The Ant King noticed the changes appearing on the body he had been so proud of. *Crk. Crk.* Fine cracks were forming across his exoskeleton, which should have been harder than any metal in existence. His enemy, meanwhile, withstood his attacks without flinching. No way. An impossible hypothesis flashed through the Ant King's mind.
'I'm… losing in strength?'
And to a human who wasn't even half his size? Right at that moment, *Kwak.* The wound on his side, where he had just taken a hard blow, gave off an ominous feeling. It didn't sound good. The Ant King spent a brief moment checking the state of his exoskeleton—a body that could not feel pain. A glance. The result was shocking.
'…It's cracked.'
A fracture that had been nothing more than a small scratch was now spreading and growing in every direction. It was practically a warning that he didn't have much time left. The Ant King quickly turned his head. But however brief the moment, Jin-Woo wasn't careless enough to let an opening slip by. *Thwack!* The king's face was knocked sideways.
'…?'
The Ant King staggered for an instant as a powerful impact struck home, ignoring his steel-like facial exoskeleton entirely. He barely kept his balance just before he would have stumbled backward, but this time the attack came from below. *Wham!* His chin was sent skyward.
'Dare… a human…!'
The king cast a fury-filled glare downward while his head was still tilted back. This human's power—formidable. But compared to an opponent who could only rely on strength, the king himself had several powerful weapons at his disposal. For example. The Ant King righted his head and simultaneously opened his mouth, firing off a venomous stinger. The stinger at the tip of his elongated proboscis shot out in an instant. It was an attack aimed straight at the enemy's face from an unavoidable distance. *Whoosh—* The human tilted his head quickly enough to dodge the stinger, but a smile crept onto the face of the Ant King watching the result. The tip of the stinger had grazed the human's cheek, leaving a wound.
'Done!'
That was enough. A lethal neurotoxin called 'Paralysis'—an ability absorbed from a sea hare he had happened to prey on. One of the most deadly poisons a living creature could produce, mixed and concentrated with the Ant King's mana inside his body, transformed into something far more sinister. It was the ultimate venom, perfected by his skill 'Devour.'
'That ought to slow you down, human.'
Even the slightest graze would cause all of one's nerves to seize up in the blink of an eye—losing all sensation, losing all control of the body. Now all that remained was to completely destroy his opponent, who would no longer be able to resist.
'…?'
Just as the poison was beginning to spread, the human put on a look of bewilderment.
"This is the power of the king!"
The Ant King walked forward with a grin spreading across his face and swung at the human's cheek. But. *Wham!* The human raised his left hand and casually blocked it.
'…?'
A question arose—how was he still able to move?—but it was cut short. *Thwack!* The king was sent tumbling across the ground by the human's right hand, which came flying in from the other side.
*Kieeek!*
For the first time, a scream tore from the king's mouth.
***
*Ding.* Jin-Woo checked the System message that appeared alongside the familiar mechanical chime.
[Decryption has been completed.]
'So that's why he was so confident—the poison really was that potent.'
He had just felt intense confusion from the Ant King, which meant the poison had worked remarkably well. It was a curious phenomenon. Not the fact that the buff had cured the poison—he could actually sense the emotions of a magical beast that was closer to an insect. At some point, he had become able to perceive what emotions a magical beast was feeling.
'Since the High Orcs?'
Back then he had thought he was simply reading their emotions from their facial expressions and body language, but judging by this ant's case, that wasn't it. The creature had no facial expressions beyond contorting his face.
'Could this… also be the power of Sensing?'
Every one of his stats had been raised dramatically, so naturally his Sensing stat had improved beyond recognition as well. A Sensing stat that had crossed a certain threshold might very well have a function he had never known about until now. But.
'Now is not the time to be thinking about such things.'
First he needed to end this creature's life and escape this place. Jin-Woo charged toward the Ant King, who was just now struggling to get back up.
'…!'
He could feel the Ant King's anxiety. The Ant King's exoskeleton had been nearly shattered by the successive attacks. Just a little more! With that thought, Jin-Woo closed the distance in the blink of an eye and leaped. Then he extended his foot. *Kwaaang—!* But the Ant King was already gone. Only the ground was left deeply cratered.
"Where is he?" "He vanished!"
While the Hunters looked around searching for the king, Jin-Woo calmly raised his head. The creature was hovering above him using its wings.
'Well, this is convenient.'
Jin-Woo smirked. Being able to sense the creature's emotions made tracking its presence far easier. The Ant King's emotions had shifted from confusion to a flash of fear, and now they were changing back to elation. Jin-Woo's eyes narrowed.
'What is he scheming now?'
Just as Jin-Woo suspected, the Ant King had changed tactics. The king hovered in the air, gazing down at Jin-Woo.
'If that human's specialty is strength, then there's no need to engage him head-on.'
His true weapon was speed. The man who had boldly called himself king of humans had offered up his neck without being able to react to his attacks at all. Trying to overpower him with strength had been nothing more than an ego trip. The Ant King discarded his pride and resolved to fight the enemy with everything he had. *Shhhhrrrk.* His enlarged body shrank back to its original form, and the claws on both hands grew long and sharp like blades.
'His claws…'
Watching the Ant King's physical transformation, Jin-Woo had an instinct that the creature was about to change his attack pattern. *Shhhk.* Two daggers appeared in Jin-Woo's hands. Right then, the Ant King dove in a steep descent, lunging straight at Jin-Woo. The speed was incomparable to before.
'So you want to play it like that?'
Jin-Woo focused. Time slowed, and the creature's every movement came into his field of vision. Speed was the area Jin-Woo was most confident in. He casually deflected the Ant King's descending claws with the tip of his dagger, redirecting them away. *Clang!* The Ant King's claw, which had just landed, clashed once more with Jin-Woo's dagger as he pivoted. *Clang!* That became the signal, and the two began exchanging blows in a furious flurry. *Kakakang! Clang! Kakang! Kakang! Clang!* The Ant King was stunned. He could not stop being astonished through the entire exchange.
'…?'
His opponent was matching his speed. No—not only that, as time went on, the human's body was loosening up and his movements were getting faster and faster.
'How… is this possible…'
The king, who had never been pushed back even when they clashed in strength, was now being driven back step by step. One step. Another. With each backward step, more damage accumulated across his exoskeleton. Meanwhile, conviction filled Jin-Woo's eyes.
'I can end this.'
The mental shock the king was experiencing was transmitted to Jin-Woo in full. The creature was rattled. The same creature who had toyed with the nation's elite Hunters like children was now faltering badly in the face of speed that surpassed his own. Jin-Woo could truly feel just how much his abilities had risen through this fight.
'The hardship wasn't wasted.'
A pleasant surge of exhilaration filled his chest. Now to finish it. Having made up his mind, Jin-Woo took two more steps the instant the Ant King retreated another step. And then.
'Fatal Strike!'
Jin-Woo's skill sank into the Ant King's body. Fatal Strike dealt additional damage when a vital point was struck precisely. With his exoskeleton broken all over, the entire Ant King's body was essentially one big vital point. *Pababak!* Dozens of Fatal Strikes were embedded in succession.
*Kieeeeeek!*
[Skill 'Fatal Strike' has been upgraded to its final form: 'Rend'.]
'Rend?'
Having obtained a new skill, Jin-Woo immediately put Rend to use. The daggers found openings in the Ant King's defenses and unleashed dozens of slashes in the span of an instant. *Dadadadadada!*
*Kieeeeeek!*
The Ant King screamed. While the creature writhed in pain, Jin-Woo brought his dagger down and severed one of its arms. *Skk.* The creature's long black arm fell to the ground with a thud.
*Kieek!*
At that point, the Ant King forgot about pride, forgot about revenge, and scrambled to take flight. The survival instinct to live took absolute priority. But Jin-Woo didn't allow even the slightest opening. He tensed his legs and launched himself upward. The Ant King, sensing someone approaching, turned around.
'A human… chasing me through the air?'
Jin-Woo, who had lifted his body with the Ruler's Reach, closed in behind the king and severed one of its wings.
*Kieeek!*
The wingless king plummeted gracelessly. But even during that brief fall toward the ground, the king desperately racked his brain for a way to escape this crisis.
'Before the enemy—before the enemy, I need to think of something the enemy doesn't have.'
Strength, speed, and even his trump card, 'poison'—nothing had worked.
'Is there nothing I have that surpasses that human?'
Just before despair consumed him, the Ant King found an answer. One single thing came to mind. Numbers. The enemy was alone, while he had thousands. Right now, countless warriors were still standing before the entrance to the queen's chamber, awaiting his command. *Thump.* The Ant King, who had slammed into the ground, scrambled back to his feet and pointed at Jin-Woo with his remaining arm.
*Kieeeeeeeeeek—!*
As if on cue, a tide of ants surged forward at the king's rage-filled roar. How about that, human!
*Kieeeeeeeeeek—!*
The king roared without end. To restore his shattered pride, and also to boost the morale of his soldiers. He glared at the human with renewed confidence.
'…?'
A black tide was rolling in from the other side as well.
'Go!'
Jin-Woo issued the command to his shadow soldiers. The 'Domain of the Monarch' he had activated earlier was still in effect. The shadow soldiers, even stronger than before, charged toward the enemy at terrifying speed. *Thududududududu—* The thunderous sound of footsteps echoed throughout the ant nest. Before long, the tide of ants began to crumble. Jin-Woo, who had been watching the battle unfold, finally summoned his last piece.
'…Come out.'
Summoned alone with no one else around, Looks-A-Lot seemed self-conscious and looked around before scratching the back of his head. Jin-Woo placed the Orb of Greed into Looks-A-Lot's hand and issued a stern warning.
"Only target the ants. If even a single spark lands on a human, you're banned from being summoned forever."
Looks-A-Lot nodded vigorously, full of confidence. Soon, Looks-A-Lot—now gigantic thanks to 'Giant's Song'—spewed a monstrous pillar of fire at the ants. *Kwaaaaaaaaa—!* Jin-Woo had seen it plenty of times before, but even today he couldn't help but marvel.
'I swear that fire pillar gets thicker every time.'
Was it because Looks-A-Lot had leveled up? Jin-Woo, who saw it regularly, had that reaction—but it meant something entirely different to everyone else. The Hunters who had been watching the battle between Jin-Woo and the Ant King from the corner with bated breath groaned at the sudden appearance of the monster. Some reacted even more dramatically.
"That, that's a summon? A summon is supposed to look like that?"
Im Tae-Gyu pointed at Looks-A-Lot and raised his voice. The Hunters could only stand with their mouths hanging open, unable to say a word. They were all thinking the same thing. That thing is a summon? By the looks of it, by its abilities—that wasn't a summon; that was a demon king descended upon the mortal world! In any case, the ants burned away wonderfully under those fierce flames. The Ant King began to tremble.
'So these are that human's soldiers…?'
In less than a single minute, hundreds of his soldiers had vanished. Not just as a figure of speech—the soldiers struck by the strange monster's flames had literally 'evaporated.' For the first time. The Ant King faced genuine terror for the first time. He hit a wall. He realized that there was nothing in his arsenal that could surpass his enemy. It was a complete defeat. But how…?
'I was born to kill powerful humans…'
That was his sole purpose. He had undergone growth after growth in pursuit of that goal. He had even absorbed the power of humans. And yet he was outmatched? The Ant King turned his back, trembling violently. He needed distance—any distance at all—from that human. Thoughts of his kingdom and his soldiers vanished completely from the Ant King's mind. The only thought left was to survive. The Ant King used his healing skill—still imperfectly mastered—to hastily restore his wings and took to the sky.
'A little further away…'
But then. *Kuuum!* An enormous force suddenly pressed down from above, driving him into the ground.
*Kieek!*
The Ant King, slamming into the earth, spat out a mouthful of fluid. Jin-Woo, who had swung the Ruler's Reach like a flyswatter, immediately walked over.
'I can't let this one escape.'
This was a powerful magical beast. No matter what it took, he wanted to turn its shadow into a soldier. And to do that, he first needed to kill it. The Ant King's face became pitifully filled with terror as he spotted Jin-Woo approaching.
"Ki, kieek!"
In the end, the Ant King dropped to all fours and began scurrying away. The majesty he had shown at the beginning was nowhere to be found—now he looked completely like a bug. Jin-Woo quickly caught up and used his skill 'Fatal Strike'—no, 'Rend'—on the creature's back. *Pababak!* The instant dozens of attacks landed simultaneously, a System message appeared. *Ding!*
[Enemy defeated.] [Level Up!] [Level Up!]
'Yes!'
Jin-Woo clenched his fist. He had jumped up two levels in one go. His current level was 99. Considering the number of ants still remaining, he could hit level 100 before the day was over—and his heart raced at the thought. But his joy was short-lived.
"Sung Jin-Woo!"
At Baek Yoon-Ho's voice, Jin-Woo turned around to find the man's expression grim. Jin-Woo ran over. The other Hunters, who had been celebrating the defeat of the monstrous ant, shifted their attention to Baek Yoon-Ho as well. Baek Yoon-Ho spoke to Jin-Woo.
"Cha Hae-In…"
Just as he said, Cha Hae-In's presence was barely perceptible. The situation was not good. Jin-Woo's expression hardened as well. There was no time. Even if he flew over on Kaisel right away, when would he arrive, and when would he manage to find a healer to treat her?
'There has to be another way…'
After a moment of deliberation, Jin-Woo hit upon a method to save Cha Hae-In. He had been crouched to check on Cha Hae-In's condition, but he rose to his feet and looked at the cameraman.
"Would you mind turning the camera off for a moment?"
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