Chapter 456: Wrath of the Tiny Dragon

The skill descriptions still hovered before Luke’s eyes, glowing lines detailing Franky’s new abilities:

[Accelerated Flight (Rare)]: The wyvern can channel mana into its wings and muscles, allowing for a temporary burst of speed while flying. This acceleration is ideal for quick maneuvers, dodging attacks, or gaining a momentary aerial advantage.

[Fireball (Common)]: The wyvern spits a small fireball from its mouth. The attack doesn’t have a large impact area, but it’s useful for dealing direct ranged damage, igniting fragile targets, or pressuring enemies.

[Wyvern’s Roar (Epic)]: The wyvern unleashes a powerful roar filled with raw force and predatory instinct. Nearby enemies may be struck with fear, hesitating or momentarily losing the will to attack. A perfect ability for creating openings in battle.

Luke skimmed through them again, searching desperately for a positive angle to offer the creature in front of him, who looked like he’d been dropped into the middle of an existential meltdown.

“You may not have your fangs or venom anymore, but now you can fly, spit fire, and even unleash a terrifying roar,” he said, trying to inject enthusiasm that he didn’t quite feel.

Franky, curled tightly in Lillian’s lap, blinked at him with deep suspicion.

“Is she trying to crack my head open? The torture has begun, hasn’t it? She’s trying to split my skull?” he asked, voice high with panic.

“I’m giving you pets,” Lillian said simply, running her fingers over the wyvern’s small, newly formed scales.

“Oh no. No. Not that. Anything but that,” Franky groaned, arching his body as if her gentle touch were some divine punishment. “Why isn’t she trying to open my head? Why? What did I do to deserve this? I refuse to believe a human mouse is stronger than me.”

Lillian giggled. “He’s funny, brother.”

Luke moved closer, bracing his hands on the edge of the bed as Franky struggled to balance on his unfamiliar legs.

“Can you fly yet? Do you know how to use your new abilities?” he asked. “Did all of this come installed in your head, like how a shark already knows how to swim when it’s born?”

Franky puffed his chest, or at least attempted to.

“I’m not stupid, human. I know how to do these things. I just don’t want to. I want to be a beautiful and powerful serpent again! I don’t want to be a rat with wings!”

“Look on the bright side,” Luke said, raising an eyebrow. “Did you know some birds are natural predators of snakes? You’re basically a super bird now. That makes you the predator of predators.”

“But what about my gorgeous fangs? And my beloved acid?” Franky protested, insulted at the mere thought of losing such defining features.

With a dramatic twist, he wriggled out of Lillian’s arms and attempted to slide across the bed like his old serpentine self. He tripped over his own feet instead, landing awkwardly, but he pushed up again and toddled forward, running like a clumsy newborn animal discovering its limbs.

“You have to undo this, human!” he demanded, jabbing one tiny claw toward Luke.

“I want to as much as you do,” Luke replied with a sigh. “But according to this interface, there’s nothing here that even hints at reversing your evolution.”

He frowned, still bothered by the fact that Franky reacted perfectly to information he couldn’t possibly read.

Lillian watched them both, captivated, as if she were witnessing some rare theatrical performance.

“You’re not going to abandon him, right, brother?” Lillian asked, tilting her head.

“Unfortunately, he’s staying with us a little longer. But I promise I’ll kick him out of our house soon,” Luke replied, and Lillian let out a small giggle.

“I know you won’t. You two are friends.”

“We are not friends!” Luke and Franky snapped in unison, which made her laugh even harder.

Franky clicked his tongue repeatedly as he paced in circles on the bed, growing steadier on his legs. He sped up, pushed off the mattress, and jumped. For a brief moment, he managed to flap his wings in sync well enough to hover before dropping onto the bedroom floor.

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“See? You can fly,” Luke said, folding his arms. “Pretty sure you wouldn’t reach the sky as a snake.”

“Of course I could! I had my super serpent jump!” Franky barked, stomping around the room and desperately trying to look dignified.

“So, where are we, human?” he asked.

“I already told you. My house, in my world. This is my bedroom.”

“Your den?”

“Something like that.”

Franky sniffed the air and surveyed the space, inspecting every object as if he’d stumbled into the ruins of a bizarre foreign civilization.

“And where are the bones of your enemies?” he asked casually.

“I don’t know what kind of madness you think humans get up to, but I don’t display the bones of my enemies as trophies,” Luke replied.

Franky stopped, staring intently at something on the floor.

“Hm. A dead human? I like it.”