The catacombs, once a place of quiet dread, became a chamber of raw horror.
Some of the newly captured hunters, their spirits not yet completely broken, fought against their silken bonds. Anna, the tall German, thrashed and kicked, managing to tear a few sticky strands.
"We have to try!" she grunted to the others. A few others, like Sarah and Yumi, seeing her struggle, began to twist and pull, their bodies straining. Their resistance drew the hybrids' attention.
One hybrid, its face a mask of cold irritation, stalked over to Anna. She screamed at it, kicking out with her long, powerful legs. Her heel connected with its knee, a solid hit that made it stumble.
A snarl, more human than insect, ripped from its throat. It did not hit her. Instead, it pinned her naked body down with terrible strength, spreading her legs wide.
"No, get off me!" Anna shrieked, her blue eyes wild. The pain was instant, sharp, and burning as it forced itself into her. It moved with rough, jerking thrusts, and a low, grunting sound came from it, a sick imitation of a man's pleasure. "This feels good," it said, the words flat and terrible.
Nearby, Yumi, seeing Anna's fate, froze for a second too long. Another hybrid was on her, turning her onto her stomach. It thrust into her from behind with brutal force. She cried out, a sound of pure agony, her athletic body shaking under the assault. "You like this," the hybrid mocked in a cruel, clear voice, leaning over her.
Sarah, struggling wildly, caught the eye of the hybrid that had captured her. It grabbed her by her curly blonde hair, yanking her head back. "You fight. You breed now," it laughed, a loud, horrible sound, as it pushed her down and entered her with a rough thrust that made her see white behind her eyes.
The other resisting women met similar fates, their attempts at rebellion ending in violent violation. The hybrids used them roughly, their bodies not built for such acts, causing tearing pain and deep, humiliating shame. The women's minds filled with a horror that was worse than any fear of death. They lay still afterwards, their spirits shattered, their bodies aching.
One hybrid, finishing with a whimperring Chinese scout, looked at the others who were watching in frozen terror. "Let us see what kind of ants they make now," it said to its companion, its voice curious and cold. "The queen plants eggs. This is different. This mixes anger, and pain. Maybe it makes stronger, angrier children."
The first women captured—the mothers and younger girls taken from the villa—watched everything from their silken prisons. When they saw the hunter women being dragged in, a weak, desperate spark lit in their chests. "They are here to save us," one of the milfs, Mi-kyung, whispered, her eyes filling with a fragile light. For a moment, they dared to hope.
Then they watched the hunters be overpowered. They saw them stripped, bound, and thrown down. They saw the hybrids rape Anna, and Yumi, and Sarah. The last flicker of hope didn't just die; it was crushed, violently, in front of them.
Ji-yeon, the one who gave birth to one of the first hybrids, began to cry quietly, her shoulders shaking. "No one is coming to help us now," she sobbed into the silk.
The despair that followed was a thick, heavy blanket, smothering them all. They were not being rescued. They were just getting more company in hell.
Fresh, silent tears ran down countless faces.
Outside, the slaughter of the men was complete. The hybrids returned to the catacombs, not just to guard, but to feast. They carried body parts—a severed arm still in a sleeve, a leg in torn tactical pants. They dropped them on the floor in the center of the chamber and began to eat, like men eating chips in front of a television, making sure the women could see.
Beru, the massive leader, entered last. He grew even larger, his muscles bulging, his violet eyes glowing with fresh power. In his hands were the remains of Tom, the American leader. Beru bit the head off the corpse with a loud, wet crunch. "Tasty," he said in his deep rumble. He ate with slow, deliberate chews, then tossed the mangled torso to a smaller hybrid.
He then recounted his meal like a man listing trophies. "The fire user screamed. The sword fighter's bones were brittle. The shield-maker was soft inside." He looked directly at the captured women, his gaze passing over the raped hunters and the original captives. "They came to protect you. Now they are inside us. They make us stronger. You saw them die. You hear their bones in my teeth."
He walked closer, his shadow falling over them. "No more protectors. No more hope. Only waiting. Wait for your turn to be useful."
The women could only stare. The men who had charged in to save them were gone, consumed. The female hunters who had fought lay broken and violated. There was no plan, no rebellion left. The hybrids had shown them everything.
They had shown them the crushing of strength, the defiling of spirit, and the final, ugly truth: they were nothing but meat and womb to a swarm that was learning, terrifyingly fast, how to be as cruel as the worst of humanity, but without any humanity at all. The only thing left in the cavern was the sound of chewing, the smell of blood, and the utter, complete silence of despair.
The Queen felt it all. Joy huge in her. She called the second, third, and fourth strongest hybrids after Beru. They came to her chamber fast. She ate them alive one by one. First the second strongest—a big one from a milf. She bit into its body. Mandibles crushed shell. Blood and flesh absorbed into her. Powers flowed in—hot plasma stronger. Her body shook. Shell started to soften.
Then the third—a quick one from a young woman. She swallowed it whole. Crunched inside her. Cold mana rushed in. Body changed more. Skin formed over shell. Smooth and pale.
Fourth—a smart one with memory echoes. She tore it apart. Ate slow. Shape shift power came. Her form twisted. Legs lengthened. Waist narrowed. Hips widened. Breasts grew full and round. Face shaped beautiful—sharp violet eyes, red lips, long black hair like silk.
Sexy like a goddess but menacing with hidden claws and fangs in her smile. Taller now—six feet. Curvy and strong. Power pulsed huge. Stronger than Beru. "Now I lead," she said in a perfect human voice. Her menacing laugh echoed through the hive.
Hybrids bowed low. Queen ready for more. The empire grew bigger. The world shook with fear.
The Korean teams landed on Jeju Island first, their planes touching down on the south coast. The air was thick with smoke and the distant sound of screams. Hunters jumped out fast, their faces set with grim anger, hearts pounding with a fear they couldn't afford to show. "For Korea!" an S-rank yelled, his voice cutting through the noise. They charged toward the villa, swords ready, skills already glowing around their fists and blades.
But the ants were waiting. Hybrids hid in the shattered trees, and normal soldier ants burst from the ground where the grass had been torn up. The first Korean team, an A-rank group led by a man named Kang, ran straight into an ambush.
Kang used wind slashes, crying "Cut them!" His voice was strong, but his eyes were wide with worry, sweat already beading on his brow. A hybrid dropped from above, dodging the slashes of air effortlessly. It grabbed Kang's outstretched arm and snapped it with a loud, sickening crack.
Kang screamed, the sound raw with pain as the jagged end of his bone tore through his skin. Blood dripped hot and fast onto the soil. He tried to punch with his other hand, but the hybrid bit down on his shoulder, tearing away a massive chunk of flesh and muscle.
Kang fell to his knees, strength leaving him. "Help..." he gasped, weak and disbelieving. The hybrid did not kill him quickly. It ate him alive, chewing slowly while the man's other team members watched, frozen in horror.
The next hunter, a B-rank woman named Yoo, raised her hands, her fingers glowing with a pale, cold light. "Freeze!" she yelled, her anger making her voice sharp and hot. Three jagged bolts of ice shot forward, striking a hybrid square in the leg. Frost crackled, encasing the limb in a thick block.
For a second, hope flashed in her eyes. Then, the hybrid looked down at its frozen leg, gave a slight shake, and the ice shattered like glass. It took a step forward, completely unhindered. Yoo's eyes widened, the anger dissolving into pure, undiluted terror.
She turned to run. She didn't get two steps.
A black claw lashed out, not to kill, but to punish. It raked across the small of her back with surgical precision. There was a wet, crunching sound as it severed her spine. Yoo dropped to the ground instantly, her body from the waist down utterly dead, unresponsive. A choked scream of disbelief and agony was all she could manage.
The hybrid loomed over her paralyzed form. It crouched, its violet eyes boring into hers. "You tried to take my leg," it said, its voice a calm, conversational monotone. "An eye for an eye. A leg for a leg."
It placed one clawed hand on her thigh, just above the knee, and another below it. With a terrible, deliberate wrenching motion, it twisted and pulled. The sound was a sickening mixture of tearing muscle, snapping tendons, and breaking bones. Yoo's scream reached a new, piercing height, a raw sound of unimaginable pain.
The hybrid held the severed leg in its hands, blood dripping onto the dirt. It looked from the limb to Yoo's twitching, dying form. "You will not need this anymore."
Then, as she watched, her vision swimming with shock and pain, it brought the leg to its mouth and took a bite. It chewed slowly, methodically, the sound of its feeding horribly loud in the space between Yoo's weakening whimpers.
Her screams had stopped, replaced by shallow, wet gasps. Her face, pale and slick with sweat, was locked in a final, silent scream, her eyes wide open, forever holding the image of the creature eating her own limb. The horror did not fade from her expression even after the ant stripped her naked of her gear and took her to the same catacombs where others were present.
Another Korean S-rank, named Shin, threw up walls of fire. "Burn!" he roared, the flames rising high. Normal ants caught in the blaze shrieked and died. But the hybrid simply flew over the fire. "Hot," it mocked, landing behind him. It grabbed Shin, punched him squarely in the face, and broke his jaw.
Shin spat blood and teeth, tried to land a fire-encased punch, but the hybrid dodged and clawed his chest open, snapping ribs. Shin coughed a fountain of blood. "Can't... die like this..." he whispered, and fell dead. His body was consumed moments later.
One by one, the Korean teams fell. A C-rank group tried a combined attack, mixing earth and water skills. The new hybrids, stronger and faster after consuming the Indian, European, American, Chinese, and Japanese hunters, simply flanked them and killed them with terrifying efficiency.
The screams were short. Bodies were torn apart and eaten. Only a few survivors ran back, one gasping into his radio, "Too strong! They're just too strong!" His voice was broken, the fear in it so deep it was contagious. The hope that had landed with them faded into the bloody mud.
Cha Hae-in's team landed on the north coast last. The smoke here was just as thick, choking the air. The screeches of ants were alarmingly close. Cha's face was set like stone, her hand gripping her sword so tightly her knuckles were white. Worry for her team was a cold knot in her stomach. "Stay close," she commanded, her voice calm but urgent.
A scout met them, a young Korean man whose face was pale as ash, his hands shaking. "You made it," he said, his voice low, relief mixing with sheer fear. "We have satellite feed from the early recon. You need to see."
They followed him to a small, hidden tent. The screen showed the villa grounds. The births were happening in real time. Women screamed, their bodies tearing open as new hybrids crawled out, covered in blood and other fluids. Cha's team watched, their faces draining of all color. "Oh, no," Soo-jin, the healer, whispered, her hands coming to her mouth as tears welled in her eyes.
Cha reached out and turned the screen off. Her heart ached with a sorrow so deep it threatened to buckle her knees, but it was smothered by a colder, harder fury. She would see this through. She would make them pay for every single life.
"We move now," she said, her voice leaving no room for argument. "Our orders are to eliminate the nest. But we are not leaving those women behind. We save who we can."
Her team nodded, but fear was plain on their faces. "How?" a D-rank hunter asked, his voice shaking.
Cha looked at them, her gaze sweeping over the lower-ranked hunters. "C-rank and below. Your primary mission is to stay hidden, provide long-distance support, and survive. If this goes wrong, you run. There is no shame in running away. Living to fight another day is more important. Keeping the team alive is the priority."
A B-rank hunter shook his head. "We'll fight too," he said, his voice firm though laced with fear.
Cha put a hand on his shoulder, feeling the weight of responsibility for them all. "You will die too easily here. I need you to listen. Support from a distance. And if the signal comes, you run. Please."
Her eyes pleaded with him, the deep worry she felt for them all shining through. The team saw her care, and finally nodded slowly. "Okay," the B-rank said, his voice soft. They felt safer with her leading them.
Gina and Lee Bora had regrouped with Cha earlier, their own teams devastated. In a hurried debrief, they'd told her everything.
Their voices had been hollow as they described how the Japanese teams were wiped out. In a brief, painful flashback, Cha saw it: Akari Shimizu, the fierce A-rank, and Kanae Tawata, the strategic B-rank, fighting back-to-back before being overwhelmed.
Their teams were slaughtered around them. They were stripped of their gear, bound in silk, and dragged away into the catacombs with the others, just more faces added to the crowd of the doomed.
Cha had simply listened, her fury growing colder and more focused with each word. She gave Gina and Lee Bora one order: stick with the C-ranks and below. If her signal flashed, they were to get those hunters out, no matter what.
I listened to the distant sounds of battle from my hidden position. But when no one was looking, I slipped away, moving with a purpose toward the other side of the villa. My heart raced, not with fear, but with a hot, driving anger. "I'm saving them," I whispered to myself, the determination of a solid rock in his chest.
I stepped through the ruined gardens, the smell of blood and ozone thick in the air. On the other side of the shattered estate, where the shadows pooled deep, a figure stepped out.
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