[You have defeated…]
All my amassed frustration from those early days in the upper tunnels of the Dungeon is poured out on these monsters without remorse. Yes, you horrible little beasts. Become my stress relief!
As much as I enjoy the ensuing battle, Tiny doesn’t. The monsters are just too weak to satisfy his lust for combat. Every single one crumbles after one impact of his colossal fist. After smashing everything in front of him, the poor fellow starts to look somewhat despondent. He continues to battle and slay his way down the tunnel, but he doesn’t have quite the same verve as before.
He just can’t seem to muster any enthusiasm unless there’s a very real sense of danger.
You some sort of masochist, Tiny? Can’t enjoy yourself unless you’re getting beat up?
You need help, man.
Soon, a decent section of the tunnel has been completely smashed clean. We rampaged until no monster was willing to challenge us. Standing amidst the remains of our victims, I am aglow with satisfaction, having successfully released some of my inner demons and stress. Tiny on the other hand can only look disappointed.
[Cheer up, Tiny. Time to eat!]
No sooner are the words out of my mouth, than a wide grin plays over that bat face and he starts grabbing hold of Biomass and shoving it into his mouth. I’m just as hungry as he is at this point, so I join in with gusto, ripping into my food with all the strength my ant mouth can muster.
Biomass still tastes disgusting. Don’t think otherwise. But you can get used to anything after a while, even cramming your face with raw monster body parts.
It’s disappointing in a way that the monsters here were such a low Level. Despite killing twenty or so creatures, I wasn’t able to Level up at all. I highly doubt I’ll be able to gain much Biomass, even if I were to consume all of these creatures.
I did manage to come across three small monster cores though! I put those aside to add to my collection for experimentation. It’ll be some time before evolution is back on the table, so there’s no need to rush and soak up every core I find. I’d rather use them to advance my skills first. The Core Engineering skill still seems to have a lot of potential.
Nonetheless, Tiny and I continue to eat until our stomachs are fit to bursting. Only then do we somewhat sheepishly realise we were supposed to be securing food for the entire colony, not just ourselves.
Got a little distracted there…
It isn’t a big deal though. If there’s one thing that isn’t in short supply during the wave, it’s spawning monsters. Even during our feast there were monsters spawning we had to destroy between mouthfuls.
Dragging myself down the corridor, I hunt down more prey and lug it back to the connection of the escape tunnel. After ten minutes I’ve amassed a small pile of Biomass, and Tiny has done likewise after hunting in the other direction.
Heading back up the short connecting tunnel to summon some workers to collect the food, I notice the Mana veins are already beginning to grow up the connection.
Dammit.
There was no way it wasn’t going to happen, but it still worries me. Hopefully we’ll be able to continue digging and outpace the growth of these veins. I really don’t want to have monsters jumping out of the walls while we dig. The monsters would be easily dealt with to be sure, but there’s a small chance a worker would be caught unaware, or a monster could appear directly underneath the larvae before anyone can stop it.
Dozens of ants have already lost their lives in this wave, and we’ve been very lucky!
“I need some help to collect food down here!” I announce to the workers after poking my head out of the connecting tunnel.
At the word ‘food,’ thirty workers immediately stop what they’re doing and plunge themselves down the narrow tunnel, pushing me rudely out of the way in their rush to get at the Biomass.
I end up losing my grip and falling, this time landing squishily in a pile of monster parts.
My dignity!
As the ants crawl over me and start to carve up the Biomass, I take a moment to rest. After fighting and then digging, and fighting some more, I really feel like a nap!
6. Breaching the Surface
After breaking into the smaller tunnel to feast, it has been two full days. Two days of nothing but digging and snatching the occasional hour of shut-eye.
The colony was able to harvest quite a haul, bringing up piles of Biomass to feed the queen, workers and larvae, providing much-needed energy for the labours ahead.
Before the colony dug far enough that our little capsule pocket passed completely over the opening, we managed to make a few raids, grabbing enough of a food store that it should be sufficient to feed us until we make it to the surface.
The problem was the Mana veins. After connecting our escape pocket to that smaller tunnel, the veins grew and extended into our escape vessel so rapidly, we weren’t really able to do anything about it. After just a few hours, they were spreading beneath our feet, and not long after that, the heat sources started to appear.
I did what I could and warned the ants. Tried to get extra guards near the larvae, many of whom had reached maturity after the last feed and began to spin their cocoons, turning into pupae. Despite these preparations, we still lost a few hatchling workers and a couple of larvae.
Although painful, there really wasn’t anything more we could have done. The colony needed to be fed, and without Biomass, there was no way those grubs would have lived to reach maturity anyway.
At least, that’s what I say to console myself.
And now the veins are growing so fast, we can’t out-dig them. It isn’t long before our entire escape tunnel is lit, and we just can’t seem to leave the things behind. Thankfully, we must be high enough in the Dungeon that only weaker monsters are spawning.
On top of all that, our digging had been slowed considerably by large patches of rock that required the application of my Infused Mandibles to crunch our way through. Currently, we’ve pushed through a second patch and the going is much smoother. Soft earth all the way.
According to my Tunnel Map, which increased in Level again to three, we shouldn’t be too far away from the surface. It’s hard to tell. I don’t know if the surface is flat or not between the entrance I know of and the location we’re digging toward. I mean, there is a slim chance we’ll dig up underneath a river or even the ocean, which would make me a little salty.
Heh.
I’m no digging expert, but hopefully if that were the case, we’d notice the soil getting progressively more damp. There’s been no sign of such a change, so onward we go!
I haven’t dropped my spell training as I dig either. Using my sub-brain, I’ve been continuing to practice my Mana Shaping skills, reaching the mighty Level eight! Handling the Mana into the various patterns has become so much easier. Which isn’t to say it still isn’t brutally challenging. Having had more practice constructing a few of the patterns though, I’ve noticed my proficiency has increased along with my familiarity.
Which just goes to show I shouldn’t solely rely on the skill to improve myself. Actively practicing a certain pattern will make me better at using it, even if my Level doesn’t necessarily increase.
I also began to experiment more with External Mana Manipulation. Damn, is that hard! Mana inside my body is so much easier to handle than Mana outside of it. Reaching out to grasp it with my mind feels like pulling my thoughts out of my own head and using them as a rope to pull in nearby energy.
I manage to Level the skill up once before I go back to my shaping practice. I feel the latter is simply far more profitable right now.