CHAPTER 498: AS IF THE SNOW WOULDN’T MELT

The system eyes.

I have donated, in total, twenty more of my eye samples over the course of the last months. Each sample was a tiny piece of flesh—less than a grain of sand!—but it meant a new eye that was implanted in one of my daughters.

Bloodhero and Tabletina both wanted to have these eyes for their people. Both had good reasons to want this.

In the end, I assigned ten eyes to each of them. Tabletina gave the honour of bearing the system eyes to ten regional Physician leaders. Bloodhero gave the system eyes to the ten most experienced Beehounds from those who could use astral projection.

Despite being astral, it allowed me to use system vision. I wasn’t sure at first if it would work even on someone who had a single system eye, but it did.

Now, ten elite system-eyed Beehounds were scouting the lands outside the Bee Empire and cataloguing the genes of our enemies. Our armies were more prepared to meet their foes, and the losses we experienced in battle were notably reduced.

Even warnings from Oracles didn’t have the same effect as this clear and precise knowledge.

It was worth walking with a bandage over one eye for half of my recent days.

***

It was spring again when I got alarming reports from the mountains.

This was unexpected—things were going smoothly there, albeit slowly. The deforestation progress was 11% complete, and the forests’ advance on the other side of the continent slowed down thanks to the local beasts evolving to resist cold.

The thing that alarmed my subordinates enough that it ended on the Empire Council was the weather.

Warm, sunny weather.

"The anti-tree squads and scouts assigned to them report that a lot of snow melts under the sunlight," Bloodhero said. "They think that a lot more snow than we thought was lying on the ground because of the ice-hole trees instead of the altitude. Now that the trees were cut, nothing stops the warmer seasons from affecting these regions as they should."

While the faces of most of my Advisers darkened upon hearing this news, a few of them were still confused.

Things-Things was the one who spoke up first.

"And why is this bad-bad, Bloodhero? You said that this was a report about something we must solve, but... This is just some snow."

Bloodhero’s jaw tightened.

"This isn’t SOME snow. This is a LOT of snow—there are piles of it higher than a human house in some places, and the snowy area is millions of square kilometres long."

"When snow melts, it turns into water. Water is a liquid, and liquids flow downward," Researchina added. "When the snow finishes melting, there will be a massive flood. I assume that we have more than a week to prepare, right?"

Researchina looked at Undecided, who blinked, then tilted her head left and right, then nodded.

"Yes, sister. I see no floods in my dreams yet. I will try to find out how you will resolve this, but..."

I smiled at her and nodded.

"I know, I know. This is hard, and when we start to act with foreknowledge, the timeline becomes a total pain to read. It will be enough if we know when the main flood begins."

Undecided perked up immediately.

"I can tell that, Father! I-I mean, not really, but if it will be soon..."

"Soon, soon. We must prevent this NOW! Build drainage channels all over the mountains to divert the water to the ocean!" Workharder exclaimed, raising a little in her seat and shaking a fist in the air.

"Useless," Ambrosia replied immediately.

My beautiful wife was studying the map of the Bee Empire on the wall with an intense gaze and a slight, cute frown. This was a kind of gaze that made me want to be this map...

But this was a serious conversation, so I pushed the thought away before anyone accidentally read it.

"Why, Mother-Queen? You want to say my workers won’t be able to do it fast enough?" Workharder asked, looking offended. "I actually have a plan!"

Amby’s face showed that she had cautious belief in this plan, but I have actually heard it in Workharder’s thoughts.

Thus, I could tell for sure...

"This plan is shit. Look here, my girl," It pointed at the map. "You wanted to make the drainage channels put the extra water into the widest regional rivers. This way you won’t have to make channels that go all the way to the sea..."

Workharder nodded along with my words until I flailed my arms in exasperated agitation.

"But you should’ve thought about all these rivers, too! Most of them have low banks already. They also start high in the mountains. Melting snow will flood them all! The floods we will experience won’t be near the mountains; they will cross half the Bee Empire, I’m afraid."

Workharder’s face fell.

"But... What else to do, Father? This is the best way to deal with any floods. The only way! Unless we abandon everything that was on the ground and start swimming until the water goes away!"

The Empire Council fell into an uneasy silence as everybody tried to come up with a better idea. This was a true brainstorm—there were brains, and a storm of thoughts bounced between them thanks to telepathy.

Several minutes passed until Things-Things groaned and slammed her face with her palms.

"This is awful, yes, awful! Why do all the ideas we come up with require so much time and resources? Those stupid trees, they are giving us trouble even after we cut them!"

"Maybe cutting them was a mistake," Worriesgone muttered. "But they are enemies. We can’t just plant them back..."

An idea flashed in my head.

It was wild, it was insane, but... It also promised incredible success if it worked. Which it would, because it was also brilliant.

I grinned and almost giggled to myself.

"We can’t, Worriesgone? Or maybe we CAN?"