Chapter 52: The Insect King

Lucien’s expression hardened behind the red cloth.

"I have to inform Daemon as soon as possible," he muttered under his breath. "If we delay any further, that girl might fall into even greater danger."

His perception stretched farther across the corrupted forest. Then his body tensed.

A foreign presence had entered the mountain range.

The figure was moving fast, unnaturally fast and his entire body was covered in living insects. The swarm carried him through the air as he flew straight toward Victoria’s direction.

Lucien’s voice snapped through the communication link.

"Victoria! A stranger is approaching you at high speed. He’s using insects to fly. Get ready!"

Victoria stopped mid-step.

The A-Rank Hunters following her immediately noticed the change in her expression.

"Captain? What happened?"

Victoria’s crimson eyes narrowed.

"Go and finish the remaining monsters. I have a guest coming for me."

Before anyone could question her further, a storm of insects exploded out of the trees.

Thousands of bugs and flying pests crashed toward the group like a living black wave. Victoria reacted instantly.

Blood surged from her palm and expanded outward, forming a thick crimson dome that sealed her and the nearby Hunters inside.

The insects slammed against the barrier with violent force, creating a constant scraping sound.

Victoria’s voice cut through the noise.

"What are you waiting for?! I told you to clear the remaining monsters!"

The Hunters’ faces drained of color as they finally saw the figure approaching through the swarm. The man hovering above the trees no longer looked fully human.

His body was wrapped in layers of writhing insects, and the sheer pressure he released made their instincts scream danger.

They didn’t hesitate any longer.

The moment Victoria opened a gap in the blood dome, the Hunters rushed out and scattered into the forest.

Victoria remained alone.

Wind tore through the clearing, forcing her red hair to dance wildly behind her. Even so, her focus never left the figure descending from the sky.

Vael hovered above her on a platform of living insects. The bugs crawled across his arms and shoulders, forming a constantly shifting outer layer over his body. A wicked grin stretched across his face.

"Finally, we meet."

His eyes gleamed with twisted interest.

"I always wanted to see what made you so special. My dumb brother went completely crazy over you.

Now I understand why he was so obsessed." His grin widened. "What a shame. You’re going to die today. And while I’m here... I’ll take the Corruption Core inside this mountain as well."

Victoria’s brows furrowed slightly.

The way he spoke made it sound as if this was their first meeting. She already knew Kael loved using tricks and disguises, but the differences this time were too obvious.

The man’s body structure, aura, and energy signature were clearly not the same.

This was not Kael.

Crimson light flared in Victoria’s eyes.

Bloodline power erupted around her. Thick streams of blood condensed in the air and formed three long spears. Without hesitation, she launched them forward.

Vael tilted his body and dodged the first two. The third spear shot straight toward his chest. At the last moment, a dense wall of insects stacked together and blocked the attack with a sharp crack.

Vael laughed.

"That won’t be enough to kill me."

Victoria exhaled slowly.

"Alright."

She raised both hands.

Blood surged violently and shaped itself into spears, swords, daggers, and countless sharp fragments. The air around her turned red as the weapons shot forward in a continuous storm.

Vael wrapped his entire body in a thick armor of insects. The living shield absorbed most of the attacks, but several blades still tore through and left deep cuts across his arms and torso.

Even so, when the exchange ended, Victoria was the one breathing harder.

Vael wiped a thin line of blood from his cheek and smiled.

"Now then... let’s see if you can handle this."

He spread his arms wide.

"Wasp Call."

A deep, vibrating hum spread across the entire mountain.

Every insect within the forest responded.

From the trees, the soil, and the dark corners of the corrupted land, swarms of bugs rose into the sky like black storms.

They gathered around Vael in endless layers, wrapping around his limbs, torso, and head until his human shape disappeared completely.

Within seconds, a giant insect-man stood in the clearing.

His body looked like a towering mass of living pests compressed into a humanoid form. Each movement caused chunks of insects to shift and reform, similar to a sand construct that could never be fully destroyed.

When he spoke, his voice came out distorted and layered with countless buzzing echoes.

The giant raised one massive arm and smashed it downward.

Victoria leapt aside as the ground exploded where she had been standing. Dirt and broken roots flew into the air.

Before she could stabilize her footing, another insect limb swept toward her from the side.

She blocked with a blood shield, but the impact still sent her sliding backward.

Vael pressed the attack without pause.

His giant form broke apart and reformed with every movement. When Victoria cut through one arm, the insects simply flowed back together and rebuilt it.

When she pierced his torso, the swarm split open and closed again as if nothing had happened.

It was like fighting a living disaster.

Victoria’s breathing grew heavier. Blood constructs formed and shattered one after another as she was forced onto the defensive.

A sharp impact finally broke through her guard and slammed into her side, sending her crashing into a tree.

She dropped to one knee, blood dripping from the corner of her mouth.

Vael’s giant fist rose again.

Before it could land, a soft crimson light flared from the pendant resting against Victoria’s chest.

A transparent barrier expanded around her body just in time.

The giant’s fist slammed into the barrier with a heavy boom. Cracks spread across the surface, but it held.

Vael snarled and punched again and again, each impact making the barrier tremble violently.

Inside the protective light, Victoria’s vision blurred from exhaustion.

Her fingers tightened weakly around the pendant.

"...Daemon," she whispered. "Where are you...?"

Moisture gathered at the corners of her eyes.

Then, unexpectedly, a familiar voice echoed inside her mind.

Victoria.

Her eyes widened.

High above the giant insect form, a blazing fireball tore through the sky.

It smashed directly into Vael’s face.

The explosion of heat and force ripped through the upper half of the insect construct, scattering burning bugs in every direction.

Before Vael could recover, a figure descended through the smoke with raw killing intent.

Daemon.

Flames coiled around his arm like molten armor. His expression was cold and furious. Without slowing down, he twisted his body and drove his fist forward with explosive force.

The punch carried both crushing physical power and violent inferno energy.

It connected squarely with Vael’s face.

The giant insect body was blasted backward like a broken meteor. Vael crashed through several trees, his form engulfed in raging fire.

The burning smell of insects filled the forest as the surrounding trunks caught flame one after another.

Daemon landed firmly beside Victoria, the heat still rising from his clenched fist.

His eyes never left the burning wreckage where Vael had been thrown.