I Became an Ant Lord, So I Built a Hive Full of Beauties-Chapter 201: Bath Beneath the Nest

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Kai lay a hand over the Frog-Prince’s fractured sternum. He closed his eyes, activated the Essence Eater skill and bites. A silent vacuum effect yanked spectral vapors from the corpse—phosphorescent streamers of emerald aura and greasy black corruption. The siphoned energy spiraled into Kai’s body, lighting them crimson.

The corpse shriveled, collapsing inward as though decades passed in seconds. One by he ate all of them.

[Devourer Skill Activated-

4★ Core A—(yield: 4 Stat Points)

4★ Core B—(yield: +4 Stats Points)

5★ Aberrant Core—fractured but viable (yield: +5 Unallocated Points)

Total Stat Points gained: +13]

Numbers flicked across Kai’s HUD. He exhaled, feeling the subtle fortification slide into bones and sinew. Unshaped power waiting assignment. Thirteen unallocated points now sat dormant in his status pane.

He wiped fat from his fangs, then kicked the Frog-Prince’s fatty-husk into the shaft. It slapped atop the pile of lesser corpses with a hollow squelch.

Kai dropped in after it. His boots carve grooves to slow his descent—to a ledge five meters down. From there he leapt, landing in a crouch at the bottom beside the grotesque heap.

Earth smells with loam sweet and mineral which overrode frog decay down here. He touched one wall, verifying stability. Satisfied, he clambered back up using claw-like holds.

At ground level, he began shoveling dirt back in, tamping each layer with his strength. He worked fast: bury, stomp, repeat. When the hole stood less than a meter deep, he scattered basalt shards atop, then raked leaf-litter over everything.

By the time sunset came, the clearing looked untouched. Like nothing was buried here.

Azhara sat atop a moss-coated stump near the tunnel mouth, idly flicking a stone with one claw. She perked when Kai returned, armor faintly steaming.

"Got your little burial party done, funeral director?" she teased.

He wiped mud from his hands. "Sealed fifteen meters deep. No scavenger will dig them, and their toxins will seep far from the nest."

"Aww, you’re always thinking of the environment, Sir!" she cooed.

He ignored the sarcasm. "The cores are collected by me."

She whistled. "Great! Sir, those ants are already hungry for you. Please be careful..." Then she thinks, "When will you get me the owner to serve you in bed?"

He nearly smiled. "Don’t talk nonsense."

They walked inside. The tunnel hummed with low chanting; ant recited mourning rites for the dead while giving more healing honey to the wounded. Akayoroi stood near the wounded four, eyes half-shuttered in exhaustion but posture proud.

"Body disposal complete," Kai reported.

She dipped her head. "Thank you." A pause. "Was the forest peaceful?"

"Ash pines, blue lichen, basalt ruins. Quiet," he answered.

She took that in—a queen storing waypoints for future patrol paths. "Good."

Vel shuffled forward, wiping resin from her hands. "The four survivors stabilized. Honey’s working."

Naaro added, "We’ll keep them dosed until they wake up."

Sha glanced at Kai, cheeks reddening briefly, still haunted by earlier fantasies—then cleared her throat. "Queen, we’ve moved thirty-two of the dead into the lower catacomb. Nine more await final rites."

Akayoroi thanked them all, then turned to Kai. "Rest. Soon, we’ll convene for our answer."

Kai nodded, though the rest sounded alien. He started to turn when Akayoroi softly called his name again. "KAI"

"You sealed the corpses... but you still carry their weight." Her antennae dipped toward his chestplate, cracked and acid-scorched. "Let me send you to the bathing area. It’s the least I can do."

Kai paused. "Later," he said, voice gentler than before. "You and your sister should clean up first."

"As you wish," she responded with a small smile.

Azhara leaned close, whispering, "Sir, can I join you in the bath?"

He gave her a dry look and strode deeper into the corridors, "No, go with them." leaving the queen and rabbit flustered for different reasons.

A few moments later...

Steam wafted gently from the subterranean spring chamber nestled deep beneath the colony tunnels. Glowing mushrooms dotted the carved walls, casting soft violet hues that shimmered across the water’s surface. A narrow inlet fed mineral-rich heat into the large basin where the seven females gathered—six antkin and one flustered rabbit.

Akayoroi, stripped of her regal outer plating, reclined at the edge like a lounging empress. Her exoskin shimmered black-violet in the moisture, accentuating every elegant line of her long torso and ant shapely hips. Beneath the water, her ant-half rested still, armored legs tucked. She’d removed her silk chest bindings, and now the faint curves of her chest drew lingering glances—even from her own sisters.

"Come, don’t be shy, we can’t bathe in one by one. It will take a long time." she called softly, watching Vel and Sha hesitate at the rim.

Azhara was already in, floating on her back. "Oh my, this is warm. Warm enough to make a girl think of sinful things."

Sha dipped her foot with visible reluctance. "It’s not that we are shy. It’s just...we’ve never bathed with you queen, and there’s also an outsider." Her voice trailed into embarrassment.

One ant grinned wickedly. "Sha, you’re more worried about your body showing, huh?"

"She’s got the biggest thorax and bust," Vel smirked. "It’s always her who gets teased during bathing."

Sha flushed. "I—I don’t! It’s just...that Kai guy... he might walk in—"

Azhara swam by, then cupped a generous handful of water and splashed it over Sha’s modest chest, causing her to shriek and stumble in.

"W-why’d you touch me there Naaro?!"

Naaro just laughed. "Hurry up. We don’t have full night."

Azhara feigned innocence. "I was just washing you~ Oh? Are these... bigger than mine? Are they?"

"They are!" Vel declared, laughing. "Sha is a full-bodied killer! Naaro always presses her chest during bathing."

Akayoroi chuckled slowly. "My dear sister, why the panic? This is woman’s time. You may bare your insecurities to us." Her gaze flicked to Azhara. "And you, little rabbit, seem oddly bold."

Azhara smiled, not hiding her chest as she sat up. "In my clan... There, we bathed with royal mistresses often. Lots of touching, pampering, gossiping... I’m used to seeing that."

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