Ch 1.2

The adventuring party stood frozen, stunned as their healer, the one meant to stay at the rear, bolted headfirst into the swarm.

They were still struggling to hold back the ants, but the sudden shift in the battlefield had thrown everything off balance.

The leopard beastman snarled, baring his fangs.
“What the hell is that brat doing?! We had a plan! Now he’s gone and ruined it!”

The elf scowled, launching another barrage of flame-tipped arrows.
“I told you we shouldn’t trust a human. If he dies, that’s on him.”

The bearfolk warrior, covered in ant guts, swatted a few attackers aside with his massive shield. His brow furrowed in disbelief.
“Wait~ look! He’s already halfway up the pillar!” He pointed toward the Queen's perch.
“What kind of ability is that? Is he even a healer?”

The elf’s eyes widened as she finally noticed Ben’s progress.
“He’s challenging the Queen… alone?!”

The leopard beastman growled under his breath, then leapt back into the fray.
“Tch. He'd better slay her fast... otherwise it’ll be too late for us down here.”

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Meanwhile, atop the pillar, Ben landed before the ginormous Ant Queen.

She towered over him, nearly ten times his size, her grotesque white egg sac still pulsing behind her, tethered to the rock like a grotesque root. Eggs slid down the sac and tumbled off the pillar’s edge. The Queen watched him coldly with bulbous, black eyes as her stingers twitched in agitation.

Ben narrowed his eyes, "Alright. Your reign ends now."

With a screech, the Queen rose to her full height. The long, slimy egg sac tore away from her abdomen, slapping against the stone as it slithered down the pillar. She was ready to fight.

Ben didn't hesitate. He reached into one of his many pockets and pulled out a different kind of seed, rounder, spikier, and thicker than the ones before. With a quick flick of his fingers, he scattered them in a wide arc around them both.

Then, he snapped his fingers.

The seeds burst into thick, thorny vines, which surged upward to form a circular cage, trapping the Queen and Ben inside. The thorns twisted outward, crackling with mana, ensuring neither of them could escape.

The Ant Queen shrieked in fury and raised her clawed limbs.

“Let’s dance, Your Majesty,” Ben muttered, already pulling more seeds from his coat.

The Queen lunged.

Despite her size, she was horrifyingly fast. She swiped with her legs, stabbed with her stingers, and tried to snap him with her jagged jaws. But Ben was quicker. He weaved and spun through the gaps in her strikes, slipping just beneath her deadly blows.

It was like watching a dancer move through blades.

And yet, she wasn’t slowing down.

Between dodges, Ben hurled more seeds into the air. As they scattered, he mentally locked onto each one, memorizing their position instantly.

But the Queen was relentless. Her limbs sliced through the air. Ben narrowly avoided a lunge and responded with a punch aimed straight at her thorax. His fist collided with the exoskeleton and bounced off with a dull thud.

She didn’t even flinch.

"Damn... still not enough."

Even with his monstrous strength, her shell was too dense.

The Queen’s screeches intensified. Her strikes became wild, fast, brutal.

Ben ducked just in time to avoid being bitten in half.

Enough playing.
He reached out and flicked toward two seeds he had marked earlier. Instantly, thick vines burst forth and wrapped around the Queen’s front limbs, anchoring her in place. She roared in frustration, shaking against their grip, but they held firm.

Ben inhaled sharply, eyes gleaming.

"Alright then. Fifty percent."

He twisted his hips, planted his foot, and launched himself forward like a bullet.
As he flew through the air, a grin, wide and wild, spread across his face. A predator’s grin.

He cocked back his arm and unleashed a monstrous punch right at her chest.

The impact exploded.

A violent splash of blood burst into the air, coating both Ben and the Queen.

Ben’s eyes widened in pain.
"Shit."

His arm was gone. Blown clean off at the elbow from the impact.

Before he could react, the Queen’s massive claw slammed into his side, launching him like a ragdoll across the chamber.

He tumbled through the air, rolling violently toward the ring of thorns he had conjured earlier.

But even while spinning, he flicked a finger.

A massive, fluffy flower bloomed instantly in front of him. He crashed into it, the soft petals absorbing the impact and halting his momentum just inches from the deadly thorns.

Blood pooled beneath him.

Still, he rose~ his face bruised, his body aching, but standing.

His left arm was a stump, sizzling with torn mana. But Ben just exhaled calmly and held the wound.

Green light flared.

Bones sprouted from nothing. Veins and muscles grew like vines. Skin stretched over the new limb as if time itself had reversed. In just a few seconds, a brand-new arm flexed into existence.

Ben clenched his fist,
“That armor will sell like hotcakes at the market!”

Meanwhile, the Ant Queen paused.

For a moment, it was as if she recognized Ben as a legitimate threat.

She threw back her head and bellowed, a deafening roar that echoed throughout the cavern. The sound sent a tremor through the hive, and hundreds of ants froze mid-motion, awaiting her command.

But before her cry could finish, a massive rock struck her square in the eye.

Her right eye burst like a balloon, splattering viscous fluid across the stone. The Queen let out a shriek of agony as her roar was cut short.

Ben stood on a broken ledge, dusting off his palms with a cocky grin.

“Ignoring your date is a tad rude, don’t you think?” he called out, chuckling.

The Queen lost it.

She roared with rage and lunged at him again, her speed nearly doubling. Her limbs stabbed wildly, and her massive jaws snapped shut with brutal force. Her entire body fumed with fury.

It wasn't just the pain; it was the humiliation that enraged her.

Ben’s grin faltered slightly. For the first time, a few of her attacks grazed him. A deep cut streaked across his side. Another nicked his cheek.

“Okay, okay... too spicy,” he muttered.

Then he flicked his hand to the side.

A seed he had planted earlier erupted into a bushy plant, blooming with large, round, spiky fruits. A dozen of them hung like thorny grenades, pulsing with mana.

Ben ducked another strike and seized his moment. He extended his hand upward, and the fruits rose into the air, following his command like obedient soldiers.

They hovered above the Queen, directly overhead.

Ben darted beneath her shadow and rolled under her body. Taking cover beneath her towering frame, he shouted,

“Spineblossom!”

In an instant, the fruits exploded mid-air.

A rain of tiny, needle-like seeds erupted downward, each one sharp enough to pierce steel. The volley of thorns impaled the Ant Queen from above, tearing through gaps in her exoskeleton and embedding into her flesh.

A blanket of barbed thorns now covered her back.

She shrieked in agony and flailed violently, smashing her limbs against the thorn cage around them. Blood and ichor spattered in every direction as she tried desperately to rip the needles out.

Ben, breathing hard, wiped sweat from his brow and rose to his feet with a smirk.
“Now don’t be such a drama queen,” he said.

“We’re just getting started.”