140 - - Four layers, then five layers.

The nest of the jade ants has undergone another change in the fourth layer.

The passageways became wider and the ceilings higher.

The inhabitants began to show a size that was appropriate for such a large space.

The small ants such as amber ants and milky stone ants disappear from this layer, and two types of large ants appear in their place.

The first is the green jade ant.

Their beautiful dark green bodies are about three times as long as those of the amber ants.

Even more characteristic of this monster was its spherically bulging abdomen.

This unusually large abdomen stores a large amount of sweet nectar, which it feeds to other ants to help them recover from abnormal conditions or fatigue.

In addition, the saliva of the green jade ant even had the function of repairing damage to the outer shell.

In a sense, they play the role of the ants' water user.

The other is the yellow jade ant.

Like their color-coded counterparts, they look exactly like the green jade ants in both appearance and size.

The clear difference, however, is the nasty liquid stored in their golden transparent abdominal sacs.

These ants have a habit of attacking by spewing out formic acid stored in their abdominal end.

This acid, which the ants produce inside their bodies, can cause severe burn-like symptoms if it gets on their skin.

With the entry of the new large ants, the formation of the monsters is closer to completion.

The jade ants use their head shields to block attacks, while the quartz ants shake their spines to block attacks.

If the hard shell cracks, the green jade ants quickly repair it, and the yellow jade ants lurking in the rear spray dangerous acid.

These ants instinctively understood each other's roles, and their movements were comparable to those of experienced adventurers.

On the other hand, Stratchia's sword became even more brilliant.

The blade of the dragon's fangs, which had white spots on it, easily sliced through the beautifully colored shell of the ants.

Kugase also came forward from this layer.

O Sustaining Hand of the Great Earth Tree, I grant you. A heavy anchor for those who wander in the sky..."

The rock, which takes on all airborne attacks with its own body, absorbs acid bullets in a flash.

The girl's body, which had undergone multiple applications of , approached the monster at an unbelievable speed.

A blow from her fist, covered with a golden iron cage, is sucked into the abdomen of the yellow jade ant with a brilliant step.

A clear sound rang out, and a crack like a lightning bolt was felt inside.

The next moment, the round, swollen abdomen shatters into pieces.

Although the outer shell of the jade ant is incredibly hard, some ants can cause an internal crack when they are subjected to such a strong impact to the end of their abdomen.

To do so, however, one must be prepared to be exposed to the horrifying acidity up close.

"Ah, ah, ah, ah, ah!"

Kugase jumped back lightly, but it seems that he could not avoid all the acid that was violently sprayed on him.

The protection of seemed to have prevented some of the acid, but it seems that he was exposed to a little bit of it.

However, this did not stop the girl's movement.

She also destroys two more green and yellow jade.

In the meantime, Stratchia had slashed through the jade shields and quartz thorns, easily taking out the rest of the jade shields and quartz thorns.

Kugase returns with a face overflowing with pride, and offers something in his hand to Thor.

Shining in the girl's palm were beautiful green and yellow jewels.

"Here, take a look. One of them costs three silver coins.

"Wow, that's expensive."

When Thor holds out his hand to receive it, the girl smiles and tucks the loot into the pouch on her waistband.

It seems that she is just here to show off.

She looks just like a child of the Purple-Eyed Tribe.

"What are you playing at? Come on, you'll recover. Lord of the Tree of Life! Please quench the thirst of these wandering children.

The warmth of Rummella's magic spreads through your body, and your lost strength is quickly restored.

It had already been six hours since we had entered the dungeon.

However, since there was no place where they could take a proper rest, the healing spring was indispensable for the group.

Of course, Thor's could also restore their strength, but the number of times it could be used had been reduced to eight, so now it could only be used to restore their magical power.

And there was another reason for the easy loss of energy.

Glancing at the view of the base of his tree, Thor scratches the bottom of his chin.

The that delays the recovery of magic power, and the that lowers the resistance of the body.

The number of times he could use his magic skills was reduced by , and in this fourth layer, the upper limit and recovery of his physical strength were lowered by .

I am impressed once again at how they can continue to fight.

After all, it seems that they have been carefully selected from among many others.　

"Oh, you got burned a little earlier, Cu. Let me get you out of here so I can fix it."

"Yes, yes, you're very kind, Ram. Thank you for always giving me freebies.

"Now, I'm not saying don't be reckless, but if you get hurt, just tell me--."

The girl's tight skin reminds Thor of the faces of the children who used to hide in the back alleys.

The burns were the work of the ants that had entered the city.

The tragedy that befell the border town of Bossaria is said to have been caused by a single ant.

For a long time now, dungeons called "stone-shell ant holes" have often appeared in the hills near the city.

In the boundary town of Dadan, the level of difficulty is equivalent to that of a small demon's cave.

Normally, dungeons are formed by miasma, but once they are created, no major changes are made to their structure.

However, on rare occasions, there are exceptional monsters that tamper with them.

Such were the ants with their fragile stone shells.

When the labyrinth master is defeated and the hole is closed, the dungeon destroys itself and the monsters inside are taken with it.

However, one of the ants that was left out of the defeat accidentally digs a hole deeper and survives.

Thus, the labyrinth masters continued to be defeated and the dungeons disappeared one after another, but some of the ants remained.

Eventually, the ants digging their way through the ground reach the bottom of the city.

Hidden there was the great miasma pit, which had once been sealed by the heroes.

The monsters, bathed in the miasma overflowing from the veins leading to the "coma pit," are transformed into fearsome treasure ants.

They built a dangerous nest right under the border town of Bossalia.

The tragedy that followed needs no elaboration.

All that remains is the word that the walls will be breached through the holes of the ants.

But the threat is far from over.

If they only want to move between the upper and lower levels, the ants can use narrow vertical holes.

And since they are territorial in the first place, they do not need to move across the layers.

There is only one reason for the existence of wide passages and slopes where large numbers of ants can easily walk.

This is to quickly send the large ants produced deep underground back to the surface.

In other words, the ants are vigilantly watching for their next destination.

What awaited Thor and his friends who had successfully passed through the fourth layer was a large dead-end room with a spell of .　

The only thing that exists on the fifth layer is a black hole in the miasma and two giant ants guarding it.

The vast space was filled with a deafening sound like a roar.