For the Prosperity of the Species! – Chapter 51

Chapter 51: All-Out War 5

[Lee Hyun-soo’s Perspective]

Mursheet’s plan to absorb the Blank state Legionaries through her unique channel.

Mursheet had said that the results of that research were starting to show.

Natunia and I were currently running towards her research facility.

“……Is it really true?”

“Huhu. See for yourself.”

One of the Blank state Zik we had kidnapped looked up at us with friendly eyes.

Clear, bright, blue eyes.

“Haha…… Hahaha! It worked!”

If we could steal Legionaries using a unique channel, we could finally create ‘my subordinates’ in the truest sense of the word. There would be no more need to repeatedly brainwash them with threats and worries, and no more fear of losing all my subordinates to the Overlord’s commands.

We shared our joy. Mursheet felt satisfied with her success, and I smiled at the possibilities of the future. Natunia also seemed pleased with my appearance.

At that moment.

My head throbbed.

I couldn’t possibly mistake what that feeling meant.

━My loyal Legionaries. Trample their nests. Today, the Gullak will rule the world. ━

The Overlord’s voice shook my brain.

“Kuuuuuh……! Aaaaaaaaah!”

I screamed in agony and pounded the ground with my fist.

I had to regain my senses. I couldn’t let Mursheet or Natunia answer the Overlord’s call.

‘Of all times, now…… Just a little more…… A little more and it would have been complete……!’

I used Structural Transformation to turn my arms into dozens of tentacles. The reason I was able to withstand the Overlord’s command when I was a Zik was because I tied myself to tree roots.

It would be no different for the two Queens. When their consciousness flew away, and only the Overlord’s will remained, they would definitely just walk away. I grabbed them. Before they were completely swallowed, I wrapped them up and drove my thorny tentacles into the ground.

“Heok…… Heok……”

After firmly securing them, my mind became hazy as well, and I just stared at them blankly.

“……Aah, Kalig-nim……”

Natunia’s eyes were half-glazed over. Like the setting sun, the Overlord’s will was descending upon her pupils. She reached out to me.

“My…… Master…… Is…… Only…… Kalig-nim……”

Seeing Natunia resisting with all her might, I found light in my cloudy eyes. I couldn’t collapse here. I had a mission to take responsibility for their future and my own destiny. The lives of my fallen comrades weighed on my shoulders.

I pulled myself together and shouted to Mursheet.

“O-Overwrite the…… Genes! Inject it into us!!!”

Mursheet, with one eye already glowing red, retorted.

“No……! I-It’s still unstable…… The experiment isn’t complete……! Besides, you’re…… Not in a Blank state!”

“Hurry……!”

“Can’t you see that the Overlord’s command is resonating so clearly……! We are…… Creatures under the Overlord’s control! We can’t resist!”

I gritted my teeth and roared.

“Just do it!!! I have no choice but to trust your research right now..!!! Mursheet, who are you following!?”

With a surge of emotion, Mursheet shot out her tentacles, as if saying whatever happens, happens.

Seeing the tentacles pierce my body, I thought.

‘Good…… The message in my head is a mess. The program is trying to be overwritten. But…… It’s not enough in this state. The Overlord’s command is unimaginably powerful.’

Even if we weren’t in a Blank state, we needed to be in a similar state for it to work.

I activated Condensed Blast Horn and gathered 5% of its power.

‘Maybe……! If I’m unconscious right after fainting……!’

━Pang! ━

As I flicked their foreheads with Condensed Blast Horn, they fainted instantly. The problem was the aftereffects of Condensed Blast Horn. Even though I used only 5% of its power, the aftereffects were tremendous.

‘Oh no. My arms won’t move……!’

And left alone, I was gradually consumed by the Overlord’s will. I no longer had the time to knock myself unconscious.

‘This is bad…… It’s fine for the Queens, but I don’t think these restraints will be able to hold me in my current state……’

When I was a Zik, tree roots were enough, but now I couldn’t even trust my own tentacles. In this uncertain situation, I saw a small creature crawling between my eyes.

‘..Jji……?’

The small Resonance Bug, having climbed to the top of my head, spread its short front legs and let out a heroic roar.

“Jiiiiiiiiiiiiiiii!”

Jji was attempting ‘Resonance.’

It was expanding its Resonance ability, which could receive Mursheet’s psychic waves regardless of distance, to the greatest extent possible. However, no matter how much I thought about it, resonating beyond its own body and into my mind seemed beyond its capabilities.

‘It’s impossible…… It doesn’t have the body size to output that kind of power……!’

But the little fighter didn’t give up. The more impossible it seemed, the louder it cried.

It was a touching scene, but unfortunately, that was the end of my consciousness.

‘Da…… Mn……’

……

How much time had passed?

I opened my eyes blankly and saw the sky.

‘Am I…… Lying down?’

It felt like I had been lying down for about an hour.

I didn’t feel like I was being controlled, and my mind wasn’t cloudy.

No, it was clearer than ever.

‘Is this for real……’

A 3cm parasitic Bluetooth earpiece-like being had saved my life twice.

I wanted to bow down to Jji, but then it would become ‘squashed’ instead of ‘Jji.’

Turning my head while lying down, I saw Mursheet and Natunia slowly waking up. Jji’s challenge was a great success, but the operation I had carried out was also a great success.

The so-called ‘Overwrite the Operating System While the Internet is Disconnected’ was successful.

“I was really scared…… Are you both okay?”

Mursheet, holding her forehead, cursed.

“This @#$!%..! Were you trying to crack my skull open?! Learn some power control!!!”

Natunia trembled with excitement.

She clenched and unclenched her hands, then released pheromones in disbelief.

“Am I…… Really free from the Overlord’s grasp……?”

I got up and answered.

“Congratulations. You’re finally free.”

“Aah…… What should I do? Nothing…… No demands are coming. It feels strange…… To be disconnected from the Legion.”

Smiling, I offered Natunia my hand. I pulled her up and said to her.

“That’s what freedom is. You’re perfectly normal right now.”

Natunia nodded with a dazed expression.

And I couldn’t forget to thank this little guy either.

“Jji? Where did you go, my little hero!”

“……”

“……Jji?”

There was no answer, and the atmosphere turned cold. Then I felt a tickle crawling up the back of my neck towards my ear.

“You rascal! Trying to scare your master.”

I brushed the back of my neck with my antennae, and there was Jji, dangling and crying.

“Jiiiiiiii!!”

“Haha! Are you feeling wronged, little guy?”

It clung to my antennae and wiggled its butt excitedly. It was just a puppy without a tail.

“You’re the best Resonance Bug in the world, Jji. Thank you! Really!”

Jji, with its eyes shining brightly, hid in the gap of my armor as I started to walk.

“Ahem! Ahem!”

They looked a bit disheveled, but the two Queens were looking at me with warmth.

“This Natunia is impressed by your ability to joyfully interact with even the smallest of creatures. I am excited to see how the future of the Gullak will change.”

“Don’t be so impressed by that. More importantly, gather around. We need a meeting right now.”

Mursheet, Natunia, and I stood in a triangle and began our meeting.

“……Do you remember the content of the command?”

“I remember it clearly. He said to attack the Humans’ main base……”

Mursheet said with her arms crossed.

“Soon, Gullak from all over will begin a great migration.”

As soon as she finished speaking, dust rose in the distance.

“Indeed. And there they are.”

A massive army was rushing towards us. They poured out from Gullak habitats all over the world, their eyes glowing red and saliva dripping from their mouths.

Even the Queen individuals, who should be commanding, were just mixed in with the combat units, charging forward.

‘……This is no different from a ‘Select All and Attack’ command in a game.’

We hid ourselves so as not to be trampled by the insane migration.

The places they passed were transformed into barren wastelands.

As I watched, I suddenly asked Natunia.

“……Wait, didn’t you say the optimal timing for a surprise attack was right before they prepared for an all-out war? Then we missed it, didn’t we?”

“Aah. I apologize. It seems the Humans’ offensive was much stronger than I anticipated. I thought it would take a little longer for the Overlord to personally intervene, until the Overlord’s Palace collapsed……”

She looked anxious. It was as if she felt compelled to always be the best strategist.

“Surely, the defense of the main base would have been handed over to ‘Zerturta, the Warmonger’…… And the three Legion Commanders would have also lent their strength…… But why……? I don’t understand why things progressed so quickly……”

Seeing her cowering and looking around nervously, I said.

“It’s okay. I’m not blaming you. I just want to ask about the next plan.”

“Ah……”

“Tell me what we should do now. Relax. If the best option is impossible, we’ll just go with the second best. We don’t have the option to stop.”

When I gave her a look of trust, Natunia quickly regained her composure.

“……Then, Kalig-nim. We can also consider this. There’s a high probability that the Overlord is taking his life extension for granted.”

Mursheet also nodded and said.

“That’s right. He’s not an individual who would face two problems at once, especially not if he’s smarter than us. If he had properly grasped the situation here, he wouldn’t have rushed towards the Humans even if it meant the collapse of the Overlord’s Palace.”

“Huh? Wait. The Blank state Legionaries all went back, didn’t they? Are you saying the Overlord left the Overlord’s Palace before they arrived?”

“That seems to be the case.”

I grasped the main point.

“So…… He wouldn’t have acted like that unless he thought Natunia would be joining him soon?”

Natunia’s eyes lit up.

“That’s right. Perhaps we can seize an even better opportunity. If the Overlord, exhausted from the war with the Humans, is also experiencing physical collapse……”

Mursheet licked her lips and said.

“Kukuk…… Zertura and the Legion Commanders were mountains we had to overcome eventually. The fact that the Overlord himself has stepped forward means they’re all incapacitated. Now we can swallow the Overlord without having to deal with them. Kalig, you’re not going to refuse such a well-prepared meal, are you?”

I clenched my fist and nodded quickly.

“Of course not. I intend to seize every opportunity. However, I’m not entirely happy with this situation. It’s painful that the number of Legionaries we could have gained through victory has drastically decreased. You saw them running off earlier, right? This is…… He’s basically using his subordinates as cannon fodder for the Humans.”

Natunia agreed.

“The death toll will be record-breaking. The throne you will claim, Kalig-nim, will not be as grand as it could have been.”

I clapped my hands together and made up my mind.

“Hua! We’re not in a position to be picky. Now, shall we follow those guys since it’s decided?”

“I’m thrilled.”

Mursheet said with a laugh.

“Don’t be. That Kalig fellow won’t end here. He’s like a ‘Cockroach.’”

“……”

Cockroaches were the equivalent of cockroaches on Earth.

I thought I should fix Mursheet’s disrespectful attitude once I became the Overlord. Because then, I would be in a position where I wouldn’t need her anymore.

And so, I followed the massive Gullak army with the two Queens.

🔹🔹🔹🔹🔹🔹

Overlord Bruklade was looking down at the surging Gullak forces from the air.

‘……It’s been a long time.’

A massive launcher, dozens of times larger than his own body, was generated from his right arm, and it fired a single egg compressed to its limit.

It landed among the Royal Army, exploding with a deafening roar and summoning a massive Land Anemone. The explosive power alone was a formidable weapon, but the true purpose of the attack was to break their formation with the insanely large anemone.

He had driven the flood of Gullak forces into the heart of the Royal Army.

Even amidst the chaotic battle, the Humans were overwhelming the Gullak.

But it didn’t matter.

The Overlord feared their concentrated fire, not the annihilation of his own forces.

With a single flap of his dragon wings, he landed with a flash, generating a shockwave that instantly killed 2,000 Royal Army soldiers. After the landing, the Overlord’s true showtime began.

━Guuuuuuuuuueeeeeeee…… ━

━Heeeeeeeeeeeeeess…… ━

━Krrrrrrruuuuuuuuuu…… ━

The Overlord shed his humanoid form.

A mountain-sized chimeric mass descended upon the earth.

Underneath the three large heads, smaller heads babbled in their own languages. It was no longer in the shape of a Gullak. The terrifying appearance was closer to a high-ranking undead monster, but unfortunately, its essence was the concentrated life force of hundreds of millions of beings.

……Something that was different from the undead in terms of agility and dynamism.

“Ru…… Run…… That’s……”

“Aah……”

While the Human infantry despaired, the Overlord’s body unleashed every possible kind of attack a living creature could muster.

Stingers, thorns, hooks, teeth, claws, tentacles, pincers, tusks, and horns erupted, devastating the ground like a living graveyard. The saliva he spewed was a horrific mixture of various poisons and acids. Its grotesque form, with no clear weak point, instilled unprecedented fear in the Humans.

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