The woman finally moved her eyes and slowly turned her head toward the person who had entered to report the news.

“Not surprising. Back when I found out he was raising parasitic monsters, I knew he wouldn’t make it. Third Rank… that’s not something you can reach so easily.”

After speaking, the Wind Sprite fell still again, like a frozen video buffering on a bad signal.

The guard kneeling on the floor didn’t dare to speak up, nor did he dare to move.

The last person who spoke while the Wind Sprite was in a daze had been hanging on the peak that pierced the clouds for three months now.

Several more minutes passed before the Wind Sprite spoke again.

“All of you leave. I want to rest.”

The attendant standing by and the servant who had delivered the message exchanged glances, then quietly and carefully left the room, making the slightest movements possible.

After everyone else had left, a ceramic water jar in the corner of the room began to bubble and gurgle.

A moment later, a human head made entirely of water emerged from the jar.

“My lady, did you summon me?”

“How’s the situation at the Purity Wizard Tower?”

“No one has returned. The target seems to have some skill.”

“Heh, killing the person you sent… that counts as ‘some skill’?”

“…The pollution among the halfling caravans has indeed been greatly reduced.”

The Wind Sprite closed her eyes briefly. “Send someone sincere to treat the pollution. Until then, don’t let any of those other rabble approach that wizard tower.”

“Understood… my lady!”

One of the water head’s words came out slurred, the pronunciation unclear.

But the Wind Sprite immediately cast a sideways glare in that direction.

As if even without hearing it clearly, she already knew what he meant.

“Get out.” She paused, then spat out the word softly.

With a splash, the water head vanished, leaving a few droplets clinging to the rim of the jar.

The Wind Sprite slowly closed her eyes again and fell still once more.

She looked like a sculpture of a beautiful woman carved by a master, not a trace of life emanating from her.

…

Saul wandered through the forest, searching from nightfall until dawn.

But strangely, although the backup queen of the Quicksand Termites kept seeking signs of a colony and even appeared to have found some clues, in the end, she just kept circling within the forest.

Even Little Algae, who scouted deep underground, still didn’t find a single nest.

It seemed as though all the land here had already been taken over by the humpback termites.

“Quicksand Termites and humpback termites share many habits, but that also makes them mortal enemies,” Saul muttered, watching the backup queen repeatedly fail to find the colony. He couldn’t help but feel uneasy.

Agu: Could it be that the Quicksand Termites migrated recently, and because this backup queen was sealed by a wizard, she hasn’t undergone the transformation yet?

Herman was a bit confused.

Even if the colony moved, can’t we just nurture this backup queen and turn her into a real queen?

“It’s not that simple.” Saul halted, motioning for Little Algae to retrieve the backup queen, who was scurrying wildly across the ground. He was already convinced by Agu’s speculation.

“Quicksand Termites are rare, and the success rate of transforming a backup queen into a true queen is very low.”

Though he didn’t have much confidence in the backup queen successfully transforming, Saul still carefully stored her away, taking care not to harm her.

If this search ended in failure, he’d have no choice but to try and raise the backup queen into maturity.

Otherwise, who knew when the next rumor of Quicksand Termites would surface?

Saul passed through the forest and emerged on the other side.

He still hadn’t found the Quicksand Termite colony, but he had seen plenty of humpback termites fighting in swarms.

Clearly, the death of their queen had thrown the powerful humpback termites into disarray, each faction now acting independently.

“The transformation rate for humpback termite backup queens is pretty high. No wonder the forest is in such chaos.”

Saul shook his head and stood at the edge of the woods.

It was time to go back.

Before heading back, he still had to thoroughly inspect the few scrolls he had snuck out of the underground palace.

Earlier, he had rushed out, then spent the whole night searching for the Quicksand Termite—only now did he finally have time to see what good stuff he’d actually looted.

Saul unrolled the first scroll, and it was a good one!

A Third Rank spell: Corrosive Breath.

Although the range of this spell wasn’t great, the corrosive effect it carried could cause sustained damage afterward.

However, Corrosive Breath leaned toward the water element, which Saul wasn’t very adept with, making it quite difficult for him to learn.

He placed the scroll back into his pack and took out the second one.

The second scroll was even more powerful.

It was a Fourth Rank spell: Wall of Toxic Miasma.

Saul couldn’t even begin to learn it at his current level.

“This spell must be related to the magical formations embedded in the settlement’s outer walls. Because its area of effect is enlarged, its killing power is somewhat reduced, and it’s not too hard to break, either.”

Moreover, Wall of Toxic Miasma was poison-element based, which likewise didn’t suit Saul.

However, he could use it to trade with other wizards for a different Fourth Rank spell.

“I’ve already got three spells I can’t learn for now. But I’ve never tried trading with other wizards. When I get back, I should ask the Old Witch if there are any exchange meetings like that.”

Saul stored away the second scroll that he couldn’t use for now.

Only one left.

It felt just like drawing cards.

He gripped the scroll with both hands and gave it a sharp snap open.

When he saw the writing on it, his brow furrowed at first—then a smile slowly spread across his face.

“Ha! Finally hit a super rare!”

Seeing Saul’s reaction, everyone in the diary grew curious—what exactly was written in this scroll?

Saul didn’t keep it to himself; he showed everyone in the diary what he saw.

Agu: “Is this the method for extracting termite acid through the human body?”

Herman: “The Monte Extraction Method? Looks like he had a lot of faith in this plan if he went and named it after himself.”

Penny, always eager for chaos, chimed in, “Brother Saul, are you gonna raise a Third Rank termite too? Sounds fun! What if we raised a Third Rank butterfly instead?”

“I already said this thing is completely pointless. And there’s no way you’d reach Third Rank using that method anyway.”

Saul casually shut down Penny’s suggestion. “The reason I want this extraction method has nothing to do with extracting acid from Humpback Termites. The method itself is excellent—but it was used on completely the wrong subject.”

To be honest, this extraction method was more valuable in Saul’s eyes than even that Fourth Rank spell scroll.

Because the technique could be applied in many areas—even in his future research.

“This extraction method has its own built-in filtration function. Now all I need is the Quicksand Termite. Too bad all I have is this backup termite queen—and I’m not even sure she’ll survive.”

“If the Quicksand Termites can be cultivated, then my Magic Reservoir will finally begin to take shape. The only thing left will be finding a proper meat nest… or better to call it a vessel.”

“This backup queen can’t be stored too long either—otherwise her chances of survival will drop… I’ll search for one more day. If I still can’t find one, I’ll head straight back to the Wizard Tower and start cultivating a new queen!”

Just as Saul made up his mind, he suddenly sensed someone spying on him from ahead.

Looking up, he saw a familiar face, sneaking behind a large tree.

It was the same boy he had saved earlier.

“Why are you still here?” Saul called him over. “Well, it doesn’t matter. The settlement was destroyed, but your father’s probably still alive. You don’t have to sneak around anymore, and you don’t need to worry about getting turned into a meat nest. Though living in the Borderland still isn’t what I’d call safe.”

The boy shuffled over slowly—clearly terrified—but still gathered the courage to say to Saul, “I figured it out, sir. Thank you!”

Before Saul could explain that this really had nothing to do with him, the boy continued, “You’re looking for another kind of termite, right? I know where they are.”

(End of chapter.)

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