The Headless Red Serpent
"Bring fresh cold water."
The Great Shaman's voice carried the weight of her age.
"Bring more bamboo leaves."
At her command, the other shamans bowed reverently and obeyed.
For goblins, living past fifty meant death could come at any moment.
Deep wrinkles carved by time filled the Great Shaman's face.
The tattoos etched across her body and face were the very symbol of her status—
even their ink had faded and blurred with age.
Yet her voice still held strength,
and her movements remained precise.
The Great Shaman stayed up through the entire night, assisting Nanaruk.
Evolution was both a blessing and a curse bestowed upon monsters.
Through evolution, monsters gained extended lifespans and greater strength.
But not everyone was granted the right to evolve—
having already completed her evolution, the Great Shaman would soon face inevitable death.
Still, she felt neither fear nor regret.
Because before her stood the future of the entire tribe.
She soaked a cloth in cold water and gently wiped Nanaruk's arm.
The young chief was enduring the painful process of evolution.
The moisture on her skin evaporated instantly.
Her fever still burned intensely.
But she had clearly improved.
Last night, every wipe had caused her skin to peel away like husks.
But now?
Her skin resembled that of a slightly flushed human woman.
Soft—yet tough like rubber.
Under sunlight, it shimmered as if dusted with golden grains.
Nanaruk had always been tall and slender,
but now she had grown even taller—
perhaps comparable to an elf.
Her hair had grown so rapidly in just a day that it now flowed long and loose.
"If the other goblins stand next to her, they'll look like children."
But that was better.
Nanaruk would become the king of the tribe.
And a king should possess undeniable presence.
"…Great Shaman."
Nanaruk opened her eyes.
Her long eyelashes trembled faintly.
"You've regained consciousness."
"How long have I… ah."
As she tried to rise, Nanaruk staggered and lay back down.
"Rest a little longer. Your condition isn't stable yet."
"No… if I'm not there right now…"
"Rest. I will handle the minor matters. And from now on, please drop the honorifics when addressing me."
"What? How could I?"
Even when Nanaruk was a child in diapers,
the Great Shaman had been both a grandmotherly figure—and the Great Shaman.
"You are no longer a chief, Nanaruk."
"Then…?"
"You are the Great Chief… or rather, a king."
"A king…"
Nanaruk smiled faintly.
She did not flail in embarrassment or panic.
"So it has come to that."
Hobgoblin King.
She had evolved beyond a hobgoblin.
And she understood the responsibilities of a higher species.
"You will grow accustomed to it."
"Where is Ululululu…?"
"He has not yet emerged from the dungeon."
Nanaruk nodded.
The Great Shaman stood up.
"Soon, the young ones will come to attend you. Please rest."
She bowed politely and left.
***
The wrinkles on the Great Shaman's face made her expression hard to read.
But in her mind, one name lingered.
"Ululululu."
That Serpent had saved the Runga tribe.
Krok had been a tyrant—unworthy of leadership.
The sacred Serpent had slain that false king.
Now, all the goblins of Runga worshipped the Serpent God.
But there was one astonishing truth—
a secret no one dared even imagine.
"Where did that Serpent come from?"
The Great Shaman herself did not truly believe the Serpent was a god.
She never had.
Even when the Serpent returned after disappearing—
even though she was the one who tearfully declared it to be Ululululu—
she never truly believed it.
It was certainly no ordinary monster.
But the Ululululu from legend was different.
That being was black, vast enough to coil around mountains,
and wielded lightning—a true god.
How could that small Serpent possibly be Ululululu?
In this tribe, the strongest goblin became the chief,
and the wisest became the Great Shaman.
She was wise.
That was why she declared the Serpent to be Ululululu—
to unite the fearful tribe.
It was an effective decision.
***
Lost in thought, the Great Shaman turned her head.
The tribe was in an uproar.
Even her dulled hearing could catch the noise.
It was coming from where the warriors were gathered.
As she approached, she inhaled sharply.
Kadiram—
the king's younger brother—had appeared, bringing someone with him.
Kadiram himself was a capable warrior,
yet his face was stiff with tension.
The one he brought was a fairy.
No—
The Great Shaman recognized at once
that he was no ordinary fairy, but a sinister Shadow Elf.
The Shadow Elf scratched his head.
"This doesn't look like the dungeon entrance."
It was merely the resting area of the warriors.
He placed a hand on Kadiram's shoulder.
"…There are ways to ask someone other than you."
"Ululululu is in the dungeon. You cannot enter."
"Ululululu? What's that?"
The warriors gathered, weapons drawn.
But the Shadow Elf seemed completely unfazed.
"You don't know? He is the sacred Serpent God."
"Serpent God? Some kind of tribal belief, I suppose."
"He is real!"
Kadiram… you've become a true warrior.
The Great Shaman clenched her teeth and silently gestured.
The warriors obeyed, raising their weapons and drawing their bows.
"I'm not interested. Just take me to the dungeon—"
"He's an intruder! Ignore me and shoot!"
Kadiram had knowingly brought the elf into a crowd of warriors, prepared to die.
But despite his shout,
the warriors could not release their arrows—
fearful of hitting him.
Instead, they advanced with weapons in hand.
The Shadow Elf sneered.
"How brave. It would be a shame if that courage went unrewarded."
At that moment—
Blood burst from Kadiram's chest.
No—
It wasn't just blood.
The liquid moved like a living serpent,
piercing straight through his body.
The hobgoblin warriors charged, eyes blazing.
"RAAAAH!"
"You bastard!"
One warrior dragged Kadiram's body away,
while the others swung their weapons at the Shadow Elf.
"How troublesome."
From the elf's sleeve emerged a crescent-shaped blade.
With that small weapon, he parried every attack.
Clang! Clang!
Whether it was the weapon itself or some magical enhancement,
each time the crescent blade struck—
the warriors' weapons shattered with ease.
The Shadow Elf did not bother finishing them off directly.
He simply raised both arms.
The darkness within his sleeves deepened—
like the maw of a monster.
From that darkness,
dozens of crimson serpents burst forth.
Headless red Serpents—
formed entirely from blood.
Unlike the kind white Serpent,
these red serpents mercilessly pierced through the warriors' bodies.
Thud! Thud! Thud!
Some tried to block them with broken blades,
but the Serpents crawled along the weapons—
and burrowed into their chests regardless.
"GRAAAAH!"
"AAAGH!"
"URGH!"
Screams of agony echoed together.
Amid the horrifying chorus, the Great Shaman shouted:
"Fire your arrows! Fall back and attack from a distance!"
The warriors obeyed.
Twang! Twang!
Arrows flew from every direction.
Even exceptional warriors like Nanaruk could only deflect one or two at best.
But the Shadow Elf blocked all ten arrows effortlessly.
The red Serpents from his sleeves each intercepted one.
"How annoying. I'll keep killing… until you guide me to the dungeon."
He was more than capable of doing exactly that.
These were seasoned goblin warriors—
victors of battles against Krok's tribe.
And now, they were being slaughtered one by one.
Lives far too valuable to waste like this.
The Great Shaman had to decide.
Should she lead this murderous elf…
to Ululululu?
She made her choice.
"…What kind of madness is this?!"
Nanaruk appeared—without even wearing armor—holding an axe.
The Great Shaman felt her legs give way.
This was the worst possible situation.
There was no way Nanaruk would forgive the elf who had slaughtered her warriors.
And as expected—
"AAAAAA!"
Nanaruk roared in fury.
Every goblin present felt their hair stand on end, their hearts pounding.
That was the roar of a king.
The rage of a king.
Nanaruk hurled her axe.
The spinning weapon did not arc—it flew in a straight line,
tearing through the air with terrifying force.
Whoooosh!
The sheer momentum of the axe was overwhelming.
Nanaruk had completed a true evolution.
Even Krok could not compare to her now.
For the first time, the Shadow Elf tensed.
The blood-serpents from his sleeves surged forward to block the axe.
CRASH!
One serpent was crushed.
Then another.
And another.
By the time eleven of them were destroyed—
the axe finally lost its force and stopped.
Clang—
Ah…
Even Nanaruk's full-powered throw had been stopped.
Worse—
the shattered blood-serpents reformed, regaining their shape.
Despair settled in.
"Interesting. A new king is born the moment Krok dies?"
The Shadow Elf stroked his chin, impressed.
"And properly evolved too. I've decided."
He declared:
"Good. I'll capture you and take you with me. I'll raise you well."
"Shadow Elf."
Nanaruk smiled coldly, completely unshaken.
It was a smile of rage.
"Let's see if you can still say that after your head is split open."
She charged forward with her axe.
But beneath her hair, cold sweat ran down.
Her body had not yet fully recovered.
The Great Shaman shut her eyes tightly, praying for Nanaruk's safety—
***
"Whew… that was a good sleep!"
I had slept incredibly well.
And I even had a nice dream.
I dreamed I went to a buffet.
Even in the dream I was still a Serpent,
but for once I got to eat human-made dishes.
I piled up a plate of sweet, refreshing yukhoe—
then suddenly thought:
"Wait… don't I eat this all the time anyway?"
The moment that thought hit me, I woke up.
What a shame…
I should've had pumpkin porridge and kimbap too.
For reference, my favorite buffet foods are yukhoe, pumpkin porridge, kimbap, and rice cakes.
Every time I loaded up on those, people told me I shouldn't be allowed in buffets.
–"You're awake!"
Pelerian's voice snapped me back.
–"Heh heh heh, finally awake. So, how is it?"
How is—… huh?!
My body hadn't grown larger.
My horns hadn't increased either.
I sighed in relief.
'Thank goodness! I'm still white!'
–"Why are you obsessed with color? That's not what matters."
"Oh!"
My color hadn't changed—
but its quality had.
True to the name "Crystal,"
my scales had undergone a massive transformation.
Serpent scales are actually part of the skin—
hardened outer layers of tissue.
Most reptiles are like that.
And normally, Serpent scales aren't that hard.
Anyone who's touched a Serpent knows—
they're smooth, slightly soft even.
But now—
'They're hard!'
Each scale was solid and smooth,
gleaming like gemstones.
Looking closely, they weren't pure white—
more like semi-transparent.
Under light, they refracted into subtle colors.
This really was like crystal.
–"They look like carp scales!"
"Not dragon scales?"
–"Let's not compare them to dragons."
Pelerian was brutally realistic.
'They look tough.'
I brushed my body with my tail.
'Oh… wait, they're softer than expected?'
The texture was actually better.
I struck the ground lightly this time.
Clang.
A metallic sound rang out.
So—
soft when touched gently,
but hard when struck.
This was basically a dream material.
Any modern materials company would drool over this.
A shiver of satisfaction ran through me.
Chrrr—
My scales vibrated, producing a sound.
Nice… pretty intimidating.
I might not be a rattleSerpent,
but I had my own unique sound now.
I checked my status.
[Crystal Double-Horn Python Lv.1]
[Title] Heart-Eating Serpent
[Traits]
[Indomitable], [Perseverance], [Horn], [Pattern], [Scale]
[Skills]
[Borrowed Horn Lv.4: Heavenly Thunder Command Lv.0],
[Surpassing Horn Lv.1],
[Heart-Devouring Leap Lv.1] …
Heh.
That magic stone feast wasn't for nothing.
My mana capacity had increased tremendously—
at least three times what it was before.
I could probably finally use Gunter's skill, Heavenly Thunder Command.
And most importantly—
I had gained a new skill through evolution.
Something related to scales.
'This is insane.'
Even the name made my heart race.
I was just about to test it—
–"Let's begin the transmission."
Pelerian spoke seriously.
Like in the previous dungeon,
there was a device to send results back to his original body.
There was a similar device here.
He really wanted to activate it.
Apparently, it would tell him what happened to his real body.
"Alright… let's do it."
Pelerian explained the controls with a tense expression.
Once activated, the elves would likely detect the signal.
We'd have to run immediately afterward.
Go!
[Transmission begins.]
A mechanical hum filled the air.
At the center of the device was a circular plate.
Tiny metallic fragments arranged on it began moving in a mysterious pattern.
–"South… then east… why not north?"
Pelerian seemed to interpret it.
His face grew increasingly grim.
–"Crossing the kingdom… mountains…"
He muttered to himself—
then fell silent.
"…I'm dead."
Pelerian let out a hollow sigh.
"What?"
–"The signal is heading to a dungeon in Delfram. I'm dead… probably."
"I'm dead… probably."
That sounded like the opening line of an existential novel.
I was about to comfort him—
BOOOOM!
A distant explosion echoed.
Screams of goblins followed.
Both of us froze.
'The pointy-ears are already here?!'
–"How did they track us so fast?!"
We assumed the Golden Leaf inspectors had found us.
'Let's run.'
–"Take everything!"
I swept the magic stones into my subspace.
Grabbed the valuable ones first,
and swallowed whatever didn't fit.
We rushed out of the dungeon.
Surely, the goblins were being slaughtered by elves.
Through the long corridor—
through the iron door—
past Krok's corpse—
over the bodies of fallen goblins—
we crawled up the tunnel.
Finally—sunlight.
The smell of blood hit us instantly.
Our fears were only half right.
There was an elf.
But just one—
a gray-skinned Shadow Elf.
And—
He was holding Nanaruk by the neck.
The Shadow Elf turned to look at me.
"Oh… there really is a Serpent."
Blood dripped from Nanaruk's mouth.
To me—
she looked dead.
…
Ah.
They say the color of rage is black.
My heart turned black.
And so did my scales.
Tssssss—
So this is how you use it.
Even though it was my first time,
it came naturally.
This was the new skill I gained through evolution.
[Skill "Black Scale (Lv.1)" activated.]
Hold on.
Just for a moment—
I'll become a black Serpent.