Early the next morning, the Professor first went to the Elder's residence to explain the situation and requested the Elder's help in preparing some items. Then, he led the young hunters out of the town.
The Vespoids wandering within the town had been mostly cleared out, so their focus shifted to the various caves of all sizes.
Holding a detailed map obtained from the Elder, the Professor guided the hunters as they inspected the caves one by one.
Some caves were isolated, and Vespoids that flew in might become trapped and unable to find their way out. Altaïr and the others dealt with these casually, marking the locations on the map for later notification to the Elder, who would arrange for the corpses to be cleared.
However, many caves were interconnected by narrow passages and crevices. In numerous places, the Professor couldn't squeeze through due to his size, but the Vespoids could crawl through after folding their wings. These areas posed the greatest challenge.
The group dared not venture too deep, fearing they might accidentally stumble into the Vespoid nest and face danger. Thus, they lingered around the outskirts of the caves, continuously eliminating stray Vespoids.
Over the next two to three days, they had taken down over thirty Vespoids.
But the bad news was that within the maze-like caves, they still occasionally spotted Vespoids flitting about.
"Boom!" With a raised shot, Isis blasted the Vespoid flying overhead into pieces. She stowed her weapon, a pleased expression on her face.
The agile Vespoids made for perfect target practice. Over the past few days, her cannon skills had improved by leaps and bounds. The Gunlance in her hands was no longer just a large cleaver, an unexpected gain.
"Thirty-seven..." the Professor muttered to himself, the wrinkles on his brow deep enough to trap a mosquito. "And yet, we still see wandering Vespoids. The scale of this swarm is far larger than initially estimated."
Altaïr glanced at the shattered corpse, confirming it held no value for gathering, then turned to the Professor. "Professor, should we press deeper?"
"No," the Professor shook his head decisively. "We're heading back to town first. The items I asked the Elder to prepare should be arriving soon."
With that, the old Wyverian turned and left without delay.
The three young hunters exchanged glances. The old man was impatient by nature, always pursuing efficiency, yet when it came to decision-making, he was remarkably steady and cautious.
—--
Arriving at the Elder's home, the Professor directed the young hunters to carry several crates back to their lodgings. Just as Altaïr was about to ask what was inside, the Professor went ahead and pried the crates open himself.
Inside were numerous poisonous mushrooms, along with Smokenuts, Sap Plants, and similar materials.
Altaïr had never used these items before, but he could roughly guess the old Wyverian's plan. "Are you planning to craft a batch of Poison Smoke Bombs to deal with the swarm?"
"Hmm."
The Professor put on gloves and began sorting the contents of the crates. Only then did Altaïr and the others notice several glass jars at the bottom, containing insects that emitted a faint glow.
Isis picked up one of the jars and gave it a gentle shake. The light inside flickered brightly. "Are these... Flashbugs?"
Altaïr gave Isis a strange look. For some reason, a disturbing image flashed through his mind, Isis popping open the jar and pouring the Flashbugs straight into her mouth.
After completing the categorization and taking stock of the material quantities, the Professor nodded with satisfaction. "Vespoids lack the ability to metabolize toxins. Once poisoned, they quickly lose mobility and subsequently die."
"The relatively enclosed environment of the cave will also effectively enhance the Poison Smoke Bomb's effectiveness. Even if we encounter a swarm attack, throwing a few Poison Smoke Bombs should resolve most of the trouble."
"But won't we get poisoned too?" Isis looked somewhat worried.
The Professor gave her a look as if she were foolish. "Can't you bring a few more bottles of Antidote?"
"Oh! Right!"
"Are the Flashbugs for crafting Flash Pods?" Altaïr gazed at the shimmering bottles. "Vespoids are afraid of bright light?"
Erik answered this question. "Insects have compound eyes without eyelids and a wide light reception range. Generally, Flash Pods work effectively on any sighted beetle species."
"Indeed, Flash Pods are very effective against Vespoids. Today we're not going anywhere else. Let's first craft the Poison Smoke Bombs and Flash Pods. With these, we can venture deeper into the caves without panicking even if we encounter a swarm."
"Altaïr, Erik, you two go grind these dried poisonous mushrooms into powder. Remember to wear masks to avoid getting poisoned."
"Isis, process the Sap Plants into Bomb Casings. I'll handle these Flashbugs."
The Professor's crafting skills went without saying, having lived long, he naturally excelled at many things. Altaïr and Isis also performed well, as crafting is an essential skill for hunters.
Only Erik was somewhat clumsy. While handling the poisonous mushrooms, his mask wasn't secured properly, and he inhaled some highly toxic powder, collapsing from poisoning and wasting a bottle of Antidote.
They worked until evening, and the sight of neatly arranged, freshly crafted Poison Smoke Bombs and Flash Pods on the table was truly satisfying.
"All in even numbers, how perfect," Altaïr sincerely marveled.
"Ah, that's right. I also have three Flash Pods with me. Let's distribute them evenly." Remembering something, Isis pulled three Flash Pods from her Item Pouch and placed them on the table.
Altaïr's face darkened. "Quick, put one back."
Isis: "?"
—--
The next day, the group entered the cave again, carrying a large supply of Poison Smoke Bombs and Flash Pods. Prepared and confident, they headed straight for the darkest, deepest part of the cavern.
They spent several days wandering deep inside the caves, exploring every large and small cavern. Though they had eliminated over fifty Vespoids, they still couldn't locate the nest.
The Vespoid Queen was nowhere to be seen, and even the roaming Vespoids had disappeared.
The townsfolk were overjoyed. If this extermination mission had been undertaken by hunters alone, it would have been considered complete by now, and they'd be preparing to return.
But since the Professor and his team had confirmed the Vespoid Queen's existence, how could they leave so easily? Without eliminating the Queen, the swarm would return within months.
Moreover, the Elder, now aware of a large Monster hiding near the town, wouldn't simply let them go.
—--
After another fruitless day of searching, the group returned to their lodgings to discuss strategies.
Isis suggested searching again. "Where could a six- to seven-meter-long giant insect possibly hide? I refuse to believe it!"
Altaïr suggested splitting up to search, speculating that perhaps the swarm had sensed their danger and had been avoiding them all along?
The Professor remained silent for a long moment before rubbing his forehead and removing his glasses. "I'm getting old after all, letting the two of you lead me astray."
Isis and Altaïr, who had been arguing, looked at him in confusion.
"Reducing the swarm's numbers by hunting Vespoids is one thing; locating the Queen's nest is another. We've muddled two separate tasks together, which is why we're so disoriented."
The two hunters still seemed puzzled, but Erik couldn't help muttering, "I said it before, you kept killing Vespoids on sight, over and over, until all the clues were gone. How are we supposed to find the nest now? And you insisted it was fine, that there were plenty of Vespoids and we should just keep killing them."
Altaïr and Isis exchanged awkward smiles. They had indeed said those words.
Originally, they thought that by killing the Vespoids, they would eventually stumble upon the nest, eliminate the Queen, and wrap up the mission smoothly.
Who would have thought that before they could locate the nest, the buzzing Vespoids everywhere would just "vanish"?
The Professor put his glasses back on and unfolded the map provided by the Elder. "Forget about those Vespoids for now. Let's think from a different angle.
Whether it's a swarm of bees or ants, nesting sites are carefully chosen, and the Vespoid Queen should be no exception. However, our understanding of these creatures is too limited, so we can only speculate.
The nesting location must offer advantages for both the Queen and the swarm.
What factors would benefit the Vespoids? Abundant food sources? A humid, stifling environment?"
"Or maybe heat, there are plenty of Vespoids near the volcano too," Erik added as a reminder.
"Right." The Professor nodded slightly. "That gives us a bit of direction. From the perspective of food resources, Vespoids are omnivorous insects, they eat meat as well, which is why both humans and livestock have been attacked.
The townsfolk are cautious; they help each other and take shelter indoors when Vespoids attack. But herds aren't that clever. I've heard that losing livestock is a common occurrence.
In that case, the beast pen at the foot of Bedrock Mountain might be a clue?"