Chapter 10: Age of Dragons (5)

The dinosaurs that fully accepted Tethys's scales and changed their form... No, it would be more fitting to call them Blue Dragons now.

Anyway, the Blue Dragons, surprisingly...

"Thank you for giving us your scales. Mother."

It seems they gained intelligence as they transformed.

"Uh, Mother?"

"Isn't that what we call the one who gave us the scales?"

At those words, Tethys looked at me.

Well, considering that Tethys and the other children call me Mother, it's not wrong.

"But..."

Tethys glances at me repeatedly. What could be the meaning behind that gaze?

"If they call me Mother... does that mean they should call you Grandmother...?"

"Is that what you were worried about?"

"But! Mother, you're beautiful! In the stories you told us, grandmothers are old and wrinkled, their beauty faded. But you, Mother, your scales are shining and beautiful!"

"What's that about."

In the first place, what does beauty have to do with dragons? The standards of beauty are ambiguous anyway.

"I don't mind. Call me whatever you like."

"Yes! Mother!"

Whether those Blue Dragons call me Grandmother or not, what does it matter?

Although they've changed by receiving scales from the children, what's important is that new intelligent beings have been born in this world.

"It seems giving the scales worked out better than I thought, so I'll be heading back now."

I came along in case problems arose, so if there are no issues, there's no need for me to stay any longer.

"Ah, but the names of these children..."

"Shouldn't you be the one to name them? You're their mother."

At my words, Tethys hesitated for a moment, then nodded slightly.

"Yes. They're my children, so I should name them. Just like how you named us, Mother."

I simply smiled at Tethys.

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And when the other children heard about Tethys sharing her scales...

"If we give scales to dinosaurs, they'll change to look like us? Then I want to share too!"

"Yes. Me too."

Scale-sharing started to become popular among the other children.

"It's fine to share, but you should carefully consider and choose who to share with."

"Huh? We shouldn't just share freely?"

Ifrit... Do you have no thoughts at all...?

"Sharing your scales means sharing your power with other dinosaurs and making them your children. You understand the significance of that, right?"

"But Mother, you shared your scales with us, didn't you?"

"And that's how I made you my children."

Thanks to that, the scaleless space under my jaw is itchy.

"Anyway, choose carefully who you give your scales to. Choose those who will follow you well, and those you think are worthy of sharing your power with."

The other children nodded at my words.

Since they're sharing their power with others, they should be cautious about it.

So the children traveled around the world, selecting dinosaurs to receive their scales.

Each child's criteria was very interesting, but to summarize briefly...

"I chose those who, like me, want to fly in the sky."

Sylphid brought dinosaurs that longed for wings to fly in the sky.

"I brought brave children like flames! They're all super brave!"

Ifrit seems to have brought brave... or in other words, hot-tempered dinosaurs.

But is that right? They seem incredibly fierce.

"I chose children who love nature like me. They have gentle personalities too."

The children Yggdrasil chose were dinosaurs with personalities similar to Yggdrasil.

Somehow it feels like the children are bringing dinosaurs that resemble themselves?

"They're all sturdy and good children. Though they don't talk much."

Sagar brought quiet and reserved children.

But they're so quiet they're not saying anything at all.

"I chose children who want to be beautiful like me. Children who want to emulate me!"

The children Shamash brought were showing off their appearance. Their golden scales are sparkling.

But in an era where the concept of beauty is still unclear, does Shamash think that he himself is the definition of beauty?

Well, it's good to have confidence.

"I... chose children who want to become family. As a result, there are quite a few of them."

"Erebos... You... Your scales...!"

Erebos brought dozens of them. No, there are hardly any scales left under your jaw! There's only one silver scale left that I gave you!

"It's fine. If I can expand my family, this is a small price to pay."

"If you're okay with it, I won't say much... but, I wish you knew the meaning of moderation."

Perhaps because I told them stories about family, Erebos seems to value family a lot.

Honestly, I was worried he might bring something like pitch-black children of darkness like himself. But this is much more positive.

It's good that many new dragons have been created, but...

"What will you do with those children?"

In the direction I pointed, there were dinosaurs that couldn't fully accept the power of the children's scales and couldn't become dragons.

Some with front legs changed into wings, walking on two legs, looking like smaller dragon-like creatures, and some that couldn't grow wings, crawling on four legs.

They look a bit pitiful, but what can we do? It's because they themselves were lacking compared to the power they sought to obtain.

Even if I wanted to help them... it seems there's nothing I can do.

"Those guys accepted this with that level of determination. Besides, even though they changed like that, they're much stronger than before."

I looked at the dinosaurs that couldn't become dragons. They were pitiful creatures, but are they satisfied in their own way?

Well, if they've accepted it themselves, maybe it doesn't matter.

"Those children... Let's call the ones with only wings 'wyverns', and the ones without wings 'drakes'."

"Huh? Ah, yes."

Wyverns and drakes, staples of fantasy.

It might not be a good name to give to children who couldn't become dragons, but it's a very fitting name.

"What do you plan to do with those children?"

"Well... There's nothing we can do. They've already changed after accepting a bit of the scales' power."

"What happened to the scales?"

"We recovered all that we could. Many of Erebos's scales were lost because he scattered too many..."

"I was prepared for that much."

"He says."

Well, if Erebos says so.

I hope the unrecovered scales don't cause any problems.

And that's how dragons came to exist in the world.

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It's good that dragons have appeared, but...

"Another fight?"

"The Reds attacked first!"

"You Blacks invaded our territory first!!"

"We were just passing through! We even told Ifrit!"

"I didn't hear about it!!!"

It was complete chaos.

Especially the Red Dragons with their fiery tempers, and the Blacks who were hard to control due to their large numbers, often caused problems.

Haha. What a mess.

"Oh Great Creation God Dragon! Please pass judgment!"

"Who's the Creation God Dragon? Who?"

"But everyone calls you that. Aren't you the God Dragon who has existed since the world began?"

"Well, that's true, but..."

Such a grandiose title is very burdensome, you know?

"The Black child did invade the territory, but since they say they talked to Ifrit first... I think it's Ifrit's fault for not properly relaying the message."

"What?! Why is that?!"

"Or, it's the fault of the Red child who attacked the Black child without checking with Ifrit, even though they could have."

"But..."

Honestly, the Red child's fault can't be denied at the point where they attacked first without understanding the situation.

"From now on, don't attack first. You're not mindless beasts, try to resolve things through dialogue. Don't try to solve everything with violence."

The Red child, seeming to know their mistake, nodded slightly with a gloomy expression.

"You too, Black child. Even if the other side attacks first, don't fight to the death. Try to resolve things through dialogue."

"But..."

"Although the other side's fault is greater, you also fought back, didn't you? It's not like you don't know what the Reds' temperament is like."

"That's... But I got upset when they attacked first..."

"This time, I took your side because the Red's fault was clear, but keep in mind that fighting itself is wrong."

The young dragons seem to have a mindset only slightly better than beasts, which makes them very wild.

But well, it's fortunate that they understand when we talk to them.

And so, I spent my time acting as a mediator among the numerous dragons.