After collecting the crystals, the duo and the army continued deeper into the tunnel. The faint blue glow from the mined walls slowly faded behind them, replaced by rough stone and narrow pathways that forced the army to tighten their formation. Their footsteps echoed in rhythm, controlled and cautious.
Soon afterward, they arrived at what looked like one of the queen's breeding chambers.
The space was wide and circular, its walls layered with hardened resin and old webbing fused into dark patches. The air felt heavier here.
But there were no eggs.
No offspring.
No movement.
Reever scanned the chamber carefully. If the notification was true, then everything here had been wiped out. Completely.
So that meant the player had done enough damage to erase an entire breeding chamber.
Yet something didn't add up.
If it had been a battle, where were the corpses?
Players disappeared after death. Creatures did not.
The spider ants' bodies should have remained scattered across the chamber. Even if burned or crushed, there would be remains. Signs. Something.
There was nothing.
"Hey Conner, do you have a drone you can use to scout the area? I feel like this might be a setup or something," Reever said calmly, though his grip on the trident tightened slightly.
Conner nodded without hesitation.
Moments later, he summoned small ant-like machines with thin metallic wings. They hummed faintly as they activated. One by one, they lifted into the air and scattered into nearby tunnels. A translucent screen appeared in front of Conner, displaying multiple feeds.
He stared at it for several seconds.
"Nothing," Conner muttered. "I can see nothing. Not even any signs of battle."
Reever frowned.
Even if someone powerful had cleared the area, there should have been destruction. Broken stone. Collapsed tunnels. Acid burns. Something.
Silence was worse than chaos.
"Even though I am from a legacy descendant, and from a mythical family to be precise, I have yet to meet a player this powerful from the legacy families," Conner said, his voice thoughtful now.
He continued, analyzing aloud.
"From what I know and have analyzed, the spider ant kings are at Elite rank. The rooks and bishops are at Veteran rank, while the soldiers are at our rank. So, as per my speculation, the queen is likely in the late Elite Pro rank, or she has already made a breakthrough into the Master rank."
He paused briefly.
"The player who did this with little to almost no effort would most likely be in the Master rank. That's impossible. This game was meant for rookies. The spider queen is among the low-tier weak species. It's already strange for it to even be at that rank. Nevertheless, being late Elite Pro is no joke."
Reever processed the information carefully.
"Do you think it is possible to have breachers in a match?" he asked, wanting clarity.
Conner scoffed slightly, though he kept his tone controlled.
"Impossible. If someone dares to do that, they will be heavily penalized. Losing a rank is the best-case scenario. Don't even ask about the worst-case scenario."
Reever fell silent for a moment.
"I do not think the queen is dead," he said finally.
Conner immediately shook his head.
"The system can never be wrong. We all heard the notification across the tunnels. Unless someone hacks into it, it's impossible."
"No," Reever replied steadily. "I think I am right. All of this feels staged. If I'm right, someone is messing with our minds right now."
His awareness sharpened further. Something invisible was off balance.
"I doubt it," Conner said. "But let's venture into the cave first to confirm everything. My drones have reached an area with total darkness. The signal keeps getting cut off."
That detail alone was enough to increase the tension.
The two moved forward with the army following closely behind. The tunnel narrowed slightly, and the walls darkened. The usual sounds of crawling and distant scraping were absent.
Too quiet.
Then—
"Head back!" Reever shouted instantly.
It hit him like a wave. Not a sound. Not a movement. A feeling. A distortion.
"Screech."
"Screech."
"Screech."
The sound came from everywhere at once. High-pitched. Sharp. Vibrating against the walls and through their armor.
In the next second, the darkness vanished.
The tunnel brightened.
They were surrounded.
Millions of spider ants filled the cavern walls, ceiling, and ground. Layer upon layer of chitin and legs. Their eyes glowed faintly in the reflected light.
Above them, hovering, was the queen.
The worst part was not the numbers.
It was that none of them had sensed it.
Not the movement.
Not the presence.
Not the transition.
"Sh*t," Reever muttered.
His mind instantly calculated possibilities. He still had eight explosives—the gifts from Harun. If he detonated them all here, the entire cavern would collapse. The swarm would be erased.
Sure, Conner's army would die.
Their sacrifice would be worth it.
For a brief second, that thought felt logical.
Cold.
Efficient.
"What am I thinking?" Reever muttered sharply, shaking his head.
That wasn't his usual thought process.
The spider ants were not attacking. Not yet.
They simply watched.
The way they gazed at the group could freeze the scalp of even the most composed player.
No movement.
No aggression.
Just observation.
"No. Something is wrong," Reever thought.
Then it struck him.
Something was interfering with his reasoning.
His earlier impulse had not felt like his own.
Before he could speak again, the queen moved slightly.
"Humans. I have been waiting for you."
The voice echoed across the cavern.
It was rough. Distorted. But it was human language.
"What the—"
"It spoke…"
Both Reever and Conner stood stunned for a brief moment.
The queen's massive form shifted, legs adjusting carefully as she hovered above them.
"I brought you here for something. So do not be scared," it continued, its tone less menacing now.
The ants did not advance.
They held position.
"Summon your gods to free us from this curse, and I will let you go."
The words hung in the air.
Then suddenly, the queen shrieked violently, clutching her head with two of her front limbs.
A piercing screech tore through the cavern as her body trembled in visible pain.