A blade-like silence enveloped the cave. Narikeh, who had adjusted his grip on the huge sword slung over his shoulder, slowly began walking. The sound of the blade scraping against the ground sent chills down my spine.
Narikeh, the Fifth Guardian of the Primordial Evil with the combined appearance of an ant and a human. He was a bastard with an authoritarian and patriarchal personality.
In the original work, Narikeh quite liked Erina’s appearance and attempted to kidnap her, saying he would make her the queen ant of the ant clan he would rule in the future.
However, since it was nearly impossible for Erina, a delicately raised noble lady, to maintain her sanity in an ant nest swarming with insects, Erina, who fell into despair, took her own life. I whispered low toward the frozen Erina, just like in the original work.
“One, two…”
The fully revealed appearance of Narikeh was close to shocking. A height that seemed at least 2 meters tall, a muscular body, and even an ant’s head. Every element that composed Narikeh said he was a dangerous existence.
Just as I was about to shout three in the tension, Erina, who had been dripping tears, grabbed my forearm and shook her head. Her body seemed paralyzed with fear.
“N-no. I can’t move. My legs won’t move.”
“Erina-nim, there’s no time to act spoiled. If we don’t run now, we’ll die.”
“…”
“Run, quickly!”
When I shouted with veins bulging in my neck, the startled Erina finally turned her body. Seeing Erina fleeing in a panic, Narikeh clicked his tongue. Then he shouted in a fierce voice.
“What? Have you ever seen such an ill-mannered female? How dare a female walk ahead of me?”
“Narikeh-nim!”
I immediately prostrated myself right in front of Narikeh, who was about to chase after Erina.
The Narikeh described in the novel was no ordinary piece of trash. Not only did he torture the females he found under the pretext of education, but if they failed to properly fulfill the role of wife, he would cruelly kill them and find new queen ant candidates.
It wasn’t just his violent temperament. The powerful Dark Magic he possessed had enough strength to make even Kiss cough up blood. In this situation, the probability that Erina and I could subdue Narikeh was close to zero.
Therefore, knowing the future, I had no choice but to help Erina. No matter how mean she’d been to me, I couldn’t just stand by and watch a girl be treated that way. Moreover, I belonged to the category of looking similar to Erina. Perhaps I could become a substitute for Erina.
Cold sweat dripping from my forehead fell to the ground. Without lifting my gaze fixed on the floor, I spoke in a trembling voice.
“I greet Narikeh-nim, the Fifth Guardian of the Primordial Evil.”
“Hmm.”
“Narikeh-nim, that wench is far too insolent to become your companion. I wish to become Narikeh-nim’s companion. Please grant me permission.”
“To bow your head the moment you see me—you’re quite clever for a female.”
The two feet that came into view gradually drew closer. Narikeh, who crouched down in front of me, grabbed a fistful of my hair. My neck bent backward at Narikeh’s action of forcibly making me raise my head. The moment the ant’s antennae came close enough to touch my face, I squeezed my eyes shut. Narikeh spoke irritably.
“Wait, what? You’re not even a female? Ugh, what a letdown. I like big breasts, you know. I’ll have to have you die.”
“Narikeh-nim, if I may be so bold… I’ve heard that incubating ant eggs is possible even with a male’s body.”
Narikeh, who had hesitated, tilted his head as if telling me to continue. I calmly continued speaking.
“Incubating ant eggs requires considerable stamina consumption, and there are often cases where they die while carrying the eggs. As a male, I have much better stamina than a female. Furthermore, I’ve heard of Narikeh-nim’s reputation for a long time and have always admired you.”
“…”
“Therefore, I wish to carry Narikeh-nim’s eggs.”
“What?”
The job of a queen ant was simple. To carry and hatch the eggs made with Narikeh. Since ant eggs would hatch simply by being carried inside the body, there was mention in the original work that males were also possible.
Narikeh, who had been quiet, burst into loud laughter. His hearty laughter echoed throughout the cave.
“To be born a male and volunteer to become a female yourself—you have no pride, do you? But I have quite discerning tastes, you see. Unless you’re a considerable beauty, you won’t satisfy me.”
“…”
“Open your eyes.”
At the voice tinged with amusement, I slowly opened my eyes. Narikeh, who had been checking my face this way and that while twisting the hair he was gripping, smiled with satisfaction.
“You’re not even just a male, but a human male. I could eat you when I get bored of using you. Human meat is famous for having better meat quality than beastmen.”
“If I can be eaten by Narikeh-nim, that too would be an honor.”
“Hmm.”
Narikeh, who had been looking at me as if intrigued, released the hair he’d been gripping as if tossing it away. I immediately bowed my head to the ground again. Narikeh, who had been nudging my head with his foot, opened his mouth.
“Fine, I only need one queen ant for breeding anyway. I’ll gladly take you with me.”
“…”
“What are you doing? Hurry up and express your gratitude to me.”
You crazy bastard. Would you be able to say you’re grateful in a situation where you might become a breeding stud?
By the way, after a sow, now a queen ant. Can a life really be this unfortunate? I firmly suppressed the rising curse words. Shaking off the strangely felt sense of déjà vu, I answered in a voice that sounded pleased.
“Thank you, Narikeh-nim.”
* * *
Erina’s feet, which had been running through the fiercely pouring rain, caught on a tree root. With a thud, Erina, who had fallen face-first onto the muddy ground, swallowed her tears while letting out a groan. Her scraped knees hurt, and her mind went blank with fear that the bizarre magical beast might chase her again at any moment.
‘Wh-what should I do? Ash definitely told me to find Kilius. I got lost running blindly through the rain. At this rate, Ash will…’
A shadow fell over Erina’s head as she dripped tears. Erina, whose body stiffened at the strange fragrance heard right in front of her, slowly raised her head.
A man with an ant’s face like the man she’d encountered in the cave was looking down at her with a sword in hand. Erina, who was trembling before the fear of death, shook her head.
“D-don’t come.”
The man, who had tilted his head as if not understanding her words, soon raised the sword he was holding. The terrified Erina squeezed her eyes shut and curled up her body. Just as she braced herself for the pain that would soon come, she heard the sound of something falling along with a scream. Feeling something was strange, Erina slowly opened her eyes.
‘This person is…’
The one who had cut down the man trying to attack her was the Crown Prince, who had revealed himself at the banquet. Deus’s gaze, standing expressionlessly while covered in blood, reached Erina. Then, as if he had no further business, he turned his body without hesitation. Erina, who had been making a dumbfounded expression, shouted.
“C-Crown Prince!”
“…”
“Ash, Ash is…”
Only after Ash was mentioned did Deus, who had stopped walking, turn back. Erina, who had clasped both hands as if in prayer, trembled. Deus, who had been looking down at her with a cold face, opened his mouth.
“Ash is?”
“Sob, a man with the appearance of the ant clan… suddenly appeared from inside the cave. Even at a glance, he looked dangerous. I was able to escape thanks to Ash buying me time, but…”
“…”
“Ash couldn’t escape.”
Deus’s lips parted slightly. The condition of the magic that could take the dead Ash to the Void was only if he himself directly killed Ash.
If Ash was killed by someone else, he couldn’t collect his soul, and taking him to the Void would also be impossible. He would never be able to meet Ash again.
“Be-behind you!”
Erina, who had checked behind the frozen Deus, shouted in an agitated voice. Another member of the ant clan, who had aimed his sword at Deus who turned his head a beat late, tilted his head bizarrely. Just before the man’s sword could slash Deus’s neck, another sword that appeared from somewhere beheaded the man.
Clang!
The sword fell from the hands of the man who had fallen to the ground with his neck severed. Kiss, who appeared while brushing back his rain-soaked hair, made eye contact with Deus. Kiss, who had been looking at the collapsed Erina, opened his mouth.
“This is strange. The ant clan forms colonies underground and lives there, so they wouldn’t come outside.”
Deus, who had approached the man’s corpse, bent down. Then he dipped his thumb in the blood flowing from the man’s mouth and tasted it. Deus, who had been savoring the taste, clicked his tongue and straightened his bent body again.
“It tastes sweet. He’s addicted to pheromones.”
“…Pheromones, so he received orders from the leader.”
The ant clan dug holes underground to live, so they rarely came up to the surface. Moreover, they were a group with strong cohesion, so they moved according to the command pheromones emitted by their leader. However, since they were an inherently gentle-natured clan, a preemptive attack by the ant clan was something that originally couldn’t happen.
Kiss, who had been calmly assessing the situation, hesitated and looked back at Erina. Then he expressed his puzzlement.
“Lady Erina, where is Ash?”
“Well…”
Just as the tearful Erina was about to continue speaking, screams were heard from here and there throughout the forest.
