Prologue – The Boy and the Bee

    Well, that was nice of you, kid, but like, what does this have to do with the story? I mean, like, saving a worker bee from a spider web isn’t really going to affect anything, right? Worker bees that are out foraging are the oldest ones anyways, so she probably won’t live long regardless. So, you know, this definitely won’t have any impact on the future.

    Right?

    Anyways!

    What does this have to do with anything? Can saving one worker bee affect anything? How will Belissar grow up? Tune in next time, to find out!

    And so our story begins! ...well, we’re off to a great start, aren’t we? But it’s fine! We’re here for bees, not people, so who cares what’s going on in the village! Bring on the bees!

    Anyways!

    Is this the end of Belissar’s life? Can Ruckanos locate the lost tower before his lord father finds out? When will we get to the bees? Tune in next time, to find out!

    Disclaimer: All mythology expressed here is solely the belief of Belissar. Because I’m sure the Tower Lords have a 100%, completely accurate understanding of the universe that they pass on to the frontier peasants in great detail. Definitely.

    Anyways!

    Will Belissar figure out what’s going on? Has he made the correct choices? And just what is a Tower of the Gods? Tune in next time, to find out!

    Inb4 Belissar goes and gets smote. Maybe this''ll become an Isekai after? Cause dirty peasants definitely can''t become Tower Lords! The Tower Lords said so so it must be true!

    Anyways!

    Will the gods smite the dirty peasant defiling their tower? Will Belissar figure out what''s going on? Can he meet the bee''s expectations? Tune in next time, to find out!

    I’ve learned my lesson! No more double statuses that take hours to read! We’re using hand-way descriptions only, no numbers allowed! I’m terminating the math!

    ...what’s that? It’s when the numbers go away that math gets serious? ...l-let’s move on...

    Creates hives? Check. Spawns brood? Check. Sorry Belissar, but you a queen now. You''ve achieved all the necessary characteristics. Dem''s just the rules. You don''t want to be a drone, after all! They literally die after mating, Belissar. They don''t even get a full set of genes, Belissar!

    Anyways!

    Can Belissar explain the differences in gender dimorphism between species to the bees? Can Belissar perform his role as bee royalty? Can the Tower hold back the Hunger beyond? Tune in next time, to find out!

    All right, hives built, workers grown, honey get! Looks like everything’s going well, despite the inefficient organic in charge of it all!

    What’s that? What’s that whole initial purification thingy-majig? Meh, I’m sure it’s nothing to worry about.

    Anyways!

    Can Belissar get some real beehouses going? Will he ever remember to build accommodations for himself? What’s that initial purification thingy-majig? Tune in next time, to find out!

    ...t-this wasn''t in the script. Main characters aren''t supposed to just...lose. T-There must be something wrong, this wasn’t supposed to be a serious novel!

    Anyways...

    Is there any hope for Belissar now? Tune in next time, to find out...

    ...do it, Belissar. Don’t you dare let the bees die again.

    Anyways!

    Can Belissar protect his bees from the ravages of the Hunger? Can he defeat a deadly shade? Will the gods punish him for what he has done? Tune in next time, to find out!

    Yes Belissar, we already know you made the wrong choice. Everyone knows mechanical clockwork puppets are far more efficient at terminating shades. But well, you’ll just have to live with it. Now you gotta fight with some flowers and a bunch of bees that will make us very upset if they die, so your idea better be a good one!

    Anyways!

    Can an untrained peasant defeat a shade of the hunger with some flowers and bees? What exactly is Belissar’s idea? Will the bees manage to survive with such an unprepared king? Tune in next time, to find out!

    Brave of you, Belissar, to risk your life for the bees. Intelligent? Um, well, let’s just settle with saying it’s very brave. We’ll reserve judgement on intelligent until we see your plan.

    Anyways!

    What is Belissar’s plan? Can he prove himself and face the Hunger directly? Is this an intelligent thing to do? Tune in next time, to find out!

    Ah, the old classic. When in doubt, dig a pit, and set it on fire! And congrats Belissar, your plan wasn’t completely dumb! I knew you had it in you!

    Anyways!

    What will be the results of a successful purification? Can Belissar keep it up? How will the gods react? Tune in next time, to find out!

    And so Belissar...definitely didn’t just turn down the blessing of a major god that any Tower Lord would have killed to receive in favor of some minor god few but the most knowledgeable in esoteric theology have even heard of. Definitely not. I’m sure such a choice will have no consequences whatsoever!

    Anyways!

    Has Belissar made the right choice? Will the Blessing of Bees enable him to succeed? Can Belissar rise to the challenge of leadership? Tune in next time, to find out!

    Not to worry Belissar, I know all the choices seem overwhelming, but you’ve prepared for this! Just remember your training, now is the time to put all your studies to good use! Optimization go!

    ...what do you mean, you don’t have any training? And no studies, either? This is weird, it sounds like you''re just a poorly educated peasant. Welp, guess you''ll just have to pick something yourself. The bees are counting on you so no pressure!

    Anyways!

    Can Belissar make a choice? Will he find out what remnants and challengers are? What other Tower Lord stuff is he missing? Tune in next time, to find out!

    Ah yes. The ‘ole fallback. When in doubt, say screw it and do something impulsive!

    Which is definitely not the author’s writing process! All my novels are definitely meticulously crafted and well-thought out! I definitely have a ten-thousand year plan and all is proceeding as I have foreseen! Which is why I definitely didn''t struggle with naming Niobee! Definitely not!

    A-Anyways!

    Has Belissar made the right choices? Can monster bee soldiers hold the line next time? What is the next step in the author’s definitely comprehensive master plan? Tune in next time, to find out!

    What do you mean making life or death decisions for countless lives is hard? I do it all the time! It’s super easy, just a click of a button!

    ...what do you mean, video games don’t count?

    Anyways!

    Can honey and an apiary stop the Hunger? Can anything top the pit trap / honey trap combo? Can Belissar decide which monsters to spawn? Tune in next time, to find out!

    Ye olde beehives kinda sucked, huh? Well, thankfully these are magical ye olde beehives! For magical bees that make magical honey!

    What''s that? How are they different from normal bees making normal honey? Eh, beats me. Honey’s practically magical as is, so let’s just leave it to the bees to figure out! They know best!

    Anyways!

    Will the peasant turn himself into something unnatural dabbling in powers beyond his comprehension? Can he do something about ye olde beehives? What are the side effects of extra magical honey? Tune in next time, to find out!

    And so the God of Bees doth command the chosen Tower Lord...yeah, like, go have a relaxing slow life with bees or something. It''s not like there''s some world-destroying calamity coming to tear down all you have built or whatever!

    Anyways!

    Can the chosen Tower Lord fulfill the mission tasked to him by his patron god? Are Belissar''s defenses sufficient for any future assaults? What will the bees find in the world beyond? Tune in next time, to find out!

    Magic flower get! Now to refine it in the spirit cauldron and...oh, wrong genre. Um, plant it and let the bees refine it into magic honey? Would xianxia bees be, like, living mini-spirit cauldrons?

    What’s that? What about the ancient ruins? Meh, who cares about some crumbling rocks. Obviously whoever built them didn’t make it to today so why should we care? There’s never anything important in some dusty old ruins!

    Anyways!

    What will Belissar’s bees do with the magic flowers? What sort of pills...er honey will they refine from its nectar? Who died and left their rock pile around? Tune in next time, to find out!

    Mana flower get! Oh, and some dusty old rock no one cares about. But more importantly, mana flowers! A valuable resource for all sorts of wizards, witches, alchemists, enchanters, etc...what do you mean he doesn’t know any mystic arts? Then why would he spend mana on such a thing? For the bees, huh? In that case, we’ll allow it!

    Anyways!

    What will the bees do with mana flower nectar? Was Belissar right to use his mana for this expense? Can a former peasant teach himself the mystic arts? Tune in next time, to find out!

    POBee 18.1 - The Firstborn

    Our first bee chapter! ...so it turns out actual bee queens have like, zero authority in their own hives. Decisions are made communally by the workers, or something. But I like, found that out after I started the novel, so, um, oops? They''re, um, magic bees so that somehow means absolute monarchy?

    ...do we need to have a workers'' revolution in the future? Belissar, you better change your title real quick. You wouldn''t want to be labeled a...reactionar-bee.

    Anyways!

    Can the Firstborn raise an army suitable for the King? Can the Second Dynasty overcome the failures of the First? Will the workers seize the means of magic? Tune in next time, to find out!

    ...I thought I terminated the math. Why are there numbers again? Where did they come from? Is it...is it impossible to escape from the numbers? Is math...inevitable? Was my high school math teacher right all along? Ah well, time to randomly throw out some big numbers and hope they work...err, I mean reveal my carefully calculated system!

    Anyways!

    Will Belissar figure out how to get DP? Will he collect a hundred pinecones? Can the monster bee soldier army stand up to a shade? Tune in next time, to find out!

    Mission from a god, prepping defenses for the Hunger, or happy bees? Obviously, the priority is happy bees. Heck, happy bees are like, the goal of the mission from the god so there.

    ...ok fiiiiinnneeee he can do some defense prepping as well. If he has to.

    Anyways!

    Can Belissar make his bees happy? Can he fulfill the missions tasked to him? Are his defense preparations sufficient for the future? Tune in next time, to find out!

    The hour is upon us. Soon the Tower shall be beset by...a minor purification? Um...well, it doesn’t sound like much, but a certain someone did lose the tutorial fight so maybe we should still be worried...

    Anyways!

    Can the soldier bee army hold the line? Will the bees overcome the failures of the past? Or will death and hunger return to the King’s lands? Tune in next time, to find out!

    ...we salute you, soldier bee. Your brave sacrifice secured victory for the hive. Turns out you gals were pretty good at fighting after all.

    Anyways.

    What will be the results of the successful purification? What have the bees won with their sacrifice? Tune in next time, to find out!

    Anyways!

    Can Belissar safely conclude the trade deal? Can he do so without awkwardness? Will the new torch delivery method hold up to a purification? Tune in next time, to find out!

    PO...Bear 40.1 - Un-Bear-able Profits

    A PO...non-bee? Ugh. Fine. If we have to...

    Anyways!

    Has Chief Rohsuak made the right choice? How will the Sacred Den Master respond? What will be the result? Tune in next time, to find out!

    Chief Rohsuak seems calm now, but she wasn’t always that way! Good luck Belissar! You’re gonna need it.

    Anyways!

    Can Belissar learn the mystic arts from Chief Rohsuak? Will he learn to fight on his own? Will he endure Chief Rohsuak’s...unique training methods? Tune in next time, to find out!

    Belissar, what do you mean you don’t have a stinger or make honey? Next you’ll tell me you can’t even fly! You almost sound like a drone, Belissar! Don’t you dare disappoint Niobee’s expectations of you!

    Anyways!

    Will Chief Rohsuak’s ‘magic’ training pay off? Will Niobee realize the horrible truth about her king? Will Belissar successfully grow stronger? Tune in next time, to find out!

    POBee 42.1 - Aggressive Bee-spanding

    And so the queens learn that they can, you know, expand. Expanding is pretty good, I hear. In fairness though, they were getting rushed by the Hunger, so I guess a bit of turtling was fine.

    Anyways!

    Can the Firstborn build an army to assure the King? Can the First of the Fifth reclaim the lead despite being deceived? Will the queens master the art of expanding? Tune in next time, to find out!

    ...Belissar, go apologize. You almost collapsed Niobee''s worldview! You must develop wings, a stinger, and the ability to produce honey now. It is the only way.

    Anyways!

    Can Belissar endure Chief Rohsuak''s training? Will Belissar develop powers worthy of a Tower? Will he fulfill Niobee''s expectations of him? Tune in next time, to find out!

    The hive of hives grows! The Firstborn has invented...meetings?

    ...well, the good news is that they’re bees and tend to like efficiency, so if the meeting could have been a bee-mail it will be a bee-mail.

    Anyways!

    Will Belissar master his own mana? Will the Fourth of the Seventh complete her plan? Will the Firstborn introduce the bee world to meetings? Tune in next time, to find out!

    Here it comes, the first expansion! This is, um, shaping up to be a bigger deal than I thought it was going to be. That’s, um, not going to be a problem, right?

    Anyways!

    Can Belissar succeed at the expansion? What will be the cost of doing so? Will he meet Chief Rohsuak again? Tune in next time, to find out!

    POBee 45.1 - Prepare the Bee-fenses!

    Well, you know, if amateurs study tactics and professionals study logistics then technically the First of the Fifth is the best general in the hive. Although, I suppose you do need some tactics to actually use those logistics. But I’m sure that the First of the Fifth’s ultimately most important contributions will be readily apparent.

    Anyways!

    Can the Firstborn create an army that won’t burden the King? Will the First of the Fifth remind everyone who has the best logistics in the realm? Has Belissar adequately prepared his Tower for the fight to come? Tune in next time, to find out!

    Well, um, that doesn’t seem good. It seems bad, even. Shades flying is cheating! They shouldn’t be allowed to do that! So, um, Belissar, you got something to deal with this, right? You’re ready to protect your bees, right?

    Right?

    Anyways!

    Will the Hunger be arrested for cheating? Can Belissar and the bees find a way to stop the flying shade? What will it cost to do so? Tune in next time, to find out!

    Whew, that was close. I almost had to decide what happens if the dungeon master gets killed or something. Well, Niobee probably would have done something before then, but thankfully she didn’t need to this time!

    And for a clearly unrelated bee-fact: Did you know bees can both sense and generate electrical charges? They apparently change the charge of flowers they visit which lets other bees know when a flower is out of nectar, and also use the charge they generate to help pollen stick to them. Bee swarms even give off readings reminiscent of thunderstorms! Well, I just thought that was neat, you know? Wonder if it will have any relevance to the story...

    Anyways!

    What will be the result of this purification? What will happen to the wounded soldier? Can Belissar do magic now? Tune in next time, to find out!

    Yes, over fifty chapters’ worth of words and Belissar’s dungeon is now...two floors. With two rooms thus far. Um, you ok, Belissar? I mean, not to pressure you or anything and room count isn’t the end all be all, but like, is that right? It’s almost like he’s just some guy and not the chosen one of ultimate destiny or something.

    What’s that? The bees are happy? Well then, everything’s going perfect. Carry on!

    Anyways!

    What rewards come with the expansion? What''s going on with Niobee? How will Belissar and his bees grow? Tune in next time, to find out!

    Big news, people! Niobee’s big now!

    ...what’s that? A bunch of choices, or something? Meh, I’m sure Belissar will take care of that, the confident decision maker of a king that he is!

    A-Anyways!

    What will his next choices be? What will Belissar actually choose? When will the author’s evil be stopped? Tune in next time, to find out!

    Ah yes, the easy answer. Just ask the bear people and they can tell us right away. And all it requires is for Belissar to talk to people. Yes...talk to...people...like, people that are not bees. Ugh. They’re like...fleshy and selfish and inefficient. They can’t even fly or make honey! They don’t even have stingers to conduct glorious sacrifices on behalf of the hive! It’s like they’re all drones! It’s bad enough that Belissar’s missing a lot of essential bee-ness and now we have to watch non-bees talking to other non-bees? Can we, like, just skip all that and get to the bee chapters? Talk to people smh.

    Anyways!

    Will Belissar find answers with the...non-bees? Can the information they possess help him make his choices? Can we get back to the bee chapters already? Tune in next time, to find out!

    ...just as long as you stay away from the hives, honey-thief. And wait, is Belissar actually talented? Let me check...it seems most Tower Lords already knew magic before they started, so nah. Niobee, we still counting on you gals to keep things running! And to keep any would-be thieves away, got that, Miss Non-Bee?

    Anyways!

    Did Belissar do all this for nothing? How will he respond to this new intel? What will Chief Rohsuak do now that lessons are done? Tune in next time, to find out!

    Well, it took a while, but the choices have finally been made! Belissar should have just asked the bees to begin with! Bee decisions best decisions!

    ...so no Dirt Tunnels, huh? I mean, I guess trees are cool. The bees will be happy and that’s what’s important. Maybe we’ll roll digger bees next time...or not, now that the system knows we want them. Ugh. Why did I make this an RNG system again?

    Anyways!

    What will the Orchard look like? What effect will Cross-Pollination have? How will the soldier bee army react to sprayers? Tune in next time, to find out!

    It’s the Fourth of the Seventh’s dream come true! Exploration and amazing sights, all within her home! If only she could just run out for a bit, but the workers are watching her carefully. Maybe it’s actually a nightmare to have it right there and still have to stay home?

    Anyways!

    Will the Fourth of the Seventh get to see the sights? Will Belissar find new flowers for his bees? What do the other bees think of all this? Tune in next time, to find out!

    POBee 53.1 - Failure and Victor-Bee

    Noooooo! Firstborn, you’re doing a great job! Don’t give up! Look, First of the Fifth is fine and she doesn’t even have an army! You got this!

    Anyways.

    Can the Firstborn make up for her failures? Will the new soldiers save the day? What will result from the First of the Fifth’s collaboration with the King? Tune in next time, to find out!

    POBee 53.2 - A Whole New World

    So, um, about that whole workers actually run the hive thing? Is it just me, or does anyone else hear the stirrings of revolution? I mean, the worker bees ARE the means of production so if they become in charge of themselves...I’m sure it will be fine. The Fourth of the Seventh will definitely maintain her current authority within her own hive. Definitely.

    Anyways!

    Will the Fourth of the Seventh get to see the sights and fulfill her duties to the hive? Who’s in charge of her hive? What will the First of the Fifth’s daughter think of her mother’s plan? Tune in next time, to find out!

    POBee 53.3 - The Child

    Moar bee chapters, moar! Muahahahahaha! And ah, yes. All according to the First of the Fifth’s plan! Her daughter is reaching her sky-high goals and the Fourth of the Seventh is offering her own resources to assist her! Clearly all is going in the way of the most favored queen, and there definitely won’t be any unforeseen consequences to this! Definitely not!

    Anyways!

    Can the First Daughter fulfill her mother’s expectations? Can she reach stability for her hive as well? What will result from her and the Fourth of the Seventh’s joint move to the Apiary? Tune in next time, to find out!

    Ugh, it''s the non-bees again. We couldn''t have gotten another bee chapter? Well, at least Belissar himself is currently focused on who he should be! Yes, build a nice home for the Fourth of the Seventh to probably want to leave in a bit!

    Anyways!

    What will result from Chief Rohsuak''s plan? Can Juosiutik acquire mana honeycomb for herself? What will the bees think of Belissar''s latest work? Tune in next time, to find out!

    POBee 54.1 - The Role of a Queen

    At first I was going to do this one from the Fourth of the Seventh’s POV, but then I thought now would be a good time to break into a worker’s perspective since the Fourth of the Seventh’s workers have a bit more initiative than the others. Mostly cause they need to, haha.

    Anyways!

    Can the worker set up a hive with her queen off exploring? Can the worker find a way to fulfill both her queen’s desires and the needs of their hive? What will result from the queen’s command to assist a rival hive? Tune in next time, to find out!

    And so, our boy Belissar, who may or may not have started as some peasant of all things, is finally getting the hang of ruling a Tower. Sort of. Maybe. Well, I guess we’ll see how all this holds up in the future! I mean, it’s not like there’s some world-ending calamity watching and learning from each time it fails, right? And like, no one out there who would want to cause trouble or anything, right?

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    Right?

    And speaking of trouble, nobody tell First of the Fifth that the supposed failure the Firstborn is not only receiving a mighty palace, but consulting and collaborating with the King on its design. That, um, might be a bit shocking for her...

    ...yeah, this is all going to end well. But one thing’s for sure...the bees are going to be happy!

    Anyways!

    Can Belissar complete beehouses for all the queens? Will the Flower Meadow beehouse contribute to the defense of all hives? How will the different queens respond to this development? Tune in next time, to find out!