BXBX NOVEL Chapter 52: Taming The Ant Queen
At the far end of the throne room, an empty golden throne sat atop an elevated platform, with a red carpet stretching all the way to Nox\'s feet.
With a wave of his hand, his fanged dagger materialized in his grasp. He eyed the throne with cautiousness, his mind spinning as he tried to think of a possible way to get out of here. He felt so exposed, as if he had been kidnapped and blindfolded.
"Is it the queen?" Nox wondered. She was his primary suspect; it couldn\'t be anyone else.
"After I stabbed her, what happened? Is this another of her skills? Did she have a skill like that?" Nox\'s thoughts raced.
Although he could see the information on monsters, Nox could only memorize powerful skills that would be difficult to deal with, as it was too mentally taxing to recall every ability during a battle.
Still, Nox could swear he hadn\'t seen a teleportation skill, which he would have been most cautious of.
"Be at ease, this is my subconscious," a voice echoed. Nox\'s head snapped forward to see the ant queen seated on the throne.
The same ant queen he had driven the spear into. However, there was no cavity on her chest, blood, or trace of any fighting. She was in the exact state before the fighting had started.
Just as Nox was having internal crises on how to fight the ant queen all over again, the ant queen spoke in a loud tone.
"Like I said, this is my subconscious, so everything you\'re seeing is not real. I\'m still very weak and have only some minutes left to live before I pass away to join the past queens."
\'I wonder how I\'ll face them after failing my duty to guide the colony. I just hope this human agrees to my proposal,\' the ant queen thought.
"That\'s a relief," Nox said, his muscles relaxing a little, but he still kept his dagger beside him in case the ant queen made any sudden move.
He held the queen\'s gaze and asked the most important question: "Why am I here?"
"Because I want to have a talk with you," the queen said with a serious expression. An oppressive silence descended on the great hall for some time before she continued.
"You could have finished me in one attack. Why did you try to turn me into your slave? I thought you humans could grow stronger by killing our kind after all."
Nox shrugged. "Because it has something to do with my class, I guess." Seeing no reason to hide anything, he decided to come clean.
"You saw the cat and panda helping me back there? They\'re my pets; it\'s the reason I could swiftly take out your army."
"If I had to guess, you wanted to make me your pet as well?" The queen\'s smile was bitter. "Was that the reason for that strange feeling I felt when you placed your hand on me? If you had succeeded, I would\'ve been bound to follow all your commands? From any angle, it feels like slavery."
"Indeed, you\'re right. But if you had noticed the interaction with Fluffington and Thirteen, you could tell we love each other just like friends would."
"Just like friends?" the queen repeated. Her mind flashed back to the intense murderous intent she had felt from the panda and cat while torturing Nox.
\'Those killing intents came from the panda and cat. If they were in a master-slave relationship, that wouldn\'t be possible. This human might be telling the truth,\' she reasoned.
"If you agree to be my ally, I won\'t do anything immoral to you. I will only enhance your power so you can aid me in battle."
"Very well then, I believe you, but I have a condition," the queen stated. "As you might have noticed, I\'m the queen of my colony and there are over five hundred of us, including the children. Our colony has existed for a long time with over 9 recorded past queens.
"We have history and heritage that we would like to continue to preserve. Then there is also my people. I\'m afraid if I leave them now they\'ll wander into the world and get themselves killed, causing our entire colony to perish."
"So what are you suggesting?" Nox asked, already having an idea where this conversation was heading.
"If you want to make me your ally, then you\'ll have to agree to my condition. If not, I\'ll go with option two, which is killing myself because it\'s better than staying alive and watching my brethren perish slowly," the queen said seriously, holding Nox\'s gaze.
"Why is this so difficult? Taming the others was easy, so why...?" Nox felt a splitting headache as he looked at the majestic ant queen. He took a moment to weigh the pros and cons and realized the offer wasn\'t too bad.
\'The ant colony could be my personal army in the future. No matter how I look at it, I\'m the one benefiting most,\' Nox thought, and he readily agreed to the queen\'s demands.
The human had promised her increased strength? She would use that strength to advance the colony, pushing them to heights even the past queens hadn\'t reached.
The ant queen had grand dreams. This was a sacrifice for the greater good. If it meant her colony would prosper, she didn\'t mind becoming the beast tamer\'s pet. After all, the second queen had the most prosperous reign because she, too, had been a beast tamer\'s pet.
\'History is repeating itself.\' The ant queen smiled, and Nox instantly found himself in the real world again. Quickly, he placed his hand on the queen and cast the skill [Tame] again.
Following a burst of brilliant light, the mark of Infinity appeared. The ant queen rose to her feet and bowed to Nox, pledging her loyalty to her liege.
...
Ant Scourge Queen
"Master of the hive, with razor-sharp mandibles and wings that blur as she darts through the shadows. Her sting can paralyze even the hardiest of foes."
Rating: Intermediate Tier Level 9
Progress: 0/100%
MP: 440/4840
HP: 220/220
Stam: (100%/100%)
Stre: 60
Agil: 50
Intel: 40
Special Skills:
Improved Camouflage, Stinger Swarm, Venomous Sting, Hive Nexus, Chitin Armor, Pheromone Manipulation
Ultimate Evolution Path 1: Hive Empress
Requirements: Reach Emperor Tier, obtain the Crown of the Ant Monarchs, and perform a ritual in the Royal Chamber of Ants.
Hive Empress: Enhanced strength, agility, and intelligence. Ability to control vast armies of ants, coordinating them with tactical precision. Venomous sting evolves to induce hallucinations and madness in victims.
Pheromone manipulation becomes Hive Mind control, enabling the ant queen to temporarily take control of the minds of lesser creatures, turning them into temporary allies or causing them to turn against their own kind.
(AN: I\'ll explain the skills whenever the ant queen wants to use them)
––––
"Interesting," a voice said from the top floor of Blight Castle. The owner of the voice had watched the fight from beginning to end. "So the legendary Hound can turn beasts into his slaves," the voice continued in amazement and reverence. "No wonder he\'s the leader of the False Hope Church."