The oldest story in the world

Metadata

Gutenberg ID

79128

Title

The oldest story in the world

Language

en

Book source

Project Gutenberg

Description max 80 words

A timeless tale of greed and hubris, this science fiction classic follows a white man who steals a kingdom's priceless rubies only to face a century of torment. With its atmospheric setting in Rangoon and a twist ending that blurs reality and myth, the story offers a chilling exploration of desire and retribution.

Summary up to 500 words

Set in the exotic city of Rangoon, a drunken storyteller recounts a legend from a hundred thousand years ago to skeptical listeners. The tale begins with a white man fleeing his homeland after a gambling dispute. Arriving in the decaying kingdom of Kosar, he utilizes secret knowledge of the cult of Khayandra, the god of birth, to gain the trust of the Raja's wife, the Ranee. Disguised as a priest, he tricks her into revealing the location of the Raja's sacred rubies, which are worth more than the kingdom itself. He steals the jewels and flees to the city of Barowak, where he covets the beautiful Ranee Sahnya, intending to marry her. The Raja of Barowak, a man of peculiar humor and cruelty, discovers the thief. Instead of immediate execution, the Raja subjects the man to a horrific ordeal. The thief is bound and left to scream perpetually while a single drop of red-tinted water falls upon his head. The story concludes with a shocking twist: the rubies were merely glass, and the torment was a jest by the Raja. To sustain the punishment, the Raja had ordered the entire world to dye everything red. The narrative ends with a chilling return to the present day: a waiter accidentally spills a drop of red liquid on the storyteller's head. Instantly, he begins screaming in a monotony that mirrors the ancient curse, proving the legend's terrifying reality.

LLM editorial rating

4.2/5

Download URL

https://www.gutenberg.org/ebooks/79128.epub.noimages

Local file path

data/epubs/pg79128.epub

Download EPUB

Downloaded at

2026-08-13 09:10 UTC

Categories

• Short Stories
• Southeast Asia -- Fiction