The expansion of my Hive Complex is progressing well. As agreed, the number of my Sylv has remained the same. This means I have a shortage of workers, but that's not so bad as long as my warriors aren't needed elsewhere and can help out here.

It is good to be back home. It's so peaceful and safe here, a perfect environment for me to grow in peace. I am not fully grown yet and feel that it is still a few weeks until I can start my next growth phase. But I do not intend to just wait for that time. Besides my physical development, I also want to expand my knowledge. There is still a lot for me to learn.

In the next few days, I try to learn as much as possible from my adoptive parents. Elise is very pleased with my thirst for knowledge and teaches me many helpful things together with her son Erik. During the breaks I usually play with him, which is quite interesting. I hold back at the beginning, but Erik quickly learns and finds interesting solutions to counter some of my natural advantages. Over time, our game of Hide and Seek has become more sophisticated. In the beginning, I only hid in places where Erik can easily reach himself, but he quickly realized that I always hide in dark corners because of my sensitivity to the sun. To make it more difficult for him I used my ability to climb walls and hide on the ceiling. However, this turned out to be a serious mistake, as Elise was not at all pleased with the small holes in the walls created by my claws. So I fell back on my optical camouflage ability and had success with it for a while until Erik borrowed his mother's small hand mirror. I wasn't familiar with the object's function at the time but quickly learned that it could redirect light from a window into the dark corners of the house. When the bright light catches me by surprise, I can't help but try to move away from it involuntarily. My initial movement, even if I stopped, is usually enough to detect me at a short distance despite my optical camouflage.

I find such experiences very instructive, as they show that one can compensate for my biological advantages with clever ideas and the appropriate tools. I also learn how exactly one would proceed to accomplish this, which allows me the chance to develop a counter to it again from my side.

Elise with her True Sight has an even easier time finding me, as it allows her to see my magic signature directly. So far, I haven't figured out how to effectively protect myself from this. It is good to be aware of my limitations and vulnerabilities so I can work on them.

My magic lessons with Elise are also going well and I am learning to better control my Fire Spark ability. I am managing to significantly reduce the mana consumption and mental concentration required. The usability of this ability increases immensely as a result. Through my connection to my swarm, I am able to pass on my knowledge so that my Hive Commander also benefits from it. However, he will not be able to cast Fire Spark at the same level as I can.

From Mark, I learn more about metals and how to process them. I never thought that these hard and inedible substances could be used in such a way. While I learn from Mark, my swarm tries to implement the knowledge gained. This sounds much easier than it is. I quickly realize that I have to start much more fundamentally. My Hive Commander's attempts to heat a small metal sample, I received from Mark with Fire Spark, fail miserably. In response, I order the construction of a new forge cave in my Hive Complex. I make sure that it is well ventilated so that the smoke that is produced can escape well. Then I start the construction of a copy of Mark's workshop, based on my research. However, I have a feeling that this will be another failure as I've already learned from Mark that he uses special, high-quality materials in his forge, while my drones use only very rudimentary substances. But it's not about being successful right away, through the failures I can also learn and slowly get better.

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Lastly, we have Karina, who always seems very friendly on the outside, but with my senses, I can feel that this is only a facade. She seems a bit nervous to me and doesn't seem to feel completely safe. With time this decreases but does not disappear completely. I don't understand why this is the case, and I suspect that it has to do with the fact that Elise's house is still in the scary forest. Karina wants to return to the city, as she has always indicated. But there could be other reasons and I would like to get clarification before she leaves. When she indicates on the third day here with us, that she will travel back to Westerville the next day, I decided to talk to her in the evening.

Karina has just laid down on the sofa to sleep when I come downstairs. I don't try to hide my presence and as a result, Karina notices me. She straightens up again and looks at me eagerly. I clear my throat and say, "Hello Karina, I wanted to talk to you before you travel back to Westerville." Her heartbeat quickens and she asks with slightly narrowed eyes: "Do you mind me going back to town?"

I play with my razor-sharp claws a little lost in thought and stop as I notice Karina's rising alarm. "No, you're welcome to return to the city. I wanted to ask you something else ...", I reply, pausing briefly before continuing, "Why don't you feel comfortable here? Not ... safe?"

Karina's face pales and she stutters, "What ... What do you mean?" she tries a nervous smile, but something is very wrong. Her gaze wanders again to my claws, which reflect the moonlight. At this I realize something, but I have to test it. I bare my shredding teeth in a wide grin and ask, "Is it me? Are you afraid of me?"

Immediately I detect the distinctive smell of Karina's fear, her eyes widen and my thesis is confirmed. I hide my teeth and wait for an answer, but none comes. In a bitter voice, I ask her, "Why?" - silence - "We got along so well in the forest. You have nothing to fear from me. I promised you that I would bring you back safely." My eyes become moist and a tear runs down my cheek.

Karina's expression changes from fear to regret and she replies, "I'm so sorry. It's true, I'm afraid of you, I've had this fear ever since I saw you fighting in the forest ... You and your swarm. The brutality, that cold efficiency ... It's hard to describe, it's completely different from how adventurers fight. I still have nightmares about it."

I can't quite understand why Karina is so shocked by the event. The fight against the goblins was brutal, but so are fights with claws and acid. What did she expect? Why is she surprised at the efficiency of my swarm? Through the swarm consciousness, we act as one organism, efficient and coldly calculating. I understand that humans are different, but I am not human and therefore cannot really understand it. I can, however, accept that something about the way I and my swarm massacred the humanoid goblins was disturbing to Karina. The hostile looks my Hive Commander gave her certainly didn't help either.

I answer again a little more calmly, "I understand,", in fact, I don't understand, but I can't say that "I don't want us to part ways like this. What can I do to make you feel better?"

Karina stands up and hugs me gently. She whispers in my ear: "It's not your fault that I'm afraid. I know you would never hurt me; you are too sweet a girl for that. I'm sorry that I made you so sad. I thought I could cope with my fear alone, but I should have talked to you sooner instead. I cannot change how I feel, even if I know that it is unfounded. You don't have to worry, just give me some time."

The hug does me feel better and Karina seems to calm down as well. I'm glad we still understand each other and that Karina knows her fear is irrational. I think it helped to talk about it. After we separate again, I ask Karina with an innocent expression, "Can we sleep together tonight?"

"Of course, come here," she replies, offering a place on the sofa for me. I snuggle into the warm dark nest at her side and shortly after give a contented purr. With a soft giggle, Karina puts the blanket over us and drapes an arm over me. My most efficient skill "Cuteness" has successfully struck again and so this day ends.

The next day Karina leaves for Westerville as she announced. The farewell is cordial and she seems much more relaxed as if a weight had been lifted from her shoulders. I am sure that the events of the evening helped her make a lot of progress in getting over the traumatic experience on the way back.