Chapter 59 He looked too friendly.
“Shk!”
As I followed Shkshek’s directions, I pondered deeply.
How did the four sisters of the Tang family figure out my intentions… no, my actions?
If Baek Yeonyeong knew, it would make sense.
She was a monster who caught a Hydra with her bare hands, so anything she did could be explained away.
But it didn’t make sense that Tang So-yeong and the four sisters of the Tang family acted as if they knew what I was up to.
If I had to guess, it was probably due to their blind faith.
The believers could somewhat perceive my thoughts.
Tang So-yeong sensed it faintly, while the spiders were quite precise.
Moreover, the divinity accumulated within me had surged absurdly in recent times.
For some reason, whenever I was with Baek Yeonyeong, Tang So-yeong looked at me with eyes full of reverence. The spiders imitated her from the sidelines.
I especially remembered that the surge was sharpest when I bit Baek Yeonyeong’s fingers or chewed her hair.
Even though Baek Yeonyeong was a master, the increase was still surprising.
Thanks to the blind faith, the believers could read my thoughts.
And recently, my divinity had increased tremendously.
As a result, the believers could see my actions and thoughts more clearly.
This was my hypothesis, but there was a critical flaw.
That was Nephila Jurassica.
This guy wasn’t my follower.
Yet, it subtly stuck around and dominated the messages conveyed by the status window.
Moreover, it had a suspicious title concealed by a question mark before its name.
Could it have infiltrated my faith without my knowledge?
If I was Hwanung, Nephila Jurassica would be Ungnyeo.
…That couldn’t be, right?
Even though it was my own thought, it was too far-fetched.
No matter how much it was loved by spiders, that was pushing it.
Could it…?
Was it really…?
Was I married?
“Gekgekgek!”
No.
At least after becoming Arachne…
No, what am I even thinking?
I shook my head vigorously.
I needed to fill my stomach quickly.
I kept having strange thoughts.
“Shk!”
Python nodded its head.
That probably meant it was nearby.
I pushed aside my distracting thoughts and silenced my presence.
I crawled forward quietly.
“Kkikikik.”
The sound of crying, now familiar to me, echoed.
Based on my past experiences, the owner of this cry was likely a feathered dinosaur.
It felt a bit embarrassing to call these guys dinosaurs.
They were creatures that only reinforced the claims of the Infernal Bird.
…Except for the Utahraptor. That guy was an honorary dinosaur.
“Kkikikik.”
The crying wasn’t very loud.
It was naturally smaller than a Utahraptor and possibly smaller than a Deinonychus.
In other words, it wasn’t a threat to me at the moment.
I wondered what it would be.
Let’s see its face.
【Oviraptor lv12】
__________________________
【Oviraptor】
The Oviraptor is a dinosaur from the late Cretaceous period, about 1.6 meters in length and weighing between 20 to 40 kg.
While it eats small animals, its favorite food, true to its nickname ‘egg thief,’ is the eggs of other animals.
__________________________
Oviraptor!
I was glad to see a familiar face.
The Oviraptor was swallowing another animal’s eggs whole.
Poor things.
Eating those who hadn’t even been born yet.
The parents of those eggs would be sad.
…Wait, come to think of it, I was born from an egg too.
There must be parents for those eggs.
There were also other eggs presumed to be my siblings.
What kind of beings were my parents?
I was almost as big as an adult when I hatched.
Naturally, the egg that contained me was much larger than a gecko lizard’s egg.
This meant the being that birthed me wasn’t an ordinary gecko lizard.
Come to think of it, I hadn’t seen other gecko lizards in this world.
Considering evolution, my parents didn’t necessarily have to be gecko lizards.
…Did I unknowingly eat them?
I recalled the reptile-like creatures I had devoured so far.
Fortunately, there were no lizards.
Phew.
At least I hadn’t committed patricide.
If I ever met the Oviraptor I saw back then, I might be able to ask about my parents.
For now, I would catch the Oviraptor here and think about it.
“Hie…”
Python whimpered softly.
Its frightened behavior puzzled me.
Was it scared of the Oviraptor?
Given its confident guidance, that didn’t seem to be the case.
…Wait, was the target the eggs rather than the Oviraptor?
Was the Oviraptor an unexpected strong foe?
Oh, Python.
Your length surpasses that of the Oviraptor, so why are you scared?
Besides, if we showed ourselves now, it would be more startled.
I placed Python down for a moment and sprinted towards the creature.
Tadadadak!
“Kkieeeek!”
The Oviraptor, startled by my sudden appearance, flapped its wings in a futile attempt to fly.
Pabat!
I predicted its trajectory and jumped powerfully.
“Kkikikik!”
Pooduduk!
The Oviraptor resisted in vain, but its neck was already in my mouth.
Kwaduk.
I bit down hard enough to shatter its neck bones and slammed it to the ground.
Kwaaang!
“Kkiruruk…”
The Oviraptor breathed its last.
Of course, my level didn’t rise.
It was easier than a Green Basilisk hunting a piranha.
Ball Python slithered over to me.
Looking alternately between the dead Oviraptor and me, it screamed in disbelief.
“Hieek!”
That look was all too familiar.
It was the same look Tuss and Puss had when they first tasted a water beetle and a piranha.
I glanced at the Oviraptor’s corpse.
It wasn’t a satisfying amount, but it would do to quell my immediate hunger.
“Shk!”
Python flicked its tongue.
Yes. You must be hungry too.
There’s not much, but let’s eat together.
*
【Komodo LV9】
HP: 250/990
MP: 173/410
【Titles】
「Beloved by Spiders」
「Master of the Silver Dragon Cave」
「Master of the Swamp (Lower)」
My health had recovered to a certain extent.
It wasn’t a satisfactory level yet, but it was enough to extinguish the urgent fire.
The MP was enough to use Dragon’s Fury once.
“Shiiik…”
Shkshek was rolling its now even plumper belly around.
Hey, you’re a snake after all.
Why are you rolling around like that?
“Gek.”
Hearing my cry, Shkshek corrected its posture.
It scurried over and looked at me with its beady eyes.
“Hiek!”
Yes, you ate well, didn’t you?
I have something good to recommend.
It’s called Blind Faith.
“Hiek?”
The snake tilted its head.
In fact, what I considered a conversation was essentially my imagination.
Communication was entirely about interpreting each other’s body language.
It was impossible to randomly recommend a religion.
Like Tuss and Puss, I had no choice but to make them worship me voluntarily.
Sigh… How could I make this plump snake a believer?
If I defeated a strong enemy, would it look at me with reverent eyes?
Even now, its gaze was reverent, but something was missing…
Ah, yes.
A brilliant idea struck me.
“Gek.”
Shkshek. Watch closely.
“Hiek?”
The snake’s round eyes focused on me intently.
Now that it was concentrating!
Chwajang!
The appearance of Dragon’s Fury changed.
From a slightly large Komodo to a much smaller dragon.
Kids always went crazy for cool things.
…Of course, biologically speaking, I was younger than that snake.
“Hieeeek!”
Shkshek was so surprised it nearly played dead.
Its reaction made me feel proud.
So, how about it?
Do you feel any newfound faith?
[Would you like to offer Blind Faith to 【Ball Python lv14】?]
It seemed to have developed some faith.
But, status window.
Since when did you start asking about this?
When Tuss and Puss believed, there was no such thing.
Just do it like you used to, as usual.
Shkshek isn’t special or anything.
[Do you really want to offer Blind Faith to 【Ball Python lv14】?]
Why are you asking twice?
This should be done automatically.
[【Ball Python lv14】 worships you.]
That was quick!
Congratulations, Shkshek.
Even though you look like this, you’re fourth in rank.
[【Blind Faith】 evolves from Gecko Lizard level faith to King Lizard level faith.]
Huh?
Isn’t that too much of an increase at once?
I mean, it’s good for me, but… was there a reason for such a rise?
__________________________
【Blind Faith】
King Lizard level faith.
A faith that worships the mythical beast Komodo.
If the number of followers increases, it can develop into a religion. The types of members are very diverse, and their faith is fervent.
Members
First believer: 【Arthrocofus lv9】
Second believer: 【Anthracomartus lv8】
Third believer: 【Tang So-yeong】
Fourth believer: 【Ball Python lv14】
__________________________
[【Ball Python lv14】 worships you.]
Good.
This faith had a hidden function.
Occasionally, the status window would inquire about information like this.
It made communication a bit easier.
[【Ball Python lv14】 is worried about you.]
Huh?
What do you mean worried?
I feel more secure with you around.
You’re quite an impressive snake, aren’t you?
Considering it upgraded from Gecko Lizard level to King Lizard level.
…Though I still don’t know what the difference is.
[【Ball Python lv14】 thinks highly of you.]
It certainly seemed like the amount of divinity had increased.
The frequency of messages from the status window had increased significantly.
Look at that.
They kept coming even now.
[You have accepted the Snake Queen’s follower.]
Huh?
[The Snake Queen is angry with you.]
What?
The Snake Queen?
Wait a minute.
Was the reason for the earlier prompt because of this?
Because the snake already believed in something else?
And that’s why the Ball Python was worried about me?
[The Snake Queen wants to see you.]
So, I ended up stealing a follower from the Snake Queen?
And that’s why she’s angry?
And that’s why the faith level skyrocketed?
“Gekekekek!”
Cancel!
Cancel the offer!
Status window!