Horial’s class continued further.
They had gotten a little sidetracked and ended up talking about the Beastmen’s aptitude in magic, but he managed to bring the class back to the topic of evolution.
「Well then, Charon-kun. What is the only species in this world that does not evolve?」
「Yes. It’s us, humans」
「That’s right―」
Maybe it’s for Fran’s sake, but Horial said it was just a review of previous lessons and briefly reviewed what they’ve learned so far.
It was quite a strange combination of natural anthropology and mythology, but it was considered factual in this world.
To put it simply, after the Gods created this world and finished creating nature, the Great Gods worked together to create man. Then each God created their kindred based on human beings.
If they’re kin of the Beast and Insect Gods, they would be born as a Beastman or an insect-kin. If they’re kin of the Forest Tree Gods, they would be born as Elves. If they’re kin of the Earth Gods, they would be born as Dwarves or Demons. That’s how it works.
Each of the demi-humans created by the Gods had special powers given to them by the Gods, and that was why they could evolve.
It may seem that the humans were the only race that didn’t have any special powers, but actually, the humans were given the power of the Ten Great Gods in a balanced manner. That was why humans were an excellent race with lots of capabilities and high fertility. So, it was not that they couldn’t evolve, but that they didn’t need to.
Well, it seemed that the interpretation of that also differed depending on the place. As there’s no way for a country ruled by Human Royals would teach their people that humans were a poor race with no good qualities.
The Beastman countries too would teach that the Beastmen were the strongest and noblest race that didn’t rely on the puny thing known as magic.
「Well, let’s talk about evolution now. First of all, non-humanoid races can naturally evolve if they level up and meet the requirements. There are also cases of mutation, but please differentiate between mutation and evolution, okay?」
I learned that demons don’t evolve, but they mutate. Evolution was a big change that came when someone reached their level cap, while mutation was a small change that was possible to achieve regardless of their level as long as the conditions were met.
「It doesn’t matter if they’re Beastmen, an Elf, a Dwarf, or Dragonmen, they can still evolve」
However, it was said that among the species that could evolve and mutate, there were individuals who sometimes undergo a special kind of evolution.
The Ten Primordial Beastman races, for example, were said to have that kind of special evolution. But there were also special evolutions in other races as well.
Ashwrath’s race, the Calamity Demon, was a legendary race whose existence was always questioned. It may not be clearly proved yet, but it was clear that a special evolutionary process had made him stronger than normal.
「Among these special evolutions, there is a particularly rare one. It’s the evolution called the Gods Return or the Ancestral Return. Some researchers even refer to them as the “Godlike beings”」
That’s quite a big name.
「As the word suggests, it is believed to be an evolution of a species that is close to the Primordial Races that were created by Gods themselves. Well, perhaps I should call it a “Regression” rather than an “Evolution”, but I’ll talk about it as a form of evolution here. As far as I know, the High Elves are one of the examples of a Gods Return」
The main difference that differentiates the Gods Return from a normal evolution was the change in races.
Take the Elves, for example. They have sub-species such as Wood Elves, Leaf Elves, and Grass Elves, but no matter how much they evolved, they would still be Elves.
In Weena Rhyn case, however, things were a little different.
She was a High Elf but also seemed to be a Demigod herself.
(Amazing, she reached the gods)
『Really? So, that meant that Weena Rhyn was like a god herself?』
Both Fran and I were so surprised, but it seemed that was not the case. A Demigod was not officially a God but was positioned as beings second to the Gods.
「However, there’s only a few of them in history, so this is just my opinion based on what I’ve read and what I’ve heard from the director」
「Other than the High Elves, are there other races that have achieved the Gods Return?」
The other students then began to actively ask questions, as if their nervousness about Fran’s presence had completely disappeared.
「That’s a good question. As far as I know, the Elder Dwarves achieved the Dwarven God Return and the God Demons achieved the Demon God Return」
「So, what about the unidentified races?」
「Let’s see. First, there’s the Divine Dragonmen, they’re said to be the Return of the Dragon God, but the documents about them have been lost due to the destruction of the Continent of Gordisia. However, their existence is still known among the Dragonmen, so there’s a high possibility that they actually exist」
The Divine Dragonmen. I had an idea of what beings they were. In the battle in the Royal Capital, Velmeria, who was being controlled by The Sword of Blind Devotion – Fanatics, and went out of control, must have some kind of skill to become a Divine Dragonman.
And I’ve witnessed how tremendous her power was when she used that skill.
So, wasn’t that the Divine Dragon?
「And for us Beastmen. I’ve once heard that there’s a saying that some of the oldest kin among us also has a being called as the Divine Beastman」
「Divine Beastman?」
「Yes. It’s said to be a being whose power even transcends the Ten Primordial Races. And there’s also a story of it defeating a Divine Sword with its bare hands」
「Eehh?」
「That’s, really…」
The students then made a commotion when they heard Horial’s words. There were also classes about the Divine Sword in this academy, and that must have been told of its tremendous power.
Maybe, they must think that Horial, who is also a Beastman himself, was exaggerating about the Beastmen’s Gods Return.
But Fran and I have different thoughts. Because I’ve actually witnessed Velmeria fighting evenly with Ashwrath, a Divine Sword user, and as for Weena Rhyn, we hadn’t seen her using all of her power, but she seemed to have enough power to fight a Divine Sword.
『And if that Divine Beastman has the power of Weena Rhyn or Velmeria class…』
「Nn. There’s a possibility of it winning against a Divine Sword」
Fran’s muttering seemed to have caught the ears of a surprising number of students. Horial, too, asked back with great interest.
「Do you have any thought about it, Black Lightning Princess-dono?」
「Nn. I’ve fought Weena Rhyn before, so I’m pretty sure she’s strong enough to fight a Divine Sword」
「…Have you ever seen a Divine Sword?」
「I’ve seen Ashwrath fight with his Divine Sword」
「I see. So, you’ve seen both the Divine Sword and the Gods Return, huh!?」
The noise in the classroom got even louder. Apparently, the story of her seeing a Divine Sword in an open state was shocking. She was then bombarded with questions from the surrounding students.
I was afraid that Horial would get angry with her for sidetracking the lesson, but he ended up asking her a question about the Divine Sword himself.
He just liked the legends in this world, so it couldn’t be helped.
In the end, they ended up talking about Ashwrath and his Divine Sword until the class ended.
