In truth, the invasion of the fifth had been such a colossal investment of resources on the part of the Colony that deficiencies were felt all over our claimed territories. Projects were halted, materials and workers diverted, to the point where the vast majority of the family's output was dedicated solely to this one endeavor.

It’s impossible to properly calculate the cost this may have taken. Cities and vast swathes of Dungeon were underinvested in for years as a result, and the family was continually playing catch-up, trying to get back on track to where they had originally planned to be.

Millions of individuals fought in the fifth, but double that number at least were required to fuel the war machine in the other strata, moving hundreds of thousands of tons of material every day through a vast network of gates, tunnels and rails to deliver it to the depths.

Ultimately, it was successful, but even now it can still be argued that it wasn’t worth the cost.

- Excerpt from ‘Triumph and Tragedy’ by Historiant

Solant stood, as she often did, in the centre of her command centre, staring hard at the ever-evolving three-dimensional map that dominated the space. An enormous carving of living stone, it moulded and changed according to the mana inputs used to feed it, all directed by a team of meticulous and dedicated mages.

What she was most fixated on at the moment was the number representing the concentration of mana in the fifth, which was consistently and steadily falling, hour by hour. The wave was finished and the tide was starting to wash out.

As she had anticipated, it had been difficult to hold the line. Too difficult, as it turned out. All in all, the Colony had been forced to abandon ten percent of their territory to the Krath.

Solant hated to lose, hated it, but she was not going to risk losing tens of thousands of her siblings and precious resources when she could take a temporary setback instead. Fortunately, they had only been forced to abandon a single fortress, and hadn’t lost any hearts, which meant that retaking what they had lost would be a relatively simple matter. For now, her siblings needed time, time to rest and recuperate, time to repair shattered defenses, time to regather their strength for the push to come.

And it would be the final push, of that she was sure. Word through Merchant’s network was spread quickly, of multiple invasions into the fifth already underway. Footholds had been established and, judging by the movement of materials through the fourth stratum, they’d already accelerated their wars on the Krath.

Ensure your favorite authors get the support they deserve. Read this novel on the original website.

With so much pressure piling up on the slugs, the Colony would be able to expand and consolidate its holdings.

But it wasn’t good to get ahead of herself. Solant refused to allow even a hint of complacency to creep into her thinking. She was a loyal servant of the family.

And she would not lose.

“You’re looking unusually determined,” Leonidant observed from beside her, causing Solant to turn curiously.

“I don’t normally look determined?” she asked.

“No, you always look determined,” Leonidant corrected, “but at this moment you look more so than usual. Is something bothering you? Is there a problem I don’t know about?”

“No, I am merely determined that we do not succumb to short-sightedness, or allow ourselves to become lax when the finish line is in sight. We’ve done all the hard work to get to this position, it would be a tragedy to make a misstep at this point.”

“I see what you mean,” Leonidant mused. “So you’re girding yourself to ensure that you are just as diligent at the end of the invasion as you were at the start.”

“Twice as diligent,” Solant replied with determination. “There cannot be mistakes. So long as we do our work well in this final phase, then we won’t have to worry about our position in the fifth for decades to come.”

Solant anticipated that territory in the fifth would become hotly contested in the coming years, with many great conflicts occurring after the fall of the Krath. Indeed, the cleansing of the stratum would only be the beginning.

So long as the Colony was able to thoroughly fortify and embed itself, then they would always be the least tempting target. That wasn’t to say that they wouldn’t be attacked, but hopefully incursions could be kept to a minimum.

“We have a little time before things get busy,” Solant said, mainly to herself, “why don’t we go down and see what the Eldest has been doing?”

“The Eldest?” Leonidant asked, a little confused. “Are you going to seek their wisdom regarding the coming conflicts? Or perhaps you have something you want to know regarding the exploration of the sixth?”

“Seek their wisdom?” Solant asked blankly. “Ah, no. Not exactly. I’ve found that it is useful to consult the Eldest at times like this, as they don’t seem to think quite like any other ant.”

“Neither do you.”

“That is true,” Solant conceded, “but I am restricted by the bounds of what is rational. The Eldest is not.”

“If you say so,” Leonidant shrugged. “If we’re going to go, then there’s no time quite like the present.”

“Agreed,” Solant said, rising from her seat. “I’ll make arrangements for our absence. It shouldn’t take too long.”

If you find any errors ( broken links, non-standard content, etc.. ), Please let us know < report chapter > so we can fix it as soon as possible.