When I tried to enter the remaining tunnels, they were blocked with debris with no room for to go further or were entirely sealed.
I needed a way to get past them if I was going to complete the quest, so I returned to the central room to think of my next steps. Unfortunately, It wasn't long after I returned that I started to hear faint noises of sothing moving nearby.
I turned my attention back to the pile of rubble that ford the wall I had slithered through to enter the hive core.
The sounds seed to be coming from back in the maze of broken walls where I'd left the wasp corpse.
Did that terrifying wasp return?
It was madness to return and et it head on, so I remained inside the core where I could hide myself and observed it with [Heat Sense].
It was still far so [Heat Sense] did not pick up an outline until I ca closer to the pile of rubble that was the entrance.
Out in the crumbled maze, a wasp was wandering through the hexagonal walls. Thankfully, its heat outline was not like the terrifying wasp at all, but of a wasp with large mandibles, a thick body and a tough shell that could only belong on a builder wasp.
I was deeply relieved at this revelation, because a builder wasp was not an imminent threat. I didn't have to be as cautious of it because its senses were not as keen. I just had to wait for it to pass. It seemingly appeared from nowhere inside the maze and I had to wonder if it was the sa one that had disappeared earlier.
Had it not died?
However, from its outline, the wasp was empty handed and I wasn't sure it was the sa one. This one could've easily wandered in from the outside tunnel.
The wasp did not leave even after a while and it kept moving in a fixed area around the broken walls. I grew curious as to what it was doing outside in the cavern, so I slipped out of the hidden area back to the damaged maze.
Keeping my attention on the wasp's heat outline, I carefully navigated through the dusty walls to circle around it, so I was never in its line of sight. The wasp seed to be drawn to the areas where the thin walls had been sliced, and I followed after it until it ca across the bloodstained trail of the dead wasp. The wasps antennae rhythmically flicked in the air above its head at the purple trail and I took that as a sign of excitent.
Was it looking for the body?
It followed the grisly trail to the walls covered in fleshy matter, arriving at the bloody spot where the body should have been. But it was empty. I recalled I had moved the wasp's corpse away and hid it nearby, not expecting anything to co after it. But now, I grew anxious.
If it didn't find the body, would it sound an alarm?
I quickened my pace towards it, ready to jump out and stop it at any mont. My target, its large mandibles where I expected a loud screech to sound at any mont.
At this ti I realised no other wasp had entered the cavern, because the corpse was still in the sa place I left it. The silence of the cavern was more than a little ominous as I watched it. The wasp eventually located the body after many long monts, by following the small trail I left behind after dragging the corpse.
Its huge body was blocked by one of the hexagonal walls so I slithered closer, climbing over a nearby wall to get a better view. I thought it would carry the corpse out of the cavern upon discovery, but to my surprise, it grabbed and twisted off each of the wasp's limbs, cracking open the hard shell with its thick mandibles and began to eat it.
The floor was soon covered in a ss of ichor and bits of shattered exoskeleton and my mouth dropped to the floor.
What the heck, that was my food!
The cavern truly had an abandoned feel, and I couldn't help thinking that this was the sa wasp that had disappeared earlier. The answer of where the pile of bodies it carried had gone was obvious. The wasp had clearly eaten them. If it could eat its own brethren, then that wasn't outside the realm of possibility.
As I watched it from over the wall, I considered attacking it to fulfil Sensei's quest. This would be the perfect ti since it was distracted with eating. That is, if I could fight it and succeed.
It seed different from the other builder wasps with a much sturdier body, it was likely a higher level. From how easily it had broken apart the dead wasp's shell, its own strength was much higher than the dead wasp.
Perhaps it was stealing the corpses to grow stronger?
Although the wasp wasn't intelligent, it would be a difficult opponent to beat, even if I utilized the elent of surprise to attack it. It's tough shell was the biggest hindrance and the reason for my hesitation.
Silence filled the cavern, except for the crunching of its eating. I decided to appraise it to see its level as I might as well use this opportunity to raise [Appraisal].
"If I use appraisal, do you think it would notice?" I asked Sensei. If its detection was similar to that scary wasp I would be in trouble.
«The higher the level of appraisal, the less it will be detected by lower level creatures.» Sensei answered. «However, if that creature's detection is similar to the level of appraisal, there is a greater risk of discovery.»
What a roundabout way to answer. A simple no or yes would have sufficed!
I set my sights on the wasp who was gleefully eating. I doubted its senses were anything to brag about. Wasn't that giving the signal to go?
I aid my [Appraisal] at it and the usual simple display was shown.
______________
LV11 lior Hesperia
Specie: Ailith Vespoidea
HP: ??/?? Defence: ??
MP: ??/?? Intellect: ??
SP: ??/?? Magic: ??
Attack: ?? Agility: ??
______________
The wasp kept on eating, showing no signs of detecting my appraisal, so I kept on going, appraising it repeatedly until my head filled with a sharp sensation that made wince.
I felt that [Appraisal] was close to levelling so I endured it to appraise it again until I noticed a deep tremble running along the wasp's back. The limbs it used to grip onto its half eaten brethren were now unsteady as the trembling flowed through them. The wasp did not stop eating and continued like it didn't notice.
What was happening with its body?
As I was wondering, I heard a crinkling sound and noticed a vertical crack had appeared along its back. A small seam had begun to open in its hard shell and behind it, a pale green skin like material was revealed.
______________
LV11 lior Hesperia
Specie: Ailith Vespoidea
HP: ???/??? Defence: ??
MP: ??/?? Intellect: ??
SP: ??/?? Magic: ??
Attack: ?? Agility: ??
______________
My appraisal results had a small change which actually shocked . The HP parater seed to have gone up in number. Was it levelling up?
The tremor through its body increased and the painful sensation in my head only swelled in intensity as its power grew.
And then the wasp's shell began to crumble.
The seam on its back got wider until a large shard fell open and the full extent of its pale new skin could be seen.
Interesting... was it shedding?
The new skin forming underneath looked softer, and reminded of how the juvenile wasp had looked when it hatched prematurely. If it possessed the sa weakness, it's yet-to-harden skin could be sothing I could exploit.
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