Inside the wasp's nest was no less creepy. Winding passages twisted and turned in a disorienting maze. The narrow corridors were dim and oppressive, increasing Kain's feelings of claustrophobia. The eerie silence was occasionally broken by the faint, rhythmic rustling of sleeping wasps.
Close to the entrance they just came through was a chamber containing 2 guard wasps squirming in their sleep.
Following the plan, Princess froze their wings to prevent them from suddenly moving after waking.
Then Kain stabbed his spear into their heads.
*Ding. Host has killed 2 red-grade spiritual beasts*
Now he was only one red-grade kill away from completing the mission.
They exited the chamber as quietly as they had entered, killing another one along the way.
*Ding. Host has killed 1 red-grade spiritual beast. Rewarding 60 GP. Mission to hunt 10 red-grade spiritual creatures is re-issued*
Thankfully, the hunting mission was just refreshed once completed so he could continue to benefit from the higher GP of the missions.
Everything so far had been going according to plan. He wasn't sure how many guards there were in total, but they have killed 5 in total between yesterday and today. It takes time for the queen to hatch more, so Kain didn't think there could be too many more.
Following the lead of the pull from his affinity and the radar, they entered a vast chamber at the center of the nest. The floor was slightly sticky with patches of dark, glistening honey.
Amid the honey, a single wasp egg was nestled in a corner. Through the egg's translucent surface they could see a wriggling larva inside, twisting and squirming as it developed.
In the center of the chamber was a surprisingly refined throne emanating a regal aura. It was elevated high above on a platform composed of steps of carefully arranged honeycombs. It had elegant and delicate curves and was decorated with the most beautiful of the flowers collected by the wasps. Many of which were red-grade spiritual plants. The only reason those 3 red-grade spiritual plants outside probably avoided being brought back to decorate the chair was because they had more aggressive tendencies and the overprotective guards didn't want to risk them attacking the queen.
"Mmm…" Princess moaned in pleasure after licking the honey on the floor. Completely breaking up the solemn atmosphere.
Kain was sure that his contract was on that throne. However, the wasp queen shouldn't meet the criteria for his affinity.
Confused, he climbed the steps to the platform and looked at the figure perched on the throne.
In striking contrast to the guard wasps and eerie atmosphere, the queen had a harmless appearance. Despite the commanding aura emanating from her, she was surprisingly small and delicate. Resembling a bumble bee more than a wasp, she had a chubby mostly yellow body, with tiny wings that glowed faintly in the darkness. The mismatched size of her wings to her body, gave a surprisingly cute and harmless look.
As Kain examined her, her large eyes also looked curiously up at him. Thankfully, she didn't feel threatened and immediately call for her guards. He cut his hand to initiate the contract and slowly held it out towards her. He didn't dare try and forcefully cut her.
She examined his hand before a tiny straw-like protrusion extended into the wound.
"Ugh!" It didn't hurt. But it was definitely uncomfortable feeling something sipping the blood from his body.
He waited a moment without feeling the beginnings of a contract being established. He was about to try something else when the abdomen of the wasp queen began to emit a faint red glow, had it not been dark, the glow would have been faint enough to miss in the daytime. The glow steadily moved from the abdomen to the head, and then to the wound in his hand.
He didn't even need to direct the entering spiritual power as it rushed toward his second star. The moment the contract was established, the queen looked as though something had been lost and began to die at a visible rate.
Screeeee
Kain could also hear the sound of the wasp guards waking in alarm as they sensed their queen's imminent death.
However, the first wasps to enter the chamber no longer appeared threatening. Their legs were shaking as though they too would drop dead at any moment.
Not understanding the cause, Kain quickly sensed the location of his second contract and released it from his body, back into the queen.
Through the queen, he could sense a fainter connection being established with the wasp colony. A connection that likely already existed but was unintentionally broken by Kain's contract.
Figuring that Kain was the cause of their queen's sudden weakness, they moved to attack the intruders.
However, just as several stingers were about to be ejected in his direction, the queen sent out a barely audible sound.
All attacks halted. Kain's group and the wasps appeared to be at a stand-off staring each other down.
However, with each passing moment, he could feel the connection between the queen and himself strengthening. Now he could even faintly detect the presence of the wasps in the nest. It felt like a gentle tugging at the edges of Kain's consciousness.
His connection with the queen was much stronger, it was at a level second only to Bea and his new contract.
This sensation of secondary, and even tertiary contract was a completely new sensation to Kain, and he was beginning to feel overwhelmed by all of the faint thoughts and emotions coming to his mind by all of the wasps.
He chose to recall his new contract to his second star, this time the queen and her remaining 7 guards, plus the egg were also drawn into the space.
Gradually, he could see the star space gradually taking on the appearance of a wasp's nest. However, this time much less crudely designed and less grotesque in appearance.
Kain and Bridge look around at the now empty hive.
'Jackpot!' They both thought.