Chapter 37: Death of Long Wei and the Outbreak

Suddenly Acquired Additional Trait.

It was the effect of the Honey Jelly made by the Queen Bee.

Immunity to all viruses.

Just hearing that sounded incredible.

Remember the pandemic incident that covered the world a few years ago.

Everyone went crazy.

Masks, hand sanitizers.

They were impossible to find.

Who knows, something like that could happen again.

There’s no guarantee it won’t.

I should ask the Queen Bee to give me a few later.

I’ll give one to each of my family and acquaintances.

Bbyak.

The bees buzzing around also each took one and went back to their places.

If we’re moving to a new territory, we have to be diligent.

They gathered in groups of three or five around the hive hanging on the tree.

Snap.

They took the whole hive away.

Is that how bees normally move?

No way.

Let’s just not think about it.

Slowly and carefully, they flew all the way to the plain.

This place was always peaceful.

The sudden appearance of the bees made me curious.

“Oh my, this time it’s bees.”

Seo Rin, who was with Seolha, showed interest in the cute bees’ arrival.

“Yes, we just met this new friend.”

Carefully, I took the Queen Bee off my shoulder.

Then.

Buzzz—

Her behavior was completely different from before.

The genuine smile was nowhere to be seen; instead, she was wary of Seolha and Seo Rin.

Could this be… jealousy?

“Ahaha.”

I awkwardly scratched the back of my head.

Never thought I’d get jealous of a bee in my life.

“W-wait a moment. Okay, okay.”

The Queen Bee grabbed the sleeve of my inner shirt and pulled it.

A subtle battle of nerves unfolded.

There was nothing I could do.

“L-let’s talk later.”

“All right.”

Eventually, she distanced herself from Seolha and Seo Rin and dragged me to a spot far from the hive.

She puffed air into her cheeks like she was sulking.

Did I do something wrong?

Well, let’s try to cheer her up first.

I scooped some sweet honey and held it near her chin.

But the Queen Bee showed no sign of calming down.

Come on, don’t be like that. Cheer up.

I gently tickled her side, and soon enough, the Queen Bee smiled genuinely.

One more bite of the sweet honey.

That’s when it happened.

Suddenly, the Queen Bee’s body began to glow brightly.

Evolution.

She was leveling up.

No, this was different from before.

The white light expanded and filled the surroundings.

And then.

Buzzz!

The Queen Bee appeared, transformed.

Her appearance was more mature than ever.

Her body lines were sleeker.

She flew gracefully, wearing large wings and a small crown.

Then, multiple blue screens appeared in front of my eyes.

[Forager Bee has grown to the highest rank.]

[The Grace of the Familiar is activated.]

[The Forager Bee (Queen) has received a Master’s Recognition.]

[Forager Bees’ honey collection volume increased by 200%.]

[Forager Bees’ activity radius increased by 200%.]

[Forager Bees can now be freely commanded.]

[All hidden plain’s bees now hold goodwill toward the player.]

[Due to the effect of the sweet honey, Forager Bee (Queen) evolves into Royal Queen.]

[A new individual has been born.]

How many was that?

First, the crown.

[Master of the Hive] This is a symbol of recognition only granted to the Queen Royal Queen acknowledged by the Master.

She can command all affiliated bees and greatly increases honey yield and activity range.

For the first time, the Grace of the Familiar skill was activated.

A conditional skill that only triggers when the tamed familiar reaches the highest rank.

Honestly, I hadn’t paid much attention to it until now.

I always thought someone would eventually reach the highest rank, but that was a long way off.

And for good reason; growth was never easy.

Even Bbyak, who had been around the longest, only managed a one-level increase.

But the Queen Bee achieved the highest rank within a few hours of meeting her.

Why was that?

The only guess now was the honey.

It was an item received as a reward for clearing the 20th floor.

Thinking about all the perks I had received so far, it was a bit disappointing.

But its true value was something else.

It summoned the insect-type familiar and pushed its growth to the maximum.

If it weren’t for this, the current situation wouldn’t make sense.

No wonder the golden ticket’s perks were so special.

It awakened the familiar’s potential and evolved it into a completely new individual.

Buzzz!

The excited Queen Bee climbed onto my shoulder again.

Then—

Buzzz.

Hundreds of bees flew over and landed in front of me.

And then.

They bowed their heads as if paying respects.

Could it be that I became the king of the bees?

***

New residents moved into the plain.

Bees.

The Earth Rabbits and the bees greeted each other warmly.

It was fortunate that their relationship was not bad.

In fact, the rabbits and bees were already familiar with each other.

They had met several times while wandering around.

There was already some intimacy between them.

Bbiee!

Somi, representing the Earth Rabbits, boldly extended her hand.

Soft pink jelly was visible in it.

The Queen Bee responded with a genuine smile.

She flew over gracefully and held Somi’s hand.

The two shook hands amicably.

It was a heartwarming sight.

Thus, the Earth Rabbit × Bee collaboration was born.

First, they used Choco’s excellent sense to find the optimal place for beekeeping.

Bbyak and Toto combined their efforts to clear the area, and the skillful rabbits crafted hives from quality wood, so the bees gathered honey efficiently.

But that wasn’t all.

The influence of the evolved Royal Queen Queen Bee was surprisingly immense.

Buzz!

She began gathering even more bees herself.

First, a junior queen bee joined.

Then two more followed.

So, four bee groups in total gathered on the plain.

That was an enormous number.

As they actively collected honey, the Royal Queen monitored their progress.

Before I knew it, a bottle of the finest honey jelly was collected.

The plain was filled with the sweet scent.

Since everyone worked hard, let’s share it evenly.

Fondling the honey jelly, it was sweet but never cloying.

At first, the sweetness might be overwhelming, but the gentle floral scent and crispness came through clearly.

Of course, the others felt the same.

The Royal Queen readily shared the honey jelly with everyone.

Starting with the family—Dohyun, Seo Rin, and even Seolha, who was the most wary.

Though the Queen Bee didn’t seem to fully like Seolha yet, that would improve gradually.

“Hmm, this is really delicious.”

Dohyun was the first to taste the honey jelly and let out a praise.

He usually didn’t like sweets much, but the honey jelly’s fresh acidity was never tiring.

“Right? I’ve never tasted such delicious honey before.”

“Thanks to my son, you’re indulging yourself.”

“He’s my son, of course he has great talent, just like his dad.”

“Thank you. I’ll enjoy it.”

Each added a comment.

Mom, Dad, even Seolha.

Everyone was pleased.

But the real reaction came soon after.

Complete immunity to viruses.

“Th-this is!”

“It’s virus immunity!”

“My cold symptoms disappeared!”

Everyone was astonished.

Of course, this wasn’t ordinary honey jelly.

It was the royal jelly made by the Royal Queen herself.

Honey, known since ancient times as a perfect food.

The story of honey discovered in Egypt that never spoiled was well-known.

“Woo min player.”

Dohyun, with a moved expression, grabbed my hand.

His face looked as if he’d just won the lottery.

“Woo min, you truly are the most special existence in the world.”

Why was he suddenly like this?

Dohyun’s reactions today were unusual.

“Let’s try pulling the mask again this time.”

***

China’s number one ranked player, Long Wei.

His death saddened all 1.4 billion Chinese.

After clearing the 46th floor, he collapsed with an unknown high fever and was hospitalized.

No medicine improved his condition.

Eventually, Long Wei passed away after just three days.

The mourning procession stretched across the entire continent.

Especially his attendant Linzhao stayed by his side for days.

After the three-day funeral, Long Wei’s ashes, which shone like a star, were scattered all over the world.

However, there was a problem.

An unknown infectious disease began to spread among players afterward.

It started as a mild cough but soon turned into a high fever accompanied by hemoptysis.

Competent players gathered in emergency rooms.

“Everyone, stay calm.”

The virus, whose nature was unknown, had spread across the entire Chinese authorities.

In just three days, over 5,000 patients appeared during Long Wei’s funeral period.

China was in a state of emergency.

Players, the foundation of national growth, were infected by an unknown virus.

There was no cure, no vaccine, and no effective countermeasure.

“What should we do now? At this rate, the country is doomed.”

China’s top officials gathered with serious faces.

Many had player children of their own.

“First, we must develop a vaccine.”

“That vaccine. 5,000 infected in three days. If we delay any further, no players will remain in China.”

Rumors about the virus were already spreading among Chinese players.

Some had already fled to other countries.

“We have to capture those who fled and re-educate them.”

“Are you crazy? If that rumor leaks, the authorities will pin all responsibility on us.”

Their concern was not about stopping the virus.

National security was more important.

Or rather, their own positions.

No one wanted to take responsibility for this situation.

Everyone was only trying to read each other’s intentions.

Eventually, they began an absurd plan.

“In that case, let’s shift the responsibility to other countries.”

“What do you mean?”

“Just put them on charter flights and send them off. Korea, Japan, Singapore, the Philippines, even the US, UK, Germany, France—we’ll quietly send them to various countries without anyone noticing.”

A pale-faced man folded his jaw thrice and spoke with crazed eyes.

Any sane person would have called him mad.

But none of the people in that room were sane.

“First, this fact must never leak outside.”

“Don’t worry about that. The media is already under control.”

They exchanged glances.

Then, one by one, stood up, spitting on the floor.

They had been looking for talented players to employ at the Global Association anyway.

“That’s right. Our great China must show the world that we’re the first to discover players.”

In the dark meeting room, they made a decision that should never have been made.

The worst choice in human history.

They hid all the truth and released the virus into the world.

The whole world erupted in chaos within just seven days.