<The Demon Lord of the Swordsmanship Family Chapter 64>
A swarm of Giant Ants rides atop the Sandworm, thrusting their mandibles into its slimy flesh. The Sandworm screams and writhes. A green, sticky liquid bursts forth from various places.
The Sandworm struggles, shaking off the Giant Ants clinging to its body. One Giant Ant is flung to the ground. It attempts to flip over but the Sandworm’s mandibles are quicker.
The circular mouth opens, revealing thousands of teeth that descend upon the Giant Ant, grinding it like in a blender.
Meanwhile, the Killer Bee has taken advantage of its aerial advantage, hovering above the battlefield and bombarding with magic. It pierces the tops of the Giant Ants and Sandworms with a spear of wind.
Just like how airplanes changed the paradigm of war, the overwhelming advantage of being able to ‘fly’ makes it likely that the Killer Bee will emerge victorious in this battle.
However, that advantage only stands as long as only the Killer Bee can fly. The moment a Giant Ant Soldier spreads its wings, the Killer Bee is no longer the master of the skies.
The Giant Ant Soldier, equipped with thick armor and upgraded attack power, brings the Killer Bee crashing down, and those waiting for it on the ground are the sharp mandibles of the Ants.
Giant Ants, Sandworms, Killer Bees.
Thus, the Investigation Team has succeeded in bringing the three monster factions onto the stage.
More than half of the ‘Kingmaker Operation’ has been completed.
Now, what remains are the details. Perfecting the picture. To this end, most members of the Investigation Team were peering through sniper scopes.
“This time, that one.”
A trigger is pulled.
The long sniper b*llet is fired and strikes the head of the Killer Bee that was targeting the back of a Giant Ant Soldier.
Kieeek-!
The Killer Bee’s head sways heavily.
It’s not a fatal wound. It can’t be, as the b*llet fired is a normal one, not a ‘manatan’ designed specifically for monsters. It’s the usual ammunition we commonly use.
Monsters are born with mana within them. Thus, mana naturally circulates through their bodies, and only mana can pierce that mana.
Or otherwise, it must project overwhelming firepower.
Therefore, the b*llet that struck the Killer Bee is merely a painful pebble in the face of injury.
Is it meaningless?
Not at all.
In a life-and-d*ath battle, even a slight opening can be fatal.
At the moment the Killer Bee’s head wobbles, in that fleeting moment, the Giant Ant Soldier turns its body and embraces the Killer Bee with its developed forelimbs, shattering its body.
This phenomenon repeats throughout the battlefield.
The barrage of bullets hinders the Killer Bee’s actions and annoys the Sandworm. And at such times, the Giant Ant takes advantage of the crisis.
Indeed.
The purpose of the Investigation Team, lying in the damp ground with unfamiliar sniper rifles, is singular.
For the victory of the Giant Ants.
“This is really frustrating. Can’t we just use magic?”
“Shut up, don’t you know that using magic attracts aggro?”
“Yeah, think positively. When else would we have the chance to sh**t guns?”
“It’s not that I’m frustrated. I just want to use magic. How refreshing it would be to unleash an ‘Electronic Storm’ on those swarming monsters.”
“Pfft. Your Electronic Storm wouldn’t even leave a mark.”
“It would definitely draw aggro.”
“I’ll be lucky if I don’t get squashed in the Ant’s mandibles.”
“You guys.”
“If you’ve got energy, at least sh**t one more round.”
“Team Jaang.”
“If you really want to use magic.”
Park Jin-yong gestures toward the air.
“You can do it like that.”
Like that?
Everyone’s gaze shifts to one spot.
There, two individuals are freely thrashing about in the middle of a battlefield where visibility is scarce.
Park Ki-hyuk and Jin Yu-ri.
There were juniors so far away from them.
“Ugh….”
“Let’s just sh**t our guns.”
“Good thinking.”
Members of the Investigation Team diligently pull their triggers.
Bang- Bang- Bang!
Crimson fireworks explode like firecrackers.
Amidst the flames of d*ath that equally deliver d*ath to both the Killer Bees and Giant Ant Soldiers, Jin Yu-ri soars.
“Wowww~!”
Half water, half fish. No, is it half monster?
Whatever it is, it hits every time even when shot haphazardly.
What a joy.
Jin Yu-ri smiles brightly, letting the updraft carry her. Following her are groups of monsters – the ones caught in explosions among the Killer Bees and Giant Ant Soldiers.
With venom capped tightly, they chase after Jin Yu-ri closely.
She lets out a whimpering voice.
“Help me~.”
In that moment.
Hexagram magic circles are chaotically inscribed around her.
“Be quiet.”
Pause.
A brief stop.
The monsters chasing Jin Yu-ri halt simultaneously.
Park Ki-hyuk’s Great Sword shimmers with demonic light.
Geomho-ryu Draw Technique
Guillotine
Whoosh-!
Body fluids burst forth from the heads of the halted monsters. All the liquid spills out from the severed heads. Soon after, the once-monsters’ corpses plummet downward.
Amidst this, Park Ki-hyuk and Jin Yu-ri fly side by side, and as Park Ki-hyuk splits a nearby Killer Bee in half, he says.
“I said not to bring the Soldier Ants.”
“I didn’t hit them. They came after me!”
Jin Yu-ri responded while setting a Killer Bee ablaze with ‘Thunder Bolt.’
“If they came after you, shake them off. Isn’t magic for show?”
“Wow, am I being disregarded? Are you saying what I use isn’t even magic?!”
Park Ki-hyuk’s ‘Flare’ conjures fire in the air.
“Why? Did it hurt?”
“Hurt? Not at all! You’re the first to treat me this way. It’s thrilling. Always new. I want you so badly!!”
In response, a flurry of Jin Yu-ri’s Flame Spears bursts forth.
“You’re going overboard.”
“Yeah, love you? Me too.”
Jin Yu-ri, whose helmet was knocked off, winks.
Park Ki-hyuk chuckles incredulously at her.
Amidst their seemingly trivial exchanges, the two continuously unleash magic.
“Don’t you think we mesh really well as humans?”
“Shut it.”
Flame Area, Fire Rain, Call Lightning, Lightning Shock, and more.
Whenever spells of fire and lightning, the elemental attributes of insect-type monsters, flicker in the sky, the Killer Bees can only plummet without the ability to resist.
The numbers of Killer Bees steadily decrease.
“But how long do we have to catch them?”
“Are you tired? If you’re tired, rest.”
“Tired? I’m just bored! How long will we only catch Killer Bees? You’re behind.”
“Quiet.”
Whoosh!
Flames erupt behind Park Ki-hyuk.
A charred Killer Bee falls.
Simultaneously, the demonic being charges at Jin Yu-ri from one of the two Killer Bees, piercing the head of one, while he delivers a punch to the head of the other, carving up the stunned Killer Bee.
After swiftly eliminating three, Park Ki-hyuk catches his breath and answers the question.
“We just need to break the balance. Once that happens, I’ll drop out too.”
Why have the three monster factions that are currently fighting fiercely managed to remain peaceful until now?
To adapt to a new environment?
That’s not incorrect.
They certainly would need time to adjust to the suddenly dropped Gate.
To establish a habitat?
That’s not incorrect either.
For insect-type monsters, a habitat is an irreplaceable part of their existence.
Of course, they might also be mindful of the existing sovereign, the ‘Mantis Queen’ Mantis.
While there may be various reasons, Park Ki-hyuk believes there’s a fundamental reason behind it all.
Because it’s too close.
Because none can secure a definitive power advantage.
These are monsters. Born of a combative nature.
If they believed they could win, why wouldn’t they fight? They would fight even if they were cautioned. They would be the first to want to devour other races.
But that’s impossible. They don’t dare to stick their mandibles in without a size advantage. Thus, a peculiar balance has formed where those who move first are inevitably consumed.
The reason why all members of the Investigation Team, including Park Ki-hyuk and Jin Yu-ri, are supporting the Giant Ants is to break this ‘balance.’
“Heh, I see. So that’s why you blocked Mantis? Because they definitely have the power advantage?”
“Exactly. This balance is arguably created by Mantis.”
The Killer Bees have established a hive, the Sandworms have staked a claim, and the Giant Ants have begun to breed, all because Mantis has remained a thorough bystander, doing nothing.
But…what on earth did they hear during the operation meetings? How could they not grasp anything after being explained several times?
Park Ki-hyuk stares at Jin Yu-ri.
“Were you sleeping during the operation meetings?”
“Come on, no way.”
“Right, surely not to that extent…”
“Of course, I was sleeping! Do I need to stay awake during such a boring time? With you here.”
“…Don’t be so boldly useless.”
Park Ki-hyuk sighs and snaps his fingers.
The magic circles become chaotically intertwined, and as soon as they complete the runes, Jin Yu-ri reaches out to the magic circle and ‘pulls’ the mana to activate it.
Magic Missile descends as if to shroud the sky.
Boom, boom! Ka-boom-!
The sky is obliterated.
To a third-party observer, this scene would induce disbelief. They completed a massive spell in less than a second.
A combination that transcends the laws of magic through Park Ki-hyuk’s control and Jin Yu-ri’s grasp. However, the parties who executed this astonishing feat felt no excitement.
“I’m hungry. We’re going to hunt that ‘Queen Bee’ we saw earlier, right?”
“Probably. The Killer Bee Queen is good material.”
“Let’s catch it quickly and eat some tteokbokki. I’ve only been smelling insect stench all day; I’m craving something spicy.”
“You can do that.”
“Ah, whyyyy.”
No, there was never any tension from the start.
From the beginning, there were no threats to them on this battlefield.
“Let’s head off to deal with the Sandworm.”
“You’re making tteokbokki, right?”
“I’ll think about it.”
“Yay~.”
Engaging in a leisurely conversation as they fly toward the Sandworm.
For them, this operation is something like this.
A fun diversion that they can enjoy and play around with.
Thus, three days have passed since the massive war, wherein the fates of the three monsters were intertwined, but the outcome was already predetermined.
At last, the end of the Kingmaker operation was in sight.
Inside a cave.
We walk in the pitch-black darkness.
“Is it just this one we need to catch to finish?”
“Probably.”
“Now I can finally fight properly.”
A stench assaults the nostrils. To describe it brutally, it’s the smell of decaying corpses.
“I can’t stand it. Ugh!”
“Put on the Dragoonian. It has a purification system.”
“Still, I can’t leave you in this cesspool alone.”
“Why am I being excluded?”
“Jun-woo, I’ve always thought about it, but you really lack awareness. I’m talking to your older sister’s lord.”
The hungry Sandworms devour anything that moves.
Whether dead or alive, whatever it may be, they fill their bellies and digest with powerful gastric juices. The undigested remnants excrete as waste.
This waste is used to create their burrows, leading to such a dreadful stench. It’s called waste, but if likened to humans, it’s the same as excretion.
“But Ki-hyuk, are we really okay like this? The opponent is an ‘Elder Sandworm.'”
“Don’t worry.”
“Are you really sure? To be honest, I struggled even against the Killer Bee Queen.”
“It’s different from the Killer Bees. This one is really nothing special.”
The Sandworm is a peculiar monster.
Typically, insect-type monsters tend to band together or form communities, but these have a strong independent trait. Their always hunting alone proves this.
Yet, curiously, after a hunt, if their bellies are full, they return home like ghosts. They have an inexplicable homing instinct, much like a human who must sleep at home after being heavily intoxicated.
“The Killer Bee Queen or Giant Ant Queen has basic intelligence. Therefore, they can establish a definite command structure. Do you remember how the Killer Bee Queen commanded her elite guards?”
“That was definitely effective.”
“As you said, striking quickly was the answer. We took down only three, so it was easy, but if there were even slightly more, we would have been in trouble.”
“On the other hand, this one, the Elder Sandworm, has none of that. Its only purpose is to guard its habitat; it’s merely on watch.”
Of course, if the habitat grows larger and certain conditions are met, a ‘king’ may be born among the Sandworms. When that happens, they enter into collective behavior, and their destructive power is said to be cosmic.
In a past life, an entire desert city was reported to have been eaten away by a Sandworm King.
“Ki-hyuk.”
“Yeah?”
“Look there, there’s light.”
It seems we have arrived. Stopping unproductive thoughts, I focused on the reality to come.
In the world shrouded in dark, a light shines. Like a savior’s touch, at first glance, it appears almost sacred.
But at the end of that light awaits not salvation, but battle.
Kieeek-!
The Elder Sandworm writhes and responds fiercely, and I raise the ‘Demon’ to respectfully reply to it.
Geomho-ryu Draw Technique
Moonlight Slash
Moonlight ripples within the underground chamber.
The battle has already begun.
