Evolution begins with an ant colony

Chapter 179: Pain Before Answers

Upon hearing the princess’s plea, Akun gritted his teeth and mumbled, "Don’t hurt your people, but if it’s the people of another tribe, you don’t mind if they are slaughtered." Suddenly, with a surge of force, Akun flung the princess to the other side of the room. As she hit the wooden walls, she coughed out the air in her lungs, falling to the floor and gasping for breath.

Akun continued to walk slowly towards the coughing princess, his steps echowed. With a forceful sweep, he shattered the wooden round table that stood in his way. He spoke as he approached her, "Picture this: a sweet mother and child in your tribe, in danger. You manage to save them, along with a bunch of your other tribe members.

You tell them all to head for this tree castle, that they will be safe here. After all, this should be the safe haven of your tribe if anything too much happens."

Akun arrived in front of her, his towering figure that cast a shadow over the crumpled princess. With slowness, he crouched down, his dark silver armor gleaming in the low light of the room. He tilted her head upward to meet his gaze, the visors of his helmet revealing the intensity in his purple eyes.

A momentary silence hung in the air before he spoke, his voice cutting through the tension, "But then, for some goddamn reason, you come back to meet that same woman you saved, along with practically all of your tribe members, dead. Do you think you’ll be able to forgive the person responsible?"

The princess, in her vulnerable state, spoke with a trembling tone, "Please, I don’t understand what you are talking about. I’ll tell you what I know, just, please, spare me." Tears streamed down her cheeks, adding a strong layer to the atmosphere.

Yet, instead of evoking sympathy, her plea only fueled Akun’s growing irritation, evident in the subtle clenching of his fists beneath the dark gauntlets. The room became a battleground of emotions, with the princess’s tears reflecting the weight of the impending storm.

Akun rose to his feet, and suddenly, a powerful kick from him slammed into the abdomen of the princess, sending her flying towards the wooden wall on the left side of the room.

Turning his attention back to the grim condition of the princess, Akun mumbled, "I haven’t even begun to vent out all of my anger and frustration, so I won’t be letting you off easy."

In the dimly lit room, the princess, weakened and grim, managed to mumble with a feeble voice, "Why are you doing this to me? I haven’t done anything." Her voice quivered, and tears streamed down her cheeks.

Akun, standing over her, replied with a cold tone, "Not in this world, yes, but in another, I’ve witnessed something grim that brought about the end of my people because of you." The dim light caught the intensity in his eyes as he clenched his fists, "Although I’m still curious as to why you did it, we’ll get there much later after I’m done with you."

The atmosphere in the room was thick with tension as the weight of the past and present collided in a struggle for answers and retribution.

For the next agonizing five minutes of her life, Rinalef was subjected to relentless torment—broken and healed repeatedly until she lost count. The intense pain numbed her brain, leaving her in a state of despair. After extracting the desired answers, Akun healed the princess, enslaved her, and coldly departed the room.

As he strolled down the dimly lit halls, the princess’s words echoed in his mind, but his thoughts were consumed by a more pressing dilemma: How could he convey to his alternate self, from this divergent timeline, that only one of them could endure? The looming choice weighed on him—either one would be erased, or they would merge into a singular existence.

As he pondered the potential agreement of his alternate self, Akun mused aloud, "Knowing myself, merging won’t be an option. We’re the same person, yet the dilemma arises—who will wield control over our fused body? Will it be him, or will it be me? I doubt he’d willingly take such a gamble. That’s why I considered doing it without his knowledge...

Damn, never thought I’d feel like such a pain in the ass."