Decapitation

“It looks like we've been spotted! Run!”

At the same time, their disguise as the Great Devourer instantly shattered. Grimgor ripped off his cloak, swung his greatsword, and decapitated the worker ant that had detected the anomaly in an instant.

【Kerrigan was both surprised and thrilled】

A handful of enemies had managed to infiltrate under their noses using disguises.

And they were clearly here to assassinate her. Although Kerrigan was surprised by the enemy's trickery, her heart raced with excitement.

She had not personally taken to the battlefield in a long time.

As the queen, she bore a heavy responsibility, and with the colony constantly at a disadvantage, she simply had no leisure time.

But now that enemies had delivered themselves to her doorstep, she had absolutely no reason to refuse.

【Elise urged her to send her forces first】

Elise stopped Kerrigan, who was about to rise and fight, advising her to send her guard unit first.

Following Elise's advice, the soldiers guarding Kerrigan charged at the enemy first.

Meanwhile, Grimgor and his squad were rushing forward with all their might.

“Those monsters dare to desecrate the sacred altar and our heritage!”

Seeing that Kerrigan had built her chamber right in the center of the ancient temple on the hill at the heart of the city, Grimgor flew into a rage.

Just then, various mutated ants of the Tyrant grade—including tiger hornet ants, decapitating ants, and predatory ants—charged at them, deploying deep-blue psionic barriers.

“Accept a warrior's challenge, you wicked monsters! You know nothing of honor or dignity!”

Grimgor gritted his teeth, surging magic power igniting upon his greatsword once more.

The sword techniques he unleashed were the skills and dignity of a beastkin warrior honed and perfected over decades.

Under his blade, the Tyrant-grade ants rushing forward with venomous stings, sharp mandibles, and claws were easily sliced through like tofu, along with their barriers.

Their massive bodies, solid barriers, and exoskeletons capable of deflecting bullets were utterly fragile before this sword, ruthlessly destroyed and severed.

The Realm of Martial Zenith that Grimgor had achieved was a state reached by combining his lifetime of experience, will, dignity, and skill within a body rejuvenated with the help of a deity.

Kerrigan stared blankly, completely captivated by this display of martial prowess, the likes of which she had never seen in her life.

A warrior's lifelong refinement of their craft was so beautiful, and the resulting destructive power was so mesmerizing.

Before this, the battle-loving Kerrigan had simply crushed her enemies with raw power.

She delighted in crushing and tearing her foes apart using her superior physique, weight, and strength.

Only now did she realize that her past battles had been incomplete.

The martial arts Grimgor displayed now were something she completely lacked.

“Accept my challenge, Queen.”

Grimgor brandished his greatsword as if performing a beautiful yet lethal dance, instantly slaughtering all the guards and arriving right in front of Kerrigan.

Deeply captivated by his martial prowess, Kerrigan proactively lunged forward.

The four scythe-like legs extending from her back lunged at Grimgor one after another, but Grimgor spun his greatsword like a windmill, severing all four in an instant.

“This is bad...”

【Elise warned: Run!】

Lin Miao, who was watching, felt his heart leap into his throat, while Elise screamed in terror.

In that split second, Grimgor deflected all the venomous stings Kerrigan fired, cleaved through the toxic gas she spewed, severed her thick forelimbs, and thrust his greatsword deep into her chest, splitting her massive body in two.

It was an incredibly swift strike that dismembered her massive frame in an instant.

“You... were a warrior as well.”

Grimgor stroked his beard, landing steadily on the ground, and spoke softly as he looked at Kerrigan, who lay in pieces, her bodily fluids pooling around her.

He never expected that Kerrigan, despite being the queen, would choose to duel him one-on-one when she had plenty of opportunities to flee.

With a dull thud, Kerrigan's severed head rolled onto the ground.

“Great Warrior Captain!”

“Retreat! Get back and deliver the news—tell them we have slain the enemy queen!”

Seeing the Great Devourer swarming in from all directions, Grimgor also grew alarmed.

They had to escape immediately.

“Ugh?!”

However, they could not stop the worker ants that rushed forward to self-destruct.

The worker ants blew themselves up, spraying toxic fluids in resistance. Taking advantage of the ensuing chaos, several worker ants hoisted Kerrigan's head and quickly fled the scene.

...

“No, what on earth is going on...”

Lin Miao stared blankly at the screen, his mind going completely numb.

Everything had happened too quickly.

A small elite squad of enemies had actually deceived the eyes of all the Great Devourer, penetrated deep into the nest, wiped out the guard unit, and decapitated Queen Kerrigan with a single strike.

Until the very last moment, Lin Miao had never expected such a thing to happen.

Especially given Kerrigan's unique nature, Lin Miao had never imagined this kind of outcome.

To him, Kerrigan had always been the colony's strongest combat weapon.

Kerrigan never shied away from battle and slaughter; instead, she relished them. She constantly modified her own body, sparing no expense to turn herself into a terrifying biological weapon.

Enhanced by her magic heart, the strength compressed within her muscles was even greater than that of mutated ants far larger than herself.

Her exoskeleton was also several times harder than that of ordinary ants, and she was equipped with almost every offensive tool the colony could mobilize, from venomous stings to toxic spray.

While Elise continuously enhanced her brain, making her appearance closer and closer to that of a human, Kerrigan single-mindedly pursued a stronger body, possessing the raw power to crush enemies with absolute force.

Even if the enemy general was exceptionally strong, the current Kerrigan had long since surpassed the limits of ordinary creatures.

Lin Miao had originally thought that even if she couldn't win, she could at least escape with her injuries.

But the enemy was simply too powerful.

Lin Miao had long known that combat-focused deities liked to expand their influence by cultivating powerful heroes.

He also knew that beastkin heroes were incredibly troublesome entities on the battlefield.

This was precisely how the beastkin were able to contend with the civilizations and systems developed by other races.

They possessed heroes capable of tipping the scales and turning the tide of battle single-handedly.

This was their weapon.

Yet even though he had known this beforehand, actually witnessing this power sent a shiver down his spine.

【Elise believed that Kerrigan was not dead yet】

Just then, a message arrived from Elise, who had desperately retrieved Kerrigan's head.

When he first heard this news, Lin Miao could hardly believe his ears.

“Your Majesty, the First Queen, how on earth are you going to revive the Second Queen?”

Fortunately, Celia asked the question lingering in Lin Miao's mind on his behalf.

Although Celia was currently far away in the southern part of the Empire, a great distance from the scene of the incident, all information had already been shared with her through the hive mind.

This was the first time in history that a queen-grade individual had been slain. The entire colony fell into a frenzy, which even Lin Miao could clearly sense.

【Elise said that most of Kerrigan's brain was still intact】

Elise replied that she had already instructed the worker ants to inject Universal Cells into Kerrigan's urgently retrieved head, stitch up the wounds, and infuse it with nutrient solution to maintain artificial life support.

Staring at the images on the screen, Lin Miao was speechless with shock.

Although Lin Miao knew that insects possessed incredibly resilient life force, he could not explain what kind of physiological structure allowed such a feat.

He could only trust Elise's words.

【In any case, the body is not what is important; it is the stored memories. Elise believed that as long as those memories could be transplanted into a new body, Kerrigan could be resurrected】

“I still don't quite understand. Since all data can be shared through the hive mind, why go to such lengths to save her head—specifically, her brain?”

While the fact that Kerrigan could be revived was indeed shocking, the method of her resurrection left Lin Miao utterly perplexed.

Especially when the hive mind existed, he could not comprehend why Elise insisted on retrieving Kerrigan's physical brain.

【Elise answered that the information stored in the hive mind alone could not restore Kerrigan's fighting spirit】

To Lin Miao's query, Elise provided a convincing explanation.

The information stored within the hive mind, which was formed collectively by the nerves of countless Great Devourers, was merely a form of backup data.

But this backup data, which only contained memory information, lacked the most crucial element.

That was the uniqueness possessed by a queen-grade individual who had awakened self-awareness.

Without Elise's greed and possessiveness, or Kerrigan's passion for battle and slaughter, would they still be who they were?

These desires and obsessions were things the queens had cultivated bit by bit over a long period of time.

In other words, Elise's insistence on saving Kerrigan's brain at all costs was to preserve her sister's ego.

【Elise believed that Kerrigan's existence was necessary for the colony】

Elise had also witnessed the enemy's strength firsthand.

The sense of crisis brought by that power even overshadowed her usual disdain for Kerrigan.

No matter how powerful one's strength and body were, technique ultimately existed to counter raw force.

In the future, they would face even more powerful enemies, and relying solely on brute force would be far from enough.

The Great Devourer also needed technique and civilization.

The very reason Elise had not hesitated to utilize Cordyceps to implant magic as a new power for the colony was that she had already realized this.

But simply devouring and analyzing genetic information was not enough to seize symbols and civilization from the enemy.

This required the intense desires and obsessions awakened within each of the queens to achieve.

【Elise anticipated that Kerrigan would bring new strength to the colony】

“Great One, the First Queen requests your permission to revive the Second Queen.”

Through Celia's words, Lin Miao realized that Elise was actually requesting his permission.

Lin Miao didn't know whether to laugh or cry. “Why would I refuse?”

Why was she even asking for his permission? Was she still harboring lingering fears from the punishment she had received last time?

This was an endeavor where even sisters who used to keep each other in check were willing to set aside their prejudices and work together for the sake of the entire colony.

Furthermore, Kerrigan was the second queen to receive a name from Lin Miao.

Since she could be saved, Lin Miao had absolutely no reason to refuse.

【Elise ordered Kerrigan's brain to be placed inside a cocoon】

Upon receiving Lin Miao's permission, the worker ants that had safely brought back Kerrigan's head began constructing a special nest.

They poured a vast amount of nutrient solution into a massive pit large enough to hold dozens of bulls, then placed Kerrigan's head inside.

Soon, a massive cocoon formed, completely covering the pit.