A Legion Grows From My Smartphone

Chapter 6

“If you go outside, wouldn’t it be better if you at least learned photosynthesis?”

[Whether you can actually learn the ability of plants aside, how can you know what lies at the end of this labyrinth?]

“I was just trying to hold onto some hope.”

As usual, I sent the wood I chopped from the back hill and assessed the situation.

Even the seemingly strong animals of the Fifth Stratum couldn’t endure the collective lynching and were eventually devoured one by one.

It was inevitable. Those creatures were nothing more than solitary beasts that didn’t form groups.

In comparison, the ants of the Fourth Stratum, which formed colonies and attacked in swarms, seemed much stronger.

[The abundant prey of the Fifth Stratum provided ample energy and greatly contributed to the evolution of our species. This, too, will go down in history. This marks the moment we evolve into more advanced lifeforms.]

“…I suppose we need to bulk up. We can’t live as ants forever.”

The swarm that had consumed the relatively advanced animals of the Fifth Stratum began to grow in size.

Until now, there had been a lack of data on larger animals, but not anymore.

The more data accumulated, the faster and more diverse the modifications and optimizations that had previously been underutilized.

[Soldiers based on toads, reinforced with carapaces and adjusted physiques, are now harvesting mushrooms and breaking them down.]

The newly created soldiers, as a first step, were large.

With their strong mandibles, they crushed the sizable mushrooms into fine pieces.

The crushed mushrooms were further broken down by the roots extending from the nest and smaller decomposers, converting them into nutrients.

In fact, the nutrients in those thick, large mushrooms seemed several times greater than the wood I had been supplying.

[The new soldiers also dominated the air, hunting those who lived on the walls and ceilings.]

Classifying and dividing unit types was something we had already done even at the cellular level.

Although the toads served as the base, the resemblance ended with their quadrupedal vertebrate structure.

The new swarm soldiers, deserving of the name ‘hybrid,’ featured slender bodies, bat wings, carapaces, mandibles, and even a poison stinger on their tails. They flapped their wings and set out to scout the next stratum.

I left the area as well.

It was time to eat.

“What kind of game are you even playing?”

“Huh?”

Caught off guard by the sudden question, I hesitated while eating my meal.

My younger sister, Kang Do-Yeon, had stopped eating and was staring at me with a frown.

She glanced at the mobile phone I had left on the table.

“It’s nothing.”

“You whined so much about the upcoming exam, but here you are, just playing mobile games.”

“Why are you suddenly so interested?”

I chuckled lightly. Normally, she didn’t care what I was up to.

“Never mind. Anyway, the exam ends next week, doesn’t it?”

“That’s right.”

As we talked, I realized why she had brought this up.

There was no way I could have forgotten.

“I remember Dad’s death anniversary, so don’t worry about it.”

“…Alright.”

She glanced at me cautiously, then quietly resumed eating.

The atmosphere had turned a bit awkward, but it would pass soon enough.

After finishing my meal, I got up from my seat first.

“Speaking of the game… When does the tutorial even end? Why isn’t my account level going up?”

[The tutorial ends when you pass the Ninth Stratum, reaching the 10th Stratum.]

“How arbitrary.”

Even the Sixth Floor Level was falling to us now.

At this rate of growth, it didn’t seem like it would be too difficult.

[Look. This is proof that the swarm is evolving into a more advanced lifeform.]

The screen displayed a peculiar scene.

This was the lowest layer, the origin of our kind.

Now, the entire cavern had been overtaken by our nest, and grotesque flesh walls pulsed throughout the area.

“Ugh…”

[Does it seem disgusting? Those pulsating flesh walls mimic the reproductive organs of advanced lifeforms.]

“Why on earth?”

[It’s for the sake of efficiency.]

Frowning, I examined the flesh walls.

According to the explanation, these walls were essentially enlarged, isolated reproductive organs.

In other words, this was the nest.

The swarm was now beginning to specialize its functions.

Production focused solely on production, while thought was dedicated to thought.

[The newly refined production system has started operating.]

The pulsation of the flesh walls grew stronger, and something began to emerge, tearing through the fleshy structures.

What appeared were large eggs.

[The swarm has moved beyond mere replication, introducing the concept of growth. This has drastically improved the energy efficiency required to nurture troops.]

The eggs produced by the flesh walls grew quickly, though not as fast as before, and hatched.

These nests were spreading throughout the entire stratum, and hundreds, if not thousands, of such eggs were being produced.

[And look. Proper brain tissue is also being developed. This even incorporates a form of investment. The swarm has already recognized the need for advanced and specialized neural networks. This, too, will go down in history. While it may take time, the sufficiently advanced brain of our species will undoubtedly develop an ego.]

The lowest layer housed more than just production facilities.

At the deepest, safest point lay a single brain connected to the swarm.

For now, it was just a rudimentary structure with limited utility. But as more data accumulated, that brain would undoubtedly grow larger.

*

“What is this?”

[It’s a new type of enemy.]

The moment I woke up, still groggy, I reached for my mobile phone.

There was no need to check the time. The faint light outside the window told me it was still early dawn.

“What?”

Rubbing my eyes, I looked at the screen.

In the 7th Layer, where our initial reconnaissance had revealed nothing special, our newly produced large scout troopers had been annihilated.

[Once again, the same thing has happened. What was previously undetectable by smaller scouts has now reacted.]

“What on earth are those?”

Another scout was dispatched.

This time, it was a smaller unit based on a bee.

The new scout managed to locate the enemies that had eluded detection last time.

[They’re two-winged bats, the same enemies we hunted in the Fifth and Sixth Strata.]

“…Why are there so many of them?”

The cavern’s ceiling came into view.

Packed densely along it were bats, their numbers easily in the hundreds.

Knowing that these alien bats were each the size of a small child sent shivers down my spine.

[They’re not quite a swarm. They merely live together and hunt individually across different strata.]

“Even so, if that many gang up on us, we can’t win. Look at the physical difference.”

I muttered with a dry laugh, beginning to grasp the situation.

The conclusion I reached was that it was impossible.

Engaging these bats in a direct confrontation was beyond the current strength of the swarm.

We could produce combat units of similar size and skill, but we wouldn’t be able to match their numbers.

[That’s not for us to worry about.]

“What?”

[Didn’t we already say? The swarm doesn’t stop. In fact, we’re excited. If we can turn all that meat into nutrients, we can, in turn, produce a large-scale force like those bats.]

“So, how do you plan to fight them?”

[…Trust us.]

The swarm had already begun to move.

Its exact intentions were still unclear, but at least it didn’t seem to be planning a direct confrontation.

Far from replenishing its forces, it was even recycling its existing troops back into nutrients by killing them.

“This is really intriguing.”

I got dressed for the day.

I had planned to do some last-minute cramming for the exam today.

[The swarm has formulated its first tactic.]

Before long, the swarm began to release the energy it had accumulated.

I carefully observed the state of the nest.

From the small eggs, something started crawling out once again.

[The first strategy chosen by the swarm was a despicable tactic. However, whether it would work remained uncertain.]

There were small creatures crawling along the walls.

These creatures possessed only a single weapon.

A poison stinger. And within those stingers was the most potent acidic poison created by the swarm.

The moment the swarm determined that a head-on confrontation was difficult, it opted for this type of covert warfare.

[Indeed, the poison stingers and acidic poison were effective against bats. However, the success rate was not very high. A few bats, caught off guard, fell to the ground, but bats were creatures that naturally fed on such small organisms.]

The exchange rate was poor.

The bats easily detected the approaching poison bugs and devoured them.

The acidic poison was meaningless unless injected directly into the bloodstream.

Moreover, the bats and other organisms in this cave already had a basic resistance to ingested poisons, thanks to their mushroom-based diet.

“What now? It feels like we’ve tried everything we could.”

[The swarm has chosen its second tactic.]

As I prepared to leave, I kept an eye on the progress.

There didn’t seem to be any additional movements.

However, in the lowest layer, the flesh walls that covered the Second Floor Level began to harden rapidly.

“This is…”

[Due to the explosive energy required, the swarm temporarily put the nests of two strata into dormancy.]

For what purpose?

I turned the screen to the entrance of the Sixth Floor Level.

There, I realized the swarm’s intent and let out a dry laugh.

[Imitating the tactics of the White Cave Ants that resisted within their fortress, the swarm has decided to engage in siege warfare.]

“This doesn’t seem like the siege warfare I know.”

Since when did siege warfare mean striking the fortress itself?