Chapter 615 - Scoreboard (Patreon)

Seeing a notification like that was a first for everyone. Still, they understood what that meant and gathered as much loot as possible before returning to the platform. Since Mylo was really scared about going there again, Nimbus agreed to bring him up by flying instead. In reality, that would be even more dangerous since there would be nothing attaching the fighter to the griffon, but it somehow made him feel better.

While on the platform, the group checked what they got for loot. There were about 160 honey gems, which should give them more than enough to gather rations for a long trip. Plus, three different hides from the monsters and two sets of claws that could also be used as materials. In a way, this was very underwhelming, but at the same time, having that many honey gems would be invaluable.

"I think we could try to run this again. I mean, 160 gems is good and all, but we have to wait around anyway. Having more couldn't hurt," Adriel suggested.

"I kind of agree, but I don't think that spell I did will work again. I used everything that we had gathered in the 2% mana crystal," Hera turned to him.

"Well… things weren't going bad without that spell," Adriel continued.

"They weren't going great either. And remember, we don't know what group will fight next. Maybe it's a more difficult combo to deal with," Bonnie remembered the group.

"Yeah, and we don't even know if the rewards are going to be worth it. I mean, Lena and I are pretty drained after those spells," Blue looked to the mage who, despite resting during the time they were looking for the stragglers and for the loot, was still looking tired.

"I'm sorry, guys, I don't think I can use that spell again. Not for a while. My mana will recharge, but it takes a toll on my mind. I'll probably pass out if I try that again today," Helena was rubbing her forehead.

"Not to mention Blue is not doing that well," Alex glanced at the controller.

"Hey, I'm fine!" Blue huffed.

"Then raise both arms above your head," Alex glared at her.

Blue tried doing that, but everyone could see her hands shaking, "Fine, my arms are killing me."

"See, I think this is enough for us, at least for now. It's not like we are going to cross a bunch of rooms that have no supplies whatsoever," Shane looked up, they were already getting close to the hive, and soon they would get their rewards.

"Are you sure about that? I mean, we have no information about the rooms we are going to, do we?" Bonnie asked.

"We don't, but there aren't that many rooms that won't give us any supplies," Hera added.

"So it's a coin toss? That's why I'm saying we should get some more of those gems," Adriel pressed.

"I mean, not really. Even the largest rooms would only take us, what, two weeks to go through? With 160 honey gems, we could get more than enough food for us to get wherever we need. Not to mention that those really big rooms should have supplies on them. I seriously doubt that we will find a wasteland where we have to travel for months without a way to get food, even if we have to run dungeons," Hera called Daskka over and asked her to heal Blue's arms.

"Thanks, Daskka," Blue said as the mist covered her, and she instantly felt the pain subside a bit, "And yeah, I agree with her. There is no reason why we should run again right away. Unless you really had fun here."

"I mean… It was a blast. It's been a long time since I participated in a dungeon that made me feel super powerful," Adriel pouted.

"We can come back here again later, I promise," Alex smiled at him.

Hera looked up, ignoring the lovey-dovey atmosphere, and noticed that they were about to arrive, "Nimbus, come to the platform."

The Sentinel nodded and flew over a few moments before they all entered back inside the hive. The Yellow and Black wasps were both still there, but that wasn't all. Sitting on the previously empty throne, there was a massive creature. It looked a lot like the two wasps, with the same elegant use of its wings to create a very long dress. However, unlike what Hera and the others were expecting, the Queen wasn't slender like the other two wasps. She was much more robust, not in a way that made her look fat necessarily, but it truly showed the difference between a being responsible for laying eggs for the colony and the rest.

"Welcome back," the Black wasp spoke with the same shifting odd voice as it did before.

"We must say, this was an impressive display. So much so that one of you has piqued the interest of our Queen," the Yellow wasp gestured to the massive wasp on the throne as it made a bow.

"But let's not get ahead of ourselves. We need first to check your points," the Black wasp snapped their fingers, and a scoreboard appeared in front of the Queen, keeping her head still visible but hiding part of her body.

"Also, let's start from the bottom," the Black wasp said as Hera's name with the number 5 appeared by its side.

"Wait… five? Why is it like that? Isn't a kill equal to a point?" Hera gasped.

"It's like that because we rounded up. Decimals are annoying. And each kill is equal to a point, and that point is divided between all who dealt damage to your target. If five people hit the same enemy, each of them gets 1/5th of a point. Every point you got had to be divided between at least 10."

"What do you mean 10 of me?" Hera protested again.

"1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, and 10," the Black wasp pointed at Hera and barely moved its finger while counting until 8, but when it reached 9, they pointed at Nimbus with the 10th being Lurize. This made Hera realize that the dungeon was counting that every kill she got was split between every member of her court. That meant that her points would barely increase even after using the Pool of Styx.

"Now, moving along," the Yellow wasp waved toward the scoreboard again. Blue got 11 points even if the scoreboard showed her score as Pamella, Adriel got 15, Mylo 16, Alex 21, Bonnie 23, Shane 23, but Helena's name didn't show up just yet, "For those who got less than 20 points, you will receive 10 honey gems per point. Also, since this is your first time participating, we will give you a little extra. For those who got above 20 points, then you will receive 2 pieces of Royal Honey. Honey made personally by our Queen. It could be more, but none of you reached 25 points. Well… almost no one," the Yellow wasp turned to Helena. They were about to say something but were interrupted by the Queen.

"Helena, step forward, child," the Queen wasp's voice was more consistent and melodic. The words bounced off the walls forming a small choir with what almost sounded like trumpets in the background, as if those were sounds accompanying her words.

Everyone had already left the platform that could lead them down, but they were all closer to the entrance instead of being close to the Queen. But hearing the call, Helena walked over, going around the pillars to the first few steps in front of the throne, until the Queen made a gesture for her to stop.

"Helena. You have achieved something that not even my greatest warriors were capable of doing. The two wasps that prepared and controlled these battles had to participate before ascending to their current position. Yet, they were never able to accumulate so many points in single combat. Not against the beasts empowered by the fruit," the Queen nodded to the Black and Yellow wasps, who seemed to look away in shame. Yet, they gestured to the scoreboard, and Helena's name appeared with the number 153 beside it.

"Holy crap," Blue gasped.

"How many monsters were there?" Bonnie asked.

"435. There was quite a large number of small critters that are delicious for a snack," the Black wasp chuckled.

"Silence," the Queen bellowed. The voice being magnified by the room, causing the entire hive to shake. The two wasps quickly went to their knees and started shaking in fear while Hera and the others put their hands on their ears to protect them from the noise. When the echo stopped, the Queen continued to speak in that soft voice she was using before, "Now, Helena. I will offer you the same that I would offer one of my noble wasps. After all, we must recognize one's accomplishments. Would you rather receive one of the royal items in my possession or one of my teachings?"

Bonnie and Shane opened their mouths to give their opinion, but the Queen glanced at them with a bone-chilling stare that instantly shut them up, making it clear that this was supposed to be something that Helena decided on her own.

After a moment of pause where the mage was pondering her options, "May I ask questions about the rewards?"

"You may not. All you can do is pick," the Queen replied in a soft voice.

Helena nodded, "Then I wish to receive your teachings."

The Queen's face changed, almost forming a smile with its fangs, "Then you shall," she raised one hand and softly touched Helena's forehead. At the same time, a notification appeared in front of everyone.

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You have received the rewards for the dungeon quest Fight for Entertainment .

First-time rewards:
180 000 gold
Yellow Wasp's Carapace

Bonus rewards:
50 Honey Gems
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Hera looked at the notification, and despite knowing that it would be better not to take out the material right away, she touched the notification on her tablet. To her surprise, it wasn't just the body of a wasp. Instead, it was actual armor. It was the same yellowish-orange color that the Yellow wasp had and almost an exoskeleton wrapping the entire thing around, with small pieces framing where would be her breasts, abs, and spine. The armor also covered her shoulders and biceps, stopping a bit before the elbow.

In the back, there was a cape-like thing that was actually very similar to the wings the Black and Yellow wasps had. Even more impressive was that the inside was padded with cloth and something soft that would remove the weirdness of wearing a piece of monster by itself.

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Yellow Wasp's Carapace
Rarity: Rare

A replica of the exoskeleton present in a certain species of wasps. The structure can withstand a lot of damage without damaging the inside, but to offset that, every impact will damage and break down the carapace. However, its attributes will still remain in effect unless the armor is completely destroyed.

Defense Rating: A-
Attribute scaling: Agility x11,  Endurance x9, Charisma x8

Armor Skill:
Exoskeleton
80% of damage is dealt to the armor before reaching the user. The impact will also damage the armor.

Natural Armor:
As long as the carapace is not completely destroyed, it can recover from damage.
Recovery rate 1% every 1m

Pseudo Wings:
You can activate the wings on the back of the carapace to create a hardened shield around any other part of the armor.
Mana cost: 150 000
Damage reduction 60%
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At first, Hera thought the armor wasn't that great. Having something that would always be damaged was not the best option, but as she read the rest of the skills, it kept getting better. In the worst-case scenario, it would take just an hour and a half for the armor to be back in tip-top shape. So she could skip the part about fixing her current armor and focusing on this new one. The only thing that bothered her a bit was how her chest would be framed. That part of the armor looked a lot like a bustier or a corset without the waist part. Then again, despite that shape that was made to accentuate her breasts, the armor itself would be closed all the way to her neck so she wouldn't be showing any skin, not from her torso, at least. Everyone also received some interesting items, and Helena seemed to be still thinking about whatever she got from the Queen.

"I would like to thank you for giving us quite a show," the Queen said in a warm voice, but her tone quickly shifted, "Now get out of my hive. And Helena, if you wish to return, I might be able to give you the opportunity of training with my royal guard."

The group only smiled and continued walking away, thinking about their rewards. But Hera also had another thing in mind. They got what they needed to keep meat from spoiling, and now their preparation for a long journey was almost over.