Chapter 19

I've read that some people didn't like these chapters, and even if others don't say so, they should feel the same way. These chapters have already been written, so I can't change them, but I can promise that in the most recent chapters I will try not to write this kind of chapter anymore.

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There were clouds of smoke lingering in the air. Motionless, there was no breeze to disperse them, as it was deep within the dungeons. The smoke came from a burning torch placed next to a group of men seated on the ground. Lighting a fire here was suicide; the monsters would be drawn to its glow. Yet, these men didn't seem to care. They laughed and talked loudly, unaware of the approaching danger.

"Rat! Grub time!"

The leader stank of sweat and blood. His light armor was white and gray, smeared with a purple liquid—the blood of ants. By the torch, the stern man slapped his thigh and barked orders at the group's porter.

After a moment, the porter, Liliruca, moved. She opened the bag, which seemed bigger than her own body, and took out four cups and four plates. First, she poured cheap wine into the aluminum cups―because she knew that if she served the food first, she would risk another slap. Then, Liliruca placed the plates in front of each man, ensuring each had his own.

Liliruca did not serve herself. She moved aside and sat quietly, her head bowed, her face hidden beneath the hood of her brown robe. As the men drank and laughed, she glanced up. She didn't look at the men; her gaze rested on the food. She stared at the meat with longing, and in response, her stomach growled.

For a fleeting moment, she felt conflicted.

'Just a little.'

She would be quick. No one would notice. She reached for a piece of bread. She grasped it and sniffed it, her mouth watering. But just as she was about to take a bite, a loud thud echoed. Her vision blurred, and a sharp pain shot through her cheek, as though hundreds of wasps were stinging her face.

The man who had struck her snatched the bread from her hand and crushed it between his fingers as if he had triumphed in a petty battle.

"This bread?" He said mockingly, holding it in front of her. "It doesn't belong to you, understand? You shouldn't even touch it."

Liliruca, still disoriented from the blow, slowly rose to her hands and knees. Her lips quivered, but her gaze remained fixed on the bread. She inched towards it. Her dignity was already so shattered that she scarcely cared.

"P-please give me the bread. I haven't eaten for three days, Wilbet-sama... I beg you..."

The man cast a sideways glance at her. It was the look of someone who relished seeing others grovel before him. His companions were not far behind. Amidst stifled chuckles, one of them leaned over and dangled a piece of meat in her face.

"Are you famished, little rat?" He looked down for a moment, and when he raised his eyes again, his smile exuded pure malice. "Look how delectable our food is."

The others burst into laughter as they devoured their meals, exaggerating every bite, chewing loudly, and spattering the surroundings with crumbs and grease. They were well aware of their actions and reveled in them.

Liliruca stood motionless, her eyes tracking the movements of the hands that lifted the food. She tried to avert her gaze, but her stomach growled even louder.

Her body trembled. She knew there would be no compassion. There had never been any here. The dungeon, the food, the wine, the mistreatment―it was all part of the arrangement. Only Lili had had no choice in accepting or refusing any of it. She crumpled the hem of her robe between her hands, and gradually, her fingers closed around it until they formed a fist.

Then a spark ignited in her heart. She swallowed the words she was about to utter. That spark kept her from crawling back.

Liliruca remained prostrate as the men continued to drink and jeer at one another. The echo of their guffaws lingered in the air.

"Oh, are you frightened? Won't join us? Just watch?" One of the adventurers sneered as he wiped food remnants from his mouth. "What a pitiful rat. She could never dream of becoming an adventurer."

"Rats are made to scurry, not to fight."

"Leave her be, will you? At this point, it's even boring to have her around." The younger one shrugged.

"Tsk, still don't get it, rookie? Last time she stole 1000 Valis from us. 1000 Valis! Do you even have any idea how much effort it took to acquire that amount?"

But then a sound broke the conversation. It wasn't sudden, nor was it deafening, but it was the kind of noise that made even the most foolhardy pause. A screeching sound that first came as an echo, like someone rubbing two massive stones together in fury.

The men ceased talking and turned their heads toward the source of the sound. Initially, it was just curiosity, but soon that curiosity transformed into recognition. Anyone who had ventured onto floor seven knew that sound.

It was the sound of Killer Ants' mandibles grinding together.

"Tch, Damn it!" As he snarled, the leader sprang to his feet, shoving Lili aside without the slightest concern, pushing her away as if she were garbage in his path. "Time to earn our bread."

The others immediately followed suit, grudgingly drawing their weapons. They had encountered the Killer Ants before. It wasn't their first confrontation. Even if the ants came in swarms, there was little to fear. These men were accustomed to danger. The ants were powerful, but only in vast numbers.

"Listen, you rat," one of them said to Lili, turning to face her. "Don't attempt anything foolish. Don't try to flee. Stay put and observe us fight. We'll show you what it means to be strong."

But Lili remained silent. The expression on her face was frozen. At first, the men mistook it for her usual fear. But they soon realized that this time it was different. Lili wasn't just shakimg; she was gesturing. Her small, quivering fingers pointed behind them, her eyes as wide as saucers, struggling to form words that wouldn't come out.

"What the heck...?" One of the adventurers pivoted slowly, following the direction of Lili's indication.

The color drained from his face in an instant. He was paralyzed, and a stifled scream died in his throat.

"Oh... gods...!"

The others, hearing the panic in his voice, turned as well. And then they all witnessed it.

Hell.

It wasn't ten. It wasn't twenty. It was at least fifty. Ants the size of full-grown men, crimson as blood, swarmed across the floor, the walls, and the ceiling. Their legs moved so rapidly that each seemed to possess a score. They advanced like a sea of scarlet ink. Their mandibles screeched as they opened and closed.

A fearsome horde of killer ants, as if someone had disturbed their colony, was preparing to unleash their wrath.

The adventurers, for the first time, fell into stunned silence.

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