Chapter 293: Life Without Mother.
Inside the chamber of the Devouring War Form, the victorious atmosphere completely evaporated. Sephiran and Vermi were now lined up against the wall, their heads bowed as they faced the absolute wrath of their eldest brother, Arach.
Arach stood towering over them, his massive frame casting a suffocating shadow. His six powerful arms were splayed out in a variety of random, furious positions—one pair crossed tightly over his chest, another gesturing wildly at the messy floor, and the third pointing directly at the two troublemakers.
"What were you two thinking?!"
Arach's voice rumbled like an earthquake through the cavern.
He was scolding them intensely, but beneath the booming reprimand, there was a hidden layer of profound, protective gentleness. He wasn't just angry; he had been worried out of his mind.
As Arach continued to lecture them, a private memory flashed briefly through his mind—a sacred moment before Maddy had departed for the surface. She had pulled Arach aside, her violet eyes locking onto his with absolute trust as she gave him a secret, solemn directive:
"Look after your younger siblings, Arach. Especially Sephiran. Keep them safe. They are the future of our family."
Arach would never openly admit to that memory, but it drove his every action. To him, protecting his younger brother and sister was a sacred duty passed down directly by their creator.
Sephiran shuffled his feet, looking thoroughly deflated, while Vermi slumped down on her round tummy, her fuzzy ears drooping in identical sadness.
"But big brother..." Sephiran muttered softly, looking up with wide, pleading eyes. "We managed to survive. We made it back home in one piece, didn't we? We did our jobs as soldiers of the hive! And look—!"
He gestured proudly to the massive pile of Big Bat carcasses they had successfully hauled back and dumped into the devouring vents.
"We brought back completely new, high quality traits for Mother! We're making her stronger!"
Vermi let out a tiny, pathetic chirp, patting her full belly as if to say she had worked incredibly hard too.
But Arach was entirely unmoved by the defense. His glowing eyes narrowed, and his six arms shifted into an even more rigid, uncompromising stance.
"I don't care about the traits if you throw your lives away to get them!"
Arach barked back, his voice echoing coldly.
"You went into high tier territory completely unassisted. A single miscalculation, a single ambush by a true peak alpha class, and you would have been obliterated before you could even call for help. Do you think Mother would care about a few new bat traits if it cost her the lives of her children? You are reckless, Sephiran, and you are teaching Vermi to be just as foolish!"
Right on cue, a pair of familiar, snide giggles echoed from the upper shadows of the cavern walls. Soltis and Noctis, the ghost twins, were floating near the ceiling, watching the whole lecture unfold. They were laughing mockingly, pointing their translucent fingers down at Sephiran and Vermi's miserable expressions, thoroughly enjoying the sight of them getting chewed out.
Sephiran's eye twitched with pure annoyance, and Vermi bared her tiny teeth, both of them scowling heavily toward the ceiling.
However, from Arach's angle, he couldn't see the invisible ghosts. All he saw was his younger brother and sister pulling irritated, disrespectful faces right while he was lecturing them.
"Are you two making faces at me?!"
Arach growled, his six arms tensing as his temper flared even higher.
"Is my warning a joke to you?!"
"No! Big brother, it's not you, it's—"
Sephiran tried to explain frantically, but the twin ghosts just laughed harder, blowing a mocking raspberry from the shadows.
"What is all this racket?"
The tense air broke as Frovian walked into the chamber. As the hive's caretaker, Frovian's ultimate role was to ensure the absolute survival of all his siblings, raising the next generation in a safe, healthy, and nurturing environment. Because of this, he often acted as the mediator whenever disputes broke out and his duties weren't just limited to the newly hatched brood, but extended to keeping the peace among all the older siblings as well.
Of course, Frovian's method of mediation wasn't exactly 'kind' or gentle.
He immediately caught sight of the twin ghosts floating in the corners, fueling the fire. Without a second thought, Frovian's frog-like hands ignited with a dangerous, glowing heat. He glared up at Soltis and Noctis, his voice dropping to a deadly, bone-chilling whisper.
"If I see you two bullies blinking or breathing near them for the rest of the day, I will personally cook your spectral essences into the cavern walls," Frovian threatened, his flaming hands cracking with power.
"Get out of my sight before I make you truly dead."
The twins' mocking laughter instantly cut short. Recognizing that a furious caretaker was not to be messed with, Soltis and Noctis vanished into the stone walls without a sound.
With the instigators gone, Frovian extinguished his hands and walked over to Arach. He placed a calming hand on one of the giant warrior's lower shoulders, sighing heavily.
"Calm down, big brother. Take a breath. Your heart rate is going to crack the floorboards. Let's let everyone cool off."
Arach slowly let out a deep rumble, his six arms gradually relaxing from their aggressive postures as Frovian successfully defused his anger.
Frovian then turned his sharp gaze down toward Sephiran.
"Alright. You. Say sorry to Arach right now and admit that what you did was completely wrong."
Sephiran swallowed hard, looking up at his towering older brother.
"I'm sorry, big brother Arach," he muttered genuinely, bowing his head. "It was wrong of me to go up there without permission and risk our lives. I won't do it again."
Frovian nodded approvingly, then shifted his gaze slightly downward.
"And you too, Vermi."
Vermi, who had been quietly sitting on her round tummy thinking she was entirely excluded from the blame because she was just a little worm, blinked her big eyes in surprise. She pointed a tiny, fuzzy hand at herself, letting out a confused chirp.
"Yes, you," Frovian scolded lightly, crossing his arms. "You followed him right up that cliff. Apologize."
Realizing she wasn't getting away with it, Vermi's ears drooped. She pressed her little hands together, looking up at Arach with an apologetic, high-pitched whine that clearly meant she was sorry too.