I Am The Swarm

The Swarm’s continuous troop deployment lasted for two full months. All the foreign races expressed regret over this behavior, as it was referred to as “sending troops” precisely because the Confederation forces suffered minimal losses.

Every five minutes, a wave of approximately 60,000 Primordial Body projectiles was launched. While 60,000 might seem like a large number, when spread across a front line spanning thousands of kilometers, it was like a drop in the bucket.

Over the course of two months, the Swarm lost over a billion units, nearly 30% of their total forces. This brought their troop numbers down to a level comparable to the Confederation’s.

However, the difference in individual combat capabilities was vast. The Swarm’s main combat units were 500-meter-long Space Octopuses, while even the weakest outer-ring civilization in the Confederation had conventional warships exceeding 2,000 meters in length.

The disparity in size meant a significant difference in the number of main cannons each side could deploy. Although the Swarm had added specialized long-range units like the Puffer Cannonfish, as well as Desolation-Class Motherships and Megastructures, their numbers still couldn’t bridge the gap with the Confederation.

Originally, the Swarm had slightly closed the gap in high-end firepower by equipping all their units with dark energy systems, allowing them to hold their ground against the Confederation. However, under the brain-dead leadership of their commander, the continuous two-month troop deployment further strained their already limited forces.

A series of chain reactions followed, and the Swarm fell into a decline. While the Confederation remained optimistic, they chose to proceed cautiously, avoiding reckless advances even with their advantage.

Now, two years later, the casualty ratio between the two sides was stark. The Swarm’s main forces had dwindled to less than 1.5 billion, less than 40% of their pre-war numbers.

In contrast, the Confederation had lost fewer than a billion units, about 30% of their pre-war forces.

The Confederation hadn’t brought the outer-ring civilizations along just to cheer from the sidelines. While this wasn’t the outcome the outer-ring civilizations had hoped for, they had no valid reason to refuse combat.

As for whether the mid-ring civilizations had anticipated this outcome before the war, that was a matter of perspective.

Thus, over 80% of the Confederation’s losses came from the outer-ring civilizations’ fleets. Under their cover, the Confederation’s high-end forces suffered minimal losses, and their actual combat strength remained largely intact.

In this situation, the Swarm’s forces were being depleted at an accelerating rate, and the once-dense clusters of Primordial Body units had thinned significantly.

“The Swarm is done for!”

“This will be our first victory against the Swarm, and a major one at that. We’ll go down in history.” Although most records would likely focus on the Rashudia Race, this didn’t stop others from celebrating.

Especially for the outer-ring civilizations, being recorded in the Confederation’s history was a big deal. Many civilizations’ entries would consist of a single line: “Joined the Interstellar Confederation in year XXX.”

Thus, even a minor mention in the historical records was a significant honor for many civilizations.

“Should we take the initiative and force them to surrender?”

“Are you stupid? The Swarm would love for us to get closer. Right now, their only advantage is close combat.”

“Who’s the stupid one here? I’m talking about applying pressure while maintaining a safe distance.”

“I still think you’re the stupid one. If the Swarm wants us to get closer, how would that pressure them? They’d be thrilled.”

“You!…”

As the argument heated up, another representative, friendly with one of the parties, stepped in. “Alright, alright, stop arguing. But I also don’t agree with getting closer to the Swarm.”

However, after mediating, he shifted his stance and opposed approaching the Swarm, further souring the mood of the previous speaker.

“Right now, it’s not advisable to get closer to the Swarm. It’s not just because of their close combat abilities, but also the potential stellar bomb. Even though we’ve mostly dismissed that possibility, we still have to be cautious,” said the Daibo Civilization representative. Despite their mechs being utterly defeated and their deep resentment toward the Swarm, they remained rational.

“Exactly. We must maintain a certain distance. If the stellar bomb plan is real, we need more reaction time,” another representative supported the Daibo’s viewpoint.

“Come on, if they had that capability, they would’ve blown up that star already. Why wait until now?”

“Maybe the Swarm is deliberately feigning weakness to lure us closer. If the star explodes, their forces are doomed anyway.”

“Right. I never understood their troop deployment earlier, but since no one else seemed concerned, I didn’t say anything.” This comment from another representative made the Daibo commander feel less alone. Clearly, others had noticed the anomalies as well.

“If it were me, with so many troops, I wouldn’t reveal my trump card right away. But I certainly wouldn’t send troops like that. I’d fight first and see if I could turn the tide.”

“This is the Swarm’s territory. A stellar explosion wouldn’t just affect one star system; it would impact all of their territories to varying degrees,” a mid-ring civilization representative said casually.

In reality, this area was also close to the Interstellar Confederation’s territory, but only outer-ring civilizations bordered the Swarm, and those bordering them were also outer-ring civilizations.

While the Interstellar Confederation publicly promoted equality and mutual assistance, a class hierarchy undoubtedly existed. The mid-ring civilizations far from the front lines could afford to be indifferent, but the Locke Mutual Aid Society and the Koya Alliance representatives looked uneasy.

“If I were the Swarm, even if I could blow up the star, I wouldn’t blow up the one in my backyard.”

“Exactly. But we don’t know what the Swarm is planning. If it were me, I wouldn’t even start this war. What’s the point of fighting a battle you’re destined to lose?”

“True. Even if they defeat a few of us outer-ring civilizations, the Interstellar Confederation is much larger than just us,” a Locke Mutual Aid Society member lamented.

“Regardless, we can’t completely rule out the possibility of a stellar bomb. We can’t recklessly approach them.”