I woke up, still exhausted, my stamina depleted. Around me, the other ants lay in scattered groups, some resting against the carved stone walls, others sprawled in exhaustion near the glowing mushrooms that lined the edges of the core chamber. Their carapaces were scratched and dulled, antennae twitching with every tiny breeze that made it down from the upper tunnels. Even the air felt heavier, like the earth itself had exhaled in relief.
And me? I was alive. I had expected the victory to feel different. Glorious, maybe. Triumphant. Like it did when I conquered cities and empires in the games I used to play back when I was human. Instead, I felt hollow. Tired. But not in a bad way, more like a cup that had been filled and emptied all at once. They called me a savior. One by one, the ants had gathered around me after we returned. Antennae brushed mine in reverence. They had clicked and chirped their joy, their relief, their respect. I had saved them. I had led them.
And yet, it didn't feel real. I looked down at my legs. My six limbs. My chitinous shell. The glow of the core made every jagged line on my body shimmer like I was made of living bronze. But this wasn't armor. This was me now. This was my body.
"Could this still be a long dream?" I whispered, though no mouth could shape the words. In my mind, I could still see my room. The shelves of strategy guides. The flickering glow of my laptop screen late at night. The silence after my parents passed. The laughter of friends that grew fewer and fewer as I withdrew deeper into those simulated worlds. I never thought those worlds would become my reality. But here I was. An ant.
As the adrenaline faded, something else took its place. Not fear. Not confusion. A calm. A strange warmth that spread slowly from the Mana Core and into my chest. I crawled up a stone ridge near the center of the chamber and looked down at them—my ants. Some were sleeping. Some tending to minor wounds. Others silently watching me, as if waiting for my next decision.
I wasn't sure when it happened. But somewhere in the tunnels, in the darkness, in the fear and chaos of being hunted, I had made a choice. This life was mine now.
Not borrowed. Not cursed. Not a dream. I would build something here. Not because I was forced to. But because, for the first time in what felt like years, I wanted to. The silence after the battle was profound. The tunnels echoed only with the distant sounds of dripping water and the rhythmic hum of mana from the core. We were four now—just four ants, tired, scraped, and scarred, standing at the edge of something new.
I stared at the system panel hovering in my mind. The faint glow of the "Shop" option pulsed with a tempting light, and for once, wondering what else it has in store for me. As I tapped into the shop, my intent to purchase more eggs, something strange happened.
[New Category Unlocked: Architectural Templates]
I blinked. That hadn't been there before. I focused on the panel, and instantly, an image surged into my mind. Blueprints. Structures. Placement maps. Subterranean airflow dynamics. Heat zones. Moisture channels. Room shapes that maximized efficiency.
[System Notification]
Core Synchronization Update:
All colony-built structures, shaped by the blueprint, within the Core's influence are now linked to the core.
Effect:
Linked structures provide passive environmental buffs to nearby units.
These buffs depend upon the structure and it's function.
Additional buffs may be unlocked by upgrading structural tiers or enhancing core resonance.
I staggered slightly from the overwhelming burst of knowledge, and my fellow ants twitched their antennae toward me, concerned. "I'm okay," I murmured through the bond. Using a chunk of stored mana, I bought every template available.
[Templates Purchased:]
Incubation Chamber
• Purpose: Keeps eggs safe and warm to ensure successful hatching.
• Mana Cost: 15 MP
Storage Chamber
• Purpose: Stores food, fungus, and any useful material ants collect.
• Mana Cost: 10 MP
Mushroom Cultivation Chamber
• Purpose: Designed with humidity and space for farming bioluminescent mushrooms.
• Mana Cost: 20 MP
Medical Chamber
Purpose: A quieter, stable area where injured ants can recover; enhanced by medicinal fungus.
• Mana Cost: 30 MP
Guard Post / Defensive Tunnel Entrances
• Purpose: Narrow, easily defensible tunnels where ants can defend or ambush.
• Mana Cost: 15 MP
"Listen to me," I said, antennae pointing sharply. "We're going to start building the colony. Okay?" They looked at me with something more than just recognition, there was trust. They nodded and without hesitation, we began. First came the split from the original tunnel. We carved a wide hallway leading deeper, careful to angle it slightly downward to keep humidity optimal.
The Storage Chamber branched off first, carved like a bulb in the earth. Flat walls, shallow grooves for food to sit safely.
As we moved, I took part in the digging myself, claws moving with learned rhythm. That's when I saw it again, the faint shimmer of fungal threads clinging to the soil.
I Appraised them instinctively.
[Glowing Sporecap] Bioluminescent fungus rich in minor regenerative enzymes. May assist with wound sealing and fungal resistance. Potential medical use detected.
My antennae twitched. This is the first time appraisal said something in such great detail. Could it be that it evolved when I was asleep. Regardless, right now was not the time. "We'll cultivate this."
We carefully relocated spores to a designated alcove, crafting the beginnings of a farming chamber, just as outlined in the templates.
Room by room, the vision unfolded:
• A Medical Chamber, not yet stocked with tools but laced with future promise.
• A Farming Room, set near warm mossy veins for optimal growth.
• A Rest Chamber, hollowed out with smooth floor dips for sleeping.
Though our limbs ached and our shells scraped, we continued. It felt good building something with meaning. Not just surviving but shaping our place in this world. Finally, once the rooms were marked and the paths widened for future traffic, I turned back to the core.
I opened the shop again, this time buying as many ant eggs as our mana could afford.
[Eggs Purchased: 2] [Mana Spent: 70]
Each egg shimmered faintly as it arrived at the incubating alcove. Soon, we wouldn't be four. This was the beginning of something real. Not just a colony, but a kingdom. And I, an ex-human turned insect strategist, would build it from the tunnels up.
[Mana Core Status Panel]
Current Mana: 5 / 125
Passive Recovery Rate: +25 Mana per day
Daily mana consumption: -15 Mana per day
Estimated Recovery Time: 12 Days
Core Integrity: Stable
Linked Systems:
• Incubation Chamber (under development)
• Storage Chamber (under development)
• Mushroom Cultivation Chamber (under development)
• Medical Chamber (under development)
• Defensive Tunnel Entrances (under development)
[User Status: The Chosen Royal]
Level: 1
Title: None
Species: The Chosen Royal Ant
Health: 10 / 10
Stamina: 6 / 8
Mana: 0 / 30
Mana Recovery: +2 Mana per day (Passive)
Attributes:
• Strength: 4
• Defence: 6
• Agility and Dexterity: 5
• Intelligence: 11
• Perception: 7
Passive Abilities:
• Royal Command – Enhances coordination among nearby ants, increasing command responsiveness.
• Mana Recovery – Slowly regenerates mana from surrounding ambient sources. (+2 Mana/day)
• Combat Insight – Flashes of tactical awareness in battle. Slight improvement in allied ants' reactions under command.
Active Abilities:
• Tactical Foresight – Grants short-term battlefield predictions.
Cooldown: 12 hours
Duration: 6 minutes
• Appraisal – Scans objects or organisms for detailed analysis.
Cost: 0
• Tremor Pulse – Sends a pulse through the ground to detect movement and tunnel structure.
Mana Cost: 10 MP
Cooldown: 5 minutes
Status Effect:
Mana Depleted – No abilities may be used until sufficient mana is recovered.
Estimated Full Recovery: 15 Days
Suitable option:
Initiate coma sequence to recover mana, lasting: 3 days
Do you accept?
Exhausted from all the work, I accepted without an ounce of hesitation. Flowing into a deep peaceful slumber once more.