Chapter 39: Chapter 39: Red Queen

***

Race: Valiant [Level: 20/30].

***

HP: 380/380

MP: 199/200

Top Speed: 40 km/h

Defense: 2

***

Stats:

Strength: 38

Agility: 20

Intelligence: 20

***

Damaging Active Skills: 

Savage Bite [MP Cost: 20] [Level: 20/20].

Violent Charge [MP Cost: 20] [Level: 20/20].

**

Non-damaging Active Skills:

Sensory Antennae [MP Cost: 1] 

Skin Hardening [MP Cost: 3] [Level: 3/20].

**

Passive Skills:

[Lesser] MP Regeneration.

[Lesser] HP Regeneration.

***

Valiant was one of Militant's evolutions. A 125-centimeter-long armored wall with six eyes darting at Eon. Its rough and massive mandibles closed and opened as its massive dark red head rose. Its entire body was coated in harsh and hard red skin, particularly its skull, which was as unyielding as stone. Its six powerful legs were impervious to damage and could crush anything it stepped on. The true image of a red knight, one of the Peasant evolution line's champions.

The Valiant advanced, the mage of the trio trailing behind it.

***

Race: Enchant [Level: 20/30].

***

HP: 200/200

MP: 380/380

Top Speed: 40 km/h

Defense: 2

***

Stats:

Strength: 20

Agility: 20

Intelligence: 38

***

Damaging Active Skills: 

Savage Bite [MP Cost: 20] [Level: 20/20].

Fire Blast [MP Cost: 20] [Level: 20/20].

**

Non-damaging Active Skills:

Sensory Antennae [MP Cost: 1] 

Magic Guard [MP Cost: 3] [Level: 3/20].

**

Passive Skills:

[Lesser] MP Regeneration.

[Lesser] HP Regeneration.

***

Enchant was one of Vibrant's evolutions. With a length of 70 centimeters and a body that seemed to glow due to its bright red color that stood out against the black ground on which it stood. The Vibrant was opening and closing its mandibles with ferocity while its entire focus was on Eon. This beautiful but vicious monster could easily kill Eon in a single blow. Although it was full of beauty and grace in every movement, it was also deadly.

Then, separated from the first two, came a phantom-like monster that was extremely difficult to notice with the naked eye. It rushed the area directly beneath Eon at breakneck speed. Eon would not have known it was already under him if it hadn't been for his trusty sense of smell. It was fortunate that it couldn't reach him from the sky, but killing Eon was not its primary goal. Its current mission was to pursue Eon and prevent him from fleeing.

***

Race: Assailant  [Level: 20/30].

***

HP: 200/200

MP: 197/200

Top Speed: 76 km/h

Defense: 2

***

Stats:

Strength: 20

Agility: 38

Intelligence: 20

***

Damaging Active Skills: 

Savage Bite [MP Cost: 20] [Level: 20/20].

Deadly Slash [MP Cost: 20] [Level: 20/20].

**

Non-damaging Active Skills:

Sensory Antennae [MP Cost: 1] 

Stealth Assassin [MP Cost: 3] [Level: 3/20].

**

Passive Skills:

[Lesser] MP Regeneration.

[Lesser] HP Regeneration.

***

The Assailant of Peasant evolution line was beginning to take on the shape of the deadly assassin of their lair due to its possession of a skin that was so hazy that it was extremely difficult to notice while traveling at high speed. And, thanks to its skill, Stealth Assassin, and the current level of the skill, the Assailant could become almost invisible and gain movement speed.

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When it wasn't using its skill, it had pale orange skin that was almost white. Its four sharp mandibles, as sharp as blades, opened and closed as its head darted above where Eon was. The Assailant's size remained constant after evolving from Rampant, which was 30 centimeters. It was small, stealthy, and fast, making it ideal for its job.

***

When Eon saw the Valiant, Enchant, and Assailant from the sky, he just growled. He only looked at them for a second before flapping his wings and flying away. However, the three newly arrived reinforcements trailed him from the ground. Especially the Assailant, who was the fastest in the group and could keep up with Eon's speed to some extent.

However, none of them launched an attack; even the Enchant, who possessed a skill capable of reaching Eon, did not attack; instead, it simply followed Eon and kept an eye on him.

In this particular situation, they did not need to, or were not permitted to, attack Eon... because a certain entity desired direct vengeance on Eon.

Eon's devastating attack on the Peasants not only drew the attention of the Peasant evolution line's higher hierarchy, but it also drew the full attention of the highest of them.

Then there was an eerie roar from the deepest part of the anthill. A roar so terrifying that all the monsters who could fly flew out of hiding and scurried toward the red island's exits. The raging sound of death was so powerful that Eon was stunned in the air and growled, forcing his wings to wave once more.

The constant roar was coming from the deepest part of the lair, getting closer with each passing moment. It was enraged and on its way to severely punish the person who had killed its children.

Eon's gooey eyes darted down to where the three Peasant evolution line elites were following him. His instincts told him that the three were following him while the queen was on her way to exact her revenge.

A vicious and raging mother was on her way for Eon. He growled as he waved his wings faster.

[Icy Touch has received fourteen skill points.]

[The damage output of Icy Touch has increased from level 6 (400% of strength stats) to level 20 (1100%).]

Eon flew as fast as he could, leaving the slower Valiant and Enchant behind. His trusty nose, on the other hand, had delivered some bad news. The number of monsters pursuing him did not decrease, but rather increased. More Assailants appeared ahead of Eon's path.

These assailants did not emerge from the anthill; instead, they followed Eon's every move through the island, using hidden paths and holes. Assailants were waiting in all directions right now, and Eon had no way out as long as he was in the vicinity of the island.

They were keeping an eye on him as he struggled to increase his already maximum speed. It was the Assailants' responsibility to ensure that Eon did not vanish from their sight.

Eon could have transformed into another being and escaped, but the Peasant evolution line's racial exclusive skill, Sensory Antennae, would notice and expose his primary means of survival. Using his racial exclusive skill, Deceitful Shapeshifter, while under surveillance was not a good idea.

Then came the terrifying roar of the Queen of Peasants. But this time it wasn't coming from the lair's dept, but from outside. The majestic yet unsettling scream dominated the entire area, its glorious sound causing an unexplainable uproar in the surrounding.

Eon's curiosity won out and he had one of his eyes look backward while flying. He discovered a gigantic crimson silhouette with giant silver wings glowing through the sun at the location of Death Canyon. As the wings spread, it let out a much louder and rage-filled roar. It was a colossus, so massive that its magnificent image could be seen from afar.

Hearing their queen's roar, the Assailants near Eon began to raise their heads and close and open their mandibles repeatedly. The quick movements of their mandibles produced clicking sounds, which quickly became louder due to the large number of Assailants doing it all at once. The sound made by the assailants traveled back toward Death Canyon. It was their way of communicating with their queen; by making a sound in the vicinity of Eon, they were informing the queen of his location.

If Eon did not escape before the message reached the queen, the queen would easily track him down, even if he was flying. Furthermore, the nearest exit from the island was still some distance away.

However, as a result of it, Eon had realized something.

The queen had not yet seen him.

Eon waved his wings, but instead of flying forward, he soared higher in the air. His Slug's head and eyes were pointing upward. He growled as he climbed higher and higher in the air. Higher than usual.

As expected, the Assailants' message reached the queen, and almost immediately, it flew toward Eon's direction at a terrifying 780 kilometers per hour. An unstoppable charging behemoth roared as it approached its prey.

Eon, on the other hand, ignored the eerie roar approaching him. He flew higher and higher, even though he had already reached his maximum flight height. He couldn't make a mistake because one would mean death, so he waved his wings until he couldn't anymore. Until the wind began to crush him due to his altitude. It was the only way for all the eyes on him to stop seeing him.

And when he could no longer move even with all of his strength, he knew it was enough height.

He let himself fall...

[Deceitful Shapeshifter has been activated.]

The strong wind swayed his white Peasant body as he glided down in the air. He spread his six legs and went with the flow. As he looked down, he closed and opened his mandibles. Peasants had a very limited line of sight, so limited that he couldn't see the ground he was descending to.

A rumbling roar from the Queen of Peasants reached Eon, and due to his limited vision, he only noticed it when it was already very close to him. Its red truck-like head surging in the air and passing through him greeted him. Its ear-piercing roar rang out near Eon as its ten-meter-long body, covered in a red exoskeleton tougher than iron, flew above him. The force of its powerful silver, almost transparent wings pushed Eon down as they waved in the air.

The queen ignored him because his heat signal was identical to that of peasants, as well as his unusual color... The queen of ants did not judge her children based on their skin color.

It happened in an instant... But it was more than enough for Eon to realize what kind of destructive monster he had just escaped from.

The Red Island's queen herself...

***

Race: Soverant [Level: 60/70].

***

HP: 780/780

MP: 777/780

Top Speed: 156 km/h

Defense: 6

***

Stats:

Strength: 78

Agility: 78

Intelligence: 78

***

Damaging Active Skills: 

Savage Bite [MP Cost: 20] [Level: 20/20].

Fire Blast [MP Cost: 20] [Level: 20/20].

Blazing Charge [MP Cost: 20] [Level: 20/20].

Formicary's Guardian's Outburst [MP Cost: 20] [Level: 20/20].

**

Non-damaging Active Skills:

Sensory Antennae [MP Cost: 1] 

Skin Hardening [MP Cost: 20] [Level: 20/20].

Fireproof [MP Cost: 20] [Level: 20/20].

Sovereign's Healing [MP Cost: 7] [Level: 7/20].

**

Passive Skills:

[Greater] MP Regeneration.

[Lesser] HP Regeneration.

[Lesser] Mana Absorb.

[Lesser] Life Absorb.

[Lesser] Desperation.

***

The Soverant flew ahead and found nothing. The Soverant was relying solely on the sounds made by the Assailants to locate its prey, but if the Soverant managed to lock on Eon using its racial exclusive skill, Sensory Antennae, Eon was as good as dead. Even if he transformed into any monster, the Soverant would recognize him. That could have been the end of Eon.

Eon managed to escape his impending doom by flying higher in the air, removing himself from the Assailants' eyes and trace, and transforming before the Soverant had its eyes on him.

The Assailants' clicking sound then stopped, indicating that the target they were chasing had escaped their sight.

As the raging Soverant roared incessantly, its prey was nowhere to be found. It would return empty-handed... or, more accurately, empty-mandibled.

Eon, on the other hand, was on his way to the ground. The sight of Assailants scurrying around revealed itself to him as he slowly descended. They were desperately searching every corner for their prey, not realizing it was right in front of them.

Eon had safely reached the ground and would return home without punishment for the massacre he had carried out. Eon continued on his way back to his home without looking back, ignoring the uproar of the giant queen in the sky.

[The necessary level for evolution has been reached. You may now evolve into a superior species.]

[Evolution necessitates hibernation. Finding a safe place to evolve is essential.]