Chapter 110: Hunters

Kyle did not bring Makoa along for the hunt, relegating him to manual labour in the tunnels under the watchful gaze of Hayden. Instead, Kyle flew out with a venom-spitting hornet, leaving the eight mineral ants to assist in the hunt for crude iron or minerals in the vicinity.

He had already gotten a rough description of the various nests and dwellings of animals. With the venom-spitting hornet, he could fly as far as he wanted, but the further he went, the more time it would take to bring the food back as well.

As for preserving the food well enough for transportation after bringing it back to base, Kyle already had a solution in mind – the Desham herbs that the town was famed for. It was the reason why the herbs were still selling so well in the Versia market, to the point that the government and local town council advocated for it so well.

Kyle had, of course, grabbed his hands on it while he was initially entering Desham, having to cross the fields filled to the brim with them.

[SYSTEM MESSAGE]

Plant

[Desham Tuff]

A domesticated strain from the wild ones found in the Keru Forest, the spice provides a pungent aroma coupled with a slightly spicy taste when paired with meat

Kills bacteria and mould and allows for a longer duration of perishable food

Kyle was no stranger to spices – The Galactic Era was filled to the brim with exotic spices from all over the galaxy, traded like hotcakes everywhere. Farmers back then tried to find unique environments to grow them, while genetic labs attempted to artificially create new spices that could sate the ever-demanding taste of both aliens and humans who were looking for new flavours.

He even recalled his favourite nutrient pack flavours, jammed to the brim with an entire slew of ingredients that would not be able to fit on the small printed packaging. But for now, his solution hinged on having the Desham Tuffs on his food in order to preserve it longer. He had no idea how much longer it would be, but that was not the only part of his plan.

Get the food first; worry later. Kyle flew through the air on the back of the venom-spitting hornet, searching for the rough locations that Hayden had marked out for him.

Once he had confirmed that no system debuffs had appeared, he quickly slathered his clothes with it, masking his scent of a human as much as possible.

As night fell, the mammoth hogs returned to their resting area, a small tiny clearing where the younger hogs suckled on the teats of their mother hog as she rested, the entire spiky skin heaving with each breath.

The snores and gurgles of the mammoth hogs, as they slept, were easy enough to pick up once Kyle had heard them once. He observed them again, waiting until the last young hog fell asleep before he dismounted the venom-spitting hornet, dropping to the floor quietly before sneaking in the midst of them, his footsteps careful.

With his scent masked, the large mammoth hogs barely noticed him while he walked through them under the dim light of the night sky, allowing him to sneak up to one of the younger hogs. In a slow movement, he quietly unsheathed his lightning sword before immediately chopping off the head of a younger hog.

As the blood began to spurt out of the neck onto the ground, the smell began to stir the large mammoth hogs slightly from their dreamy state. Kyle quickly chopped off another head before grabbing the two bleeding bodies and running off into the forest.

The large mammoth hogs finally woke up, aware of Kyle’s presence as his heavy footsteps’ thuds against the dead leaves crackled and shifted loudly.

Penchant for Violence! Aero Shoes!

Kyle was already long gone the moment the large mammoth hogs had already got up, making them confused as to where the unknown assailant had suddenly disappeared to as the scent was no longer traceable. Instead, all they were left with was the heads of their two younger hogs, a loud cacophony of grunts as they tried to figure out what attacked them.

Meeting up again with the venom-spitting hornet, Kyle hoisted the two bodies to it before ordering it to drop it off at the base before returning.

It was not the best of plans – Kyle would have much preferred to have a silent kill as much as possible, but the strong scent of blood was a dead giveaway. He was definitely strong enough to strangle the younger hogs to suffocation, just like the branches, but he needed to dissect them first before assuming where their airways were. After witnessing the existence of the corpse catcher, Kyle was not about to make any assumptions about how to kill a mammoth hog just yet.

The venom-spitting hornet soon returned to pick him up, bringing him back to the base at full speed. Already the night shift members were at work, carving up the corpse as they sliced away sections of the meat. The former villagers were well adapted to butchering and hunting game in the forest, so it was nothing new to them.

“Did you catch this alone?” Hayden was surprised. Even if the venom-spitting hornet was helping Kyle, it should’ve been impossible to get past the adult mammoth hogs, much less outrun them. It usually took a hunting party of ten even to attempt getting anywhere near the mammoth hogs.

Kyle nodded without replying, focusing on the now dissected corpse. The structure is similar to that of a pig, so suffocation through brute force should work pretty well. Twisting their neck cleanly should prevent any blood from spilling and also prevent them from squealing for help.

“Pack the meat into a sack and stuff it with the Desham Tuffs to preserve it. I’m going out for round two. By the time I come back, I need these parts made.” Kyle quickly drew out a simple large cabinet for storage, but it was to be made out of three layers – steel, clay and then wood, along with what seemed like a slot for arcite ore.

Hayden instantly recognised the design. “If you’re trying to make an arctech cooling chamber to preserve the meat, we won’t have enough power here – we don’t have any active arcite ore. Everything here is depleted.” She motioned to a pile of useless arcite ore that was completely translucent, already drained of its arcia energy.

“That can be fixed. Once Feldon wakes up, tell him I want the parts of a mechanical regenerator ready to go.”

“Regenerator?”