Chapter 6
Chapter 6
-----------------------------------------------------------------
Translator: Ryuma
Chapter: 6
Chapter Title: Viewe and the Drake
-----------------------------------------------------------------
Lizardman Viewe had ruled his tribe and their swamp for a long time.
From the moment he hatched from his egg, he had been enormous, possessing a savage temper that terrified even other Lizardmen. This talent allowed him to bend the rest into meek submission.
But if that were all, Viewe would not have survived long in his tribe, which he called the Blue Skin.
Brute savagery alone was not enough to claim the position of chieftain over a massive tribe of three hundred.
Viewe was adept at calculations.
For example, three hundred Lizardmen could thrive in a small swamp that they could circle in half a day.
But at three hundred ten, or three hundred twenty, that was no longer the case.
The swamp would gradually deplete.
It wouldn't take long to dig up every root plant, hunt every small animal, and eventually strip the bark from the trees.
Thus, Viewe periodically culled the weak, the sick, and the elderly from his tribe, driving them out into the wasteland beyond.
Fewer than ten at a time, sometimes as many as thirty.
This bought the remaining Lizardmen a brief reprieve.
Of course, those Lizardmen never left willingly.
So expelling them always drew blood.
And in those moments, it was the drake Manun who aided Viewe.
This was Viewe's other talent.
In his youth, Viewe had found a drake egg and witnessed Manun's birth.
Manun, though ferocious, followed the one who fed and raised him. He gladly allowed Viewe to ride his back.
This quadrupedal reptile grew to a size that would make saber-tooths look puny, agile enough even with the massive Viewe mounted atop him.
Once, before Viewe could decide to expel another group of Lizardmen, challengers attacked him.
Viewe had to die for them to endure his ruthless calculations.
But the five-meter drake Manun protected Viewe, and together they gleefully slaughtered the traitors.
Afterward, Viewe defended his small territory with Manun's might.
Viewe never gave thought to the Lizardmen he had banished to the wasteland.
In his life thus far, he had expelled them five times, and none of those groups had ever returned.
What Viewe saw were the three hundred Lizardmen who remained.
He believed his calculations were undeniably correct.
But that was only until recently.
The swamp, never abundant but never barren, suffered a locust swarm attack.
Even for a long survivor like Viewe, it was a sight he'd never seen before.
A colossal swarm of locusts that blackened the swamp skies, blotting out the sun.
At first, he thought it was a rare bounty of meat to fill their bellies.
But it was no blessing—it was a curse.
The locusts devoured every blade of grass and tree in the swamp, starving the other plants and animals that had lived in harmony with them.
Some locusts even attacked the weaker Lizardmen.
Half the swamp vanished in less than two days.
Viewe's calculations no longer held against this bizarre calamity.
Viewe knew his Blue Skin tribe had to leave.
And in the opposite direction from where the locusts had come.
Into the wasteland where he had driven so many Lizardmen before.
Rakrak recognized Viewe.
He didn't look much different from when he had been cast out of the tribe.
Viewe stood over two meters and fifty centimeters tall—a giant who made other Lizardmen look like children.
But Viewe's strength wasn't just his size.
"Drake Manun... He's grown even larger?"
Viewe was mounted atop the drake Manun.
Not comparable to a true dragon, but in this wasteland, a drake was an absolute predator without equal.
Even thirty—no, fifty ordinary Lizardmen charging it would struggle to claim victory.
Jaol spoke in a worried tone.
"It seems that lizard really did devour the entire Blue Skin swamp after all."
"Not necessarily. It was bound to happen eventually."
Even back when they were part of the Blue Skin tribe, Rakrak had thought Manun ate too much.
He hunted for his own food, but the wasteland offered little sustenance.
Without that drake, the tribe might have lasted longer without expelling the weak.
Viewe had driven the others into the wasteland out of selfish greed for the drake.
"Even now, he's gotten fat living alone. Foolish glutton."
Soon after, Yur and his friends, who had scouted ahead, came running back to Viewe.
Rakrak relayed exactly what he had seen.
The old, fat Viewe astride the massive drake Manun, followed by three hundred Lizardmen.
Viewe was heading straight for the sanctuary of the Nameless Beetle God.
Jaol said worriedly,
"If they come, the forest's life won't last long."
"I know."
"Then we'll drive them off?"
"Do you want to be driven off?"
"We have power. They outnumber us and have the mighty drake Manun, but under the Nameless Beetle God's blessing, I'm confident we can win."
Rakrak nodded.
It was a satisfying answer.
But not the right one.
"In my view, they were surely sent by the god."
"Pardon? Why would the god test us like this?"
"We were abandoned but saved. That entire group is on the move, so they must be the same. They were surely forsaken by the land. We must save them. And thereby spread the Nameless Beetle God's renown to more souls."
"But how...?"
Subjugating them was naturally harder than driving them away.
Without fighters left to resist, they'd fracture and flee.
But their numbers were greater, and subduing every last fleeing one would be difficult.
"I dare not presume to fathom the god's will. We shall simply do what we can."
Choi Seong-un listened to Rakrak and Jaol's conversation with great interest.
'He completely grasps the intent I wanted.'
Put another way, it also meant Seong-un had full control over Rakrak.
'Other players tended not to like entities with high willpower.'
High willpower meant the potential for independent actions.
In a simulation game, actions outside the player's control were troublesome.
Of course, that willpower could lead to persistent efforts toward a goal, yielding positive results beyond control. But many players simply disliked characters who didn't move exactly as directed.
Seong-un was different.
'Strong will doesn't mean they'll always act against the player's intent. If I can guide that willpower in my desired direction, they become far stronger in realizing my will than mere puppets.'
In any case, what Seong-un wanted was to merge the tribes.
Rakrak's tribe had grown strong through Seong-un, but their tech level remained low.
From what he'd already confirmed, the Blue Skin tribe possessed several technologies that Seong-un deemed valuable.
And those technologies were set to sustain the entire tribe and advance their civilization.
'In the end, Rakrak's tribe must swallow the Blue Skin tribe without losses.'
Looking down, Seong-un saw Rakrak approaching Viewe with Jaol—his adjutant of sorts—and Yur and his friends, the young, sturdy elite warriors excluding Rakrak himself.
Viewe, waiting at the base of the hill, halted and watched them descend.
The old Viewe urged Manun forward and addressed Rakrak.
Viewe seemed utterly unaware that these black Lizardmen were from the group he had once expelled.
"Young Lizardman, do you live here?"
"Yes."
"What's atop this hill?"
"Bushes and trees. Game."
Viewe apparently thought he had answered out of fear for his large tribe.
"Good. We're starving. If you leave this hill, we won't attack."
"This is our land."
"So? You refuse?"
"We are warriors. We defend our land."
"You can't win. I don't know how many more you have, but..."
"These before you are enough to stop you."
At that, Viewe let out a guttural chuckle.
"You don't know calculations."
"You don't know god."
Viewe blinked in confusion at the word.
"God?"
"Kneel and submit to me now. Then I shall see you fed by god's will."
"Madman. Die."
With that, Viewe kicked Manun's flank.
Manun's eyes flashed as he charged Rakrak.
Rakrak gripped his spear tightly.
Seong-un didn't feel urgency.
Since becoming a god, time had never felt so pressing to him.
Even Manun's approach seemed like slow motion.
He simply wanted to show results worthy of Rakrak's faith.
Seong-un dismissed the popup and checked his status window.
He had stockpiled a bit of faith for this battle, and the Subdomain of Bugs had leveled up while controlling the locust swarm.
'And...'
As the two Lizardman tribes made contact below, a new stat emerged.
In Lost World, after acquiring your first Subdomain at the start, you could gain additional domains based on your actions.
It was frustrating since they weren't displayed until unlocked, but from experience, Seong-un knew he'd reach Lizardman domain around now.
'Without this, a victory without losses would be impossible.'
A racial domain couldn't produce dramatic effects like other Subdomains.
For instance, the Subdomain of Bugs could summon insects from thin air, but the Lizardman domain couldn't conjure Lizardmen from bare ground.
That didn't make it useless, however.
On the contrary, early-game builds in Lost World often hinged on how quickly you acquired racial domains.
Racial domains were simple.
And powerful.
'Which means...'
Possession
You can now use the skill 'Possession'.
Would you like to use it?
[Yes] / [No]
Seong-un clicked 'Yes'.