Chapter 36

I shall return and lead you.

They called it the “Crimson Tarantula King.”

Not red—Crimson.
Just like how “dark” sounds cooler than “black,” and “ultramarine” sounds cooler than “blue,”
“crimson” is cooler than “red.”

And in my experience, the cooler the title a monster has, the stronger it is.

The name “King” says it all.
A king. The king of spiders.

It must be incredibly powerful.
Someday, I want to become something like a Python King myself.

—So goblins hunted a Crimson Tarantula King?

Pelerian seemed to know about the creature.
I asked him about it.
Not because I wanted the inner core or anything.

—The Crimson Tarantula was one of the monsters I wanted to fuse when creating Paphnacha. But it was so rare that I had to settle for a Gray Tarantula instead.

“What about the ‘King’ part?”

—Among Crimson Tarantulas, those that survive and grow for a long time evolve into Kings.

In short—it’s a powerful monster.

Even if goblins hunted it in numbers, they must have suffered heavy casualties.
Nanaruk’s grandfather must have risked his life to obtain it and pass it down.

Which means… I can’t just casually eat it.

Take it back.

I pushed the box with the inner core back toward her.

—A Crimson Tarantula forming an inner core? I’ve never seen such a case. Just imagine what kind of incredible effect it must have!

…

That wicked old man kept planting temptation in my mind.
I can’t even block it—I don’t have ears.

But Nanaruk pushed the box toward me again.

“I can’t eat it. You eat it.”

You’re emotional right now.
You might regret this tomorrow.

But she had her reasons.

“I can’t eat it. I kept the existence of this inner core a secret from my father.”

There was a story behind it.

It seemed Nanaruk’s mother didn’t like her husband much.
The chieftain had vaguely known about the inner core and tried desperately to take it.
But his former wife hid it with her life and passed it to her daughter.

Nanaruk had kept it secret ever since.

“There’s poison mixed into it. It must’ve gotten contaminated during extraction. My poison resistance isn’t that high, so I’d definitely get poisoned if I ate it. And after eating it… it would definitely show.”

Show?
As in becoming stronger?

Why would that be a problem?

“My father would never forgive me. He already hates me.”

Nanaruk…
You foolish, soft-hearted girl.

Why does it matter whether that pathetic father hates you?
If anything, you’d make a better chieftain.

“There’s no one else who can eat it anyway. And it’s so old… it might not even work anymore.”

Right.

“I won’t blame you even if you don’t become Ulumullulu.”

…If you put it like that, I suppose it’s only right that I accept it.

Honestly, I was already drooling a bit.
But I hid it and ate the inner core with as much dignity as possible.

…Hmm. It tastes bitter.
So there really is poison in it.

• [You are poisoned.]
• [Poison Resistance proficiency increases rapidly.]

Ugh… I feel dizzy.
My insides are boiling—I need to be careful not to lose control.

“You’re getting hot.”

Nanaruk looked worried.

It’s fine. My poison resistance is high.

• [Poison Resistance Lv.6 → Lv.7]

Even my skill leveled up.
That made things a little easier.

Then the inner core’s effect spread through my body.

The heat—
It wasn’t just from the poison.

My body burned.
Like I had swallowed a ball of fire.

This was nothing like when I ate the centipede couple’s inner core.
This was painful. Agonizing.

I writhed, screaming silently.

But the pain didn’t subside.

“What do we do…?!”

Nanaruk panicked.

—Your skin is peeling off.

…What?!

She was right.
My shed skin was stuck to Nanaruk’s palm—white with peach-colored patterns.

• [Body is rapidly growing.]
• [Molting begins.]

Ah… molting. That’s a relief.

I looked straight at Nanaruk, and she finally calmed down.

• [Scales are strengthened.]
• [Trait acquired: Scales]
• [Patterns become clearer.]
• [Magical energy infuses the patterns.]

The inner core’s effect was incredible.
Like a complete gift set.

I could clearly feel my body growing larger.
Molting usually takes effort, but it finished surprisingly fast.

Of course… it hurt like hell.

If I had sweat glands, I’d have been drenched in cold sweat.

My body had clearly changed.

I was longer—probably over 2 meters now.
Thicker, too. No longer something that could be called a small Serpent.

But the biggest changes were my scales and patterns.

The pale peach markings became vivid.
My scales grew thicker and glossy.

So this is the new trait.

【White Double-Horn Python Lv.5】

【Traits】
[Indomitable], [Diligence], [Horns], [Pattern], [Scales]

It’s real.

[Scales]
You possess durable scales.

Seems like a trait that boosts overall defense.
Maybe it synergizes with Pattern—magic defense and physical defense combined.

The inner core’s effect is truly outstanding.

Spiders, like centipedes, are often depicted as mystical creatures in martial arts tales.
If the centipede couple’s core enhanced my eyes,
the tarantula’s core was like an all-in-one package.

But… celebrating was premature.

• [You have consumed an inner core imbued with the resentment of a Crimson Tarantula.]

…Ah.

Not even something I hunted myself.

• [The Crimson Tarantula was brutally killed by goblins.]
• [You will attract unknown hostility from spider-type monsters.]

Just like with the chimera…
I seem to have bad karma with spiders.

But there was an unexpected benefit.

• [Affinity with centipede-type monsters has increased.]
• [Chance of receiving favor from centipede-type monsters increases.]

So spiders and centipedes don’t get along, huh.
Works for me—I like centipedes.

I checked my title again, just in case.

【Title】 Heart-Devouring Serpent

Still the same.

Despite all the goblins calling me Ululululu,
it didn’t become a new title.

Maybe because I can’t shoot lightning.

I’m still just a White Double-Horn Python.
Not some Ulumullulu.

No wings, no lightning aura—just a white Serpent.

…Sorry, Nanaruk.

She stared at me quietly.
Her face looked a little sad.

“Ahaha… I guess you really weren’t.”

I told you.

“Let’s sleep. Sorry you went through all this because of me.”

She blew out the candle and lay down, hugging her blanket.

It was almost dawn.

I coiled up beside her.
I probably wouldn’t fall asleep easily tonight.

…

But I did.

Honestly, I slept incredibly well.
I must’ve been exhausted.

It felt like I had become a new being—
or rather, a new Serpent.

Probably thanks to the molting.
Or the inner core.

I was alone.

I had left the Runga village.

The farewell was… simpler than expected.
I slipped out at dawn, avoiding those who called me Ululululu.

Nanaruk must not have slept.
She woke up immediately to see me off.

I chewed and swallowed the jerky she gave me.

…Tastes good.

I looked back.

The Runga tribe village lay below.
I don’t know if I’ll ever see it again—but… stay well.

In the end, a Serpent’s life is one of solitude.

Pelerian was asleep too.
He talks nonstop when awake, but he can’t stay conscious all the time.

Apparently, it’s due to lack of mana.
Like how people breathe, he can absorb some mana from the air.
But that’s only enough to maintain form and consciousness—not to use magic.

I had confirmed it myself—it wasn’t a lie.

Beyond that mountain peak shining in the morning sun… that’s my destination.

I was alone, but the forest wasn’t quiet.

Birdsong, insects buzzing, leaves rustling everywhere.

As I crawled over damp moss, I made no sound at all.

Small animals fled at the sight of me.
Squirrels ran. Crickets leapt away.
Dozens of butterflies took flight all at once.

Now I could clearly feel it—

I’m no longer that weak little Serpent from before.

The predator of the forest is passing through.

I slithered forward proudly.

Thud!

—What?!

Instinctively, I slipped under a tree root.

For a moment, I thought it was cowardly.

But it was the right decision.

An elephant appeared.

Not an ordinary one—
a monster elephant.

At the tip of its long trunk was something like a mace.

【Morningstar Elephant Lv.9】

…That’s terrifying.

Its level is only 9, but I can’t see its full status window.
That means it’s definitely stronger than me.
Maybe if I concentrate like I did with Gunter, I could glimpse more—but why bother?

Let’s just stay hidden under this tree root for now.

Crack.
Kuuuoooh—

The Morningstar Elephant passed right in front of me.
It swung its trunk irritably and smashed a random tree with a loud crash.

This forest is dangerous.

As it moved away, I noticed blood dripping from a wound on its rear.
Was it fleeing from a fight?

To drive off something like that, you’d need to be extremely strong—or have overwhelming numbers.

I cautiously resumed moving.

If I can reach the rocky peak today,
then I should arrive at Elephant Rock by tomorrow.

But my progress didn’t go smoothly.

Thud-thud-thud—

Before long, I heard footsteps again.
This time, it wasn’t just one.

There was nowhere nearby to hide—no rocks or roots.
Because… I’ve gotten too big.

So I rolled in a muddy puddle.
My body became coated like camouflage.

White looks cool—but it stands out too much.

I crouched in the shadows of a tree.

Then they appeared.

A flock of ostriches.

Horned ostriches thundered through the forest.
There were about five of them. Definitely not weak.

Then I noticed—

An arrow was lodged in the rear of the last one.

…An arrow?

Are there hunters from the Runga tribe nearby?

But something felt off.

A bad feeling crept in.

I slithered toward where the ostriches came from.

Now I could clearly hear it—
the sound of multiple goblins gathered together.

The Palamu rainforest was dense.
In low, sunken areas like this, you wouldn’t notice anything unless you were looking from above.

And in such a hidden place—there were goblins.

“Hahaha, idiot.”
“Shut up, you bastard!”

Rough goblin warriors.

They had set up a camp here.

There were crude tents, marked with a red symbol resembling a blade.

That symbol…

My sharp mind recognized it instantly.

The goblin from the Krok tribe—the one who called me the Heart-Devouring Serpent.
The necklace he held while shouting, “Begone, vile creature!”

I still had that same necklace in my subspace.

Which means—

These are warriors of the Krok tribe!

Why are they gathered here?

There must be over a hundred of them.
At least thirty well-equipped hobgoblin warriors among them.

Even wearing leather armor—
which means I probably can’t just eat their hearts.

“Ayutar Captain! The ostrich is all prepared!”
“Good!”

A large hobgoblin stepped out of the tent.

【Hobgoblin Captain Ayutar Lv.30】

【Title】 Skull Crusher

So that’s the captain.

He looks strong.

And that title—Skull Crusher—is no joke.

First time I’ve seen a goblin with a title.
Maybe even stronger than Nanaruk.

I don’t know how strong the Krok tribe is overall,
but it looks like they’ve gathered their elite forces.

They’re planning to ambush the Runga tribe.

And right now, Runga has no idea.

“…What… what should I do?”

I shook the ring.

Wake up, old man.

Soon, Pelerian popped out.

He was sharp as ever.
Even without me explaining, he grasped the situation instantly.

—The heavens are helping us!

Then he burst into laughter.

—The Runga tribe will make perfect bait. Since their elites are here, Krok’s base must be empty. Let’s invade it!

Wow.

As expected of you, teacher.

Honestly… I had already thought of that too.

But then the Runga tribe would be completely destroyed.

—Judging by what I’ve seen, yes. But why should that matter? Let those goblins kill each other.

That’s the kind of thinking Pelerian has.

But I can’t think like him.

Because I’m not Pelerian.

—Why? Feeling sentimental?

“…But think about it. Their chieftain isn’t here. And they say Krok’s chieftain is the strongest one.”

—True.

“So the chieftain must be at Elephant Rock. He’s probably figured out there’s something there—likely searching for a dungeon entrance.”

—Reasonable deduction.

“And even if defenses are a bit loose, sneaking in alone to find the dungeon entrance would be difficult. It’s not like I have invisibility magic.”

—Also true.

“So wouldn’t it make more sense to use the foolish Runga goblins to create chaos… and find the entrance during the confusion?”

If I had glasses, I’d be pushing them up right now.

Despite my cold reasoning,
Pelerian just smiled slyly.

—Not wrong… but it sounds like you’ve already made your decision and are fitting logic around it.

…True.

Yeah, I’ve already decided.

—Even so, how will you convince them of the attack? A normal Serpent waving around won’t persuade anyone.

“A normal Serpent is already dead.”

—Huh?

If something can be used—use it.

—I’m Ulumullulu now.

Even if it all started as a misunderstanding.

***

“Big sis, did the white one leave?”

Rechi asked.

He had always believed the Serpent was Ululululu,
but recently he started calling it “Whitey,” following his sister.

Nanaruk gave a bitter smile.

“Yeah, it left.”

“Did it really ascend to the heavens?”

Those who truly believed it was Ululululu thought so when it disappeared.

But Nanaruk knew the truth—
that the kind Serpent had gone to Elephant Rock.

“I don’t know…”

That’s all she said to her brother.

Then—

The door burst open.

“Nanaruk!”
“What is it, Zadiram?”

Zadiram’s face was flushed.

“Ulumullulu—Ulumululu has returned!”

“What?!”

Zadiram had never once called the Serpent Ululululu before.

Something was wrong.

Nanaruk rushed out, following him.

A crowd had already gathered.

She pushed through—

And froze.

The Serpent had returned.

But it was different.

Its entire body was blackened.
A violent wind whipped around it.
The ground trembled like an earthquake.
Water sprayed into the air from nowhere.

And most of all—

The Serpent was breathing fire.

“Ah…”

The old high shaman at the front was in tears.

“Ulumullulu has returned!”

She cried out the name.