I Became an Evolving Lizard in a Martial Arts Novel

EP.69

With a racing heart, I wandered through the jungle.

The hot and humid weather.

But for reptiles, it could be considered relatively pleasant.

Moving on four legs felt a little awkward.

This was because, due to martial arts like the Little Dragon Sky Ascension, I had insisted on walking on two legs.

However, there were indeed clear advantages to quadrupedal movement.

Now that I had become a Komodo, it wouldn’t be bad to take advantage of the benefits of four legs.

Using four legs didn’t mean I couldn’t use my martial arts at all.

Right now, I was a lizard.

Though you might wonder if I had always been this way, I meant to maximize the unique abilities that come with being a lizard.

The Komodo’s sense of smell is said to be extraordinary.

Once it bites a target, it can track the scent of blood even if the target flees to the opposite side of the island.

I was a being that transcended the Komodo.

Komodo species, third form.

Slithering.

Slick.

Swaaaak.

I felt the various scents around me simultaneously.

Having a keen sense of smell didn’t mean I could distinguish them all.

The different smells were mixed together in a jumbled mess.

But there was something I could identify despite not being accustomed to this range of scents.

A fishy smell.

The scent of blood.

Just because I smelled blood didn’t mean a Cockatrice was nearby, but the likelihood was certainly higher than in areas without that smell.

Sasasasak.

Quietly and swiftly.

I raced toward the source of the blood scent.

Of course, there was more than one place where the smell of blood wafted.

There were wounds from dinosaurs battling over territory, and there were the unfortunate corpses of dinosaurs that had become someone’s meal. There was even a Utahraptor, just about to fill its belly after hunting prey.

I had no choice but to pick up the meat it had inadvertently dropped as it fled in fright.

Leaving food behind was a grave sin.

There was no help for it.

As I tracked the scent of blood, I noticed a slightly unusual trace.

Feathers scattered all around.

And a neatly severed Terror Bird.

It looked as if it had been cut by a sharp sword.

Had it been cut by a human wielding a sword?

I couldn’t be sure.

There were Sword Dragons roaming this area.

Or it could have been struck by the tail of a Stegosaurus.

Yet, the strange thing remained strange.

The configuration of the fallen branches seemed as if someone had been trying to start a fire.

Hmm.

It was very suspicious.

The intuition of a lizard told me.

Something was nearby.

“Cock-a-doodle-doo!”

A distant crowing of a chicken.

There was no way a chicken would so prominently announce itself in a jungle teeming with dinosaurs unless it was mad.

This wasn’t an ordinary chicken.

That was definitely a Cockatrice, no matter how you looked at it.

Should I return to the Snake Queen now?

No, this wasn’t enough.

It could be a truly deranged chicken, or it might be on the move somewhere else.

At the very least, I needed to find its nest.

“Cock-a-doodle-doo!”

Fortunately, it was still continuing to crow.

Alright.

Let’s get a little closer.

Sasasa.

Just as I advanced toward the source of the sound.

“Ugh… ugh…”

I heard someone sobbing.

“Wanshi Cheonjong, Wanshi Cheonjong…”

It was a human voice.

A male at that.

I didn’t think I needed to pay any attention to it.

He didn’t seem like anyone of importance.

If I had time, I could afford to spare him a moment.

“Go, Komodo… Hah…”

The man murmured the name “Komodo.”
Is it a coincidence?

I still hadn’t been spotted by that person.

It didn’t seem like he was talking to me, so how did he know about Komodos?

And why was he seeking out a Komodo in this situation?

From the way he was mumbling about “Wanshi Cheonjong,” it seemed more like he was just making a final wish to some mystical being he believed in.

It could be that he was asking for a wish to that very magical Divine Beast, the Komodo.

Although I had little interest in him, I might as well check on his condition.

I could hear the crowing of the Cockatrice, but it seemed far enough away that I had a bit of leeway.

“Gakk.”

As I walked slowly, making the sound, my eyes met his.

“Ugh, ughhh!”

He seemed frightened.

But judging by how he was covering his mouth with his hand to minimize the sound, it meant he could still assess the situation.

“Ha… could it be…?”

Do not be afraid.

…Wait a minute.

This person feels somewhat familiar?

A face that lacks distinctiveness.

An ordinary body.

I feel like I’ve seen this somewhere before.

“Grrr…”

Yes, the Swamp.

I had seen him once when I was still the Crocodile King Lizard.

He was the one who had dropped a rather decent sword and fled.

He used the sword well.

He used it as a frying pan and also to catch a Dilophosaurus.

…Please do not ask where he is now.

“Ko-Ko-Komodo?”

To have recognized I was a Komodo upon seeing me.

Could the Komodo be a rather famous Divine Beast?

This man definitely didn’t seem like a person from the Tang clan.

“P-Please save me…”

What’s wrong with him?

Even though I look this way, the Komodo is a good creature that has never caused harm to humans.

He doesn’t seem to be injured, so this man should be able to walk just fine after resting.

“If only that sound from afar wasn’t there.”

“Grrrr…”

I gestured to the man.

To run away quickly.

It would be troublesome if we were spotted by the Cockatrice by sticking around here.

It would ruin my plan to sneak in unnoticed.

The man hurriedly got to his feet.

“Uh, over there!”

He called out to me.

Curious about what he wanted, I turned my head.

“I know it’s an inconsiderate request… but, there’s someone over there who has turned to stone… Please, I beg you to help!”

Turned to stone.

So that sound was indeed from a Cockatrice.

I appreciated the information, but to ask for help?

Did he want me to fight the Cockatrice?

To be honest, I didn’t have any good feelings towards the humans I met in the swamp.

‘I’m not quite sure either. Why did they push me?’

He had fled after pushing Tang So-young.

Of course, this man before me wasn’t the one who had actually pushed her.

But should I have had a nice thought about a bunch of burly people who kicked a slender woman, knowing she was a target to escape? That was not something I could think positively about.

“Grrr…”

If it were a dinosaur that wasn’t a good lizard like me, Tang So-young would have died right away.

‘Well, how can I understand the thoughts of the Wyvern Masters?’

Of course, Tang So-young had made cheerful remarks and seemed to have no hard feelings.

If not, then she would likely plan to take revenge quietly in the way of the Tang.

In my eyes, not just the person who pushed Tang So-young but everyone around her clearly did something wrong.

At least one of them should have helped her up.

Or offered the person who pushed her as a substitute.

…Of course, I’m not a lizard that desires sacrifices or anything.

For that reason, I didn’t feel good about the man in front of me.

I had shown him a bit of goodwill just because his dropped sword had served me well, and I didn’t want to see a person die in front of me.

“Please… please… not again because of me…”
A man kneeling and shedding tears.

“O, Great Komodo… I will atone for my life… Please…”

It seems this man really thinks of me as a creature from myths.

A being who grants wishes effortlessly when asked.

What did my master say?

He mentioned that a sane person wouldn’t talk to a lizard.

A confusion born from fear.

That must be the state he’s in.

If I delay any longer, the Cockatrice will come to this place.

My final consideration would be to grab him by the nape and throw him far away.

“…I’ve lived like a coward my entire life.”

Such words in this situation.

“I heard that there might be a chance to make a fortune this time, and I thought I could just ride along.”

A cliché storyline.

A reflection on his own life.

“I deeply regret not being able to save Tang So-young… and only causing trouble for Baek Daehyeop…”

A moment of introspection at the end.

Yet, it was an utterly meaningless action.

His current apology would never reach Tang So-young, nor Baek Daehyeop.

“Please… please… save Baek Daehyeop… O, Great Komodo…”

I can understand his urge to plead with me, mistaking me for a Divine Beast.

He must have thought a miraculous being appeared in this dramatic situation.

However, there are requests I can grant and those I cannot.

To ask me to save someone I’ve never met?

And to risk my own life for it?

What kind of foolishness is that?

Even if I were to defeat the Cockatrice, there’s no assurance that the petrification would be undone.

There’s no benefit to me, and no compelling reason to do so.

I haven’t read many martial arts novels.

I do like their inherent sentimentality, but there are many parts I don’t understand.

The protagonist wanting to act with righteousness when equipped with skills doesn’t make sense to me.

Why do they do such things?

Wouldn’t it be better to ignore it and reap the benefits instead?

I couldn’t comprehend the protagonist’s decisions to storm the bandits’ hideout over a measly bowl of bland porridge.

It was a terribly inefficient endeavor.

Yet…

What would Baek Yeon-young have done?

A member of the Heavenly Demon Cult.

A possibly wicked religious group known by the derogatory name of the Demon Sect.

Would he have just ignored this man because he made a negative impression on me?

No.

I know my master would never do that.

Just like extending his hand to me, he would nonchalantly engage in an inefficient act.

“Grrrrrr…”

Swoosh.

The form of the Dragon changed.

Transformed into a battle-optimized dragon form.

It’s not out of overwhelming duty.

I don’t have a favorable view of this man either.

This endeavor was inefficient.

I might end up regretting this.

Why did I do such a thing?

I could have just ignored him and returned to the Queen of Serpents.

Those thoughts might cross my mind.

Yet, I didn’t stop.

To me, the idea of righteousness is an extremely inefficient endeavor.

“RAAAAH!”

I roared towards the Cockatrice.

Swoosh.

I charged forward, and it did the same.

Slash!

I rushed through the underbrush towards it.

【Cockatrice lv.45】

__________________________
【Cockatrice】

A monster that is a hybrid of bird and snake.

It is said to be born when an egg laid by a rooster is nurtured by a creature holding poison.

This creature is often equated with the Basilisk, wielding the power of petrification that turns enemies to stone.
__________________________