Chapter 85: Little Dragon
Translator: RaidenTL
Chapter 85: Little Dragon
As the tidal wave of lizards was about to swallow me, other lizards stood with their backs to me, holding them off.
It was a truly welcome sight.
But there was one thing that bothered me immensely.
It was the appearance of those lizards.
“Gegegek!”
“Gek!”
A cry so similar, it was impossible to tell who was making it.
Those large eyes.
Those legs, with their hint of cute curves.
No matter how I looked at them, they were geckos.
These geckos seemed to hold some standing within the pack; despite their small numbers, the other lizards began to hesitantly retreat.
“Gegegek!”
Then, they let out a magnificent roar.
They were truly worthy of being called wall-tigers.
In this world, lizards were a rarity.
At least, within these 100,000 Great Mountains.
With dinosaurs constantly running rampant and the insects they preyed on being just as massive, it was perhaps natural that there was no place for lizards to stand.
It was an environment where it was difficult for a lizard to survive.
In fact, I hadn't seen a single lizard before coming here.
Geckos were probably even rarer than other lizards.
The others had their own strengths.
Some had hard scales, others had poison on their tongues.
Or perhaps they were incredibly fast.
But what did a gecko have?
Having lived the life of a Green Gecko, I knew their struggles all too well.
Excluding basic skills like my reincarnation perk, they were a bleak species with nothing but tail-shedding and wall-climbing. At best, they could also go "gegegek."
Since it was so hard for geckos to survive in this land, their numbers must have naturally dwindled.
If so, there had to be some connection between me and the geckos before me.
It felt like meeting someone with an extremely rare surname.
What was the relationship between me and these geckos?
Could my parents be among them?
Unfortunately, that didn't seem to be the case.
【Crested Gecko LV32】
【Crested Gecko LV22】
【Crested Gecko LV38】
【Crested Gecko】
A lizard with a body length of 15-25cm and a weight of about 60g.
It has a crest on its head, which is why it is also called the crested gecko.
It has microscopic cilia on its feet and tail, allowing it to easily cling to walls and ceilings.
These geckos were Crested Geckos.
I was an ordinary Green Gecko.
In other words, we were strictly different species.
“Gegegek!”
“Gegegek!”
But what was this feeling?
This warmth.
It felt like the affection of a family.
It seemed these creatures felt something similar toward me.
Although I came from gecko stock, my current form had no gecko features left.
I had only shrunk in size; my species hadn't changed.
You could think of me as a miniature Gomodo-Lania.
And yet, when I was in danger, these creatures rushed to help me.
It seemed they had sensed some inexplicable feeling.
“Gegek….”
“Gek!”
Did they know something?
Even if they weren't my direct family, they might know of their whereabouts.
“Gegegek!”
I decided to get friendly with these lizards before that old geezer returned.
The more information, the better.
Besides, it had been quite a while since I’d felt the warmth of family.
*
Honhwi set out at a rapid pace.
He walked on two feet with his hands clasped behind his back, his gait bizarre, yet no one would have dared to point out its strangeness.
For it was the walk of one who had reached the pinnacle of the Little Dragon's Sky-Ascending Steps.
His speed was second to none.
The old lizard's mind was a tangled mess.
It was because of the large lizard that had appeared so suddenly.
It wasn't because of the power that lizard possessed.
The creature's strength was something even Honhwi couldn't ignore, but this old lizard had long since stopped caring about such things.
Then why was his mind in such turmoil?
The answer was simple.
The accessory hanging around the young lizard's neck.
Honhwi knew better than anyone what it was.
It was the Snake Queen's token.
To wear that around its neck meant that the lizard was the Snake Queen's companion.
Honhwi was utterly astonished.
He could confidently say he knew the Snake Queen better than anyone.
He never imagined she would take a companion, even if she were to take in a princess.
She was the noble Queen of Snakes.
A cold queen with the heart of a serpent.
That was the Snake Queen, Basilisk.
But what in the world was this situation?
A lizard, not even three months old, had become the Snake Queen's companion.
Honhwi couldn't tell if the problem lay with the Snake Queen or with the lizard.
Of course, looking at the lizard's appearance, he could understand to some extent.
A dragon-like face and a robust physique.
What reptile could possibly refuse such a lizard?
The only problem was that the lizard was a young being that hadn't even finished growing.
The Snake Queen has changed a lot.
The old lizard smiled faintly, his mind still a jumble.
At the same time, he recalled the distant past.
A time when the Snake Queen was not yet a queen.
A time when the King of Birds did not have a human face.
And a time when he himself had not yet learned miniaturization.
They were precious memories he could now call nostalgia.
But as he traced those memories further, his smile gradually faded.
He knew they were just memories, a past that could never be reclaimed.
Honhwi put more force into his small feet.
The past is gone. I must focus on the present.
That's what he thought.
And the present meant he had to think about that lizard again.
Since it had brought the Snake Queen's token, he had to grant its request, but for some reason, the miniaturization wouldn't wear off.
Moreover, though it was likely the lizard's first time using miniaturization, it had displayed a more potent effect than any lizard he had ever taught.
The effect was so powerful that it had shrunk down to the size of a single wall-tiger.
He had to return it to its original size.
Otherwise, the Snake Queen might invade.
After all, it was her companion.
The Snake Queen's companion.
The more Honhwi mulled over those words, the more absurd they seemed.
At the same time, he felt a sense of greed.
The lizard's talent was so outstanding that it had made the Snake Queen act so foolishly.
Its external skills were passable.
But the profound internal energy within its body was so deep that even Honhwi couldn't fathom its limits.
Since it hadn't even finished growing, it was fair to say it possessed literally infinite potential.
With such a lizard appearing out of nowhere, he had even thought of taking it as his disciple.
And what's more, hadn't it demonstrated his own footwork, the Little Dragon's Sky-Ascending Steps, first?
I must make it my disciple, even if it means taking a few hits from the Snake Queen.
With that in mind, he had engaged in a spar with it.
Although Honhwi had held back, the outcome was completely unexpected.
The lizard had used the Snake Queen's token as a hostage and succeeded in landing a valid hit on him.
There was a reason someone of Honhwi's caliber had fallen for such a simple trick.
As the Snake Queen's companion, the lizard should know her terrifying nature better than anyone.
Normally, one wouldn't even dare to think of using her token as a shield.
But that lizard was different.
It presented the token without the slightest hesitation.
It was a move Honhwi couldn't help but fall for.
“Kekek….”
Insolent brat.
Honhwi muttered and pushed onward.
Soon, he would be able to obtain the medicinal herb to return the lizard to its original state.
Swish, swish, swish.
He was running with all his might.
Rumble….
Dark clouds suddenly gathered.
He felt an ominous energy.
“Uooooo….”
A cry echoed from the distance.
Honhwi's face stiffened.
He stopped his feet.
It would be meaningless to move.
No matter how fast he was, he was no match for a being that could fly.
Ruuuuuumble….
Something enormous blotted out the sky.
“It has been a long time, Honhwi.”
The thing covering the sky was the King of Birds.
Honhwi swallowed hard.
He had encountered the King of Birds several times.
Even after they became hostile, they met from time to time.
The King of Birds and Honhwi did not harm each other.
The King of Birds never actively tried to attack him, and Honhwi, for his part, would always leave before they could meet.
But this situation was different.
The King of Birds had spoken to him first.
Not with a slurred tongue, but with a clear voice.
The voice Honhwi remembered from that time.
“The skink with dragon scales. It must have crossed into your territory.”
Honhwi knew at once that the skink he spoke of was that insolent lizard.
“Seeing as you are out here, something must have happened.”
How did it know this so well?
Honhwi realized his mistake.
The Terror Bird that lizard had caught.
It must have used it to pinpoint their location.
As far as Honhwi knew, the King of Birds did not possess such an ability.
Which meant it had grown stronger than he knew.
“You need not answer. I already know everything.”
The King of Birds flapped its giant wings.
“Hand that creature over to me.”
The King of Birds stared at Honhwi with its pale face.
Honhwi let out a sigh.
It seems I won't be getting home easily today.
It would take a great deal of time to shake this one off.
“Do not think you can end this by simply running away. Of course, I cannot enter your domain.”
The winged ones belong to the King of Birds.
The wingless ones belong to the Snake Queen.
And the small ones belong to the Little Dragon.
Neither the Snake Queen nor the King of Birds could carelessly enter Honhwi's domain.
It was a rule as unchanging as law.
“But if I kill you, the domain will lose its power.”
The King of Birds smiled viciously.
“Well, I do not wish to kill you either. No matter how much time has passed, killing the one who taught me would feel… quite unpleasant.”
Honhwi listened to its words in silence.
This was far too different from usual.
To challenge him was to declare it had the confidence to face the Snake Queen as well.
“However, it is I who cannot enter. That does not mean my subordinates cannot.”
The old lizard stared directly at the King of Birds.
While he was out, it planned to send its minions to kill the small creatures.
“You would not want that to happen. The answer is simple. Just hand that one creature over to me.”
The King of Birds slowly flapped its wings, as if delivering an ultimatum.
What on earth was that lizard, to become the Snake Queen's companion?
What on earth was that lizard, to make the King of Birds so obsessed?
The old lizard stared blankly at the sky.
The King's minions were on their way to his territory, and the King himself was blocking his path.
It was a desperate situation, but there was a way out.
The lizard was in a shrunken state.
It would be possible to subdue it without effort.
If he handed it over, not only he but all the small creatures would be able to live.
But Honhwi had never lived his life that way.
When the Snake Queen was but a hatchling snake.
When the King of Birds had just sprouted its first tiny feathers.
It was Honhwi who had taught them.
He had lived his entire life for the small ones.
“Krrrrr….”
Crack, creak.
And that lizard who had crossed into his domain was also a small being.
A smaller and younger being than any other.
It was also the companion of the Snake Queen, whom he cherished like a daughter.
Was it not impossible to hand over such a being?
The old lizard's eyes were filled with a sharp light.
“…So you choose to drink poison.”
Crack, crunch.
Honhwi's body began to grow larger and larger.
The King of Birds grimaced.
Honhwi (昏輝).
Dark and bright.
A contradiction in terms.
But there was no better word to describe him.
For he, who cared for the small, was greater than any other being.
“Krrrrraaaaaaak!”
The greatest Little Dragon (小龍) revealed itself.