Chapter 9: The Things at the Bottom Floor (2)
[The Legion is no longer just a simple mass of cells. It is a legitimate force that has devoured an entire ecosystem.]
The concept of territory expansion was easy to understand.
Humans have often increased their territory and productivity by winning wars.
[The energy that has consumed the 8th and 9th levels has become a foothold, and the Legion is occupying this area.]
“But this isn’t occupation…”
[This is the Legion’s way.]
I clicked my tongue as I looked at the screen.
One should not simply think of it as territory expansion.
The entrance leading from the 9th level to the corridor of the 10th level was gradually being covered by the writhing flesh wall.
That sticky, writhing mass of meat is the living Legion and its territory.
It seems more accurate to understand it as simply growing its size than as expanding its territory.
By the time dinner rolled around, the flesh wall, expanding upright, had reached the vicinity of the target they had set.
[The Small Scouts closely reconnoitered the destination. Then the Legion began to produce soldiers suited to the enemy.]
“Is it the same lizard…?”
[Indeed. Currently, it is the most efficient and powerful form of entity known by the Legion’s data.]
It was armored in thick black chitin like scales, armed with strong jaws and long legs.
The Legion’s most sophisticated collective tactics still resembled those of ants and bees.
Based on a lizard that emphasized strength, its deployment was similar to that of ants.
[New soldiers that grow from eggs will pour forth by tomorrow. Then we will attack the target, massacre it, and devour it.]
“I don’t think we’ll lose.”
I was sincere.
That enormous blue lizard we observed.
It was bigger than any enemy I had faced before.
It was truly a monster I would call a boss monster.
Yet I was confident of victory.
The Legion’s power is not just in its soldiers but also in its nests, stored nutrients, accumulated data, and cognitive abilities.
There was no way one could stop this collective alone.
[The Legion initiated an exploratory mission first.]
Of course, it was the Legion that moved first.
There was that creature in this vast cavity, a dense mushroom forest.
The master of this cavity. If we could subdue it, we could devour this entire place.
[The Scouts launched a preemptive strike on it. Their weapon was a tail-mounted stinger. However, the giant lizard, instead of breathing fire, killed three Scouts with a single swish of its tail. One landed on its back and stabbed with the stinger, but it broke.]
“…Strong, huh?”
[The enraged creature breathed fire from its two heads. We have no resistance to fire. All the Scouts were defeated, and some of the Legion, which halted operations, became its prey.]
The conclusion came in an instant.
Seeing that lizard roar in victory, I froze for a moment.
This overwhelming two-headed lizard, like something out of a monster movie, was on a different level than the small ecosystem lizards we had been dealing with.
Did I bite off more than I could chew?
For a moment, I felt anxious.
[If you’re anxious, then make a choice.]
[Execution Authority.]
As if reading my mind, the screen displayed the item I possessed.
Are they really going to entrust this to me here?
In that moment, my heart sank.
The outcome would change depending on what choice I made here.
If I used the Execution Authority, the Legion would easily overcome this crisis and become stronger by obtaining its power.
But what if that two-headed dragon was weak here?
What if a final boss-level entity appeared?
What would I do then?
“Hey… Fall back. Isn’t there a retreat option?! Look at the reconnaissance records some more!”
I shouted at my phone.
But there was no response. Only that ominous music continued to play.
Even that talkative fellow was silent.
I was tearing my hair out.
Why now, of all times, at such a crucial moment.
[You won’t use it? How about reconsidering? The Legion is not a chess piece that moves as you wish. Regardless of your intentions, it will have an all-or-nothing confrontation with that lizard. If you wait too long to use the Execution Authority, the expended energy cannot be fully reclaimed.]
“No, save it. I don’t know when I might need it, so let’s just hang on.”
I made my decision.
I did not use the Execution Authority.
“Let’s use it on a bigger one someday. You said to trust you. So I will trust.”
[…Just as expected, this time too.]
“What?”
[The Legion again begins to move. But what are they trying to do?]
“I think we need to provide assistance!”
Having evaluated the creature’s strength through reconnaissance, the Legion prepared for the next attack.
I hurriedly dashed out of the house before the situation escalated further.
I vigorously turned my not-so-smart brain.
What could I do to help right now?
[The tactic chosen by the Legion was a direct approach. Its scales would resist the stinger and jaws. So, they send many soldiers to overwhelm it with sheer force. This tactic was learned from ants.]
“That’s too reckless. Even if they win, they’ll suffer tremendous casualties.”
[Then what kind of tactic should we employ?]
How would I know?
But what I could offer right now was neither powerful nor unique traits or genes.
Rather, it was the diverse and complicated combat methods from various creatures.
In fact, the Legion has mimicked and applied the advantages of the creatures it has consumed, whether they were samples provided or those hunted in the cave.
So if I shared that knowledge, the Legion would surely find a solution among them.
*
[The Legion quickly interpreted and accurately analyzed the new incoming information. The newly arrived specimens included bombarding beetles, centipedes, mantises, stag beetles, cats, woodpeckers, magpies, and crows…]
The entire Legion came to a halt.
There was so much information pouring in that they struggled to process it all.
[The Legion understood the intent. More diverse tactics, strategies.]
While they externally seemed the same, the Legion’s soldiers had evolved to a new level.
By mimicking and modifying the behaviors and methods of the absorbed creatures, they established new combat techniques.
[The Legion adjusted the grand strategy. The first thing they did was to organically mix the soldier types to encircle the target.]
The Legion moved again.
This time, there was a slightly different momentum.
They trampled the native creatures blocking the path without bothering to chase those that fled.
[They draw the creature’s attention and seek out the gaps in its scales. They persistently bite the weak points.]
Simple knowledge acquisition offers no help to oneself.
However, leveraging that knowledge to process and combine it to develop something new would work just fine.
“Crack…”
The two-headed lizard, sensing the anomaly, was taken aback.
It had never been collectively beaten up like this before.
[The Legion commenced the war. The sole target? Its weak points.]
“Graah!”
The enraged two-headed lizard belched fire.
However, the Legion wouldn’t retreat, even if it burned.
Once a plan is set, they will absolutely execute their mission.
[The surrounded creature stomped its feet and whipped its tail, killing dozens in a single stroke. However, those lying in wait from below and above all charged at once, soon covering its entire body with the Legion. And in the opening thus revealed, a fired poisonous spike precisely pierced one of its eyes deeply.]
From the start, the Legion concentrated their assault on areas not covered by scales, such as the eyes, reproductive organs, and excretory openings.
The startled two-headed lizard let out a horrific scream, smashed through the mushrooms, and began to shake its body as it fled.
[…It fell into the Legion’s trap. This area was, after all, the pit we had set up.]
At the entrance to the cavity, the creature was entangled in sticky spider webs that covered its body.
The ambush squad, which had lain in wait like dead mice, continued to spew spider silk and toxic chemicals.
Terrible screams echoed throughout the cavity and down the halls.
[The power drained from the creature trapped in the trap. It could no longer muster the strength to breathe fire. The Legion mercilessly drove their stingers into its remaining three eyes. Soon, the immense body ceased to move.]
“…Ha.”
Victory. I saw that and staggered, collapsing onto a bench.
Was it worth running around the mountain at this late hour…?
[Blue Scaled Two-Headed Dragon: 3a2002]
“Dragon…?”
I had captured a magnificent creature.
It was now completely enveloped in the flesh wall.
Unable to crush its scales, they would digest it whole.
[This moment will be recorded in history. Your efforts were not in vain. If you hadn’t inserted diverse specimens, if you hadn’t acquired that much data to diversify your strategies and tactics, you would not have achieved such an efficient victory.]
“…Right.”
[Now, we can officially begin to consume a greater world.]
As always, the Legion did not stop.
They were born with an instinct for endless consumption of the world.
I, vacantly staring at my phone, staggered down the mountain.
“What’s wrong with your face? Where have you been?”
“…A lot happened. It’s really exhausting.”
Could it be that my sibling was shocked to see me?
I chuckled softly, making the excuse of exercising as I entered my room and closed the door.
My phone… is quiet now.
I recalled the feelings I had experienced earlier that afternoon.
Why did I run around so desperately?
It was like, at that moment, I had become one with the Legion.
It wasn’t that my life was at stake; there was no resonant reason behind it.
It was just, really just that.
As I pondered whether to call this feeling affection, I let out a hollow laugh.
