Chrysalis

Chapter 1240

“We aim to advance in ten minutes. Make sure your squads are ready.”

They had spent a week preparing for this expedition, training, theorising, testing. Bella and Ellie had worked overtime, stretching their knowledge of monster anatomy to the very limits, studying the cores of fifth stratum monsters with intense focus.

Solant’s broodmates acknowledged her instructions and rushed off to carry out her word, only Leonidant remaining behind.

“How confident are you?” the scout asked.

“That’s an unusually direct question.”

“These are unusual times.”

“Very true words.”

Solant reflected for a moment.

“We really have come a long way, haven’t we?” she said, cleaning her antennae carefully. “It wasn’t that long ago the only thing we had to worry about was Tunnel Ball and completing our training exercises.”

“The Eldest certainly changed that in a hurry.”

The giant ant had thrown Solant and her broodmates into the thick of the conflict at the earliest possible opportunity. It had been a brutal learning curve, for all of them, but they had grown so fast as a result of the change, it was difficult to view it as a bad thing.

“I believe the Eldest was wise to place us here,” Solant decided. “It’s been an excellent opportunity to develop ourselves and be of use to the family.”

“That doesn’t answer my question. How confident are you?”

Solant considered the question for a moment.

“About half,” she said finally. “It’s lower than I would like, but we need to start testing our ideas sooner rather than later. More certainty will be hard to come by without taking a few risks now.”

you,” the scout reassured her general. “I’m sure we’re going to be

nodded,

rushed off to join the others organising the column. Solant left them to it. She needed to focus on the bigger picture, not spend her time fussing over the minor details before they set out. No matter how much she wanted to. The more she tried to look over their thorax and check their work, the more her broodmates pushed

believed in their capabilities, but it was

really are

Bella, the two core shaper Council members, approaching from the nest. Each looked visibly worried,

that you and your caste members have completed to this point. Without proper assessment, we won’t be able to advance according to

asked. “I thought we were working on solutions for the toxic mana and miasma for the

tunnel, but somehow looking

the column

excuse myself, it’s time to depart. I’ll give

“I hope the pets

“I’m sure they will.”

began to move, picking up the pace as the thousands of ants slotted into

was grim, as

the fifth, but as reports rolled

the way into their journey, the column ground to

according to plan, we won’t be here

a keen eye along the troops as she passed. Was it a trick of the light, or did they straighten when they came under

worse than we predicted,” Sumant said, indicating forward

had grown shorter and shorter as the wave went on. Now, barely a single kilometre

the floor of the tunnel, fibrous strands stretched every which way, forming a spider web of goop.

hour. If nothing was done, it would creep all the way to the nest and then up through the fortress

to that,

“Any monster sightings?”

“None, thankfully.”

“Then we can deploy.”

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