Chapter 339: Chapter 339

A small turtle shade crawled through the Dirt Tunnels and, for once, did not get stuck in the very first Pit Trap. Not through any merit of its own, however, but because Belissar had moved the Pit Traps out the way today. As the shade lumbered through the empty tunnels, a small patch of dirt began to stir. A moment later, a small bee, just a bit smaller than a soldier, launched from the ground abdomen first. Her stinger jabbed into the turtle’s behind, right where its tail connected to the rest of its body. The turtle growled and swung its tail about, but the bee had already dove back down into the dirt.

The turtle swung about for a bit, but no further attacks came, so it eventually continued on its course. But as it meandered on, it began to slow down, even further than normal. It growled and began to thrash about, its thorns swaying about. It had no opponents to lash out against, however, so it did nothing but swish through the air and mix the dirt.

Soon, even its thrashing began to slow. It collapsed onto the dirt and moved no further, fading away a minute later.

All hostiles defeated.

Purification successful.

Belissar smiled. The Fourth of the Fifth had worked hard and the first digging monster bee assassins were now ready. Their first battle had proven everything Belissar had hoped. One single sting brought down a small turtle shade without risking any bees or karnuq save for the quick attack by one assassin. The shade had been defeated in the first room even without any traps whatsoever. Belissar turned to the Fourth of the Fifth waiting beside him.

“Great work! It’s perfect, this is really going to help our defenses.”

The Fourth of the Fifth broke out into a happy, barely coherent “King is best king!” dance.

The Tower’s defenders celebrated the victory as usual, with Hirkolos now joining in. He had been hesitant as always, but since he had participated in a purification at this point he caved when Belissar insisted. The celebration’s fare had expanded as well, roasted rabbit now joined the usual honeycomb, fruits, roots, and mushrooms, along with the seasoning herbs the Fourth of the Seventh had previously obtained from the larger ruins. Belissar’s eyes lit up as he bit into the meat. Meat had always been a rare treat for him, so to have access to a steady supply of it was truly a blessing. A sentiment the cheering karnuq seemed to share…along with the butcher bees and their new soldiers.

She turned to the First of the Fifth.

“What does First of the Fifth think?”

The First of the Fifth flicked her antennae, letting her mana speak for her rather than dance with her large body.

“Could help in emergency, but don’t need if plan well.”

She then glanced at her First Daughter.

“Well…do make mistakes sometimes, so maybe helpful? Daughter?”

The First of the Fifth’s First Daughter took a moment to think even as the other queens turned to look at her. Her dance started slow but gradually picked up speed.

“Fourth of the Seventh already storing eggs. If need more, can evolve more nomadic queens. Think should hear others first.”

With that, the bees turned back to Belissar. The karnuq and human hung back and remained quiet, but Belissar didn’t press for their opinions this time. This choice was about the bees.

- Monster bee captains gain a major boost to all stats

- Monster bee captains provide a minor boost to all stats for nearby or commanded bees when in close proximity to hostiles. Stat boost temporarily grows if captains attack hostiles. Stat boost grows further for bees attacking the same target as the captain. All boosts removed if the captain leaves the hostile’s proximity.

- All boosts to stats and coordination persist for a temporary duration after a monster bee captain’s death. Boosts are improved further for bees attacking a hostile that has killed a captain.

- Perk applies to some compatible monster bee captain evolutions.

The Firstborn immediately perked up as Belissar read out this one. She waited only for a quick nod by Belissar before she began dancing.

“Amazing, incredible! Captains become better soldiers and make other soldiers better. Makes whole army stronger.”

The First of the Second hesitated a bit before replying.

“But…then captains have to fight? Risk evolved bees?”

The First of the Fifth looked at her First Daughter, who then interjected.

“Queen mother’s evolution lets make new kind of honey, will help bees evolve. Both queens and children, so might be able to help raise more if need. Almost done evolving queen mother’s hive, so will be ready to share soon.”

The Firstborn immediately turned to the First of the Fifth and began dancing.

“Amazing, incredible! First of the Fifth makes best honey!”

Belissar could tell by the twitch in the First of the Fifth’s antennae and legs that she was resisting a happy dance, even as the bees turned to him for the last option.

- Upon attacking an enemy, Bee-type monsters may leave pheromones and mana that guide further attacks by other Bee-type monsters, creatures, constructs, and features against the same location. All Bee-type attacks will move faster and strike more accurately when targeting the affected location.

- The mana left by repeated attacks gradually degrades the target’s defenses in the affected area. For attacks that contain venom or other harmful substances, some of those substances will enhance this effect. The effect grows with the amount of mana left in the area.

The Firstborn, and indeed all of the battle meadow queens, once again grew antsy by the time Belissar finished reading. Indeed, Belissar couldn’t help but look over the perk once more himself, even as the Firstborn started to dance.

“If soldiers hit same spot…will hit harder?”

The First of the Second danced a confirmation this time.

“Says will make defenses weaker. Maybe can sting even if can resist first stings?”

The First Butcher began dancing, to Belissar’s slight surprise.

“Is good for butchers! If make meat weaker, then can bite into and get inside!”

The Fourth of the Fifth also danced from her place on the ground.

“Don’t forget have assassins now! Can tell bees where to sting, then bees can keep stinging with perk!”

The Firstborn began matching her dance.

“And new captains help coordinate, send more squads to spot. Maybe will help lancers hit? Or…magic stings?”

The Firstborn turned to Beero and the other queens all looked at the battlecaster. Beero stumbled a bit but managed to start a dance.

“…i-if perk leaves mana, should? Ah, if drone helps, can! Drone good at seeing mana!”

All the battle meadow queens began a confirmation dance at that. The Firstborn began a question dance and soon a ripple moved through the queens as they all gave their reply. The Firstborn then turned to Belissar.

“Like last one…if King thinks is ok?”