Of All Things, I Became a Crow: Chapter #01
Translators: Nyx and Ririi Rain
'Heuk-' My breathing was heavy. I blinked my eyes as I
took a deep breath to calm my rapid breathing.
“Uh, so……”
I'm
sure… that I went to the zoo in the morning and cleaned the cages. I was temporarily in charge of the tigers
because sunbae (senior) was on break. I was happy about it since I really like
them.
After
that, I felt something struck my throat. Then my vision blurred.
*(There’s no transition here in the raw)
Reflexively, I raised my hand to stroke my neck, but I
halted. *Flap*, it wasn’t my arm that goes up---
"Caww?!!! (What’s this?!)"
Feathers?!
No, it's wings!! Why did my arms become wings?! No way, did my brain move into
a bird's head?! That's not it!! There can't be a bird with that head size!!
What is this?!! Reincarnation? Possession?! That kind of thing is... There's no way something ridiculous like
that could happen to me!
My eyes were spinning in confusion. Then, I realized... that
I'm not inside the tiger’s cage anymore.
I’m inside a forest full of green.
I calmed my mind that was about to explode and checked
out my body. There were black feathers with purple and green lusters depending on
the angle on my arms, or wings.
My body was also covered with feathers of the same color.
Furthermore, my legs were as thin as branches and had
three front toes. There was one new and distinctive hind toe.
The tail feathers of a suitable length on my backside
also had the same black color.
"--- Caw? (Ah-----)"
I was going to make a sound, but the "sound"
that came out was "Caw".
Am I
a crow?!! I don't know if it's possession or reincarnation, but I'm not a
human, I became a crow?!
No, nnooo!
Talking
about reincarnation or possession, won't you usually come into a novel or
stumbled into a game and became a beautiful woman? I was thinking that it would
be something like that!! But why?! Why?! Why did I become a bird?!! On top of
that, I’m a crow! The animal that competes with black cat for the number one
place of the most unlucky animal!!
What
is this?! I’m a bird?!! Doctor!!!
***
The place I was in is a forest. Specifically, I'm on a
branch. Earlier, I was so distracted that I didn't look properly, but there
were so many thick and large trees that I wondered if they really existed in
Korea.
The
biggest problem is about my (crow’s) food. I can eat nuts and fruits, but as
for bugs, corpses, and half-rotting animal carcasses---.
--Fxck.
If the god who made me like this is in front of me, I want to punch him.
No,
I don't have hands, so I'll peck his eyes with my beak!
I realized about something as I imagined pecking the god
all over.
--I
can fly...right?
No,
I used to be a human with no wings at all. Can I fly? But what if I fall?
I bowed my head and looked down below the tree I’m
currently on.
Hi-
High! It’s so high!! If I fall, my bones will break!
Birds
are frail because their bones are fragile!
I stomped my feet multiple times while having that
thought, but… something was a bit strange. Huh?
What’s going on?
I thought it was an illusion, so I looked down at the
ground again. Below me-- huh? That’s
weird. I'm supposed to have acrophobia. Why am I okay with this?
Strangely, I wasn't scared of this high place. My heart
is pounding, but it wasn't like before where I was sweating profusely and lost my
legs strength. Is it because I became a
crow? Well, it would be funny if a flying bird has a phobia of height.
Arms - No, I spread my wings. my feathers swayed by
gentle breeze blowing through the branches, it felt like my body would float. Whoa, whoa...
I
was almost blown away. No, wait. Don't I have to fly?
Whether
I am looking for food, figuring out where I am, or looking for people, I have
to figure out how to fly first. The wind seems to be blowing just right. But it
was scary to fly right away. I looked around. Ah, there's a tree branch nearby!
Oh yeah!
Baby
birds practice by flying from branch to branch when they just leave the nest,
right? OK, I'll try that.
I swallowed my saliva when I saw that one branch below
the branch where I was at. Okay, it'll be fine! C’mon me! If you really think
you're going to fall, your arms--no, if you flap your wings rapidly, you won't
fall!
I put strength on my legs and jumped towards that branch.
I was afraid to fall, so I flap my wings really hard.
"Caww! Caw! Caw! Kkak! (Come on, fly! Go to that
branch!)"
I flapped my wings and moved my legs in the air. Perhaps
it was worthwhile to move so desperately, because I could barely set my foot on
the branch.
Haaaaaa!
I'm alive!
I sat on the branch to caught my breath.
Is-
isn't this pretty good? I thought it would be a problem, but I think it'll be
okay if I practice a little bit--?
Once again, I spread my wings and flap them lightly. With
that simple act alone, my body felt like it was floating, and my heart was
racing.
Let’s-
let’s do it again!
My heart felt like it was being squeezed while chills
spread faintly all over my body.
But what's greater was that whenever I move my wings, my
body floats as I set my mind to it.
The wind that brushed my cheeks and tickled my feathers
was refreshing. The air that gathered under my wings and supported me was also
refreshing.
Wow-
Did all the flying birds live like this? It's so free!
Still, I think I learned it quickly because my body is
that of a crow's.
I'm definitely not a genius, and this is also not a
hundred million won worth body.
Well,
I'm lucky. It's much better than being stuck here and starved to death or being
eaten. *Rumble-
Ugh,
I'm hungry. Come to think of it, I overslept this morning and couldn't grab a
bite.
I looked around and saw nothing but green.
It
would be nice if there are fruits. But I'm not the main character, and there's
no way that rice cakes will appear in front of my eyes when I need them, right?
If I'm the main character, I wouldn't even become a crow!
Let's
see---. Obviously, crows were omnivores, aren't they? Whew, that's a relief.
If I
am a bird that only eats bugs, I would have seriously thought about whether I
should die and start a third life. How can I put a gross wriggling thing in my
mouth? No, in my beak!
I touched my hungry stomach while making a firm
resolution not to eat bugs even if I saw them.
There
is still hope, though.
I
still don't know what kind of world this is, right? If it has a cultivation
background, there's a way to train for tens or hundreds of years to become a mystical
creature. The fact that it takes decades is a ditch, but since there's a
possibility... Hah--
why am I crying?
*Rumble-
Even in this
situation, my stomach’s rumbling was not much different from when I was a
human. I was somewhat annoyed.
Phew, let's find something to eat first. I’m
hungry… What should I do?
I flew through the forest while muttering to myself. I
looked around carefully, listened to the sound of birds chirping in my ears.
There’s also the rustling of leaves and something that moved in the bushes.
Maybe it was not the season of fruits. The leaves were
abundant, but nothing that looked delicious could be seen. Of course, there
will be no seeds. Then,
- Do
I have to eat bugs? Do I have to eat worms?! Oh no! I hate that!! Um, let's
find water! I'll catch fish too! I like sashimi, so I'll just close my eyes and
eat it!
Not
bugs, absolutely!
I sat on a nearby branch and rested for a while, vowing
not to eat them.
To be frank, the safest way is to find a flock of crows,
but I didn't choose this because I remembered that the crows formed flocks only
during the mating season. They’re smart, but it's hard to find a flock which
was really outside of the mating season. Being in a flock, there’s also the
possibility of being chased, beaten, or killed.
--Give
up, I give up. I'd prefer a human. If possible, a male protagonist of any novel
or other story. No, I don't care whether it's male or female!
For now, I need to find humans and act as cute as I can
to gain their favor, because if I don't, I’ll either be stoned to death, shot
down with an arrow, beheaded, or killed because when I, a bird that symbolized
unluckiness, came close to them.
Why am
I in a ditch this early? I take over a body, but why is there no buff? How is
that possible?
A sigh came out naturally as I imagined the future, which
looked as black as my black feathers. N-no, no!! Calm down! I don't know
anything yet!
All I've done so far is that I became a crow, panicked,
practiced, and flew around for a bit to look for food! Where is it though? I
still don't know. Let's have hope! I can still hold onto the strings of hope
that this is a cultivation world!! Don't throw away the possibility that I can
be a mystical creature!
For
now, I have to find water...
The rustling sound got louder. Huh? Is something there?
I put strength on my arms, or wings, so that I could fly
away. I also looked down.
After becoming a crow, thanks to my improved eyesight, I
could see the rustling bushes from afar. What is it? What's there?
My heart was pounding, I slowly approached it with
caution.
Is
it a man? Um, a noble or royalty who went hunting as a hobby in the forest? Although
a bit cliché, maybe it’s a member of a hero party? No, if it's a cultivation
world, it could be a qi (life energy) master---!
Whatever it is, I just wanted a person to be there. I
looked at the rustling bushes with that desperate wish.
O-hoh.
Something came out from the bushes!
'Fxck,
dreams or hopes doesn't exist in this world.'
I feel betrayed when pig heads pop out from the bushes.
Those pig heads with bulging flesh came out while holding crude-looking
weapons.
Hey--
hey! What do I do when the things that come out are mountain orcs from a
fantasy?! You pigs really don't know how to read the mood!
A
handsome guy should be the one who appeared from there! Aaahh! Fxck! This life
is ruined!
I feel hopeless about my life, then I stole a glance at
the orcs. Really, they're not lying about orcs being dirty and snorts.
Originally, pigs are neat animals that are choosy about bathroom, but why are
these orcs with pig head so messy?
The sight of the orcs that looked like flies were flying
around made me nauseous.
Good
grief. Let's not get close- No, wait, think about it.
If
the orcs are here, it means the village where the orcs live is nearby, right?
When there's a village, it should be easy to get food and water. If nothing
else, the water should be nearby!
Ooh,
I heard that people gain strength that they didn't have in crisis situations.
My head's gears are spinning!
I slowly followed the orcs, praising my brain for its
nice thought in this situation.
I don't know if it's because they don't know that I'm
following them by flying between branches or if they don't care about crows,
but I can hear the orcs' conversation.
"Chiek! We need to find him quickly. Chiek!"
"How dare he kill our comrade, chiek! Let's catch that
human and eat soft meat, chiekkk!"
"Since there's only one left, how about the one who
catches it gets to eat all of him? Chiek!"
"That's good, chiek! It's such a waste to share when
it's just one person!"
Listening
to their conversation, I learned two things, one was that, surprisingly, I could
understand their words.
Wow,
I thought there was no buff, but you made me understand their words? You have at
least some conscience!
I
don't know if it's God or the will of the world, but I suppose that he has a
minimum conscience. Yeah, literally just the bare minimum. Damn it!
Oh,
and one more. These orcs are chasing after someone. A person with the skills
powerful enough to kill orcs.
But
honestly speaking, I don't expect that much.
‘It's
probably a mercenary or something like that.’
Just after I became a crow, I had high hopes, and ended
up being shattered. You thought I'd look
forward to it? I'm not making expectation - I'm not - I'm only going to check out
this person.
I'll
expect this person to be a mercenary or hunter – please let me meet a human
this time. Come, hunter, come out, mercenary-
I prayed in
my heart and flew after the orcs. But I chased away that wish.
No,
what if I really meet a mercenary or hunter this time? Guess I'll look for this
person! Little ****..., if it's like last time, I'll let you know that if a
crow is angry, it'll be XXX!
As the orcs march forward, I started searching from up
high.
Orcs
need to explore on feet for the search,
but I'm a crow! I can fly, so I can find that person from above!
I smiled in my heart and looked around eagerly. It hasn't
been long since I was able to fly, but it felt so good to be able to fly freely
as if I was walking.
Hmhmhm~
Where are you? Where? Please come out!
"Caww! (Found him!)"
***
Translator
note:
Nyx: This is my first time translating Korean Novel
Ririi Rain: Yep, it’s super hard. I hope you can understand
our translation well!
