[We’re leaving, alright? We’re leaving!]
Yikes.
We turn around, but not without making sure we drag the Biomass with us. Even if it’s only a tier four, I refuse to leave the prize behind!
As we go, I watch the big lizard and its entourage from the back of my eyes, a little suspicious of their rapid appearance. We’ve been skirting the edges of their turf for days now, poking our noses where they probably don’t belong but always making sure to pull back before we cross any lines. Despite that fact, they always seem to be there waiting for us, ready to deliver an ultimatum and declare we need to vacate the premises with all haste.
I’m going to have to check in with the scouts, but I swear to Gandalf they are appearing farther and farther from their cities each time they show up. If things continue at this pace, then by the time another week has gone past, we’ll be standing under the shadow of Orpule getting told to shove off. Naturally, this behaviour has failed to penetrate my calm…
Who am I kidding! It’s aggravating in the extreme! These damn lizards are clearly provoking us. They dare to try and stomp on the Colony? I bite them on the ankles! I’ll tear down their cities and turn their hides into shoes for my non-existent feet!
Clearly, I’m getting frustrated.
I’ve managed to hold my temper and back away each time. It’s been incredible to bear witness to my own growth! No, it won’t be me who throws the Colony into a mess again, it’s someone else’s turn. This time, I’ll be able to swoop in at the last second and save the day, with a quip and a slightly condescending attitude, I’ll be able to look down on the others a bit as they all praise me for saving their carapaces.
Gwehehehehe.
Nothing is going to get in the way of my dreams, no matter how irritating these ka’armodo get, I won’t budge!
With all the Biomass I’ve managed to haul in over the last while, I probably have enough to mutate a reasonable number of things. I should probably check in on my Skills as well, since I haven’t done that for a while. I make a snap decision on the spot.
[Alright then, gang, we’re going to head down into the tunnels for a bit of hunting and then look for a quiet spot to bunker down. I’ve got plenty of Biomass to spend, so it’s probably time I went ahead and got it done.]
[What do you want to do after that, Master?] Crinis asks.
I consider.
[I wouldn’t mind sweeping about through the tunnels to see if we catch a trace of the worm one more time. Once that’s done, we should check in with the scouts to see if they’re having the same troubles as we are with pushy lizards. I’ll be interested to see if these issues are more widespread than just us.]
If it turns out they are, then we might be seeing a prelude to another war. The ka’armodo shouldn’t have any reason to be aggressive against us, unless perhaps they think they might be capable of cashing in on the massive fortune that the lives of my siblings represent. Why go hunting for cores when literally tens of thousands of them can be found right on your doorstep?
61. To Thirty!
When did he begin to hear the Call? Even I can’t be sure. Long before I warned him, of that, I’m sure. Such a subtle thing, that siren song, the incessant pull that pushes them to dive ever deeper, until they are crushed by the pressure or forged into something new. I firmly believe he would have gone there even without my influence. It’s inevitable; the Call will find all of them in the end.
I have to believe that.
He is gone now, to places I can no longer reach, where the mana is so thick my very cells would disintegrate within minutes. None but those born of the Dungeon can ever hope to touch that ground. I desperately hope he finds what he’s looking for there. Perhaps he will be able to save himself, and in so doing, save us all.
Perhaps he would have gone, even if the Dungeon had never spoken to him, never sunk its claws into his mind. That’s the kind of person he always was.
But part of me believes he felt that call very early. Perhaps even from the moment he was born in this world.
It doesn’t take long for us to secure a little hideaway, and I ask my companions to shield me whilst I trawl through the menus. My current haul of Biomass represents several weeks of hunting, and though I’ve shared the haul, the final total is still quite respectable, if I do say so myself.
Seven hundred and fifty-six, in total.
Not bad at all! Even if the first hundred was left over from my last mutation binge.
I’ll be able to buy quite a few things with this little stash, push a few more things toward the max. At the rate I’m going I’ll be maxed out on mutations a heck of a long time before I come close to reaching Level one hundred and sixty, but that’s nothing bad. I’d much rather be maxed out by the time I hit the level cap than have to hang around waiting and eating like I did last time.
Now, which of my lucky organs will it be!
My business district needs a fair bit of love, or I could take my brains all the way… I will absolutely upgrade my eyes, the old classic, the first body part I ever mutated. Just thinking back to how bad my eyes were when I’d first hatched… yuck. Absolutely made the right call there. Fighting monsters when almost blind is not exactly what I’d call a good time.
Okay then! Eyeballs it is!
Where was I at with those things… Sharpened Perimeter Eyes +25. So far, the upgrades I’ve taken have given me all around better vision, emphasising being able to have a better view in all directions, and I also took an upgrade to have certain areas of my sight be more in focus than others, letting me see straight ahead much more clearly, for example. I’ve noticed that having pockets of better vision is bringing back the human habit of turning to face things so I can see them better, whereas an ant generally doesn’t have to do that. I know for a fact that some of the castes have been leaning in this direction, though, mainly the carvers, with a few others as well. This mutation is simply the cheapest and easiest way for our compound eyes to provide a patch of super clear vision.
Which is handy to have. I’m not saying being able to see in every direction isn’t useful, it absolutely is! Just being able to see in all directions clearly is better.
With that thought in mind, I think I’ll just continue down the path I’m on and fuse here. Which is a hundred and forty Biomass down the gurgler. Now, what’s next?
Ah! The stomach! Obviously, this should have been a priority earlier, though I suppose I can be forgiven for prioritising things that were more combat-oriented. I’ve alternated between taking the penalty-reducing mutation and increasing my capacity to this point, and I should probably continue that trend. The balance between efficiently absorbing food and being able to take in a lot at once is a good combo, especially since monsters are getting larger as I evolve, generally speaking. I do wonder if I might eventually end up reforging the stomach into something else. I mean, will there be much of a need for this mutation down the line, when I’m tier eight or something? Maybe… Might have to talk to Granin about it.
Alright, bam, that’s done, another hundred and forty gone.
What’s next?
Ah! My musculature! I should really get onto that. In fact, I actually have an interesting decision to make on that front… I’ve made my muscles incredibly reactive, able to fire at full power with only an instant of warm up time, which obviously synergises exceptionally well with my nervous system and foresight antennae. Predict the future, react with hyper-speed, and have my muscles fire in the same moment; it’s been a winner that has helped me get into position to attack and defend perfectly, but the problem I keep running into is a lack of penetrating power.