Chapter 6: Endless Expansion (3)
“If you go outside, wouldn’t it be better to learn photosynthesis?”
[Setting aside whether we can actually learn the abilities of plants, do you really think there’s something waiting at the end of this labyrinth?]
“I was just holding on to some hope.”
As expected, I observed the situation after sending out the trees I had chopped down from the back mountain.
The animals from the fifth level, which seemed to be strong, eventually could not withstand the collective lynching and were eaten one by one.
It was inevitable because they were just solitary beasts that didn’t form packs.
Rather, the ants from the fourth level, which gathered in colonies and attacked in groups, seemed stronger.
[The abundant food from level five provided us with enough energy and greatly contributed to the evolution of our species. This will also be recorded in history. It is the moment we evolve into a higher existence.]
“…We need to grow in size. I can’t keep living like an ant forever.”
The legion that consumed the so-called higher animals from the fifth level began to slowly grow in size.
Until now, we had lacked data on larger animals, but that was no longer the case.
In fact, the more data we accumulated, the faster and more diversely the modifications and optimizations that we had not been able to utilize would be carried out.
[Basing on toads, soldiers are clad in shells and adjusting their body shapes as they harvest and crush mushrooms.]
As the first step, the newly created soldiers were large.
They moved about crushing those sizable mushrooms with their strong jaws.
The crushed mushrooms were decomposed by the roots extending from the nest and the smaller decomposers produced, converting into nutrients.
In reality, the nutrients contained in those thick, large mushrooms seemed to be several times more than the wood I was providing.
[The new soldiers seized the air, hunting down those living on the walls and ceilings.]
We had already classified and divided troops down to the cellular level.
While based on toads, they only resembled quadrupedal vertebrates in that aspect.
Instead, the new legionnaires could be called a “composite,” adorned with a slender body, bat wings, shells, jaws, and a stinger on the tail, fluttering their wings as they set off for reconnaissance on the next level.
I also left my spot.
It was time to eat.
“What kind of game are you playing?”
“Huh?”
I was startled by the sudden question while quietly eating.
My younger sibling, Kang Do-yeon, was looking at me with a furrowed brow, having stopped eating.
She cast a glance at the mobile phone I had placed on the table.
“It’s nothing.”
“You were making such a fuss about the upcoming test, yet here you are just playing mobile games.”
“Why the sudden interest?”
I chuckled. It was unusual for her to care about what I was doing.
“Forget it. Anyway, the test is over next week.”
“That’s right.”
As we continued talking, I realized why she had brought this up.
There was no way I wouldn’t remember.
“I know the anniversary of Dad’s passing, so don’t worry about it.”
“…Okay.”
She glanced over and began eating quietly again.
The atmosphere became slightly awkward, but it would clear up soon.
I finished my meal and stood up first.
“So, this game… When exactly does the tutorial end? Why isn’t my account level going up?”
[The tutorial is cleared once you pass beyond level 9, that is, when you reach level 10.]
“How arbitrary.”
Now the sixth level was also being picked clean by us.
At this rate of growth, it didn’t seem like it would be that difficult.
[Look. It is evidence that the legion is evolving into a higher form of life.]
A single image appeared on the screen.
This was the lowest level, the origin from which we had emerged.
Now, this place, completely covered by our nest, had a grotesque flesh wall that was writhing.
“Hmm…”
[Do you think it’s grotesque? That pulsating flesh wall mimics the internal reproductive organs of a higher life form.]
“Why’s that?”
[It is for efficiency.]
Frowning, I examined the flesh wall.
So, according to the explanation, this flesh wall was essentially a reproductive organ that had been separated and enlarged.
Literally, it was our nest.
The entire legion was now slowly beginning to specialize.
Production would focus on production, while thought would focus on thought.
[The newly refined production system is beginning to operate.]
The writhing of the flesh wall intensified, and something began to emerge, tearing through the meaty wall.
Its identity was a large egg.
[By introducing the concept of ‘growth,’ the legion was able to drastically increase the energy efficiency required for breeding, going beyond merely reproducing itself like a tumor.]
The eggs produced from the flesh wall grew faster than before and hatched.
Such nests were filling the entirety of the occupied levels, with hundreds or thousands of these eggs pouring out.
[And look. An organ that could be properly called brain tissue is being created. This even possesses a concept of investment. It is already aware that advanced and specialized neural tissue is necessary. This will be recorded in history. When that might be, I don’t know, but the brain of our sufficiently developed species will surely acquire self-awareness.]
What was seated in the lowest layer was not only the production apparatus.
In the deepest and safest place, there was one brain connected to the legion.
For now, it was merely a demonstration organ that wasn’t of much help. However, if more data accumulated, that brain would certainly grow larger.
*
“What is this?”
[New types of enemies.]
The moment I woke up, I sought out my phone in a daze.
There was no need to check the time. Just looking at the colors outside the window confirmed it was still the dim early dawn.
“What is it?”
Rubbing my eyes, I observed the screen.
In the seventh level, the new large reconnaissance troops we had freshly produced were in a state of total annihilation in the area we had apparently scouted first, which was nothing special.
[It is the same as before. Those small entities that couldn’t scout prior have responded this time.]
“What the hell…”
A new reconnaissance unit was dispatched.
This time, it was a small entity based on wasps.
That entity found enemies that we hadn’t been able to detect last time.
[These include bats with two pairs of wings, which we have already hunted in levels five and six.]
“…Why are there so many?”
The shared ceiling came into view.
And those densely packed creatures were undoubtedly bats.
There seemed to be at least hundreds of them.
Knowing that those alien bats could easily grow to the size of a child sent chills down my spine.
[Clearly, they are somewhat lacking to be called a ‘legion.’ They merely gather and hunt individually throughout the levels.]
“Even so, there’s no way we can win if that many of them swarm us. Just look at the physical difference.”
I muttered with a wry smile.
Now that I was slowly grasping the situation, I realized the judgment I made was impossible.
The legion lacked the power to engage in a straightforward contest of strength with that swarm of bats.
While we could produce combatants of a similar size and superior ability, we wouldn’t be able to match their numbers.
[That is not how we think.]
“What?”
[Didn’t I tell you? The legion does not stop. Right now, we’re actually delighted. If we can consume those numerous bodies for nourishment, we can, in return, create a large-scale unit like those bats.]
“How do you plan to fight them?”
[…Trust us.]
The legion had already begun to move.
Although I didn’t understand their true intent yet, it seemed they weren’t thinking of a head-on confrontation.
Rather than replenishing troops, they were quite literally willing to let their existing forces be killed to convert them into sustenance.
“This is really intriguing.”
I began preparing to get dressed.
I had planned to cram for today’s test.
[The legion has devised its first strategy.]
And not long after, the legion began to release the accumulated energy again.
I examined the appearance of the nest closely.
From the small eggs, something began to crawl out again.
[The first strategy decided by the legion was a cunning tactic. But whether this will work is uncertain.]
There were small creatures crawling along the walls.
They had only one weapon.
That was a stinger, which contained the most potent poison created by the legion, the acid poison.
As soon as it was judged that a direct confrontation would be difficult, they opted for this shadowy combat.
[Certainly, the stinger and acid poison are effective against bats. However, the execution rate was not very good. Some unsuspecting bats fell directly to the ground, but bats essentially relied on such small life forms for sustenance.]
The exchange rate was unfavorable.
The bats easily detected the approach and devoured the poison bugs.
The acid poison was meaningless unless injected into the bloodstream.
Moreover, the flora of this cave, including bats, was generally tolerant to poisons, thanks to the mushrooms.
“What should we do now? It feels like I’ve tried all possibilities.”
[The legion has chosen its second strategy.]
As I began to prepare to go out while observing the progression, there were no additional movements.
However, the flesh walls that covered the lowest level and the second level suddenly hardened.
“What is this…”
[The legion has temporarily put the nests of the two levels into dormancy because explosive energy is required.]
What for?
I turned the screen to the entrance of the sixth level.
There, I realized their intention and let out a wry laugh.
[By mimicking the tactics of the white cave ants resisting the fortress, the legion decided to initiate a siege.]
“This doesn’t seem like the kind of siege I know, does it?”
Since when did the meaning of siege involve just attacking the castle?
