Re:Ant Lord-Chapter 69: Fool’s Dream

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A swirl of pale light enfolded the moment, and Kai felt the system respond:

[Ding! System notifications- Essence Eater used on an ally’s corpse name Lomar. Kin effect triggering. Host this is the first time you ate a three star rank of your own kind. Kin effect triggered successfull.

Stats gained: +30 total in all attributes.

Converting Lomar’s star core to personal memento?

(Yes/No?)

Note: System will lock the Aura of the star core.]

Kai paused a beat in sorrow, then mentally chose "Yes," collecting Lomar’s star crystal as a solemn keepsake. The swirl of essence rushed into Kai’s body, a gentle, sorrowful flow. No triumphant fanfare, just a whisper of final goodbye. He half-sobbed from the overwhelming mixture of grief and intangible strength.

[Kai’s Stats: +30 all]

He felt a wave of new power settle in him, as if Lomar’s quiet might and wise presence had become part of his bones and exoskeleton. Tears trickled down his mandibles. "Thank you," he whispered, voice thick with emotion. ’I promise your death won’t be in vain. One day I will kill that Bastard."

Shoulders slumping in fatigue, he set the star core from Lomar’s chest gently into his own storage. Then, drained by the day’s horrors, he let the exhaustion claim him. Lying down near Vexor and Renna, he fell into a deep, dreamless sleep under the faint glow of a dying torch.

Meanwhile, outside the cave...

Captain Darius stood at the forest edge, panting, a bitter grin curling across his face. Today he had done something extraordinary, he had forced his way to four-star rank using the beast’s star core and Star crystals in the mine’s center.

The swirling aura had battered him, but he succeeded, feeling his power surge. Then, in the confusion, he triggered a collapse to seal off the rest of the ants inside with that monstrous Ore Eater predator.

In a private flashback of Darius, Darius recalled after his star rank up, how he’d carefully pretended to help his comrades fight the savage predator monster. He made a show of valiantly swinging blows, calling out "We can do this!" Then, when the roars echoed and dust filled the cavern, Darius had seized the chance to gather a bunch of star crystals, the maximum number he could carry on his own.

Before anyone could notice, he directed a well-placed strike at a critical rocky wall of the cave, letting the structure come down in a roaring avalanche that blocked the mine’s main entrance. From the other side of the fallen walls, "I’m sorry!" he yelled, faking sincerity. "The beast is bringing the cave down! I’ll go find help! You hold it off! I will be back soon." free𝑤ebnovel.com

With that, he fled the tunnel. Once safely outside, he collapsed the final segment of stone behind him, ensuring the others remained sealed with a four star rank predator. No one had seen him sabotage the exit. They might guess, but they’d have no proof. In all likelihood, the savage monster would kill them, or the collapse would bury them. Darius laughed cruelly at the memory, pride welling up in his chest.

"Eak Eak Eak (laugh), I finally dealt with that lowly worker ant."

Now, moments later, Darius stood in the bright sunlight, star crystals bulging in his pack, aura stronger from his new rank. He sneered at the thought of Kai. "Surely that bug is finished by now," he muttered. "No one... I mean no one will survive fighting that four-star predator in a sealed cave. He can rot there."

He pictured himself returning to the ant kingdom in triumph. He’d sell some and deliver the rest of the star crystals to that secret person he was working with, then secure Princess Mia’s with that mysterious persons help.

"Soon," he chuckled under his breath, "Princess Mia will warm my bed. I’ll ensure she’s mine. This was too easy." The memory of the star crystals’ gleam teased him with visions of unstoppable rank.

He also imagined in the future, he might do many perverted things with Mia, scheme further, gather more powers, and crush any who is a threat to his ambitions. It delighted him to imagine the kingdom praising him as a four-star hero while Kai’s body lay entombed in the rubble.

With a final sneer, Darius marched far... far away from the collapsed mine, daydreaming of new glories, totally ignorant of Kai’s hidden potential or the possibility that the worker ant and others might yet survive.

Deep underground, Kai slept through the night, nightmares of betrayal and savage monsters swirling in his mind. When he awoke the next day, his exoskeleton felt less battered, thanks in part to Lomar’s devoured essence. The system reported that his HP and aura had partially recovered.

He stumbled across the chamber, checking on Renna and Vexor. Both still lay unconscious. Their wounds were severe. Kai tried all the meager medicine he had, cleaning cuts and rewrapping bandages. The dryness in the air reminded him to find water. The leftover water skins from the group’s old supplies helped stave off thirst.

He also saw that most of the cave had completely collapsed. The largest tunnels were blocked by fallen boulders. The grand chamber where they had fought was partially caved in, burying many star crystals. Only a smaller portion remained accessible.

Even the corridor leading to the star crystal liquid, Kai’s hidden trove was presumably blocked. He tried not to be upset; the memory of collecting 101 liters of it comforted him.

He murdered in a low voice, "At least I have it safe in my storage." And the system’s expansion reward let him store more items in the future. "One day, I’ll return here. There will be more star crystal liquid gathered when he comes back." He didn’t even go further inside. There were more paths leading elsewhere. "But for now, I must worry about my comrades’ injuries."

A few minutes later...

Among the scattered rubble, some leftover star crystals had been exposed. Since Darius had not hammered every chunk free, about fifty small shards lay scattered.