42-31

Chapter 31: Spear Thrower Production 

"First, the families of the four who died will be exempted from tribal duties for one year. Let them mourn and heal, and after a year, return as full members of the tribe." 

"Thank you for your consideration, Chief!" 

"Next, about the devilbear attack. The gathering area on the back mountain was never part of their range. That's why we gradually expanded our gathering and hunting there. But now, they've appeared where they never did before. What do you all think?" 

Milk looked at the other women. Then, the next-most robust warrior after Linda stood and answered Honkale. 

"There are several possibilities. They may have been driven out by another tribe, moved because of our hunting, or perhaps their numbers exploded for some reason, and their range is expanding." 

"Those are all possibilities. But whatever the reason, losing the back mountain gathering area would be a huge blow. We have to drive them out. Any ideas?" 

"Once they've settled, it's nearly impossible to drive them out. Unless we attack constantly or make the area unlivable, but that mountain is full of wild animals and fruit perfect for omnivores like them. Plus, fighting on the mountain gives them an advantage over us, who are used to fighting on plains. They're clever and will hold their ground." 

Holstaurus, being heavy, excel in plains combat but struggle in the mountains, where balance is hard to maintain. 

Gatherers train for quick escapes, but warriors face a different challenge. 

Devilbears, on the other hand, are quadrupeds whose combat power doubles in the mountains they balance well, hide among trees, dodge attacks, and ambush. 

Hearing this, Honkale looked troubled. If things stayed as they were, the tribe would suffer even more losses. 

"So we have to give up the gathering area? It pains me to lose such a vital natural food source..." 

"I'm sorry, Chief. I regret I can't offer better advice." 

"No, sit down. Let's continue." 

After a pause, Honkale asked, "We need to find a new gathering area. Any leads?" 

"Well..." 

"We know of wild mushroom patches, but few are edible." 

"Most of the nearby fruit grows on tall trees we can't reach. Low trees are higher up the mountain and hard to find." 

"Even if we find one, who knows where the devilbears will show up next..." 

There were many words but no real solutions. 

Milk listened and thought about the devilbears themselves. 

‘Dangerous creatures... They run fast even in the mountains, destroy anything in sight... truly dangerous.’ 

He remembered locking eyes with a devilbear while fleeing in Linda's arms its red eyes, sharp teeth, and rows of fangs, its ferocity as it smashed trees and hurled anything it touched. 

He realized how hard the warrior women fought against such beasts, and that a new approach was needed. 

‘Close combat is nearly impossible unless you’re a warrior. Even then, one mistake means death or serious injury... We need ranged weapons.’ 

A ranged weapon to deal with enemies from a safe distance was desperately needed. 

But bows and arrows were out. Not only were they too weak to pierce hides, but Holstaurus couldn't use them due to their large chests, which got in the way of drawing the string. Holding the bow far from the body ruined aim and power. 

So bows were ruled out. As Milk pondered, Honkale called to him. 

"Milk." 

Lost in thought, Milk didn't respond until Honkale called louder. 

"Milk!" 

"Ah! Yes, Chief!" 

"What are you thinking so hard about?" 

"I was thinking about how to fight the devilbears." 

"Our warriors already said mountain combat is impossible. The losses would be too great. Stop thinking about it and focus on the meeting." 

"That's only because we're fighting up close. I'm thinking of ranged combat." 

"Ranged?" 

"Are you talking about bows?" 

"Young master, we can't use bows." 

Most reactions were negative these women preferred close combat and swords, not unfamiliar ranged weapons. 

But Milk kept his confidence and pressed on. 

"Not bows and arrows. I'm thinking of throwing weapons." 

"Throwing? You mean throwing stones?" 

Milk shook his head. 

"I'm going to make throwing spears." 

"Throwing spears? Like the ones humans use? Those are hard to make with our smithing skills the weight has to be perfect." 

‘Hmm...’ It was true. Holstaurus smithing made it hard to balance throwing spears. If the center of mass was off, they wouldn't fly far. Their big, clumsy hands could make regular spears, but not throwing ones. 

Even the shape was an issue. In this world, "throwing spears" were just short spears not very effective. 

"I... I have an idea. I think I can make a new kind of throwing spear." 

"A new kind of... throwing spear?" 

He felt guilty, but had to lie. Claiming he invented it, and with his blacksmithing reputation, most people accepted it: "Ah, I see!" "Wow, as expected of Milk!" 

‘Sorry, Dad...’ 

He’d promised not to lie to family, but allowed himself this "white lie" for the tribe's sake. 

"I'll make the handle shorter, with a thick grip in the middle for better throwing power. And..." 

Milk drew on the ground with a stick, shaping a weapon. 

The result was a harpoon-like spear for fishing, but with a terrifying, arrowhead-like tip for hunting whales. 

He remembered this design from videos on Earth. 

Of course, on Earth, harpoons were fired from ships at whales, but with Holstaurus strength, a scaled-down version would work. 

"The tip will be like an arrowhead for better penetration. With our warriors’ strength, these spears can kill devilbears from afar. They don't require much training just strong arms and focus. Carrying a few won’t hinder close combat. We can thin their numbers with these, then finish the rest up close, reducing casualties and improving hunting." 

"Can you really make such a spear?!" 

Honkale, the women, and especially the warriors and Linda, examined the drawing. Linda, excited, exclaimed, 

"Chief! This is an amazing weapon. I can tell it’s perfect for our warriors. It’s on another level from existing throwing spears." 

"I think I get it... Good. Milk!" 

"Yes, Chief." 

"I’ll assign Mary and five skilled workers to mass-produce these spears. Use all the materials you need." 

"The handles should be made from devilbear hide, so I’ll need Great Mother’s help." 

"I’ll help too," Ella replied, nodding to Honkale. 

"Alright. I’ll assign more people to Ella’s leather workshop. This is an emergency. Warriors, focus on guarding the village. The rest, since we can’t gather in the back mountain, put more effort into potato farming." 

Yes, Chief!!! 

With Honkale’s approval, Milk headed straight to the forge. As he left, Chiraya watched his rising prominence with a deep sigh. 

Milk busily moved between the forge and leather workshop, overseeing the making of leather handles and large arrowhead-like spear tips. 

There were some failures since it was a new design, but Milk didn’t rush he repurposed failures for other uses and kept making new spears. 

After a day, the first prototype was finished. Crude and rough, but the shape was right. 

He carved a target from wood and, with Linda, tested the spear from 300 paces away. 

"Just put power into your arm, aim, and throw... I can’t explain much more, since I’ve never thrown one myself." 

"That’s enough. I’ll throw it like a regular spear. Here goes!" 

Crack! 

Linda’s muscles bulged as she readied the throw surprisingly impressive. 

‘Wow... that’s kind of sexy.’ 

It should have been intimidating, but her muscles looked sculpted and beautiful. 

Whoosh! 

Linda threw the spear at the target. It flew through the air and landed just off target, buried in the ground. 

Thud! 

But the sound was remarkable. When they checked, the spear was half-buried in the earth. It took effort to pull it out. 

‘The spear did its job, but it was Linda’s monstrous strength that made it work...’ 

Honestly, the spear wasn’t the impressive part Linda was. She was like a living atlatl (spear-thrower). 

Milk thought he’d eventually make an atlatl to further boost their throwing power. 

Linda commented, "Milk, the balance is off. It veered to the side as I threw." 

"So it needs some tweaks. But for a first try, it’s impressive, right?" 

"It’s really impressive. I missed the target, but that’s a balance and accuracy issue. The power is amazing I didn’t expect it to bury halfway into the ground." 

"What about against devilbears?" 

"At 200 paces, it’ll definitely stick. At 300, it might just wound. At 100, it’s instant death. The tip’s shape makes it so strong. I didn’t expect it to be this powerful." 

Hearing Linda’s words, Milk clenched his fist. He had finally put his blacksmithing skills to use for the tribe. 

And so, the tribe was equipped with arrowhead-tipped throwing spears. 

How much of a difference they’d make in battle, no one yet knew.