I Became an Ant Lord, So I Built a Hive Full of Beauties-Chapter 205: Moonlight and Memories

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Steam still lingered in the corners of the bathing chamber as Kai poured the last bucket of warm mineral water over his head. The scents of crushed moss and floral oils clung to his skin, tracing through the cracks in his exoskeletal armor and down his back.

He exhaled slowly, watching the mist rise from his chest.

The waters of the ant colony weren’t luxurious, but they were clean—deep, natural springs filtered through layers of mineral stone. Their heat had soothed his battle-worn muscles, and his mind finally felt quiet.

The chaos, the blood, the screams of frogkin are all muffled now by the water’s embrace and the deep, echoing silence of the tunnels.

He stepped out onto the heated rock, toweling off with a silkweed cloth left folded neatly on the wall. The ants had provided everything. Even now, small glowing moss lanterns hummed gently around the rim of the room, casting pale green-blue light across the steam-clouded stone.

He pulled on his basic travel wraps and over-shoulder armor, fingers lingering on a crack along the carved plate.

The fracture ran diagonally through the middle. It hadn’t shattered—but it had been close.

Kai gripped it briefly, then released a slow breath. "I’ll return soon. I promised."

His footsteps echoed through the tunnels as he walked back toward the sleeping quarters. The corridors were quiet. Most of the assassin ants were resting, their bodies curled into smooth alcoves or soft leaf-nests embedded into the tunnel walls. Azhara’s soft snores came from the far end of one chamber, muffled by an oversized cotton pillow.

Akayoroi had said nothing more after their earlier conversation. Just a nod. A queen’s promise that her answer would come soon.

He could wait. But first he needed some fresh air.

He passed through the upper tunnel mouth without alerting anyone and emerged into the damp night beyond. Moss clung to the walls, slick and glimmering with dew. Pale spores floated through the air like wandering stars.

As Kai stepped into the open forest, his lungs pulled in a deep, cold breath. The clearing outside the tunnel was dim and quiet. Only the soft buzz of nocturnal insects and the distant hoot of a ridge-owl stirred the stillness.

Kai’s boots crunched over soft underbrush and curled vines as he made his way up a familiar slope—one he had passed during his earlier corpse disposal. The ground was firmer now. The air fresher.

He wanted solitude. Just for a moment.

He spotted the old ironroot tree at the edge of the basin and walked to its base. The ancient tree towered like a silent watchman, its bark blackened with age and crusted in patches of glowing moss. Long ago, predator claws had marked it with scars but the tree still stood tall, weathered and proud.

Kai placed a hand on the bark..Then, with deliberate pace, he began to climb.

His body moved on instinct, legs and arms weaving through the jutting knots and branch spirals. He didn’t rush. The climb was part of the ritual—part of shaking off the weight of battle.

At last, he reached a thick bough roughly thirty meters above the forest floor. It arced out like a cradle. The perfect perch.

He settled into it, back resting against the trunk, arms hanging loosely over his knees.

And then, finally, he looked up. Above him, the sky was vast and untouched.

The moon, silver and immense, hung over the world like a patient sentinel. The stars blinked softly—unfamiliar constellations drawn across the void in scattered brushstrokes. None of them matched what he knew from Earth.

No Big Dipper. No Orion. No East Star. "So far from home." Kai let the thought roll through his chest like a slow drumbeat.

Everything the Frog-Prince had said still circled his mind like vultures: mascots, okay collectors, and japan.

He had dismissed it as madness... until that one word.

Japan.

That had hit too close. Too personal. He gritted his teeth. "Was it possible? Could Earth still exist? Or had it been ground to ash beneath cosmic boots?"

He didn’t know. But now... now he had no way to find out. Most importantly he needed to find out about the clan who can’t be named.

Kai looked east—toward the distant silhouette of his mountain home, far beyond the ridges and black forests. A faint thread of mist drifted along the treetops in that direction, like a trail of breath.

He imagined Luna standing there at the cliff’s edge, fists clenched, waiting. And Miryam curled in her nest. Maybe singing. Maybe confused. Or crying.

A quiet breeze rustled the leaves. Far below, the faint trickle of water echoed from a nearby stream. The wind carried traces of minty grass and night orchids.

He stared upward.

The sky had begun to gray at the edges. Not full dawn—just the first prelude. The stars still twinkled, but faint purple bands were bleeding into the black above the horizon.

Fireflies hovered near his perch. They danced between branches, little streaks of gold and violet. Harmless. Beautiful.

Kai closed his eyes. "Luster’s Mark activated." He remembered the notice. Beauty: 90. Impression: 50.

He hadn’t asked for it. He hadn’t tried. But Akayoroi had been chosen by the system as a potential wife. A match for his harem.

He didn’t even know if she’d follow him. If she refused... then it was wasted. Just a beautiful ant queen guarding a dying nest.

And if she came?

He’d be taking on a small assassins squad who revered him like a savior and wanted him like a monarch.

Not a small responsibility. Kai looked down at his hands. Calloused. Cut. Burnt in places.

Was he worthy of building something more? Or just pretending?

He didn’t know.

But he remembered how Akayoroi had stood over her dying sisters, refusing to yield. How Sha, Vel, and Naaro had wept in silence but still fought. How they moved with him. Trusted him.

That meant something.

Kai leaned back against the bark and exhaled. And for once—he let himself stop thinking. Just for a little while.

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