For the Prosperity of the Species! – Chapter 43

Natunia resurrected Mursheet as promised and said she would side with me, but I wasn’t going to decide anything until Mursheet fully woke up.

‘Seven…… Eight…… Nine.’

‘Four empty slots gained from each evolution, plus five more from the corpses.’

I now had nine abilities at my disposal.

‘Can I do it?’

I had become incomparably stronger than before, but it felt like I was starting my journey anew.

All the members of the bustling colony and the Legionaries were gone, and I felt alone in the world again.

‘I have to become stronger. Even if it means using everything around me.’

Once I made up my mind, my gaze turned to Natunia.

“Hey.”

Natunia, who was sitting at a distance, was startled and replied.

“……Yes?”

“The essence offered by the Outpost Queens, it’s accumulated in your body, right?”

“Ah…… Yes.”

“How much of it has been converted into high-grade essence?”

“Most of it……”

I cut her off and commanded firmly.

“Evolve me into a Jellekus.”

“P, Possible.”

“Is it done through injection with your tentacles?”

“Yes.”

I grabbed Natunia’s body and said.

“If you try to inject poison or anything like that, I’ll burst you right there.”

“……”

Natunia just looked at the floor and couldn’t say anything.

She was accepting the current situation where she wasn’t trusted.

Seeing her trying to gauge when to start, I just sighed.

I knew she was sincere. However, the cold expression she had when she was grabbing Balka by the neck wasn’t easily forgotten.

“……Sigh. I don’t have the luxury to be ruined by a single betrayal. I won’t hesitate to take my time to be cautious. Understand?”

Natunia spoke with a bitter and haggard expression.

“……I know what you’re thinking. I understand.”

It was what I had clearly told her after she saved Mursheet and we had a little chat. After thirty minutes of shouting, I was able to establish a common understanding with her.

An awkward silence followed.

I thought she would be discouraged, but Natunia resumed the conversation in a calm tone. Her pheromones carried a newly growing conviction.

“……Even if it takes time to regain your trust, I intend to bet everything. On the different future for the Gullak that you spoke of.”

Her eyes looked straight up at me.

“……Go ahead then.”

I nodded to indicate I was ready for evolution, and Natunia’s tentacles approached me.

‘For now, I’ll accept it. Both your favor and ability, I can use them to fight the Overlord.’

I accepted Natunia’s high-grade essence and fell into a two-day sleep.

🔹🔹🔹🔹🔹🔹

“Mmm……”

I slept well enough.

The newly awakened senses, how should I put it, felt like waking up after being administered a 48-hour IV drip of Sipjeondaebo-tang.

(Usually, it’s the other way around. Food should go into the stomach, not the blood vessels.)

As my condition improved, even my gloomy mood seemed to lift.

It felt like I could shake off the heavy conversation we had yesterday and start fresh with renewed energy.

And I stood up and examined my transformed appearance.

‘This is……’

It was my body, but it felt like I had just bought a high-end foreign car.

There was no reason to describe the appearance of a Jellekus differently, leaving aside ‘that’ character.

The details might be different, but it was undoubtedly the high-end ground behemoth, the ‘Ultralisk’.

Wasn’t it the Zerg romance I had heard, seen, and grown up with in the game?

With a body 1.3 times larger than a Jellek, the heavy armor was beyond the level of a tank, reaching the level of a fortress, and the four-barreled oversized scythes were truly weapons designed for mass slaughter.

Dean had near-infinite regenerative abilities because Doomora had stuffed him with an absurd amount of Sweet Dew, but it was hard to believe that simply evolving into a Jellekus came with ‘infinite regenerative abilities.’

Even as a final evolution perk, what is ‘infinite’? Where in this world is there anything infinite without a price?

But having become a Jellekus myself, I could understand the source. My carapace was formed in a way that resembled layers of overlapping shields, and gill-like organs had developed in the gaps between these layers. They were constantly absorbing something from the atmosphere, and this, I think……

‘Is it an organ that absorbs mana……?’

It’s a world where magic flies around. Wouldn’t the concept of mana naturally exist in the atmosphere?

After establishing that hypothesis, I could deduce the system behind the Jellekus’s infinite regenerative abilities.

‘……A system that uses mana to boost regenerative abilities…… Well, that makes sense.’

Nodding, I was about to examine my magnificent body again when I smelled a familiar pheromone from below.

“Ugh……”

“Ah, Mursheet……! Are you awake?!”

Below me, Mursheet, who felt smaller than usual, was opening her eyes. Finally, her consciousness was returning.

“……”

Mursheet looked around for a moment and made eye contact with Natunia. Her first reaction was a sound of disbelief, “Ha!” and her second was a sneer.

“Ridiculous. Are you siding with him now?”

“There’s nothing ridiculous about it. Everything is for the prosperity of the species.”

“Oh? So you now believe that he’s better than the Overlord.”

‘H, Him?!…… Look at her talking right after being resurrected?’

Ah, this is the Mursheet I know. Seeing her usual behavior, it seemed her recovery was complete. Despite Mursheet’s sarcastic mockery, Natunia answered confidently.

“I’ve decided to think that way. Because he’s the one who envisions a better and greater future.”

“Speaking respectfully to a Legionary…… The shock of defeat seems to have been quite significant.”

Natunia frowned and blocked my front. The pheromones she emitted as she swung her arm strongly were filled with strong will.

“Regardless of what he was in the past, he is now the lord of I, Golden Spider Natunia! Be mindful of your words and actions!”

Mursheet also flared up and stood up.

“Oh. Then I, too, will speak as a ‘Queen’ like you. You should be careful with your words and actions.”

“What!?……”

To the trembling Natunia, Mursheet hissed. Like a cat hissing, she made a threatening snake sound, “Hiss.”

Well, it would be a lie to say there were no hard feelings left, considering he was the one who killed her cherished subordinates.

“……The Last Legionary cannot be my lord. Maybe a ‘comrade’ or a ‘friend,’ but that’s it. And you, regardless of our relationship, are the youngest one here.”

While Natunia’s servitude was pleasant, Mursheet’s words were even more so.

Comrade. Friend. In this desolate world, what other words could be more empowering? I liked her existence, someone I could connect with.

Anyway, I mediated between them who were about to fight.

“What does it matter? Just be respectful in front of the Overlord. The Gullak I lead will be a more flexible and organic organization. I don’t care about the titles or the way you address me, so just do as you please.”

“……”

“……”

It was a radical command for the two Queens.

Perhaps imagining the Overlord’s Palace where extreme honorifics and disrespect coexisted, they both felt dizzy at the same time.

“Ah. It’s chaos.”

“This is confusing……”

I had given them a culture shock as soon as I ascended as a new candidate for the throne.

Mursheet replied, bewildered.

“Well…… I guess if I follow you, things will change drastically. Radically.”

Natunia also hesitated and then sighed.

“……What use are old laws to someone who will write a new history? Do as you please.”

Good. Now I feel at ease.

While we were establishing our relationship, I had to do something about the title ‘The Last Legionary.’

“You two.”

As the two Queens focused on me, I spoke softly.

“I am no longer a Legionary. Therefore, I will abandon the title ‘The Last Legionary.’ I intend to have a name that is respected as an individual, like you or the Overlord.”

Natunia bowed her head, expressing her agreement.

“As you wish.”

‘Hmm…… A new name. What would sound good and have meaning?’

I have the name ‘Lee Hyun-soo’ given to me by my parents. However, asking them to combine the exact pronunciation of this into pheromones was cruel. Even I couldn’t do it.

Straight to the point. I started thinking under the premise that I would win the fight against the Overlord.

‘……Gullak King OOO. Overlord OOO…… This is tough.’

In a certain game, the one who led the Zerg swarm in a groundbreaking way was the Queen of Blades, Kerrigan. How about masculinizing Kerrigan’s name?

Kerrigan……

Kaligan……

Kalig……

‘Hmm? Kalig doesn’t sound bad.’

Gullak King, Kalig.

I decided on that.

“From now on, call me ‘Kalig.’”

Mursheet nodded lightly and said.

“That’s easy. Kalig.”

Natunia smiled, looking even happier than me.

“The next Overlord, Kalig-nim……!”

Seeing the two Queens repeating my new name, I could envision the future.

My own Legion, increasingly tailored to my liking.

And its power.

‘I have a lot to do. First, let’s choose the genetic traits to apply.’

I was contemplating which genetic traits to insert into the ten empty slots. This choice could no longer be made lightly. Now that I had become the one who had to fight the Overlord, it was clear that every choice would be a crossroads between a bad ending and a happy ending.

While I was lost in thought, I saw the two Queens heading somewhere.

‘……They still haven’t settled their hierarchy? Well, whatever. They’ll calm down after fighting a bit.’

They were bound to have a squabble someday, so I let it slide.

🔹🔹🔹🔹🔹🔹

“……Why should we avoid Kalig’s eyes? State your business, Natunia.”

“I have a favor to ask of you.”

“……?”

“Inside my stomach, there’s a pouch that contains the essence of the Gullak. It contains not only essence but also various genetic traits and luxurious nutrients like Sweet Dew.”

“Don’t tell me, it’s used for the Overlord’s life extension……?”

“Yes. The miraculous essence that grants a new century to a creature that has exceeded its natural lifespan.”

“No, you mean he collects it in an internal organ? Then how does he use it when he needs to? Even if it’s stored in a pouch, the beneficial energy will continuously seep into the body……”

“Use it? The Overlord has no intention of spilling a single drop of this essence. He planned to chew me up whole.”

“……?!”

Mursheet was quite shocked. To think that the position of ‘Legion Queen’ she so desired would be reduced to a mere meal.

Natunia continued speaking calmly.

“It’s normal not to know these facts until you’re finally selected as a Legion Queen candidate. It’s treated as a top secret, so even I didn’t know until right before my selection.”

Mursheet was speechless and lowered her head. That silent action was more comforting to Natunia than anything else.

“……Hehe, do you understand why I’m telling you this?”

“You said you had a favor to ask……”

Mursheet nodded slightly.

“Shamefully, I’m vulnerable to pain. My nervous system has been overly sensitive since birth. Therefore, if I try to remove this internal organ myself, I’ll faint midway and die. I have no choice but to ask you.”

Like Doomora, Queen individuals can transform their appendages extending from their backs into various structures.

Transforming them into something resembling surgical tools was, of course, possible.

“……This is baffling. I’ve disemboweled and killed many, but I never dreamed I’d be performing surgery to save someone.”

“……That’s…… reassuring to hear.”

🔹🔹🔹🔹🔹🔹

I arranged the ten abilities appropriately.

My choices were