The Apprentice of Ouroboros [Monster Evo LitRPG Adventure]

Neska slithered around the remnants of the hobgoblin squad, determined to find Kasfew and Noricatu, two of the team's heaviest hitters.

A leg twitched beneath her gaze, and Neska let out a disgusted hiss at her handiwork. On top of gaining a rank in her [Ember Hex] and her [Prehensile Tail], she found a rather unconventional use for the versatile hex.

She could create air burst explosives. Given the volatility of the goblin boom sticks, all she had to do was fling the explosive with her tail, then trigger the explosive at a safe distance with her hex.

Grull and his companions had learned that the hard way. Unfortunately, death invited death, and the bugs found her again with the blast giving away her relative position.

Everywhere she turned, the insects were closing in. If not for Syrona scouting around corners and being seemingly ignored by the aggressive wasps, Neska would have run into at least three additional ambushes. Instead, she got the drop on them. Most went down easily.

Others did not. Some of the ones she defeated included the newer, bigger versions that Jurik had mentioned.

She called them slasher wasps. Others called them skirmisher wasps; they were not only agile but also dangerous. Two of their legs were little more than extended, razor-sharp talons, and one glancing cut when she was distracted by several other insects was enough for her to pull out all the stops and treat each patrol as deadly.

And, judging by the inflammatory feeling, their talons exuded venom, too. Fun.

Finding that out had not been pleasant the first time it occurred. That inflammatory response had become gradually muted the more times she suffered glancing blows and light scratches, but it still hurt to get cut by them.

Venom Resistance [Insectoid] is at 95%. You know, this Title seems to be putting in some work, scarily well. Perhaps you should expose yourself to other toxic materials in a controlled setting to further your resistance?

Vivi, I already do enough crazy things in a week. Taking on any more might be pushing it. She saved her restorative potion and slapped a bandage on the small cut on her side. It should heal on its own. Her Endurance wasn't the highest, but even moderate increases beyond baseline accelerated natural recovery.

If only she could waive the immunity to her own venom so she could heal herself. The limitation of [Love Bites] must be in place for a reason. Presumably, so it couldn't act as pseudo-immortality.

She stopped and pondered that. Was this restriction specifically for her venom or the effect? Can I separate the curative elements from my venom? Okay, Arcanist experiments later. I still have teammates to find, and a hive to destroy. Even as much as I'd love for Kasfew to be more careful, today's not the day.

A few skirmishes later with more of the barbed wasps, she pulled her intact arrows out of the corpses and compiled her observations. She was starting to notice a pattern in the attacks.

The deeper she slithered into the hive, the more she noticed the smaller wasps didn't engage. They weren't drones, which usually were the ones that took off in buzzing protests when the attack drones showed up. These smaller green ones summoned guards by screeching and fleeing, only to lead an aggressive three-to five-strong response group of wasps to sting attackers to death.

How efficient. And annoying.

Once she confirmed the pattern was predictable, that meant it was exploitable. They were attacking based on a routine, one she was happy to take advantage of with a well-placed root trap enhanced by her [Verdant Weave]. A nearby jar of alchemical gel was strategically placed to cause maximum damage.

Right on cue, the shrieker wasp led into the room, followed by five others. She triggered her roots, ensnaring all of them.

She got rid of the shrieker wasp first. She was getting tired of being chased nonstop. The skirmishers were dealt with next, her relentless barrage of [Venom Bolts] more than sufficient to kill them.

She let out a shaky breath as her spine chilled down to the tip of her tail. Even with the extra attribute points she had placed in Soul from her recent level-up, it was still not enough. For now, she needed to watch how many mana potions she used. They were a finite resource until she could regroup with the others.

She’d have to tough it out. For now, the hive was blind to her, and the worker drones still didn’t bother her. If anything, they scattered when the skirmisher and the barbed wasp variants arrived in an area.

She motioned to Syrona, currently batting one of the grubs with her snout playfully. She’d given up trying to eat them, at least. “Syrona, I need you to go spot out the little green buzzer wasps. They’re like an alarm trap, and we need to take them out first. Think you can find them and take them out? The bugs seem to ignore you.”

The coatyl trilled, flapping her wings as if to show off her coloration. “No, you don’t look nearly like a wasp. You are colored like one. I wonder if their eyesight is that bad,” she mused.

She checked on her familiar description in the Interface. It said that Syrona should inherit some of her abilities, but not which specific ones. She'd like to teach the little coatyl how to use some of her hexes in an ideal world, if they were included in that ability sharing. She had fangs, so, presumably, she had [Venomous Bite] like Neska did.

She just wished she hadn’t been so pressed for time before this, and only worked on basic scouting and sharing senses. With another week, they could have been even more fully prepared. What was more puzzling was that there was no indication of what powers, exactly, the familiar should have. It was blank.

Maybe that was the nature of having a monster as a familiar? Maybe the Interface didn’t recognize it? Or she hadn’t gained any abilities yet.

She glanced at Syrona. “Can you do any magic? Can you do anything like…this?” Neska concentrated for a second to try and summon up a [Venom Bolt] on her own tail, holding it in position, swaying her tail tip back and forth.

Syrona bounced with excitement, scrunching her snout as if concentrating. Her tail shivered lightly, and then Neska saw a spark of blue light, if for a blue second.

It was enough to leave her speechless. “Syrona? Can you use a mana bolt, like me?” she asked a second later.

The familiar chirped and nodded, wiggling her tail back and forth. A small spark sputtered a few times before it formed fully, a ball of blue energy sitting on her familiar's tail tip, bouncing her wings excitedly.

Neska would too, if the gloom of the hive didn’t put a damper on her mood. “Oh my goodness, you adorable little thing! You’re just like your snakey mother! Uh, that sounded weird, even for me,” she said, laughing nervously.

Syrona took no offense. But in her excitement, she let go of the mana bolt, and it sailed through the air, cutting through a drone worker buzzing about.

The magical bolt sheared through its body, killing it. The body splatted onto the ground, little black ichor dribbling onto the porous floor.

Neska heard the mood change in the chamber as that happened, and every drone worker turned their head towards the two of them, almost in sync. “Syrona?” she said, charging mana in one hand and slinging her bow over her shoulder, “Remember how I said to leave the not-violent bugs alone? Well, that wasn’t a suggestion."

Syrona peeped, and Neska bolted for the nearest tunnel as dozens of drones dropped their duties and chased after them, the hum of wings nearly deafening to Neska as they pursued by a swarm of very angry wasps.

She thought the worker drones weren’t dangerous. Oh, how wrong she was as they began shooting barbed stingers like sling bullets, bouncing off her [Runic Barrier]. Individually, the impacts didn’t add up to much, but the sheer number of stingers bouncing off left Neska with a draining sensation, her blue barrier transitioning to an ominous yellow. If it hit red, it meant it was on the verge of collapse.

“Syrona, this way!” she screamed, grabbing another boom stick from her [Dimensional Stomach] and cutting the wick dangerously short with one flick of a claw. She used her ember hex to ignite it, waiting for the right location. She spotted a large supportive column of rock and minerals, holding up the domed ceiling and already showing a few fatigue cracks. It looked like one good impact might do some damage.

She lobbed the device at the base and kept slithering at full speed, Syrona flapping with all her strength. The enraged swarm kept firing up until the alchemical munition detonated, flinging rocks and bits of shattered glass toward Neska. She grabbed the Coatyl and sheltered her from the debris. Her barrier turned an ominous red, and a few smaller pieces pierced through and impacted like rocks.

The pillars at the tunnel entryway collapsed onto one another, bringing thousands of tons of rock crashing down and smashing the pursuing wasps to black goo. More rocks rolled with frightening speed down the narrow tunnel, and Neska had to press her body flat against one side as a chunk the size of a bathtub rolled down the tunnel. A cloud of pulverized rock and smoke filtered past them, signalling the end of the immediate danger.

She coughed, waving the dust out of her face. She gave her familiar a sullen look, who returned the expression by flicking her tongue at the tip of her snout. “I think I have a bit of an obsession with fire, dear. That might be a problem down the line.”

I’ll say. You’re supposed to light the fuse and run away. You kind of skipped that second part. Oh, and some proficiencies.

Skill Proficiency Increased

Venom Bolt 16 > 18

Witch Cackle 3 > 6

Ember Hex 9 > 11

Prehensile Tail 5 > 6

Neska let out a soft hiss. “That was a bit of a delayed update, Vivi.”

You’ve been in nonstop combat the entire time. This was the best time to bring it up before you continue kicking the hornet's nest in an uncomfortably literal way.

Oh, and…seriously? Another title? I have no clue where these are coming from, and I swear someone has a sense of humor.

New Title gained: Buzz-kill. You aren’t a destroyer of joy, just things that buzz and ruin picnics. All attacks and environmental effects against insectoid-type creatures are increased in potency by 10%. And your Soul attribute is–wait, what?

Vivi, what is going on in your head? I mean, my head? Or ours?

Okay, this last bit is strange. It says Soul Influence on insectoids is increased by 50%. I don’t think I’m allowed to know what it means, because I am drawing a blank on what, exactly, that does.

Neska did her own cursory search through the information in the Interface's common terms. Soul influence was not mentioned anywhere in the index. She doubted Vivi would, or could, lie to her, so this must be a new effect with an unknown outcome. “This day gets weirder and weirder,” she muttered.

Syrona chirped, tilting her head. “Yes. Even I don't have the answers, little one. Well, let’s keep moving; that debris won’t hold them forever.”

She brushed off the dust from her hat, and more pebbles rained down. She heard the distant shout of goblins, screeching in agitation. Odd. She hadn’t run into any in a while. Maybe they lived in different locations within the hive, like partitions? Maybe the goblins didn’t want to all become incubators, assuming, of course, the wasps gave them a choice in the matter.

The hobgoblins clearly understood the insidiousness of this place and what the wasps could do. She hadn’t seen any since they left the surface to go down the first mine access shaft. Minus the ones she'd left in pieces.

A persistent pain across her cheek drew her focus. One piece of glass from the detonated alchemical vial had cut across her face, getting past even her scales. Her Runic barrier hadn’t been quite enough to hold it back. She winced and wiped the blood away. Too small to bother with her bandages, and not enough to be detrimental to her survival.

She kept her body low and grabbed her bow when she heard goblins talking in guttural tones somewhere ahead of her. She peeked her head to see a multi-tiered chamber with two distinct floors. The difference was, this area was lit with torches--though rather crudely made of some large prey's leg bone, and wrapped around oil-soaked rags.

It smelled like rancid meat, and that was putting it politely.

Her lapel crackled. “Calling any nearby Academy members, was that giant detonation you? This damn hive, it’s making communication difficult.”

Neska curled her fingers tighter into her palms when she heard Kasfew on the lapel. “Yes, Kasfew, all shall fear the pyro snake. They really haven’t learned to spread out to avoid area-of-effect tactics. I'm here to back you up. Are you and Noricatu hurt?"

"Listen, snake--"

"Kasfew? Put aside the vitriol," she snapped, forcing herself not to scream and feed into his ego. "Your lives matter to me, probably a whole lot more than mine might mean to you. Now tell me your situation and where you are."

“Nori and I got separated from Corvin. The goblins had some wargs that were turning into something…nasty. They looked like they were half wasp, half warg.”

That depiction alone was enough for her to want to burn every square inch of this hive. “Stay put. I’m coming to you. Who else is with you?” Neska asked.

“Noricatu here. You’re Cassia, right?” The icebird bore a slight twinge of a northern accent to her words. “The swarms are trying to split us up. I think they’re trying to get it so we’re easier to pick off. We’re near some kind of foundry leftover in the mine; goblins are nearby. They’re either deaf as posts or don’t care that someone is performing massive renovations on the hive.”

“Or they’re instructed to stay put, and guard something,” Neska proposed. “I’m getting close. I’ll entrap the goblins to keep them from leaving the area, then we’ll take them out a few at a–”

Neska let out a silent curse as she heard a whoosh of flame that echoed through the chamber, followed a second later by screaming goblins. “Divines, Kasfew, how the hell are you still alive with all your brazenness?”

“Shitbird, way to ruin our position!” Noricatu screamed over the relay. “Cassia, we’re somewhere on the third floor of this multistoried chamber. It looks like it was a smelter or an ore extraction setup, untouched by the Instance's influence! Watch out for hot metal; these goblins aren’t known for their safety practices!"

Neska didn't have to travel far to understand why. Upon entering the chamber, she observed a massive smelter pot of molten steel leaking and dribbling fiery liquid all over the floor. The entire assembly was as big as a house, and it was hot enough that it gave her pause. More of it was dripping down from leaking ceramic tubes, as if the vibrations from the alchemical charges had disrupted and damaged them, even over considerable distance.

Or, the goblins truly did not give a single toss about maintenance.

The sight of burning goblins screaming and running around with the flames still consuming their bodies told her that Kasfew must be close by. She spotted the fiery bird fluttering about, while goblins shot at him with primitive slings filled with–

Yep. Lit goblin boom sticks. This just got better and better. For one second, she debated the merit of risking her tail for this arrogant, proud firebird and letting the goblins turn him into roast chicken wings.

The second passed, and she concluded that this arrogant bird couldn't be handed a dose of humble pie if he didn't survive this insanity. Plus, Noricatu was cool, in an unironic way.

“Kasfew, heads up. Watch for vines on your flight. I’ll lock down the goblins for you and Noricatu to take out."

The explosions that detonated into the ceiling were more than enough incentive to get this started as she threw out seeds, [Verdant Weave] activating and setting out snares. It should be easy to make work of–

She cursed her wishful thinking the second it formed. A throaty growl emanated from a side tunnel, and she found herself looking at another fresh level of utter monstrosity.

Lovely. The bugs come in dog shapes now. And she thought it couldn’t get worse.

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