Now that the battle briefing was over, Edge took a few minutes to review Ann’s skills, making sure he had a good grasp of what she could do before the fight began.

  Ann had been completely forthcoming about the details of her powers, trusting the people who had fought by her sister’s side without hesitation. She had two Rare skills and three Uncommons in her collection, which was incredible for a stage-one hunter.

  Lilly and Ann had worked together and planned her skillset with care, taking advantage of the income they had accrued from managing both stores and the Mortium and rare resources Lillian brought in from her work as a shadowkiller.

  Ann’s only skill that lacked a direct combat application was Appraisal. It was a vital tool for a shopkeeper but would also come in handy in her new career as a resource hunter. Moving on, she had advanced her Privacy Bubble to rank four, enhancing its battlefield utility. Now the magic dome stopped any images, sounds, or energetic signatures from escaping without shutting out the outside world at all.

  It wasn’t a true concealment skill, since the opaque hemisphere wasn’t exactly subtle, but it was a potent obscurement power that kept anything on the outside from perceiving the people within. I suppose it’s technically a quasi-stealth skill, since her Bubble makes us hard to notice unless something has a direct line of sight.

  Best of all, if an enemy stepped inside its radius, the dome would actively block their senses—blinding and deafening hostile creatures while shutting down their sense of smell. The last two effects could be countered with enough Disruption, but the visual aspect made the air in front of her opponents’ eyes turn black as ink, instead of manipulating their bodies, and was significantly harder to dispel.

  Ann’s only offensive skill was a Rare power Lilly had brought back on one of her hunts—a powerful area-of-effect spell called Lightning Web. At rank one, Web couldn’t differentiate between friend and foe, which meant she had to be careful when and where she used it, but it was an amazing power that combined direct damage with battlefield control.

  When her mana assumed physical form, it created a metal mesh that lasted for several minutes. It was strong enough to trap early stage-two beasts if she used it like a net. However, that wasn’t Lightning Web’s primary purpose.

  Regardless of whether she flung the netting at her opponent or spread it along the ground to guard her position, when a creature touched the meshwork, it created an intense surge of electricity that could stun powerful beasts and kill weaker critters outright.

  Edge had been surprised to learn Ann didn’t have a Basic core like he’d assumed. Instead, she had an Uncommon Lightning core that was comparable to the Earth and Flame cores Jumo and Sasha had received from the System. It boosted the output of any electricity-based powers, including her last two skills.

  Static Shield was a defensive spell that created a crackling barrier. She could freely position the shield around her body, blocking physical attacks while dealing damage in return. It didn’t protect against magic, and Ann was relying on her aura, Warlord’s Mantle, and some magitech devices her sister had given her to handle any spells that slipped through.

  Last and best of all from Edge’s perspective, Ann had Storm’s Blessing—a powerful Rare aura with an interesting specialization. In addition to boosting her allies’ Durability and Disruption, Blessing granted their attacks a weak electrical effect. It didn’t do much damage at rank one but could build up over time to numb their limbs or stun their brains.

  Her implants were defensive devices that generated barriers when her life was threatened in a variety of ways. The extra insurance made him feel better about having Ann take part in such a dangerous hunt for her first mission with Trapper’s crew.

  His train of thought was interrupted when Rue began yipping through their bond, letting Edge know the fox was awake and wanted to leave his den.

  “Good boy,” Edge said as he summoned his Companion. “You remembered not to let yourself out while we’re in the field without making sure it was safe first.” He fed the pup a few slices of sausage to reward the good behavior, then let Rue down after warning the fox to stay near the center of the crew’s formation.

  Now that he had refreshed himself on Ann’s powers, Edge considered the “aha” moment he had experienced earlier in the day, which had let him develop a new application for one of his favorite powers.

  He hadn’t thought to try it before, but he’d realized there was no reason why Warlord’s Mantle shouldn’t benefit friendly beasts in addition to his human comrades. It didn’t work when he tried it, so he stepped into his inner world to talk the matter through with the skill’s avatar. Once he had convinced Mantle the crew’s beasts were just as much a part of the team as its two-legged members, the avatar was able to tweak the skill’s behavior.

  The ghostly cloak that had materialized around Blue’s body looked more like barding than a traditional cloak, and it had significantly boosted the big dino’s attributes. Combined with Violet’s Enhance Beast and Blue’s offensive magic, the triceratops could hit so hard that Edge wasn’t sure he would survive her attacks without flaring Mantle and Harden combined.

  While more Power and Speed were always nice, the Reflex, Control, and combat awareness bonuses were even more crucial for the azure beast, as the relative gains were higher. Mantle let Blue navigate rough terrain without missing a step and adjust the angle of her horns while Charging at breakneck speed.

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  Skill Bond is even more powerful than I thought, Edge mused. On top of boosting their output, these changes in behavior dramatically increase the versatility of my skillset. For some of them, it’s like having several closely related powers instead of just one. I can’t wait to see what we come up with as time marches on.

  The crew explored the Orchard for the next few hours, breaking for lunch after making sure the Legion Beetle swarm wasn’t in their immediate vicinity. While they were repacking the wagon, Sakura contacted Edge directly, using Lore-Weaver’s ability to access the message function of her Guide, which the System had disabled after placing the planet on lockdown.

  He had adjusted his settings so he could listen to them without pulling up his menus, which let him hear the woman’s voice inside his mind. “Edge, I’ve located the big beetle with Remote Viewing. It’s ten miles southeast of your position, and the swarm is resting before moving on. If you’re quick, you should be able to catch up.”

  He thanked his partner and let crew know what Sakura had discovered. Everyone fell into formation and advanced under the cover of Silent Step so they didn’t reveal their presence. He put Rue back inside his den, since this hunt was far too dangerous for a stage-zero beast. The fox immediately stepped into Edge’s core instead, where the avatars could keep him company.

  Once Riller’s drone was in range, the hunter sent the device soaring over the treetops to confirm the beasts were still in the area. After the scout flashed the hand sign for “target spotted,” Trapper began issuing commands in preparation for the battle to come.

  Riller and Sakura swept the area with their sensory magic, making sure there weren’t other predators in the area that could interfere with the hunt. Meanwhile, Edge and Sasha crept forward to recon the legion beetle swarm.

  It wasn’t a common occurrence, but there were plenty of skills that could obscure or distort the input provided by long-range detection spells. After conducing magical reconnaissance, it was always a good idea to get eyeballs on a target before engaging it. While many beasts had magic that could fool physical senses too, very few had both, and Edge and Sasha had ocular powers on top of their high Perception.

  Both hunters had stealth skills in their collections too. He activated Shadow Play, and she switched on Silent Step. Side by side, they crossed the sub-biome while heading toward the beetles’ location.

  After transforming Shadow Step into Shadow Play, the world no longer looked like it had turned into mist while Edge was in shadow form. Instead, living creatures seemed so vibrant that they popped out from their surroundings, making them easier to spot.

  Along the way, he activated the Penetrate Foliage component of All-Seeing Gaze. When the mana flowed out from his reactor and coated his eyes, the trees and blossoms faded away like they were made of tinted glass, letting him see a considerable distance with an unobstructed field of view.

  Combined with the thermal vision the skill provided, his sensory power could counter numerous forms of stealth—especially if he switched on Gaze’s combined mode. However, he preferred not to use it unless he had to. It gave him a headache if he left it on too long and made it hard to concentrate on anything else.

  Not long after, the beetles came into view. Sasha and Edge found a spot where she could peer between the trunks with Enhance Vision as they surveyed the area. The hunters were still quite aways out, since one of the dangers of stalking a swarm was that it was borderline impossible to approach it unaware.

  Even when the matriarch was sleeping, dozens of beasts were standing guard—spread out to form a perimeter around her position. If that wasn’t enough to deal with, some of the bugs were bound to have sensory-enhancing or sentry powers, possibly even mana sensitivity or a skill that provided a similar benefit.

  Both hunters took a good look at their quarry before heading back to the crew, scanning for anything that was incongruent with Riller’s report. Edge began by inspecting the matriarch before evaluating the other beasts.

  The stage-three insect was astonishingly beautiful. Its amethyst exoskeleton shimmered with an iridescent coating, complementing the pink petals flying through the air. The material was translucent, and the sunlight made it seem to glow from within. The big bug honestly looked more like a work of art than a flesh-and-blood beast, at least while it was resting.

  It would have been a shame to kill the creature if they were merely hunting it for parts, but he didn’t feel bad under the circumstances. Pretty or not, this was a voracious predator that would be more than happy to devour him alive. Letting it live would threaten the Ivory Plains, given the sheer volume of biomass the swarm consumed every day, and he needed its aura to survive the kaiju’s invasion.

  The legion beetle matriarch was twice the size of Blue. It would be a dangerous foe all by itself, although its true strength came from the auras it generated and its control over its swarm. Thankfully, Dialla had found extensive reports of the species’ capabilities in her archive, and the information would help even the odds.

  While it wasn’t the smartest beast he’d fought, it wasn’t dumb either and could employ military tactics that were relatively simple but brutally efficient. The swarm wouldn’t charge straight in like the undead stampede and would be on guard against tricks and traps.

  As he considered his prey, Edge ran his gaze across the other insects—double-checking Riller’s count while trying to get a sense of how they would fight.

  Over a hundred lesser beetles were spread out around the matriarch. Three that were almost half her size, which had to be the stage-two females the crew was calling centurions for reference.

  One was bigger than the rest and judging by the mana emanating from its core, it was near the peak of its stage. That one might be able to produce auras of its own. We need to take it out as quickly as possible to weaken the rest of the swarm.

  There were thirty stage-one beasts Trapper had designated as soldiers, and each was the size of an Earth wolf. When fighting under the command of the matriarch, they would be lethal combatants—especially when buffed by multiple auras. However, his biggest concern was the hundred or so stage-zero males the hunters were calling grunts.

  They were only the size of his outstretched hand and didn’t have any skills of their own, but their bites would still be dangerous when boosted by their mothers’ supportive magic. However, the real problem was the skill that let the matriarch turn the bugs into bombs.

  Based on the intel Dialla provided, the explosions were powerful enough that Riller, Ann, and Violet would be in trouble if they took too many or a bug detonated by their head. Even Edge wouldn’t walk away unscathed if a dozen blew up at once, and he resolved to track them just as intently as the rest.

  Now that they had confirmed the beetles weren’t using any skills to trick the team’s surveillance magic, the hunt could proceed as planned. The duo left the area and made their way back to the crew—ready to begin the battle and wipe out the swarm.