Level Two Hive

The instant she saw the marquisate, Chloe felt an urge to appear before everyone with the Swarm at her back.

She had now signed a Mental Contract with the Overmind, and the Swarm obeyed her commands. When she stood beneath the Border Marquisate's castle with this mighty force, everyone inside would tremble.

In the end, they would all submit, just like Ymir had. The once-proud grand knight commander was now the most respectful of servants before her, cautious in his every word and deed.

The mere thought of a fallen princess returning in triumph to rule over all filled Chloe with excitement, and the corners of her mouth rose uncontrollably.

But she still needed to be patient for now. The Hatchery's second-stage evolution was nearly complete, and once it was done, the Hatchery would be able to support a force of five thousand Zerglings. When that time came, Chloe would have to worry about connecting to the Swarm Network again.

In contrast to the Hatchery's smooth evolution, there was the progress of the Overmind's hatching.

Although the Overmind's cocoon had also absorbed a great deal of biomass energy, it was still incubating. There was no telling when the Overmind would return to witness her achievements firsthand.

This left Chloe feeling a little lonely. She increasingly felt that she was special, that ordinary humans had no right to share her joy. Only the Overmind's recognition would satisfy her.

As the Swarm continued to disrupt the ecological balance of the Death Forest, certain ancient things were also stirred and activated.

A universe influenced by Psionics could always give birth to things beyond imagination.

People called those who could use Psionics high-ranking knights, mages, and Astromancers.

Beasts were called magic beasts and High-Level Magical Beasts. People had also wondered whether something like a King of the Beasts might emerge from their vast numbers.

It was unclear whether this idea had brought Behemoth into being, or whether sightings of Behemoth had confirmed the idea. In any case, something beyond imagination had indeed been born deep within the Death Forest.

When Astromancers communicated with the Shroud, they would also discover certain powerful beings influencing the psionic tides of the entire planet.

The deaths of large numbers of magic beasts and high-ranking magic beasts had affected the planet's psionic tides, sending out ripples like a stone dropped into a pool.

The Swarm's ever-expanding hunts were like throwing more and larger stones into that pool. Greater waves would surge through the sea of Psionics, awakening the powerful beings beneath its surface.

Behemoth was slowly awakening.

Night fell, and a ghostly blue nocturnal glow spilled over an enormous birthing chamber of flesh and blood. This immense thing was hideous, with exposed muscles, thick, trembling blood vessels, and a red glow that brightened and dimmed with the pulsing of its flesh.

The human knights all around wore tense expressions as they watched it all in fear, their sanity plummeting.

Only Chloe stood proudly at the front of the group. Bathed in the red glow, her exquisite, beautiful face was full of anticipation.

Under everyone's gaze, the flesh pulsed faster and faster, soon reaching a peak. A force exploded outward from within, blasting away large quantities of useless blood vessels and muscle. The only two mages used Psionics to spread a small shield in front of the princess and those around her.

The gore did not sully the princess's beauty in the slightest. The other knights received no such treatment, but they dared not say anything. They did not even dare make too many movements to wipe themselves clean, lest they displease the princess.

After all, even the proud mages were now so respectful. Ordinarily, asking them to use Psionics to create a shield to protect the group would have them putting on airs. Now they were far more obsequious, willing to expend what they called their precious Psionics to shield the princess from harmless gore.

The ugly, enormous Level Two Hive had finished evolving. It resembled a gigantic pyramid of flesh, narrow at the top and broad at the base, with an enormous Hatchery Pool inside and many huge tendrils and sharp claws outside. These claws could not only attack enemies, but also carry out construction and production.

All Swarm technology was based on biotechnology, and even their buildings were alive. Put simply, Zerg buildings were larger creatures that had more difficulty moving, while Zerg combat units were smaller creatures adept at moving.

Looking at the Level Two Hive, which had grown larger still, Chloe said excitedly, "This is the power of the Swarm. As long as the Hatchery takes root in the earth, it will grow stronger and stronger, inspiring fear. And countless members of the Swarm will pour out of the Hatchery, tearing apart every enemy that stands in their way."

"Now, in recognition of your loyalty in following me all this way, as your princess and humanity's future empress, I ought to give you some rewards." Chloe turned to address the knights behind her. "I will reward you with the ability to communicate with the Swarm, just as I can."

A nearby Zergling lowered its head and walked up beside Chloe, depositing what it held in its mouth into her palm.

"This is called a Neural Thorn. With it, you will be able to communicate with the Swarm around you and gain their help." At this point, Chloe picked up one of the Neural Thorns in her hand, giving the thorn, which was slightly thicker than a strand of hair and still wriggling, a meaningful look.

"Each thorn allows anyone to communicate mentally with a hundred members of the Swarm at once. But I only have three here, so I can only bestow them upon the three people with the greatest merits." Chloe looked away from the thorns and toward the knights before her.

In truth, these thorns were the lowest-grade, degraded version. In the Basic Hatchery's words, producing such things was simply a waste of energy. Yet precisely these low-grade things would become Chloe's means of controlling the knights.

Controlling people was not actually complicated. There had to be rewards and punishments, clearly distinguished. Rewards had to be visible, but not fully within reach. Punishments had to leave a deep impression, so that every failure brought back the memory of the pain of punishment.

This was what His Majesty the King, Chloe's father, had taught her. He had also given an apt example: just like an animal turning a millstone, if a meaty bone was dangled in front of it, it would keep walking forward. That was reward. Rewards had to fill people with anticipation.

If it slowed down, give it a hard lash with the whip. That was punishment. The animal had to work harder at the mere sight of you raising the whip. Punishments had to fill people with fear.

Of course, once the work was finally done, the animal had to be rewarded with the meaty bone. That would ensure its loyalty, so that it would not turn its hooves and horns against its master.

Originally, by rights, Chloe had only wanted to reward Ymir. Although this grand knight commander did not satisfy her completely, she could never have reached this place without his strength. He therefore deserved a reward as an example to the others.

But power required balance. Chloe could not establish a single person with the greatest power among these several dozen knights. If such a person existed, the knights would unite around him. She therefore had to divide that power, and three people would work very well.