Story Update 13: Happy Little Workers (Queen Ant)




Ricky's keen eye is accurate; these seem to have sturdier shells and more ponderous movements than the other ants.
Hey, don't those ants remind you of Raquna?
And just what does that mean, eh!?
Leaving the bickering duo aside, you decide to carefully observe the ants' movements as you move onward.



Ricky smiles as she looks over the map. Indeed, it seems complete enough to hand in at Radha Hall. If you are done mapping B12F as well, then return to the Radha and show them the results. If not, then move along to the next floor, and complete the second half of your task.

Upon closer inspection, you find a chipped shield and a broken sword.


...This must be what we were asked to find.
You believe this to be an article of one of the deceased, so you place the sword in your pack and continue on.


This makes three. ...Dude, let's hurry back and deliver them to the pub.
You make a note that you must return to the pub to turn in this quest.


You look to where Simon is pointing, and indeed, there are a number of ants walking in a single-file line.
Hey, if we ambush them now, maybe we could take their stuff!


As Arthur says, now is your chance. Slowly, and with great caution, you approach the ants from behind, taking care that they do not notice you. When in position, you strike at the ants before they can drop the heavy burdens they carry!
Alright, let's do this!





Interesting. It seems they were harvesting food and nesting materials. These could prove quite useful.
You stow them in your packs before resuming your investigation of the forest Labyrinth.












Thank you. I want to think I understand the impulses that drive you adventurers... But seeing things like this makes me afraid to post jobs up. Still, it's true that this town owes its lifeblood to brave, maybe even foolhardy, people like you... ...All I can do is pray for your safety. Don't get reckless, you hear? Promise me that.






Hey, Dude. Am I the only one who hears water somewhere?
You stop and listen closely. It is as she says; you can hear the sound of flowing water somewhere. After searching for the sound's origin, you find a hole...
Is it coming from in there? Should we check it out, Dude...?


When you look into the hole with a light in hand, you find water pooled at the bottom. The water's surface doesn't seem to be stagnant. You can quench your thirst if you wish, or simply leave it alone.


You cup a handful of water and take a drink. The water is surprisingly refreshing! You feel your exhaustion melt away...
Is it that good?
Hey, Dude, can you get some for me, too?
You draw water for each of your allies and pass it to them... The cool water revitalizes the party!


I wonder how this water came to be so beneficial... Chalk it up to the mysteries of the forest, I suppose. If we remember this place, I think it could be of great use to us. Why not mark the location on our map?
Simon's suggestion seems sound, though if you would rather not waste the effort, you could simply leave.



You see it as well... A strange object jutting out from the ground just ahead of where Arthur is crouched. It looks to be stone, but its needle-sharp point is odd for a naturally occurring phenomenon...
Arthur, don't be so careless about approaching strange things.
Ah, I'll be fine. Huh, it's harder than it looks. It might be some kinda treasure! Hey, Dude. Can I try digging this up?
You can give Arthur his way or decline, if you feel that it should not be meddled with.


Hehe, okay! Here goes!
Upon receiving permission, Arthur cheerfully begins to dig around the protrusion... ......
...Is that a conch?
It's no treasure, that's for sure.
Hey, no need to be so down. We can probably sell it anyway!


You return to your investigation while trying to console Arthur, whose shoulders remain slumped.



The party stares at the green object, pulsating eerily on the ground...
Suddenly, a tearing sound comes from the object, and a viscous liquid begins to pour out from a seam.


Ugh! Gross!
I see... An ant egg. If we leave it be, the ants may keep multiplying. We ought to do something about the egg itself, if possible...
It seems imperative to come up with a fast countermeasure to stop ants from emerging from the egg...


The ant egg collapses with a wet, sickly popping sound.


Are they panicking because the place where they were born got destroyed?
Who cares why they do it? Now we know if we crush the eggs, we don't have to fight the ants!
...I think it's good to know the reason why things happen...
Despite Ricky's mutterings, you now know how best to deal with the eggs, and so decide to proceed onward.

You feel it as well... a hostile glare cast in your direction. And it has more than a single owner... You tense, preparing yourselves for a confrontation, when hordes of ants emerge from everywhere!
What's got them so mad!? I dunno why a bunch of ants would have... a grudge...


You recall it as well... the way you ambushed a troop of ants before and robbed them of their harvest...
You suspect that they were part of this very same army. But the time for such supposition is past. You are surrounded now, with no way to plead your case!
Here they come...!
You cast your indecision aside and take weapons in hand to defend yourselves against the furious ants!





Raquna looks around desperately while gasping for air. But the ants continue their fearless march toward you over the corpses of their brethren!
...Or not.
No, there's less of them now. This should be their last attack!
Praying that she is correct, you brace yourself for one last wave of ants!






Come on, no one told us there'd be a monster like that here!
Ah... I see. That must be the Queen Ant which gave birth to the eggs we found along the way.


Do you think we can beat it?
Of course we can win! Let's beat that thing, get those maps drawn, and finish up this mission!
Simon nods in concurrence with Arthur's enthusiastic outburst before speaking.
...Surprisingly, I agree with Arthur. Let's defeat this monster and complete our assigned task.
Simon lightly taps the weapon at his hip, hinting that in the end, you must fight the insect to finish the job. You decide to challenge the ant queen to battle in order to finish your mission to draw the maps.



























































You have at last defeated the powerful foe!


Uuuuuugh! It's finally over! Damn, I'm tired!
There were those bees in Gladsheim, too... It's been one bug after another lately, eh? Seriously though, I was wondering how much longer that was going to last.
It was quite an obstacle to our cartographic task.


They didn't tell us about this...
Well, the request wasn't solely to draw maps... It was to investigate an unknown region of the Labyrinth. Wouldn't reporting back on the existence of dangerous monsters fall under that purview as well?
That's true, but... These forest missions sure are hard.
Now that the dreadful monster has been vanquished, you begin your journey again to complete the maps.


Raquna's face lights up upon looking at the map. Indeed, it does seem complete enough to hand in at Radha Hall. If you are done mapping B11F as well, then return to the Radha and show them the results. If not, then move along to the next floor, and complete the second half of your task.









Yes, but something he said bothers me. It seems he's trying to investigate something in this town...


Maybe he's on a case?
Yes, it seems he came here at a client's request... to investigate something.
Like you guys from the Library?
...I don't know why, but I seriously doubt he's here for the same reason we are.
Agreed.





I'll send the maps to a printer's at once. Once copies are struck, we will be one step closer to the forest's secrets. We'd like to present this to you as a token of our appreciation.







......
Is there some problem?
Well... In truth, when the Chieftain received your report, he proposed that we halt all further investigation.
Huh...!? What in the world's going on here?
After reviewing your account, the Chieftain said he couldn't believe such an absurd story. He went on to mention that perhaps the Radha should reconsider allowing you to explore the ruin... You must admit, all this about a calamity and an ancient weapon to combat it is hard to credit.


Still, we can't ignore it.
Dude's right! If we don't do this, there won't be anything stopping the calamity!
I agree with what you say. The danger of the calamity is too great to overlook. ...I intend to discuss this further with the Chieftain in the hopes that he might reconsider his position. I'll try and see if I can sway him while you find the next Geomagnetic Field. All that aside, I regret the need to ask this, but there's something I must have you do while you search. We've had some odd reports from the forest lately. They may be related to the calamity. Depending on what we find when we look into this matter, the Chieftain may reconsider his stance. For that reason, I would definitely appreciate your cooperation.



In the meantime, I would like you to concentrate on your mission to investigate the forest's abnormalities.



I have heard that you received a new mission from the Radha. I doubt you have any time to rest, with all these missions one after another. Please, don't push too hard.




While you were drawing your maps of the third Stratum, a number of our soldiers reported a bizarre experience. It seems there's a mysterious creature in the forest that we know nothing about. They quickly lost sight of it, but it supposedly seemed almost human, even to the point of speaking our language. As your guild has the most experience in the third Stratum thus far, we'd like you to ascertain the truth of these reports. None can say yet whether these sightings are related to the calamity slumbering within the forest or not, but... It certainly bears investigating.

Perhaps this is related to the abnormalities occurring in the forest.



It's a bit hard to believe, but he did say it. Still, I think leaving it alone is going to make things worse... I hope that subaltern will be able to convince him otherwise.
So we're supposed to continue our investigation of the Labyrinth in the meantime... A humanoid creature that is capable of speech. Do you have any idea about that, Ricky?
No. Nobody had postulated the possibility of an intelligent lifeform being created like that.
...Is it even possible that they exist?


I don't know.
Well, we've been given the mission precisely because nobody knows.
...You have a point.
Well, talking about it here isn't going to get us anywhere. Why don't we go to the pub?


We're not going to the pub.
What!?
B-But... If we're going on a mission, wouldn't it be better if we were a little relaxed before we headed out? Plus, you know...
I can't get pumped up without one or two drinks in me!
She doesn't even try to hide it anymore... Dude, she's probably going to keep this up until we go to the pub. We should just get it over with.
Wh-What's with you? What's wrong with a little...



There might be even bigger discoveries waiting ahead. You'd better rest up while you can!
Don't mind if I do. Let's get something to eat... and of course, something to drink! Hey, Dude, what are you going to get?


Haha, of course! It wouldn't be the Golden Deer Pub without some of that!
All right, you're going down this time, Raquna!
Ha! Don't push your luck, kid.
*sigh* Noisy as always.
Ha, well, you folks just be patient. I'll get your orders out as fast as I can.




Boo!
Eeek!
D-Don't scare me like that, Dude. What's the matter with you?
I'm sure he was just trying to cheer you up. You are acting somewhat oddly, Ricky.
What? Oh, really? I'm sorry. I was just thinking about something...
What about?
I never thought that the Radha would cancel their investigations. ...What if we get banned from the Labyrinth, and Gladsheim becomes completely closed off...


Don't worry too much about it.
Dude...
Dude's right. They can't declare it off-limits that easily. This town's entire economy relies on the Labyrinth. The food we eat and the products we use mostly come from materials brought up by adventurers like us. If they cut off access to the forest, the town would lose everything. They wouldn't dare do that.
I... guess...
Come on, what's with all the long faces? Let's drink! All your glasses are still full!
Ahhh!
You know, you're a terrible drunk...

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