Mikhailis shot up from the sofa, almost knocking over the stack of manga and empty snack bowls that had accumulated around him. The adrenaline made him feel like he'd just been dropped into an ani battle scene, no warning, no prep ti.
"Rodion, show ! Quick!" he barked, his voice cracking with excitent. He fumbled with his glasses for a second, and the visuals adjusted, locking on to the queen's chamber. What he saw was nothing short of amazing.
The entire chamber was lit by a soft, pulsating glow emanating from the queen herself. She was the center of it all, her exoskeleton glimring as if every segnt of her body were charged with magical energy. The once dark and tough-looking shell was slowly shifting in color, gradients of iridescent greens and blues shimring over her as she grew, and grew, and grew.
Her already large form (for an ant size), which had commanded the loyalty of hundreds of ants, was now expanding in all directions, the sheen of her transformation making her seem almost unreal.
She wasn't alone. He could see the other ants—workers, soldiers, and even the frog variant—all glowing with the sa strange luminescence. Their chitin was changing as well, becoming more pronounced, more plated. The soldiers, once nacing but limited in size, seed to be shedding their forr selves, becoming sothing far more formidable.
Their mandibles elongated, their legs thickened, and Mikhailis could see the transition as new layers ford on them, making them look nearly invincible. The entire hive was evolving in unison, as if the queen's power was flowing directly into every single creature.
The scarabs, which had once been purely defensive units, were now radiating a bright light, their fire-red glow more intense than before, almost as if they were preparing to burst forth with untapped energy. Even the scarabs' glowing shells had deepened in color, taking on a more intense, molten glow. Their size was visibly increasing, too, doubling before his very eyes.
"Whoa, I've watched a lot of ani transformation scenes, but this is taking the cake," Mikhailis muttered to himself, eyes wide.
"Co on, queenie, show what you got."
The glow intensified, and Mikhailis shielded his eyes, the light making it impossible to see what was going on for a few monts. The anticipation made his heart pound. Whatever this was, whatever she was becoming, it was sothing beyond what he had expected.
When the light began to fade, his glasses' lenses automatically adjusted, clearing the view. And what he saw took his breath away. The queen was enormous now, easily the size of a large dog. Her body was more segnted, the plates of her exoskeleton almost like finely forged armor, each with a distinct pattern etched across it.
Her mandibles, once just sharp and functional, were now adorned with spiked edges. Her legs had also thickened, and her antennae were almost glowing with an eerie sense of awareness.
The worker ants, forrly about the size of a large spider, were now as big as cats. Their bodies looked sturdier, and their once harmless appearance was replaced by sothing more formidable. They moved around her with practiced precision, now able to carry larger loads with much greater ease.
The soldiers... well, they were sothing else entirely. They stood at the sa size as the queen, imposing, their once sharp but thin mandibles now looking more like weapons forged for battle. Their exoskeletons had a dull shine, looking almost tallic.
Mikhailis's eyes went even wider as he glanced down to the worker ant in his own room—one he'd kept around for small errands. It was still the sa size as before, barely bigger than a large spider. But then it shimred, and before his eyes, it expanded, growing rapidly until it was the size of a cat, just like the others in the queen's chamber.
Then, as quickly as it had grown, it shrunk back to its original form.
"Whoa... You gotta be kidding . They can change size?" Mikhailis whispered in awe. He chuckled, shaking his head.
"Now that's what I call an upgrade."
Rodion's voice held a hint of sothing like sarcasm, as if pointing out the obvious. Mikhailis smirked, ignoring the tone.
His gaze then shifted to the fire scarabs. They were now twice their previous size, and their shells seed almost volcanic, with glowing fissures running across them. He could practically feel the heat emanating from them through the screen, their glow brightening the queen's chamber with a warm, flickering light.
"And they called themselves fire scarabs before," Mikhailis mused, scratching his chin.
"Now it looks like they've actually got the firepower to match."
His gaze then moved to the frog variant chira ant and the scurabons. The frog variant was now as big as the queen, and its build looked far more capable—it had thicker, muscular legs, making it look like it could jump even farther and more effectively than before. Its previously slimy and soft-looking carapace was now covered in thick chitin, which almost looked like armor.
The scurabons—the hybrids of scavenger mouse, beetle, and chira ant—had undergone a surprising change as well. They were now as large as the frog variant, giving them a more intimidating appearance. Their bodies had beco more compact, with thicker, reinforced plates that made them look like walking tanks, yet their limbs were lean, indicating a retained level of agility.
Mikhailis's eyes shone, his grin spreading. Bigger, stronger ants ant only one thing—stronger prey, bigger targets. And that ant more power for the colony. They could go after larger monsters, feed the queen with more potent nutrients, and produce stronger variants. This was just the beginning.
The familiar voice of Rodion chid in, breaking Mikhailis's thoughts.
Rodion paused, then continued with an analytical tone.
[Baron]>
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