HM: Chapter 19 – Down With The Queen. (Patreon)

Rusty positioned himself strategically, making sure he had a clear view of the ant queen and her chamber. With the light crystal emanating a faint glow, he waited for the perfect moment to initiate his plan. The drones seemed to be preoccupied with the queen as they were regurgitating something into her mouth. Considering that she couldn’t move from this place due to the large abdomen, it was probably food.

Classification: Lesser Myrm Ant Queen L7 F+

Type: Insectoid

‘There it is, if it can only stay in that one spot then it shouldn’t be that hard to defeat…’

He needed that copper deposit that was sitting next to the monster’s enlarged rear end. Even now he could see white eggs coming out of it and getting carried to the side. It seemed that these things took some time to hatch and even now some of them were growing. The forces of the ants had been diminished but they still had a large group here.

‘Several of these tunnels connect to this main chamber. If this crystal does its job, then I should be able to do it…’

Despite being nothing more than a sentient piece of armor, Rusty experienced a peculiar sensation in his core - something akin to emotions. Emotions, both excitement and fear, coursed through him as he contemplated the impending battle, a battle that could potentially result in his final demise. Yet, he recognized the necessity of confronting the ant queen to strengthen himself and overcome the challenges of this insect-infested underground. Restoring his body was necessary for his future survival and he understood that this battle could not be avoided.

‘No way to go back now, if I wait, these ants will just come back in greater numbers! What if they eventually overrun those other insects?’

After pitting the two species against each other, it appeared that the ants were beginning to win. While the centipedes possessed larger and stronger bodies, their cooperation was more than lacking. It was likely that the ants would emerge victorious in the end. However, this victory could lead to a larger issue as he would be against even greater numbers than before, something that he would be incapable of handling.

‘Here it goes then… Come at me!’

It was time to start his plan and the first thing he did was to place the large light crystal on the ground. Next to it, he started stashing the other mana crystals and stopped after it was glowing gently. Then he started making some noise, while he was not capable of shouting, hitting his chest with his metallic gauntlet was enough to produce quite a ruckus.

The drones that had been busy feeding the queen and handling eggs instantly turned in the direction of the strange living armor. There was a small swarm of them in this chamber and he would certainly be defeated if he attacked the queen with all of them in there. Thus, he decided to lure them out and make himself a target.

‘Common, follow me!’

Just as he expected, the small drones tossed themselves at him the moment they saw him. They seemed angrier than usual, probably due to the fact that he had invaded their colony's innermost sanctum where their queen resided. The large ant gave out a strange hissing noise in his general direction which seemed to call forth even more ants.

One ant tossed itself at him and he quickly cut off his head, its fluids falling on him just as he had planned. Soon after, he turned around and started to run while ensuring the drones followed him. He could hear the skittering of their legs behind him as he led them away from the queen's chamber and deeper into the labyrinth-like tunnels of the ant colony.

Rusty knew he couldn't afford to let any of them catch up to him, as a swarm of angry ants could easily overpower even his sturdy metal frame. However, he also didn’t want to actually flee to safety. The angry ants needed to be close enough to keep following him and the more the better.

After spending some time fighting these monsters he had memorized a few paths and also marked them for easy use. He continued to lead the ants on a wild goose chase through the tunnels and eventually, he made his way back to the chamber where his target resided, the ant queen. He had gone in circles to return to this place that was now a lot emptier than before.

‘Where is that crystal!’

With haste, he tossed himself at the magical crystal that he left to the side and now it was time to finish up his trap. He produced many smaller mana stones that he could store in his stash tab and with their addition to the other mana crystals, the light started to shine brightly. It encompassed almost half of this chamber and most importantly, the tunnels that he led the ant drones into.

‘Please work…’

While he had performed a few tests with the insects he wasn’t sure if this light was all that it took to keep them at bay. It worked in his own lair where there were many but he could only bring enough mana stones to make one of them shine brightly here. Luckily, the moment the radiance took over the ants stopped in their tracks and could not go any further.

‘Haha, I knew it would work!’

Rusty raised his arms up into the air and cheered again, something that he started doing whenever performing well. His plan had succeeded thus far and with the ants halted by the brilliant light emanating from the crystal, it was time for battle. The queen was still there along with a few leftover ant drones that had higher levels than the rest. It seemed to be her honor guard but it would not be enough to stop his charge.

‘Let’s finish this, come ants!’

Six drones remained in this egg-laying chamber, and they quickly charged at him with their mandibles clicking in agitation. With his sword at the ready, he faced them head-on. The first swing instantly decapitated one of them and soon after it plunged into the second one. Two of them were instantly down and he quickly retreated before the third one could pounce at his helmet.

‘Hah, I know all your attack patterns you silly ants, you’ll have to try harder than that to defeat me!’

Rusty danced between the attacking ants, using his superior agility and combat skills to outmaneuver them. With each precise strike of his sword, he managed to take down another drone to reduce their numbers even further. Despite their numerical advantage, the ants seemed unable to land a solid blow on him and even when they did, his armored frame proved too hard to bite through.

Soon the fifth one was down on the ground and only one lone drone remained between him and the screeching ant queen. She was constantly clicking and clacking her mandibles in his direction while giving off strange sounds. He wasn’t sure what it was about but he believed that she was trying to call for more help. Luckily, the light within this chamber was keeping the other drones at bay as they couldn’t enter this place.

Rusty advanced forward with a confident stride. The remaining ant drone charged at him with desperate ferocity. Rusty sidestepped its attack with practiced ease, then countered with a swift and precise strike that severed its head from its body. There was no need for fancy skills as he could read this little monster like an open book.

As the final drone fell to the ground, lifeless, Rusty turned his attention to the ant queen. She was a formidable opponent, larger and more heavily armored than the drones. She had sharper mandibles of greater size and her legs seemed like they could pierce through hard rocks. But Rusty was undeterred as this monster had one big weak point, it could not move due to the large rear part attached it it.

Regular ants had three main parts, the head, the thorax, and the abdomen. This Lesser Myrm Ant Queen was slightly different as she had a fourth appendage to which her abdomen was connected. It looked like a large white caterpillar and it was thicker and longer than her entire main body. Due to this strange egg-creating organ, the Queen found itself rooted in place and dependent on her drones for everything. They needed to feed her and also to protect her.

Finally, Rusty approached the ant queen with caution, his sword gleaming in the dim light of the chamber. The queen clicked and hissed as she sensed the threat he posed. She swung her massive front legs at him along with her mandibles in a warning but he remained unimpressed.

‘As long as I judge the distance well… I should be able to kill her…’

While this ant monster was a lot bigger and better armored, it was still just an ant. It had the same weaknesses as the smaller ones that he could exploit. After fighting the smaller drones for so long, he had identified gaps in their insect armor. These spots were usually at the joint areas or at the parts where the head, thorax, and abdomen connected. However, when it came to this one here, there was an even bigger weak spot.

He circled around the ant queen to arrive at the strange-looking organ she was connected to. His sword moved in a thrusting motion as he pierced it from the side. Instantly he could tell that the monster was in pain and receiving damage. He wasn’t sure how other creatures worked in this world but everything had health points. It was possible to defeat some monsters by hitting the same spot over and over again, in this case, that was also part of his ploy.

‘Don’t hate me for this ant queen, I need that copper!’

Thus he continued to hit her weak spot, over and over again while the monster trashed around in agony. Her movements became more erratic and her attempts to defend herself grew feeble. The once mighty monarch of the ant colony was now reduced to a wounded creature, or so he thought. His assault was relentless but the queen still had one trick up her sleeve.

He could see the monster’s health bar with the help of his identification skill but he was sure that it was going down. But his enemy didn’t want to just give up and die. As he was stabbing the rear end continuously the ant queen started thrashing even harder. It was to the point that he could see the caterpillar-like rear organ sliding forward with her.

‘Wait, what is it doing?’

The monster was doing something strange, it was doing something to its abdomen or to be more precise, to the part that connected to the egg-laying organ. It started to stab it while also yanking itself forward as if it was trying to tear it off and get free.

‘This… doesn’t look good…’

He realized that he might have underestimated this monster’s tenacity. The ant queen's attempts to free herself were becoming increasingly frantic and she was starting to separate herself from the rear organ. The rest of her body was mostly uninjured and probably capable of defending itself. Eventually, he attempted to switch to attacking the main body but after a few pokes, he found it hard to pierce the carapace and even the weak parts.

His corroded sword had become dulled with time and he wasn’t sure if the time to spend his restorative resources was wise. Thus he continued attempting to stab the monster and slash at it with the help of his power skills. With the added momentum and attacking power he managed to dislodge one of the monster's hind legs. However, the monster wasn’t letting up and finally managed to separate its main body from the organ. It had managed to free itself and first fell forward in a daze.

Rusty didn’t panic yet as he tossed himself at the creature from behind. He would not relent until the queen was defeated but even after landing a few hits, the monster was still not dead. It turned around and angrily launched itself at the living armor that had been giving it pain for so long. The monster ant was bigger and stronger so his body was flung into the distance and collided with the nearby wall.

The monster gave out a massive shriek of anger and its antennae continued to twitch with anger. It looked at Rusty who was rattling around and trying to gather himself off the ground. His foot was loose and so was his left arm. With haste, he attempted to set himself back into place but the monster was coming. It charged with speed and force that he had never seen before.

Rusty scrambled to his feet, his damaged body protesting against the sudden movement. With his sword in hand, he braced himself for the incoming assault. The ant queen charged at him relentlessly, her mandibles snapping menacingly. He intercepted them with the help of his sword or at least attempted but to no surprise, his sword finally snapped in two.

His body was slammed against a nearby wall as the ant queen attempted to gut him. However, even though her mandibles were sharp and bit through his bronze body, this was not the end. He retracted his broken sword, stuck it into the monster’s mouth, and then quickly activated his strongest skill.

The ant monster’s mouth started glowing along with the leftover part of his blade that he enhanced with the light element. These monsters were all susceptible to this element and he could infuse his weapon with it. Once inside the monster’s mouth, the glowing sword entered its body and made it retreat. Rusty could see that the queen was in disarray and he needed to quickly follow up. This was the time to spend the rest of his bronze and conjure up a new blade.

The holes and gashes on his bronze body started to rapidly restore themselves and he was granted a replacement sword. Soon after his only leftover mana crystal was crushed to restore his MP. All of his bronze reserves had been just consumed but he didn’t care, the foe needed to be defeated first. Soon he launched himself at his adversary, his blade glowing red as he launched a series of powerful thrusts and slashes.

His attacks were precise and relentless, each strike aiming for the weak spots he had identified earlier. The ant queen, now weakened and disoriented, struggled to defend herself against Rusty's onslaught. Her mandibles snapped wildly and even were able to produce new wounds on his metallic form. However, he did not care and only plunged his sword into one of the monster’s eyes and finally, the monster was faltering.

With each strike, Rusty felt a surge of power coursing through him. This was his moment to prove his strength and resilience. He refused to let the ant queen defeat him, he would not fall after coming this far. The cavern echoed with the clash of metal against chitin as Rusty and the ant queen engaged in a fierce battle. Despite her size and strength, she had been injured too much and the metallic armor proved to be more resilient.

Finally, after what seemed like an eternity, Rusty delivered the decisive blow. His sword pierced through the weakened carapace of the ant queen, dislodging her head along with it. Without being able to screech in agony, the queen collapsed to the ground, her body unmoving and lifeless.

You have gained +250 experience points.

You have gained a new title.

Congratulations you have gained a level.

‘Haha, I did it but…’

While he was happy that he had been victorious, there was one little problem. The light crystal that he had left behind was starting to dim and behind it was a sea of angry ant drones. They were clearly enraged by the death of their queen and probably wanted to have a nibble at his metallic body…