"Do you know who I am? I am the leader of the century, the king of kings—Ming Jol-ik!"
As Ming Jol-ik ranted wildly ranted wildly, Meruem paid him no mind, instead surveying his surroundings.
The moment the man uttered the word "king," it caught his attention.
Then, he and Shaiapouf engaged in one of the most iconic exchanges in the Chimera Ant arc.
"Why would a worthless creature like him call himself king?" the Ant King mused.
"It seems to be a common occurrence in the human world," Shaiapouf said, resting his chin on his fingers as he searched his knowledge of humanity. He glanced at the self-important man still waving his arms and scoffed:
"A fool with neither intelligence nor ability can claim a title far beyond his worth simply by relying on bloodlines and connections.
"It's absurd."
Hearing this, Meruem's disdain reached its peak.
"Worthless indeed. Such beings are nothing but a detriment, serving no purpose but to drag everything down with their stupidity!"
This exchange between Meruem and Shaiapouf echoed the biting social critique often found in Yoshihiro Togashi's work.
And the satire didn't stop there.
"Then, we must govern this country properly," Meruem decided.
"Understood!" Neferpitou replied, then offered a suggestion:
"Humans possess high-quality flesh, making them a valuable resource. And management is easier when handled by the livestock themselves. Those without unique value can serve as food for our soldiers."
As Pitou spoke, Menthuthuyoupi had already seized all the dancers who had been performing on stage moments before.
Meanwhile, enraged by their dismissive conversation, Ming Jol-ik shouted:
"No matter who you are, I will unleash my divine power upon you! Leave at once!"
Smack!
Before he could finish, Meruem, already bored of his presence, silenced him with a single blow.
"Your Majesty, please entrust this man to me. I will use him to aid in managing the humans," Pitou said calmly, glancing at Ming Jol-ik's bloodied body.
With their ability, reviving and controlling Ming Jol-ik would be a trivial task.
"Do as you please," Meruem replied indifferently.
As he turned to leave—
"Please... I beg you..."
A desperate plea stopped him.
The group of dancers, thrown to the ground by Youpi, clung to each other in terror, tears streaming down their faces. One of them, trembling, pleaded:
"Don't kill us! Please, spare us!"
Meruem glanced at them, then smirked.
"Hahaha..."
His laughter was mocking.
"You humans truly are fools."
He tapped his temple with one finger.
"Use what little intelligence you have and think carefully. When you slaughter pigs and cattle, do you ever stop to listen to their cries for mercy?"
...
As Meruem prepared to transform the palace into a facility for processing humans as livestock, Netero had already finished his preparations.
"Ahh, you really don't pull any punches... If I don't adjust soon, I'll be dead before the real fight even starts," Netero muttered, advancing swiftly while taking deep breaths.
His destination: the Republic of East Gorteau.
"The Chimera Ant King and his Royal Guards have arrived in East Gorteau. There's a high probability—seventy to eighty percent—that they'll invade the palace... What a hassle. I need to find the right place to prepare. Otherwise, I'll be killed in an instant."
With that thought, Netero vanished into the night.
...
Elsewhere, Morel and the others escorted Knov and Knuckle back home, waiting for the teleportation ability user dispatched by the V5 authorities.
Meanwhile, Shoot made an unexpected discovery—Neferpitou had stitched together Kite's corpse. Without hesitation, he took it with him.
BOOM!
A deafening explosion obliterated the Chimera Ant nest, reducing everything within to dust.
But the battle wasn't over.
Meruem and his Royal Guards still needed to be dealt with. Other ants that had escaped during the invasion, as well as those still roaming the world, posed an ongoing threat.
Among the ants that fled were a pink-gourd-carrying koala and a red octopus named Ikalgo.
However, compared to the catastrophe in the original timeline—where over two thousand ants, including multiple division leaders, spread chaos—the current situation was far more contained.
The remaining stray Chimera Ants were mostly weak soldier ants.
The Hunter Association could handle them like any other monster outbreak, keeping public panic to a minimum. The finer details would be settled between the Association and V5.
Once the teleportation ability user finished their job, and before NGL could even react to the explosion, Shoot nodded to them and returned to deliver his report.
Using his Nen ability, Hotel Rafflesia, Shoot carried Kite's body as he set off to reunite with Morel and the others.
Barring any unexpected developments, the final battle against the Chimera Ant King would be fought by this very group of Hunters.
It was best to prepare in advance.
...
Time passed quickly.
In the blink of an eye, a month had gone by. It was now mid-July.
Several things had happened in that time, some trivial, others more significant.
Knov had successfully transported Morel and the others to Greed Island, where they were received by Razor..
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Fanfic is completed on patreon.com/FanficsHub (799 chapters in total)