1.1.11 – Double Tap

I was looking at the two giant Glimmerwasp tearing through the deer carcass in front of me. Insects of those sizes did not exist back on Earth due to the oxygen concentration and impact of gravity on exoskeletons when they get too large. However, I guessed mana probably removed those hard limitations as the two wasps in front of me were the size of house cats.

The faint smell of blood drifted through the air as more of the deer carcass got torn open. They are going for the innards first, a grim reminder of what could happen to me if I was not careful. These wasps would have been nightmare fuel for people back on Earth, reminding me of The Mist released in 2007.

I picked these wasps out as the next type of beasts to hunt as their nectar was strangely valuable. Their grade did not go above orange but they were not valuable enough for high grade adventurers to hunt them. Higher grade adventurers also needed to hunt beasts of the same grade to progress their core, and materials from high grade beasts could be sold for the same if not more coin. However, they were unusually dangerous for same grade adventurers to hunt.

Their mobility, venom, ability to use simple light magic, and tendency to swarm or cluster together into bigger nests were what made them more dangerous for Orange grade adventurers. Most Orange grade adventurers also tended to have a more limited spell repertoire and limited combat experience, and usually avoided these wasps. While their nectar had medicinal uses, they were mostly used by nobles for their dessert.

Their scarcity and the appeal to the nobles as a luxury good was what made their nectar so valuable. At least valuable enough for an orphan like me to risk my bottom. Separately, this was also an opportunity for me to test my ability to hunt orange grade beasts as the red cored beasts barely gave me anything at this point.

The beast compendium did say that harvesting their entire sac holding the nectar would make it more valuable, though I doubt that I was dexterous enough to remove it without any damage. Best case was to harvest the nectar while minimizing wastage; I looked to the small leather pouch I bought and hoped that it was enough.

I used the last of my silver to purchase the pouch along with a new hunting knife, hopefully expediting any insect dissection I had to do.

I prepared Lightning Bolt as soon as I got close enough and released it on the closer wasp, aiming for the thorax area, in case the wasp dodged or moved last minute. There was a brief boom as my spell ripped across the distance between me and the wasp before lighting it up. There was a huge zap sound and the wasp collapsed to the side of the deer, and I could see smoke sizzling from its chitin shell.

The other wasp immediately took to the air, I could see it making a turn in the air to look for the source of danger and found me immediately. I could see the abdomen brightening as it was preparing its light discharge that I read about. Glimmer was probably a misleading description as those discharges were closer to a flash bang without the sound.

However, it was too far away now for the discharge to have any effect, and it decided to dive head first towards me. I could see the sting was extended as it got ready to jab me and pump me full of venom if its head tackle was successful.

As it got close, I activated the pre-programmed commands for Lightning Infusion to trigger a sideways evasive jump. I jumped a lot further than I normally would be able to but I could still feel the rush of air behind me before hearing a thud sound as I evaded to the left.

I looked back and saw that the wasp’s jaws were locked into the tree bark, with its abdomen bent forward and its sting embedded in the thick trunk of the tree. There was a pulsing motion from its abdomen as the sting was probably pumping the tree full of its venom.

I did not hesitate and cast a second lightning bolt aiming for the giant abdomen. The sound of thunder cracked through the air as the bolt hit the wasp right in the abdomen, before promptly bursting the entire abdomen like an overheated watermelon.

The second wasp’s head remained stuck against the tree trunk. I could still see the jaws flexing and feelers moving about as it tried to pry itself free, not realising it was already missing its body. Damn it, there went one nectar sac. I looked at the gooey mess around the tree.

Obviously super heated liquid would explode, I mentally chastised myself. But considering the pace of the battle, I had to prioritise taking down the wasps rather than preserving the nectar. At least the first one was intact. I walked over to the first wasp I managed to ambush and could smell the odour of burnt hair mixed with a weird chemical sweetness.

I bent down by the body and felt for the core in its abdomen. I placed my hand on the slightly warm chitin and absorbed the mana from the core. This was the first time I absorbed an orange core and I could feel the marked difference in quality versus the red cores from the boars.

Unlawfully taken from Royal Road, this story should be reported if seen on Amazon.

I felt the Weave ping me as I absorbed the core and let it appear as I was curious to know how much Mana Core Capacity I would get. The flood of notifications that I had been ignoring since the battle began popped up.

[Lightning Bolt leveled up 1 -> 2]

[You have increased your Mana Core Capacity by 400]

[You have leveled up 12 -> 13]

[You have absorbed an Orange Core. You have increased your Mana Core Capacity by 75]