CHAPTER 480: ORIGIN OF THE BLACK LOCUSTS

The powder is now on its way to be distributed to the affected areas of Darcero Kingdom to quell the locust plague and deal with them before they can make catastrophic damage to the economy. Thanks to the hard work of everyone, the production went smoothly and the powder is now ready for use. The only remaining problem is how to remove the black locusts from the kingdom permanently. Sure, the powder can definitely destroy the black plague in the process, but that doesn’t mean they are something that can fully destroy and remove the locusts from existence. It is just a means to keep them from further causing more damage and not a permanent solution.

Since the farm work they are about to do has been destroyed by the locusts, Elaina decided just to let the Feys take a rest day. Curaj still did his work of feeding the animals, but aside from that, he also got a rest. With the plague still happening outside, Elaina decided to talk to the God of Farming about the incident and discuss the matter regarding the pests.

"I never thought we would come to talk about this, God of Farming, since pests weren’t a big problem before, and dealing with them only takes a few minutes of additional work but with the situation that happened earlier, I think it is time we take this matter seriously and get a good contingency to counter any upcoming pests that would ruin the crops in the process."

"[Yes. I also think. The locust plague that is currently happening was something beyond our control, and we didn’t even expect them to appear all of a sudden. I was confident that pests are very easy to remove since my disciple has been working with blessing the lands and keeping the land fertile and free from any kind of pests that would totally destroy every single crop in one single night. It’s just that the black locust swarm just appeared all of a sudden; even with the blessings, the plague was just too hard to be repelled with just those blessings alone.]"

"True. I didn’t hear any kind of warning that those locusts would suddenly attack and overwhelm the whole kingdom. It was like it got intentionally released."

"[That’s a possibility, but considering the black locusts are able to fly long distances just to find food, the places they are in might have already been reduced to wastelands after their attack. But considering I am not an expert on them, perhaps we should ask the Goddess of Taming about this matter. The locusts might not be part of her repertoire to tame, but she does know the intricacies related to these plague-driving insects.]" The God of Farming turned to look at the Goddess of Taming, waiting for her turn.

"[My turn to explain, then. I think you might have hit something when you said that something or someone might have released them, Elaina. The plague that is currently attacking Darcero Kingdom is not a natural cause of migration. I used a bit of my authority to track and detect the previous location from which the insects came. At first, I also thought the first place they had landed must have been turned to wasteland as a result, and should have suffered a disastrous aftermath. However, when I tried scanning, it turned out blank. I don’t see any location where those Black Locusts came from. They were like they came directly from Darcero Kingdom itself and didn’t migrate from another country or kingdom entirely.]"

Elaina’s expression turned grim. Hearing that the black locusts might have been from Darcero Kingdom itself is a sign that something is going on. Darcero Kingdom might have forests, but it wasn’t big enough to house all of the locusts for quite a long time, and only emerges now. It should have been a regular problem if the locusts actually originated in Darcero Kingdom and just recently became a plague problem.

"[I also have to add but according to the details of the world and the data that was sent to me, Black Locusts should have been fully extinct. The whole Black Locusts race has been destroyed in the past centuries after the destruction they brought, which resulted in widespread famine due to the food supply that ended up being eaten by the locusts. Since even grass was not safe from them, even regular livestock suffered from the famine, and many have died in the process. As a revenge, the whole world united to fully terminate and cut the bloodline of the Black Locust and purge it forever. This resulted in their full extinction, and it was declared true after that. And true to the words about their extinction, there is no news that those plague bringers have returned to cause more hunger and famine. Not until today.]" the Goddess of Taming added.

"That means someone in Darcero Kingdom just summoned a swarm of them in one go? How does that work? There is no way those Locusts would remain still without invading and causing problems already."

"[If my guess is correct, since there is a high likelihood that the swarm came from Darcero Kingdom, there is also a chance that there is someone who can control them and just released them in one go after cultivating them to this extent. Just by gathering that many locusts, a whole building or even a ship can be a good storage to keep those insects, and they are released by the time nighttime hits.]" the God of Farming guessed.

"This isn’t a good thing. If what you guys have said is true, then the one who ruined the harvest must be someone else, and they intentionally released this during the final days when harvests are going to happen all around Darcero Kingdom. There is no way they are not aware of this. I needed to tell everyone about this."

"[I suggest you keep it for now, Elaina. Observe and try to deduce whether our assumption is correct. For now, I will come up with ways to stop future pests, including the Black Locusts. Thanks to the powder my disciple made, I managed to get some blueprints to create something that can work universally on different pests and not just the black locusts. You should take a rest for now, Elaina.]" the God of Farming said before going quiet.

"[I also needed to go. I needed to inquire with my mother about the existence of the Black Locusts and to help confirm if those insects were gone or not. I haven’t said it, but my mother is the Goddess of Animals so you can say that the data that comes from her is accurate. Catch you later, Elaina.]" The Goddess of Taming also followed the God of Farming, and her line went quiet as well.

Elaina leaned her head into the sofa and sighed. All of these things are causing her head to hurt. "Perhaps it’s time for me to get a vacation."