Reincarnated To Evolve My Bee Empire - Chapter 41

Chapter 41: Filling up all the queues
My brilliant idea was going to bring us safety *and* development points to the next level.

‘I’ve established basic resource gathering and industry. It’s time to use them for the next part of the strategic cycle—expansion! Expansion into agriculture.’

All the dangers to the colony were outside. If there was a way to cultivate something edible *inside* the hive, mortality rates will fall immensely.

Plus, agriculture is always good.

But saying “agriculture” was like saying “gunpowder” or “computers”. The idea was much simpler than the actual execution of it. I wasn’t even sure there was something to cultivate that bees could digest!

‘It will be much easier if I buy that meat digestion gene in the future.’

But for now, I was going to try cheating past the agriculture research process.

I was going to see if any of my neighbors had it figured out!

I called my Military Adviser B1374 to the Council Chamber.

“I have a task for our Commando Bees,” I told her. “You might need more than 20 Commando Bees to make it quickly. Train a hundred extra, first. No, wait, make it a thousand. More is better.”

“Will do, Father! I will ask the Industry Adviser for new equipment, too.” B1374 pumped her fist—it was almost a salute. “What is the task, Father?”

I smiled at her adoringly. The two weeks spent pushing knowledge into her head weren’t for naught.

“Yeah. I need Commando Bees to scour our territory, and even beyond that, and search for ant colonies—first closest to our hive, then farther and farther away. And as soon as they find one, they should tell me where it is.”

B1374 almost-saluted again.

“Yes, Father! Should we kill the ants? Burn their colonies?”

“What? No! No, I need them whole… for now. There’s nothing to burn, anyway.”

On Earth, there were several species of ants that grew edible fungi and “farmed” aphids for the sweet honeydew they produced. Not the annoying red wood ant—but I might get lucky.

Or I will fix the problem of red wood ants once and for all. Like with the hornets…

Mass destruction was really addicting. I understood some of those dictators now. Such a simple solution to so many things…

“I got it, Father. I will start the training right now!”

The Military Adviser flew out of the chamber. Despite her enthusiasm, just the training of the new Commando Bees alone would take about ten days. And making their armor…

This was a step I could skip. But I’d rather instead give armor to *every* bee in the hive if I could.

So I spoke with Industry Adviser B601 next and told her to train more Craftsmen Bees. Just a hundred was too little to keep an entire hive fit with good equipment.

“Two thousand! No… three thousand! I want three thousand Craftsmen Bees! I want my industry projects to be complete *in an instant*!”

“Sure, Father! Three thousand…” Industry Adviser B601 began counting on her fingers. “Ten students hundred and ten times…”

“I’m glad that you’ve been learning big numbers, but don’t bother.”

I went to the nearest wall and scribbled the calculations for her.

“You will need two iterations of training. So… Eight days in total?”

“We can train bees faster than that! Six days, Father! They only *really* need to know how to repeat after us, since you gave thinking to the Researchers. And the younger bees learn faster.” Industry Adviser pouted. “I like to think and poke things to find out what they do, too.”

I beamed.

“Awww. You still *can* and *should* think! Just about more practical things. Like, for example, how to train your students faster. Don’t let me stop you!”

I patted my daughter’s head, and she beamed at me.

“Thank you, Father, I will!”

“And don’t forget Material Foragers, too!”

“I know, Father.”

“And work on bone armor when you finish with this.”

“Uh-uh.”

I narrowed my eyes. Industry Adviser shifted on her feet.

She was like a teenager eager to flee from a boring lecture.

I sighed and gave up. Was I really such a boring dad?

“Well, go. I gave you the instructions… go.”

Industry Adviser B601 beamed at me and flew away.

‘Now I have two queues out of five filled for two weeks ahead. I should fill the others, then.’

I gave my Science Adviser a few simple technologies to poke at: notably, some protective gear and finding good rocks to make stone knives out of. Hell, maybe even metal—if there were any in the vicinity.

We were living among pillar mountains, after all.

The next project Ambrosia brought to me herself.

“Nectus, our stores of food are growing and growing, and so is our population. It’s time for us to create a Queen Bee and let her build their own colonies.”

I thought about it.

“But they will take a part of our bees with them, right?”

Ambrosia nodded.

“Yes, a new queen will take a half, perhaps. It will hit our production. But we must spread our progeny wider than our own colony!”

‘Yeah, but will that help me survive? System?’

<The colonies of other bees that are a part of your bloodline and accept your authority over them count as a part of your own. Their growth adds to your development points.>

I let out a breath of relief, then grinned.

Two Queens meant twice as much population growth. And *of course* my daughter will follow her father’s advice!

“Sure! Let’s spread our progeny like jam on a toast! What do I have to do? Do I have to mate with you? Do I have to *seduce* you, Amby~?”

Ambrosia looked at me from top to bottom appraisingly.

“Not today. I’m still heavy with the current brood. Tomorrow, I will pick several eggs from it and instruct Nurse Bees to feed them royal jelly.”

“Wait… several? We only have resources for *one* new Queen Bee!” I paused, remembering some *dreadful* bee facts. “No… You aren’t about to have them fight for their lives in a bee battle royale, where only the strongest gets to build her hive?”