Evolution begins with an ant colony

Chapter 224 A Monarch Steps In

Kazor and his group headed to the site of the massive rainbow fire. As they arrived, they proceeded to throw the water they had fetched in the buckets at the fire. Unfortunately, it was no use; the flames showed no sign of going out.

"Damn it all, that's the tenth time!" a deer beast folk exclaimed as he struggled to catch his breath. He and several other beast folk shared the same exhausted state, having fetched multiple bucket loads of water to put out these rainbow flames.

But to no avail, the flames burned ever so brightly, almost as if all the water thrown on it so far had done nothing towards putting it out. Kazor, the deer beast folk, and several others were the same group from earlier that came close to being put down by the magic knights.

Kazor then added, "Damn it all, if this fire won't go out, we should focus our efforts elsewhere. If it were the other houses, we would have put out the flames by now."

Suddenly, a panda beast folk man spoke up with a slightly timid tone, "But this is where all the runes used for the construction our esteemed liege Akun gave us are. If it burns down, we won't be able to meet the deadline Lord Leandor warned us about."

Kazor snapped back, yelling as he replied, "Do you think I don't know that? That is why I feel so frustrated, dammit." Small streaks of blue mana crackled around his body – a sign his mana was surging due to his anger.

Kazor then proceeded to ask, "Where are the other guys who were supposed to fetch water from the other streams?" He yelled, his anger still evident. He lashed out at Yanzi, causing her tail and all her fur to stand on end as she mumbled her reply, "They are yet to return."

"What is taking them so long? Don't they know what's at stake here?" Kazor added. Unbeknownst to all of them, the other group of beast folk people who went to get water from the stream in the east were ambushed and slain by Marcus and his group, causing a delay in the water supply.

"Darn it, I've had it with this, Hiandra!" Kazor called out to her. Even though she stood just a couple of steps away from him, she didn't seem to be startled by his sudden decision to yell her name—a proof of the fact that she knew how Kazor acted and his usual anger under pressure outbursts.

"Ya, what is it?" she replied in a nonchalant tone as she slowly approached.

Kazor then said, "Why don't you head over to where the others went and find out exactly what is taking them so long?" His tone took on a slightly calmer note—an attempt to calm his anger around her, hinted at their history.

Hiandra then replied with a smile on her face, "Sure thing."

With that, she zoomed off, running on all fours. As she finally left the safe confines of the beast folk tribe and headed towards the stream, standing back erect, she started to pick up a faint smell of blood.

"Where's that smell coming from?" she mumbled as she decided to slowly approach the source of the strong iron smell she could perceive in the air. Your next read is at My Virtual Library Empire

Arriving by the stream, she was suddenly ambushed.

"Now, men!" Markus exclaimed as some of the magic knights jumped down from the trees, while others emerged from the bushes.

Hearing a sudden voice in a language she did not understand, Hiandra mused inwardly, "What was that voice!?" She turned her head upwards to the source of the sound a caught a glimpse of the magic knights.

The magic knights covered their swords with paralysis magic and attacked Hiandra, but due to her fast reflexes, she dodged most of their attacks. Unfortunately, one of them stabbed her in her back, sending a massive jolt of lightning running through her body. She fell to her feet, feeling a bit tingly all over, but she wasn't paralyzed yet.

She executed multiple backflips, gaining some distance between her and her knight adversaries.

As Hiandra executed her backflips, the magic knights chased her with swift, corodinated attacks. One knight lunged forward, aiming a thrust at her abdomen, while another swung a sword towards her legs. Hiandra agilely moved her body, narrowly avoiding the abdominal strike but taking a glancing blow to her left thigh.

"Careful, she's quick. Adjust your tactics," the lead knight shouted to his comrades.

"Swift, but not invincible. Keep the pressure on," another knight added.

Capitalizing on her momentary vulnerability, a third knight swung a sword in a wide arc towards her upper body. Hiandra responded by arching backward, bending like a nimble acrobat to evade the slashing blade. However, the tip of the sword grazed her cheek, leaving a superficial cut.

"Good hit, but don't let up. She's dangerous even with a scratch," the third knight remarked.

Seizing the opportunity while her feet were off the ground, a fourth knight, lurking in the shadows, unleashed a burst of magical energy from the tip of their sword, attempting to cast a paralysis spell on Hiandra. The energy crackled through the air, connecting with her momentarily exposed back.

Hiandra fell to the floor as the magical shock surged through her nerves, causing her limbs to tremble involuntarily.

"Paralysis spell successful. Move in for the final strike," the forth knight chimed.

Despite the paralysis spell taking effect, Hiandra summoned her strength, relying on sheer will. With a forceful effort, she twisted her body mid-air, managing to land on her feet despite the magical hindrance. However, the residual effects slowed her movements, making her actions appear less fluid.

"She's resisting the paralysis. Stay focused!" the lead knight added.

As Hiandra struggled against the paralysis, the magic knights regrouped. One approached cautiously, aiming a thrust at her chest, while another circled around, readying a sword strike for her exposed back. The paralysis slowed down Hiandra's ability to evade effectively, and she braced herself for the incoming attacks.

Finding herself in this predicament, Hiandra couldn't help but ask, prompting the knights to pause momentarily, "Who are you people? What do you want, and why are you attacking me?" Confused about the identity of these assailants, she noted that they possessed a similar appearance to the evolved ants yet emitted considerably weaker amounts of mana from their bodies.

It seemed to be a completely different wavelength from anyone or anything in this forest. Their weapons also emitted the same kind of mana wavelength as the forest's inhabitants, further confusing her about the nature of the beings before her.

Due to the language barrier, Captain Marcus thought Hiandra was trying to cast some sort of spell. This prompted him to yell, "Finish her off before she has any chance to cast any magic. Keep in mind we haven't seen any of her abilities, and we have no means to counter them. Giving her a chance now would be very disastrous for us."

In the midst of the intense forest battle, the magic knights received Markus's orders. "Yes, sir!" they exclaimed as they charged in to finish the job. The battle intensified as Hiandra, outnumbered and wounded, faced the incoming attacks.

Meanwhile, back in the Beast Folk royal palace, Leandor, the tribe leader, was approached by a bunny Beast Folk guard.

The guard, his expression filled with urgency, quickly approached Leandor, bowing before his elevated throne and conveyed the distressing news, "My lord, there's a fire! Several of our buildings are ablaze, including the one where we store the mana stones for the construction project. We need to act swiftly to contain the situation!"

Leandor, sighing heavily, inquired, "Has the source or cause of the flames been found yet?" He sought clarity on the unfolding situation.

The bunny Beast Folk, looking perplexed, replied, "Um... No, my lord."

Observing the guard's demeanor, Leandor sighed again, remarking, "I guess I understand why my ancestors have been the leaders of this tribe. Any other Beast Folk would have led us to oblivion by now." He slowly rose from his throne and descended the rows of stairs that elevated it.

Leandor slowly made his way out of the palace and into the city. Observing the colorful flames in the distance, he mumbled, "That must be the one he mentioned earlier."

Seeing the flames from afar, Leandor couldn't help but muse, "Who would want to attack us? All the tribes have been united under our liege, Akun, so there should be no need for war. And it's not like we were in an argument with any of the other tribes to begin with. Were there even any tribes that could cast fire magic like this?

Or is there some hidden tribe in this forest we are not aware of?" He narrowed his gaze. Leandor then let out a sigh as he mumbled, "I have to rush over there. I can't let the runes deplete all their mana because of that fire. It would result in my tribe falling before the deadline. Only Zenith knows what my liege Akun would do to me then."