunning, after all.
A suspicious rustle in the grass came from my blind spot. I turned toward the sound, braced for it to come jumping out at me. Something did, hitting me with a little tap.
What was that? A pellet of dirt?
Suddenly I remembered the skill Clay Gun. It got me. That was definitely a trap to lure my attention.
I felt an intense heat from my shoulder; it had circled around behind me and latched on. I’m an idiot. Standing around here following the sound of pellets was exactly what it wanted!
I didn’t have time to think. I slammed my shoulder into the tree.
“Giiii!”
The black lizard let out a scream as it was shaken loose and hit the ground. I tried to follow it, but I was distracted by the heat in my shoulder.
“Gssh, gshh, giiiiiiiiish!”
It laughed at me and fled at a frightening speed.
What, it’s just running away? Or is it gonna hide somewhere? And why does my shoulder hurt so much? I have Poison Resistance Lv 3! The wound felt horrible, and it was radiating through my body like something was spreading.
Resistance Skill “Poison Resistance” Lv 3 has become Lv 4.
Oh, it went up! That’s good, at least.
Still, I might be in trouble. The Venom Princess Lacerta had that odd skill—what was it? Special Venom? My shoulder had gone completely numb.
PART 2
THE WAY THE BLACK LIZARD fled our battle prematurely was making me anxious. I glanced at my swollen shoulder with a sinking feeling—I had a feeling that this wound was much worse than any natural regeneration could take care of.
What should I do? Maybe I could make a tourniquet to prevent the poison from circulating further into my body, and then suck out as much poison from the wound as I could? There was no way I could do that with my fangs, though.
Guess I’ll check my stats, then.
Species: Young Plague Dragon
Status: Poison α (Major)
Lv: 33/40
HP: 140/149
MP: 143/143
My status is “Poison α?” What is that? I’ve never seen a condition like that before. Is it different from a regular poison somehow?
Special Skill “Divine Voice” Lv 3 is unable to provide that explanation.
Ugh! Useless!
I need to do something! Should I look for an antidote? I couldn’t remember seeing any plants like that, but what other choice did I have?
I had to think. I’d definitely never seen anything about specific types of poisons in the View Status descriptions, and the Divine Voice was avoiding giving me any information on Poison α. But there had to be some way to get information out of it.
I could check for details about the black lizard’s species on View Status. Maybe the explanation would include something about its venom.
I’d have to find it, but…wait, maybe just seeing the monster up close once was enough to pull up the information?
All right, give me the details on Venom Princess Lacerta! Come on!
Venom Princess Lacerta: D Rank monster
A monster which emits venom then flees, waiting until its prey is exhausted, then returns to collect the meat. It consumes highly poisonous objects and synthesizes them into strong venom inside of its body.
The creature also secretes body fluid able to neutralize the effects of its own poison. If caught, it will offer the antidote as a trade for its freedom.
Oh, there it is. Well, it’s there, but it sucks. I really ran into something dangerous here. I have to negotiate with a lizard or I’m gonna die? Well, at least now I know what to do. I’ll find it, catch it, show it I mean business, and make it cure me.
It was really fast, though, and a fellow practitioner of Roll. This would be difficult. Still, since becoming a dragon I’d fought and run away over and over again. I was confident that I understood the psychology of a creature running from battle.
Luckily, there was a plant nearby that had regenerative properties—Rest Grass: Value E. I pulled up a handful and wrapped it around my shoulder. At the very least, it would delay the poison from traveling to the rest of my body.
Searching for the black lizard would be difficult in my current state. I wasn’t particularly confident in my sense of smell or hearing. I had no idea where it had gone, plus it was incredibly quick and totally silent.
I thought back to when it poisoned me. First, it sent out that clay pellet as a distraction. That was probably its Clay Gun skill. I wasn’t able to resist following the arc of it with my eyes, and that was when the lizard circled behind to attack.
It probably realized a normal attack wouldn’t work on me, so it purposely missed with Clay Gun. If it had aimed right at me, I could have easily evaded and turned my attention to the source of the shots.
This wasn’t some ordinary lizard I had to negotiate with. My life was on the line here, and I could be dealing with something much smarter than me.
I needed to stop dwelling on my failure and figure out a way to find the lizard. Then I’d force it into a race using our Roll skills. I could corner it at the cliff, the same one I crossed to escape the huge spider and defeat the Giant Potortoise. I was starting to feel a growing kinship with that cliff…although using the local geography to your advantage wasn’t exactly an uncommon battle tactic.
Catching the lizard through ordinary means would prove impossible. It was just too fast, and it would surely disappear the moment I made a move toward it. I had to make a bold gamble. If I failed, I would never find it again. I’d either have to make an antidote myself or cut off my own arm.
I supposed as a last-ditch effort I could go into the village and find someone to cure me. They’d probably try to kill me on sight, but if I really ran out of options it might be worth a try.
At the moment, it seemed most likely that I’d have to cut off my own arm, which would be painful and terrifying and would probably earn me another bizarre title skill. But that had to be Plan B. I was going to evolve soon anyway, and since evolution changed my physical form, my arm might fully regenerate. But I needed to prepare myself for the worst-case scenario.
Having thought it all through, it was time to get started on my plan. To track down this black lizard I’d have to rely on something truly ingenious.
The black lizard had run off in one direction, and I ran in the opposite.
PART 3
GOING IN THE OPPOSITE DIRECTION seemed counterintuitive, but since I’d already lost sight of my quarry, it was my best bet. If the black lizard had really wanted to flee from battle, it would have activated Roll. I’d done the same thing myself a ton of times, and I was pretty sure I was right.
But fleeing didn’t make sense in this case. As far as the lizard was concerned, this would be an easy victory. I was closer to death than I ever had been before; it had the distinct advantage.
Therefore, its goal had to be something other than running away. It must be somewhere nearby, waiting for the poison to spread through my body. It wouldn’t want to lose sight of me; if I ran away from it, I could get it to chase me.
The best strategy for the lizard would be to hide, mark its target, then stay at a reasonable distance and keep an eye on me. If I started to run, it would have to give chase—losing me would mean the risk it had taken attacking me was all for nothing. I’d be screwed if the black lizard possessed some kind of innate ability to sense its prey, but I didn’t see anything like that among its skills. Still, I was playing a dangerous game. I didn’t fully understand all its skills, so I was taking a gamble. But this was my best play.
I ran to an open area to try to spot the lizard. If I failed, I’d be left with only bad options—search for some anti-venom, flee to the village for treatment, or cut off my own arm. That was it.
So I’d pretend to run away, and when it rushed me I’d double back and go after it as fast as I could.
The lizard was clever. I knew that if it sensed even a hint of danger, it would run away for real. So I needed to stop wasting time running simulations. It was time to put my guard up and run. It was time to play hide and seek.
The lizard might be faster than me, but my Roll skill was better—it was my signature move, after all. I’d been using it since I was born. That meant my pride was on the line here. I couldn’t lose.
I ran for the cliff, where the grass and trees began to thin out.
I couldn’t use Roll yet. If I moved too fast, the black lizard might sense some danger, and my cautious foe would give up and leave, taking the antidote with it. I needed to let it think it had a chance to catch up.
All right, this should be good.
I stopped out in the open, did an about-face, and raced off in the opposite direction. I kicked off the ground and dove into Roll. As the world spun around me, I carefully checked my surroundings. Not here. Not here. I don’t see it.
Did I screw up? Did the black lizard already run away?
The wind blew cold on my scales as I spun to a halt. Would I have to cut off my arm after all? I glanced around wildly, panic rising.
There it was. A little flash of black in my vision, desperately trying to run away from me. Thank God, my instincts had been right. Now I couldn’t let it get away from me.
Should I just Roll over it? No, I had to catch it alive. That was way tougher than just a clean kill.
I quickly closed the gap between us and swooped in to grab it, but just before my claws reached it, it dove into forward somersault and curled its body up for Roll.
Even if my skill level was higher, the black lizard’s Roll was incredibly fast. It got further and further away from me, the open terrain letting it move even faster than before.
But I hadn’t lost yet. I just had to figure out what to do next.
Since there was little brush in the area, this was purely a battle of speed, so I couldn’t let up on the gas pedal. I had to choose a path that was smooth enough for easy movement, watch my footing, and beware of trees and monsters.
Time to see just what this lizard’s Roll Lv 3 was capable of.
My Roll was Lv 4. I’d smashed into all sorts of objects as I rolled around trying to escape from that giant spider taranturouge. I’m gonna drive you to the left and force you on a difficult route, lizard!
Just as I expected, the black lizard’s speed dropped as more trees came into view.
Oh, problems? We’re gonna hit monsters soon, buddy. Hmm? What happened to Chicken Runner Lv 4, huh?
I was supremely confident in my ability to win in a battle of Roll. I’d been in this dilemma many times before, and every time I’d emerged victorious.
I’ll show you what real speed is!
PART 4
THE BLACK LIZARD was forced to slow slightly, but it still zigzagged its way steadily through the trees. It darted between obstacles and feinted to shake me off, yet it never lost its footing.
It still wasn’t panicking, despite this encounter going way off the usual script. Staying calm was easy for a monster like that because it knew exactly how powerful it was. Enemies like that were dangerous. If it were me, I would’ve probably lost my cool right away and pushed myself too hard.
I bet the black lizard would master Roll way faster than me, too. But it hadn’t beaten me yet. If I aimed for a place with lots of trees, unsteady footing, and a lot of monsters, it would have to slow down. And if it kept losing battles, I’d win the war.
I just had to keep track of its direction, speed, and tempo as it rushed past obstacles—then I’d be able to predict its next move. No matter how complex the terrain proved to be, I wouldn’t lose it.
I saw the exact moment it had to make a choice. It couldn’t keep its speed up and also make it around those three trees up ahead without decelerating. Neither of us could.
From my experience, there was a big difference between chasing and being chased. If I let the black lizard go, I’d only have worst-case scenarios left. If I caught it, I’d make it cure me, but I wouldn’t let it get away after. Once it healed me, I’d turn it into experience points right there on the spot. And I was sure it knew that, too.
Panic and anxiety were never an advantage.
The black lizard feared death, while I was worried whether my arm would grow back or not. For the moment, I had the mental advantage.
When we reached terrain where it would be easy to make bad choices, I carefully watched the black lizard’s mistakes and learned from them. I wouldn’t make the same ones. I had the upper hand.
We were about eight meters apart when the black lizard lost its confidence and slowed. It quickly tried to speed up again and leave me in the dust, but it was clearly shaken. It kept messing up more and more.
I slowed down, maintaining the same distance between us. There was no reason to rush. I’d chase it to the cliff and then catch it.
Normal Skill “Roll” Lv 4 has become Lv 5.
Oh, it went up! There’s no way I’ll lose now. All thanks to my trusty partner Roll.
The cliff was coming up fast now.
Just as the black lizard made a wide turn, I shot in and got within five meters of it. If you don’t slow down, you’ll run into a monster and really be in trouble!
Another meter closer. Yeah, the terrain looks rough, but if you make little jumps you can just barely clear it. If you keep rolling around things to avoid them, you’re going to lose!
Another meter. No, don’t speed up there! You can get over that area without going any faster! You’ll get a speeding ticket at this rate.
All right, three meters! I reached the goal! What did you think of my flawless performance? Yep, no one else even comes close to my mastery of Roll.
Too bad for you, black lizard. If only we’d met after you’d had more time to grow, you could have been a formidable rival Roll-user.
Huh? Why did it slow down all of a sudden? Did it realize it wouldn’t be able to outrun me and give up?
“Gsssshhh!”
A barrage of brown pellets came hurling at me from the rolling black lizard. It was the bullet attack again, Clay Gun.
Pretty fancy, even with its accuracy low from being shot while rolling. That just scattered them randomly, making them even harder to avoid.
I’d been so excited to fight this lizard with my signature move that I’d gotten sloppy. Now what? What do I do now?
Calm down. Just make a wide arc around to the right…
My consciousness flickered off for a moment, then I found myself lying on my back, staring up at the sky. I had a fleeting impression of how vast the world was and how insignificant I was in comparison. I couldn’t help but laugh.
It took me a few seconds to realize what had happened. The sudden counterattack had thrown me off guard, and I’d lost control of my Roll and slammed into a tree. Yep, that sure happened.
I sat up and saw the black lizard scurrying away. Well, you got me. I never expected that you could use Clay Gun and Roll at the same time. I tip my hat to you. My compliments.
Should I just let it go? Let it go and lose an arm? This is ridiculous!
Even if someone told me it’d grow back next week, I’d still have to cut off my arm! There was no way I was doing that.
I’d been too confident. I hadn’t been honest about the risks and overestimated my abilities. I was just too cocky, wasting my time trying to drive it to the cliff in the first place. I should’ve just tackled it from behind and taken care of it right there.
I was an idiot! A stupid idiot! I let a stupid game of tag go to my head, and ended up knocked unconscious by a simple counterattack!
I curled into a ball and recklessly took off in the fastest Roll I could manage.
Right, left, right! I’m going so fast I won’t be able to dodge all the trees in front of me, but I don’t care! I won’t slow down! I’ll slam into that tree and knock it over! I don’t care if I get hurt in the process, I can take it!
Why was I trying to show off how fast I could run anyway? I can take some damage, so why not push it down the most dangerous path!
I used the trail the black lizard left behind as it rolled… No, I won’t. I’ll follow it and make my own path. Our bodies are completely different, after all. Instead of relying on a trail, I’ll focus on Roll and make this a real race.
PART 5
I KEPT THE ROLLING black lizard in my sights as I focused on moving as fast as I could. I made deep tracks in the dirt and blasted through trees as I charged aggressively forward.
No more Mr. Nice Dragon. I didn’t even care if I caught it alive anymore. I’d just run it over at full speed. Hope one blow doesn’t kill you, black lizard. Even if it takes everything I’ve got, I’d rather take you down with me than let you get away.
The closer I got, the faster it moved. I charged right into anything and everything and took down whatever was unlucky enough to cross my path. Just a glance in my direction would be enough for the lizard to see it—it if slowed even slightly, it would mean certain death.
But no matter how fast you go, there’s no way you can shake me if you keep carefully avoiding all the obstacles in your path!
“Gssshhh!”
The black lizard cried out, and another brown pellet shot towards me.
Here it is! Clay Gun!
It waited to shoot until I was distracted by avoiding a rock. But I’d been expecting it to happen at any moment. I got the feeling that this fight was the first time it had ever used Roll and Clay Gun together. There were more bullets this time and they were faster.
It’s impossible to completely avoid them!
I jumped to a spot where the pellets were weakened and would strike at a bad angle. I chose the best spot I could, but it was still a dangerous position. I took the hits all over my body and nearly rocketed to a stop.
But I’d braced myself from the very beginning, and I knew I could withstand a bit of damage. It slowed me a lot, but didn’t stop me. I sped back up to full speed almost immediately, making up for lost time.
You stupid black lizard! Did you really think that’d be enough to stop me?!
I mowed down trees like a rogue pinball as I chased after the lizard. My entire body hurt. I had a feeling my HP was getting low, but I was too afraid to check. I couldn’t do anything about it right now anyway.
But now I could see the cliff stretching out in front of the black lizard.
It had finally come to this. I raced towards it to drive it over the cliff. I would make a wide curve to run along the edge and then slam into it!
The lizard definitely knew what I was up to, and I guessed its next move would be using Clay Gun again. And if I can just stave that off, I’ll win.
If it used its attack while it was rolling, it would split its focus. Its speed dropped significantly the first two times it had done it. In other words, if it missed with Clay Gun, its lack of focus and decreased speed, combined with the sudden curve up ahead, would give me an opening. I just had to jump on it.
“Gsssshhh!”
Here comes the Clay Gun! If I can avoid this, I win!
Pellets shot at me as I increased my speed and used a little hillock to launch myself into the air.
I slowed my spin and spread my wings, shooting out a blast of Baby’s Breath. The force of it launched me higher into the air and I wheeled round, intent on my destination.
The Baby’s Breath came out with so much force that I burned my own stomach, but I managed to evade the lizard’s attack and gain momentum. Unfortunately, more speed meant less control. I was going so fast that I lost my sense of direction. If I was off my trajectory by even a little, I’d end up completely horizontal.
Am I close enough to hit the black lizard? Eh, I’ve come this far, might as well leave the rest up to fate. Come on!
“Gsshbbt!”
I charged into the lizard as hard as I could, the force of the impact knocking us both out of our Rolls. I slammed into the ground while the lizard was tossed up into the air. I crawled on my belly, scooting myself along, burned stomach rubbing painfully against the dirt.
But I did it! Now all I had to do was catch that lizard and make it cure my poison.
I looked up just in time to watch it make a beautiful arc in the air, flying towards the cliff.
“Gssshh!”
The black lizard screeched, legs flailing.
My cure! Get over here, you jerk! Do you have any idea what you’ve put me through?! If you fall to your death, my arm is going to die with you!
I used the last bit of my strength to Roll at full speed toward the cliff and leap into the air, spreading my wings. I caught the lizard at the last moment and held it tight until we landed safely on the other side of the canyon. There my exhaustion caught up to me and my legs collapsed from under me, the lizard still held in my arms. My injured shoulder, wrapped in the healing grass, slammed into the ground. The makeshift poultice was already tattered from my Roll, and now it tore completely off.
“Raaaaaar!”
Owww, that hurts! I’m gonna die! My arm, my swollen, poisoned arm! Something burst inside of it! Something split, like my blood or skin or something!
I gritted my fangs against the intense pain and let go of the black lizard. It rolled several times and then scrabbled up on four legs. It stared at me with its beady black eyes.
I’ve come so far! I can’t let you get away. I have to make you cure me. But my arm hurts, it really hurts! It’ll take me time just to stand up, and even when I do, I don’t think I’ll be able to move much. But if I let you get away now, this’ll all have been for nothing!
My vision was streaky and wavering, but I somehow managed to stand up. I’d all but given up on the lizard, but it was still there, staring at me.
Aren’t you gonna run away? Or are you sure I’m beaten now since I’m in so much pain? Fine, then. Bring it on. I’m barely hanging on, but I can still catch a puny lizard.
PART 6
I RAISED MY GOOD ARM and pressed my palm against my pounding head. All that cardio had got my blood pumping, and now my poultice was gone. The poison must be spreading.
But I couldn’t just sit around complaining. I took a deep breath and tried to calm my racing heartbeat. That should slow the spread.
Now that our rolling race was over, my real battle with the lizard was beginning.
I was seeing double. Two black lizards. Is this really a good idea? I’m having trouble just standing up.
Okay. First, I needed to check its status and come up with a plan.
Species: Venom Princess Lacerta
Status: Bleeding (Slight)
Lv: 19/35
HP: 23/108
MP: 50/127
My approach was working, but the lizard was doing better than I expected. Still, I’d just have to convince it to cure me. But can I really catch it?
I had no other choice. My poultice was gone and the poison was circulating through my body. I had to get it to cure me or I’d die. But that still didn’t answer the question—why wasn’t it running?
If it was planning to eat me, all it had to do was hide out until the poison incapacitated me. Did it figure I was so far gone it could finish me off right here without any risk of injury?
The black lizard just stared.
I’m gonna make you regret underestimating me!
It still had about half of its MP, which meant it could use Clay Gun a bunch more times.
Is this really how things end for me?
“Gsssh, gsssh…”
The black lizard began to slowly approach.
I’ll burn it to a crisp with Baby’s Breath! Wait, but if I don’t catch it, this is all meaningless!
My mind raced. My head pounded. My body burned.
I would jump on it and dig my claws in. I could do it. The lizard was absolutely underestimating me, looking at me with those patronizing eyes. I’d show it the difference between a dragon and a tiny reptile.
I pounced.
I did it!
It seemed totally taken off guard.
Did you finally hit your limit? Heh heh. I have Poison Resistance! I’m going to dig my claws into you and then you won’t be able to move!
But before I could, I hit my limit. I lost consciousness.
Am I…am I dead?
A hazy vision of the forest slowly appeared before me. Gradually, the fuzzy outlines grew sharper and I came to.
Wait, I don’t feel the poison. Was I reincarnated again?
I checked both of my arms. They were still covered in bumpy black scales, the left one still slightly swollen from the poison. Yeah, that was my arms all right.
So, what was going on?
Something cool touched my wound. I rolled over to get a look. The black lizard was there, tongue hanging out, looking up at me. Wait, did it decide to cure my poison on its own? But why?
Just a few moments ago we were fighting to the death. Well, it did have a title skill called Cunning. Maybe it decided it would work to its advantage to let me live? What was it planning?
“Gsssh, gshh…”
It rubbed its cheek against my face. Was it trying to show it was no longer a threat? A sign of affection?
I pondered this, my mind still fuzzy.
First, it used its Venomous Fangs attack. Then it ran away on purpose and lured me out…we had a rolling race…I knocked it into the air and caught it, pulling it to safety…
Then it hit me. I saved it. Oh, now I get it. At least, that was all that made sense to me.
I know you’re the one who poisoned me in the first place, but, well…thanks. I scratched the lizard’s chin.
“Gssh, gssh, gssh! Gssh!”
It rolled on its back to give me better access, letting out a pleased chirp.
All right, all right. I’ll scratch you more. What a good lizard you are.
“Kyuu, kyuu!”
It writhed around, looking up at me with affection. I guess the lizard decided it wanted to be friends, or at least that it didn’t want to kill a guy like me.
For a moment, I considered sinking my teeth into it and ending it—this guy would just get faster and more dangerous. But honestly, I didn’t want to. I think I felt the same as it did.
I won the first round of our rolling race, but I’m ready for a rematch any time.
I got up. My arm still felt a little strange, but not worryingly so. I was certain the swelling would go down soon.
PART 7
THE BLACK LIZARD was following me. At first I thought its home must be in the same direction, but it trailed me all the way back to my cave. It must’ve been really impressed with my Roll technique.
Ha ha ha, I don’t blame you. Well, I guess I didn’t mind the company. Lizards and dragons are practically cousins anyway, right?
“Gssh, gshh!”
Was it just me, or was it being a bit too clingy? As we walked side by side, it stayed so close that it was awkward. It was a venomous lizard, so I was still a little nervous–who knows what it would do if I let my guard down?
Wait, maybe it’s trying to pick up pointers from watching my Roll technique?
On the way back to my cave, we ran into a pack of graywolves. I glanced over at the lizard, keeping the monsters in my peripheral vision. The lizard seemed to take the hint and pulled away from me. But instead of running away, it moved to help me surround the graywolves, who were clearly noticing that the numbers were not in their favor. And since I’d exhausted my supply of jerky, I wasn’t going to let all this meat get away. Plus, I wanted the Experience Points. I’d defeat them all, no matter what.
We stared the graywolves down.
The biggest of the group, the boss, sniffed the air suspiciously. Maybe it realized the massive difference in our abilities. Or maybe it could smell that one of us was a huge walking ball of venom. The black lizard had the special skill Poison Belt, after all. If it bit them, they’d die for sure. I had Poison Resistance and even I nearly died when it bit me.
I needed to end this before they could run away.
“Raaaaar!”
“Gsssh!”
I let out a roar and the black lizard joined me. I charged the pack and the lizard fired Clay Gun. Beset on both sides, the graywolves began falling one by one.
“Grrrr!”
They knew it was all over, but the graywolves had their pride. The boss leapt towards me, and I spun to avoid its Bite attack, landing a strong Dragon Punch on its unprotected neck.
My fist impacted bone with a dry crunch. The wolf boss’s body made a shallow arc in the air, then hit the ground, limp.
“Aroooo! Arooo arooo!”
Now that they had lost their boss, the remaining two wolves split up and ran away. I glanced over at the black lizard. It nodded.
All right, let’s try a combination attack!
I went after the wolf that broke right, and the black lizard shot Clay Gun to the left–no, both the left and right! It hit two of them at once!
Wow, it would’ve been fine if it had just taken one… I guess the more the better.
The pellet knocked the wolf in the back of the head and it went down, body twitching and spasming. I landed on its back and grabbed its neck.
Meanwhile, the black lizard showered the other wolf with Clay Gun pellets until it was dead. Bruises and gashes covered its body. Wow, that was pretty grotesque. Still, it’s a useful technique, at least against the small fry.
Gained 114 Experience Points.
Title Skill “Walking Egg” Lv — activated: gained 114 Experience Points.
Just a few minutes later, seven graywolves had been reduced to a pile of meat. I wasn’t sure why they kept trying to attack me; they must’ve really believed that their numbers would make up for their inexperience.
The meat was good, and the experience points were pretty substantial, so I was grateful for their idiocy, but I was also sort of afraid I’d end up hunting them to extinction.
I remembered seeing them running away from the Little Rock Dragon. A pity to think that the next time I evolved, they’d take one look at me and book it. Annoying, since they were the monsters I most wanted to hunt.
The black lizard perched its little body on top of a graywolf’s corpse and clamped it in its mouth, doing its very best to carry it. Hey, I’m a little worried you’ll lose your balance. I need to take multiple trips anyway, so you shouldn’t push yourself.
“Gssh, gshh!”
I mean, if you really wanna carry it, I won’t stop you. Makes it easier on me. Honestly, the graywolves’ timing was perfect. I’d completely run through my supply of jerky, and wolf was a good snack when I was feeling peckish.
Since we’d come this far, I wanted the black lizard to taste the jerky, too. And I still needed to feed the poisoned batch to those red monkeys. The lizard, a poison specialist, had also shown up with perfect timing. Now I could get as much poison as I wanted. I’d dip the jerky in the lizard’s superior venom and then I’d really get those stupid monkeys. After that, they’d never come steal my jerky again. I would know—after being poisoned once, I definitely didn’t want to go another round.
My two fancy sculptures welcomed us home.
“Gssh?”
The black lizard, who had been walking right beside me, suddenly stopped. Maybe it was surprised to see my sculptures?
Still, it got over its surprise quickly and followed me inside.
PART 8
AFTER OUR BATTLE against the pack of graywolves was over, the lizard and I rested inside my cave. It appeared much more relaxed now, and looked around curiously. After wandering around a bit, it poked at the carpet with its front leg and looked up at me.
“Gssh?”
Did it want to lie down? Its status condition was still Bleeding (Slight), and it had carried a huge slab of meat larger than its own body. It must’ve been even more tired than I was.
“Rawl.”
I made a sound that meant “Go ahead,” then gestured towards the rug. It seemed to understand.
It stepped on the rug gingerly, seeming to enjoy the softness. Then it curled up on the blanket and closed its eyes, letting out a contented little “Gssh” noise.
For a creature that had managed to survive so long in the wild, it was awfully trusting. Falling asleep in the lair of another monster was leaving itself vulnerable. Your Cunning Title Skill is shaking its head in shame.
But I supposed I had earned its trust. We had a man-to-man battle of strength, and at the end we recognized each other as worthy. There was no reason for it to be suspicious of me, or vice versa. The black lizard must already understand that.
I cleaned the graywolf meat, separating out a portion to grill and eat now, from the part to dry and preserve. I put the bit meant for jerky into a container and covered it with salt and piperis, mixing it around.
Yeah, that looks good. In the morning I’ll knock the salt off and string them up on a bare branch.
I brought a pot of charcoal and the meat to be grilled over to the entrance to the cave. I wouldn’t risk a stray spark singeing the carpet. I didn’t want to be cooped up here with a bunch of smoke.
I should probably build a fireplace and a chimney sometime soon. Although I wouldn’t want to make a mistake and have a rock fall on my head or something. I’d like a desk and a chair, too. Maybe some more statues.
I had clay left over from the claybear, but probably not enough to do all that. I could thin it out with regular dirt, but then the quality would drop. And if I wanted it to match the rest of my stuff, I should try to have some standards.
There was another reason I didn’t want to thin out the clay, though.
Alchemia’s Magic Soil: Value B+. 500 years ago, an alchemist named Alchemia gained the Demon King’s power despite being human. He used this power to create magical clay.
By shaping the clay into the form of beasts, he brought forth many monsters into the world. Most were subjugated and returned to the earth, but some can still be found in the Borderlands.
Apparently the claybear was a rare monster. And since the clay itself was magical, I thought it was better to not to thin it and risk reducing its value and quality.
No, I wanted more of the good stuff. I wondered how hard it would be to find more of those bears.
I’d have to hunt a lot of them if I wanted a fireplace, a chimney, a desk, and a chair, but I’d gained a steadfast ally in the black lizard, so my chances weren’t bad. I think I’ll go grill it up some meat while it’s sleeping.
I left the cave and glanced around. The monkeys weren’t here today.
Now I had a stock of jerky, plus the poisoned version stored in the back of my cave. I was prepared to teach the thieves a lesson. That’s what they get for stealing my stuff in the first place.
I scattered charcoal on the ground and lit it with Baby’s Breath to grill up the graywolf meat. Making good charcoal took some effort, so I was being pretty stingy with what I had.
I went back inside to put salt and pepper on the grilled meat. At this point I wouldn’t be surprised if I was eating better than the humans in the village. The aroma stirred the black lizard out of its slumber. It opened its eyes, drool dripping from its mouth. All right, come on. You can have some, too.
The lizard threw a glance at the meat and then walked to the back of the cave.
Hm? You’re not gonna eat it?
It went up to the pot where I kept the special batch of poisoned jerky intended for the monkeys and touched it with its front leg, its eyes glinting as it turned back towards me.
Huh? You wanna eat that? But you’ll die.
But now that I thought about it, its description had said that this lizard ate poisonous things to strengthen the venom in its body. It also had the Resistance Skill Poison Immunity. Guess I didn’t have to worry.
I ended up letting the black lizard have all the poisoned jerky I was going to give the monkeys. I’d have to cook up another batch at some point, this time using my new friend’s venom—that would be plenty to torture those thieving monkeys. But I wouldn’t be able to sleep at night if I said no to those puppy dog eyes.
The lizard even used the special poison I’d made with the boiled down mushrooms as sauce.
As I watched it happily wolf down the poisoned meat, for some reason my grudge against the monkeys no longer felt so intense.
Wait, was that poisoned sauce actually good? It was possible that the longer I let it sit, the less poisonous it got. That was a thing, right?
I dipped a finger into the poison. Before I could lick it, my finger began to burn. Then it started turning white.
Resistance Skill “Poison Resistance” Lv 4 has become Lv 5.
“Raaaar!”
Ow, ow, ow! It hurts! It burns!
I kicked the pot and screamed, completely taken aback. The black lizard caught the pot before it toppled over. Apparently it really wanted that poison. As a sauce.
Ahh, it’s getting worse! It burned me and now it’s getting worse! How can anyone eat this?
“Gssh.”
The black lizard climbed up on my shoulder and took my finger in its mouth. The pain vanished. It had cured the poison.
Aw, what a nice lizard. I thought I was going to die.