"Wow... I screwed up..."
I woke up in the morning, but I could still summon screens in front of my eyes and use this ridiculous 'system' that called itself the Divine Net.
At least I'd gotten somewhat used to it after just one day. Now I could lie comfortably in bed and shift viewpoints around to observe the ants without any trouble.
⚙ Q&A Function ⚙Activated
I'd also started studying the system itself bit by bit. The more I learned, the more convenient it became, so I couldn't just ignore it outright.
In particular, the Q&A function I'd discovered by desperately digging around proved to be a huge help.
"What the hell are you? No, what is the Divine Net?"
⚙ SYSTEM RESPONSE ⚙Divine Net: A system created for the systematic management of Deities.
"Deities?"
But hearing the answer didn't suddenly make everything clear.
If anything, it made my head hurt even more.
I've learned the hard way back in school that you can't understand an explanation without the basic knowledge to begin with.
At least it's a holiday today.
Thank goodness it was the start of a week-long break.
I could hole up at home all day and sort out my thoughts.
"The ants... my subordinates... they need to thrive for me to thrive too?"
⚙ SYSTEM RESPONSE ⚙Holy Power granted to Deities is measured by the scale of their forces. Higher Holy Power allows promotion from lower-tier Deity to higher tiers.
The Divine Net—the system I'd gotten tangled in—was no simple thing.
I confirmed the existence of other Deities and that they had ranks among themselves.
The fact that they used the same system and were divided into ranks screamed competition.
And surely they weren't all living in peaceful harmony, haha.
*Community access restricted. Rank up required.
Fortunately—or unfortunately—I had no way to contact them right now.
As the system had said when it first appeared, some functions were restricted due to my abnormal awakening. Trying to access the community in hopes of chatting with other Deities was impossible.
"Rank up, huh..."
I frowned at the message that abnormal awakenings required rank-ups to unlock restricted functions.
From what I'd gathered so far, there was only one way to raise a Deity's rank.
Having your subordinates prosper.
I turned my head to look at the terrarium.
The ants were bustling around right now, both inside and outside the terrarium.
Their goal was obvious: expand and thrive as a colony.
That's what ants did. They lived for that alone.
⚙ SUBORDINATE ALERT ⚙[Your subordinates are deep in thought]
"Deep in thought? What kind of thoughts?"
I was staring blankly at the terrarium when an alert popped up. I responded in a daze, dumbfounded.
⚙ SYSTEM EXPLANATION ⚙[Their intelligence cannot fully comprehend the changes from your Deity awakening. However, they sense the changes in their bodies and instinctively seek help from their master.]
The bizarre alert windows and system popping up before my eyes weren't the only changes. I'd awakened as a Deity thanks to the ants, but they were undergoing changes too as my subordinates.
The problem was that they were still just ants. Even as subordinates of a Deity, transformed into something different, their level was that of mere insects.
⚙ SYSTEM EXPLANATION ⚙[They do not properly understand the new environment or the power they've gained. They are currently in confusion.]
"Hmm..."
In short, they had no idea what they'd done.
Of course. What they'd done crossing into that rift by chance was surely pure instinct.
Hunt moving things and devour them—that's an ant's job.
⚙ SUBORDINATE REQUEST ⚙[They seek guidance from the great existence. Is it right to continue advancing into that unknown world?]
Is figuring out exactly where that place is impossible right now?
I had no way to know precisely what world lay beyond the glimpse I'd caught.
No one to ask, and definitely couldn't get answers from the ants.
It was absurd—they'd gone over, wreaked havoc, and now asked if it was okay to keep going—but I had to admit I was curious too.
What was that place? From the corpses they'd hunted or scavenged, it seemed humans lived there.
"Still, shouldn't we at least scout it out?"
I muttered after a moment's thought.
It had already happened, and now their actions were mine too—I couldn't just treat them as someone else's business.
⚙ SUBORDINATE RESPONSE ⚙[They carry out your command. They will gladly conquer that world.]
"Huh?"
But the result was different from what I'd expected.
They'd started interpreting my words however they wanted.
"No, I said scout only!"
⚙ SYSTEM WARNING ⚙[They cannot properly understand your words.]
Ants are ants.
Connected to me, their Deity, they could sense my will, but comprehending it was still at an insect's level.
◇◇◇◆◇◇◇
I hope I haven't stirred up something I shouldn't have...
I hurriedly shifted my viewpoint and watched hundreds of worker ants marching proudly.
They were crossing through the tunnel into that world en masse.
Are they making a nest?
Some worker ants started digging up the ground around the rift, tunneling and piling up earth.
I instantly knew what that meant.
They were extending their anthill there too. Building a safe tunnel was their instinct.
But unlike my terrarium, over there they were massive monster-grade ants.
Each scoop of earth was like an excavator dumping a load, and several ants together gnawed through thick trees, toppling them.
Just like that, the forest around the rift was being transformed by hundreds of worker ants into a massive earthen fortress in the blink of an eye.
⚙ SUBORDINATE REQUEST ⚙[They desire more food.]
"...Working hard makes you hungry, huh?"
I chuckled at the alert.
Now I knew why food was disappearing so fast lately.
Of course—they were pioneering new land in their own way, so they needed more energy.
"Eat up."
⚙ SUBORDINATE RESPONSE ⚙[They rejoice at your grace.]
I dumped a large batch of mealworms into the terrarium.
Now that they were subordinates, markedly different from regular ants, they seemed to need far more calories.
The worker ants hunted the mealworms like yesterday, then bobbed their heads in what seemed like gratitude.
Their mechanical, synchronized movements felt less like they understood and more like instinctual ritual.
⚙ SUBORDINATE REQUEST ⚙[They crave new food.]
"No, I just fed you?"
But then an alert appeared that was a bit different from expected.
What's going on? What's the problem?
I'd clearly seen the worker ants hauling hunted mealworms back to the nest.
Yet they wanted new food.
Absurd, I had to observe them directly to find out why.
Why not feed the larvae?
The worker ants chopped up the hunted mealworms and shared them among themselves, but didn't give any to the larvae or queen they should cherish most.
Mealworms were better than insect jelly, their usual food.
⚙ SYSTEM EXPLANATION ⚙[They instinctively sense the power dwelling in the new food.]
Instead, the worker ants were feeding the larvae and queen something else.
"Ugh..."
I grimaced, realizing what it was: the chewed-up, balled-up remains from the corpses they'd brought from outside.
Human flesh, essentially, processed meticulously like a delicacy by the worker ants and stuffed into the mouths of the precious egg-laying queen and larvae.
⚙ SYSTEM EXPLANATION ⚙[Mana dwells in the special food. They instinctively crave that mana.]
They'd already found something tastier than mealworms.
Something I couldn't provide.
⚙ SCOUT ALERT ⚙[A scouting worker ant has spotted food.]
Right on cue, a worker ant scouting that world had found food.
I rushed to shift my view, fearing they'd hunt humans again.
No, what the heck is that?
But it wasn't a human the worker ant encountered.
Similar yet distinctly different. Much smaller stature, skin greenish.
Armored and armed, they looked straight out of a fantasy story: goblins.
"Keeek! A-An abyssal monster!"
"Calm down! It's just one!"
The group of about a dozen panicked at the scouting worker ant. Their leader-looking one yelled to whip the underlings into shape.
I was surprised I could understand their words clearly, but no time for that.
They were about to attack the worker ant.
"One we can take! Attack! Kill it before its comrades swarm!"
At the order from the scruffy-bearded leader goblin, they nocked arrows, leveled spears, and charged the worker ant.
⚠️ DANGER ⚠️
[Your subordinate is in danger]
"I know."
Indeed, their boast wasn't empty—the goblins skewered the larger worker ant with spears and riddled it with arrows in seconds.
The worker ant crushed one goblin with its powerful forelegs from its massive size, but it was outnumbered.
Watching it die, I felt oddly concerned over a single worker ant.
I was one with them now, after all.
💡 TIP 💡[Leading subordinates is the true role of a Deity—something only Deities can do.]
The tip urged me to act, and I instinctively knew what to do.
⚙ COMMAND ISSUED ⚙[Receiving your will, the subordinates begin tracking the traces of their fallen comrade.]
Command them to punish our enemies.
"Yes. That's the way."
I watched the goblins hack up the dead worker ant's corpse for loot, then bit my lip as my ants surged forward at my word alone. I pushed aside complicated thoughts. My own situation was dire—no time to worry about others.
Dozens of massive ants—giant compared to my real-world fingernail-sized ones—moving in unison was quite the spectacle.
True to form, the rough forest terrain posed no obstacle.
"Keeek! C-Chief!"
"H-How are there so many?!"
The goblins who couldn't escape realized they'd been surrounded and cried out in horror.
End of Chapter: Just a Hobby (2)