Petra stood at the end of the hall, facing a massive metal door.
Unlike the rest of the laboratory, this door was different.
As she approached, the temperature rose. With each step, the air grew heavier, more oppressive, almost as if the deathly stillness of the lower lab was being replaced by a volcanic pressure. It was like the final barrier holding back an overheating machine.
Its surface was carved with deep, jagged runes that pulsed faintly with dull red light. They looked like geometric veins, carrying the last traces of life through a dying heart. Each symbol flickered unevenly, warping the air around it as it struggled to keep whatever lay below sealed. Even the metal itself seemed to breathe, faintly flexing under the weight of the spiritual energy leaking from behind.
Petra didn't need to investigate, this door was at the end of its life.
She tilted her head, her black eyes reflecting the shifting light ahead.
She could feel it…
The treasure that she and Arthur had come for. It was behind this door. Her hand hovered over the surface, three fingertips brushing the warmth radiating from the runes.
"So this is the basement?" she murmured. "What a good door."
Even Petra had to admit she was impressed.
Petra pushed forward with her mental energy and forced the mechanism to turn.
With a hiss of shifting metal, the runes flared once, then faded, and the door split open directly down the center. A wave of hot, foul air rolled out. Beyond it, a vast vertical shaft plunged straight into the darkness below.
Petra leaned forward slightly, peering down into the abyss.
Just before she moved, she suddenly heard a call.
"Stop!"
Arthur's voice rang out, echoing sharply against the hall.
Petra turned her head lazily to look at Arthur, who stood a few meters back, his expression dark and exhausted. His team clustered behind him, gripping their weapons tightly, already very tense. Their focus wasn't on Petra, their eyes were locked on the door behind her, as if prepared to attack the moment something jumped out of the darkness.
Arthur's voice was low, almost pleading.
For some reason, he seemed to be trying to help Petra.
"You don't seem to know what's down there, right? That's not an experiment, it's a monster that was caught and imprisoned. The Black Lion has been growing it for many years. That thing, it's not a failed experiment. It's a creature, a huge hive, and if it gets out, this whole continent could be in danger!"
Petra wondered, 'Is he worried about me, or is he scared I'm about to do something disastrous?' In her perfectly clear mind, she ignored the reasonable possibility that he was just being cautious, and immediately concluded that it must be Arthur's paranoia acting up.
One of the swordsmen stepped forward nervously. "Sir, the reports mentioned—"
Arthur cut him off with a glare, then his eyes turned back to Petra. "Even if you're just a clone, or an avatar, or whatever you are, that thing is more than you can handle."
Petra blinked slowly, her expression unreadable.
After a pause…
"I see," she said softly. It was an emotionless tone. Her eyes drifted to the side, looking away like a child who was preparing to be defiant. "Then I suppose it's worth a look. Mm…"
"!"
Arthur's temper snapped. "Damn it Petra! This isn't a game! You'll die down there, then you'll implicate us! You need to take this seriously!"
Mumble mumble mumble…
The second the name 'Petra' escaped his lips, he knew he had messed up.
He suddenly felt a headache coming on.
From behind, he could hear the surrounding people all start to whisper. 'Petra? Isn't that the name of the newly announced World Criminal?', 'How could this little ant be the missing hero? No, didn't he say something about an avatar?', 'The current bounty's over 20sNCC! That's more money than the entire western region combined'. It would seem that they all recognized the name 'Petra'.
Petra ignored the increasingly greedy gazes on her back.
She smiled faintly. "If that happens, you can have my stuff."
She took one step closer to the edge.
Arthur reached forward instinctively. "Wait—!"
But it was too late.
Woosh!
While her back was facing the fall…
With a flash of wind, she slipped past the door, stepped off the ledge, and vanished into the darkness. A violent surge of hot air rushed upwards, rippling out in a heat-filled shockwave that pushed back Arthur's robes, as he watched her disappear into the volcanic abyss below.
Arthur rushed to the edge, looking down in shock.
'She jumped?'
His mind flickered through several possibilities, then something clicked. 'Is this how she beat the elevator before? Wait… can she fly? No, if the puppet she's using can fly, then wouldn't that mean it's a high-level puppet? How would she even get something like that?' From what he knew, Petra didn't have the background or connections needed to obtain anything at that level.
With furrowed brows, he strained his ears and listened carefully to the darkness below.
For a long time, there was only silence.
Then, faintly, a sound echoed up the shaft.
A soft 'thud' came from far below, followed by another sharp wave of heat that blew back his coat.
Arthur exhaled through his teeth, seemingly understanding something, and muttered bitterly, "Insane… she's insane." While mumbling, he was suddenly approached. Behind him, one of the mercenaries, one of the few that hadn't begun to have 'other ideas' whispered in his ear, "Sir… should we follow her?"
Arthur stared into the darkness for a moment, then sighed.
"Let's go!"
* * *
Time passed…
Arthur and his team descended like experienced climbers, scaling the interior walls of the shaft with ease. Leather boots knocked on jagged stone, while the faint clinking of steel picks echoed up and down the deep drop. The deeper they went, the hotter the air became. Forty figures moved down slowly, using ropes, hooks, and an assortment of climbing tools to support themselves.
As they continued, the heat slowly became unbearable.
Sweat poured down their faces, and some struggled just to breathe. Those wearing thin fabrics quickly found their clothes turning transparent, which one of the elven girls found particularly annoying. Another man, buried under many layers of heavy armor, looked like he was ready to pass out. What was worse, the Beastmen were completely drenched, no different than a cat out of the bath.
Arthur noted it all, making sure to help those who found it hard to continue.
The air grew thicker as they descended.
The shaft curved once, back and forth, then widened into a spiraling descent, like the throat of a twisted volcano. The deeper they climbed, the stranger it felt.
The blackened stone walls gradually shifted into rough volcanic stone, glowing with faint red veins that emitted so much heat that they became hard to hold.
Finally, after over twenty minutes, the path opened up into a colossal chamber.
They emerge from the center of the ceiling.
The party slid down long ropes anchored securely to the mouth of the tunnel. The final stretch of the journey was a free descent, drifting downwards through the open space. There were no walls, no footholds, just an immense vertical drop.
It took more than five minutes before their feet finally reached the ground.
When the team reached the bottom, they looked around to discover that they had emerged in a vast underground 'Hive'.
They quickly began to move.
It was a hive built from volcanic stone and crystallized amber, fused together by fire, pressure, and time, then manipulated by some unseen creature. The walls rose in jagged waves, dripping with molten scars that still glowed faintly, their light leaking towards the group's armor as they passed. The air shimmered like a mirage, the floor was thick with ash, and a faint sweet scent clung to the nose, something disturbingly similar to burnt caramel. Along the walls, strange runes had formed naturally, seemingly the result of the honeycomb structure interacting with itself. They pulsed in an uneven rhythm, drawing in the surrounding spiritual energy, swelling with it, then producing a cloud similar to a thermal vent.
Arthur lifted his hand, signaling everyone to halt.
Silence flooded in, an unnatural calm that didn't match the atmosphere.
The bubbling of lava and the cracking of stone concealed something even deeper.
Arthur listened.
Then—
Buzz!
It was soft, quiet, and uneven, broken by the distant echoes of nature, but it was undoubtedly there…
It drifted from the many tunnels branching out from the cavern. Dozens, no… hundreds of tributaries that all spiraled into darkness sang with this distant static.
The parties' weapons came up immediately.
Their bodies straightened as they prepared themselves for a fight.
Arthur listened carefully, his brows knitting together. This wasn't the furious roar of a swarm ready to attack. No, this was… more hesitant, no, it was almost like fear…
He felt it settling over them, an unseen pressure in the chest that didn't belong to the heat.
Even the runes along the walls seemed to be dimming, their glow flickering as if shrinking back from something deeper in the labyrinth.
What was going on?
Arthur's eyes narrowed. "They're scared?" he muttered aloud. The woman beside him swallowed hard. "Scared? Scared of what…?"
Arthur didn't answer. His gaze was locked on the path ahead, the one seemingly darker than the rest, where the heat nearly thickened into a visible veil.
He scanned the shadows with his golden eye.
After a long pause, he asked…
"Do any of you see the ant girl?"
The question was abrupt, but realization dawned on the group all at once.
No one replied.
She should have been ahead of them, but she wasn't here.
That could only mean one thing.
Arthur's expression darkened.
He motioned for them to move forward, this time with a quicker pace.
-
They passed through a system of tunnels.
As they advanced, the tunnel system opened up into a forest of transparent golden spires. Each pillar crisscrossed through the path ahead like frozen magma, illuminating the space like liquid light.
The group moved between them in silence, their shadows stretching across the glowing walls.
They crossed a river of lava, its molten stream churning below like a stormy sea. Narrow stepping stones formed a crooked path. One by one, they hurried across, boots tapping on scorched stone as the lava rippled beneath them.
Even further ahead, after leading the narrow tunnels and entering a bottomless cave, the passage clung to the edge of an abyss.
An endless fall stretched below them, swallowing the light completely. Hot wind surged upward, brushing their faces and pulling their clothes.
They followed the spiraling ledge deeper down, hugging the wall tightly as they descended.
It was a long journey, but they eventually made it.
After about an hour, the path finally opened into a vast chamber.
They had reached the throne room.
-
They moved forward cautiously, the buzzing growing louder with every step. The air itself seemed to vibrate, thick with tension as they drew closer to the heart of the hive.
Then—
Arthur froze.
Like opening a door to a heated meeting, the sound struck them all at once, a deafening wave of chaotic buzzing that swallowed the entire cavern like a single, panicked scream. It wasn't anger, it wasn't a battle cry…
It was fear.
it was fear, fear formed into a sound and manifested into a panicked play.
Nothing advanced.
Nothing retreated.
The entire hive was alive and shaking, appearing as countless bees clinging to the crevices of the volcanic walls, their tiny ember-like eyes flickering with explosive emotions as they poked their heads out to stare towards the center of the room.
If this were an illustration, one would find many of them biting their handkerchiefs with frustration.
And there, at the center of it all—
Was Petra.
She stood casually in the middle of the throne room, surrounded by the queen's largest guards. They were massive insects, each one towering over twice a man's height, plated in obsidian armor lined with jagged spikes. Their wings twitched, and their bodies trembled, yet not a single one dared to step closer.
Arthur's breath caught in his throat.
"…What the hell… is this…?"
Of all the absurdities…
He couldn't make sense of what he was seeing.
He rubbed his eyes, certain that his foresight had failed him once again, because perched on Petra's finger, calm and content, lazily swinging back and forth, was the 'Ash Fire Fairy', a white and red, fairy-like bee that was only the size of a golf ball.
A creature of legend, and an unimaginable threat.
This was the 'threat to the continent' he had mentioned before…
It was a beast recorded in the Book of Calamity, a descendant of the Fire Phoenix, and a creature said to have destroyed entire kingdoms in its rage. Its flames could burn time, and its body existed like the wind. Its hive was once counted among the uncrowned kings during the Age of Chaos, and it was a great calamity that was only one step below the true kings.
And now, it was… chirping?
It tilted its little head, brushing against Petra's palm affectionately.
Arthur's mouth fell open.
He had begun to suspect that this whole thing was a dream, no, a nightmare!
He wanted to smash his head on the ground.
If he did, could he wake up?
What the hell was going on!?
His foresight had shown him something very different, death, fire, collapse, and an apocalyptic battle that would result in almost all of the people behind him dying. He had spent over a day in the camp at the base of the mountain calculating different ways to make this fight go smoothly. It took him over sixteen hours to deduce a battle plan that would allow all of them to escape safely.
So, could anyone tell him what this was! What exactly was he looking at?
It was supposed to be a battle that would cost everything. A fight that was worth the sacrifice. But now, seeing this strange, fluffy creature cooing in Petra's palm, he couldn't comprehend it, he couldn't accept it! Why was the world so unfair!
Petra, this little traitor, was luckier than all the other heroes combined!
He took one step forward, wanting to approach her and ask, but he suddenly stopped…
A crushing wave of killing intent slammed into him like a tidal wave, causing his blood to freeze. It wasn't just one presence, it was hundreds, no, thousands of them. A wave of primal fear and hatred radiated from every tunnel, every tributary, every unseen gaze, and all of them found Arthur as a substitute, turning him into the target of their bitterness.
It wasn't directed at him out of malice, it was a warning.
They were saying, 'Don't interrupt the Queen!'
Arthur's knees nearly gave out.
This was hundreds of times worse than the Ice Titan from the first calamity.
He had never experienced such a terrifying aura, because he was never meant to. This was an unforeseen circumstance that was only possible because Petra was here.
He could feel it now, whatever bond existed between Petra and these creatures, it wasn't that of a contract. It was something else, something far deeper, a kind of fear and respect for a superior existence, an innate sense to protect something, but at the same time, the emotion a mother would have when she was unsatisfied with her child's choice.
That was what all these creatures were feeling right now.
Arthur's mind raced.
He had originally believed that Petra was a poison user, a dangerous Controller, and maybe even a taboo cultivator, but this… this was on a completely different level.
This was a beast tamer of the highest level.
Her mere presence shook the ecological chain.
Arthur finally understood why she could survive in the Green Wind Forest for so long.
The future that he had seen collapsed, and each timeline he had predicted unraveled. Whatever force shielded Petra from fate had started to spread into this place, these creatures, cutting off every thread that connected them to the futures he saw.
Just like that, all his preparations were wiped away by the expanding unknown.
He exhaled slowly.
"...So that's how it is."
Defeat crept across his face, not from battle, but realization. There was no competing with her, not here, not on equal grounds, no, never. She was an anomaly that basically defined the word.
He turned away with a quiet sigh. "We're leaving."
The mercenaries hesitated at first, but followed him soon after. Some moved slowly because they wanted to catch Petra, while others paused because they weren't sure why they were planning to leave. Whatever their individual thoughts were, they all understood one thing clearly, and that was that this little green-haired girl was definitely the Heaven's Chosen the entire continent was searching for.
Arthur didn't look back.
For him, this expedition was over.
But for Petra, it had only just begun…
Well, no, actually, it was also over for her too… Mm!
* * *
After Arthur left, it was finally time for Petra to decide what to do with this little cutie.
The Ash Fire Fairy.
A white and red bee-type beast, about the size of her palm. Its body was soft and fuzzy, almost like a living gauze dress shaped into the form of a Siamese fighting fish, then given the traits of a bee. Three red rings circled its body, matching its slender crimson legs and pointed stinger. Its four wings shimmered faintly like burning glass, leaving trails of red light as they moved.
It was small, and very adorable!
Oh, and… it could kill a king with a single sting.
Petra leaned over, letting it climb onto her head. Its wings buzzed, and she could feel the heat radiating off its body.
The venom of the Ash Fire Fairy was said to be able to burn both body and soul, melting anything living into pure energy that could be used to cultivate.
It was a potent poison to add to her repertoire.
It was both a perfect weapon and a powerful ally.
Petra smiled faintly.
This would be her eighth contracted beast.
All she needed to do now was bring it home. Fortunately, the Ash Fire Fairy could already sense her true body through the connection that existed between her avatar and her consciousness. It didn't resist, instead, it simply hummed on her head, curling up its wings as if content with its new throne.
After a short exchange and a few small bribes, the little bee agreed to follow her home.
That was also when things got… complicated.
Unlike the previous seven beasts, this one came with an entourage.
The rest of the hive naturally noticed, so they all began to prepare for the move, not even bothering to ask if they were invited. A deep, echoing buzz filled the air as the entire colony began to emerge one by one. Thousands of bees, all between the first and third order, appeared from the cracks and tunnels, gathering behind Petra. Unlike the Ash Fire Fairy, these lesser bees were mostly black and red, with a little bit of white, seemingly to mark their royalty.
They trailed behind her like an army of bitter wives, silent and trembling, clearly unhappy, but unable to complain about their queen's decision.
Petra had, quite literally, eloped with their monarch. And now they had to follow her out of a mixture of heartbreak and obligation. The sound of thousands of wings shaking in wounded unison echoed through the collapsing laboratory. It was both majestic and pitiful, but also terrifying.
Petra didn't seem to care, she even looked a bit pleased.
"Pfft, hahaha!"
She couldn't hold back.
The hive responded with a chorus of sorrowful buzzing.
* * *
Time passed.
After leaving the facility, Petra called down a few of her flying ants from the sky above. They descended through the clouds, their wings slicing through the air with a faint distortion.
When the bees and ants finally met, something strange happened.
Not only did they not fight, but surprisingly, they seemed to understand each other immediately.
The two swarms circled each other, seemingly to communicate. Petra could feel a mutual recognition, then a disdainful glance from some of the ants… was it just her imagination? The Warlord Forge and the Ash Fire Fairy exchanged a brief wave of mental energy, forming some kind of a silent agreement that even Petra couldn't understand.
Seeing this, she couldn't help but grin.
Satisfied, she gave the order for the bees to be escorted to the Tower Spider.
* * *
When everything finally settled down, Petra was left standing alone outside the research base.
On one side, Arthur and his shaken team stood at a distance, pale and trembling as they stared up at the sky where the terrifying swarm of insects had flown off just a moment ago. Their eyes were still wide, as if their minds hadn't fully caught up with what they had just witnessed. Arthur was no exception. Perhaps, after this, he would finally give up on forcing Petra to become a Hero. On the other side, the horizon stretched endlessly… but the creeping line of black clouds was slowly approaching.
Arthur's group didn't dare move.
They watched from the distance, unsure as to what to do,
Petra glanced at them once, then began to walk away with her usual calm, humming faintly to herself. Her next destination was already set, and that was…
Darkwell!
At her top speed, it would take a few days, but if she wandered or stopped to poke around, maybe a week. Either way, this avatar was the closest to that city, and with the United Army marching west, Petra would likely arrive just a few days before they did.
She took three steps…
Then she stopped.
"Oh, right!"
Her antennae twitched, as she turned back towards the entrance of the laboratory.
She still had to collect something.
Petra slipped back inside the underground facility, weaving through the abandoned halls like a child picking up her toys. She jumped down into its forbidden chambers and found her way to the squirming remains that the Black Lion had abandoned.
Petra pointed her finger lazily, and dozens of threads formed from mental energy unfurled from her palm, wrapping around each tank, and bound them in a green spiritual rope.
These things were valuable.
Horrifying, yes, but very valuable!
"Mm. Can't leave you behind," she murmured.
Like an ant carrying food back to its nest, Petra gathered every last twitching thing that still clung to life. Some cried weakly while others just gurgled, some didn't even move, but Petra seemed to have an eye for these things.
She carried them all in the air.
Outside, Arthur's team, which had already started to quickly run away, watched with absolute confusion as a small girl calmly emerged from the darkness… followed by a floating trail of monstrous tanks and failed experiments that drifted behind her like a horrifying parade.
Arthur nearly fainted.
Petra waved lazily at him from the distance. "Don't mind me~"
Then she turned away, letting the floating chain of horrors follow her like obedient pets. Without another look, she headed towards the distant horizon.
It was time to go…
Darkwell awaited!