The Ant Army Approaches

A distant scraping sound echoed, resembling steel plates being dragged across a rough surface. It was the call sign made by a **[Lv. 34 Plate Scout Ant]** as it rubbed its antennae against an ally's.

In response, **[Lv. 40 Plate Guard Ants]** from deeper inside the cave reacted and rushed toward the source.

"Aah! What the hell are these things?!"

Several adventurers encountered along the way clung desperately to the walls in terror, yet the Plate Guard Ants paid them no mind and pressed forward at an alarming pace.

Of course, some were not so fortunate. Sensing that clinging to the wall would be slower than simply dodging, the one who failed to move in time drew his sword with a shout.

"St-stop!"

None of the tamed monsters would obey such an order, but the panicked adventurer could not comprehend that.

He swung the blade anyway. *Ting!* The sword, swung without thought, bounced harmlessly off the chitinous armor.

"Ugh..."

The intense vibration traveling up his arm nearly made him drop the weapon. With death staring him in the face, he clenched his teeth and held on. His will prevailed, and he managed to keep his grip.

But that was all he could do. The moment he realized he had failed to drop the sword, a shadow fell over the adventurer's head.

When he looked up, it was already too late. A beak shaped like a deer's jaw opened wide on either side and snapped shut.

"Ah—"

With a *crack*, the adventurer's body turned gray. Thanks to Arina's efforts to minimize cruelty, the scene of the head being crushed and the brain bursting out was reduced to a mild squeeze, like lightly gripping a rubber ball.

The Plate Guard Ants that had cleared the obstacle continued their relentless advance. One surviving adventurer muttered in disbelief, "This really happens."

Their average level was around 35, making it nearly impossible for them to encounter Plate Guard Ants in the deeper sections of the cave.

Yet the guides posted on the forums stated otherwise.

'Plate Guard Ants roam the deeper parts of the cave and rarely emerge. They do so occasionally, but only after failing to quickly deal with Scout Ants and sending out rescue signals. They rise rapidly from the depths.'

'If you encounter them without provoking the Scout Ants, cling tightly to the cave wall and wait until they pass. They only care about rescuing their kin and show no interest in anything else. If you fail to dodge, you can simply be trampled as long as you do not display hostility. Should you attack, and you are not strong enough to defeat them, then just die.'

When read, the advice had seemed vague, but seeing it with his own eyes left no room for doubt.

This was an army in the truest sense. A single party had no chance of hunting such a thing. How could one possibly defeat dozens of level 40 monsters swarming in a pack?

As the adventurer pondered this, he murmured with a puzzled tone.

"Exactly who failed to handle the Scout Ants properly?"

---

"Who's talking about me."

Choco scratched her ear in response to the sudden itch.

She had just arrived inside Grape Cave after causing quite the commotion in the fortress. Hearing someone discussing her story was nothing strange.

'I didn't think they'd chase me here.'

Chasing for what purpose? Fortunately, they seemed to have come to their senses midway, as they scattered with bewildered expressions.

With all the noise they had caused, it was only natural that someone would be talking about her.

"Hmph, stay quiet."

Choco thought this as she pressed down on the back of the ant struggling to escape beneath her foot.

A shrill scream echoed—*kekeek!*—but the creature would not die from it.

She had been lucky. She had never expected to run into a Scout Ant on the way to the deeper sections.

Thanks to the incident in Gezina's Forest, her level-up opportunities in the upper cave areas had been sparse, and she was on her way down. Yet here she was, handed a chance to hunt so quickly.

"Yeah, rub it in hard. Until your friends arrive here."

She muttered while watching the Scout Ants rapidly scrape their iron-like antennae.

To Choco, the sound was inaudible, but to the ants, it would reach the Plate Guard Ants in the depths in no time at all.

Soon, an almost countless number of Plate Guard Ants would flood the area. Choco was not particularly worried about that fact.

No matter how ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠many there were, her current self could not lose to them. Even if they exceeded one hundred and broke past her limits, she could still handle it without much difficulty.

Her level was now 38. But in terms of stats, she already possessed strength that rivaled those in the triple digits. Unlike in Gezina's Forest, she would no longer struggle against low-level foes.

'Well, I'm not the one going to hunt.'

Choco thought this as she watched Yeon gazing into the darkened passage ahead.

Yeon had heard that a group of higher-level monsters was approaching, yet her expression showed no concern or anxiety. Instead, she held her drawn sword forward with a faint spark of expectation in her eyes.

"They're coming."

The cave filled with countless vibrations. Ordinary ants would not produce such massive, continuous vibrations.

That meant only one thing.

The reinforcements summoned by the Scout Ants' frantic antenna-rubbing had arrived.

From the darkness of the passage, Plate Guard Ants emerged with a sharp *klik*.

Unlike the bright white chitin of the Scout Ants, these creatures had dull gray chitin and appeared roughly twice as large when compared to the smaller ants.

Where a Scout Ant barely reached thigh height, a Plate Guard Ant stood as tall as the chest area.

They resembled Kobolds and Chego in some ways, but the oppressive presence they exuded was far greater.

If such creatures crawled not just along the passage floor but also up the walls and ceiling, words could not describe the sheer number.

Yet Yeon did not scream. She took a deep breath and gripped her sword more firmly. She adopted a basic stance—holding the handle with both ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠hands, extending it forward, and widening her stance slightly.

However, the aura rising from her had changed dramatically from the past.

"Stay back."

Even if I fall, I won't let you kill me, Choco thought, pressing her foot down harder.

With a *quijak* sound, the Scout Ant beneath her foot was crushed and scattered into ashes.

The strange noises triggered by this signaled the arrival of the Plate Guard Ants.

"Huff—"

At the same moment, Yeon moved.

She leaped forward, kicking the ground. The Plate Guard Ants in front twisted their heads and swept their armored jaws in a wide arc.

The pressure was like a massive pillar striking down. Yet Yeon did not blink. She lowered her body, dodged effortlessly, and immediately thrust her sword forward.

*Poo-wuk!* The blade sank deep into a gap in the layered armor, as if swallowed by overlapping layers.

The Plate Guard Ant thrashed wildly from the stab that pierced its soft flesh, but Yeon ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠had already withdrawn her sword and was moving on to the next target.

In the midst of dozens of Plate Guard Ants, Yeon's movements showed no hesitation whatsoever.

She struck at the seams of the armor, then in the moment the jaw opened, drove the blade into the hidden maw.

She took out one ant without much trouble. But with so many of them, the number flowing toward Choco was not insignificant.

Naturally, they were not targeting the blocking Yeon but the one who had killed the Scout Ants. Yet the fate of the Plate Guard Ants that arrived beyond Yeon was not so kind.

A massive ice lance appeared in the air and plunged straight down toward them. The ants writhed as if pinned to the floor, but none of the ice lances embedded in their backs vanished or disappeared.

In this way, four ants were frozen in place, struggling. Choco climbed onto the back of one of the frozen ants, propped its jaw up, and watched the scene of Yeon's hunt—or perhaps her rampage.

Beyond the three ants she had already dealt with, more than ten Plate Guard Ants had remained. Yet Yeon charged toward the remaining few without a hint of strain.

"It looks fun..."

Choco murmured softly as she watched Yeon smile while swinging her sword.

Yeon had talent but had grown lazy about hunting. The gamer who truly enjoyed the hunt and took joy in the results she created was nowhere to be found.

It was a good change, in a way... but why did it feel so unsatisfying?

Choco thought this as she watched Yeon finish off the last ant with a stab. She had cleared an entire army by herself.

"Choco-ya!"

"Yeah, yeah..."

Seeing Yeon wave her hand holding the sword with a bright smile, Choco waved back.

She then stepped down from the ant pile, gave a light shake of her hand. Four Ice Lances still embedded in the heads of the surviving ants pierced through and cut off their breath.

**[Level Up.]**

Choco dismissed the System window that had risen unceremoniously and approached Yeon.

"You fought well."

"Really?!"

"Yes. You rivaled the past me."

"The old Choco?"

"Well, if I have to compare, you might have a bit more talent."

Choco's gaming talent had never been exceptional to begin with. It was average, perhaps in the upper 40 to 50 percent range.

Becoming a ranker had been less about innate talent and more about starting earlier and investing more time than others.

She had studied the game a lot, but in terms of pure physicality, Yeon was clearly superior.

"Hmm... the past Choco... I see. So what was it like back then?"

"What do you mean?"

"In the past, before I met you, before you became this form... I want to know what it was like!"

"Why are you asking about something like that..."

"But I'm curious, aren't I?"

The only things Yeon knew about Choco were that she had been a top ranker in the past, that she was male, and that she was older than her. That was all.

Asking about the rest now was only natural. Yeon's eyes sparkled with curiosity, and Choco muttered uncomfortably.

"It's not that interesting a story."

"Hmph, I asked for a fun story, didn't I?"

"It isn't a fun story, though..."

Choco puffed her cheeks and grumbled, "When did I ever say it was fun?" while delivering a pained groan.

It was indeed a difficult story, but nothing compared to the one Yeon had just ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠heard.

But it was difficult. After all, Choco's past had not been particularly pleasant.

Choco scratched her head, sighed deeply, and said, "...Fine, what do you want to hear?"

"Umm... umm... the story of when the game started? When I was a newbie like me, what was it like!"

"What's so different about being a newbie? Back then, with no information, I just got hit and died. It's the same now."

"Is that so...?"

"So, is that all you're curious about?"

"Umm... I'm curious about other things..."

Choco let out a long sigh as she brushed away the hand covering her face.

Still flushed with embarrassment, she fanned herself with her hand and shifted her gaze around before speaking softly.

"Alright. If you really want to know that much, I won't refuse."

"Really?"

"But promise me. You won't tell anyone, and you won't look into it further."

"Of course!"

"You answer well..."

Choco narrowed her eyes at Yeon, then shook her head.

She pondered how to begin, then started slowly.

"My original name was Yoo Jinwoo."

---