As Netero turned around, Morel and the others clearly saw what he was wearing: a T-shirt with the word "heart" boldly printed on it. The letters were written in a strong, heroic style, and somehow they could feel the spirit behind it, that unmistakable aura of martial determination. It wasn't the shirt itself giving off the vibe; it was Netero.
"I always thought it was just a legend," Morel murmured. "But I didn't expect it to be real."
Knov set down his teacup, staring intently at the "heart" T-shirt, something he'd only heard about before. They all knew what it meant: when the president wore that shirt, he was ready to give everything he had.
Netero waved them off and headed toward the nearby passage. "I'm going to meet an old friend. You all stick to the original plan, use Larry's method to get the medical team over there."
At that moment, Larry had already appeared at the entrance of the ant nest.
Inside the ant nest, Brovada stood with his arms crossed, watching the octopus chimera ant struggling to administer first aid to the ant queen.
Despite being the strongest among the division leaders, it knew nothing about healing and was completely helpless in this situation. "I wonder if Colt can get help from humans?" he wondered anxiously, hoping for reinforcements.
"I'm afraid that's unlikely," whispered Small Bear chimera ant wearing a purple headscarf. Though quiet, its voice filled the room.
Small Bear was the cutest among the chimera ants, resembling a bear puppet. As the division leader loyal to the queen, it was easygoing and lacked ambition. It believed asking humans for help was impossible, after all, they were still enemies. Who would willingly help the enemy?
In the corner, Meleoron stood silently, his bulging eyes fixed on a red book in his hands. His usually calm and relaxed expression darkened without him noticing.
He gently traced the book's cover with his fingers, as fragmented memories flickered through his mind. He didn't understand why he was reacting this way, but the feelings were slow to come. Then, suddenly, a surge of anger welled up inside him.
***
From a distance, the ant nest looked rough and unappealing, but up close, it was even more unpleasant. Larry tilted his head, scanning the entire structure from top to bottom, and his opinion didn't change, it was still ugly.
However, he understood why. The nest was built by the lowest-level worker ants using a clay-like material mixed with special hardening agents added by certain workers, making the structure tougher than ordinary clay.
Besides the basic soldier ants meant for combat, the chimera ant colony had specialized workers too, like the pig-shaped ants responsible for cooking and the reptile-like ants that helped construct the nest.
Larry noticed there was no strong aura around, which meant the ant king and his three royal guards had already left. If they were still present, they would have easily detected his presence.
The reason for their absence was clear: as soon as the ant king emerged, he refused to eat ordinary food and demanded meals prepared with Nen users. Since there were no Nen users nearby, and all humans in the surrounding area had been evacuated, the guards had no choice but to take the king away from the nest in search of suitable food.
They were heading toward the Republic of East Gorteau, located on the opposite side of the NGL Autonomous Country. Both the NGL and East Gorteau are part of the Mitene Union, with NGL to the west and East Gorteau to the east.
Larry guessed the ant king and his guards might have chosen their direction randomly, flying straight toward East Gorteau instead of neighboring places like the Republic of Lokalil or other nearby islands.
Just then, the sound of hurried footsteps echoed from the nest, urgent and restless. With the ant queen dying and the king gone with his guards, the remaining soldier ants were growing uneasy and agitated.
The soldier ants, lacking much intelligence, simply wanted to venture out into the vast world and do their best to reproduce. Naturally, these soldier ants couldn't just run away on their own.
The entire ant nest was connected in every direction, with multiple entrances and exits, so one ant alone wasn't enough to make a difference. But Larry was a Pokemon master. In an instant, figures appeared behind him and then disappeared just as quickly, with the Pokémon scattering through different passages.
As countless soldier ants poured excitedly out of the nest, they were met with a series of terrifying figures. "Where do you want to go? I'll take you there," someone said.
Suddenly, Brovada turned his head, sensing something approaching from the cave they had just come through. A dangerous atmosphere faintly filled the deep cave entrance.
"What's coming?" The division leaders all looked toward the cave, except for Meleoron, who was still trying to recall past events, and the octopus who was being tended to. The bear's round ears twitched as he listened carefully to the footsteps.
"Judging by the sound, there are multiple creatures coming, mostly like us, but there's one…" someone whispered. "A human?"
At that moment, Larry's figure slowly emerged from the cave entrance. The division leaders got a clear look at their visitor, a human. "How is this possible? Is he here to help us, or…?"
Brovada was shocked but realized it was impossible to be certain of Larry's intentions. If he wanted to fight them, it would be a serious problem. Without the royal guards' protection, the division leaders wouldn't stand a chance.
"It seems they're all gathered here, which makes things easier," Larry said, scanning the room.
Since everyone was assembled, it was convenient. Larry stepped forward to the center of the room, silently surveying the ant queen lying on the ground.
Only then did the division leaders, including Brovada, get a clear look at the chimera ants accompanying Larry: a pink koala sipping some drink, and a regular soldier ant.
These were the chimera ants Larry considered acceptable. Though none were division leaders, they were alive and worth keeping around. The soldier ant, in particular, was Colt's sister and retained memories from her human days.
Because she had been too young during her human phase and then transformed into a soldier ant who couldn't speak, she had never been exposed to the outside world.
"You are…" The old chimera ant, Brovada, looked confused.
Was this human here to help them or to destroy them? If he was here to help, where was Colt?
Could Colt really save the queen all by himself? But if he wanted to destroy them, why bring other humans here instead of just killing them outright?