The opposite effect of miniaturization is gigantification.

My body had grown even larger than before.

Of course, it wasn’t as dramatic a transformation as when I had used miniaturization.

It was just a bit bigger, a bit heavier.

But since I was using Gomoto-Rania as a reference, even a small change meant something completely different.

"Rrrrr…."

I let out a low growl as I looked down at the Megatherium.

It was still massive.

Even though I had grown, it hadn’t shrunk.

The Megatherium, seeing my size, puffed itself up as much as possible.

It must have been trying to show that it wouldn’t be intimidated.

Like a frilled lizard spreading its frill.

It was laughable.

Trying to appear larger was a survival tactic for the weak.

"Roooaaar!"

While the Megatherium was busy puffing itself up, the Geckos quickly moved out of the way.

Fortunately, they didn’t faint from the sight of my transformation.

They swiftly evacuated the battlefield, carrying with them the Gecko that had been blocking the Megatherium.

The Megatherium couldn’t stop them.

All its attention was focused on me.

It watched my arms, legs, and tail.

It was paying close attention to every movement I made.

And it seemed to have analyzed the condition of my body as well.

Swoosh.

The rain continued to fall, washing away the blood.

The fire and cold embedded in the dragon’s blood blocked the rain, but I quickly retracted my internal energy, turning the blood back to normal.

It was better to have the blood washed away right now.

Even though I had deactivated miniaturization and was enjoying the benefits of gigantification, the situation wasn’t great.

The wounds inflicted by the Megatherium remained.

My head still felt dizzy.

My broken bones made moving difficult.

I couldn’t move as I had before.

I couldn’t even stand on two legs, let alone use martial arts techniques like the Soaring Dragon’s Sky Step.

"Rrrr…."

But did that matter?

I had only used those moves earlier to compensate for my shrunken body.

Now, every normal attack I made would be as powerful as a martial art technique.

"Raaaargh!"

I planted my broken leg on the ground.

I used the dragon scales to apply pressure and support the broken bones.

It was a crude form of first aid.

But it was enough to reach the Megatherium.

Thud!

Thud!

"Roooaaar!"

The Megatherium didn’t dodge; it chose to meet me head-on.

It stood up on two legs, its already huge body becoming even larger.

Boom!

Crash!

Before I could get close, it slammed the ground with immense force.

Rumble….

The ground trembled.

But it had no effect on me.

The Megatherium must have known that as well.

Even so, it was likely trying to send me a warning.

A warning that if I charged, I’d be hit by that attack.

That if I dared approach, it would crush me.

"Roooaaar!"

Which is what made it so laughable.

What predator gives its prey a warning?

"Raaaaagh!"

I continued to charge toward the Megatherium.

No, calling it a charge might not be accurate.

Who would consider my current pace to be charging?

It was too slow to be called a charge.

But still, I continued moving forward.

The Megatherium didn’t dodge.

It stood firm, slamming the ground repeatedly, trying to intimidate me.

Boom!

To someone watching, it might look like random smashing, but each blow was like a bombardment.

To attack the Megatherium, I had to step into that merciless bombardment.

There was no way I could dodge those attacks in my current condition.

I had only one choice.

I had to push through and close the distance.

[You have used 「Reversed Scale LV1」.]

With the remaining MP, I could only use it once.

[You have temporarily acquired 「Mighty Qi Discharge」.]

Rumble.

A powerful force pressed down on the Megatherium.

It was strong enough to resist, but to do so, it had to spread its strength thin.

Now was my chance.

Crack.

I put all my weight on my broken leg and dashed toward it as fast as possible.

Its claws came down as if it had been waiting.

Even though I had limited its movements, it wasn’t restricted enough to be unable to attack from this distance.

I had only reduced the number of strikes it could make, from several to just one.

In other words, I approached with the expectation of taking a hit.

Boom!

Its massive claws struck my shoulder directly.

Crack.

Crack!

The force of the attack was enough to shatter my scales.

The average weight of a Megatherium is about 4 tons.

This one wasn’t average, so I had to assume it was at least 5 tons.

A strike with that much weight behind it would naturally be powerful.

But I could withstand it.

Closing the distance by taking a single hit was a worthwhile trade.

And I had allowed only one hit.

What that meant was, now it was my turn.

I immediately swung my right hand to counterattack.

Boom!

My dragon claw technique, infused with internal energy, slammed into the Megatherium’s shoulder.

I had aimed for its head, but it twisted its body, causing me to miss.

But that was fine.

My internal energy-infused claws pierced through its thick hide.

Riiip.

"Raaaagh!"

The dragon claw technique is designed to rip.

I grabbed its flesh and tore it apart.

"Rooooaaaaar!"

The Megatherium let out a pained scream.

It now knew the agony of having its flesh torn apart.

I struck again with the dragon claw technique.

This time, I aimed for its head.

There was no way it could completely dodge my internal energy-infused claws.

Thud.

So it changed its strategy.

It decided to block my attack by grabbing my wrist.

At the same time, it tried to strike me with its other hand.

Whoosh.

But did it think I’d just stand there and watch?

Thud.

We ended up grabbing each other’s wrists.

Now, it had turned into a close-range grappling match.

A pure contest of strength.

With its size, which was larger than an elephant, I couldn’t say I was stronger.

Especially since my body wasn’t in perfect condition.

"Roooaaar!"

The Megatherium’s confidence surged.

It thought it had the upper hand in strength.

That must be what it was thinking.

But hadn’t it forgotten something?

Crack!

My teeth were sharper than yours.

"Raaaagh!"

I bit down hard on its shoulder.

The Megatherium flailed in pain, loosening its grip on my hand.

Boom!

I didn’t miss the opportunity and struck with the dragon claw technique again.

"Roooaaar!"

The Megatherium’s massive body staggered.

But that just brought us back to square one.

The damage I had sustained when I was smaller had been severe.

Whoosh.

Boom!

The Megatherium’s claws came flying at me once again.

I blocked with my shoulder.

Crack.

My dragon scales were falling off.

In terms of sheer power, the Megatherium still had the advantage.

Boom!

Rip!

But if it landed one hit, I just had to land more.

Boom!

The battle turned from a test of strength into a brawl.

It reminded me of my fight with the Caiman.

A brutal, close-quarters battle where there was no room for fancy techniques.

Each blow was a kill strike aimed at the other’s life, but neither of us opted to dodge.

Boom!

Crash!

Blood splattered everywhere.

The rain continued to fall, but it couldn’t wash away all the blood.

Crash!

Its massive forepaw struck me squarely in the chest.

The pain was overwhelming, but I gritted my teeth.

Just a little more.

Boom!

Crash!

Once again, our attacks landed on each other.

Just a little more.

Boom!

Thud!

"Roooar…."

"Guhh…."

The metallic scent of blood filled the air.

With every hit I took, and with every attack I made, something broke.

There wasn’t a part of my body left untouched by blood.

"Guhh…."

The Megatherium seemed confident of its victory.

Given its superior overall stamina, if we kept exchanging blows like this, the Megatherium was bound to win.

It knew that.

And so did I.

But just because I knew didn’t mean I’d be kind enough to play by its rules.

Yes.

This was enough.

Crack.

Once again, I grabbed its wrist.

The Megatherium did the same with its other hand.

It was probably silently cheering, thinking it had the advantage now.

It had forced the battle into a contest that favored it.

And my condition was worse than before.

Covered in blood, I wouldn’t be able to muster more strength than before.

Yes.

I was covered in blood.

I gathered the internal energy from my core.

[Powerful heat energy flows through your blood.]

[Powerful cold energy flows through your blood.]

The first time I had used this ability, I had been too careless.

I had shown my hand without knowing how to control it.

But the Megatherium didn’t pay attention to this ability.

The rain had obscured its view.

Thanks to that, I had been able to keep it hidden.

I didn’t have enough blood left to use this ability to its fullest extent.

That’s why I had dragged out this brawl.

To make it drop its guard against my ability, exhaust its stamina, and buy time to collect more blood.

I had gathered enough now.

Fwoosh.

It didn’t just end with heat and cold energy flowing through my blood.

Once the dragon’s blood accumulated beyond a certain point, the heat and cold became tangible.

The contradictory forces of fire and ice.

Cold flames enveloped my body.

"Roooar!"

The Megatherium let out a pained scream.

The sudden appearance of blue flames.

The flames were hot enough to burn its hide, and cold enough to freeze its mind.

The Megatherium instinctively let go of my wrist.

It must have been panicking.

It wasn’t just the power of the heat and cold.

Both the Serpent Queen and the King of Birds had a strange obsession with the existence of dragons.

That obsession wasn’t limited to the leaders.

All the creatures in this jungle must have some interest in dragons.

Whether it be obsession, reverence, or fear.

"Roooar!"

The Megatherium screamed in terror.

The cold flames burned its body and froze it simultaneously.

"Rrrrr…."

Its movements became noticeably slower.

It was time to finish this.

Crack!

I bit down hard on its thick neck.

Its hide was so tough that even my teeth struggled to pierce through.

But I had been relentlessly attacking its neck and shoulders.

Naturally, its durability had weakened.

Crunch!

My sharp teeth punctured its hide.

"Rrrrr…."

The Megatherium thrashed desperately, foaming at the mouth as it made its final attempts to resist.

Of course, my mouth was also filled with blood.

Which meant the dragon’s blood had entered its system.

Fwoosh.

Heat and cold energy surged from my mouth.

Like a dragon breathing fire.

The Megatherium flailed, trying to resist, but it was too late.

Fwoosh.

"Roooar!"

Crack.

It’s over.

"Rrr…."

Its resistance weakened.

I don’t enjoy tormenting dying foes.

I’ll end this quickly.

Crunch!

I bit down hard enough that my teeth nearly broke.

Crack!

There was a satisfying sound as its neck snapped.

Thud.

Its massive body collapsed to the ground.

The Megatherium didn’t move.

[Your level has increased.]

[Your level has increased.]

[Your level has increased.]

[Your level has increased.]

[Your level has increased.]

That familiar notification.

Yes.

I had taken it down.

This was Gomoto-Rania’s victory.

Standing atop the Megatherium’s corpse, I let out a triumphant roar.

"Geh-geck-geck-geck!"