Chapter 88: The Giant Wasp Crisis

A distorted version of “Two Tigers” was sung as “Two Monkeys,” but in any case, no one understood the lyrics.

The bard, Kiki Lishimore, fired up the crowd with his debut performance and then began to sing even more beautiful songs:

“On the green plains of Proxili dwell the friendly people of Dadares.
The beautiful and kind Princess Dada, whose eyes shine with the wisdom of stars,
The princess sings of a life filled with happiness, the lush mountains and clear waters the eternal home of her people.
But black demons tore through the sky, and united, the people fought to build a new home.
They called upon Epale, Goddess of Love, to drive out the darkness and bring light to Dadares.
They called upon Kurman, Goddess of Thorns, to guard the dawn and bring hope to Dadares.
They called upon heroes unafraid of evil to rescue Dadares, fallen into the shadows.
Beautiful and kind Princess Dada, please send wandering poets across the land to spread your tale…”

Though the melody of every song was much the same, there was no denying the beauty of Kiki Lishimore’s voice. Listening to him sing was like attending an opera, like hearing a story unfold; now everyone was utterly entranced.

“Keen!” Tina couldn’t help but grab Ja Zhengjin’s hand, her face filled with compassion. “Those people of Dadares are so pitiful. Where is Proxili? If only we could help them!”

“Proxili is in the Beastman Empire, said to be the territory of the Catfolk,” Buddy replied, having overheard Tina. “I’m afraid, my lord, that even if you wished to help, it would be impossible. We’d have to lead an army across the five great empires, sail the Silent Sea, and pass through the Lava Mountains. If we marched, we’d likely be stopped at the Audis Empire!”

“Oh!” Tina realized how naïve her suggestion was only after hearing this.

Kiki sang several more songs, all basically recounting his journey and experiences. Listening, most of the villagers were moved, unconsciously taking on the bard’s perspective, as if they themselves had lived through all this sorrow and joy.

Many villagers couldn’t hold back their tears—including Tina.

Perin’s face was expressionless, yet tears welled in her eyes as well.

What was supposed to be a joyful concert to celebrate the move to the city had, thanks to Kiki, turned into a weeping assembly!

Ja Zhengjin had had enough. He stood up and, under the astonished gaze of the crowd, strode onto the stage. “Kiki, you must be tired of singing, right? Let me try your guitar!”

“My… what?” Kiki looked bewildered.

“That thing in your hands!” Ja Zhengjin pointed to the instrument that looked much like a guitar.

“Oh, you mean my ancient lyre?” Kiki finally understood and handed it over. “My lord, you can play the ancient lyre? What school of bardic music do you belong to? Ancient style? Or the martial style?”

“None of those!” Ja Zhengjin cradled the lyre and lightly plucked the strings, testing the sound.

“My lord, the ancient lyre isn’t usually held that way…” Kiki tried to helpfully correct him.

“Why don’t you take a break for now?” Ja Zhengjin waved him off.

Kiki had no choice but to leave the stage with a smile and find a chair to rest.

After tuning the strings, Ja Zhengjin cleared his throat. “A long, long time ago, there was a legendary group of young people. On every full moon night, they would perform an ancient and mysterious ritual…”

Even Tina could barely understand a few words of his language, so no one really comprehended what Ja Zhengjin was saying. But when he started to play the lyre—no, the guitar—in a rhythmic beat, singing and stamping his feet in time, the villagers were at first bewildered. Very soon, though, they found themselves swaying involuntarily to the music.

Especially when Ja Zhengjin reached the chorus, everyone stood up, swaying along with Lord Keen. Even without understanding the lyrics, the energy was infectious; heads bobbed and feet tapped without restraint.

The younger villagers even danced and shouted along: “Shoot! Shoot! Shoot! Shoot!”

Before long, even the bard Kiki Lishimore was swept up in the revelry and joined the celebration. The atmosphere soared, and everyone swayed to Ja Zhengjin’s song.

If only there were drums and other instruments, it would have been perfect! Playing guitar alone couldn’t fully capture the atmosphere, Ja Zhengjin thought with a trace of regret.

Just as everyone reached a fever pitch and Ja Zhengjin was preparing to end the song, disaster struck!

“Boom! Boom!” Suddenly, a gigantic insect, as large as a helicopter, appeared above the stage, its wings buzzing with a roar like spinning rotors. Its body was streaked with black and yellow stripes—it looked just like an enormous bee!

No, it was an enormous bee—or perhaps a hornet, a killer bee, who could tell the difference? In any case, it was a colossal member of the wasp family.

Apparently drawn by the music, the giant bee swooped down from the sky, flying toward the stage at incredible speed, its abdomen curled forward to reveal a lethal stinger.

“My lord, look out!” Wolf, Buddy, and the others were startled by the sudden attack and rushed to the stage.

But the giant bee reached Ja Zhengjin first and struck!

Fortunately, Ja Zhengjin’s reflexes were fast enough. He tossed the guitar aside, summoned his perfect iron shield, and blocked in front of himself.

Clang! The giant bee’s stinger struck the shield, sending sparks flying.

Seizing the opportunity, Ja Zhengjin conjured a spear of lightning in his right hand and stabbed it fiercely through the bee’s soft underbelly. Green fluid sprayed from the wound.

“Roar!” Wolf leapt onto the stage, slashing open the bee’s back with his claws.

“Heavenward Slash!” Buddy and Perin appeared almost simultaneously, both unleashing their strongest attacks.

With a sickening squelch, the giant bee was cleaved in two, its body crashing lifelessly to the stage as chaos erupted among the villagers.

“My lord, are you all right?” Buddy hurried over.

“I’m fine,” Ja Zhengjin replied, glancing at the bee’s corpse as a notification appeared before his eyes.

[Message] Perin has killed a Ruruto. You have gained 50 experience points.

“That was a Ruruto—this is bad!” Buddy’s face darkened as he stared at the corpse. “These creatures almost never appear alone, and they never stray far from their hive. If one showed up here, it means…”

“There must be a Ruruto colony settling near our city!” Perin said expressionlessly. “If we don’t eliminate them quickly, we’ll have a serious problem!”

“If even with all the arrow towers one could get in, that must mean…” Ja Zhengjin hurriedly jumped off the stage and looked up. His face went pale at the sight—black clouds, all made up of Ruruto, filled the sky. The arrow towers were firing desperately, but there were simply too many!