A group of people immediately snapped into action, carrying out their duties with professional focus.
Seeing this, Yak and Groundhog let out a breath of relief. It seemed the humans genuinely cared about this situation and were doing everything they could to ensure the Queen's safe recovery.
The two exchanged glances before pulling aside the returning figure, who was still lost in thought, as well as Korudol, who had noticed something off about the venue. They left together, feeling it necessary to report what had just transpired to Chairman.
Before, Korudol had been too preoccupied with concern for the Queen to pay much attention to his surroundings. Now that she had been treated, he finally took in the abnormalities around him—the strange behavior of the soldier ants when they first arrived, the fact that the other division commanders and most of the army commanders hadn't noticed them, the lingering scent of blood, and the crimson stains on the floor.
He had to know what had happened in his absence.
Not just Korudol—Morel, Knov, and the others also wore unreadable expressions as they observed the blood on the ground.
"Looks like something went down here~" Knov murmured, adjusting his glasses.
"Yeah..." Morel clicked his tongue. "Seems like there was a fight. A big one."
As he spoke, he turned his gaze to Ronnel, who was walking toward him, his small, dark-lensed glasses unable to hide the curiosity in his eyes.
For some reason, Ronnel felt different.
But only four hours had passed since their last meeting.
"Some of the Chimera Ants figured the Queen was done for, and since the King wouldn't accept them, they decided to split off and carve out their own territories," Ronnel explained, sensing their doubt.
"To keep them from wreaking havoc on humanity, I took the first step and shattered their dreams."
His words carried an artistic flourish, but the meaning was clear.
Morel understood. Knov understood. Even Knuckle and Shoot understood.
With the amount of blood on the ground, the only way they wouldn't have figured it out was if they were complete fools.
"These are the corpses of those ants—the Squadron Leaders, officers, all of them. If you want to take them back, just open the pack."
Ronnel pulled out a fur pouch, shrunk to the size of a thumbnail, and handed it to Morel.
"If you need soldier ant samples for research, take as many as you want."
Morel's eye twitched slightly as he wordlessly accepted the pouch. Then, as if something had just occurred to him, he glanced at Yak and Groundhog, who were still guiding Korudol away.
"What about them?"
"They're loyal to the Queen's faction, just like Korudol," Ronnel replied.
Morel nodded in understanding, then turned his gaze toward the three ants crouching in a corner.
"Those three haven't harmed humans," Ronnel continued. "They surrendered to us willingly, agreeing to face judgment and follow orders. I saw potential in them—reason to give them a second chance."
He paused, then gestured toward two specific ants. "The green-skinned one and the girl in the yellow dress—both have something special. If they develop abilities, they could be valuable assets to the Hunter Association."
"Especially the little girl—I once met an Exorcist before, and she has the same kind of aura."
"Oh? An Exorcist?" Morel perked up at that. He turned his full attention to the trio, his gaze lingering on the girl named Hina.
Even Knov seemed intrigued, shifting his focus toward her.
They trusted Ronnel's judgment. If he said she had potential, then she did.
Exorcists were extremely rare, and the Hunter Association only had one—an elderly woman nearing the end of her life, barely able to handle the many lingering curses in the world.
But this Chimera Ant girl was young. If she could truly become an Exorcist, her natural Chimera Ant growth rate would make her invaluable. Given time, there might be nothing she couldn't dispel.
And if that happened, the Hunter Association wouldn't have to worry about finding a new Exorcist for decades to come.
For Morel, who was devoted to the Association's growth, this was an incredible find.
As Morel scrutinized them, the three ants reacted in different ways.
Bloster lowered his massive pincers, forcing an awkward smile.
Meleoron didn't seem to care, only glancing at Ronnel every so often, hesitation flickering in his eyes.
Hina, the one receiving the most attention, fidgeted uncomfortably with the hem of her clothes, looking like she was about to cry.
Even the pink creature on her hat mirrored her pitiful expression.
"I'll report their situation to the Chairman," Morel said, nodding toward Shoot, who took out his phone and began typing.
"Speaking of the Chairman, where is the old man?" Knuckle asked.
"He said he had an old friend to visit."
"Ah, I see," Ronnel mused. "So Netero went to see Zeno."
Morel turned toward the other tunnels, his sharp senses picking up on the soldier ants still lurking within. He frowned.
"That's... a lot of ants."
"You should be glad these ones didn't run off with their commanders," Knov remarked. "If they had, the entire Sixth Continent would be in chaos."
His voice trailed off, his brows knitting together in concern.
Then, he exchanged a glance with Morel, and they both had the same thought:
"Did some ants already escape?"
As their eyes met, two figures emerged from the shadows, standing at the edge of the nest, just beyond the exhibition hall...
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Fanfic is completed on patreon.com/FanficsHub (799 chapters in total)