by Necoco
If I had two heads…well, even if I knew my other head would regenerate once I evolved, I didn’t think I would do that.
“GRRRRAAA!”
The twinheads’s remaining face glared at me and howled. Wait, now that there’s only one head left, should I start calling it singlehead? Hah! You’re just a little doggy that can breathe fire!
The twinheads was one head down, and we still had the advantage. Although the left head had not gotten hit as bad as the right, it was still in the poison cloud. And it couldn’t use that dangerous gravity magic or its recovery magic anymore.
But I could tell it still didn’t plan to run away. I mean, it was probably too poisoned to consider it, but if giving up was even a possibility in its mind, it wouldn’t have killed its comrade.
The twinheads was ready to fight me and the black lizard to the death. But how did it expect to win?
Will it do something desperate? And why was it staring me down when the black lizard was right there? Honestly, I hadn’t done much in this fight besides draw the twinheads’s attention so that the black lizard could hide.
Maybe it was focused on me since I was standing closer, but now that there was only one head, it really should be paying more attention to my companion.
So, what now?
Should we run away and just wait for the twinheads to die? It was on its last legs, though, so I was sure we could finish it normally. Either way, it would be a fight to death. Maybe it would be safer to take a more conservative approach. What was that saying? “A beast is at its most dangerous when cornered.” And its skills…
Normal Skills:
Rest: Lv 4
Gravity: Lv 2
Gravidon: Lv 3
Bite: Lv 3
Beast Tackle: Lv 4
Scorching Breath: Lv 3
Marking: Lv 3
Sacrifice: Lv —
Hm, so the skills didn’t disappear with the head that died? It probably could no longer use the top three, though. They were magic.
Wait. Sacrifice?
“Raaaar!”
Run away! You’re the one he’s focused on!
I roared loudly to warn the black lizard, who was waiting to attack the twinheads from its blind spot. It heard my cries and gave me a puzzled look, but still didn’t run away.
The fallen right head of the twinheads lay on the ground. Suddenly, its eye flew open. Its fangs dug into the earth and it slowly used its chin to drag itself toward the black lizard.
The black lizard looked bewildered at the grotesque sight, but since I warned it, it took it in stride and quickly used Roll to get away. I was glad it wasn’t caught off guard.
The disembodied head was fast. Faster than its body, which was very weird. I wondered if this was what the Sacrifice skill did. I didn’t want to know what would happen if either of us got caught by that thing. It might have been from the poison, or a side effect of Sacrifice, but every time it moved, its face split and its flesh tore. Blood dribbled, bone was exposed.
I wanted to believe it wouldn’t hold up for much longer. It couldn’t catch up to the black lizard, but I still ran after the disembodied head until I was stopped by the twinheads’s body blocking my path.
“Grr, grr…”
Even though it was riddled with poison and missing its right head, the monster showed no signs of backing down. I couldn’t believe it was still staring me down with such strength in its eyes. I knew all too well how rough Poison α was on the system.
Talk about resilience!
“Raaar!”
I respected its tenacity, but I still wasn’t going to show any mercy. Sorry, but right now I just want the poison to finish you off.
PART 5
“RAAAAAAAR!”
I stared the twinheads down and roared.
It didn’t retreat, just looked at my injured shoulder with ferocious eyes. The Bite wound was so bad I could barely move my left arm. The twinheads was probably planning to rip me apart starting from my left side.
But I was working under the same strategy. If I had to fight the twinheads, best to start by destroying its headless right side first. I’d attack the torso before that huge mouth could get me.
“Raaaaar!”
“Grr, grr…”
We roared and howled at each other, and then we charged.
It tried to bite my left side. I tried to punch its right torso. Honestly, this was probably a stupid plan. If I left it alone, it would die from the poison anyway. I just had to pray that the black lizard could outrun its disembodied head.
I should’ve just pulled back and waited for the twinheads to run out of steam, then checked to make sure my friend was all right. I was poisoned too, after all, even if that wasn’t an immediate concern—keeping still would slow the poison’s circulation in my bloodstream until I could be cured.
I knew all of that. But I just couldn’t hold myself back.
Just before the twinheads and I clashed, it moved to circle around to my left side, and I moved to circle around to its right.
Chomp.
The twinheads didn’t anticipate my sudden movement, so its fangs crunched thin air. I fired off a Dragon Punch to its torso.
“Arooo!”
The impact hurt my fist, which was rough on me considering my current HP and poisoned condition. But finishing it off was the most important thing. I lifted my trembling, injured left arm and dug both sets of claws into the twinheads’s neck, holding on tight while I kicked off the ground.
I shot Baby’s Breath downward to gain more height, then turned an arc and aimed us both back down.
“Gao…gao…” The beast moaned in pain.
But I’d come this far, and I couldn’t back down now. I folded my wings and plummeted at the ground, using the lethal special skill I’d learned during my fight with the claybear: Nutcracker.
The twinheads hit the ground headfirst, and I quickly kicked off it and back into the air, shielding myself from the impact as much as I could.
Normal Skill “Nutcracker” Lv 1 has become Lv 2.
“Raar…”
I pulled out of my dive so quickly that my balance was thrown off. A wave of vertigo overwhelmed me.
My status… I don’t even want to check it at this point.
I looked down at the monster. The back of its remaining head was completely caved in, and its body convulsed. I didn’t know the conditions for triggering the Sacrifice skill, but I doubted this head was in any shape to come after me.
I left the twinheads to its death throes and staggered in the direction the black lizard ran. It’s alive, right? It got away?
My vision was cloudy, but I could walk. My left leg—the one I’d used to kick off the twinheads after Nutcracker’s finishing move—could barely bend. I had no choice but to use Roll. I curled myself up into a ball and moved as quickly as I could. Even though my brain and body felt like they were both being torn apart, I rushed frantically after the black lizard, close to panic.
I pushed the negative thoughts out of my mind and just focused on rolling. But I just couldn’t knock away this dark mood. Instead I tried to focus on why I was feeling so frantic in the first place. I knew if I got there a second too late, there’d be nothing I could do.
Why was I hurting myself by rolling so fast? Because I needed it to cure my poison? No, that could wait.
The black lizard was important to me, that was all.
Even though we’d only known each other for a few days, we’d been through a lot together. At first we were enemies, but after our race we made peace. We defeated those graywolves together, I invited it into my cave, and I even treated it to my special jerky. We drank together at the lake, explored the forest side by side…
I realized suddenly that the only friends I had were Myria and the black lizard. I’d barely met Myria, and the next time I saw her, she’d probably just think I was an evil monster.
The only one I could truly be myself around was the black lizard.
&
nbsp; “Raaaaaar!”
I roared, rolling even faster. The price for my speed was the poison ravaging my veins. I was already weak from the battle, but the poison made me feel like my insides were being run through a blender.
Still, I kept running.
PART 6
AN IMPORTANT REALIZATION was growing in my mind. The Human Transformation skill wasn’t really what I wanted. What I really wanted was a friend. I wanted someone who had my back, just as I had theirs. Someone to relate to. I was lonely.
I rolled frantically through the forest, but my body wouldn’t move like I wanted it to. My head pounded and swam. I kept running into things, whittling down my HP even more. And yet I still kept rolling.
The trail the black lizard had left gradually grew fainter. I thought I caught a glimpse of blood on the ground. The trail swerved wildly. I kept going, more negative thoughts consuming my mind the further I went.
What if—no, it can’t be.
Please, God. If the black lizard survives, I’ll never ask you for Human Transformation again. As long as I have the black lizard, I don’t need to go to the village. And I’ll stop complaining about everything all the time. So please, please don’t let the black lizard die.
Moving was getting harder. My impatient heart pounded, pumping my poisoned blood through my veins, taunting me. Under normal circumstances, I’d think it was just the venom and fatigue, but I knew that wasn’t all.
I caught sight of a fleshy lump in the distance.
I stopped Rolling, my quick halt tossing me forward. I crashed down hard onto my flank.
My consciousness wavered, but I gathered every bit of willpower and stood back up. I staggered a few steps and picked up the ball of flesh with both hands. An exploded eyeball with viscous fluid and entrails slipped through my fingers.
I glanced around and breathed a sigh of relief.
Thank God, it’s the twinheads’s.
I was holding the top half of its head, and could see the bottom half rolling aimlessly a little ways away. I looked up at the raw flesh stuck in the forest canopy. The decapitated head had already been on its last legs, so to speak, and slamming into this tree had finally finished it.
That meant the black lizard must’ve gotten away! I forgot how much pain I was in and ran after its trail until it abruptly came to an end. I looked frantically into the bushes, but the lizard was nowhere to be seen.
“Raaaaar!”
I squeezed out a roar. I heard a tiny “Gssh” and followed the sound.
The black lizard lay in the brush, covered in bite marks. A shiver ran through me as I realized it was the work of that disembodied head, but at least my friend was still alive. Relieved, I checked its status.
Species: Venom Princess Lacerta
Status: Bleeding
Lv: 20/35
HP: 28/110
MP: 14/131
Thank goodness. After a poultice with medicinal herbs, everything would be all right. Luckily, I knew where to find the right plants. I gathered the black lizard in my arms, relief flooding through me.
“Gssh, gssh.”
The black lizard licked my face all over, just like a dog showing its affection. It was curing my poison, I realized. I had completely forgotten about that.
I checked my status to make sure the poison was gone, then picked up the lizard. I searched around for medicinal herbs; I was sure I’d seen some around here before.
Sawtooth Grass: Value F. Said to be effective against sickness if steeped in liquid, but only has a placebo effect.
Able to absorb small amounts of fluid, and often used as a styptic bandage to stop bleeding.
According to an apocryphal story, a merchant and his friend were in the forest when the friend struck him with a blunt weapon and stole his goods. The merchant happened to collapse onto a patch of Sawtooth Grass and narrowly avoided death. He went on to report his friend to the authorities, who was then taken to the gallows.
Yeah, this is it.
I gently set the lizard down and pulled up a handful of the Sawtooth Grass, knocked the roots off, and wrapped it around the lizard’s injuries. I thought it might fight me, but it stayed perfectly still. I waited until Bleeding disappeared from its status and then collapsed onto the ground beside it.
Title Skill “Protective Spirit” Lv 4 has become Lv 5.
“Gssh, gshh!”
The black lizard licked my face.
Hey, you already cured my poison.
Gained 234 Experience Points.
Title Skill “Walking Egg” Lv — activated: gained 234 Experience points.
Oh, looks like the twinheads’s body finally gave out.
I was starting to worry the leveling announcement wouldn’t come, but the monster must’ve hung on for a little while after its head was crushed.
I bet the black lizard leveled up a bunch from that, too.
“Young Plague Dragon” Lv 33 has become Lv 37.
Yep, everything is going smoothly.
And now that Protective Spirit was Lv 5, I could safely evolve. I just needed three more levels. I didn’t want to fight any more monsters with weird skills like the twinheads.
Gained Normal Skill “Human Transformation” Lv 1.
Huh…? Wait, for real?
Bonus Story 1:
A Day with the Black Lizard
PART 1
THE DAY AFTER I met the black lizard, we decided to take a stroll through the woods around my cave. As the two of us made our way through the forest, it rubbed up against me. I patted it gently with my tail.
Having a friend with me was a truly different experience; I’d been alone for so long that I’d forgotten just how different it was. Around lunchtime, I found the perfect stump to take a rest on. I sat down, and the black lizard climbed into my lap.
I was just thinking how hungry I was when a pack of graywolves crept up and attacked.
The head graywolf struck first. I used my wings to deflect its tackle and pushed it back, throwing it off balance. I used the opening to slash its throat open. Witnessing their leader’s defeat, the other graywolves turned and fled. Normally I would go after them, but today I decided to let them be.
I used my claws to clean and gut the graywolf’s carcass, discarding the entrails and skinning off the fur. I grilled up the meat with Baby’s Breath and shared it with the black lizard.
Since I didn’t carry piperis around with me, the meal was very plain. And of course, I didn’t have any poison for the lizard’s portion, either. I briefly considered jogging back to the cave to get some, but decided having simple meat for a change was fine.
After lunch, I dozed off for a bit. The sun filtering through the trees was just warm enough; I was very comfortable.
The black lizard climbed up on me again and licked my face.
Hm? Neutralize Poison? But I’m not poisoned right now. Hey, that tickles!
Suddenly, I sensed a presence behind us. I turned and found myself looking at a monstrous bear with four arms peeking through the trees. It was a quadursa, a D Rank monster.
I’d never fought one before, but I’d seen one a really long time ago and had checked its status. It was pretty strong and a worthy opponent. The Divine Voice told me it had a large body and used its four arms as well as you’d expect, pulling off multiple attacks in succession.
Its eyes were focused right on me and the black lizard like it was waiting for the perfect chance to strike. It had probably been watching us for a while now. We had to decide whether to run or to fight.
The black lizard still hadn’t noticed the quadursa. I wanted to let it know right away, but if I made one wrong move I had a feeling the bear would attack immediately. Somehow, I needed to alert the lizard to the presence of this dangerous creature without provoking it.
I gently tapped the black lizard on the shoulder.
“Gsh!”
It didn’t understand my warning, instead licking my cheek again. Okay, well, that didn’t work. Looked like
I had to be a bit more direct, and risk provoking this thing.
We were far enough away from it that we could escape without too much trouble. I just had to make sure the black lizard knew what I was doing. I glanced over at the bear. Our eyes met and it moved one of its four arms.
Wait, did it have a long-range attack?
I picked the black lizard up and spread my wings around us, forming a protective cocoon between us and the bear. I waited about five seconds, but nothing happened.
“Gssh?”
The lizard gave me a puzzled look. I peeked out from between my wings at the quadursa. It was giving us a thumbs up with all four hands. Then it gave a wry chuckle as if to say, “Sorry to interrupt you.” It lowered its hands and left.
What the heck was up with that bear? What did it think the lizard and I were doing, exactly?
PART 2
DURING OUR AFTERNOON exploration, we found a hidden cache of piperis. I’d pretty much exhausted the supply in the other spot and was happy to come across another patch. I picked a seed, smelled it, and popped it in my mouth. There was no taste, but a spicy sensation spread across my gums. Argh, I just ate lunch but now I’m super hungry for meat all of a sudden.
I was glad I wouldn’t run out of piperis for a while, and I was even happier when I heard the black lizard let out a cry of joy.
I know it’s trite, but happiness really is best when shared. I liked finding new plants and trying them, but that was where it ended. The thrill of finding an amazing new species was empty when I was alone. But knowing that I had someone to celebrate with made me feel much more positive about new discoveries.
The black lizard liked to eat its meat covered in poison; I wondered if it could even still taste the piperis seasoning. I had a feeling the poison was strong enough to erase any other flavors, and I couldn’t try it myself without risking poisoning myself to death. If someone asked me to put my life on the line to prove it, I’d have to say no.
There was plenty of piperis, and I decided to swing back and pick it on the way home. For now, the black lizard and I continued through the forest. Suddenly, the lizard sniffed the air and raced ahead of me crying “Gssh!”
