Theo did not know how this was possible; he had just killed a member of the ant queen’s colony, and he got five more points of affection because of that?
"What happened?"
"... I got 4 more bond points from the ant queen, Elias."
"Oh really? Congratulations. It seems you were overthinking for nothing, young master. The ant queen seems a lot more understanding than you give it credit for." Elias spoke with a satisfied nod, seeing Theo come out of his guilt.
Theo did not try asking the ant queen why that was, but it made him feel prideful that the trust between him and it had increased yet again.
Theo was happy about that, and he sat back down while patting Mantis’s head.
Elias left him like that, and after a while, Theo got an order that he was to do sword training again.
When he reached the training hall, Rhys was standing there with his usual look that was always sleepy.
He gave Theo some pointers on what he needed to achieve in the very week they were in.
When Theo heard that, it felt like a really tough thing to achieve and very time-consuming too.
He accepted it and went forward with the new technique that he had to imitate to near perfection. The technique was important for dodging, not only from beasts but also from humans.
While he was doing that, he told Warren to go and take the mantis to the forest for it to level up.
At this point, Warren was used to this, and it only took 30 minutes before Theo started getting messages of experience points coming in.
Two days passed with the same routine, until Theo had to stop and go to the Baron’s office for something urgent that had come up.
"The report of the moss, flowers, and the poison on your insect has finally come back, Theo." The baron spoke after handing Theo a small letter.
When Theo read that, his eyes widened, and he looked at the Baron again.
"Are you sure this is accurate, Father?"
As if offended by the question, "Boy, the ones who did the testing were top of their fields. If they made an mistake, then no one can do it accurately."
Theo felt like he was living in a dream. He hadn’t anticipated the mantis’s new poison and flowers to be this effective.
Sample Moss Results
The sample contains a high concentration of rejuvenating essence and healing properties.
Result: 20 grams of intake has the potential to heal a fairly injured person.
(Note: It can take longer depending on the gravity of the injury.)
Potential Grade: B
Sample Crimson Flower Results
The sample contains a very high concentration of healing powers. It’s 5 times better than the sample moss.
Result: 5 flower intakes by a single entity could potentially heal a fairly injured person.
(Note: It can take longer depending on the gravity of the injury.)
Potential Grade: A
Sample Poison Results
The sample is a new variety of poison that had to be researched thoroughly. It is a deadly poison that can take a human’s life in 20 minutes.
Antidote has been prepared, and the first 5 preserved vials have been sent to the tamer.
Result: One spray of minimal quantity could potentially kill a human below level 10. Precautions are necessary when using or handling.
Potential Grade: B
"Here is the antidote. I had it preserved so it will last for 2 weeks." The Baron spoke as he brought out two lavish-looking vials filled with a green liquid.
"You will be getting them every 2 weeks. And even if you have an antidote now, don’t mess around with the poison. It’s deadly enough to get you in mere minutes, Theo." The Baron spoke with a serious voice and a piercing gaze.
Theo nodded after keeping the potions in the pouches of his waist before looking back up.
"Has there been any contact from the academy yet, Father?" he asked.
The baron’s gaze loomed over him for just a moment before it went to the window.
"Don’t concern yourself about that; just focus on your growth." The baron spoke and looked down at the sheets of detailed summaries on his desk.
"Alright then, I will go back to train." Theo bowed and started moving forward when the baron looked up again.
"No matter how much your mother says that you can go slow with your leveling and training, ignore her. You’re to reach whatever you can reach in as little time as possible, got it?" The baron spoke, making Theo halt.
He looked back with his determined eyes, "I will be sure to do that, Father."
"Oh, and also, don’t tell your mother I said that. You can go now." The baron said with a chuckle, making Theo smile too, before he went away.
Theo didn’t waste his time while he made sure that the ants had enough fodder to get experience and level up while he trained with the sword.
The dodging technique was not easy to get used to; it needed Theo to move his ankle in a way that either made it cramped or painfully ridiculous.
According to Rhys, it only happened because Theo was not doing it properly.
The mantis returned by the night with Warren after Theo commanded that it was done for the day.
The day was over, and so were the others, and all Theo did was practice that dodge technique while leveling up his ants, and the mantis just leisurely ate and killed to its delight.
One could now call it the king of the forest, which it had already made its territory.
Theo kept completing the torturous training as well as he could.
According to Rhys, he was catching on quicker now that he was focusing a lot on the sword.
But there was more; the spiked ants had not only stabilized a lot, but they had substantially increased in size in comparison to the other ants near them.
One could spot them from meters away as they looked more prominent than the others.
That’s when Theo realized that another 10 ants were ready for the same evolution again, and he couldn’t have been more ready.