Chapter 455: From Venom to Wings

Lillian and Franky were both on Luke’s bed. But something had changed, something impossible to miss. The little snake that had fought beside him was no longer a snake. The deep forest-green scales were gone, replaced by a glossy jet-black sheen and sharp obsidian spikes running along its body. And the most obvious change of all: Franky now had two hind legs, and his forelimbs had fused into what looked unmistakably like wings.

The snake had become a… wyvern.

“No, no, this cannot be happening,” Franky muttered, horrified. “I turned into a rat! A flying rat! A damn rat with wings!”

He spiraled, staring at his own body. Every new detail sent him deeper into panic.

“He’s really cute, brother,” Lillian said as she crawled across the bed toward him.

“Cute!? Absolutely not! Stop that, I’m not cute!” Franky trembled, offended to his core.

Luke had already pulled up the system interface. He tapped into the Familiar tab, just as stunned as Franky by the creature in front of him.

A notification blinked at the top.

[Familiar Evolution of the Dark Lord has been completed!]

“What did you do to me, human?” Franky hissed, equal parts furious and terrified.

“I didn’t do anything, little snake. I’m just as confused as you,” Luke muttered as he scrolled through the notification history.

He went all the way back to the first time the familiar interface had been opened. There, buried among the logs, he found what he needed.

[Familiar: Frankzaroth
Race: Jormungandr
Rank: F

Familiar Skills: [Serpent’s Leap (Rare)], [Corrosive Venom (Ultra-Rare)], [Acid Jet (Epic)]

[Evolution to Rank E]:
To evolve from Rank F to Rank E, the familiar must consume Rank E Magic Beast Cores.
Rank E Cores (0/100)

[Dark Lord Familiar Evolution]:
As the Dark Lord’s familiar, the Jormungandr is granted an alternate evolution path. This special evolution requires the familiar to absorb the core of a creature at the peak of Rank E.
Peak Rank E Core (0/1)]

There were two possible evolutions. The first was the standard path from Rank F to Rank E, something every magical beast could eventually achieve. The second… that one existed only because Luke carried the title of Dark Lord, or whatever bloodline had awakened it.

“I thought you’d get stronger if I gave you the wyvern core, not… turn into one,” Luke said after piecing the situation together.

“Human, fix this! I don’t want to be a rat!” Franky barked.

Luke glanced between the panicked wyvern and the interface, finally understanding what the evolution description implied.

It didn’t just say the familiar would consume the core. It said the familiar would absorb it. And that meant… becoming whatever creature the core belonged to.

“His name is Franky, right, brother?” Lillian asked, eyeing the wyvern hatchling. She reached out to pet him, but Franky tried to scramble away. He didn’t get far, two steps and he collapsed back onto the bed.

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“I can’t crawl anymore!” he cried, outraged.

Artemis’s laughter echoed inside Luke’s mind.

“You have legs now,” Luke said, trying to sound encouraging. “You’ll have to learn to walk with them.”

“You’re enjoying this, aren’t you, human?” Franky hissed, struggling to stand. “This was your plan all along, wasn’t it? Turning me into a rat!”

“No. Of course not. And are rats really the only animals you know?” Luke asked.

“Is he your pet, brother?” Lillian chimed in. She was lying on Luke’s bed with her chin propped in her hands, staring at the little winged creature as if he were some adorable puppy or kitten.

“Who is this human rat?” Franky demanded, dodging Lillian’s hand as she tried to pet him.