Rust - Chapter 706



Only Krnovel

RUST [RUST]-706

Ants, known to love sugar and sweets, actually prefer meat. They prefer raw meat over dried, processed meats like jerky.

The same goes for the farming that ants do. They raise worms, cockroaches, and earthworms, but they also really like red meat.

Kim was the first to react to the statement that she liked red meat. Her expression was firm, saying that it wasn’t because she liked meat that she had competition from meat.

“Isn’t that ant bitch eating people?”

Humans are also classified as red meat? Kim Yang’s eyes narrowed.

“Why didn’t you just blow it up with a bunker buster?”

Kim Yang was a person who would tremble at the thought of an ant, running around here and there with the royal guard. In fact, it was understandable.

The Ant Empire’s attack was all-out. When they came in with such force from the ground, underground, and even the air, it was to the point where I wondered if I should really use nuclear weapons.

“If we had used nukes, we might have caught one or two queen ants, but the ants would have been startled by the nukes and would have been counting like crazy.”

According to the story of Queen Ant No. 1, who had a direct conversation with Maru this time, that’s right. She laid a lot of eggs because she needed to replenish the dead ones.

It is said that when the crisis becomes severe, they will concentrate all the nutrients on the queen and try to overcome the crisis by increasing their numbers through mass spawning.

The ant queen who laid eggs rapidly would soon become weak, and the weakened queen would be torn apart as the young and fresh princess took the throne.

“If we had detonated a nuke, the backlash would have been more ant colonies.”

The quantity was one thing, but what was even more vicious was the infiltration operation using the princess. In other words, the princess ants who were ready for independence were secretly brought into the territory of the Holy Kingdom.

“I really didn’t know you could do it that way.”

PD also stuck out his tongue at the idea of ​​using a branch to infiltrate the attack. The branched princess ants quickly built up their power.

In the early days of the division, the herd was vulnerable to attacks from natural enemies due to its small numbers, but the Holy Kingdom was rather safe. This was because wolves and crows patrolled and weeded out mutated monsters.

The colony created by the princess ants that infiltrated the relatively safe(?) Holy Kingdom grew rapidly. In just 20 to 30 days, it grew to a colony of several dozen ants, but after a ceasefire agreement with the ant empire, they voluntarily left.

“From the traces left behind by the ants, we were able to rescue several dead princess ants and ants that were critically injured.”

Even if the queen ant he had met in person had not lied, the ant empire might have been different, so Maru began to investigate the presence of ant nests throughout the territory.

The results were surprising, although limited, because the territory of the Holy Kingdom was so vast. No colonies related to the ant empire appeared near major cities.

“Then what happened? What about the ants that were fatally injured?”

“Apart from the ants of the ant empire, there were also indigenous ants.”

An ant colony was discovered that had formed its own independent force, independent of the Southern Ant Empire of the Holy Kingdom.

“It looks like the ants from the ant colony and the ants native to the area are fighting.”

Anyway, we needed princess ants or queen ants, and we didn’t expect to get them like this. Na Ju-yeon and the research team happily took the samples.

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The study of ant pheromones using quantum computers and grape bunches was completed in half a day, as the order to pour all resources into an all-out war had not yet been withdrawn.

“So now you can control the ants?”

Kim Yang hated ants. He hated that they liked meat, and he didn’t like that they thought about worms. The reason he hated them the most was their blindness.

Mutant monsters, as well as rats, crows, and wolves, all had the will to live. So while they were killing and dying, they felt like they were fighting something alive. But the ant bitches, despite being alive, only felt more uneasy, as if they were fighting machines.

‘Knowing how to use your head means knowing how to think···.’

It was creepy to see it still biting into the exosuit even after bullet holes were drilled through its torso. It even refused to let go of its bite even after its neck was cut off and only its head remained.

So, what this means is that even though you know how to think, you move like a machine.

‘It’s better this way.’

To avoid seeing such a dirty sight, just let the ants fight amongst themselves. Anyway, it was Ms. Kim who was showing off her charm.

“I can understand the general signals, but it takes time to control it.”

Na Ju-yeon shook her head. The pheromone system was more complex than expected.

In a way, it was natural.

If both allies and enemies were using the same pheromones, it would be a mess, so there must be a way to distinguish friend from foe.

“Is pheromone synthesis possible?”

“Details are difficult, but it’s enough for everyday communication.”

We had a truce with the ant empire, but it was only a truce. It wasn’t a bad idea to run an ant army to prepare for the worst.

“Let’s absorb the ants that can communicate, and eliminate the ants that cannot communicate.”

The treatment of ants living within the territory of the Holy Kingdom has been decided.

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Dealing with pheromones required more meticulous work than I thought.

This was especially true because it could have completely different meanings depending on the concentration or synthetic ingredients.

Nurses were very clumsy at handling pheromones.

[The pheromone you just synthesized is not ‘I’ll eat well.’ but ‘Eat it with your butt.’]

“Huh? Really?”

The nurse’s face turned tearful at the evaluation of the artificial intelligence Diana.

[Don’t be afraid. To the ants, it looks like a delicious piece of meat.]

“Eeeeeeeee! Uso (lie)”

Pheromones were handled much better by Najuyeon and Hood.

“The nurse will probably need a lot of time, and Najuyeon can’t leave her post because of her research, so I would like Xenia to negotiate with the native ants.”

The temperature was rising vertically in the few days after the snow and ice melted and turned into slush. It was about 15 to 20 degrees, but in an instant, it went from 25 degrees to highs of 30 degrees.

Based on our own analysis of data and meteorological data sent from the Empire, this summer is expected to break all heat wave records.

Sudden changes in climate have had a huge impact on the ecosystem, especially the food chain, which is likely to be disrupted.

Just last year and the year before, we were suffering from the great migration of moose and buffalo and the resulting movement of carnivores.

But the environmental change was even worse than that. The ants would have been hit hard, and they might attack humans or seek to expand their territory.

“···Are you negotiating with food support?”

“Rather than simply providing food, I would like to negotiate to secure the ants’ labor force.”

I could tell by fighting with ants. Ants can easily carry 20 to 30 times their own body weight, but the mutated ants can easily carry 100 to 150 times their own body weight.

Despite its small size, it has overwhelming power and strong jaws that can tear through exosuit armor, making it easy to knock down even thick trees. It is also naturally good at breaking various types of ore and burrowing holes.

“I would like to see ants employed in areas such as logging, transporting timber, mining, transporting building materials, and road construction.”

“Okay, what about the groups that refuse to negotiate?”

“If they say they will remain neutral and stop expanding their territory, then that’s fine, but if not, then we have to get rid of them.”

It may have been unfair to the native ants who were the subject of the negotiations, but from the perspective of the Holy Kingdom, it was a natural story.

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New York, the capital of the empire.

The night was dark in New York, the city that was now the capital of the empire.

The city that never sleeps is now a thing of the past. The Tsar Bomba hydrogen bomb exploded, destroying 50-60% of the city.

Although the population was preserved by successfully evacuating the civilians in advance, it was impossible to protect their homes and workplaces because the power of the hydrogen bomb was too great.

“Oh my god. It’s all gone.”

“A nuclear power plant in New York? That’s crazy!”

“What happens to the stock market now?”

“You crazy kid, is stocks the problem right now?”

“I still have my mortgage. This is driving me crazy.”

“It’s all because of General Dan Brown.”

“If we hadn’t used nukes, we would have been eaten by rats.”

“You joined hands with the Holy Kingdom again? You bastards don’t know?”

The anger of the citizens who lost their homes and jobs overnight was directed at General Dan Brown and the Holy Kingdom.

“Boston is designated as the temporary capital?”

“Those Les Socks guys must be having a blast.”

“Rebuild New York Now!”

“Yes. The best capital city on the East Coast is New York.”

“New York! New York! Give New York back!”

“What kind of temporary capital is this, a temporary capital where you can freeze to death!”

“We want New York!”

Even though New York was partially destroyed, it was not completely ruined, so the citizens of the Empire were buried in memories. That was why Dan Brown kept the political, social, and economic structures as similar as possible to the existing system.

Memories correction. Memories of a happy past.

It was a memory that could become the driving force of hope that ‘I can stand up again’ and ‘I want to stand up again.’

So, Den Brown silently endured the criticism. In a situation like this, depression was the most dangerous. If the vitality of the imperial citizens could be maintained, such insults could be laughed off.

The problem was the future of the empire. Plans to build a floating city based on mega floats were being shaken by the aftermath of the use of the hydrogen bomb.

As enthusiasm for rebuilding New York grew, there were signs that the workers building the mega float would be drawn to rebuilding New York.

It wasn’t just manpower that was in demand. Even construction materials like steel bars, cement, wires, and insulation began to make a fuss.

“What happened to Mega Float?”

“A tsunami caused by a nuclear explosion caused a set of mega floats under construction to run aground.”

It was a terrible report.

“Stranded? Can you pull me out?”

“We need a high-powered tugboat to pull it out. There are no ships that can be used due to the EMP generated by the nuclear bomb explosion.”

‘A high-powered tugboat. A high-powered ship.’ Dan Brown muttered as he looked at the map.

Any high-powered ship will do, even if it isn’t a tugboat.

The problem is that the ports around New York are all a mess.

‘The ports near New York are finished.’

What about ports far from New York?

Dan Brown’s gaze turned to the Newport News Shipyard, below Philadelphia.

‘Any ship operated by the Second Fleet should be enough to pull out the mega float.’

It was thought that he would borrow the 2nd Fleet waiting at the Newport News Shipyard and Harbor. Then an urgent report came to Dan Brown.

[It is said that the Holy Kingdom and the Ant Empire have reached a truce.]

“Ant Empire?”

You said you were at war with ants, but an ant empire? What the heck is that?

A deep furrow formed between Dan Brown’s brows as he read the report.

The place where the ant empire was located was the southern region of the Holy Kingdom. Ohio and Indiana were the states that were to be annexed to the empire.

So, the story is that an ant empire was created in the Corn Belt region, which would later serve as the empire’s food warehouse.

“I’m drinking cold water in gulps,” said Den Brown.

“Tell them we need to talk about the ant problem. Now.”

I needed to talk to Vladimir Kalin to find out what he was thinking.

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In the Newport News Shipyards, spring has arrived and the battle between fire rats and acid rats is raging.

Tsk! Tsk! (Behold! The power of our acid clan!)

Jjiik-jjik? (This is crazy. Are you campaigning because you caught a snake?)

This was because mutant animals and bugs that were difficult to see until last year were appearing frequently.

And the face of Hee-yeon, who manages the rats and acid gulls, was covered in thick dark circles.

“I wish I had just taken hormones.” (I wish I had just taken hormones.)

If I had known this would happen, I would have just taken growth hormones and grown.