“Can they even be called ants anymore?”
Though that had been the case for a long time, Lin Miao still scratched his head.
They had originated as a colony of ants, but through rapid and repeated compressed evolution, these vassals had transcended their species and forged a path of their own.
“War, and then total annihilation.”
Elise’s eyes gleamed behind her mask as she watched her army march majestically toward the western front, where the Beastkin Kingdom lay.
The countless ground forces moving across the land were not the entirety of her host.
There was also the azure sky and the boundless sea.
Most of this planet had already fallen into the hands of the Great Devourer colony, teeming with various mutated species.
“Your Majesty!”
“The day has finally come. The Great Devourer is truly going to conquer the entire world.”
Calian, the emperor of the Lucadia Empire, stood atop a spire alongside his ministers. He let out a soft sigh as he gazed at the dense, overwhelming swarm of the Great Devourer.
As the price for wiping out the god's servants and allowing the empire to survive, nearly half of the Lucadia Empire's territory had been surrendered to the Great Devourer.
At this very moment, across the empire's former northern and southern territories, nests were cropping up like bamboo shoots after a spring rain, with a steady stream of the Great Devourer pouring out of them.
They ranged from Spore Beasts that could raise their spinal cannon barrels at a moment's notice, to heavy-armored ants that had been continuously refined to serve as shock troops.
There were massive, heavily armored giant species, as well as agile, swarm-oriented core combatants—mutated species of all shapes and sizes were present.
Calian watched with a heavy heart as they blanketed the horizon.
‘Can we really trust them? Once they finally devour all their enemies, will they truly not turn their gaze toward us?’
It was only natural for Calian to feel uneasy. They were the weak, with nothing to offer, while the Great Devourer was the victor and the predator.
“It seems it's almost over.”
Calian was not the only one witnessing this spectacle.
Count Merlin, who lived among the survivors on the lands of the former Holy Kingdom, also let out a low sigh as he watched countless flying species take to the skies in unison from the nests within the Holy Kingdom.
The sky was thick with beasts. At first glance, they looked like a massive swarm of mayflies, but in reality, there was no comparison.
Those ferocious and powerful flying mutants were massive; even the smallest Great Devourer eagle was comparable in size to a large predatory beast.
Watching them spread their wings and cross the sea, Count Merlin looked up and sighed softly.
‘Perhaps this is for the best.’
Count Merlin glanced at the bustling crowd.
Tired as he was, his perspective differed from Calian's.
With the overwhelming and alien power of the Great Devourer looming so close, the surviving humans dared not harbor any thoughts of mutual hostility or power struggles.
There were no fierce political struggles, nor was there any underhanded scheming.
For the sake of survival, everyone had to work together.
Count Merlin had once dreamed of the Great Devourer vanishing overnight.
Given that the Great Devourer had little interest in shiny gems or gold coins, the ruins and heritage of the former Holy Kingdom remained almost entirely untouched after losing their masters.
But what if those riches, left behind in a vacant, masterless land, were laid bare before them?
Count Merlin could not predict how many lives would be sacrificed in the process of establishing a new order if the immense threat of the Great Devourer were to disappear.
“Elder, look over there.”
“There are so many of them...”
In the southern part of the continent, near the World Tree, the elves who could no longer survive there had been evacuated to an island under Lisette's care.
This vast island, mostly covered by dense forests, had been discovered by Elise during her scouting missions. It looked as though a section of the Great Forest had been carved out and moved there in its entirety.
The elves, who had decided to make this their new home, stood on the shore, gazing out at the endless sea.
Colossal beasts were crossing the ocean in massive packs.
They were Leviathans, mutant beasts carrying countless troops within their bodies.
They were moving on a massive scale alongside aquatic forces like diving ants, actively utilizing the ocean to launch attacks from the rear of the Beastkin Kingdom.
Just as they had once crossed the sea to establish invasive nests in the territory of the former Kingdom of Bartonia to overthrow the Elven Empire.
“The sky, the land, and the sea are all occupied by those monsters. Only now do we realize how foolish we were to dream of vying for the world against such creatures.”
One of the elven elders let out a sigh bordering on awe as he watched the endless procession of Leviathans.
He lamented the foolishness of the new elves, who had relied on divine power to reject tradition and plunge their entire colony into war, while also blaming himself for failing to stop them, ultimately getting dragged into it.
“Elder...”
“Let us return. Lisette said they will not attack us again, and if all goes well, they will leave this land before long. We must fulfill our duties.”
The elder turned and left the shore, walking toward the forest.
The seeds that Lisette had rescued and handed over to them had already sprouted, growing into saplings.
Now, those saplings were the World Trees they had to protect.
Upholding tradition and customs, protecting the World Tree, and maintaining the tribe—these were the duties of the elves.
They intended to set right the duties that had been shaken by the new elves.
...
【Kerrigan is slightly dissatisfied】
As Elise's main nest colony forces began their official shift, Kerrigan—who had been leading the migratory colony to attack the Beastkin Kingdom and the tightly shut Dwarven Alliance—muttered in discontent.
She felt as though Elise was about to snatch away her prey.
Of course, she wasn't truly upset; it was merely a simple complaint.
Kerrigan also knew that the power of the migratory colony alone was insufficient to completely devour enemies that outnumbered them dozens of times over.
As the second-generation queen, Kerrigan only craved battle.
Conquering land, building nests, establishing nutrient supply systems, and optimizing production routes to expand and manage the colony's scale—these were Elise's specialties.
Kerrigan would first break the enemy's spirit and crush them, after which Elise would deploy her invasion colony to utterly steamroll them. With that, the entire process would be complete.
Furthermore, Celia and Lisette had joined the effort.
“The Dwarven Alliance has prepared an absolute defense. However, if they attempt a large-scale march, these defenses will instead become a hindrance. There is no need to leave enemies in our rear. Let us stick to the original plan and strike the Beastkin Kingdom first.”
Celia skillfully offered her input.
While listening and making the final decision was Queen Elise's duty, in truth, she accepted Celia's advice most of the time.
Celia's abilities were outstanding, as proven by her consistent track record of achievements.
“...”
Kerrigan, who had been silently observing the meeting within the hive mind, found herself interested in Celia's abilities and role.
Kerrigan suddenly thought how wonderful it would be if the migratory colony had someone like Celia to assist her with her work.
Most importantly, whatever Elise had, she should have as well.
“We will attack the beastkin first.”
Elise decided to strike the Beastkin Kingdom first, adhering to the pre-established plan.
Unlike the dwarves, the beastkin were currently in utter disarray.
It would have been one thing if they were lining up to fight heroes, but constructing defensive lines to hold their ground was something they had never been good at, even before they were driven out of the plains.
Their technology tree, which had developed in a highly specialized, single-minded direction from the very beginning, now seemed completely out of touch with the current situation.
“Your Majesty! Those things have arrived at our gates! Their numbers seem to be in the hundreds of thousands! As for the ones flying in the sky, we can't even count them!”
“Your Majesty! A large number of slaves have escaped from the northern villages again, and they seem to have fled to the dwarves' side!”
“Your Majesty! The great God of War has delivered an oracle, warning us to watch the southern coastline...”
Gorzan, the beastkin king.
He clutched his head as he looked at the messengers and magic communication orbs that had crowded in within a short span of time, vying to report their news.
“Aaaaaargh!”
He roared with all his might. Yet, no one could blame him for his behavior.
For everyone knew the immense pressure and agony he was under.
“Master, what on earth should I do? Ever since the elves were crushed, those creatures have been openly targeting us. Just when we need to launch a full-scale counterattack, those dwarves are busy digging tunnels and building walls, locking themselves up in the Great Mountains!”
Gorzan, unable to bear it any longer, began to complain.
The recipient of his complaints was Grimgor, who had lost an arm and had his chest pierced.
Though his body was no longer fit for battle, Grimgor remained by Gorzan's side as an advisor.
“Gorzan, no matter the method, if you waver, you will achieve nothing.” Grimgor sighed with regret. “The God of War does not forgive an ugly death.”
Indeed, by any metric, the beastkin were at a severe disadvantage.
Their only pride lay in their tenacious warriors, but the Great Devourer had already found a way to counter them.
Hearing Grimgor's words, Gorzan muttered to himself, “Even if we must die, we shall fight to the death on the battlefield. That is the honor of a warrior.”
Fleeing was no longer an option, and surrendering was out of the question.
Only battle remained. From the very beginning, that was the sole qualification to receive the God of War's divine protection.
“So, in the end, are we preparing to make a final stand?”
“Not just now. Every day, every single time, we fight with the determination of it being our final battle.”
Begrun walked up to Grimgor as the latter stepped out of the palace.
Grimgor let out a self-deprecating chuckle and nodded, looking at Begrun.
He had gone from being a prince of a small kingdom invaded by the beastkin, to a slave soldier, and now he had grown into a knight who could stand on equal footing with a beastkin Great Warrior.
“I've heard that the Great Devourer does not attack every living thing it sees, contrary to the rumors.” Grimgor mentioned the humans who still survived. “Even if we fail, some of our people might live on. I am speaking of your subjects.”
If they were not the servants of a god defined as an enemy, the Great Devourer would not go out of its way to attack those who did not oppose them.
Whether they were humans, elves, or beastkin, it was all the same.
This decision, made by Lin Miao and Celia in the beginning to prevent indiscriminate slaughter, had yielded unexpected benefits.
It lowered the locals' loyalty to the gods, weakening their strength.
At the mention of his subjects, Begrun bit his lip. “...That is not true liberation.”
Thanks to his growth and achievements, Begrun had not only liberated himself but also the slaves of his homeland.
He had originally launched his rebellion to seek revenge against the beastkin and rescue his people.
He was later subdued by Grimgor, so this could indeed be considered his true objective.
But the current Begrun had seen a much wider world and gathered far more experience.
He did not want to live at the mercy of the Great Devourer's whims when his own strength was insufficient to liberate even more people. That was not what he wanted.
“If you want to achieve your desire, there is one thing you must ultimately possess. You likely know what it is.”
Grimgor let out a soft sigh, his voice trembling slightly.
“The Queen of Blades. You must defeat that demon.”
Grimgor was referring to the queen of the migratory colony, Kerrigan.
Ultimately, the monster who had defeated Grimgor with her bizarre, twisted domain to claim victory.
To Grimgor, who had personally clashed with her and caught a glimpse of her true inner self, Kerrigan was far more than just an ordinary enemy warrior—she was the very incarnation of obsession, madness, and ruthless violence.
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