Megatherium.

Just think of it as an extremely large ground sloth.

A ground sloth is essentially a sloth that lives on the ground instead of in trees.

In other words, it’s a very large, ground-dwelling sloth.

With a touch of aggression.

"Raaaargh!"

Listen to that roar.

It might sound ridiculous at first, but when you hear it up close, it’s terrifying beyond belief.

And what about that massive body?

It was comparable to my original form, no, it was even larger.

Especially when it came to weight—it easily surpassed mine by more than double.

You could say it’s four times heavier, even.

Why would such a massive creature attack a gathering of lizards?

Even if it ate all the lizards here, it wouldn’t be satisfied.

Besides, it’s herbivorous.

Of course, just because it’s herbivorous doesn’t mean it can’t eat meat.

This attack wasn’t a simple raid.

I narrowed my eyes, focusing.

【Megatherium LV40】 【Traits】 「Poison Resistance」 「Petrification Resistance」 【Status】 「Mind Control」

Poison resistance and petrification resistance.

That gave me a clue.

And the mind control status confirmed it.

This attack was connected to the King of Birds.

Did they just grab a random Megatherium and brainwash it?

No, that didn’t seem right.

The control wasn’t that strong.

It was a mild form of mind control, leaving most of its consciousness intact.

This Megatherium must have been cooperating with the King of Birds from the start.

Just like the black dragon allied with the Serpent Queen around the temple.

It was probably brought in as a hired force to handle tasks the birds couldn’t manage.

It’s hard to find a bird with such a massive frame.

Why it came here, and why it attacked when I happened to be around, was curious.

But ultimately, it didn’t matter.

"Geh-geck!"

Because my course of action wouldn’t change.

I let out a loud cry to draw its attention.

"Raaawr!"

The Megatherium immediately turned its gaze toward me.

The mind control didn’t seem that strong.

"Raaawr!"

With a roar, it charged at me.

Thud. Thud.

For such a massive creature to fall for the provocation of a tiny lizard—it didn’t feel right.

While it was the result I wanted, something about it seemed off.

I had a hint of unease, but I pushed it aside.

Here it comes!

Thud!

Every time it took a step, the ground trembled.

It could be that my shrunken body made the vibrations feel even stronger.

Could I defeat such a massive beast in this form?

No matter how I calculated it, a head-on fight seemed impossible.

Right.

A frontal assault wouldn’t work.

Dash!

I sprinted to the right, kicking off the ground at full speed.

I had to create a variable.

And that variable was the riverbank where I had sparred with Honhui.

Thud. Thud.

Fortunately, the Megatherium was completely fixated on me.

Splaash!

Without hesitation, it followed me into the water as I dove into the river.

Splash!

As the Megatherium entered the stream, water overflowed naturally.

Both the Megatherium and I were now standing in the same stream.

"Geh-geck!"

And that meant the variable had been created.

The water might have been shallow for the Megatherium, but it would hinder its movements.

On the other hand, the water was a familiar environment for me.

Dash!

With the Soaring Dragon’s Sky Step technique, I leaped into the air.

"Raaawr!"

I could see the confusion in its eyes.

It must have been wondering how such a tiny lizard could jump to nearly eye level with it.

Dragon Scale Conversion.

Sssshing!

I sharpened my scales to their extreme.

Focusing on speed and attack power.

At this moment, I was like a living blade.

Swoosh!

I slashed fiercely at its right leg.

Splat!

But the feeling wasn’t good.

Its hide was thick, as expected from such a large creature.

If I had been in my original body, I would have cut through it, thick hide or not.

Maybe expecting so much from a body the size of one of its fingers was unreasonable.

"Raaaargh!"

It roared in fury, angry that a small lizard had managed to wound it.

Crash! Crash!

Like a gorilla, the Megatherium slammed its fists down, as if trying to shatter the ground beneath it.

Splash!

Its blows struck the water, sending up massive sprays.

If one hit wasn’t enough, it kept attacking relentlessly.

Splaash!

I had to think of my options.

Poison would have minimal effect.

My venom production had decreased along with my size, and the creature had resistance to it.

Using Dragon Claw Hand or Nine Yin Bone Claw was also difficult.

No matter how many times I used Nine Yin Bone Claw with my tiny claws, it wouldn’t do much damage.

Continuing to ram it with my entire body was probably more efficient.

Maybe Kaiju Death Beam would work to some extent.

Though its range had diminished, its power was still the same.

But even if I used all my MP for Kaiju Death Beam, I doubted I could deal a fatal blow.

I had to admit it.

I couldn’t defeat this creature with my usual methods.

I needed to remember.

How did I hunt when my body was small?

‘Sprint.’

The energy of the wind enveloped my entire body.

And how did Honhui deal with Gomoto-Rania?

Dash!

I kicked off the surface of the water, soaring into the air.

The Megatherium swung its massive hand, waiting for me.

It was a sharp strike, predicting my trajectory.

Of course, it was an obvious one.

Whoosh!

I leaped again, even higher in the air.

"Raaawr!"

Swish!

The Megatherium's thick arm hit nothing.

It was impossible for it to predict how I was moving in the air.

It couldn’t have known that I was stepping on the water droplets it had scattered.

Normally, this would have been impossible.

But now, with my body so tiny, my feet were small enough to step on those water droplets.

I had successfully positioned myself behind it.

I had gained this opportunity using the Soaring Dragon's Sky Step, so I would attack with it too.

Swoosh!

The scattered water droplets converged into a single point.

It was as if the form of a dragon had wrapped around my body.

By continuing to step on the water droplets, I maximized my speed.

What I had now was overwhelming speed.

And my entire body had become as sharp as a blade.

Boom!

The Soaring Dragon’s Sky Assault struck the creature’s waist.

"Raaawr!"

It screamed, and its massive body staggered back helplessly.

It might not work twice.

Though naturally occurring water droplets couldn’t be helped, it wouldn’t leave itself open to such a big spray again.

"Graaaargh!"

Now its attacks would be calm and precise, each strike a deadly kill.

Its fast and heavy claws swung toward me.

It managed to control itself enough to avoid creating more water splashes.

In other words, I couldn’t use the same erratic movements as before.

Even if I dodged for now, sooner or later, one of those strikes would land.

Dash!

The Megatherium seemed lost in a foolish illusion.

Once again, I leaped into the air using the water droplets.

Its measured movements didn’t produce enough water spray.

The small amount of droplets that fell wouldn’t be enough for me to use.

So how was I still able to leap?

The answer was simple.

Swish.

Rain had been falling since long before this fight began.

The first time was the hardest, but the second time was easy.

Whoosh!

And the raindrops were hitting the stream from all directions, simultaneously.

In other words, this entire stream was my domain.

Dash!

Dash!

The Megatherium’s dumb eyes darted around rapidly.

It was trying to track my movements as I jumped from raindrop to raindrop.

Swish!

Its claw swung again.

But I didn’t miss my chance.

Tap tap tap!

Boom!

The Soaring Dragon’s Sky Assault.

Boom!

A second strike.

The massive creature staggered.

Of course, the damage I inflicted wasn’t that great.

Even with enough speed and sharpness to cause damage, my small size was still an issue.

No matter how many times I attacked in this state, I wouldn’t be able to bring it down.

But that was fine.

My goal wasn’t to defeat it.

It was to keep its attention on me and buy time for the lizards to escape.

"Rrrrr…."

It growled lowly, gathering strength in its legs and jumping powerfully.

Whoosh!

What kind of movement is that?

That move was completely useless in this fight.

"Keheheh…."

…No.

I made a mistake.

Realizing it couldn’t catch me as I leaped between raindrops, it had given up on trying.

It was perhaps the natural choice.

I should have danced around a little more, keeping its attention longer.

Maybe I got too carried away.

Thud. Thud.

It started running toward the other lizards.

But rain was still falling outside the stream too.

I could use that.

Dash!

I kicked off the ground at full speed, charging toward it.

I needed to irritate it enough to keep its focus on me.

But the Megatherium seemed completely determined to ignore me, moving steadily in one direction despite stumbling slightly.

This was bad.

At this rate, it would catch up to the fleeing lizards.

I needed to pull its attention even more.

Even if it meant taking a dangerous risk.

"Geh-geck!"

With a brave cry, I kept attacking it.

"Geh!"

I aimed for its ear.

Even if it tried to ignore me, it would have to pay attention if something was buzzing in its ear.

It might even get angry enough to try to kill me first.

Of course, attacking near its head carried a risk for me too.

But if I didn’t do this, there was no way to grab its attention.

Whoosh!

"Geh-geck!"

I used the Soaring Dragon’s Sky Assault to strike it hard near the ear.

Boom!

Normally, I would have retreated immediately, but I lingered a little longer.

But the Megatherium continued to ignore me.

It was acting as if I didn’t exist and kept moving.

In one sense, it looked like I had won, but to me, this was the worst possible outcome.

I had to grab its attention.

"Geh-geck!"

I quickly followed up with a Dragon Claw Strike.

A little more.

I used the Horned Dragon’s Kick.

A little more.

I unleashed a poison attack.

A little more.

I used Nine Yin Bone Claw, using the reversed scales.

Boom!

And then it happened.

The Megatherium’s mouth twisted into a grotesque grin.

Before I could even react to the disgusting sight, our eyes met.

And in that moment, its eyes flashed.

Zap!

It was a petrifying gaze.

If it had been any other attack, I would have dodged it easily.

Even though I was attacking recklessly, I had kept a minimum distance.

But I hadn’t expected it to use petrification.

How could the Megatherium even use such a technique?

Could it have forcibly transplanted the eyes of a dead Cockatrice?

The petrification wasn’t nearly as strong as that of a Cockatrice or the Serpent Queen.

It couldn’t kill its opponent with this.

Especially not me, who had a strong resistance.

But it was enough to paralyze me for a moment.

And that brief moment was all it needed for its claws to strike.

Crash!

My body was sent flying helplessly.

Thud!

I slammed into a tree and fell to the ground.

My head was spinning.

Its sharp claws were enough to tear through my shrunken scales.

Blood flowed from all over my body.

My vision became blurry.

"Geh-hehk…."

One hit, and I had taken this much damage.

The size difference was absurd.

Thud. Thud!

It rushed toward me swiftly.

And that’s when I realized it.

Its target wasn’t the other lizards.

It had been after me from the start.

Its attempt to attack the other lizards had just been a trick to make me lower my guard.

The creature grinned widely, its mouth stretching grotesquely.

"Keh-heh-heh!"

How happy it must be to see me, who had been buzzing around like a fly, staggering like this.

With trembling hands, I pushed myself off the ground.

It wasn’t over yet.

I still had enough strength to move.

Now that I knew I was its target, I could simply retreat.

My leg was shattered, but I could still escape.

"Geh-geck!"

I heard a familiar cry.

A few Geckos stood between me and the Megatherium.

…Why were they still here?

They had plenty of time to escape.

"Gehk…."

One small Gecko approached me, looking concerned, and tried to support me.

Right.

They hadn’t fled.

They were worried about me and had been watching the battle from afar.

And when they saw me fall to the Megatherium's attack, they all rushed in to help.

Even though I had a broken leg and they were helping me up to run, what would happen to those Geckos blocking the monster?

"Gehhk…."

I gently pushed the Gecko supporting me away.

How could they hope to stop that monster?

Even lasting 10 seconds would be a miracle.

They knew they were going to die.

"Gehk."

One of the Geckos grabbed my hand tightly.

Even without words, I could understand what it was thinking.

So, why?

Why were you willing to sacrifice yourself for us?

That’s probably what it was asking.

Who knows.

Was it in pursuit of chivalry?

I wasn’t going to say something so noble.

My body wobbled.

I tried to put strength in my legs.

But it felt like I was about to collapse.

I pressed my hands into the ground.

Even then, I couldn’t hold on.

I steadied myself with my tail.

The Geckos watched me anxiously, fidgeting.

There was no need to look at me with those eyes.

I only wanted your faith.

If these lizards died, who would worship me?

I needed to steal that cursed old man’s divinity for myself.

Yeah, this was purely selfish.

"Rrrr…."

So move aside.

This monster is mine to deal with.

[Your divinity surges dramatically.]

Twitch.

[Status: Miniaturization is being lifted.]

Crack crack crack.

[Miniaturization LV1's effect is being replaced with Status: Gigantification.]

The Megatherium, instead of attacking the Geckos in front of it, stared at me in shock.

[Dragon Blood LV1's effect has activated.]

[Powerful heat energy flows through your blood.]

[Powerful cold energy flows through your blood.]

Blood flowed from between my torn scales.

The dragon's blood, filled with a strange mixture of cold and heat.

"Grooooar…."

That’s right.

I’m back.