I Became an Ancient All-Host Lifeform - Chapter 2

—————
This chapter was translated by Lunox Novels. To support us and help keep this series going, visit our website: LunoxScans.com
—————

002 Experience is not something to squander

Wow! Born as an ancient dragon…!
Isn’t this basically a golden spoon… no, a diamond spoon and then some?
These charlatans—the very ones I’d wanted to hunt down and kill moments ago—now looked like goddesses.
‘A fantasy life of pure bliss,’ they’d promised. So they did have at least a shred of conscience after all.

To be honest, when I first opened my eyes, I thought I was simply dying.
I couldn’t see anything before me, couldn’t draw breath, and all around me pressed a crushing weight of warmth and force.
In a state of near-surrender, I opened my mouth—and something sweet and thick flowed in.
So without thinking, I swallowed it, and suddenly I felt reassured.
This stuff tasted quite good.
Savory and warm, like the sensation of swallowing a lukewarm egg custard filling my mouth.
And I realized that I didn’t need to breathe to keep from suffocating.

So I thought the liquid surrounding me was some kind of nutrient bath. But listening to the people outside, it seems I’m inside a dragon’s egg.
If that’s the case, then this liquid would be the egg white, I suppose? In any case, something like that.

Honestly, at first I thought this was some ordeal, but now that I’m here, it’s quite pleasant.
Warmth on my back, a full belly—and born as an ancient dragon, the ultimate diamond spoon… isn’t this basically a guaranteed ‘fantasy life of pure bliss’?

As for arriving in this world, whatever patch they applied worked—the people outside spoke a language I’d never heard before, yet it sounded as familiar as my native tongue.
The problem is that I can’t speak. I’ll have to figure out a way around the communication issue later.

Anyway, from the atmosphere of those outside, this place seems to be some kind of research facility. That means escaping later might be a bit tricky.
But in the web novels I’ve read, ancient dragons are depicted as almost divine beings, right? So escaping shouldn’t be too difficult.
I’ll just pretend to be obedient while I’m young, grow strong enough, and then look for my chance to escape.
For now, though, I haven’t even hatched from the egg yet.

Ah, forget it. I’ll worry about the future tomorrow—for now, let me just keep enjoying this delicious meal. Yum yum.

As I contentedly consumed the egg white, a thought suddenly occurred to me.
But I haven’t even hatched from the egg yet… so how am I able to eat this? Do baby birds inside eggs normally nibble on the egg white like this?
…I have an ominous feeling I’ve just thought of something I shouldn’t have. Baby birds eating egg white inside the egg… that’s right, isn’t it? Isn’t it?

The moment doubt and unease began creeping in, something appeared before my eyes.
Translucent text and a distinctly familiar UI.
A Status Window.

[Level up!]

This must be one of those Status Windows from web novels.
Below the level-up notification, my status was displayed.
And yet…

【Paleonucleus lv 1】

I stared blankly at the alien words floating before my eyes.
Paleo… what? What did that say?
What? I’m… not an ancient dragon…?
…Is that what this is?

* * *

Just a week ago, the Third Magic Tower Research Team had succeeded in restoring a dragon egg fossil from fifteen thousand years ago using the latest bioalchemical techniques.
It was truly a revolutionary achievement that shook the very foundations of the academic world.

Encouraged by this success, their next objective became clear.
It was nothing less than the restoration of the ancient dragon from legend itself. And its monopoly.
If they could monopolize the ancient dragon, they would gain the power to control the fate of the entire world.
To achieve this, the Empire was pouring astronomical sums of money into the research.

“If you’re done gawking, let’s get to work.”
“Yes, sir!”

The two researchers moved with purpose, checking the Dragon Egg Incubator and recording various data on the egg.
Just as they were absorbed in their work, a sharp beeping sound suddenly erupted from the incubator.

“What is it?”

The Junior Researcher, startled, rushed over and checked the incubator’s panel.

“Oh!”

It was a distinct Biological Activity Response.
Upon confirming this, the Junior Researcher’s voice trembled with excitement.

“Movement detected inside! Something’s stirring in there!”

The moment he exclaimed, a crackling sound came from the egg’s surface.

Crack.

In that instant, the two men locked eyes.

“Don’t tell me it’s hatching already?”
“Activate the hatching sequence now! If we leave it in high temperature and pressure, the Hatchling could be injured.”
“Yes, right away!”

As the Junior Researcher manipulated the controls, the internal temperature and pressure of the Dragon Egg Incubator began to gradually decrease.
The cracks spreading across the egg accelerated in pace.

Crack… crack….

With a dull sound, the cracks across the egg’s surface suddenly spiderwebbed in all directions.
And then….

“Gasp!”

An indescribable stench flooded the entire Research Laboratory. The acrid, piercing odor made them recoil.

“Ugh, what is that smell?”
“….”

The Senior Researcher’s expression hardened at once.
It was unmistakably the smell of rotten eggs.

“Scan it immediately. Something’s… wrong.”
“Ah… no….”

The Junior Researcher opened the incubator’s lid and cast Scan Magic.

A faint hum sounded.

A blue light swept once across the cracked egg and faded.
After analyzing the Scan results, the Junior Researcher let out a heavy sigh and spoke.

“According to the Scan results, no Hatchling has been detected inside the egg….”
“Ah….”

The Senior Researcher let his head fall when he heard the report, all strength draining from him.
In that moment, the ancient dragon egg—into which the Tower had poured astronomical resources and wealth—had become nothing more than a massive, rotting egg.
The Senior Researcher muttered to himself, his expression hollow.

“We’re finished….”

A dragon egg from fifteen thousand years ago, no less.
The central research project of the Tower—one that had consumed astronomical resources and funds.
He had just witnessed its utter failure with his own eyes.
And of all times, it had to happen during their shift.
Their luck couldn’t have been worse.

* * *

Hearing the commotion outside the egg, one thing became abundantly clear: I was not a dragon.
And now a sinister possibility was creeping toward me.
Oh god, don’t tell me… I’m not… that, am I?
Please, anything but what I think I am. Tell me it isn’t that.
Someone, anyone—please tell me it’s not that!

Well, that’s it. My fantasy paradise life is over before it even started.
I wanted to deny the reality before me, but the Status Window remained stubbornly in my field of vision.
And at the bottom of it was a “View More” option.
I had absolutely no desire to check it, but I couldn’t avoid it.
At the very least, I needed to know what I was to plan my next move.
The Status Window expanded instantly, and detailed information about myself cascaded before me.

【Paleonucleus lv 1】
【Traits】
「Universal Host」, 「Genome Archive」
【Skills】
「Parasitism lv 1」, 「Predation」, 「Hardening lv 1」

I laughed—a hollow, bitter sound.
Of course. It was exactly what I’d feared.
I was actually… a parasite?

Mother… I hope you’re doing well back on Earth.
Your son, who used to do nothing but eat homemade meals and waste away, has now evolved into an actual parasite…!

The thought of my mother waiting for me endlessly, unaware that her precious son had become a parasite, filled me with a fury I couldn’t contain.
It wasn’t enough to scam me with a part-time job—they had to send me to another world as a parasite? What kind of monsters are you people?
Bastards. I swear I’ll hunt you down and kill you.

…Calling myself a parasite over and over was starting to make me deeply uncomfortable, so I decided to call myself a parasitic organism instead.
I mean, I might not be an actual bug, right?

Either way, I couldn’t afford to sit around cursing and fuming. No amount of anger would change the fact that I was a parasitic organism.
If I was destined to live by parasitizing something, I might as well make a life of it worth living.

So what was the best thing I could do right now, in this very moment?
Eat the yolk, of course!
Before I had to leave this fragile body and escape the egg, I needed to get as much out of this as possible.
Besides, dragon blood is depicted as overpowered in all sorts of fantasy stories. If this is a fantasy world and this egg really did belong to an actual dragon, then consuming it might give me some kind of advantage.
…Even if it was a bit rotten.

From that moment on, I focused all my senses on searching through the interior of the egg.
Faint light seeping through the cracks in the shell made exploration relatively easy.
Scanning in every direction, I could see the dead yolk clumped at the bottom.
I swam toward the yolk with all my might.

That’s when I heard the researchers’ voices from outside the egg.
They were worried about being held accountable for the failed research.
From what I gathered, they’d poured an astronomical amount of capital into this project—and I doubted those researchers who’d discovered the failure would come out unscathed.

Of course, the research failure wasn’t entirely their fault.
But when a major failure occurs in an organization, someone has to take the blame. And usually, the people at the top don’t.
It’s the most expendable staff members who end up bearing the collective weight of failure.
It seemed the laws of such organizational hierarchies applied here as well.

They really were in a tough spot. Whatever happened, a severe penalty was surely waiting for them.

While I swam toward the yolk at full speed, those outside the egg fell into a heavy silence.
They were probably struck speechless by the dread of the blame and censure that would soon rain down on them.
Then a middle-aged man who appeared to be the Senior Researcher suddenly spoke up.

“Look, let’s bury it.”
“Sir?”

Wait—these guys…?

“Just cover it up. If we report this, we’re both as good as dead!”

It reminded me of a career sergeant in the military trying to hush up some major blunder. The resemblance was uncanny.
Watching this, I realized that people are much the same everywhere.
The Junior Researcher stammered at the Senior Researcher’s sudden proposal.

“But… can we really do that?”
“It’s the only way either of us survives.”
“What if we get caught?”

The Senior Researcher raised his voice in exasperation.

“Listen, whether we report it properly or cover it up and get discovered, we’re dead either way! And besides, dragon eggs normally take years to hatch artificially anyway. Not to mention this is an ancient dragon’s egg. We’ll just transfer somewhere else before that happens.”
“But what if it comes to light later?”
“Then that’s the next guy’s problem.”

Damn! Experience really does count for something.
The Junior Researcher couldn’t help but marvel at the Senior Researcher’s cunning insight.

“Ah, I see!”
“First, we dump out the rotten contents and fill it with something else. If we use stable, believable organic material, they probably won’t discover it for quite a while.”

While they prepared to cover up the incident, I swam with such intensity that my limbs cramped.
I had to survive, after all.
After swimming hard, I finally reached the yolk. But…

Wow, as I got closer to the yolk, the stench of rotted egg hit me like a shockwave.
The cloudily discolored yolk had already decomposed considerably, mixing with the whites.
The state of it was utterly revolting, but… I still had to eat it, didn’t I?
I squeezed my eyes shut and took a large bite.

Gulp! Ugh… urgh. Urgh… swallow.

The taste was genuinely fishy and foul.
For the sake of world peace, I’ll spare the detailed description.
Then a message appeared in my Status Window.

[‘Ancient Dragon Genetics’ has been discovered.]

Ah, so it really is an ancient dragon’s egg.
But then another message appeared.

[Corrupted genetic sample. To decode the genetic information, you must consume more of the sample.]

Hell! How much more are they asking me to eat?
Wait—what’s happening?

Even as I cursed inwardly, I felt my body rising weightlessly into the air.
More precisely, the entire contents of the egg were lifting upward with me.

Churrrrrgh…

When I looked up, everything around the egg was being sucked through the opening in its shell.
I thrashed with all my strength, but this small body of mine was powerless against the mysterious force pulling everything skyward.

It’s… terrifying, actually, but kind of fascinating too.
The egg’s contents were transferring themselves into the flask of their own accord. There wasn’t even a tube or anything nearby.
This must be some kind of magical phenomenon.
And so, pulled along with the dragon egg’s contents, I was transferred directly into an enormous Glass Flask.

The moment I arrived in the Glass Flask, I rushed toward the glass wall.
Through my faint reflection on the glass, I could finally make out the shape of my own body.

My form consists of a round, crimson body with two pairs of limbs—one at the front and one at the back.
If I had to compare it to Earth insects, I’d say something between a ladybug and a beetle?
It does appear to be insectoid, but its plump, rounded shape makes it far less repulsive than I’d feared.
…And yet, at the end of the day, a bug is still a bug.
My faint hope that I might somehow escape being a parasite crumbled without mercy.

Sighing, I glanced upward at the unfortunate researchers above—and then I noticed something.
Wow, what the hell. These giants?
Their size was so incomprehensibly vast compared to mine that they were nearly impossible to take in at a glance.
I’m probably smaller than even the corner of their smallest fingernail.

While I was processing their sheer scale, my gaze met the Junior Researcher’s.
Or at least, it felt like it did.
Our eyes may have crossed by chance, but there’s no way that creature could have actually noticed me. I’m so absurdly small that even at first glance, you couldn’t tell what I am.
Then that one tilted his head quizzically.

“Uh, what is that?”

Wait—no.
Damn. Kid’s got good eyes.

—————
This chapter was translated by Lunox Novels. To support us and help keep this series going, visit our website: LunoxScans.com
—————