Fantasy Starting from the Stone Age - Chapter 46



Only Noblemtl

Episode 46. The Reason I Live

The new environmental conditions, called magic power and magic pressure, had a very sensitive effect on the creatures of this world.

For example, Daton has excellent magical aptitude because he has adapted to high-magic zones, but he cannot survive even in normal-magic zones.

Conversely, the Tocha tribe adapted to the low-magic zone and had little magical aptitude, but instead developed strong bodies using small amounts of magic.

The massive body structures of herbivores, classified as so-called keratinocytes, would also not have been created without magical power.

It will take another 10,000 years for a material that surpasses processed scaled hippopotamus leather to be developed in this world.

And here are creatures that thrive in a similar way.

They are hexapods. They have six limbs combined. Some creatures have lost two of their arms, while others have changed such as two arms turning into wings.

Of these, the species that have flourished the most, excluding birds, are actually small lizards and turtles······. As with all living things, there are some that have evolved to be gigantic.

The most evolved of these are the so-called dragon types. These include dragons with arms, legs, and wings, wyverns with only wings and legs, and drakes with only arms and legs.

These are giants, like dinosaurs on Earth. And thanks to the high magical power that can sustain such a gigantic body, they have a strong body that no other creature on Earth can match, and an intelligence that rivals that of humans.

However, they were actually endangered a very long time ago.

There is no particular reason. The magical power that originally filled the entire world suddenly decreased for some reason, and the giant could no longer be maintained.

Just as the dinosaurs of the Mesozoic Era gave way to mammals, leaving behind only adapted birds, these dragons also experienced a rapid decline.

But there was something different about Earth. These species did not go extinct. They survived near the high-power zone.

Yes. Unfortunately, around Datang, the magical power pressure was too high and they were eliminated by the high-magic power herbivores (the scaly elephants are as strong as large dragons and even gather in groups!), but in other high-magic power areas, they barely managed to survive.

They lived in the northern, eastern and southern regions. At first, they were even hunted by the Barks.

But at some point, that reverses.

They realized that these dragons were easy for humans to catch, but they were also creatures with a lot of meat and magical power.

Originally, they could only live in the High Magic Zone, but they came over to human territory and committed merciless slaughter. They devoured the excellent civilization created by humans, altars, jewels, weapons, etc. that contained mysteries, and prospered even more.

In the late reconstruction period, dragons that should have gone extinct suddenly… really, suddenly prospered.

By hunting people and their mysteries there, they gain more magical power and become so strong that they can no longer be dealt with with prehistoric weapons, even at the level of hunting they could have done in the Stone Age.

“It’s a dragon! The dragon is coming!”

And as a result of thousands of years of fierce struggle, it appears. A mutation that appears by chance.

Its wingspan is over 100 meters. Its body length is 12 meters and its height is 5 meters. It is surprisingly light compared to its size, but it still weighs as much as an elephant.

Their scales are so strong that even iron tools, let alone stone, cannot scratch them. They eat meat equivalent to two cows a day, and their intelligence is comparable to that of dolphins or monkeys, the most intelligent animals besides humans.

Oh, and they also know how to use mystery to some extent since they move around in groups.

It’s a catastrophe that literally flies through the sky.

Even in the old days of high magic, a giant dragon of unprecedented scale attacks the land of humanity, devouring villages like picnic tables before leaving.

If people foresee its existence and evacuate, it will simply devour the livestock remaining in the village.

As humanity prospers, so do dragons. A super-large predator that cannot be dealt with by the technology and crude mysteries of prehistoric civilization. A dragon that directly hunts humans in groups.

The developed world now faces new challenges.

The northward trend was quickly conveyed by the Dashen Chaun and Ostrich Pabal.

“Come on. There’s chaos among the dragons in the north.”

“so?”

“Shouldn’t we deal with it?”

“Tell them to stop it after seeing the oysters.”

“yes.”

And this unprecedented disaster. Datang did nothing about it.

Actually, to be exact, there was no need to do it. There was no dragon species that could cross the World Tree and the Great Forest.

Even the strongest dragon would fall to the ground when struck by lightning from the World Tree. It would be torn to pieces and turned into resources.

So the dragons entered through the outskirts where the great forests could not reach, that is, through the edges of the continent and the coast······.

This world originally had low magical power pressure on the seaside. In the end, only medium-sized dragons, not large ones, could cross over.

And medium-sized dragons are weaker than scaled hippos.

Every town in Daton has a swamp, and every swamp is full of scaly hippos, and you get trampled to death by Dator’s insanely strong herbivores, whether they be fire-breathing drakes or flying winged lions. There are quite a few herbivores here.

Although the medium-sized species settled down and raided pilgrims and ranches, wild beasts were originally frequented. This year, there were leopards and lions, so the dragon tribe was not a big deal.

They simply hired metalworkers and Quako shepherds to guard the pilgrims.

In the end, Datang was barely hit by the Dragon Clan’s attacks, strictly speaking.

Meanwhile, outside this peaceful Datang, a hellish situation unfolded. In fact, it was the first time that they had blocked it the best. The first time when the country was fine, the army was fine, and equipment and supplies were sufficient.

But the dragons continued to surge forward, and eventually the army and supplies were consumed and exhausted. Since the nation could not protect its people, the community collapsed and the human population was scattered.

Now the remaining human race was left with a few choices.

The first is to enter the datang.

“We have lost our homeland. Great All Chaun and Osozouin Gulmyeong, please accept us······.”

“Yeah. Okay. Come in.”

Datang has always maintained a very tolerant attitude toward other races.

The Gigard were already living as residents of the Great Forest, and many of the Erin and Bark factions were able to interbreed with the Datons, so they joined easily.

However, this leads to unexpected results.

Different races have different ways of thinking. It’s biologically true.

Homo sapiens have little genetic difference, so they are all the same, but conversely, like dogs, there are cases where certain breeds have very similar personalities.

The way of thinking and thoughts are very closely related to the genes of a living organism.

In that sense, the Datons were a very kind and gentle race.

Due to the so-called self-domestication phenomenon, there was weak aggression, rationality, altruism, and above all, moderation.

However, their mixed blood with Erin and the Bark tribe instills in them aggression, selfishness, fanaticism, hatred, revenge and greed.

It’s not all bad! Erin has strong willpower, tenacity, and grit instead. The Barks are brave, family-oriented, and know sacrifice.

But Datang is slowly changing. Now Datang is no longer the country of ‘Datun’.

After that, only the pure-blooded Datons remained, so in a sense, it could be said that the race was lost.

But that’s a long way off. It’s not something to worry about in the prehistoric era. With an emphasis on diversity and inclusion, Daton welcomes refugees.

Meanwhile, the Baekkan people refused to join the Datang for cultural and biological reasons.

“You want me to go into that dirty neighborhood? That’s ridiculous. Anyway, Gene and I aren’t even mixed blood.”

The Baekkan tribe realizes that the dragons are more active in the high-magic zones, so they split up to the east and west. There are low-magic zones there. It’s also good to live near the sea.

You are already in Erin territory, but don’t worry. The military power of the Baekkan tribe is enough to drive them out.

The Baekkan people go to the mountains, the sea, and the islands to cultivate their culture. They go to the easternmost part of the country to find places with the lowest magic power, and they also interact with the Tocha people. And there is also war.

In any case, the Baekkan tribe decided to give up magic and mysticism. This was a search for safety that meant giving up the development of civilization.

And as the Baekkan left, some joined the Datang, but there were many more who did not. The world was a big place.

Erin, Bark. Their mixed blood eventually loses its culture and falls into the savage tribe. A return to the primitive era. A return to the time when the old culture is only occasionally remembered.

They took advantage of the vast territory left by the isolation of the Datang and the remoteness of the Baekkan and formed a prehistoric tribal state, carrying out hunting, herding, and farming as before.

The sole purpose of their desperate efforts was to fight the dragon. If you sell the spoils of war to the occasional Daton merchant, you can obtain spirit stones to create powerful weapons.

With it, he survives this hard life by hunting dragons again, and sometimes even being eaten by them.

In the process, someone is bound to be eliminated. Culture, civilization, nation. If everything fails to overcome, it will simply be eliminated. And what remains will survive and evolve.

But some people even resist this fact.

There are survivors of a civilization shattered by the meltdown.

These are the Barks. To be exact, the Bark-Datons. The entire tribe is of mixed Daton blood.

There is an important tradition in the culture of these wolf tribes that has lasted for generations: the female inherits the position of ‘maja’.

“From now on, I am the new Bark Maja!”

“Awww!”

It is the biggest festival in the tribe. Maja is the greatest hero of this tribe. He is the successor to the wolf spirit who can hunt a giant dragon alone.

Maza proved his ability by hunting dragons with spears, bows, and wolves, and cutting off their throats. Of course, the tribesmen helped him, so all the tribes shared the food.

“Okay. Echakado. Eat.”

What this Bark tribe called Echakado received was dragon intestines. The remains of dirty filth after it has been washed. It is edible, but very tasteless.

It’s not that I’m being looked down on. Someone has to eat this, and that someone just so happens to be this guy named Echacado.

The Erin tribe often discriminates against others based on their appearance without any reason, but the Bark tribe does not discriminate like that. However, they do have differences.

Echakado was objectively the least useful member of the village. He couldn’t hunt properly, was weak, had a short temper, and was prone to getting into trouble. So he got these internal organs.

“Shit.”

Because he was a mixed-race man.

As I mentioned before, male Bark-Darten hybrids are born with severely underpowered abilities.

The only reason he didn’t die was because the blood ratio was a little different.

The man leading them laughs when he sees it.

“What? Are you feeling wronged?”

“no.”

“Work hard. Then you’ll be able to eat better things later.”

They are fair. They treat even the less qualified members as members and treat them completely fairly.

But it doesn’t save you from your lack of ability.

Echakado did not like this world.

“I wasn’t born this way because I wanted to. I can’t live like this.”

I can’t live like this.

You probably weren’t born to live this way.

The boy finds a reason to live.