I Became an Ant Lord, So I Built a Hive Full of Beauties-Chapter 214: Flashback of Ant Kingdom

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Five Days Earlier. Eastern Forest, Royal Court of the Scarlet Ant Kingdom (Princess Mia / Thea Kingdom).

The eastern sun had barely crested the obsidian trees when the vast, vaulted chambers of the Scarlet royal court stirred awake. Twin pillars of ironwood framed the main hall, their surfaces etched with generations of triumphs and tragedies. Crimson torches of fireflies burned along every column, feeding slow streams of scented smoke toward a ceiling lost in shadows. Golden banners depicting the crest of the Crown. It was a stylized mandible flanked by twin spears. It hung motionless in the hush.

Normally the court was a place of militant efficiency. Scribes scuttled across polished basal floors, chronicling decrees. Courtiers muttered reports of trade convoys or skirmishes on the northern borders. But this morning an unease crept through every word and footstep. Rumors had reached the palace that another Rift Gate expedition had collapsed. Some teams had limped home with glory and many treasures. Others... had never returned.

On the throne, high above the congregation, sat Queen, Mother of Mia and Thea. She was an Eight-Star royal Ant, her body shimmering like garnet beneath dawn’s glow. Eight faint aura rings Stars orbited behind her shoulders like blood-red halos. To her right stood Princess Thea, eldest daughter. Her armor was polished, posture rigid, obsidian ponytail braided with silver chains. To her left stood Princess Mia, second daughter. She wore lighter armor, blades crossed behind her back, eyes less haughty, more wary. One step behind Mia lingered a cluster of highborn ladies and low level scribes who took notes on wax tablets.

At the foot of the throne dais, six dukes and eleven ministers recited dry reports: grain quotas, fungus harvest yields, the price of iron husks from merchant beetles, and the total collection of the honey. Queen listened without blinking, her aura so perfectly controlled that not a flicker escaped.

But Thea vibrated with impatience. Finally, when the last minister closed his parchment scroll, she stepped forward and bowed.

"Queen-Mother," she said in a carrying voice, "we dispatched my specialized units into the Rift Gate near Sulfur Basin. It has now been nine days—and the Gate collapsed two nights ago. Other beast clans have reclaimed their teams. Ours have not returned. I request permission to lead a search squad."

A visible ripple ran through the court. Whispering voices, sidelong glances. Thea’s elite knights were no small matter.

The Queen considered her daughter. "Granted," she said, her tone smooth as oiled stone. "Take three hundred scouts. Evaluate the remains. Prioritize survival intel."

Before Thea could nod, the Queen’s gaze drifted to Mia. "And you, second daughter. Your Dawn-Blade squad—have they reported?"

Mia lifted her chin. "No, your Majesty. They are missing too. I don’t know what happened to them. Or where did they go?"

A hush swelled, like wind filling a cavern. The queen’s crimson eyes narrowed. "Then we shall verify."

The disappearance of a Dawn-Blade squad. Mia’s unit and Thea’s elite knights were no small matter. She needed the information of the rift gate more than people. freēwēbηovel.c૦m

She rose with an impossible grace for someone who always hides her face—and extended one palm. Eight aura stars flared like molten glyphs. The chamber’s light dimmed under the weight of her aura. Two faint filaments of red energy darted from her palm toward Thea and Mia, wrapping around their foreheads: the Queen Mark. It was a Dominion glyph every ant from the kingdom carried. Through it, the Queen could sense the life pulse of any subordinate she had claimed.

The queen’s brows knit. "Strange. Your teams’ marks... are extinguished."

A gasp rippled through courtiers.

"My mark is absolute," she continued. "Only a Nine-Star could sever it without killing the host. And no Nine-Star would crawl into a Rift Gate that only allows Five-Star and below to enter."

Thea’s jaw tensed. "Meaning?"

"Meaning your units are dead," The queen said, voice flat. "There is no other explanation."

The pronunciation dropped like a hammer. Many voices murmured swirled across the hall.

Mia’s fists clenched at her sides. Dead? She felt something twist in her gut.

The Queen seated herself again. "Nonetheless, I can’t feel their mark had been removed. It’s not certain that all of them are dead. A rift gate is full of mystery. There is a possibility that they triggered some kind of mechanism that erased my mark. I don’t can’t feel the faint life force that still exists. But I am not in control. We / I need to know what threat erased my mark. We will investigate all beast clans who ventured near that Gate, and the ones who entered the rift gate and returned alive. Diplomatic envoys will demand answers." She looked at Thea. "I approve of your expedition, but not your leadership. You will stay at court."

Thea stiffened. "Mother—"

"I have my reasons. Mia will also remain." Her royal tone brooked no argument. "Tonight I will begin my closed door cultivation. I will attempt to break the barrier to become a Nine Star rank using the Desert Ruler Core. It’s been a century since our scarlet ant kingdom had a nine star rank powerhouse. I may be gone for months... or years. I need a long time to absorb the Desert Ruler core."

A shockwave of whispers surged through the obsidian-carved court like a tremor through stone. Antennae twitched. Claws curled. The ripple of unease passed from noble to noble like a living current.

The leap from Eight Star to Nine wasn’t just difficult. It was legendary. Only a handful in the entire Eastern Forest had ever succeeded. The path to Nine demanded more than power. It demanded sacrifice. Devotion. Luck. And even then, the price was brutal.

Those who failed didn’t merely stall their advancement. They burned out.

Their star cores, unable to contain the pressure, would implode within. Locking or shattering their cultivation base and warping their soul. The result was a living death: once-mighty warriors reduced to non star beasts, crippled in both body and pride, forever cast out of their ranks.

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