Evolution begins with an ant colony

Akun mumbled with disbelief, "So you're saying if I don't merge with him, one of us is going to be erased."

The system affirmed, [Affirmative.]

Curious, Akun asked, "How long do we have until existence wants to get rid of one of us?"

[Approximately 09:50:00 until one of you will be erased.]

"Ugh," Akun mumbled, "guess we still have some time. Well, that means I can still head over and learn what I want from the princess."

As Akun was lost in thought, a group of guards, brandishing metallic wooden spears, charged towards him. Among them, he recognized familiar faces, their expressions a mix of resolve and concern.

Suddenly, one of the guards stepped forward, gripping her spear tightly. Her intense gaze fixated on Akun, her eyes exuding an undeniable aura. She shouted, "On your knees now!"

Akun glanced at her, mumbling as he gestured inquisitively, "Weird, I didn't see you last time. Maybe you were among the dryads who tried to escape. Shame you all seemed to have died during the process."

The woman's words echoed through the tense air, her command cutting through the moment. "I said, on your knees, now!"

Akun responded, his voice carrying an air of detached authority. "Previously, I would have taken my sweet time to systematically destroy each of you. However, time is not a luxury I can afford right now. Every second is precious." His eyes glowed brightly from the visors of his dark silver armor as he declared, "So, make way." The aura of power emanating from him demanded compliance.

A collective chill ran down the spines of the guards, but they steeled themselves against the impending threat.

The commanding dryad woman roared, "All together, men!" The entire assembly of dryads charged towards Akun with fierce determination.

Observing their approach, Akun sighed with a sense of resignation. Deciding not to engage in a direct confrontation, he unfurled his mastery over time, freezing the world around him. In that suspended moment, he effortlessly maneuvered past the charging dryads.

However, the system's voice interrupted his strategic move. [Warning to the player, usage of †Authorities† during this period is ill-advised; it will speed up the time to the point where one of you is erased from existence.]

Akun, caught off guard, exclaimed, "What? You should have told me earlier!" He promptly allowed time to flow back to its normal course, leaving the bewildered guards facing an empty space where the intruder had momentarily stood.

A sharp-eyed dryad soldier caught a glimpse of Akun advancing further into the tree castle. His voice rang out urgently, "Behind us! I've found him!"

Instantaneously, all the guards swiveled around, their collective gaze fixated on Akun.

"After him!" commanded the dryad woman. The entire group of dryads swiftly mobilized, hot on Akun's trail. In response, Akun pivoted to face them. An eruption of aspect power surged from his form, ensnaring the pursuing dryads and freezing them in place. Undeterred, he continued on his path deeper into the tree castle.

The system inquired with curiosity, [The system is curious, why exactly is the player sparing the Dryad? They could be a source of valuable evolution points.]

Akun responded inwardly, "This is the first time you are asking me a question, system. What's the deal?"

The system replied, [The system is just curious about the player's sudden change from their original approach they took during the original timeline.]

Akun explained, "I thought you would have known the kind of person I am by now. If you have been observing me well, I only ever kill for three reasons: revenge, to assert dominance, and to get rid of a problem."

The system replied, [So? Why not now?]
Stay tuned to My Virtual Library Empire

In response, Akun stated with conviction, "These dryads currently don't fall under any of those categories. I'm not here for revenge, not here to assert dominance, and certainly not here to get rid of a problem. So, no one has to die."

The system inquired further, [What about evolution points?]

Akun elaborated, "At the moment, I'm not in dire need of evolution points. Enslaving them and putting them to work seems more appealing than pointlessly killing them all."

The system acknowledged, [The player has a valid point.]

With a smile, Akun added, "Now, let's find the princess." Activating his dragon eyes, he swiftly located the princess in a room along with the other tribe leaders. "What are they doing here?" Akun mused aloud, his thoughts racing. "I remember Keleora notifying me way back when Oliver was caught that the other tribe leaders were seen leaving the Dryad tribe that same night.

Seems they were having a meeting." A sly smile formed beneath his dark silver armor. "Why don't I join the party?"

Meanwhile, In the midst of the heated meeting, frustration etched across Rinalef's features as she slammed her hands on the round table. Her intense gaze bore into the other tribe leaders, demanding answers. "What do you mean you won't be joining me in invading the Ant Tribe?"

Skalathar, the imposing leader of the Lizard Men, took charge of the response. His deep voice resonated with authority as he addressed the princess. "Princess Rinalef, we have our own concerns and territories to defend. Invading the Ant Tribe is no small feat--" Before he could finish his statement, a guard abruptly burst into the room, gasping for breath as he yelled, "Emergency!

Emergency, my princess!"

All eyes in the room, including the princess's, turned toward the guard. Rinalef inquired, "What is the emergency?"

The guard, his voice tinged with a hint of fear, continued, "There is... some 'thing' outside the castle in all black armor. It's doing something to our people with some sort of purple chain that comes out of his hands. Once it's done, our people simply bow to him, even though they don't want to."

The description of the dark silver armor caused the princess's eyes to widen with disbelief. She mumbled, "What? What is he doing here?"

The tone of her voice drew the attention of all the tribe leaders in the room, their collective gaze fixated on her.

Leandor, the leader of the beast folk tribe, asked with curiosity, "Who is this, and what is going on?"

The guard pressed on, "I'm not finished, and there seems to be two of them. One is already in the castle as we speak. Princess, you must make your escape while the elders buy some time."