Still wounded, Alex decided to walk. Following the hedgehog's trail had turned into a nightmare: his wings hung heavily at his sides, and his tiny paws weren't made for this kind of terrain. He moved forward with difficulty, slipping between roots and bushes, fighting against exhaustion.
He had been walking like that for half an hour already, and sleep was starting to take hold of him. He blinked, struggling to stay awake, then murmured:
"If I sleep here, I'll end up devoured by some monster…"
He stopped, looked up at the sky, hesitated for a moment, then mentally called the system.
"System… you got anything? A spell, a skill, a makeshift shield… anything."
No response. Silence was his only companion.
Sighing, Alex looked around and finally spotted a fairly dense bush. He approached, scratched the ground a bit with his claws, and dug a small hole inside, just big enough to curl up in. He slipped into it, wrapped his wings around his body like a blanket, and closed his eyes.
Sleep took him almost instantly.
When he woke up, it was night. The clear sky revealed an ocean of stars. He stayed there for a moment, gazing at the celestial dome in awe. In his previous life, he spent all his time locked up in his garage. He had forgotten how beautiful the world could be.
"I spent my life forging… and forgot to live."
A decision was born in him: he wouldn't make the same mistakes again. He would take care of himself, his body, and his desires. He wasn't going to die stupidly, not now.
As he stretched, he realized his wings no longer hurt. He carefully unfolded them and noticed they had healed during his sleep.
"Monster regeneration… it's not a myth," he murmured with a smile.
Without delay, he took off again, resuming his pursuit of the fire hedgehog. He flew for hours, gliding through the foliage like a silent shadow. The sun eventually rose, painting the horizon red and gold. Yet, as far as the eye could see, there were only trees.
"This isn't a forest… it's an entire country," he whispered, discouraged.
Then suddenly, the sound of battle caught his attention. He immediately descended below the canopy and hid behind a massive trunk. The scene unfolding before him was worthy of a miniature war.
A swarm of giant wasps was fighting an army of ants, covered in black, shiny carapaces. The ants climbed trees, leaping onto the wasps to tear off their heads with a single bite of their mandibles.
In response, the wasps launched jets of bright green corrosive acid. The air was filled with screams, buzzing, and the cracking of breaking carapaces.
Some ants, hit directly, resisted for a few seconds, but the acid ate through their armor, slowly turning them into piles of smoking flesh.
"This is a massacre…" murmured Alex, fascinated.
The wasps, clearly intelligent, began targeting the trees, making them collapse onto the climbing ants. Even his tree was hit. Alex leapt and rose into the air just in time to avoid being spotted.
Suddenly, the wasps, in terrifying synchronization, all launched their acid at the remaining ants. A true poisoned pond spread across the ground.
But the ants didn't retreat. They moved forward anyway, even as their armor melted with each step.
"They're crazy… or desperate."
Then the ground trembled. A massive form emerged from the earth. The queen ant, much larger and more imposing than the others, surfaced roaring. Her armor seemed made of an even tougher material. With a scream, she generated a sonic wave that knocked several wasps from the air, sending them into their own acid.
But the wasp queen wasn't going to stay back. She appeared in turn, majestic, with two extra wings and a stinger gleaming with pure poison.
The battle began instantly. The ant queen unleashed a powerful sonic blast, while the wasp queen summoned five spheres of acid, from which sharp jets shot out.
The two charged at each other.
The impact was violent. A shockwave shook the entire forest, and several trees fell. When the dust settled, the ant queen's armor was shattered, and the wasp, though bloodied, was still standing. Her stinger, however, was cracked.
Alex saw an opportunity.
"It's now or never…"
He dove down, latched onto the back of the wasp queen, and sank his fangs in. She thrashed violently, but her damaged wings prevented her from fleeing.
The system responded instantly:
[You are drinking your target's blood…]
Skill acquired: Acid Shot
Fires a corrosive projectile that deals continuous damage and reduces the target's armor.
Alex shivered as the energy surged through him.
"That burns… literally."
He kept drinking.
Skill acquired: Poison Stinger
A poisonous stinger temporarily appears at the end of the tail. Deals extra damage and causes paralysis.
[Level +5!]
Current level: 13
But the ant queen, sensing the danger, tried to flee. Bold, Alex released the wasp's corpse and flew toward her. He activated his skill.
"Mist Body."
He passed through the ant queen's massive body, materialized right inside her abdomen, and began drinking from the inside. A new message appeared:
[You are drinking your target's blood…]
Skill acquired: Black Stone Shield
A temporary obsidian armor covers the user, increasing defense and resistance to projectiles.
The queen screamed, fell to her knees. She was almost sobbing, crying out in desperation, as if begging for her life.
Moved, Alex used Mist Body again, gently exited, and landed in front of her.
[Level +2!]
Current level: 15
"I'll spare you… this time. But next time, I might not be so merciful."
With a powerful flap of his wings, he took off.
Below him lay the lifeless body of the wasp queen. He dived toward the ground and landed lightly on her still-warm carcass.
[SYSTEM]
[Would you like to store these materials?]
[YES / NO]
He answered without hesitation:
"Yes."
[SYSTEM]
[Acid Queen — Level 15] stored
Without wasting time, he took off again, skimming the ground, ready to continue the hunt.
The ant queen watched him disappear between the trees, her eyes shining with a mix of gratitude… and perhaps something else.