Chapter 80
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Translator: penny
Chapter: 80
Chapter Title: Bio-Weapon (1)
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[Asmora designs a new variant]
It didn't matter if he didn't fully understand exactly what it was yet.
To Asmora, who had meticulously observed and memorized every single action Seira had taken, perfectly replicating those actions was a piece of cake.
All that was needed was to create a new variant dedicated to that role.
Having the ordinary worker ants handle everything with their jaws was out of the question—Seira's processing of the magic stone was far too intricate, delicate, and precise a task.
So Asmora resolved to produce a new variant within the hive specialized in magic stone processing.
And naturally, the form of that variant would be a type of Tyrant, equipped with a magic heart that surpassed the limitations of existing lifeforms.
"Ugh, what the hell is this...!"
The new variant, wriggling and growing in real time through cell division, was grotesque enough to make even Jin-hyuk—who barely batted an eye at most sights—recoil in disgust.
Its plump, maggot-like body was semi-transparent.
It was constantly coated in a yellowish, viscous slime, and the part presumed to be its face featured only a massive mouth, with no sensory organs—not even antennae.
Short, numerous legs typical of crustaceans—hard and sharp—sprouted from it, allowing it to crawl, though they were usually inverted toward its body interior. These myriad legs served as robotic arms of sorts, crushing and processing magic stones fed into its body.
[Asmora is satisfied with the variant's appearance]
Asmora herself was pleased with its form, which incorporated every function she had intended.
Stretching several meters in length, its mouth featured irregular teeth in three overlapping layers, with joints separated like a snake's maw, allowing it to bloom open like petals and swallow a magic stone as large as its own body whole.
The magic stones, processed within its body like assembly-line products, would then emerge from the exhaust port at its rear, expelled like eggs.
Asmora, now wielding all the abilities she had devoured thus far and equipped with a magic heart that shattered her limits, was already maximizing the potential she possessed.
'Calling it some kind of ant doesn't even make sense anymore.'
Jin-hyuk gave a wry smile as he pondered a name for the variant, dropping a magic stone into the enclosure to test if it would function properly.
In truth, ants didn't even have the concept of names.
They were distinguished only by rank and type based on their roles; all individuals were uniform, mere expendable parts that served the hive until death.
Asmora herself remembered the various variants she created only by unique codes known to her alone, never assigning names.
That was precisely why Asmora and Bellona—previously just slightly special queens—receiving true names from Jin-hyuk and becoming Named had such a profound impact on the ant hive.
Only those two within the hive were beginning to grasp just how important a name could be.
"What should I call it?"
But Jin-hyuk was different.
Not connected to the hive mind and accustomed to names as a natural part of life, he had from the start assigned various names to the ants, striving to distinguish their forms and types.
Blade Wing Ants, Leap Ants, Decapitation Ants, and so on.
He had organized his records by devising names according to his own rules, based solely on their appearance and roles to differentiate them as much as possible.
He still hadn't stopped observing the ants and keeping his journal.
However, starting with the Ant Spike born from devouring the , that consistency had begun to crack bit by bit.
Variants that could no longer reasonably be called ants kept emerging.
'Well, with abilities like that, I figured they'd eventually outgrow the ant framework.'
Jin-hyuk was aware that Seira had named them Belzahad, drawing from the name of an ancient demon.
Seira herself couldn't have imagined their origins as mere ants before joining the hive.
In the end, their evolution from lowly insects into the new race of Belzahad was inevitable.
With a chuckle, Jin-hyuk realized he had to acknowledge it too.
"Heartforge Larva. It's obvious I'll be the only one calling it that anyway."
After a moment's thought, he settled on a fairly straightforward name.
True to its name, the Heartforge Larva—the new variant created by the ant hive—received the magic stone Jin-hyuk tossed in from the worker ants, gulped it down in one go with its massive maw, and began processing it internally.
"You think that's so easy? Remembering every action you took and creating a new variant to perform it flawlessly? And in just a few days?"
"That's the power of the Queen and the source of Belzahad's growth potential. In fact, the variant she created just swallowed this massive magic stone whole and excreted it as a magic heart in one shot."
Count Merlen's eyes widened in disbelief at her words, but Seira Redenverk nodded calmly.
From the outset, the shellback ants covering her body to the Ant Spike parasitizing within her were all living weapons that defied common sense.
"Then... what are we supposed to do if the Queen discards you?"
Count Merlen muttered anxiously.
He hadn't gone so far as to call her a traitor to humanity or a frontwoman for them, but he had viewed her as little more than a monster.
Especially after seeing her separate from the shellback ants enveloping her body or communicate with the ants—he could no longer treat her as he once had.
But over the past few weeks of collaborating with Seira, Count Merlen had come to recognize her value and the advantages she brought.
She might lack formal power or authority, but that wasn't entirely true.
Her very existence allowed the survivors to live on without being attacked by the ants.
In other words, Seira's standing within the ant hive directly determined the survivors' own. It was only natural for the Count to worry about her.
"As long as I keep proving my usefulness, the Queen will keep me alive. I'll buy time like that... and watch for an opportunity."
"Can you hold out?"
Seira let out a resigned sigh.
She knew from the start that Asmora—who had hated her—had spared her solely to exploit her thoroughly.
Asmora harbored no affection or attachment toward Seira whatsoever and could purge her at any moment.
Of course, Jin-hyuk wouldn't allow it, but Seira—as a mere subordinate—didn't yet grasp the exalted Deity's true intentions.
"...!"
But at that moment.
Seira felt a power flowing into her body and her eyes flew wide.
[Asmora panics. The power of the great existence flowing through the connection is directed not toward her, but Seira]
At the same time, Asmora lifted her head inside the nest.
「Designated Subordinate Appointment」
'It's time.'
As planned, Jin-hyuk used his interference to appoint Seira as a designated subordinate.
It was akin to Erianne, who had risen from apostle to saintess, or the orc tribe heroes.
Subordinates especially favored by a Deity received this heightened attention, and even without additional power granted, that alone became power.
"O Great One..."
Having witnessed special individuals chosen and appointed by the Goddess in her order, Seira realized what had happened to her, tears streaming as she was overcome with emotion.
To her, this was tantamount to a pardon.
A captured prisoner after defeat, she had been in the position of a criminal paying for her sins within the ant hive.
Asmora didn't see it that way, but Seira did.
She believed that by accumulating merits to atone, the Deity Jin-hyuk would acknowledge her.
And Jin-hyuk had kept his promise.
Having received the Deity's word, she was freed from the status of sinner and prisoner, no longer needing to fear for her life—she was now officially recognized as a member of the ant hive.
The heaviest burden that had constrained her was lifted.
[Asmora cannot comprehend why the great existence shows interest in the byproduct Seira instead of her]
Naturally, Asmora couldn't accept this situation.
Until now, all of Jin-hyuk's attention had been focused solely on the ants—on Asmora herself, the queen commanding them.
In fact, within the enclosure, she alone could face the outside existence that was Jin-hyuk.
Bellona was a new rival of sorts... but she was physically distant from the enclosure, always interacting with Jin-hyuk indirectly.
Yet now, Seira had snatched that attention and power.
'Mine, only mine...! But...!!!'
Asmora, whose first awakened emotion had been the intense desire of gluttony, panicked at the thought of something of hers being taken away.
Along with the anger awakened by Seira in the past, an unfamiliar emotion began to surface.
Asmora didn't yet know that emotion was envy and jealousy.
"Seira is now a full-fledged member of the hive. There's still much you can learn from her. All I want is for you to discover that on your own."
Jin-hyuk watched her reaction with a wry smile.
Before taming Asmora the tyrant—who ran rampant at her whim—into a subordinate controllable by his commands, this was a necessary step.
'If she's going to keep getting smarter, she needs to learn responsibility too.'
When Asmora was no different from an ordinary ant, he hadn't bothered much.
She wouldn't understand his words anyway and would rampage as she pleased.
But as Asmora grew smarter and her ego intensified, this marked the true beginning of her education.
And the starting point of that education was establishing dominance—showing who truly held the upper hand.
"Please calm yourself, Your Majesty. He still considers you His most important subordinate."
Fortunately, Seira understood Jin-hyuk's intent and stepped in to mediate.
Able to perceive both Jin-hyuk's will and Asmora's thoughts through the hive mind, she soothed the confused Asmora.
"He has always rewarded achievements. This is no different. He has acknowledged my contribution of magic hearts to the hive."
Through the hive mind, Seira reminded Asmora of Jin-hyuk praising and rewarding her with new feed and mealworms whenever she did well.
'Achievements... war... victory!'
Asmora's eyes flashed.
From her wealth of past experiences, she had already learned that regaining Jin-hyuk's attention and rewards required victory through war.
[Asmora orders the hive to war]
Immediately, Asmora revealed her intent to unleash the power she had stockpiled.
The ants, who had paused to gather strength against their fortified enemies, now acquired new living weapons: Tyrants implanted with magic hearts.
There was no better timing for a counterattack. Even now, the massive hive moved ceaselessly like clockwork, instantly shifting as one.
'The effect... is better than I expected?'
Asmora's intense reaction exceeded even Jin-hyuk's predictions.
Watching it all, he found himself unable to look away for a while, wondering just how deep her obsession ran.
< Chapter 80 - Bio-Weapon (1) > End