Having left the association, Jacob decided to ignore what that person had told him. Instead, he decided he wanted to prepare to head outside, but not after checking the system first. As both Jacob and Nathan started running to their apartment, Jacob decided to check the system.
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Host: Jacob -----
Rank4: Mammal
Blessing class: Entomancy (Parasite)
Health: 4/10
Equipment: Lowest Entomancer gear
swarm regeneration: 2/hr
swarm mass 8/10
swarm size: tiny
swarm abilities: buggy body, beetle arm, buggy eyes, blessed, Fuse of the many, buggy hearing, Buggy space
Quests: You can't limit yourself to one host; Infect three hosts of any species above trash grade(2/3)
Reward: new swarm ability.
Bug terrarium: 1
Hosts: 2
-Lab-
-Store-
-Ability shop_
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Jacob noticed a few things as soon as he saw the system. First, his swarm size, mass, and regeneration had increased. He also noticed that his swarm mass and health were not at their highest, which he assumed was from the tests he had just taken. The final thing was that he now had two hosts, wich he thought were from the pet store and if he focused on his connection with the parasites, he would notice that there was a kid who had now been infected.
He realized it would take longer to get the final host by the waiting game, so he decided to infect one of the beasts outside the capital.
Once Jacob and Nathan had arrived at their apartment, they decided that Jacob should rest first as he wasn't in the most excellent condition, while Nathan would go out and buy a few things, including a taxi that would take them to the city's outskirts.
Once Nathan had finished shopping, he arrived home and waited for Jacob to recover, which didn't take long.
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The two boys then decided to head for the taxi which had been prepared previously.
Once they had arrived at the only exit leading outside the capital, they checked to ensure they had everything one last time. Then they headed to the gate, which seemed to blend perfectly with the almost invisible Holy shield.
But before they could head out of the city, they were stopped by guards who informed them that they weren't allowed to leave the city until Jacob showed his pin, which made the guards quickly apologize and enabled them to exit.
Once Jacob and Nathan had left the city, they noticed that the only real difference from inside the city was that there were no buildings as far as the eye could see, and at least this close to the town, there were a few fields dotted around.
Jacob and Nathan then decided to run forward until they had reached a forest relatively far from the city and, according to the map the receptionist had given them, was the most popular hunting spot for beginners.
They then decided to slowly enter the forest, careful not to startle the occasional beasts that could be found around the forest. As Jacob could easily defeat them, beasts could grow stronger by eating other beasts. Sometimes, if a powerful enough beast was killed, this could cause an entire forest to go into chaos by the different beats.
Jacob and Nathan had avoided most of the beasts when they could, and when they couldn't, they would run. After a while of exploring, the two boys decided to camp up on a tree. Jacob then used his swarm to help him climb the largest tree they could find, looking for a steady branch.
Once Jacob had found the branch, he tossed down a rope so Nathan could climb up; after around 20 minutes, they had finished setting up their camp and decided to go hunting for a beast worth their time, hoping to get some beast parts that could then be handed into a blessed blacksmith who could make decent equipment by infusing the elements.
After marking their camp, they headed for a beast they had previously found, which didn't take them long.
As they approached the cave where the beast was sleeping, they looked at the creature that resembled a bear but with a twist. Its body was covered in a hard outer shell that looked impenetrable. Its claws were sharp and looked as if they were made of some solid metal. It was a fearsome sight but also intriguing. They couldn't help but wonder how it came to be and its purpose.
They then decided to stalk the beast until it left its nest, as the more powerful a beast, the more likely they are to hoard valuable materials.
After what seemed like forever, the beast finally woke up and started leaving the nest, but it just so happened that it was heading toward Jacob and Nathan.
Distracted after waiting so long, the boys didn't notice the creature until it closed in on them, where they froze from panic.
The bear-like creature was heading towards the berry bush near where they had decided to hide.
At some point, the creature arrived where they were hiding, and while at first both groups seemed confused by what was happening, they quickly got ready for battle with the bear roaring to intimidate them.
The boys grabbed their weapons with Jacob activating his buggy body, but before that, he launched a parasite at the bear as if it was a knife, which luckily hit the bear and attached itself.
Jacob was at the front facing the bear while Nathan was preparing to shoot at the creature.
The bear was the first to act, striking at Jaccob; while he had expected this, he underestimated the bear's strength, leading to the arm holding Athen breaking, causing intense pain to run through his whole body. The parasites in his body had detected the damage and flowed towards his arm, causing it to regain some strength, which, while it helped, he would still need to heal after the battle.
Seeing his attack had worked, the bear went in for a swipe at Jacob using his claw, but this time, Jacob was prepared to use nosirin to attach to a nearby tree and be pulled back, dodging the bear's attack in the nick of time. Jacob then hurried Nathan to climb up the tree with him in order to regroup.