Except for a few stumbling, half-mad ants, we didn’t encounter much resistance on the way to the heart of the hive. Zadina’s hammer took care of them easily enough.

  My biggest concern was my Mana. After all my initial shroud and sword spells, then the [Shadow Fingers] scouting, plus the [Shadow Snare] and [Shadow Spike], my mana had gotten precariously low.

  I was tempted to use my new [Soul Ignition] skill. But the thought of the damage to my Hp showing up physically made me hesitate.

  It’d be best not to worry Mama, Beatrice, and the maids, more than I already had.

  I will use it when I have to.

  The guards still circled their eviscerated Queen, now just a mass of yellow organs on the ground. Their eyes all shot toward us when we stepped out of the tunnel, all in one synchronized motion.

  Bardiche blades swung in a wave toward us, their glistening edges pointing menacingly.

  “Careful, these guys aren’t pushovers like those outside,” Gorian warned.

  “Should I fry them? I wouldn’t mind getting rid of those things as well.” Justin pointed at a fat larva, its skin stretched to the point of transparency by the segments of swollen fat. It was struggling to squirm out of a crackled egg.

  These guards were larger than the rest, with longer bodies and larger mandibles. Their carapaces looked thicker, with the surface of raw cast iron, studded with bumps that looked like rivets.

  There was pride in their posture. Their back four legs held their abdomens up high, while the front segments of their bodies were upright, their arms gripping tight to their weapon.

  Their black, compound eyes stared at me, fierce, challenging.

  I felt a kindred spirit, another warrior with a lost cause. Waving off Justin, I stepped forward.

  One of the guards stepped forward to meet me. The armor of this one was marred by streaks where sword blades had scored it.

  It pulled back its long weapon, preparing to strike.

  I narrowed my gaze, identifying the ant.

  A female knight… Was that another reason I felt a link?

  Two pairs of translucent wings sprouted from the Valkyrie’s back. With a few clicks of its mandibles, it shot forward, leaving a swirl of dust in the air.

  A skill. I was sure it was using a skill. Taking no chances, I dove into the shadow as the bardiche hissed through the air overhead.

  When I popped back up, she had already shot past. I slashed at her back, but she spun with speed to match. My blade sliced clean through the shaft of her weapon as she tried to block.

  At this level, I was sure my [Magic] gave my blade enough damage to cut through just about anything, even without [Void Blade].

  She looked down at the two halves of her weapon, then threw down the useless haft, facing me once more.

  I stared back into those defiant eyes.

  My [Demon Sense] savored the cloying sweetness of despair lining her soul, cut by the edges of sharp peppery spice.

  She wants a duel to the death. And then what? Would the rest even lay down their arms?

  I could give this one a warrior’s death.

  But…

  What’s even the point?

  I had asked this too many times already.

  Reaching out with my hand, I cast [Seduce] at the ant before me. Its body stiffened. Its antennae twitched. The bardiche dropped, ringing against the ground.

  Unexpectedly, that sweetness faded from her soul, leaving only the spice.

  She stepped up to me, wings folding back. Then her front legs sank, lowering her body in what seemed to be a bow before me.

  I wasn’t sure what to do in response. But she was as still as a statue, so I placed my hand upon her shoulder, touching her cold carapace. It felt like metal.

  The shell-encased fingers of the ant grabbed my arm, squeezing me, not painfully, but firmly, like a confirmation.

  She stood back up and turned to the rank of her sisters, who now stood in a circle around us.

  A low, chittering sound vibrated from her thorax. Then, similar clicking sounds were exchanged back and forth as the lead Valkyrie repeatedly pointed her antennae at me.

  “Were there always this many guards?” I asked with my eyes still fixed on her. It was hard to imagine the party being able to take on this many of them.

  “No… it’s usually just a group of five in the main room,” Gorian confirmed my suspicion.

  “The chamber isn’t this huge either.” Serina pointed to the high ceiling far above us. Some of the stalactites were partially obscured by darkness.

  “The… the… Queen didn’t look like that,” Justin stuttered, pointing at the remnants of the bulging, elongated abdomen. Despite the damage, my spike had only destroyed the front half; the rest of the body slumped like a collapsed mountain of flesh-filled sacks behind it. “It used to be just a larger ant. And there weren’t so many damn eggs.”

  As if in response to his comment, several of the guards backed away and scampered toward the eggs. They swung their bardiches down, blades hacking apart eggs and larvae alike, spilling more yellow goo over the floor.

  “Don’t listen to him! You don’t need to do that!” I shouted to the lead valkyrie, but she just warded me back with a straight arm.

  The rest of the guards moved forward to envelop me. They snapped into position facing outward, their weapons held in a uniform slant, like soldiers at attention.

  Outside the circle, the slaughter continued: rows of eggs were smashed at once, and squealing pudgy larvae were chased down and skewered.

  “Yeah. Don’t do this for my sake!” Justin’s voice cracked as he turned away from the massacre.

  I stared at the ant beside me. A tinge of sweetness seeped over the aura of her soul, and hints of sweetness welled up amongst the dimmer auras of the other guards. Their carapace-clad hands gripped tight upon the hafts of their weapons. But none of them moved. They stood stiffly like the ant beside me.

  A sign of their resolve.

  They didn’t want to do this.

  “Why?”

  No clicks of her mandibles. No twitching of her antennae. The Valkyrie silently watched the slaughter continue until there was one last high-pitched, wet squeal.

  Two guards parted, allowing a lone, smaller ant to pass. She looked and felt like a female to me, perhaps all of them were. Instead of a weapon, she cradled a round, translucent larva in her arms. It was significantly larger than the others.

  She approached and dipped her thorax, lowering herself on bent forelegs. The lead Valkyrie made a few clicks, and the new smaller ant raised the pudgy newborn toward me.

  “What’s this?” My eyebrow arched.

  The Valkyrie pointed at my chest, then back at herself. She repeated the gesture, this time indicating me, then the larva.

  “I think… She wants you to tame that thing,” Serina said from behind me.

  Stolen from its original source, this story is not meant to be on Amazon; report any sightings.

  Are pets supposed to make demands of their mistresses? It didn’t make any sense. Would monsters really ask you to charm another monster?

  But this isn’t ‘charm’… it’s [Seduce] and the effect is ‘adoration’.

  The raised grub before me wasn’t exactly ugly. It had dots for eyes that looked like bulging black spheres, and its mouth was just a little round circle. The rest of its features could be best described as puffed-up and balloon-like.

  It’s kind of cute… maybe.

  Judging from what the others had said, this was a corrupted level, and I had a feeling these weren’t normal monster ants either. But even if they were hybrids, I didn’t think it would be dangerous to charm one.

  I couldn’t think of any monster in The Hundred Years War that remained dangerous after being charmed. It was just charming them that was the hard part.

  All the guards were now bowing to me, their thoraxes lowered to the ground. A multitude of expectant compound eyes stared back.

  I suppose, it’s just 11 mana.

  Directing the magic flow, I formed the spiral structure of [Seduce] and cast it at the curled up larva. It turned its body, stretching its round head toward me.

  The smaller ant deposited the soft, bulbous body into my arms and then quickly scurried away on shaking legs. The grub shifted about until its bottom found a comfortable spot in the crook of my elbow. It wedged its squishy body against my chest, then immediately proceeded to fall asleep, soft snores vibrating through its chubby rolls.

  Wait, who’s the master here?

  “Is that it?”

  I tried to offload the baby to the Valkyrie, but she shook her head. Her arm swept out, and the guards snapped into lines, forming a path toward a ring of packed earth. A raised mound of dirt sat in the center.

  She directed me to follow her. I looked down at myself. Dark shadowy fabric shrouded my body, with wisps of black smoke coiling and rolling over my curves. Beside me stood the Valkyrie, encased in her rigid black-iron carapace. And then there was the translucent, bloated baby in my arms to set the contrast.

  In a strange way, we kind of match.

  I sent a questioning gaze toward Gorian, who shrugged. Neither Justin nor Kamuel had anything to offer either. Zadina was assessing the guards with her piercing gaze, but she didn’t look at all concerned.

  “I think maybe they want your blessing for the new Queen, since you killed the old one,” Serina said, finally offering an explanation that made sense.

  “How do you know this is a queen?” I prodded the folds of the sleeping baby. “Just because it’s fat?”

  “A guess. I think they want you to perform some kind of ritual to establish it.”

  “But why does it matter if the level resets?”

  At that Serina shrugged as well. “Maybe the corruption changed things.”

  The weight shifted in my arms, and something wet and warm wrapped around my knuckle. The baby was sucking on my finger.

  “I think it’s hungry.”

  The Valkyrie kept pointing down the path toward that mound of dirt.

  “Fine…” I muttered, resigning myself to whatever this was. “Let’s get this over with.”

  I was the only one permitted inside the circle, aside from the Valkyrie. The guards crossed their weapons, keeping everyone else out.

  I sat on the mound as directed, still cradling the baby in my arms. Its toothless mouth was still gnawing on my finger.

  “Get some ant baby food, please?”

  But my supposed enthralled pet ignored me. Instead, she brushed her hand across the dirt. A black gem was revealed, embedded in the earth.

  The Valkyrie was reaching for the gem when the image of Tomas flashed in my vision.

  He was calling me again and I was tempted to hit “Accept”.

  I’m sure showing up with an ant baby in my arms would end the engagement right then and there.

  Not, right now, though. I still need him, especially given the current state of things.

  “Oww!” A sharp pain pricked my finger.

  “You alright, lass?!” Gorian shouted from beyond the wall of guards.

  “Yes… I was just surprised.”

  The baby didn’t bite down any harder, but I watched as thin threads of red began to snake through its translucent body.

  It was sucking my blood?

  I pulled my finger away. There wasn’t even a mark.

  The bulging eyes of the baby turned purple as I stared into it. Then the face morphed. Cheeks plumped out from the insectoid flesh, and the circular maw flattened, reshaping itself into a pair of human lips.

  A changeling. A Vampire Changeling—a monster capable of stealing the characteristics of any victim it fed upon.

  I looked from baby to the Valkyrie and then back again.

  So that’s it. That’s what these ants are.

  My hand hovered over the infant's soft, pulsing body.

  I should kill it and the rest of the brood. Exterminate them. Otherwise they’d be a danger to this world.

  It’s right I do so!

  She stared back up at me with those wide, purple eyes. My eyes.

  Something reached up from the depths of me, and held back my hand. Not the sword, but the child.

  I’m a danger to this world.

  I’m a changeling.

  All around me, their auras radiated; bright ones, dim ones, all edged with sweetness.

  I’m a vampire of the soul.

  My hand cupped the cheek of the baby and it nuzzled my palm.

  I had killed this baby’s mother, and now I’m its Mama.

  “You’re right… it’s neither right nor proper for me, of all people, to judge.” I whispered to her.

  The Valkyrie held up the black gem. Beneath it, crimson, dripping veins trailed down, rooting the stone into the earth. She gestured to the flat, top facet of the gem.

  It was obvious what she wanted. I placed my hand atop the gem. It blinked. I felt a tug on my core, a demand for power, but the pull snapped back when it found nothing to grasp.

  I had an idea what happened. After the two [Seduce]s, my mana was now at…

  “This is the last thing you need?”

  The ant bobbed its triangular head.

  Really, [Seduce] seems to have utterly failed me this time. My pets are bleeding me dry.

  I let the little blood sucker take my finger again, to mask the flinch, and physically braced myself. I mentally activated [Soul Ignition].

  A conflagration of pain raged through my body. It was far worse than the bite, a fire searing my veins.

  But I gritted my teeth, making no sound this time.

  I felt a trickle of energy, but that was it…

  Not quite as impressive as I had hoped, but it is something.

  I placed my hand back upon the gem, and this time it turned a deep red. The mana that I had bought with pain slipped away…

  All the ants, even the workers beyond the guard circle, turned toward me and prostrated themselves on the ground.

  Another window overlaid my vision. It wasn’t Tomas this time.

  That was unexpected.

  This makes no sense. If the level resets, how can there be a permanent Waypoint?

  “Oh, I leveled!” Gorian shouted.

  Everyone reached over to congratulate him.

  “Just one away from the big fifteen!” Justin cheered.

  Gorian turned to me, looking over all the ants still prostrated before me. “Guess the encounter is done. Good job, lass.”

  I wasn’t quite sure what to do. The baby had fallen back to sleep in my arms and had let go of my finger.

  The Valkyrie slowly rose from her bow. Its mandibles clicked, but a voice sounded in my mind.

  “Your Highness. First of the Line. How shall we address you?”

  The voice was strange, intrusive, and yet it felt totally natural to me. Like this was the way she had always sounded.

  “Josephine, if you can.”

  The reply came in both sharp clicks and the echo in my head. “In the Mind, we can. But only for those of us who Think. For the others, I will form the appropriate clicks and scent.”

  “I can hear your thoughts because of that?” I asked, pointing to the red, glowing gem embedded in the earth.

  “Yes, we thank you for starting a new Line and raising the Princess.”

  “I… don’t think I can raise her. Those where I’m from won’t take kindly to her… and I’m too young.”

  “Yeah, she’s five!” Justin yelled, even if he couldn’t hear the ant, he must have gotten the hint that I was talking to it.

  The ant’s antennae twitched. “You’ve already raised the Princess by giving her your power, and linking her to the heart stone. We will nurture her here in the nest. There is plenty of food and nurses for her needs. It would be unwise to remove her from these confines.”

  “Oh… that’s it? Then I should just leave her here?” My eyes drifted down to the sleeping baby in my arms.

  It’s weird. I feel like I’m abandoning her.

  “Your wish is our command, Your Highness. But I do ask that you come back often to give the princess guidance. And perhaps a name…”

  “I think... I have a name.” I looked down at the chubby face. “Ally.”

  A small ant, most likely a nurse, scurried forward with open arms.

  I looked at the Valkyrie to make sure it was safe and she nodded.

  For a few seconds longer, my thumb brushed her cheek one last time, before I reluctantly laid Ally into the nurse's care.

  I hope Allison doesn't mind me naming something so pudgy after her. Maybe she’ll slim down in time.

  I will make sure she doesn’t get as big as the last queen.

  —

  At the Wayroom out of the dungeon, Kamuel stepped in front of me.

  “My Lady, I promised not to report anything without your permission. I am asking for that permission now. Those ants... they aren’t normal.” Kamuel gestured behind him. “They possess an unnatural intelligence. If they escape, they could be a danger to everyone.”

  “Denied.” I held his gaze, staring directly into his brown eyes. “Kamuel, do you trust me?”

  “Yes, but… this danger is greater than us. Greater than any of us.” He shot a glance toward Zadina for help.

  Zadina stepped up beside him. “I trust you, My Lady. And I keep my word.”

  I nodded toward Zadina.

  She leaned in, whispering something into Kamuel’s ear, before stepping back.

  Kamuel hesitated, his hand gripping the hem of his robe. Then his shoulders slumped, and a heavy sigh escaped his lips.

  “I trust you as well.”