[Title effect successfully triggered. You have obtained the skill: Paralysis Toxin Level 1]
‘Alright, I didn’t get it again. Let’s keep trying.’
Bees only had four skills, and just like the mushroom’s Spread Spores, they were innate abilities.
A one-in-four chance wasn’t low.
As long as she was willing to grind, she would collect them all sooner or later.
Compared to the slimes that were everywhere, bees traveled in swarms.
If she had a large-scale magic spell to clear out the fodder, it would definitely increase her efficiency.
Unfortunately, she didn’t.
She felt a sense of regret.
‘Why can’t the Elf be a traditional Mage?’
“Hey, why didn’t you choose the Mage class?
Although a front-line Priest isn’t bad either — healing enemies while dealing out salvation with your fists.”
“A Priest isn’t such a violent and reckless class,” said Lumina, who had just recovered from her Mana Intoxication.
She had overheard the mushroom slandering her holy profession.
Even the gentlest sheep has its moments of anger.
Her voice became increasingly passionate and forceful as she argued her point.
“We are the solid support that exists to assist and heal our teammates!”
“But I think that’s really cool.”
“It is… a little.”
Perhaps every Priest had a melee dream.
Setting reality aside and talking only of ideals, Lumina admitted it was a cool scene.
Imagine pinning an enemy under your foot, pointing a staff at his head, and questioning him with the authority of a divine word: “Did you really think you could hurt my teammates?”
“Right, right?
Think about it.
As a Priest, clearing out all the dangerous elements in advance is also a way of saving your teammates, isn’t it?”
“I suppose so.”
The Elf bit her nails, carefully pondering the mushroom’s “profound” words on Priesthood.
A moment later, she stomped her foot in anger, feeling ashamed that she actually found the heterodox logic reasonable.
“No!
If one person can solve the danger alone, then what do you need teammates for?
I won’t let you shake my faith with these weird ideas.
I will not bow to the darkness and fall from grace!”
Marlow didn’t argue.
She just asked with a hint of amusement, “So, you aren’t afraid of me anymore?”
Lumina flinched, but she still said stubbornly, “I’m not!”
Well, the Elf was still a bit too team-oriented.
“Even though they clearly didn’t like you, you still think of your teammates?
If that knight hadn’t tripped you on purpose, you might have already left the Labyrinth.”
“They wouldn’t do that… they aren’t…”
She shouted excitedly, instinctively defending her teammates.
However, she clearly lacked confidence, and her voice trailed off.
She stiffly changed the subject.
“Marlow, have you found a new target?
Let’s go back to hunting bees.”
She had been so unwilling before, yet now she was actively asking for work.
Humans were truly complicated.
Marlow glanced at the somewhat heartbroken Elf.
Although her own words were harsh, they were an indisputable fact.
She hadn’t intentionally smeared anyone.
“I have.
Over there,” she said, pointing in a direction.
“It’s just a case of throwing your pearls before swine.
Don’t worry too much about it.
Just go back and find a teammate who’s actually worth it.”
The Elf said fiercely, “I don’t care at all!”
“You’re walking with the same arm and leg moving together.”
“I like it this way!”
“You’re going to fall… whoops.”
Seeing the Elf take a hard fall, Marlow tactfully shut her mouth.
It wasn’t that she had run out of things to say.
After becoming a mushroom, she had been so bored that she often entertained herself.
Before the Elf woke up, Marlow had considered herself a socially anxious person of few words.
She hadn’t expected that she would constantly call out to the Elf for a chat.
But now clearly wasn’t a good time.
If she spoke again, it would probably be the last straw that broke the Elf.
If she made this girl cry twice in such a short amount of time, she would feel quite guilty.
Lumina stood up in pain.
Her clothes barely covered her body, let alone provided any effective protection.
Red marks appeared on her delicate skin, and a few beads of blood seeped from her scraped knees.
She silently raised her staff and chanted, “HEAL.”
The magic was very effective.
The wounds quickly recovered and scabbed over, leaving only faint marks after a moment.
Once recovered, she didn’t rest.
She walked a few steps in the direction Marlow had indicated and saw a bee patrolling in the air.
Compared to the strange individual they first encountered, this one was much more normal.
It was clearly patrolling according to a specific route.
The yellow gemstone at the tip of the staff glowed with a faint light of mana.
“ENTANGLE!
LIGHT BULLET!
LIGHT BULLET!
LIGHT BULLET!”
The moment the bee neared the ground, vines quickly wrapped around its legs.
Before it could break free, a series of LIGHT BULLET attacks struck.
Before it could even see its attacker, the bee had been sent to heaven.
‘Wait, don’t take your anger out on the bee!’
What was left for the Fungal Network was a mangled, scorched corpse.
Marlow wasn’t even sure if she could extract a skill from it.
If she couldn’t, it was a pure waste of food.
She was just about to lecture the Elf on the downsides of wasting food when she felt a movement from the distant area monitored by her Fungal Network.
Her heart tightened, and she hurried the Elf to run toward the edge of the Woodland.
The bee army had gathered and swarmed out of their nest.
Perhaps this was their natural behavior.
The one they hunted earlier somehow hadn’t triggered the swarm’s alarm, which was likely an accident.
Feeling the massive commotion in the woods, Lumina’s face turned pale, and she took off running.
Racial advantages were truly enviable.
Once again using her speed to lose the bees and drop their aggro, the mushroom felt extremely envious of those slender, fair legs.
It would take a long time to evolve into a human form.
Could she find a pair of legs to use in the meantime?
Even such a wish was difficult to satisfy.
There was no shortage of legs in the world.
Most monsters had four legs; giving two to a mushroom shouldn’t be a problem.
The only issue was that they wouldn’t be compatible.
After all, a body wasn’t a hot-swappable key that could be used whenever.
‘Are there any creatures with skills that would let me grow two feet?’
“That… that was intense.”
The Elf was leaning against a Screaming Wood, gasping for air.
Such high-intensity exercise was a significant burden on the body, but Lumina was in good condition.
She wasn’t like a frail college student who was suddenly forced into a long-distance run after not exercising for ages.
“By the way, Marlow, why are you hunting bees?
If it’s for food and experience, shouldn’t we switch to safer monsters like gray wolves, slimes, or Swamp Crocodiles?”
[Title effect successfully triggered. You have obtained skill experience for Paralysis Toxin]
‘For the skills, of course.’
However, Marlow didn’t explain this directly to the Elf.
Perhaps the truth would be discovered later.
After all, they lived in Symbiosis; the other party would surely notice any obvious changes.
But until she grew stronger, it was better to keep such abilities a secret.
What if the Elf thought she was a great danger to the world and decided to just give up and go on strike?
“No.
Bees are the most delicious.
Nothing else will do.”
‘What a capricious mushroom.’
Lumina never imagined that the reason for provoking dangerous monsters like bees was simply because they tasted good.
Lumina’s expression froze for a moment before she asked in confusion:
“You just kill them and leave them there.
Can you really snatch them from the other bees?
They’ll eat anything; they won’t even pass up the corpses of their own kind.”
Marlow looked at her Level 5 Decomposition skill and said confidently, “Of course.
I’m famous for how fast I eat.”
Compared to a low-level skill that could be called useless, the bonus effect after leveling up was quite practical.
From the moment a bee died to the moment the swarm attacked, there was enough time for her to finish every last bit.
While the little Elf rested, Marlow took the opportunity to confirm something.
“By the way, why didn’t you use today’s magic tactics when you dealt with the bees before?”
“Using magic consumes mana.
The amount of magic one person can release is limited.
Afterward, it needs to be replenished through meditation or mana potions.
You think everyone wants to limit their magic use?”
If one LIGHT BULLET could solve the problem, one would never waste more mana.
But if there was a surplus of mana, one could safely use ENTANGLE to restrict the enemy’s movement before using LIGHT BULLET for a precise attack.
A barrage of LIGHT BULLET fire was also an option, but generally, no one was that extravagant.
As Marlow expected, she had a significant advantage when it came to mana.
“I told you I could help you deal with the bees, but you didn’t believe me.
You thought I was trying to get you killed.”
The Elf turned her head away, pouting as she muttered softly, “Barely…”