The old man Compy didn’t just teach me the art of shrinking, he passed down various techniques as well.

If I were to name them, I’d call them things like Little Dragon Strike, Little Dragon Fist, or Little Dragon Kick—martial techniques designed for combat.

These techniques seemed to pair well with Little Dragon Martial Arts.

But instead of following the Little Dragon path, I created the Gae-gaek Martial Technique.

Sure, I could still learn the Little Dragon techniques if I wanted to, but for now, it was better to focus on Gae-gaek.

That didn’t mean the techniques Compy taught me were useless. Not at all.

My existing martial techniques increase in power the larger I become.

Techniques like Ancient Dragon Kick and Gae-gaek Death Beam scale in strength according to my size.

However, using them in my shrunken state would be a waste.

On the other hand, the techniques with "Little Dragon" in their names were specifically designed for smaller bodies.

This meant I could continue fighting effectively even when I reduced my size.

Of course, it would be more efficient to cancel the shrinking and return to using my original techniques, but having more techniques in my arsenal never hurt.

There could come a time when I’d have no choice but to fight while maintaining a smaller form.

I ended up spending more time with Compy than I initially expected.

I had no choice but to stay, as I needed to master the shrinking technique completely to avoid any potential issues in the future.

During the day, I sparred with the old man in the water puddles.

I practiced using the Little Dragon techniques while shrunken, and learned how to counter his attacks while in my larger form.

In the past, if it weren’t for some tricks, I wouldn’t have been able to touch even a single scale of his. But now, things were different.

Having created the Gae-gaek Martial Technique, I could use my internal energy more efficiently.

Our sparring matches were much more balanced than before.

Though, of course, the moment the old man used his internal energy, I was quickly overwhelmed again.

Still, I showed some improvement.

I managed to knock the old man into the water several times.

Sure, I had to plant my face in the water dozens of times to achieve that, but it was still an encouraging outcome.

After the sun set, I would meditate in the cave where the murals were drawn.

The purpose of the meditation was to understand the inscriptions written on the mural.

Having broken through the wall to the pinnacle, I thought I might be able to comprehend them. But once again, there was little progress. However, it wasn’t entirely without results.

While meditating, I could focus even more on the Gae-gaek Martial Technique.

Though my progress with the martial art was slower compared to the physical techniques, my proficiency with Gae-gaek steadily increased.

After finishing my meditation, I’d head back to where the lizards gathered.

What I did there was a bit different from training.

I would share food with the lizards and try to get closer to them.

I mean, I needed some relaxation after a day full of training, right?

...No, that wasn’t the reason.

This too was part of my plan to grow stronger.

The old man Compy had officially acknowledged me.

Just like with the Snake Queen, part of the Faith of Gae-gaek had merged with the Faith of the Little Dragon.

This meant that the divinity and experience accumulated by the lizards here also contributed to my growth.

The more I bonded with these lizards, the more that contribution would increase.

I even hoped that when these lizards had offspring or met other lizards, they’d mention the dragon-scaled lizard to them.

Apart from that, I wandered around the area, looking for any signs of the Green Gecko.

If there were another gecko here, there was a possibility that my kin were around as well.

But I didn’t have much success with that.

Still, I didn’t get discouraged.

If the lizards here ever encountered any of my kind, they’d surely mention me.

They’d probably even imitate my cry.

“Gehgek.”

I led the chant.

“Gegegek!” “Gegegegek!”

The lizards that had gathered around me echoed my cry.

Even the non-geckos mimicked my call.

I won’t lie—it felt kind of good to be a popular figure in the old man’s domain.

With my enhanced appearance thanks to the dragon scales, defeating the Megatherium single-handedly, and earning the Little Dragon’s recognition, it was no wonder the lizards liked me.

If I were a less honorable lizard, I might’ve crossed into the Snake Queen’s territory with these newfound followers in the middle of the night.

But attacking my father-in-law’s followers didn’t seem right.

...Wait a second. Could it be that the old man acknowledged me so quickly because he feared I might do just that?

“Kek!”

The old man let out a cry as if to say, “Why are you looking at me like that?”

He always stood there with his arms behind his back, watching the lizards around me, all making their gegegek noises.

The reason Compy and the lizards had gathered together today was simple.

It was time for me to return to the Snake Queen.

I had honed my body techniques, martial art, faith, and shrinking ability to a high level.

I wanted to stay a little longer to continue refining myself, but for some reason, Compy seemed eager for me to return to the Snake Queen.

More accurately, he wanted me to go back as soon as possible.

“Kek.”

Compy handed me a large stone tablet.

It was covered in markings I couldn’t read.

Well, they were more like drawings than letters, to be honest, chaotically scrawled all over the stone.

“Kek-kek!”

After spending so much time together, understanding the old man’s intent wasn’t too hard.

The stone tablet was essentially a letter.

A letter meant for the Snake Queen.

I wasn’t sure what it said, but I had a feeling it was something important that I had to deliver.

“Gehgek.”

It had been about a week since I’d started living with Compy.

It wasn’t a long time, but it wasn’t short either.

A lot had happened during that time.

One of the most memorable moments was when the old man dug out a bottle of alcohol he had buried deep underground, and we shared a drink.

Tipsy from the drink, he had grabbed my scales and started talking nonsense.

Though we couldn’t communicate directly, I could somewhat grasp his meaning.

His complaints, accompanied by kek-kek sounds, were most likely about his daughter.

The Snake Queen was raised by him.

She’s an innocent child.

If you ever make her cry, I’ll bury you alive.

That was probably the gist of what he was trying to say.

I had gegegek-ed in response, trying to reassure him.

In reality, the Snake Queen was just a wife on paper, and it was his granddaughter who had fallen for me.

Not just snakes, but even spiders and humans coveted my dragon scales!

I had almost blurted all of that out but managed to keep it to myself. Only gegegek sounds came out instead.

After venting for a while, the old man had fallen asleep in the cave.

Seeing him like that, I couldn’t help but feel a little sorry for him.

From what the Snake Queen had told me, it didn’t seem like she considered Compy her father.

She had only described him as one of the few beings she respected.

And since she couldn’t pinpoint his location, it was clear they hadn’t met in quite some time.

If they had, she would’ve known that he was living here with the lizards.

The stone tablet the old man gave me might just be a letter containing his feelings for her.

A letter to the daughter who had left long ago.

...Of course, that might not be the only content. After all, the tablet was enormous.

“Gehgek!”

I’ll make sure to deliver the letter.

And if I receive a reply, I’ll come back.

“Kek-kek.”

With that, I bid farewell to Compy and the lizards and left the Little Dragon’s domain.

The journey back to the Snake Queen’s temple felt much lighter than when I had left.

Of course, that made sense, since my current size was more Gomodo than Gomodo-rania.

I had almost perfected my control over shrinking.

For the time being, it would be best to maintain my smaller size.

The shrinking technique didn’t just reduce my size.

It had a hidden effect.

When the technique was released, it triggered gigantification.

And I discovered through several experiments that the longer I stayed shrunken, the larger I became when I returned to my original size.

In other words, by staying in my smaller form most of the time and only releasing it when necessary, I could gain an advantage in battle through sudden gigantification.

It could also be useful for catching enemies off guard, and since my size would grow even larger than before, the impact would be twice as effective.

I would’ve shrunk myself down even more, but I had no choice because of the stone tablet Compy had given me. At least at Gomodo size, I could carry it without too much difficulty.

With that, I walked all the way to the Snake Queen’s temple.

I crossed paths with a Black Dragon, who bowed its head in greeting as I passed.

Now that I was officially the Snake Queen’s mate, this level of respect was only natural.

“Gehgek.”

Thank you for your hard work.

I let out a cry as I entered the temple.

The traps didn’t activate, as expected.

Once I made it through here, the Snake Queen and Shek-Shek would surely appear.

...But is it really okay for a queen to be holed up in this place all the time?

And with the princess, no less?

Crash!

As I made my way down the corridor, I heard a loud crash from deeper within the temple.

It wasn’t anything serious—it sounded more like a Basilisk hastily transforming into a Lamia.

“You’re quite late.”

The Snake Queen greeted me in an awkward pose.

So, she did transform in a hurry.

“Gehgek!” “Piiiiiik!”

Even Shek-Shek, who had apparently been napping, stumbled over and let out a happy screech.

It’s nice to see you again too.

...Did Shek-Shek get bigger?

“You’ve shrunk a bit. But I’m sure what you learned from Hunhwi wasn’t just this.”

As expected, the Snake Queen was sharp.

Now that I had succeeded in carrying the stone tablet here, I could shrink further without any issues.

I put down the tablet and began to perform the dance the old man had taught me.

The melody that seemed to evoke images of water landscapes played in my head.

A dazed expression filled my face.

My arms moved fluidly.

Sssaaaak!

My Gomodo-sized body continued to shrink until I had reduced myself to the size of a Green Basilisk.

Now, I didn’t even need to rely on my Reversed Scale to shrink.

It had become one of my full-fledged skills.

“Gehgek!”

I let out a mighty cry.

The Snake Queen was surely astonished.

She couldn’t have expected me to master shrinking to this extent.

"...How is this possible?"

The Snake Queen’s jaw dropped in disbelief.

Her usually expressionless face was now starting to show signs of emotion.

Yes. Praise me.

“…Ufufu.”

Wait, what?

“Aha.”

Aha?

“AHAHAHA!”

The Snake Queen burst into laughter.

The entire temple seemed to shake from the sound.

She laughed until tears welled up in her eyes before finally calming down and wiping them away.

What on earth is so funny?

“Where did you learn that dance?”

Where did I learn it? From old man Compy, of course...

Wait a second.

“Ahaha! That dance isn’t necessary for shrinking.”

...Excuse me?

That’s not true.

That can’t be true.

Then what the heck have I been doing all this time?

“Gegegegek!” “He must’ve really taken a liking to you, pulling pranks like that.”

He liked me?

And that’s why he made me look like a fool?

“Ufufufu.”

I could feel my black scales turning red.

Embarrassment.

Utter and complete embarrassment.

I had been seriously performing that ridiculous dance without realizing it was a joke.

“Piiiik!”

Shek-Shek waddled toward me.

Yes, Shek-Shek.

You’re the only one I can count on.

Seeing your chubby little body might be the only thing that can heal my wounded heart.

“Piiiiik!”

Shek-Shek let out a cheerful sound, wagging her tail.

Yes, just like a puppy.

Then she offered me her chubby tail.

“Gehgek.”

I looked at it, wondering what she meant by it, and then—suddenly, Shek-Shek lunged at me.

“Ge-geh?”

Shek-Shek wrapped herself around me.

What on earth are you doing?

“Kyaa!”

...Shek-Shek?

Drool dripped from Shek-Shek’s mouth.

No way.

Just because I shrank doesn’t mean...

Does this mean you think now is your chance…?

“Piiik!” “Geeeeeehk!”