A Legion Grows From My Smartphone

The legion undoubtedly possessed enormous potential. With this potential, they had evolved from a mere cluster of cells on the lowest floor to a force that overlooked the strata. However, this vast cave ecosystem was home to an incredibly diverse array of creatures.

[The scout results are in. Numerous traces have been found, but unfortunately, no traces of the group were found on the next floor.] “What decision did the legion make?”

[In fact, the legion is accustomed to such matters. They are adept at acquiring and analyzing unknown information. However, they are being more cautious now.]

Indeed, the legion had only strengthened its reconnaissance and had not taken any other action. We knew better than anyone how powerful the group was. After all, we hadn't yet fully absorbed the strata.

“The problem isn't just the simple group we're up against. What do we do in such cases?”

[Are you talking about pitting player units against each other? Of course, there-’s only one answer.] The simple words felt chilling. I had some idea of the answer.

“Fight?” [Competition, victory, extinction. What's the problem? That's what an ecosystem is.] We spoke almost simultaneously. Of course, knowing this didn't make it any easier. “If we win, the other player...”

I

[If we lose, you die too.]

I closed my eyes tightly. From the moment I got entangled with this strange app, everything had been twisted. I had enjoyed it like raising ants, but I couldn't take it lightly anymore.

“...Then we have to win. What should we do?”

[As always, watch over your children. When they seem stuck, guide them.]

In the end, my task hadn't changed. All I had to do was observe, as I had been doing, and if possible, offer any help I could. “First, we need to know what they're doing.”

[Indeed. The legion is currently accumulating energy to detonate while continuing its reconnaissance. The place we call the 11th floor is not a strata, but a small tributary. There are only their traces here, and these traces lead to the upper floors.]

The legion had efficiently utilized the various sized scouts it had created so far. From small bees to lizards with wings of bats and birds. The result of thoroughly searching the 11th floor was just traces.

So, the conclusion was clear. They had come down from the upper floors on an Expedition'. “If they've seen us... wouldn't they know?”

I had forgotten the obvious. Our legion's racial characteristic and greatest strength.

[Correct. We're not the only ones without data. In fact, they're at a disadvantage in the information war. Look, the legion's scout has found something.]

lust then, the screen changed abruptly. I held back my pounding heart and scrutinized the screen. The view of the 12th floor observed by a scout in the form of a bee was displayed.

“...Rats?”

A group of creatures appeared. They were completely different from my understanding of the numerous beasts living here.

Furry bodies. Black eyes and sniffing noses. Long tails and bodies neither too large nor too small for this cave. At least in appearance, they were perfect rats.

“But what are these rat bastards...”

Their actions and detailed movements were completely opposite to the rats in my understanding. First of all, the ones gathered as if they were a scouting party, standing in a hunched posture and freely using their hands. Moreover, they held various tools in their hands.

Spears with sharp awls at the end, crossbows loaded with needles, shields and helmets made of metal scraps, and so on.

[The legion doesn't have information about metal. They can only guess that it's quite strong if it can hunt a lizard. More than anything, they are more collective and smarter than any other creature we've encountered.]

“We don't know where their main base is or how many there are yet.”

[They've spotted our scout. It's a small lizard with bat wings. The legion deliberately threw the scout to measure their combat power as they picked a fight.] Then, a collision occurred. Several rats ran towards the lizard and aimed their crossbows.

It was a meticulously made miniature crossbow. I judged that these rat bastards couldn't have made it themselves. “&@%O!”

With a squeaking sound and the light from the luminous stone, the shining needles were fired, piercing the lizard's wings and body. I had anticipated this to some extent. After all, the scouts that had to fly in the sky were fragile. “Damn.”

However, seeing the fallen scouts' corpses and the legion's excitement over them made me feel sick. [Ah, the legion is rejoicing.] “What?”

But it seemed I still lacked understanding of the legion.

[Tools, they desire tools. They yearn for those shiny, hard, pointed objects. Those small, furry creatures used strange objects to catch much larger prey. That power is what they desire. The legion is convinced that this is the new clue to our evolution. This will be recorded in our history. It's the first time the legion has encountered the concept of tools. ]

“Right. It's the first time the concept of tools has been introduced.”

[The legion noticed the secret to the rats' strength and set a goal. They decided to catch and eat them to gain their power. But they used crude tools to catch the lizard. Surely, that's not all they have.]

“So what are you going to do?” [There's only one answer. First, we catch some of them and learn everything about them.] A mournful cry came from below.

A moment of silence for those rats.

If those scouts had a hive consciousness like us, it would be a different story. Those scouts will be hunted here.

[We don't know what racial characteristics those rats have. The legion didn't care about that in the first place. Even if they find out about us now, what's the problem? They're just going to be eaten by a large, new species of lizard from the lower floors.]

The legion soldiers, prepared to face the lizard with their dark blue carapaces, crawled up to greet them. Despite having a rat's face, their expressions were visible. They were terrified.

[They're clever. They're trying to run away because they know they can't handle us with just five. But the legion is serious.] Behind the small car-sized lizard slowly crawling out, dozens of large flying species with bat wings simultaneously soared. “@%#&!”

The shocked rats retaliated by shooting crossbows. But they were creatures designed for aerial combat, not scouting. With the wings of a bird of prey and a large, sturdy wing, they rushed at the rats with their claws, poisonous tail stingers, and carapaces, hacking them to pieces. [...A large beast wandering alone would have been easy prey. But can they, dare they, hunt us? They will have to wage not a hunt, but a war with us.] The slaughtered bodies were all collected and delivered to the nest in the lower floors, which was responsible for digestion and absorption.

The needles, crossbows, and spears, which could not be absorbed because they were not living organisms, were also all recovered. [The legion is curious. What exactly are these tools? How do they use them?] The legion's appetite was now going beyond mere predation. *

[The legion began to prepare for war.] The scouting continued, and they discovered more of them on the 13th floor. A fortress built with stones and mushrooms was visible.

It was crude, but it was definitely a fortress.

There were at least 100 rats there.

“Don't tell me they're trying to mimic them?” I shuddered and muttered.

If the legion wanted tools, I had to give them.

Like the opposing players.

[They came to the optimal conclusion considering both efficiency and possibility. It's premature now. They were envisioning a future where they could evolve in a better, more efficient way.]

But surprisingly, the legion didn't obsess over tools. They were infinitely rational and cold in their purpose. After all, they were creatures that couldn't be understood by human emotions. [Their response is dry and lukewarm. They're definitely ignorant. Even the opposing players.] The energy accumulated so far began to be used explosively.

Hundreds, thousands of giant eggs began to pour out.

[It's time to teach those arrogant furballs, who have been hunting beasts and thriving like us, what a real war is. It's definitely a war between the same kind, between one faction.]

[But who's better at war? The legion is confident it's us. There's no legion that's as good at war as us.] The situation was on the brink.

The legion, which had diligently replenished its soldiers, was going to use a tactic to crush them at once with overwhelming numbers, the sharp command and technology unique to the hive consciousness.

Even from my perspective, it seemed like we could win if those rats didn't have any hidden means.

“What's the reward if we win the war against the players? No, tell me honestly now. The player of those rats...is he on Earth?” I stared at the screen and muttered blankly.

One of the things I had been wondering about.

lust how big is the scale of this game board?