The Soul Viper, or the Soul Snake, was said to be one of the most dangerous snakes, as anyone bitten by it died.
The reason for even the strongest of the world dying because of this snake was simple: its poison didn't affect one's body but soul.
The only reason why Raven, in the original plot, had survived even after being bitten by this snake was his hidden bloodline.
The Soul Dragon Bloodline.
A mysterious bloodline no one knew about.
This bloodline, however, had a condition that it needed to live in a body for sixteen years for it to unlock, making it impossible for the original Raven to use this bloodline before he turned sixteen.
But even in its dormant state, the Soul Dragon bloodline was draconic, so it had prevented the poison of the soul viper from killing Raven, leaving him with a weak body—the reason for Raven's sixteen years of hell in the Vaise family.
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[Plot Armor (First use): Soul Dragon Bloodline Unlocked.]
This time, however, things were different.
Using plot armor, Raven unlocked the Soul Dragon bloodline forcefully, making his body immune to the soul poison of the soul viper.
"Gah!!!" The pain from the snake bite, however, would still be felt—especially now when his body was still in a weakened state.
'Fucking shit! It hurts!' Growled Raven inwardly, gritting his jaws, forgetting the warmth of the bloodline being activated.
His tiny body trembled as the venom spread through his veins, a sensation unlike anything he had ever felt—both in this life and his past one.
His baby-sized fists clenched, his teeth grit so tightly that if he had any proper strength, they might have shattered.
'Holy shit—IT BURNS!'
And yet... something was off.
Amidst the pain, another sensation bloomed—a deep, pulsing warmth that felt… good.
Raven froze.
'Wait... hold up. Why does this feel... kinda nice?'
His baby body slumped for a second in pure horror as a realization dawned upon him. 'No… No, no, no. Don't tell me—Did I awaken some freaky masochist tendencies?!'
For a moment, he contemplated his entire existence.
He had barely lived in this body for a day, and he was already questioning his morality.
'Please tell me this is not what I think it is—'
But then, another realization struck, causing his small eyes to widen.
It wasn't the pain that felt good.
It was the poison.
'Wait. WAIT. THIS AIN'T POISON, THIS IS AN EXPENSIVE-ASS TONIC!'
His baby eyes widened comically as the truth hit him like a speeding truck.
The Soul Snake wasn't the predator here. It was HIM. His bloodline wasn't rejecting the venom—it was absorbing it, devouring it like an all-you-can-eat buffet.
His horror morphed into disbelief, then into something else entirely.
Greed.
His tiny black eyes quickly scanned the surroundings, ensuring the servants were gone before they flicked toward the snake still latched onto his arm, mindlessly pumping venom into him like it was doing him a favor.
'This dumbass snake...' He grinned inwardly, for the first time, feeling that something good was happening to him.
But before he could bask in the feeling of his power increasing, he felt the creature's grip loosening; it was about to let go.
The snake had sensed something off.
'No way in hell am I letting my elixir run away!'
He shot his other baby hand toward the snake in panic, desperate to keep the venom train rolling.
The snake, however, mistook his motion as an attempt to swat it away and reacted instinctively, sinking its fangs into his other hand.
Another jolt of pain.
But he didn't care as soon followed another surge of delicious, soul-filling venom.
Raven twitched. His fingers flexed. 'Oh yeahhhhhhh~, that's the good stuff—wait, no, stop thinking like that!'
The cycle continued.
The snake would loosen its grip, and Raven—like the greedy little goblin he was—would shove another hand forward, forcing the poor creature to bite him again.
His body absorbed every drop of poison like a sponge in an ocean, his strength rising with each bite.
Minutes passed but he didn't know. All he knew was that he was getting stronger, and he didn't want to stop.
The snake, however, was beginning to realize something was very (very, very) wrong.
Its instincts screamed at it.
'Why is the prey still alive?'
The little human should have been long dead by now. Yet, it kept moving, almost as if... it was enjoying this.
Its slit blue eyes turned toward Raven, only to find him lunging at him with his mouth wide open.
The snake barely had time to react before it saw something horrifying—his teeth.
Sharp.
Feral.
When Raven's bloodline awakened, his baby teeth had grown, becoming stronger and sharper, more suited for a predator.
And right now? He was about to do the unthinkable.
The snake panicked, trying to slither away—only to realize, with absolute horror, that it couldn't move.
It had pumped so much of its soul venom into Raven that it had drained itself dry.
It could just sweat helplessly as it found itself in the grasp of its supposed pey—who was drunk on venom.
"Geh-heh-heh~"
Raven, on the other hand, let out a wheezy, devilish chuckle, his baby hands clutching the limp snake like a prized feast.
'Come here, little guy~'
And with a final, decisive motion—he sank his teeth into the snake's body.
Warm blood filled his mouth.
Raw. Metallic. Disgusting.
And yet—
It was working.
He could feel it.
Power surged through his tiny limbs, reinforcing his soul and strengthening his body.
His stomach growled as if asking him to drink more. He was too deep in now to stop.
He chomped again and again like a deranged baby vampire on a rampage.
It was only after a few more bites that his tiny body suddenly wobbled.
Dizziness hit him like a freight train.
'Ah, crap… I overdid it…'
The exhaustion of awakening his bloodline, absorbing all that venom, and now ingesting raw snake blood—it was too much for his baby body to handle.
His eyelids drooped. His grip on the snake loosened.
'No... I can't... I need to... suck more poison...'
With that final, tragic thought—he collapsed into unconsciousness.
The now thoroughly violated and traumatized snake, half-chewed and barely clinging to life, could only twitch weakly in response.
It would be dead before long, and there was nothing it could do.
To think it thought that it was a predator...
In front of Raven, however, new notifications flashed.
[You have successfully changed a major plot, turning it better.]
[You have obtained 3000 Plot Points.]
[Deducting the loan amount of 2195...] {(2000 of Loan + 10% Day-One Interest) - 5 Earned Plot Points = 2195.}
[Remaining Plot Points: 805.]
These notifications would bring Raven joy as he had gained 3000 Plot Points for the first time. Soon, however, he would cry tears of blood realizing that most of it was lost...
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The night passed without any other problems, and the next morning, when the nannies arrived, they were horrified to find a dead snake in the cradle of a newborn baby.
If that wasn't enough, the snake was killed and the baby, who seemed to have bit off its head, was sleeping with a strange smile on his face.
The servants on petrol that night were all tortured and interrogated, but nothing was found.
The only thing that changed that day was the birth of a legend—the legend of a child who conquered a snake.
It was a legend that would be told to the children to motivate them and help them overcome their fears.