William read the information about the Requiem Antz and scratched his head. He was currently inside his own room with Elliot and Conan, and reading the data that was given to them by the Commander of the outpost.
According to the data, the antz had slowly evolved over the years.
After bringing back the bodies of small dead animals to their nest, their queen had given birth to Antz that possessed similar abilities to the creatures that it had consumed. Every generation of the Antz not only became bigger, but stronger as well.
According to the report, the Antz had managed to salvage the body of a Rank E Beast that had died of old age, near their nest. That was the trigger that had allowed the next generation of Antz to evolve into beasts that could destroy the ecosystem of the island.
Although Rank E Beasts were in the lowest Power Ranking, this power classification could be ignored if there were enough of them to overcome a strong enemy through numbers. According to the data that William received, a Rank E Beast would give the Requiem Antz Queen the ability to produce three Rank E Antz, with that beast's characteristics.
These three Rank E's hunted other Rank E's until their numbers increased. Then, when they numbered in the hundreds, they started hunting Rank D Beasts.
They evolved at an alarming rate, and of the Human Hunters dared to hunt alone. A month ago, the Hunters spotted a handful of Requiem Antz who had the strength of Rank B Beasts, hunting other Rank B Beasts in the island. They believed that there could be more that were hunting on the parts of the island that they hadn't explored yet.
This discovery prompted the Top Brass of the academy to start putting together an evacuation plan that would take the villagers off of the island. This was also why they had sent Jophiel, and a few other Adamantium Ranks to Stonescream Stronghold to prevent any kind of invasion from the race that was starting to flip the balance of power on the island.
"Kasogonaga will have a field day if you set him loose on the island," Elliot said as he read one of the documents that had been spread out on William's table.
"Right now, the strongest fighting force they have are Rank B Beasts that could possibly number in the hundreds," Conan commented as he sat on William's shoulder. "Will this be enough to prompt our Rainbow-Colored Deity to make a move? Maybe Kasogonaga will think that it is far beneath it to dine on low-class creatures."
William rested his chin on the back of his clasped hands and stared into space.
"Elliot, Conan, don't you think that this whole Requiem Antz business is fishy?" William asked.
Elliot tilted his head in confusion. "Fishy? What do you mean fishy?"
Conan, who was seated on William's shoulder, chuckled as he realized what William was thinking.
"I see, there is this angle as well," Conan nodded in approval. "They really know how to take advantage of the situation."
Elliot looked at William and Conan with a frown. He didn't understand what was strange about the current situation.
Seeing that his twin was still clueless about the situation, Conan decided to speak out, and explain the strangeness of the circumstances that surround the threat Requiem Antz.
"If the Academy really wanted to exterminate the Antz, they could easily do it by sending Adamantium Ranked Warriors, headed by a Saint or two," Conan said with a smirk. "Hestia Academy is a powerhouse in the Central Continent.
"Do you really think that it will be hard for them to nip this threat in the bud? Since they didn't do it, it could only mean one thing. They have other plans regarding the further evolution of these Antz. Tsk tsk, their appetite is quite big."
William nodded his head in agreement. "Perhaps, the academy wanted to evacuate the people in the outpost in order to turn this island into a breeding ground for the Requiem Antz.
"Frankly, I would not be surprised if the academy started feeding them Millennial Beasts in order to produce Millennial Antz that could become their Super Soldiers, which would then serve as troops for the academy."
Conan snorted. "The only thing they needed to do is to make a soul contract with the Ant Queen, and make her brood obey their every command. With such a convenient pawn at their disposal, they could easily build a military power that wouldn't lose to the Empires in the Central Continent."
William sighed. His lover, Princess Sidonie had made a contract with the Myriad Ant Queen, and was in command of millions of ants. The Myriad Queen had the ability to give birth to Millennial Ants, but she couldn't do it willy-nilly. At most, the Queen could give birth to one Millennial Ant a month, but that was already a fearsome ability.
If the Requiem Antz Queen could give birth to dozens of Millennial Antz in a week, wouldn't that simply become overkill?
Elliot finally realized the crux of the matter and frowned. He then rubbed his chin as he pondered the reason why Jophiel had sent William to the Outpost.
"So, this S Class Mission is fake?" Elliot asked after organizing his thoughts. He couldn't come up with a proper explanation to what Jophiel was thinking.
William and Conan exchanged a glance before shaking their heads.
"This S Class Mission is real," William sneered. "They just think that an ordinary examinee will not be able to handle this situation. I think Jophiel just wanted us to hunt some of these Rank B Antz in order to cull their numbers. This will be enough for us to pass the exam."
Conan laughed because he already understood what William was thinking. The Devil Familiar felt sorry for the Hestia Academy because they were not aware of his Master's capabilities. Sending him to the Island was something that they never should have done.
Elliot's eyes widened in surprise when he also realized what William and Conan had in mind. If his hunch was correct then this whole incident would bring them an unexpected opportunity!
"My Goodness! Don't tell me!" Elliot's body shuddered in excitement. "You're planning to do THAT?!"
William gave Elliot an angelic smile. A smile that looked so innocent on the surface, but was as black as James' heart underneath.
"Let's go," William said as he stood up to leave the room in a good mood.. "It's time to take a look at these Antz and see what they are capable of."
