Chapter 36
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Translator: penny
Chapter: 36
Chapter Title: Order (2)
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"Run! Get the hell out of here!"
"If those winged bastards catch up, we're done for!"
The northern region had turned into a complete lawless zone after most of its lords abandoned it and fled. No refugees remained in this forsaken place, yet a small group of people was madly whipping their horses to escape.
All of them were scouts sent out to check on the ants' movements.
While on reconnaissance, they had been spotted by a group of patrolling ants and immediately turned tail, fleeing for their lives.
Sure, they could have chosen to fight. The ants were just a handful of small-type scouts, after all.
From what they had observed so far, regular small-types without mutations were manageable even for ordinary people.
But wasting time killing a few scouting ants could prove fatal if even a single hornet ant showed up—they'd all be massacred.
These adventurers, who appeared to operate in the north, knew that full well. That's why they didn't get cocky and just bolted desperately.
The Queen Ant judges that the colony needs greater speed.
The ants couldn't keep up with the horses at full gallop, so they hadn't bothered chasing in the first place.
While ants handled rough terrain far better than horses, their speed on flat plains fell woefully short.
This was a natural limitation that applied to everyone, but the ants—especially the ever-evolving Queen Ant—couldn't accept it.
The Queen Ant believes the newly born soldiers will fill this gap.
As the colony expanded and gathered more spoils, it gained the ability to produce new mutant strains designed and devoured by the Queen Ant.
This latest mutant was one of them.
Once a larva born with the new genes crafted by the Queen Ant consumed enough food to meet the mutant's requirements, it would enter the pupal stage and evolve into the appropriate variant on its own.
The new mutant that burst from its cocoon had long, slender legs, sharp mandibles, and a thin, lightweight body. It was born with the pathfinder's abilities recently fed to the colony.
'So now I've got something like a cavalry unit?'
Just as I intended, they had successfully inherited a significant portion of the pathfinder's incredible speed.
Their explosive sprint covered flat stretches in a single burst, matching or even surpassing the full-speed horses from moments ago.
The Queen Ant plans to conquer even greater lands with her new soldiers. Instinctively, she senses that as the territory under the colony's rule expands, new methods of management are required.
"..."
This was a scene I'd seen countless times before.
The ants devouring food, absorbing new materials through predation, and evolving.
The issue was the subtle shift in the environment, like the notification that just popped up.
It started in the breeding enclosure, then expanded to the untamed forest.
Now, they had claimed the entire northern region beyond the forest as their domain.
Changes in environment and conditions demanded entirely new behaviors and strategies from the ants.
Managing a single village was worlds apart from running a vast kingdom.
And the ever-growing ant colony, led by the Queen Ant, was more than capable of handling it.
They regulated their population, stockpiled resources, and leveraged their hive mind for coldly precise calculations that grew sharper with every experience.
'It won't take long.'
The ants getting smarter was something I wanted too. My ultimate goal was to communicate with them properly someday, in whatever form that took.
But I couldn't skip the evolutionary process.
Before they could commune with me, the ants would have to think for themselves and explore their surroundings first.
What if, in that process, they began to suspect or target my existence?
I couldn't treat the ants lightly.
I knew how heavy our bond was, and that we weren't exactly one entity.
But the ants didn't fully grasp that yet.
Preparing as much as possible before their unchecked growth led to trouble seemed like the smart move.
'First... I need money.'
Money was the most essential thing to execute the plans forming in my head.
I pulled up the banking app on my phone, checked my balance, and let out a wry chuckle.
Despite living frugally, the savings from my brief time in society weren't much.
Far short of what my plans required.
Even scraping together every loan and bit of capital—even my soul—barely amounted to startup funds.
[Then, per the established rules, I'll claim this mana stone mine. Don't be too salty. I've been getting fleeced all this time; I deserve compensation.]
If I blew through that capital, it'd truly be game over. Fortunately, I had rock-solid investment intel.
Seeing a deity in the Divine Community gloating about monopolizing their first mana stone mine, I immediately dove into overseas stock markets.
This was how I'd make my first move.
"Sir, right now..."
"Quiet. His Divinity is guiding me at this very moment."
Alkeon Industries was a U.S. startup that had rapidly swept up hunter and gate-related tech right from inception.
Victor Langley, who rose from failed businessman to helm the company overnight, had a secret unknown to the world: he was a subordinate receiving oracles from a deity.
Under directives from deities on the Divine Net—the system behind it all—they recruited promising hunters, monopolized and managed dungeons and gates.
"Good... news?"
His secretary asked tensely as Victor, standing by the window with eyes closed in reverence, finally opened them.
To Victor and his inner circle, deities were true 'gods' in every sense.
Victor, once devout in his old faith, had long forgotten it amid real miracles and oracles unfolding before him.
"The best news. Thanks to His Divinity's grace, our company is finally set to monopolize a mana stone mine. Send an exploration team to the coordinates I'm giving you right now."
Grinning, he pointed out a spot on the map for his secretary.
Invasion bases—dungeons—required entering and destroying the core, unlike gates that just needed blocking external foes.
But occasionally, massive mana stone mines were found inside.
'We had everything, yet this one bottleneck held us back. With our own mana stone supply, we'll finally join the top hunter corporations.'
Unable to contain his excitement, Victor paced the office.
Once the world realized mana could be extracted from mana stones for universal use, everyone went mad for them.
It was only natural—the deities who designed the hunter system had crafted them as rewards.
Yet not just anyone could claim those costly boons from the deities.
All publicly known mana stone dungeons were "lucky finds," their discoverers hailed as having fortune beyond oil strikes. In truth, they were prizes for deities victorious in contests against Outer Gods.
Resources to expand their Earthly influence, plain and simple.
'...Was making money always this easy?'
Mana stone mines required no complex development once found. Alkeon Industries' mere discovery alone would send shockwaves.
The company's value, once criticized as underwhelming compared to peers, would skyrocket several-fold.
Thanks to that, someone on the opposite side of the globe who knew in advance reaped returns many times their investment.
"Time to move soon. You guys just shaved ten years off my life plan."
At the breeding enclosure, Jin-hyuk muttered with a wry smile, eyeing his account balance that had ballooned several times over.
The first step of his plan: relocation.
Leave the cramped villa for a spacious house on the city outskirts.
'It's essential for everyone.'
He planned to convert one room entirely into an upgraded ant breeding space.
No more acrylic tank in the living room corner with a makeshift lid. Something far sturdier—even evolved, mighty ants couldn't breach it.
The subordinates believe they must seek out more food.
Oblivious to his intentions, the ants buzzed about their tasks at that very moment.
The Queen Ant in the enclosure kept devouring food to build strength for her growth, while the others tirelessly foraged, hunted, and sustained the colony like its blood and oxygen.
'Yeah, no way they'd stop.'
The recent delay was just them claiming the abandoned northern region, building new nests, and swelling their numbers.
Stabilized, the ants now sought fresh, abundant prey.
The top priority? Naturally, the south they had their eyes on.
The western orcs were too spread out across vast lands, tribe by tribe.
By contrast, the human clusters on the southern peninsula lived densely packed in a relatively compact area.
Once they locked onto a target, their pursuit wouldn't end until every last one was exterminated—even if they fled further south.
'The southern foes follow the Golden Mandate Society and Goddess Henes. Her epithet: Glory of the Golden Oath.'
Thanks to the ants elevating his status, Jin-hyuk now knew the Divine Net, deities, and their truths intimately.
With genuine interest in the global deity power struggles, the southern humans were now irredeemable enemies.
Sure, some unaffiliated folks remained, but the ants would reach them after Henes's forces had already absorbed them.
Soon reborn as her obedient subordinates.
"Hm..."
On a hunch, he opened the Divine Community to check Henes's activities.
Last he knew, she was scouring other boards, asking deities about the ants' identity.
But since then, no notable moves.
'Makes sense. Even if she's scheming, with private messages available, no need for public discussions.'
Still, limited functions meant Divine Community intel wasn't fully reliable.
"Yes, it's me. Just checking if you can snag rarer insects. I'll pay extra for specifics."
Closing the screen, he dialed his insect smuggler contact, whom he'd leaned on heavily lately.
End of Episode 36 - Order (2)