Many minutes later, the four girls returned from behind a nearby tree. They finished changing, but it seems something was going on with each one of them. Lupa wasn't very cheerful as she tucked down the padded shirt from being a bit too tight for her tastes. She liked loose clothing from living as a wolf all her life. Ester was slightly glaring at Lupa's, Tula's, and Tulip's tight chest. She seemed to compare the sizes with a hint of jealousy. Tula donned a sad expression since the armor was a bit tight. She wasn't used to wearing one since she had a child's mind. On the other hand, Tulip was slightly glaring a Tula for taking the armor. It was apparent she wanted to wear it instead. [Why do I feel like all of them have something to say? Some seem unhappy, and others seem a bit angry. But you probably have a hint of why.] [That Tulip chick appears to want the armor, but the overprotective father Koss will never allow it. There is only one armor, and it was hers in the first place.] -Yes, no one wants to die, but Ester also looks cute. She is unhappy because of the other three, hehe.- [It's a bit refreshing to see her cute chest jealous face at this moment.] The preparation to continue was complete. Everyone soon gathered behind Lupa, ready to follow her nose. Lupa felt a bit happy by this, and her tail gave it away almost immediately. It was one of her dreams to have a pack following her. Well... even if they were humans instead of wolves, she felt like a pack leader. Ten minutes of following Lupa passed. She suddenly stopped, her ears raised full attention, and her tail stopped cautiously swaying. She then urgently exclaimed, "Ambush! Many sides! Prepare for a fight!" *Skree!* Four three-foot-tall Soldier Ants emerged from behind a tree at different sides. Two rushed from their left side, one from a tree behind them and the other from the right. One Soldier Ant rushed for Koss, one for the three recruits Culo, Hara, and Tame, one for Lupa, and the last ant for Tula and Tulip. It seemed Vincent and Ester weren't targeted. Koss was a veteran soldier, so the ant was no trouble to him. He dodged the charge, then followed by a horizontal slash right between the gap of its head and body, decapitating the ant in one easy slash. Out of the three new recruits, Culo and Hara charged at the ant shield first. But killing the ant was challenging to accomplish as the third new recruit, Tame, left them to fight alone. He ran away in the forest by himself. Lupa extended her sharp claws to the limit and swiftly brought her claws down, slashing the ant's head. It was a critical hit as the ant stayed down, looking quite dead. However, her sharp claws got stuck on the hard carapace. It took some time to retract her claws and back. A disadvantageous thing to happen in a fight against many. Vincent ran as fast as he could but couldn't make it in time. The ant charged, slashing its sharp limbs at Tula. The shield in her hand blocked the attack, but she got knocked down on her bottom. Ester was near Tula. She trusted on the shield that isn't easy to break, and shield bashed the ant, forcing the ant to retreat a few steps back. This gave Vincent enough time to swing the Demonic Beast's Rock, which he kept in his pocket at the ant's head. Unfortunately, he wasn't using Overheat, and the ant wasn't charging at him. Without any momentum, the strength of the swing was weak. The ant became staggered instead of dying. At a moment's notice, Vincent raised his other hand up and quickly said, "Overheat." [Overheat activated.] [Mutation starting to alter the host...] [Mutation process finished.] [Race altered to mutated human for its duration.] His eyes shone green, piercing the staggered ant's soul, inflicting fear. As steam exited his mouth and the crevice at the back of his hands, the mutated blood gauntlet was quickly complete and hardened. *Crunch* Vincent clenched both hands together and brought down a mighty hammer targeting the crack on the ant's head caused by the Demonic Beast's rock. The third ant died instantly, and the fourth followed after Koss assisted Culo and Hara. It took a few seconds for everyone to regain their composure. They soon noticed how one of the new recruits called Tame ran away. Also, no one seemed to be badly injured. Koss rushed to his daughter's side. He noticed a dead ant near Tula, who was about to cry. He was about to thank Vincent when he noticed the shield. With a bright smile, he thought, 'Kass, my brother. Thank you for protecting Tula one more time.' *AHHH!!!* A loud voice of a man screaming in pain and agony sounded. Without a doubt, it was the new recruit Tame who ran away instead of staying with them. It meant more ants surrounded them. "I think we have entered too deep if that idiot Tame died this quickly. We might be close to a nest if we got attacked this soon." Koss announced terrible news. "I'm... I'm sorry..." Lupa looked sad as she said this. [Overheat deactivated.] [Host Race returning to human.] "It's not your fault. It means there was no safe route to begin with. " Vincent deactivated Overheat. Then he patted Lupa's head with the hopes of removing the idea that she was guiding them to their deaths. [I agree. The Soldier Ants have targeted us, but Koss said that the Royal Guard Ant protects the nest. It should be good news if these weak ants attack us... but your power-up only lasts ten minutes.] "Are we safe from a Royal Guard Ant's attack?" Vincent asked to confirm Kazumi's thought. "... I heard if more than two Royal Guard Ants protect a nest... then the others will lead the assault against the living beings stepping on their evergrowing territory. " Koss said with a few breaks every time while wiping Tula's face from a few tears that escaped her eyes. If they went back, they might have a chance to escape, but after killing five Soldier Ants in total and the unknown ant or ants that killed Tame, the odds of safety were against them. "I understand what you are trying to say, Vincent. The ants know about us by now, so both options to push through or go back are dangerous options." Koss gave the ultimatum, but both options were terrible and revolved around getting attacked. [I believe we should try to follow Lupa and hope that the less smell means less danger.] Vincent agreed with her suggestion. He patted Lupa's head one more time and said, "I will place my life in Lupa's hands. I say we follow what her nose picks up. It's better than walking blindly. The ants might attack to direct us to the nest at the same time, so it might be better this way." Lupa turned her gaze at Vincent. He smiled at Lupa when their eyes met. Then she turned her gaze at Ester. She also smiled back at Lupa. As Lupa turned her gaze at the others, they nodded one after the other. Everyone decided to follow Vincent's suggestion. Tulip was the only one who nodded from peer pressure as she wanted to go back and find a different way. She didn't want to die like Tame. She also didn't try to help when Tula got attacked because of fear and jealousy. After half an hour of following Lupa, no ant attacked them. Following Lupa or getting surrounded by ants at every passing moment was an uncomfortable experience. Their morale wasn't that great. Suddenly Lupa stopped. She became alert and an angered frown formed on her cautious face. She raised her hand and signaled to stop while urgently exclaiming, "Ambush! We are surrounded!" Everyone quickly huddled together, protecting each other's backs. Each individual took a fighting stance of their own. Some prepared to fight while others held on to their weapons with a tight grip. Their lives depended on it. As time trickled slowly, they waited for the ants to appear. With the number still unknown, fear started creeping in. A bit later, multiple Soldier Ants emerged from all directions. Three Soldier Ants headed for Koss, two for Lupa, one for each of the remaining new recruits Culo and Hara, and the last three for Vincent, Ester, Tula, and Tulip. A total of ten Soldier Ants rushed to attack simultaneously. Tulip became terrified and took a few steps forward. As if she intended to run away like Tame. The fear of death caused Tulip to chose the option to run instead of staying huddled in a group and die together. Unfortunately, her actions sparked a chain reaction. Culo and Hara held their shields tightly and moved forward. Lupa thought it was an improvised plan and rushed with her claws extended at the two incoming Soldier Ants. Koss quickly glanced at Vincent and made one swift nod before charging at the three Soldier Ants targeting him. In a matter of seconds, one large group of eight survivors became split into four groups fighting their own battle. [This doesn't look good. One is targeting you. One is heading for Tula and Tulip while the other is heading for Ester.] "I'll take this one. Girls, stay safe, and defend yourselves. " Vincent quickly said. Then he turned his glare at the incoming Soldier Ants and uttered, "Overheat." [Overheat activated.] [Mutation starting to alter the host...] [Mutation process finished.] [Race altered to mutated human for its duration.] Vincent slammed his foot and lept at the charging ant mid-mutation. Multiple individual fights took place as if the ants planned to separate and kill them one by one. The new recruits fought one each. They appeared to have some difficulty as their faces showed both the expression of fear and anger. They wished to survive, unlike their fellow Tame. Koss was a veteran. He didn't seem afraid of the three Soldier Ants surrounding him. He killed the first one with ease, making the remaining two Soldier Ants wary of his actions. They kept attacking and retreating a few steps back, trying to tire Koss and wait for the moment he would make a mistake. The ants seemed intelligent, but this plan appeared to give them a few more seconds of life. Koss grasped their intentions. Lupa didn't have much difficulty either with her nimble body and sharp claws. The two Soldier Ants couldn't hit her. She continuously dodged all their attacks like a hyperactive wolf.