Which was true to some extent; however, in reality, they were essentially a military asset for the government. His duty here was the same as Gunhee's: watch over the hunters and ensure that no ant leaves the island.
Apparently, any member of this species of ant could evolve into a queen if even one were left to escape. It was a scary thought.
These ants were really the perfect creatures for a hostile takeover or to drive a helpless race to extinction. They could evolve, and they did so at a pace that could only be described as terrifying.
The island had far more A-rank creatures on it than when he first visited to scan the island. If any of them should escape and succeed in their mission, that ant could then go to a hidden location and evolve into a new queen. That would automatically promote it to the higher ranks of S-rank.
Most of its eggs would hatch to be A-rank, and on the rare but still frequent occasion, an S-rank would emerge. He had to respect the design.
Steve was impressed by how effective it would have been if humanity weren't, well, human. He and the old man stood and watched as the main party of hunters finally arrived at the shores of the island.
"Hello, this is Hunter Kyoto Ryuji. Can you all hear me?" Steve heard a voice through the comms.
"We can hear you here and are ready," Steve replied.
"We hear you and are ready," another voice said through the line.
Truthfully, a normal communication network would have worked just fine, but the island could now be considered a dungeon of its own.
It was saturated with mana, so normal equipment wouldn't work; hence, his earpieces had to be put to use. The communication tests continued for a while before the actual mission began.
"To all hunters present, please ensure that all equipment, both offensive and defensive, is in good condition before you proceed. You are about to enter the gate barrier," Steve suddenly said.
"Acknowledged," a voice replied.
Hearing that, Steve simply nodded. Others may not be able to see it, but he could see it clear as day. The mana formed what looked like a dome over the entire island.
This was a prototype of his, but it seemed to be working fine. The government may have rejected his request to take care of the ants so they could create a connection with the Japanese hunters.
You know, politics over the actual safety of the people.
However, they had requested and paid a good amount of money for him to create something that could prevent the ants from leaving the island, even if it was only temporarily.
With Judy's help, this was designed. It absorbed energy from the dungeon itself to strengthen itself and was designed to recognize and allow humans to enter and pass as freely as they wanted.
"Do you think they can make it?" Gunhee suddenly asked.
"Their chances are much higher than mine were within the Red Gate," Steve replied.
....
There is an Audio book version of each chapter... Or well I am working towards it
You can see those on my Tiktok Page
@verse_of_inks