Chapter 37: King And Knight (2)
Editor: Atlas Studios
For some reason, Foolish, who System had sent away and was vigilant toward, returned here and attacked the intruder without hesitation.
Because of her continuous growth these few days, Foolish's rank seemed to have increased again. Her body length was close to 7cm, which was twice the size of a regular reddish-brown soldier ant.
System observed that the mouse's hind leg was injured due to Foolish's bite, and it started bleeding. Maybe it was because of the corrosive effect of the antacid on its wound.
The mouse huddled up and licked the wound, while Foolish moved right in front of System, shielding System behind her.
"Attack it, now!"
System knew this was a perfect opportunity as the mouse was licking its wound.
If he wanted to attack this mouse, it would be now or never.
Foolish received and obeyed System's orders without question!
Foolish opened and showed her six-centimeter-long mandibles. They were twice as large as the size of her head when they fully opened. She aimed at the mouse's head and rushed straight at it!
However, before she rushed to the mouse and tore its head…
The mouse sensed Foolish's movement and shook its body, which was even more agile, knocking down Foolish!
The mouse did not stop there. It scurried toward the direction where Foolish fell, and after biting twice, it flung Foolish again.
Insect hunters were proficient at instakill ambushes, but they were not suited for a direct, head-on attack.
Although Foolish had grown to 7cm and appeared to be very large, her body structure was very slender and light. The fifteen-centimeter-mouse's weight was dozens of times that of Foolish.
Naturally, Foolish suffered from the shortcoming of her body's weight and flexibility and was attacked by the mouse instead.
Kaka… Kaka…
The mouse held a black object and started chewing on it, producing an ear-splitting gnawing sound in the silent cave.
Foolish shook her head as she felt a little dizzy from the mouse's earlier attack.
System noticed that the last leg on Foolish's left side had disappeared—the mouse was chewing on that leg!
It might be doing that to intimidate or threaten Foolish. Perhaps the mouse was in a teasing mood.
Instead of giving Foolish a fatal attack just now, it was eating the leg in front of Foolish.
System did not feel any anxiety or fear through [Spirit Connection] coming from Foolish.
He only felt two emotions in Foolish's mind, one of which was her worry for System, and the other was her anger toward the mouse!
Foolish adjusted her body and charged at the mouse without waiting for System's command.
Unfortunately, the outcome was the same as before.
This time, the mouse easily tore off two more legs, the right front one and the left middle one, and then flung Foolish again.
Kaka… Kaka…
The mouse tossed aside the half-eaten leg, picked up one newly-torn leg, and gnawed on it.
System even heard the sound of the mouse sucking flesh and blood from the leg's exoskeleton.
Even if Foolish was not injured, she could not defeat this mouse, not to mention she only had three legs left now.
The mouse would eat Foolish's legs, one by one, in front of it, and then torture her to death.
"Foolish, come here."
System sent a telepathic message to Foolish, calling her to his side.
Foolish, who felt dizzy from the mouse's attack, shook her head. Some cracks had formed on her head due to the impact and murky white liquid was flowing out of them.
Insects could be very stubborn. Even after the loss of three legs and a shattered head, Foolish approached System at her usual speed.
Foolish transmitted a puzzled emotion to System as she did not know what he wanted to do.
System looked at the mouse. It finished eating one of Foolish's legs, so it picked up another one and continued enjoying its feast.
Finally, System made his decision. He sorted out his thoughts and tried to send a telepathic message to Foolish in a smooth and sincere tone.
"Foolish, hide behind me. When it attacks me later, run away and return to your original ant nest, where the real ant queen is. Actually, I'm not the queen, I'm a grasshopper."
System's emotional state was weird. Every time he looked at his lifespan countdown, he felt terrified, but now that he was facing death, System did not feel fearful anymore.
The ant larvae around him could hardly squirm, and it was almost impossible for them to escape. Foolish was the only one with any hope of escaping, and System wanted the soldier ant to survive.
Unexpectedly, Foolish did not respond to System's telepathic message and remained silent.
Ever since Foolish had encountered System, it was the first time that the soldier ant disobeyed his orders.
Suddenly, Foolish turned her body around and dashed at an extraordinary speed with her three remaining legs. She shook her huge mandibles violently and charged at the mouse again!!
Kaka… Kaka…
Soon, the mouse flung Foolish in the same manner and deprived her of two more legs, leaving her only with her foreleg.
Foolish used her foreleg, as well as her movable abdominal joint, to wriggle on the ground and attack the mouse again.
Unfortunately, Foolish was sluggish. By the time the mouse devoured the last leg, Foolish was still on her way to reach the mouse.
The mouse seemed to lose interest in Foolish as she could no longer fight back. Thus, it approached Foolish and used its front legs to flip Foolish's crippled body, throwing Foolish around like a sandbag.
When the mouse noticed that Foolish was exhausted from the torture, it grabbed Foolish's body. It seemed the mouse was ready to put an end on Foolish's life…
And that was when the miracle happened!
Thud—
A translucent liquid with tinges of red gushed out of the mouse's head!
Perhaps it was because of the mouse's negligence, or it was Foolish's long-planned attack, but the stinger in Foolish's abdomen had miraculously pierced the mouse's eye.
The mouse shrieked in misery and rolled and jumped in the cave continuously. The stinger and the overwhelming pain frightened the mouse to the point it fled, leaving behind the half-buried soldier ant!
…
The barely-alive Foolish struggled out of the soil with her foreleg and her movable abdomen and crawled toward System.
After a few minutes, Foolish finally reached System. Then, she turned her body and pointed her mandibles outward…
Chapter 38: King And Knight (3)
Editor: Atlas Studios
To System's surprise, his lies and suspicion earned him Foolish's loyalty.
Foolish had not hesitated to attack the mouse even after System had revealed that the was not the ant queen.
System examined Foolish's crippled body, shattered head, and the bleeding wounds where its legs were supposed to be, and felt touched.
"Why did you do that?"
For some reason, System sent a telepathic message to Foolish once again. "I'm not the ant queen. I'm a grasshopper."
"…"
Foolish did not reply and remained silent. It opened its mouth and showed its mandibles, staying in its position to protect System. However, the remaining antenna on its head trembled slightly, proving it had received System's message.
"I'm a grasshopper, not an ant queen."
System kept sending the same message to Foolish.
"No, you're, ant… queen."
Finally, Foolish responded to System. Its telepathic message was firm, and it seemed like it did not want to admit that System was not its ant queen.
"… I'm not."
System sighed and tried to explain again, though he also was unaware why he insisted on telling this to Foolish. Although he was aware Foolish would likely turn against him if it understood, he still did it anyway.
"You're… ant queen." Foolish seemed to be reluctant to admit the truth.
However, in the next moment, Foolish said something that exceeded System's expectations.
Foolish seemed to have figured something out and sent a message to System, "You are, ant… queen, no, you are, queen."
System was stunned for a second. Then he recalled speaking to her a lot after their encounter because he had been lonely and had not cared whether she would understand or not.
Probably, that was when Foolish had learned the word queen.
"… Why do you think I'm the queen?" asked System.
This time, Foolish did not send him a telepathic message. Instead, she used [Spirit Connection] to show him several images.
Amongst them was the image of System giving Foolish the transparent stone, the image of System chatting with Foolish using [Spirit Connection], the image of System ordering Foolish to eat plenty of food so that she would not starve anymore, and the image of System gently petting Foolish's head using his foreleg…
Several scenes, which were insignificant to System, connected, and he sensed Foolish's gratitude and excitement from them.
"Is that why you think of me as a queen?" asked System through a telepathic message.
"Yes."
Foolish gave an affirmative response, and System knew that if his body could move, he would be smiling.
"Nonsense! How can I be called a queen when I'm a male?" asked System in a relaxed tone.
Foolish did not seem to understand what he meant. She slowly turned her body using its remaining foreleg and showed System a puzzled look.
System looked at Foolish and the ant larvae curled next to him before he suddenly came to a realization. Be it Foolish or those ant larvae, he could earn their trust without lying about his identity.
He did not have to lie about being the ant queen!
System said, "Don't call me Queen, that's for females. Call me, King. As long as I'm still here, I'll be your King."
"King?" asked Foolish, confused.
Obviously, she could not fully understand what exactly System was talking about.
"The king is someone that has been elected as the highest administrator by the people of the world because of his wisdom and ability."
System remembered the explanation of the concept of king in his previous life. Whether or not Foolish could understand, System still sent the telepathic message.
Evidently, Foolish did not quite understand its meaning. She pondered for an extended period before sending a message again. "You, are the King, then, what am I?"
"You, you're a soldier ant… No, since I'm the King, it's not suitable to call you a soldier ant anymore, so you…"
System fell into contemplation when he suddenly recalled a class—knight!
In System's previous life, knights abode to eight principles, and Foolish seemed to fulfill the criteria for most of them.
Humility!
Foolish was born not to be arrogant. Although she had the power to command normal worker ants, she had never been malicious towards them.
Sacrifice!
Did you have the courage to sacrifice yourself when it required you to pay a price to serve the majority's interests?
It might be difficult for a normal, intelligent race, but it was an insignificant matter to the soldier ant, Foolish.
Bravery!
Undoubtedly, cowards were not worthy of the honorary title of knighthood. Those without courage could not even pass the test of knighthood.
And Foolish was born to fight bravely!
Faith!
As the human knights believed in religion and kings, the ants believed in their queen, and Foolish believed in him—System.
Honesty!
Honesty was always a praiseworthy virtue, and Foolish did not even know how to tell a lie.
Justice!
Impartiality and strict adherence to the law.
Ants were born with their own set of rules, and so was Foolish.
…
Foolish already possessed six principles out of the eight.
System said, "Since I'm the King, then you're the knight who guards the King!"
"… Knight?"
"Yes. Knight."
System gave it an affirmative answer while showing her the image he had formed in his mind.
In the image, the knight was practicing his swordsmanship and martial arts daily, chopping at the wooden stakes.
The knight was wearing armor and holding a huge sword, half knelt to the King, reciting the Knight Oath.
The image changed as the knight charged to and fought with the enemy on his horse. Then System imagined the fantasy world. Now, the knight rode a fiery red dragon and soared through the sky, attacking the dense Undead legions of undead…
"Is this… knight?"
"Yes."
"Knight, is more powerful, than, a mouse."
"Yeah, much more powerful than a mouse…" System agreed as he thought of something and added, "Foolish, I want to give you a name."
"… Name?"
"It's like how I've been calling you Foolish all this time. How about giving you a new name, like Suva? Wait, soldier ants are female. I think a feminine name would be more appropriate. Your name will be Shava."
"I, Sha… va."
"You, Shava."
System sent a message to Shava, confirming her new name.
Suddenly, System's boiling blood started to cool down—his third molting had finally begun!
…
After staring at System for a long time, Shava, whose left foreleg was her only limb, finally noticed that her king had entered a state of deep sleep.
She was still unable to fully digest and understand the messages that System had sent to her, but she had a deep impression of them.
Shava especially liked the image of the half-kneeling knight that pledged allegiance to the King, and she wanted to pledge her allegiance to System like that as well.
Shava tried to imitate the half-kneeling human, however, as almost all of her limbs were gone, she was unable to imitate at all.
Shava used her foreleg and tried to stick her stinger in the soil so that she could imitate the pose.
Unfortunately, after hundreds of attempts and dozens of failures, she was unsuccessful.
Shava ended up having to lie on the ground and make an oath of loyalty to System, and she even pressed her remaining foreleg against her chest exoskeleton.
"I, Shava, take the oath, pledge to be… loyal to my king, and never leave his side."
Once Shava finished, she used her foreleg and movable abdominal joint to wriggle out of the cave.
The mouse had severed almost all of Shava's legs, while her head's exoskeleton was shattered. Although her wounds and the huge blood loss made her very weak, Shava felt that her body was full of power!
Shava was the King's knight, and she had to ensure his safety.
Three hours later…
Shava, with her crippled body, fell and rolled down the cave many times before she finally crawled to the cave's exit.
Ten minutes later, several dark brown worker ants gathered towards Shava.
In the ant society, a crippled ant, like Shava, would meet only one end—the ants would kill her and collect her carcass.
Shava dragged her crippled body to her first battle since she had officially become System's knight!
…
After a few hours, a dozen worker ants appeared near System's temporary nest, patrolling busily and guarding the temporary nest where System was.
Amongst those worker ants was a peculiar soldier ant. She had lost five of her six legs, and four worker ants were carrying her like they were her steeds.
There were many tiny new wounds on the soldier ant's body, and she seemed to have fallen asleep as she was physically weak.
However, even though she had fallen asleep, her head was raised high and looked very proud!
…
In her slumber, Shava had a dream, and this was her first time dreaming.
In the dream, she was riding a lizard and defeated swiftly the mouse that had offended her King.
Then, with a complete body, she took an oath of knighthood before the King, and the king gave her a red stone as a reward.
At the same time, the king petted her on the head with his foreleg…
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