Vice captains POV:-

"There are no butts Green. If we weren’t from the same nursery and you had come to ask my hand then I surely would have said yes. But I can’t help but think of you as my brother. After all we are from the same batch and everything, just…”

"Don’t say it... I understand. But please understand that I have no control over my raging soul that only wants to be together with you."

"Sigh... go now."

‘Just why she doesn’t understand how I feel! Damn… this girl will be the end of me. Should I…

yeah take another look at her and then …’

Vice leader looked down at his hands, clenched them, and nodded his head with gutso.

‘Okay. That’s enough. Let’s see what this cavern is all about.’

“Hey scouty, come. Let’s go.”

“Me? Ah, Okay. Wait for a momen… I said wait…!”

He flinched hearing him wasting his time and flared in his mind.

‘Just follow me already! You and your… sigh.’

“So where are we going?” His scout asked and made him furrow his brows.

“Really now?! Were you sleeping when chich… I mean team leader was giving us orders, huh? We’ll go check out one of those tunnels and see what’s wrong with the setting.”

While walking the scout continued to stare at his back which because f his usuall ant sense made his face twitch.

He thought that the scout would stop, but instead his stares became fiercer.

*Silence stare*

*Twitch*

*Silence stare*

*Silence stare*

“Just yell out already…! Stop fucking staring at me like I’m an idol or something…! Shit!” he yelled, but inside in his heart vice leader hoped that the scout won’t say anything.

‘Don’t say it. I fucking know what you want to say. Just keep your mouth shut and don’t…’

But as the scout was an unsensitive ant, he smirked and poked where it hurt our vice leader and made him flare.

“So sir, when did you fall with her!”

“Fuck this little cunt of a scout…! The fuck do you care!”

‘Calm down, calm down! Deep breaths, take deep breaths, that’s it take the air in and…’ Vice leader tried to calm himself down, but the scout dealt him another punch and knocked his senses out.

“So you don’t love h…”

“You just don’t want to live anymore right! Seeing how sensible you are, you must have your will prepared already. So let me send you to the afterlife. I hope you’ll reincarnate into something stronger and bigger than an ant. Goodbye.”

“NOoooo…! I was joking captain joking! Calm down. Calm down. Here have a sip…”

The scout gave him a drop of water to drink but vice leader slapped at his hand which made the scout drop it.

“Alright, although there was no need to throw that, but it’s alright. I’m sorry.”

Vice leader stared at te scouts ugly mug like a ferocious beast out in hunt, but seeing his stupid smile he only sighed in the end.

“Thanks.” He said and the scot nodded his head.

The stupid smile of his went away like it was never there and a handsome face appeared from beneath it.

“You are welcome. So have you calmed down yet or do I have to continue my act of being an insensitive, nosy and obnoxious brat, who has no sense and thinks he is the greatest?”

Scoties left right combo made vice leader spurt out saliva like a geyser, which in turn fell directly on the scouts face and made him scowl in disgust.

“PFFT! Nah, no need to belittle our new kid. He is a real genius after all.”

“When did I belittle him…” The scout replied whipping his face and shuddering at the same time and continued speaking, “Oh! I wasn’t talking about him. I was impersonating how you used to act in your childhood.”

“You…!” vice leader glared at him and thought

‘This little brat, he is still the same. He still hasn’t changed a little and still the only one who actually understands me. How I wish she could understand me like him too.’

But fiercely shook his head in the end and tried to uplift his spirit thinking,

‘No need to force it. It will happen when the time comes. Until then, I’ll follow her to wherever she wants to go.’

Returning from dream land he turned his head toward his scout and asked him,

“So scouty, is there anything your inner detective is telling you?”

To which the scout replied saying,

“My inner detective is not a genie you know. It’s just a skill. Anyways, let me see…”

Being the muscle brain that he was, vice leader liked to think more and act even more.

‘Yeah, yeah… you can call that whatever you want. We all know how proud you are of your second tier skill ‘Guide’. Well, at least someone from our little team has half qualified for the advancement to second rank.

Will my ‘Brute Strength’ ever reach the next tier? Shit!’

I have to do something. If this continues like this then chichi will advance without me and some young and handsome hunk will take her away.’

“No… Never!” he shouted out loud and scared the scout. Who flinched in return and once again pressed on vice leaders hurting nerve.

“Are you sure you…”

“Shut up…!”

Having finished playing their cat and mouse game, Vice leaders face turned serious as he examined his surroundings, but then he found someone in the mix of his allies whom he knew.

‘Let’s see, if it’s a tunnel that I have to chose then…huh, is that big brother? That really is him! Why is he with uncle? Oh, I forgot that he already become a squad leader under the ‘Fire breather’ uncle.’

‘Should I go and greet him?’

‘Well, we are here already, so why not….’

And having made his mind, he started walking toward his big brother.

Scout saw him going in the opposite direction of where they were planning to head and gave a shout out to him, “Leader where are you going?”

Unfortunately for the scout, his leader and friend didn’t have good enough memory to remember that he was even there and he only remembered about him after hearing his shout.

‘Ah! I forgot about him.’

“…Come on lets go. I’ll take you to meet someone.”

Hearing which the scout tilted his neck. He thought for a minute before saying,

“Who are we meeting? Leader… are you two timing…”

“Just hurry up, you snail!”

“Damn slow down already! I’m a scout not a warrior; I don’t have high stamina like you. Are you even listening!?”

But his leader was already to engross thinking about his big brother, and paid no heed to him yelling.

‘There he is. Ah! What am I feeling so excited for? He is a male, yo, ma-le! Don’t forget you already have someone you love! Damn his charms!’

“Big brot…” Vice leader was speaking, but his two faced scout friend came pushed him away and started introducing himself to the squad leader.

“Hello sir, how are you today? I’m feeling nice thank you. So do you have a minute, can I talk…”

*Slap* Thud*

The scout fell on the ground with proper sound from a slap by his vice leader and didn’t stand up for a long time.

“I’m sorry for my team mate’s behavior, big brother. You know how strong your charm is, he just couldn’t handle himself.” Vice leader apologized to his big brother for his team mates behavior giving some flowery excuse which had his big brother react in an overly shocked way.

On the other hand seeing his little brother after a very long time, tears appeared in the eyes of the squad leader and he hugged him tightly.

“Oh come on, and come here. What have you been doing all this time that you don’t even have time to come meet me. You know even that snotty brat comes to meet me every now and then, just what is up with you.”

“Ha-ha! I’m…” embarrassed, vice leader didn’t give any excuses and simply hugged him in return.

Yes he didn’t say anything to his big brother, but the inside of his mind was boiling with rage, doubts and self hate.

’Does my chichi loves big brother? Is that what this is about! She has time to pester big brother, but she has no time for me! That girl…’

But before his thought train could reach its station and unload all the dangerous self loathing cargo it was carrying, his big brother pushed him back and started reprimanding him.

“Hey, don’t misunderstand! It’s nothing like that. Do you think anyone will ever go near her with a bull like you following around, staring at everyone who as much as even looks her way?”

‘Did I talk our loud?’ he thought and asked scouty, who in return made sure that his leader would die from shame.

“Hey scouty did I …?”

“Yes, you always do. Don’t worry its nothing new. Everyone has already become accustomed to it by now.”

‘Damn it…! Is this the reason why she stays away from me? Does she think I am a loud mouth?’ he gritted his jaw and stared like a bull about to rage at his friend.

Seeing him do that his big brother changed the topic and saved the loudmouth scout’s ass.

“So anyways, what happened? You didn’t just come here to greet me right?”

“Huh, oh, Yes. Big brother is still wise as always.”

“Ha-ha.” Which made the Squad leader laugh warily to hide his embarrassment from that blunt comment.

The mood changed with that and the designation that they had between themselves, returned.

“So me and snotty… I mean chichi thinks there is something wrong with the tunnels. And we are out here to explore and maybe find that variable too. Do you…”

“As much as I want to tell you what is happening here, I can’t. First that would be classified information and second we don’t know anyth… wait, why do our troupes coming from the tunnels look so battered and wounded.”

But before he could find anything out, a commotion occurred behind his back.

‘Huh, what is big brother talking about?’ Wait… what is that?”

His ant sense flared and caught something, no, many living things coming out of the tunnels with auras filled with killing intent. His friend scout who was looking in the direction of the commotion, stepped backwards and yelled out loud,

“The enemies are here…!”

“… Damn it! It’s an ambush! Everyone come together and stay away from the tunnels. Don’t let anyone be left behin…” The squad leader ordered, but flinched and his voice refused to leave his throat as he saw a rock falling from above, falling down and crushing three ants underneath it.

*Boom*

“AHHH!”

“SA…!”

But that was just the start. More rocks followed the first one and soon the entire ceiling was falling down on their heads.

They looked stupefied, as thefalling rocks came and crushed their allies, comrades, their brother and sisters.

*Boom*

Another part of the ceiling crumbled and came directly falling on their heads. The scout felt it, looked above and seeing that his leader was right underneath it he shouted at the top of his voice.

“Get away leader, the ceiling is falling!”

The yell brought vice leader out of his stupor and the scene danger made him shiver.

‘Oh shit!’

He hurriedly rolled on the floor and spared his team mates from his untimely death.

‘Ah! My back! Like always I’ll say it again, ants aren’t made to roll around on the floor. We are an entirely different species from those wandering assassins.’

He saw the ants he once knew dying without being able to resist the rocks even a single bit right in front of is eyes. The once tense situation quickly turned into a scene from hell as in under a minute one seven hundred ants died and colored the brown floor with their blood.

The various loud yells and cries made opened his eyes wide to the situation and made him worry about the one person and the only ant on his mind.

‘Chichi; is she alright? There is no way a stone falling from the ceiling can kill that girl, Right?’

But right at this moment the rock that had fallen from the ceiling started sinking into the ground.

‘Quicksand?’He thought, but the ground soon crumbled apart from the weight of the stone. But that wasn’t all. Crack emerged on the surface and like a snake moving in sand without any tension, the whole floor underneath their feet started falling into the endless abyss, as if some had broken its supporting pillars.*

‘Damn, it’s okay for the stones to fall, but why the hell is the ground breaking too?’

“Shit? Now how will I get to her?”

*Pat*

“Don’t worry, she will be fine. She is not someone who will get done in by these things. Though I have to say those cunning motherfuckers really did a fine job with these traps.”

‘Oh, even big brother hasn’t changed at all! He is still as macho as ever.’

“Okay, help some ants and make sure that you don’t get buried under those rocks. G…”

But right at this moment his big brother saw his little sister rushing towards a tunnel filled to the brim with enemy soldiers

“Damn that girl! Why the fuck does she has to charge straight at a tunnel filled with those bastards. Does she think she is a super ant? Don’t look at me like that just go already. And don’t forget to slap her from me, giving this big brother a heart attack. That girl is just too difficult and ambitious.”

‘Like hell I can or will slap my precious.’

“Okay scouty, come, we have a princes… I mean a team leader to save.”

“Yes, yes.”

‘Damn you! Anyways, those bastards really did a number on us huh. Who is that bastard spy that gave us the information? Where did he find out that this was the mound of our enemies? I’m sure it was him who rat us out too. That is why they say spies are a like a double edged mandible. They are more dangerous than enemies.’

‘Wait is that…’

“Watch out, the ceiling is falling!”

*Boom*

When the dust settled, he saw his scout crawling backwards with the stone having fallen just centimeters away from him.

“Leader I-I can’t go on. I’ll return back. I have a phobia of dangerous situations… why did you think I became a scout. Please go on your own.”

‘This runt!’

“You and your phobias! Just go back to big brother and help him. I’ll…”

‘Is that the little kid? If it’s him and chichi, then we three might just be enough to handle those bastards until things calms down.’

“Go… you are not needed anymore.”

“That… ah, leader, take care of yourself, and don’t die!”

‘Stop raising those flags, Damn it! Fu, Fu, Fu…Let’s see, this trench is not passable. So, a left from here, and then a right and a little trench, but that’s jumpable. And if the ground doesn’t break from here on out then I’ll be able to reach her… in under ten minutes.’

“Okay let’s go.”

Then he started running. He ran, ran, ran, ducked under a fallen rock that had some space to go from underneath it, slipped from the blood of the hundreds of once lively but now crushed and mangled dead bodies.

Balanced his slide, picked himself back up, looked at the bodies, and with resolve to save his beloved no matter the cost he once again stared running.

“Ah, my back!”

‘Just Stand up and start running. Take a left, cross the area that can’t be covered because of the long and wide trench, turn right and then go straight. Run, run, run, and don’t flatter in front of those trench or the falling rocks!’

‘You can do this.’

‘Stop, sprint and jump over.’

*Smash*

“Success.”

‘Ha, ha, ha…’

He finally crossed the difficult part and now it was just a straight path between him and Chichi.

‘Now it’s a only a few more… wait a minute! What are those ugly bastards doing now!’

“Those Mother fuckers even prepared boulders?”

‘Shit! Wait is that one rolling towards…

Fuck me! She is right in its path, fuck…!’

“Chichi…!”

He shouted, but he wasn’t alone who was screaming. Several injured and almost dead ants were also shouting for help. And his voice lost its path in all of that commotion.

“Ahhh!”

“Help me!”

“MY LEG! AH! MY LEG!”

‘Shit she won’t hear me from so far. And I won’t reach her in time either!’

“NO, NO, NO…! I won’t let you die chichi…! Wait for me… I’m coming~!”

Dash!

“Get out of my way!”

Dash!

“Someone, stop that boulder!”

Dash!

“The kid is near her… Hey Kid..!”

‘Even he can’t hear me! Save her kid, save her. I won’t ever forgive you if you didn’t save her now!’

He moved as fast as he could, but he was just too far away to be of any help, and simply stared as the boulder came over his chichi’s head and luckily just passed over her head.

“Pfft! Ha-ha that girl always had dumb luck of the fairies. What was I even thinking?”

‘Even the kid is laughing. Hah… Shit why is the bolder coming towards me?! Ah! Let me see her stunned face once again, that was great. Okay, let’s just get over this first.’

The boulder passed over Chichi’s head and the kid dodged it by moving to his left. He saw it coming toward him and simply stepped out of its path, but just as he moved, a roar unlike any other he had ever heard, stunned him.

The boulder came crushing some unlucky fellows who had also gotten stunned by the roar, but he didn’t spare them a single glance, for he was too busy looking in front of him

His sight stopped for a single second at the kid who was shivering and staring in front of him. Following him he moved his eyes and saw the decapitated head of his crush getting crushed by a fallen rock and then falling into the abyss.

‘Ha, Ha, Ha…’

His breathing got slower and slower and slower, and then came a moment when his heart stopped completely.

His vision became blurry, it blurred further and then his sight completely darkened.

His heart stopped, his breathing stopped, his vision darkened and slowly all the noises in his surroundings faded away.

His surroundings became completely silent, and His thoughts became jumbled.

The shock came too suddenly and crippled him, but his paralyzed state didn’t stay like that forever, as the messenger of god appeared which he hadn’t seen in a very long time appeared in front of him and asked him-

Your pure and unrestrained love has moved the Goddess of Love and she is presenting you with a proposal.

Child, Do you desire strength? Strength to protect those you love from the very bottom of your soul? Strength which could have saved you from this tragedy and would have led to an entirely very different future?

Goddess of love would like to bestow her blessing on you.

Remember, blessings although provides the bestowed with strength unparallel, but they always come with their own set of responsibilities and conditions.

Do you accept: Yes / No

.

.

.

“Lea***”

“Lead*****”

“LEADER!!!”

‘Huh, what is happening?’

“Leader, wake up! Wake up!”

‘Wake up? When did I sleep… No, wait a minute.’

“Please leader wake up! Team leader left us, and then our newest kid jumped into the den of those fire breathers alone, and now even you… Please leader wake up!”

“Yes, sir! I know, we know that you loved team leader more, no, the most! But this is not the time to break down. Leader, help us! Command us, give us our orders! We need you!”

‘Need me!’

The crying of his team mates finally brought him out of his shocked state. He didn’t understand at first what was happening, but then all the memories which his mind had tried to remove because of the shock came back like a tide and drowned him.

He remembered the time when he was still a novice ant and he was bullied. It was chichi who had come to help him out, but was beaten instead. Then their big brother had come and driven those bullies away.

He remembered when one time those same bullies had played a prank on him by giving him poisonous food and he had hallucinated for a whole day. He kept talking to the dead termite and calling it god. And Chichi had joined him in his delusion.

He remembered all of his memories and sniffed seeing that he had no memory with anyone else. For him, everything had always been about Chichi.

They had been together for the past three years and thinking those old memories finally filled his pot of sorrow and tears came gushing out of his eyes like a stream.

“*Su* it was you chichi…*su* those bullies bullied me because of you… *Su* why did you have to leave me… *Su* why did you have to…”

“It’s okay leader.”

“Yes, we know that we can’t possibly imagine how much you are hurting, but please you have to come back and help us. The kid needs us!”

‘Humph, can’t they even let a grown man cry? Wait kid…?’

“*Su*”

“What happened to the kid?”

‘I’m sorry chichi. I couldn’t save you, but I promise I won’t ever let anyone else get hurt. So, I’m sorry, please forgive me. And don’t worry I’ll never ever forget you.’

‘You wanted to see me become the commander right? Then I’ll fulfill our promise and become the commander.’

“What did big brother say? Is he sending troupes up the wall?”

“Reporting sir, squad leader Hiiro said that it’s too dangerous. He has already tried to send troupes up the wall, but those pestering red ants shot down every single moving thing.”

“Fuck! Tell him that the kid whom chichi had personally chosen is in danger. He is all alone trying to save our asses, don’t tell me he didn’t see those two dozen bastards falling down from the wall!”

“Yo-you want me to say that to a squad leader?”

“Send the message already.”

They waited for a few moments and a message arrived.

“They approved. The reinforcements are coming. They told us to leave first and try to delay the fights if any .”

“Great! Let’s go! Everyone follow me.”

‘Should I tell him the truth!’ the scout looked up and at his leaders retreating back and shook his head.

‘No, let’s just burry it.’

The group then fought and fought and fought, until they had amassed fifty kills on their hands and finally reached the wall.

“Climb on.” He shouted.

‘Be safe kid. You can’t die. Chichi won’t be able to move on with this life if you died now. So be safe.’

The group of seven ants then started climbing the wall and everyone looked at them. Blue sky past the broken ceiling peeked at them when they looked up.

Hiiro looked at the group. The three captains watched the group. All the soldiers watched the group climbing with stiffened chests. The enemy soldiers watched the group climbing the wall in terror and their fears came true.

No fireballs, spears, or any other kind of sure kill attack happened to stop them from climbing and an eerie silence prevailed in the cavern. The fights stopped. Everyone stared at the leader of the group who was climbing at the very front. The moment he climbed over the wall and into the small groove, the storm after the calm arrived and started raging.

.

.

.

“CLIMB~ THE~ WALLS~!!”

“CLIMB!”

“Run, charge, Everyone, Let’s go out!”

“HOOOO…!!!”

And the fight inside the cavern came to end at that very moment.

The enemy black ants tried to keep them from going out, but they eventually failed.

The death count rose to 1870 ants by the end of the struggle in the cavern, but the flow of the war changed just like that. The moment those black army ants failed to keep them pinned inside the cavern, was the moment they had doomed themselves.

But all of that hadn’t happened yet. The ants hadn’t started climbing yet. The shouts haven’t been made yet and neither had the vice leader met with the kid yet.

*********

The fireballs… did he kill them all?

*BOOM*

“Commence the Dome …..”

‘It’s still not over. Wait did he say the Dome!!’

“Fuck! Everyone hurry up we need to stop them right now. Or he’ll really die.”

*He took two more steps and climbed over and into the groove dug into the wall.*

He saw a huge dome created from rocks in front of his eyes and about a total of twenty fire and earth mages concentrating on the dome.*

“No, no,, no, no, no… not him, not the dome. Don’t die kid! You can’t die on me kid…!”

“Hurry up and stop those bastards, maybe we still have tim…”

*But it was at this moment that something happened. The ground started trembling*

‘No, it’s not the ground. It’s the dome. It’s trembling, but why?’

*And as if he was being answered, the enemy mages turned hectic.*

“Sir, the fire has gone out of my control.”

“Me too sir, it has gone completely out of control.”

“Fuck! Concentrate more and stop him. Why the fuck is he still alive? It has already been ten seconds. He should have turned into ash by now!”

“Sir, look! The dome, it’s melting!”

“Oh shit!”

*It was at this moment that the acting leader of the enemy mages knew- he fucked up.*

*Boom*

‘What the hell is happening!?’

The side of the Dome facing the mages first turned yellow, then bright red, and just as vice leaders eyes met with the acting leader of the enemy mages, a pillar of fire ripped apart the domes wall, and came flying out of the dome like an angry phoenix.

It didn’t give the group a single second to move and directly engulfed every single one of them. The fire which was similar to dragon’s breath in its ferocity and destructive ability destroyed everything in its path and then disappeared. As if it was never there.

By the time vice leader turned his head back to look at the group, other than a black smudge, nothing else had been left behind. The pillar of fire had exorcized every single one of them, and had sent them directly flying towards their next reincarnation.

Thankfully the fire pillar didn’t touch the floor. Otherwise it would have turned into a pool of magma too.

Vice-leader slowly climbed into the groove when he saw someone coming out of the half destr… obliterated Dome of whatever and his eye opened wide.*

“yo- you, how did you do that?”

But instead of answering his question, the ant came opened his eyes wide and spoke in astonishment looking at him,

“Whoa, leader, what’s with that pink glow!?”