Shota's Isekai NTR Adventure Chapter 1968: Tide of bugs

A glow emanated from the tunnel's mouth even before we reached it.

While it appeared dim from a distance, the light was surprisingly intense now that we stood at the entrance.

However, that radiance was only significant when compared to the darkness outside.

The surrounding cliff walls originally cast the exterior into deep shadow. By obstructing the majority of natural light, the cliffs ensured the entire area remained quite gloomy.

Once my eyes adjusted to the brightness, I realized the illumination within the tunnel originated from a fascinating source.

I hadn't noticed it initially because the glow seemed to permeate the entire cavern, but the source became obvious upon closer inspection.

A cluster of fireflies clinging to the ceiling was responsible for providing the light.

Looking more carefully, however, it was evident that this wasn't their permanent arrangement.

Their scattered distribution suggested they were doing this spontaneously rather than as a routine behavior. It appeared that whatever was beckoning us inside was friendly enough to arrange this welcoming light for our benefit.

Still, the thought crossed my mind that this could all be an elaborate trap...

For the moment, I remained cautious, as I had no idea what lay ahead.

Every occurrence so far had been so unpredictable that I didn't even know what to anticipate anymore. Consequently, I simply stopped trying to calculate what was coming next.

After a short walk, we emerged into a space that differed greatly from the tunnel we had been traversing.

There wasn't much to see in this new area, though.

The only thing present was a massive swarm of insects.

It looked as though even more bugs had congregated here than we had encountered previously. These creatures weren't merely idling, however.

Given the room's architecture and its numerous connecting tunnels, it was clearly a central transport hub for the insects. This was the junction they utilized to reach various sectors of the place they called home.

The bugs continued on their separate paths, seemingly oblivious to our arrival.

Yet, a reaction occurred the moment we stepped forward.

The moving insects suddenly shifted their trajectory.

They didn't change direction entirely; rather, they simply veered away from their original paths. It seemed they were intentionally clearing a way for us to continue our journey.

Taking advantage of this, we proceeded down the corridor the insects had opened for us.

Wading through this sea of bugs was truly a remarkable experience.

After all, being enveloped by such a swarm creates a very bizarre sensation.

At the very least, these creatures didn't seem to harbor any hostile intentions toward us.

Because the insects moved aside in this manner, our destination became very easy to identify.

Following the guided path, we entered yet another tunnel and pressed onward.

This pattern repeated several times until we finally arrived at a location that wasn't just another busy intersection. It was a relief to finally escape the literal tide of insects flowing through the tunnels.

Witnessing this made me realize the sheer scale of the population living in these subterranean passages.

It was truly astonishing that they had established such a vast habitat here.

At the same time, I found myself wondering what could have brought so many insects together.

Unless something extraordinary was happening, such a massive number of bugs would never gather in one spot. Some force had to be unifying them.

It was difficult to fathom the kind of intellect required to command a swarm of this magnitude.

The final chamber we were led to was much smaller than the others, and the insect presence was sparse. However, a closer look at the bugs that were present revealed their true nature.

There was no doubt that we would suffer heavy losses if we were forced to fight them.

The creatures standing before us were elites, vastly different from the common soldiers we had seen before. These were specialized bugs, born specifically for combat and protection.

In a sense, they could be described as the royal guards of this insect colony.

The entity they were protecting was undoubtedly something exceptional.

Given their presence in this private chamber with the elite guards, one could easily guess their status. They were surely the special insect that ruled over all the others.

This was the one I had come to meet.

"Welcome, Holy Son. I have been expecting you."

As I suspected, this being possessed the power of speech, unlike the other insects.

When I finally laid eyes on the speaker, I couldn't hide my amazement.

It certainly wasn't what I had envisioned when I thought of a legendary beast, but there was no mistaking it as the messenger of a god, for it radiated divine energy.