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Chapter 821 Tolly Tours (933)

I must say, my dear readers, that I was positively giddy at the prospect of being able to interview the most celebrated individual member of the Colony. I had thought that speaking to Elizabant would have slaked my curiosity, but instead, it only inflamed it!

For a queen to be so deferential to this \'Eldest\', the \'Great One\' that the common people of Renewal held such reverence for. I have to say that the possibility of meeting such a creature set my heart positively aflutter!

I hadn\'t looked forward to a meeting so much since my much celebrated sit down with the Satrap of the Brathian Island conglomerate, a most influential and secretive individual!

Yet, my enthusiasm had to be tempered, dear readers, as my guide was only too quick to tell me.

"I must warn you Miss Tolly, an audience with the Great One will be all but impossible to arrange," Emilia said. "The Great One hasn\'t been seen by anyone from Renewal in years. I couldn\'t even tell what layer of the Dungeon they were on."

"Then who can?" I ask.

Always be problem solving, reader, that\'s the key to moving forward, no matter the project!

Emilia hesitated for a moment before she sighed and adopted a lecturing tone.

"Beneath Anthome, in the second stratum, lies the first and largest of the Colony\'s deeper nests. It\'s a very important site to the ants for historical and cultural reasons, and to the followers of the Colony like me, it\'s practically holy. There are frequent pilgrimages to visit the nest that thousands attend every year."

Well this all sounded positively wonderful!

"And there we will be able to find more information on the Eldest?"

"Perhaps. But we will need to follow protocols if we want to visit. The Colony insists that all visitors to the deeper layers undergo a mana saturation process to minimise the chance of sickness."

"How thoughtful! I don\'t suppose there is any way to skip it?"

I have delved deeply into the Dungeon over the course of many years, as you well know, dear readers! But alas, there was no slipping through the regulations of the Colony. Who would one even bribe?

My delightful guide stepped away to discuss arrangements with a nearby ant whilst I took a moment to speak with my guards. Neither of the two strapping lads were particularly fond of the idea of pushing yet further into the land of the Colony, but alas, the terms of their contract required that they accompany me. The poor dears. I wasn\'t unsympathetic to their position and a promise of increased compensation was enough to assuage their fears.

Then we were off! Deeper into the Dungeon once more, in the company of several rather imposing ant soldiers.

I have to say, in terms of excitement and danger, there really wasn\'t much to enjoy on this particular journey. I hardly saw a monster, other than the ants themselves, of course. We approached a well guarded building that contained several portals, each heavily trafficked. It was only thanks to the skilful negotiations of Emilia Cretherton that we were able to proceed at a reasonable pace.

"This portal will take us just inside the second stratum. While we wait out the mandatory wait time we can tour the farms, visit the smelting facilities, and see a few other sights. Is that sufficient?"

"That will be wonderful, dear."

Once through the portal, a process that took several hours of waiting, we were embraced by the dark mana of the shadow sea. It had been some time since I had delved to the second stratum, my lovelies, and it stirred the most wonderful memories of the adventures I experienced in my youth! Plumbing the dark depths, hunting for dark whales with the mariners of light beneath the grand pillar. All tales that you have no doubt read many a time!

So it was that I experienced a jovial mood as Emilia began to guide us through the darkness. Even here the Colony had gone to every effort to ensure our comfort, offering warm clothing and enchanted light globes to ease our passage. Even without such considerations there would have been no struggle at all, since the pathways were so expertly carved and well lit. One would think we were strolling through an avenue in a well-heeled city borough, rather than plunging into the depths!

It was quite strange, but pleasant!

From there we spent several days touring the fields of the Colony and I must say what an impressive sight it was. Hundreds of acres of once wild and untamed expanse, humbled before the might of the Colony. Literally thousands of workers toiled without pause, tending to plants, delightful little aphid creatures and tea leaves, so many tea leaves!

"Not all of the expanse within the Colony\'s territory has been utilised in such a way," Emilia told us, ever eager to continue her role as guide. "Some are left in basically their natural state, mainly to provide hunting grounds the ants can use to secure experience, cores and Biomass. They have their own private areas in which they cultivate spawn points in an attempt to increase the number of monsters they can fight, but I personally haven\'t seen them."

"Can you explain those small creatures atop the trees to me, my dear?" I asked.

She was only too happy to launch into an explanation of the origins of the aphids, the progenitor of whom was apparently a reconstituted pet of the Queen herself! I do admit to some confusion when she first utilised the term, \'Queen\'.

"Which queen?" I asked.

"The Queen," she replied, as if it were the most obvious thing in the world.

"Aren\'t there many queens?"

"Oh, I see what you mean. When I, or any ant, says THE Queen, they are talking very specifically about the first one."

"You mean, the first of all the queens?"

She nodded solemnly.

"Indeed. Second only to the Eldest in terms of the respect afforded to them amongst the Colony and the faithful."

She must have seen the light flare up in my eyes, for she was quick to continue.

"Don\'t even think about trying to meet the Queen. It just won\'t happen."

I have to say, I was a little put out.

"Why would that be?" I enquired.

"The Queen has a reputation for risk taking and bold action, so the Colony is extraordinarily careful to limit her opportunities to put herself in harm\'s way. She famously still hunts for herself, refusing to allow the soldiers and scouts to provide her meals for her. The only way to see the Queen would be to fight through an army of tens of thousands of ants."

I let it go, though reluctantly. Very reluctantly, dear reader! The Queen, it needn\'t be said, sounded like a bold adventurer after my own heart!