Alligator's Ark of Tomorrow

He was already looking forward to their next meeting.

……

Chapter Three: The Guardians

The heat and humidity of the rainforest do not affect the coolness of the pool water.

After a day's work, playing in the pool under the waterfall is a great pleasure for the women of the Tiyakau tribe living in the Akahura region.

Rainforests are never short of rivers and waterfalls.

This environment is formed partly due to the rainforest's coastal topography and partly due to its low-pressure climate.

Gavial stood in the pool and washed his short green hair.

Sometimes she wonders if she looks too boyish and would it be better if her hair was longer.

It's just that long hair is inconvenient for fighting, and she doesn't know how to tie her hair up.

"Gavial, Gavial, I want to wash my hair too."

"Then you'd better keep your tail in check and stop wagging it around."

"Uh-huh."

Temimi nodded happily. She liked Gavial the most, and Gard was her second favorite. She wished the three of them could stay together forever.

"Hey, Temimi, can you smell something?"

"smell?"

"Hmm, it has a salty and damp taste."

Gavial looked in the direction where Gard was. Was someone else coming?

"Temimi, wait here, I'm going to check it out."

"Eh?"

When Temimi saw Gavial abandon her and run towards the shore, she quickly followed.

"Gavial, wait for me!"

When I got ashore, I put on some clothes and walked through the bushes by the pool, but all I saw was Gard standing alone by the river, grinning foolishly.

"Gald, what are you grinning about?"

"Gavial?"

When Gard saw Gavial suddenly appear, he was startled and looked at Gavial with a strange sense of guilt.

"Was someone here just now?"

No, no.

Gard turned his head and laughed.

"I've been hiding for so long, the people in the tribe should have all left. I'm going back now."

After saying that, he ran away without waiting for Gavial's reply.

"This guy, is he hiding something from me?"

Gavial frowned unhappily, then saw the clothes on the stone, which had been washed and wrung dry.

Looking up at Gard again, Gard had already vanished without a trace.

The Tiyaka tribe in the Akahura region is actually a general term for the tribes living in this area, which can be further divided into the Fierce Fire Tribe, the Scarred Tribe, the Giant Tree Tribe, the Wild Will Tribe, and so on.

The tribe that Gard belongs to is called the Wild Will Tribe.

This place reveres strength, regardless of age or gender. Anyone who is strong enough can replace the previous tribal chief and become the new leader.

The people living here reminded Gard of a group of green-skinned creatures that might "waaagh" at any moment.

Of course, Gard didn't mean anything derogatory by saying that.

Because he himself was one of them.

It's just too much to ask someone like him, a civilized person from a previous life, to "waaagh" along with the people of the tribe.

Avoiding the tribespeople, they bypassed the "dowry" that was piled up in front of their own homes.

Gard went in through the back door hidden at the back of the house.

The house, pieced together from wood, wasn't very big; it was just one large room with a bed on the left, a desk on the right, a dining table near the front door, and a stove made of mud next to it.

The room did not look spacious or luxurious; in fact, it could be described as simple.

But this is where Gard lived for more than a decade.

He was also the only inheritance left to him by his parents who gave birth to him in this world.

The Tiyaka people, who live in the rainforest, generally don't have long lifespans; living to their thirties or forties is considered a long life.

Here, even a minor illness can be fatal. Bloodletting is a popular treatment practice among the tribal shamans. If a child has a fever, they either have to tough it out or eat some random herbs that might work.

Ignorant and backward.

This is Gard's impression of the tribe he lived in.

He had thought about changing, but then he thought about the hero archetype he was born with.

Unless he finds a way to control his anger.

Arriving at the desk, Gard sat on a backless stool and put on a pair of glasses to make himself look more refined.

Although the place I live in is very backward, it doesn't mean that the whole world is backward.

As far as Gard knew, the Akahura region where he was located should be considered part of the Salgon Empire, but the Salgon Empire was more like a larger region than a single country.

Apart from a nominal emperor, the various tribes and cities were ruled by kings and pashas respectively.

The Akajwan region is essentially a no-man's-land, and becoming the Great Chief means gaining the support of the entire Tiyakau people in Akajwan.

To be honest, it's not that difficult.

Gard opened a fashion magazine and gestured with his hand.

Making clothes for yourself is a troublesome thing, but you can't avoid it.

If someone is already ugly, and then doesn't know how to dress up, that's even worse.

What should I do if I scare a child when I go out?

Although most of the men in the tribe look like him, he might actually be one of the better-looking ones among the Tiyakau men.

Thinking of the little shark that had already gone far away, Gard's face lit up with the silly grin he had on the riverbank earlier.

When will we meet again?

......

Like golden lines, it stretches along the coast for countless kilometers.

A figure left the river that flowed into the sea, like a nimble fish.

Before her stretched a vast, boundless sea.

"Captain, were you waiting for me?"

Laurentina gazed at the reefs near the estuary, where a quiet figure stood.

"You saw him?"

The tall woman looked over, and Lauren Tina paused for a moment before smiling.

"Ah."

"Let's go. Our mission is going to be very long. We might not see each other again for a long time."

The woman picked up a huge circular saw and threw it in front of Lauren Tina.

"Also, don't forget to bring your own weapon next time."

"Sigh, sometimes I want to act like a good girl in front of him."

Laurentina picked up her weapon with a hint of complaint; the nearly life-sized weapon felt weightless in her hands.

"Is he a clerk who isn't good at fighting?"

"No, that's not it. He said he's the best fighter in the whole tribe, even though he doesn't look like it at all, because he can write poetry, make up stories, sing, and even carve wood... The only regret is that he just can't learn to dance."

That's a real shame.

"Seriously, he's really strong. I lost an arm wrestling match with him. I think if you want to compete with him in strength, you should get the guys from Team Three. If it were Skadi, she definitely wouldn't lose."

"A land dweller... Heh, no wonder you look at him with such respect."

"Not only that, I think he might be just like us."

"Ok?"

"He said that they were not born liking a simple environment or unwilling to develop their technology, but rather they were there to guard something at the ends of the earth."

Laurentina looked at her captain.

"Captain, do you know about the Foehn Basin?"

......

Chapter Four: The Crocodile Who Emerged from the Land of Death

Life in the primitive world was very boring.

Work at sunrise and rest at sunset.

Even before dawn, the loud singing of the tribespeople could be heard from afar.

"Having big muscles is a good thing!"

"The younger sister farms, the older brother hunts—their offspring are fair and strong!"

"Hey!"

Gard, lying in bed, covered his ears, pleading for the singing to stop!

Once all the tribesmen who had gone out hunting had left, Gard breathed a sigh of relief, turned over in bed, and continued to dream.

He dreamt of several dazzling tiger teeth, which made him let out a few muffled growls.

It wasn't until the sun was high in the sky that Gard groggily opened his eyes.

If you ask what the most annoying thing about being a crocodile is, it's definitely not being able to sleep lying down.

That huge tail was propped up there, like a support frame.

Gard once thought of making a hole in the bed so that his tail could fit through.

It turned out that if he did that, he would have to lie down.

After getting up, I quickly washed the pot and threw in a piece of marinated jerky.

Brush your teeth and wash your face.

In the Wild Will tribe, Gard is the most particular crocodile man; it's rare to see a male Adaklis specifically ask someone to buy him toothpaste and toothbrushes.

Anyone who puts a little salt in their mouth can be considered clean, and anyone who chews a couple of tea leaves can be called a civilized person.

However, recently, more crocodile people have been willing to brush their teeth and wash their faces.

On the stove, the large pot was bubbling with boiling water.

The cured meat was too salty, so it had to be boiled in water before it could be eaten. There was garlic grown in the field behind the house, which could be washed and made into a dish.

The rainforest climate is not suitable for wheat growth, but rice grows very well in some areas.

Heaven knows why a crocodile-man would like to eat rice, and even made his own stone mortar and bamboo sieve so that he could eat rice at every meal.

Meanwhile, some uninvited guests also arrived outside the tribe.

"Miss Inam, is this the place?"

A young female voice came from deep in the jungle. A woman wearing a high-tech protective suit and with a pair of horns on her head, whose race was distinctly different from the usual Tiyakau people, walked in front of them, leading the way.

Behind her was a well-equipped expedition team of about twenty or thirty people. Most of them were fully equipped, except for a few who were dressed as scholars and were being closely guarded by the others.

A young girl, dressed quite differently from the group and with somewhat dark skin, earnestly instructed, "Miss Seraya, although I don't know where you heard that Gard of the Wild Will Tribe had been to the Burning Wind Hot Lands, I still hope that, for safety's sake, if Gard refuses your request later, you will not be violent towards him."