As Rosia dragged the prince toward the nest to devour him, I stopped her with a small smile.
"Wait, Rosia. To make sure you give birth to something strong — and actually stand a chance at producing an Elite — you should have a bit of sex with your slave concubines. The fact that the prince is the hero of this world probably won't be enough."
I halted her with a sly, thoughtful smile.
"This world is tiny. In terms of power, what could a hero from such a small world even offer?"
"Having a little fun with your slave concubines will give a nice boost for the birth… especially for the power of our daughter."
"With that, we might finally manage to hatch a real Zerg Elite, just like we want."
"What a great idea, my queen! I'm sure my brother — or rather, my ex-brother — will be thrilled to watch me do it with Naturia right in front of him!"
"Before he dies and serves our cause, I bet watching Naturia naked, making love to me, will bring him at least some joy!"
Rosia and I burst out in cruel laughter as we looked at the prince. We knew it would make him even angrier — but the sex is quite real. For Zergs, having sex with someone improves the strength and quality of the offspring. Especially for us sub-queens and myself, who actually lay the eggs! As for who we sleep with — that part doesn't matter.
After grabbing Naturia to make love right in front of the prince, watching his rage build up, his teeth clenched, and eyes burning with murderous fury, Rosia finally dragged him toward the center of the nest.
Grabbing him by the feet, the prince realized what was coming and began to struggle, sweat pouring from every pore.
"Wait! We can talk about this! As a monster, surely you can control me somehow, right?!"
"Yes, our queen could do that, but…"
"I'll even become a full monster! I just want to live, please!"
Rosia looked at me, waiting for an answer. The prince looked at me too, filled with desperate hope. He seemed willing to survive at any cost, even if that meant being controlled.
All Zerg eyes, Rosia's, the prince's, were on me — as I sat on Naturia's shoulder, who also looked at me in silence.
The prince stared at me, pleading, his teeth clenched in fear but also hope, his eyes narrowing with the tension of my silence.
After letting them stew, I shook my head.
The prince turned pale — ghost-white, his face drained of blood.
Sure, I could've accepted him. As a hero, he probably would've gained a unique ability once transformed into a Zerg. But I don't want men in my harem — I mean, my army.
And above all, he's a huge asshole.
What? You say I'm no better? I don't know what you mean. I'm a sweet Zerg girl conquering a world — cute and all ~
At the center of the nest, Rosia smiled cruelly at her ex-brother, still naked, but clearly unbothered.
Without hesitation, she lifted the paralyzed prince. Her transformation began — red spider-hairs burst from her body, forming into a dress, and her eight eyes fully opened.
Her mouth unhinged as fangs emerged. The prince sobbed, struggling weakly, but having been stabbed in the spine by Hemlock Blossom's dagger, he was completely paralyzed.
"No! No! Please! I can be a useful monster!"
Naturia let out a wicked laugh before replying:
"Our queen doesn't want you. And you've been a total asshole to us — why would we want you in our family?"
"AAAAAAAAAAAAAH!"
The prince screamed in terror as the gaping mouth closed in on him.
"Please don't— NOOOOO—!"
Rosia bit off his entire head. Blood splattered all over her face. Bones and brain crunched between her teeth as she opened wider to devour the rest of his lifeless body.
After she finished, Rosia connected with the nest, and laid a single, unique egg.
Normally, she would lay several at once, but this time she focused all her energy into one egg — to try to produce an Elite.
Once the egg was fully laid, the surrounding Zergs began bringing in animals and humans from the forest, from the city, and even those sold by the slave merchant Lucian.
Fleshy and bloody tentacles from the nest wrapped around the still-living beings, linking them to the egg — draining their energy and life to feed it.
"Naturia, Hemlock Blossom — stay beside the egg and guard it. Rosia, we're going to visit your mother and father now."
"We're going to…"
"Yes. It's time to take full control of the kingdom — and prepare my evolution!"
"Yes, my queen!"
Rosia's eyes sparkled, as if my evolution were the most beautiful thing in existence to her.
In the city, whispers started to spread. Two men met in a busy but shady tavern.
"Did you hear? People are disappearing."
"Yeah, I heard, Thérie. I also heard the guards are completely lost."
"Really? They're usually pretty quick to handle this kind of thing."
"Yeah. People vanish without a trace. No one has any idea where they're going — it's like the kidnappers are moving through the air."
"What?! Not even a trace left behind?!"
Such conversations were happening all over the city…