Casually devouring the abdomen of the Wither Bee while it still has its consciousness and is shrieking and crying in pain, the brutal cannibalism made Selene's leg stuck on the ground like a stone. If not for Itsuo who pulled her back in the corner once again, the Bee would've seen her and probably attack her.
"That creature... there's no mistaking that it was the Mother Bee. It looked stronger and more intimidating than the normal ones, but why does it have a different skin? And why does it eat its own child alive...?"
Itsuo murmured as he and Selene puts their back on the wall. Making sure that they don't accidentally touch or did something that would get the Mother Bee's attention.
"Could it be that it got infected by something? If that's the case, does that mean that the Honey is contaminated?"
Selene responded with a question in a quiet tone.
"No, that's not possible, if it was contaminated, that thing would reek of smell from the contamination, but it still has its freshness and the vibe that it was stored there not too long ago. It's most likely that the Mother Bee got infected right after it finished storing its honey."
"Then, what could've infected the Mother Bee that made her look like that?"
"I don't know! It's the first time I see a monster getting infected and made it looked like that. In any case, we need to get its honey."
"But how?"
Itsuo doesn't have the answer for Selene. He doesn't know how they'd get close to the Honey now that the infected Mother Bee is sitting right close to where it can see someone walking and trying to take its Honey. Itsuo doesn't even know if they could get out of the situation if they ever get the precious medicine for his Mother. He continues to try and come up with a plan, until...
*Bzzz*
A Wither Bee appeared out nowhere inside the hive, seemingly in a hurry as it flies in full throttle, it went straight to the tunnel where Itsuo and Selene was hiding.
"Crap! Quiet!"
The two pressed their own on the wall even more to keep them both hidden. Then, the Bee flew straight on their face but it was facing forward to notice them. Soon after it disappeared from their view, a few more started following the leading Wither Bee. However, one was unfortunate as it flew dead behind the others, in the instant the Bee flew in front of Itsuo and Selene, suddenly, it was stabbed by something that was sharp and long - It was one of the front leg of the Mother Bee that pierced the Wither Bee's body, and it did as if it was its arm holding a knife, murdering the Wither Bee by a single stab.
Selene closed her eyes in terror while Edle was shaken enough that he could not bring himself to close even his eyes. The brutal Mother Bee dragged its food back inside in the hive and continued its feast as if nothing happened and everything is normal.
"It's so fast... Even if we get the honey, once it saw us, we're not gonna outrun it."
Itsuo puts both his palm over his head as he slowly melt down on the ground.
Doing so, Selene decided to apologize for dragging Itsuo with her in the situation they are in.
"Sorry, I shouldn't have acted brave and dragged you here. I just want to help your Mother to get better, but instead I'm going to lose both of you. Sorry."
Selene refused to utter a sound on her cry, but she couldn't put a stop to the tears that kept gushing out from her eyes. Itsuo looked at Selene with a devastated expression on his face. He averted his gaze on her as he grits his teeth.
"It's not your fault. It's because I dragged you with my personal problem that you're here in this situation with me."
"Eh...?"
"Go back to your own family, live happily with them. And if I don't make it back, take care of my little sister, and tell her that I'm sorry."
Itsuo spoke as if he was giving his last words on Selene.
"W-what are you talking about?!"
"She's right, what are you talking about, Itsuo?"
The dramatic atmosphere suddenly disappeared out of the blue as they heard Christa spoke that shook them really hard.
"Christa?! When did you...?"
Itsuo spoke in a shocked voice.
"Ah, I encountered some Wither Bees on the way but they ignored me, and this wound in my cheek is starting to sting me a bit and it irritates me so I hurried inside. Anyway, what are you guys doing here? Have you guys got the honey yet?"
Selene gestured on Christa to lower her voice, pulling her beside them before she responded.
"We haven't, that strange looking and cannibal Mother Bee is sitting right in front of the hole where her honey is stored."
Christa peeked through the corner of the wall they hide from, when she did, she saw the Mother Bee that made Itsuo and Selene lose their minds earlier.
"Damn, that one really is big... Eh, that's...?"
Christa found the crystal she was looking for from the purple Wither Bees she fought earlier - the crystal was sticking out right under its abdomen, it almost looks similar to the crystal she stabbed and took away from the wolf-like creature she fought back then, if not for its strange shape.
"There it is..."
Christa tried to stand but Selene grabbed her arm, preventing her from moving any further from her position.
"What are you doing, Christa?"
Selene worriedly asked.
"Huh? I'm going to destroy the crystal and kill it."
"What crystal?! Nevermind that, don't do rash and dangerous things on your own! If something worse happens, we might not be able to help you!"
"Eh...?"
Christa furrowed her brows for being oppressed.
"That thing is really dangerous, especially its speed. If it caught you, there's no way you'll outrun it!"
Itsuo warned Christa.
"But we need to get the honey, so let's go."
"Christa, aren't you being too confident about yourself? We saw how it killed its fellow Wither Bee without hesitation, and in an instant after it thrusts its leg in that insect that now became its nutrition. This thing is far more dangerous and completely different than a goblin, even if you're strong, if you keep doing things recklessly, a deep stab by its sting could kill you earlier than my..."
Itsuo suddenly stopped before he could even finished his words.
"So, what do you suggest I do, party leader?"
With Christa's question, Itsuo turned to the Mother Bee, observing the monster itself and the surroundings of the hive.
"That monster is feeding and is facing at the direction where the Withers came from, even so, one wrong step that we made a noise, its sharp ears will get us before we could even reach the honey. If only there's something that we can use to distract it even for just a while..."
At the direction the Mother Bee was facing, at the hole where some of the Wither Bees came out not too long ago, Itsuo suddenly caught a movement from that certain spot. His eyes widen in hope as he saw a head of a Wither Bee, seemingly peeking outside as if it's trying to see an opening to escape like the other ones before.
"That's it!"
"Eh?"
The two girls uttered a puzzling sound.
"There's more Wither Bees hiding in that spot right there. Once the Mother Bee noticed them, I'm sure it will attack them. We'll take our chance in that instant!"
Selene gulped as she and the two swordsman found a way to get the honey. It didn't take long before the chance they're waiting for appeared. A few number of Wither Bees came out of their hiding spot, but in that instant, they caught the attention of the monster that was once their own Mother.
The purple Mother Bee mercilessly used its sting to pierce one of the Bees heads, as the others successfully flew passed it and the three people hiding. With the opportunity now in front of them, Itsuo decided to enter the hive.
"This is it. Let's go inside!"
Itsuo and Selene walked slowly but with enough speed towards the honey. Meanwhile, Christa got distracted for a bit after watching the insect killing its own child.
"Oh, it's pretty fast, I thought Itsuo was just scared by its look. This thing might be a bit stronger than that monster."
Christa mentioned the wolf monster before she went and go back to their real objective - Collecting honey. Itsuo hurriedly picked an empty water bottle and dipped it in the honey. At the same time, Christa dipped her finger in the same honey then gently wiped it around the wound in her cheek. The sting she's feeling gradually diminished at the same time the wound vanished. Christa's face returned to normal as if it did not get grazed by the Wither Bee's sting at all.
"The wound disappeared."
"Amazing! The honey can really cure the sting!"
Selene spoke in amazement while Itsuo continues to pour the honey inside the bottle. After having her wound cured, Christa dipped her finger once more and swallowed the honey around her fingers.
"It's not just so good at healing the wound, it is delicious as well. No, it's amazing!"
After that, Christa repeatedly puts her finger and feast on the precious honey.
"So good!"
Meanwhile, the two watches her casually doing her thing as if they are not in a dangerous situation.
"How can you eat like that in this situation?"
The two whispered in their heads with a hollow expression on their faces. Then...
"This should be enough."
Itsuo pulled the bottle out of the honeycomb. The bottle and his hands are dripping with honey as it got soaked after collecting everything he could.
"Alright, let's go, hurry..."
Itsuo suddenly stopped after stumbling into Selene who stood there looking at a certain direction.
"Hey, Selene, what's the matter?"
"D-don't move..."
Selene spoke in a shaky and terrified voice. Puzzled, Itsuo turned his eyes towards the same direction Selene was looking at, when he did, he was shooked after seeing the purple Mother Bee, staring daggers at them as it continues to feed on the lifeless Wither Bee it killed.