A Legion Grows From My Smartphone

Chapter 7: Endless Expansion (4)

The bats were not a legion, but a community living together. They had no interest in the ground below, littered with their droppings. A few of them noticed an anomaly, but they simply ignored it and went on with their hunting.

[How foolish. What can we expect from such beasts? But it's a blessing for us.]

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I let out a sigh, almost in admiration.

Before I knew it, the flesh wall had completely covered a portion of the 7th floor.

The chunks of meat that had rapidly divided in just a day were not a nest.

As a legion, it was a new nest created after the production nest and brain, a sort of forward base for battle.

[The legion asked itself, should we annihilate them here and now? And it made its own decision. The answer was no. Its enough to just drive them away.]

Why so? The energy invested is too great.

[Its only a matter of time, they will all become our prey.]

The legion waged war on the bats.

The bats were more likely to simply flee than fight to the death.

Where should the driven-out bats go?

They could only go up or down.

[Those coming down will become our food, and the hundreds of bats pouring into the upper floors will cause a rift in the balance.]

Well take advantage of the chaos caused by that rift.

[Yes. When sudden chaos leads to the collapse of the existing ecosystem, we will devour it whole.]

It was wicked and cunning.

But undoubtedly an effective tactic.

Whether the bats increased or decreased.

The legion intended to devour it whole.

But whats the point of covering the walls with chunks of meat?

[Weve built a fortress, now its time to attack from a distance.]

The flesh wall writhed.

What would they use to attack?

A few bats seemed interested, but they didnt move, perhaps their intelligence wasnt high enough.

But then...

What the...?

Screech!

Screech! Screech!

The bats screamed and flapped their wings frantically.

In the midst of that, at least dozens of bats fell to the ground.

What on earth did they do?

[The legion mimicked the strategy of the White Cave Ants. They spat out acid, but we fired a more powerful acidic poison in a more advanced form. The poison stingers fired from the flesh wall stuck into the bodies of the enemies. Theyre not just stingers. Theyre stingers made of a bone-like substance with a hollow inside.]

Crazy.

It was beyond my imagination.

And this method worked well.

The bats have thin skin.

Moreover, their wings wrapped in a membrane are even weaker.

This means theyre extremely vulnerable to the fired poison stingers.

Especially when hundreds are clustered together, the effect is maximized.

[The legions strategy worked. The bats felt threatened and chose to flee in confusion rather than fight back. Its our victory.]

The now empty 7th floor was ours.

The nest continued to grow, cutting off the breath of the bats writhing on the ground and taking their bodies, down to every drop of blood and strand of hair, as nourishment.

But the bigger chaos was probably on the floor above, the 8th floor.

Hundreds of excited bats must have flocked there all at once.

Its a feast, isnt it?

[It may seem so. But its not.]

I muttered lightly after the test, but it immediately refuted it. Its not very considerate.

Whats not?

[The legion has only found a tactic that maximizes efficiency, and it worked. We still dont have overwhelming power.]

Should I say theyre thorough?

But regardless, I couldnt help but feel burdened.

[The account level has increased to 2. Now, 20 samples can be provided, and the feed limit has increased to 40kg.]

So youre telling me to keep working?

I let out a hollow laugh.

But if it was a problem that I, the player, had to deal with, there was nothing I could do.

I had to do it.

Lets stick with wood for now.

[Do you have a plan in mind?]

...Im not sure.

It was a difficult problem.

Where could I find easy, cheap, and high-calorie food?

After chatting with my peers, I returned home.

Do both of you have no plans tomorrow afternoon?

Our mother, who came home late from work, called out to my sibling and me.

We both nodded, already aware of what she was about to say.

[Could there be a problem with our main plan...]

Thats not it, you lunatic. Its just a quick trip.

I retorted to the overstepping fellow as I returned to my room.

Tomorrow, were going to visit father.

I sighed, wondering what use there was in telling this unknown hacker.

Its been exactly ten years since our father was brutally torn apart before our eyes.

Even though I considered myself an adult now, it was still hard to think about that day.

Lets worry about something else. Like what to use as a sample. We cant waste this opportunity.

[Thats a good idea]

Isnt it a bit lacking to stick with insects? Of course, compared to the monsters in your area, all the animals here are quite tame.

My thoughts expanded to reptiles, birds, and mammals.

The problem was how to obtain them.

There were similar creatures I wanted to include after seeing the rough and dreadful alien cave, but they were beyond my reach.

We should visit father more often. He would be pleased.

...Yes.

Lets go now.

Its been ten years. We had no choice but to get used to it.

My usually talkative sibling left the place first, without uttering a word.

The disaster had a bigger impact on her since she was only seven at the time.

[Is your business done? Currently, the legion is occupying the 8th floor.]

A message flowed on my phone screen.

I didnt bother to open the app.

It was doing fine on its own, and it would notify me if anything major happened.

I folded my phone and glanced at the rearview mirror.

The building of the charnel house was receding.

We should visit more often.

My mothers voice was moist.

I kept my mouth shut.

Its been ten years, but the scene was always the same.

Oh, we need to turn back.

Lets do that.

Our car, which had been driving smoothly in silence towards the setting sun, was blocked by other cars filling the road.

Soldiers and police officers were bustling around up ahead.

The police were blowing whistles and directing cars to detour.

Attention, everyone! The gate will open soon!

This is a controlled area! Please turn back!

Some police officers were holding loudspeakers and shouting non-stop.

Seeing the soldiers gathered, I guessed it was indeed the gate.

Its okay. The soldiers are already prepared. There will probably be hunters too.

Uh...uh-huh.

I held my mothers hand, which was tightly gripping the gear.

It was cold and trembling.

My mother was still terrified of the gate and the monsters pouring out of it.

Who wouldnt be afraid of those monsters? But my mother was particularly more so.

It was inevitable. Those monsters once drove our family to the brink of destruction.

The response system and peoples reactions were all immature ten years ago.

After the day my father sacrificed himself to protect my young self and my mother from their hellish attack, a systematic structure began to form.

I bit my lip for no reason.

Those monsters were not only objects of fear but also my enemies.

Of course, I was nothing more than an ordinary person without any power.

Even when I was in the military, I was lucky enough not to have to mobilize because of the gate.

Look, those must be the hunters.

My mother pointed to something far away.

In the distance, a few silhouettes were descending from a helicopter.

Those who fought the monsters were powerful people like the soldiers and those individuals.

The monsters will come out.

...Lets turn back quickly.

Kang Do Yeon, who had been silent, urged my mother with a word.

However, my gaze remained fixed on that place.

[Are you referring to those creatures from the other world when you talk about prey and samples?]

I felt a flush of embarrassment as I read the message.

Those useless, shitty monsters.

I wanted to use them as food for our creatures.

Youre right. I was considering using the monsters as food and samples.

I confessed after returning to my room.

I wasnt sure if it was possible to take pictures of those creatures, which were strictly managed even in death.

If I succeeded in doing that, I would have to worry about my life, not the photos.

[It might be difficult right now. But if we grow, if we grow more, it might be different.]

How exactly?

[Our relationship is not one-way. Whenever it happens, if the legion gains self-awareness, ask it. How it perceives your existence. How it can repay the favor it has received.]

Thats reassuring.

I chuckled, but I didnt feel bad.

I appreciated being acknowledged and thanked.

[In order to do that, we need to keep fighting and devouring. Now that were on the 8th floor. Next are the spiders that have been blocking our reconnaissance.]

At the same time, our new goal was updated.