Rustle~
Unaware of the simple fact that all his guard had already been wiped out or ran away, Charles remained asleep atop the giant ant as he was carried down into one of the tunnels leading deeper into the giant ant nest. His sleeping form blending in perfectly with the back of the giant ant, while the lingering scent from the guards that had just been killed made the ants overlook him as they moved deeper into the nest with the dead bodies of those the guards in question.
In turn, causing any other giant ants passing by them to ignore Charles, as they simply thought he was someone that had been captured alive and was being brought back by those who had gone out to deal with the ones that had caused a commotion within their territory.
By the time that the giant ants reached the area for food storage and processing, a section of the nest where a few specialized ants devoured and stored the food inside social stomachs was far larger than the rest of the giant ants with some even having special abilities allowing them to extend the time food could be stored for. In other words, one of the most important locations inside the nest, that someone like Charles would never have had the chance to step inside under normal circumstances.
However, his sleeping state and the general lack of awareness from the giant ant that had been unknowingly carrying him on its back resulted in him successfully bypassing the countless defensive layers that had been formed by the giant ants along the way.
Not because all the giant ants had been unaware of his presence, but because they had seen him in the same way as those giant ants moving past him on his way. Viewing him as a weaker monster that had simply been caught alive and posed no threat to the nest itself. His sleeping state essentially being misunderstood as him having been knocked out by one of the poisonous giant ants.
"Hm? Where is-"
Because of this, as Charles slowly opened his eyes in a half-asleep state due to the giant ant, he was sleeping on top of coming to an abrupt stop, he barely muttered out a few words before freezing at the sight of over a dozen giant ants scattering about. Stopping himself just in time before he did something that would undoubtedly have ended up alerting those giant ants to his presence.
He might not have any clue about his current situation, but he was at the very least aware of the fact that he likely wouldn’t be able to stay alive for long if those giant ants noticed him. Especially considering that the strength of those ants was no weaker than himself and should all be somewhere between B and C Rank Monsters.
One or two, he might be able to take on alone, but a dozen? He stood no chance with his strength being average at most for someone in the B Rank... And even that was mostly with the help of his expensive armor and weapon, things that he didn’t have on him while sleeping.
Meaning... In his current state, he would likely struggle even against a C Rank Monster...
What happened to his guards and his knights? A question that emerged amidst the panic he felt welling up inside him, but one that didn’t last for long, as he directly witnessed what could only be described as an oversized giant ant with a stomach so large that it could barely move around, devour the body of what he easily recognized as one of his guards.
From going back to sleep thinking that his guards and two personal knights could deal with the monster that had suddenly appeared to block their path during their chase of the group of adventurers who had dared to blatantly ignore him to ending up surrounded by giant ants with his guards being devoured in front of him, it was a change that he couldn’t face calmly, but was forced to do so unless he wanted to end up like his guards had.
No! I must find a way out of this place!
Feeling an unknown sense of determination suddenly welling up inside of himself, likely fueled by the fear he was feeling in the face of the current deadly situation he found himself in, Charles moved through instinct. Silently loosening his bedding enough to silently roll off the side of the giant ant that had been carrying him without being noticed before continuing to roll on the ground towards a small crevice where he would be able to better hide himself. Ignoring the countless small bones and rocks scattered across the ground digging into his skin, while silently cursing his habit of sleeping in his underwear.
The only positive compared to how he slept at home in his mansion being the fact that he had decided to also wear a shirt while sleeping this time around. Making his experience a bit less painful.
Rustle~
By the time he finally reached the crevice and managed to squeeze his way inside the small indent in the room that had been carved out by the giant ants in the past, the giant ant that had been carrying him earlier had already left without noticing his disappearance.
Successful as his escape had been, he didn’t have any clue about what to do now that he had escaped. After all, he was currently only in his underwear with a thin shirt barely covering his upper body, while his legs were already covered in a few small injuries from rolling over the bones and rocks covering the ground of the artificial cave, he found himself inside of.
Fighting in his current state with those giant ants would essentially just be him signing his own death certificate ahead of time and so, he didn’t have any intention of fighting the giant ants that had even overcome his personal knights in his underwear.
Instead of that, he decided to follow a much safer path that involved him sneaking out without being noticed in the process. The problem with this path was that he had no idea where to go to get out of the giant ant nest that he had somehow ended up finding himself inside of.
Worse yet, he did have some knowledge of giant ants and knew for certain that it would be close to impossible to find his way out without any clear path to follow.
The only real path to survival he could think of was waiting for information of what had happened to him somehow reaching his family and them requesting the aid of an S Rank Adventurer.
But... Given that he believed that all his guards and personal knights had perished already, it was unknown just how long it would take for his family to even learn that something might have happened to him.
With his normal behavior and having only just recently set out for the expedition to the Thousand Spire Mountain Range, Charles could easily see it taking two to three months before his family even realized something might have happened to him.
By that point in time, even if he somehow managed to stay hidden, he would have already starved to death.
In other words, he couldn’t rely on waiting for help from his family and would have to get out on his own, something that was close to impossible, but at the very least he would have a chance of surviving however small it might be.
The first problem he faced now, that his mind was set on trying to escape the giant ant nest on his own, was finding a way to properly disguise himself and avoid the giant ants picking up on his scent while he attempted to escape.
Unfortunately, the only way he could think of to disguise his own scent involved him covering himself in something rather foul smelling that came out of the other end of the oversized giant ants not too far away from where he was hidden. Located close enough that Charles almost found it suspicious, as it was perfectly lined up for him to sneak over and use to mask his scent without being noticed by the oversized ants currently busy devouring his now dead guards.
As for other giant ants... He didn’t have to worry, as they had all left or were gathered around the entrance to the artificial cave. Nowhere close enough to notice his presence if he acted fast enough.
But... As a noble, he didn’t immediately just give in and rush over to cover himself in the... Natural fertilizer created by the oversized giant ants. The thought of doing it was one thing and actually doing it was another, he still needed some time to convince himself.
Unfortunately, he didn’t have much time, as he would have to make a choice before his dead guards were devoured by the oversized giant ants...