The first elf bug stood quietly before Xia Jin.
“She looks even better than a regular elf.”
Her appearance was close to the level of Vigaya or the Elven Queen.
Aside from that, the insect wings on her back could retract and expand, possessing a strange, wild, dark style. When spread, they looked like oversized bat wings.
“Try flying!”
Whoosh—
She wobbled unsteadily.
It seemed she couldn't fly yet.
But the wings could help with jumping and provided a certain leaping effect.
In fact, every bone in those wings was a lethal weapon. During combat, they could easily tear apart incoming enemies, functioning similarly to a zergling's blades.
“That'll do. I wonder how the elves will feel when they see this.”
Regardless, Xia Jin thought it looked pretty cool.
“Unit cost is 1,000 units, even more expensive than a Floating Hive Bug. Considering the magic capabilities, I can afford to produce a small number.”
Xia Jin considered producing a hundred as a support unit to handle special situations requiring magic.
After all, the Tier 6 hydralisk was still more popular than elves for long-range firepower.
...
The following night, in a small town outside Duoye.
This bustling commercial city was currently gripped by panic.
Adventurers were coming and going in a hurry. Some were already considering fleeing, while others wanted to take a gamble and see if they could make a fortune during such dangerous times.
In a tavern, an adventurer slammed his greatsword down and took a seat.
Just then, the owner, who was mixing drinks in the distance, saw him and chuckled. “Yo, isn't this Mr. Leopard? How's it going lately?”
“So-so.”
The adventurer rubbed his bald head.
He was covered in muscle and looked like someone not to be trifled with. However, cultivation existed in this world, so muscles didn't purely represent combat power. Some frail-looking individuals might be able to snap a muscular man weighing hundreds of pounds in half the moment they struck.
The owner brought over a jar of wine.
“Your favorite. I knew you'd come, so I saved some specifically for you,” the owner said with a smile, then added, “Since you're a regular, today's on the house.”
“Haha.”
Leopard laughed, his gloomy mood instantly vanishing.
“Speaking of which, Mr. Leopard, I suggest you leave this place soon.”
“Oh?” Hearing the owner's words, he looked up in surprise.
“The Duke's territory has fallen. That means Duoye is now surrounded by Zerg territory on the north, east, and south. They might target us next.”
Leopard sighed with a smile. “Reduced to this state, where else could I go?”
His tone carried a hint of bitterness.
“Hey, isn't it just a matter of the heart? You've at least made it to adventurer group leader. You could take your pick of good girls. Why insist on the one who looks down on you?”
Leopard: “...”
After a moment of silence, he said nothing, only lowering his head with a sigh.
A man at a nearby table glanced over and couldn't help but shake his head secretly.
“What is it?” the female adventurer beside him asked.
“Leopard is a good man; I've received help from him before. But he just had to fall for a viscount's daughter. That girl looks down on him for being a mere adventurer leader and demands he become a knight or a wealthy man, or she won't marry him.”
“Is that how it is?” Hearing this, the woman had nothing more to say. “There's nothing to be done about that. Being a knight requires talent, and wealth isn't something you can achieve just by working hard. I think he'd be better off finding someone else.”
“Unfortunately, Leopard only has eyes for her.”
While the people there were whispering, chaotic sounds suddenly erupted from the town.
“Monster! Monster!”
Someone shouted.
Leopard grabbed his greatsword and walked out the door.
Looking between the dilapidated houses in the distance, he saw a terrifying creature with a hideous appearance gnawing on an adventurer who had fallen to the ground.
That adventurer wasn't entirely dead yet. Judging by his aura, his strength wasn't too weak—around Tier 2.
Leopard immediately gripped his weapon and charged.
“I'll save you!”
Swish—
The greatsword swung down.
Thud!
Unexpectedly, halfway through the attack's arc, the monster seemed to sense it and dodged quickly.
It scrambled to the side, flicked its head, and bit off the man's arm before swallowing the flesh in its massive maw.
The man on the ground was now dead.
“Damn it.”
Leopard was furious.
But he quickly calmed down.
The terrifying creature before him looked extremely difficult to deal with. It was likely... the kind of monster that had attacked and wiped out Amelo's and the Duke's territories.
Thus, in the next moment, he suddenly raised his hands and fell to his knees with a thud. “I surrender!”
Zergling: “?”
Just as its scythe was about to swing down, it froze.
The Queen's orders were that if they encountered extremely unusual or sudden situations that posed no threat to the insects, they shouldn't handle it themselves but report it.
This situation probably counted.
The zergling immediately contacted Xia Jin through the Swarm network.
Kneeling on the ground, Leopard closed his eyes.
The expected attack didn't come. He opened his eyes to find the zergling's scythe hovering right in front of him.
Then...
It slowly retracted.
In the tavern, the crowd of adventurers was dumbstruck.
Some who didn't know him had seen this big, burly man walk out with a cold expression and thought he was going to take action. Who would have expected him to kneel?
The most absurd part was that the zergling actually stopped attacking.
The two sides remained in a standoff for a few seconds before several more zerglings ran in from outside the town.
One of them even charged into a shop and attacked the adventurers inside.
Rate on N.U.
