When he reappeared, he was behind the nearest knight. His claws sliced through its neck in a single motion, severing the head from the body.
The last two knights struck together, but Zayden was already moving, weaving between them with unnatural fluidity.
Kuro reappeared at his side, her body flickering as if she were half-ethereal. She lashed her tail, sending a wave of shadowy spikes shooting forward, piercing the legs of one knight.
Zayden lunged.
He drove his claws into the injured knight's chest and ripped it open before it could recover.
One left.
This one didn't roar or hesitate. It simply lunged, its massive bladed arm stabbing forward.
Zayden caught it, both hands wrapping around the arm before twisting hard. The knight struggled, clicking and thrashing violently, but Zayden didn't stop.
With a roar that shook the cavern, he slammed the knight into the ground, then stomped down on its head, shattering its carapace completely.
Silence fell.
Zayden stood there, breathing heavily, ichor dripping from his claws. The blue markings on his body were glowing brighter now, his eyes burning with that eerie crimson-green light.
The tunnel stank of blood and smoke, phantom shadows slowly fading as Kuro returned to his shoulder.
Zayden reached up and wiped blood from his mouth with the back of his hand.
"Five," he muttered.
Five shards floated into the air, glowing brightly before vanishing into his space ring.
And then...
The entire hive shook.
The resin-coated walls shivered, dust raining down from the ceiling.
A sound rolled through the tunnels, so deep it felt like the earth itself was growling.
Zayden froze, his grin widening slowly.
"That's her."
From the far tunnel, a massive shape emerged.
The Ant Queen.
She was easily three times the size of any knight he had fought, her obsidian carapace traced with crimson lines that glowed like molten veins. Her massive mandibles clicked together slowly, each sound echoing like thunder.
Behind her, a few dozen more ants appeared, warriors, knights, elites. The entire hive seemed to have emptied itself to answer her call.
Zayden's heart pounded, but it wasn't fear that he felt.
It was excitement.
He rolled his shoulders once, letting the shadows rise again.
"This is what I came here for," he murmured, his voice low and almost reverent. "Let's see if you're worth it."
The queen's eyes glowed, and she let out a screech that shook the cavern.
Ant warriors, workers, and knights poured from the tunnels, their screeches echoing across the cavern. Zayden stood at the centre, shoulders squared, claws dripping ichor from the knights he had just slain. Kuro was a coiled shadow on his shoulder, growling low, her tiny body bristling with killing intent.
And then came the queen.
Her massive form lumbered into the cavern fully, mandibles clicking like grinding stone. Her crimson-patterned carapace glowed faintly, as if molten energy pulsed beneath it. Each step shook the ground.
[Level 60 Ant Queen]
Zayden's grin widened despite himself. "Level sixty, huh?"
The queen screeched, a high-pitched sound that shook the cavern walls. The swarm charged.
The first warriors reached him. Zayden moved like a shadow, tearing through them with Umbra Slash and Dark Spike, but there were too many. One latched onto his leg, another onto his shoulder, their mandibles piercing his Umbra Coat.
"Tch."
Umbra Blast.
Darkness exploded outward, vaporising the nearest ants. The others skittered back for a heartbeat, just enough time for Zayden to look up...
And see the queen charging.
Her massive body slammed toward him like a living battering ram. Zayden barely rolled aside in time as her front legs stabbed into the stone, leaving cracks spiderwebbing across the cavern floor.
Fast. Too fast.
He barely had time to breathe before her mandibles snapped at him, nearly cleaving him in two. He ducked, shadows flaring, then countered with an Umbra Beam that struck her face.
It left a smoking scar across her carapace — but nothing more.
"Tougher than you look."
The queen lunged again.
The fight turned savage.
Zayden darted between her legs, slashing at joints and stabbing with Dark Spikes, but every strike barely chipped her armour. Her bladed legs stabbed and swiped, forcing him to twist and dodge constantly, never staying still for more than a breath.
The swarm tried to pile on, dragging him down.
Kuro leapt off his shoulder with a hiss.
Shadow exploded outward from her tiny frame, coalescing into dozens of phantoms. They slammed into the swarm, tearing apart warriors and workers alike. Kuro darted among them, her fangs glowing as she bit into an elite knight, ripping out its throat with shocking ferocity.
Zayden caught the shift mid-fight — her aura was thicker now, stronger.
She had evolved.
Good.
That left him free to focus on the queen.
But the queen wasn't going to make it easy.
She smashed one of her massive legs down, catching Zayden across the chest and sending him flying across the cavern. His back slammed into the wall hard enough to leave a crater. Blood sprayed from his mouth as he struggled back to his feet.
"Damn…"
His horns glowed faintly, darkness rippling off him.
He couldn't keep this up forever.
His claws flexed.
"Fine," he growled, "let's see how far I can push this."
He thrust both hands out.
Umbra Slash.Umbra Blast.
For the first time, he didn't release them separately — he forced them together.
Darkness howled.
The two skills collided in his hands, unstable, threatening to rip him apart from the inside — but Zayden forced them to merge, darkness twisting violently until they ignited into black fire.
The cavern darkened as he stood there, holding twin blades of living shadow-flame.
"…Flames of Darkness."
He vanished.
When he reappeared, he was already behind the queen. His new weapons cut across her hind legs in one smooth motion, leaving deep, burning wounds that hissed and sizzled as the black fire ate through her carapace.
The queen screamed, rearing back, ichor spilling onto the ground.
Zayden pressed the attack.
Strike after strike carved burning lines across her body, forcing her back step by step.
But the queen wasn't done.
She lunged forward with suicidal ferocity, her mandibles barely missing Zayden's torso as he twisted aside. Her tail-like abdomen lashed out, catching him across the ribs and sending him sprawling.
Before he could rise, dozens of ants swarmed him again.
Kuro shrieked.
She expanded, her shadow swelling until it formed the shape of a massive serpentine dragon. Phantom claws tore into the horde, scattering bodies across the cavern.
Zayden roared.
Darkness surged around him, blowing apart the ants pinning him down. His body glowed with eerie light, blue markings flaring, horns gleaming bright green as his power spiked again.
The queen charged one last time.
Zayden met her head-on.
He drove both flaming claws into her chest, digging through layers of chitin until he could feel the heat of her core. With a final roar, he ripped it free — a glowing, pulsating crystal, bright enough to light the entire cavern.
The queen froze.
Then her body collapsed, ichor spilling in rivers as the glow left her eyes.
Silence.
The swarm froze as well, and then, one by one, they retreated into the tunnels, leaving their dead behind.
Zayden stood there, breathing heavily, staring at the crystal in his hand.
It wasn't a shard.
It was a perfect, gleaming Power Crystal [Tier 1].
"…So there are higher ranks," he muttered. "Interesting."
[Dungeon Cleared — Anthill Hive Overlord Defeated][Portal to Heritage Planet Unlocked]
A golden portal formed in front of him, glowing softly.
Zayden looked down at the crystal once more before slipping it into his ring.
Then he turned to Kuro, who padded back to his side, ichor dripping from her jaws.
"Good work," he said quietly.
He stepped toward the portal.
And without another word, he stepped through.
****
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