’H-Huh?’ Sunny regained consciousness. ‘How long was I out for? Well, not like it matters much. My surroundings are the same. Though something feels… different…’

Channeling his concentration into a single thought, he brought forth his status screen.

[ Name: Sunny ]

[ Race: Core ]

[ Level: 1 (0/15) ]

[ HP: 1/1 ]

[ MP: 0/7 ]

[ Intelligence: 2 ]

[ Essence: 0 ]

[ Influence: 1 ]

‘Woah… No way… I’m finally smarter than a bug!’

He burst into a crazed dance. It looked like a fish’s mating ritual, only he was without a mate.

‘Uhum! Oh yeah ~ I’m smarter than that moth! Though, hold on, my influence stat has also increased! Does that mean I can finally control others?’

He observed his surroundings. Not much has changed beside a few bugs appearing. They were small and round, brown colored with two medium-sized mandibles (biters).

‘Oh my! You cuties are so small! I bet humans can’t see you, haha! Wait, humans? I… why do I know what humans are?’

But his thinking was cut short by one of the bugs climbing in front of him.

‘Hello Mr. Bug!’

It bit into the root.

‘Huh?’

It teared out a part of the plant.

‘NONONO, WAIT!!! Stop that! If you eat the roots, I’ll fall down!’

It took another bite of the plant.

‘YAMETE!!!’

More and more bugs climbed up. Although they were small, the damage they’ve done built up over time.

Distraught by the feast, Sunny swam close to the bugs and checked their status.

[ Name: --- ]

[ Race: Scarabaeidae ]

[ Subrace: Root Beetle ]

[ Level: 1 (0/5) ]

[ HP: 1/1 ]

[ Intelligence: 1 ]

‘Interesting… since leveling up, I’ve gained a better understanding of lifeforms. Now I can see their race and subrace. Finally, I can be a better racist!’

He chuckled.

‘Nah, just kidding. Though interesting, they are missing some stats the moth had, like agility. Perhaps it’s because they are so weak? The only real stat they have is one in intelligence.’

This train of thoughts turned his panic into a kind of curiosity. The beetles were still munching down on the roots. Their mandibles tore out chunks, which they cut into smaller pieces and, finally, throated down.

This act of consumption proved to be a revelation.

‘Their intelligence! It defines not their actual knowledge, but their ability to learn and adapt!’

Focusing on the bug, he began syphoning energy.

‘To adapt is to live! That one in intelligence defines that they are alive! They can understand their surroundings and act accordingly!’

[ Your MP is Fully Charged ]

‘Your current level is zero, right? You’re a level zero lifeform. I am a level one lifeform. I have one point in influence. You have zero. You’re below me in every sense! And as such…’

Before he could overcharge himself, Sunny released a massive wave of energy towards the unsuspecting beetle.

‘… You have to obey!’

His command burst out in the form of a blue wind. Touching the pink glass, the energy turned into purple, engaging in a dazzling dance of colors before finally arriving at the beetle.

‘Bullseye!’ He rejoiced and danced around once more.

The beetle quietly gazed towards him. Was it an effect of the spell or just amusement by the funny eye-looking creature? It mattered not. Only that the spell worked.

A purple aura engulfed the bug, one only Sunny could see.

‘Oh, right. Well uh, Mr. Beetle… could you… jump… if you hear me?’

Though its legs weren’t made for that, the beetle tried its best. It crouched down, quickly stood up again and let go of the root.

‘Yes! Look at you, Mr. Beetle! You’re flying—‘

It fell down into the endless abyss.

‘NOOO, MR. BEETLE!!!’

After a short session of screaming and grief, Sunny searched around for another candidate. Luckily, he found a beetle twice the size of an average one.

‘Uhh, why are you so fat?’

He checked the bug’s status screen, which revealed something peculiar.

[ Name: --- ]

[ Race: Scarabaeidae ]

[ Subrace: Root Beetle ]

[ Level: 1 (0/5) ]

[ HP: 3/3 ]

[ Constitution: 1 ]

[ Intelligence: 1 ]

[ Boons: ‘Gigantism’ ]

‘Oh my, you’re a special one! Though almost the same as all the others, maybe a bit sturdier. Fine then! Let’s see what you can do!’

Sunny was anxious the beetle might resist. He charged up his command more than the one before, which resulted in a headache.

Though the pain came not without a result.

‘Obey!’

The spell worked like a charm. Literally. The giant beetle stopped munching and turned towards Sunny, accidentally kicking off one of its mates in the process.

‘Woah, you’re so strong! I bet you could kick off all the other beetles, all by yourself, haha!’

As Sunny thought those words, the giant grabbed another of its mates with both mandibles. It held the small bug tightly, before throwing it off the root.

‘Wait, you heard my thoughts?’

The giant found three more beetles. Engaging in a vicious charge, it head-butted them like a goat would. All three of them fell down into the endless dark.

‘Oh… uh… that’s…’

Spinning around like a madbug, it knocked over some more. They screamed with their little bug throats, begging for mercy.

But the giant beetle did not care. It pushed them off. All of them. As slow as it could to enjoy every moment of its brothers’ agony.

‘Yeah, that’s… great… uhum… y-yeah…’

Just one other remained, hanging from the root, clinging onto it. The giant beetle stood over its mate, watching as the bug held onto with one arm. It begged for mercy, extending an arm towards the giant beetle.

It looked at the little bug’s hand. Then kicked it off the root.

‘… holy crap …’

Only the giant beetle remained. Bloody from the massacre, it approached the gem. Using the walls as a mirror, the bug wiped off his brothers’ intestines.

‘Okay, this is messed up.’

And then it bit into the plant.

‘W-Wait, hold on! You’re not supposed to do that! What are you—‘

Then the realization hit him.

‘Oh no… did you…’

[ Name: --- ]

[ Race: Scarabaeidae ]

[ Subrace: Root Beetle ]

[ Level: 2 (4/10) ]

[ HP: 5/5 ]

[ Constitution: 2 ]

[ Intelligence: 1 ]

[ Boons: ‘Gigantism’ ]

‘It levelled up…’

The giant beetle sunk its mandibles into the root. Then, with a power Sunny hasn’t seen before, teared out a chunk the size of the other beetles.

‘Crap, this is bad! I have to do something or else I’m screwed!’

It was useless. He tried casting another command onto the beetle, but he didn’t even faze it. Besides that, there was nothing Sunny could do. He had no offensive spells, no arms to fight back. Nothing.

‘This is the end for me! If only there was something I could do… if only there was another bug, one I could use to knock off the giant beetle…’

A messenger of god! As if it was an answer to his prayers, an angel appeared in the distance. A small, white, fluffy one.

‘It can’t be… it’s that moth from before!’

Carelessly dancing in the dark, it flew in a disorganized pattern. Although small and fragile, the little beast had not a care in the world. It just flew around, searching for friends.

‘Hey, Miss Moth!’ He spoke with flashes of light following each word. ‘C-Come here! I have a new friend for you!’

The moth caught sight of his sparkles and flew closer. Though it didn’t seem to care about the giant beetle. Only the flashing light was important.

‘Come here, kitty-kitty! Or, uh, pspspsps!’

Mesmerized, the moth flew straight towards the gem.

‘Oh god, this won’t be good…’

The giant beetle tore another huge chunk of the root. It threw it into the air, taunting Sunny. Evil oozed from its eyes as it looked at the helpless little core.

And then it saw a huge moth appear in the gem’s reflection.

Splash!!!

The moth flew headfirst at the gem, flattening the beetle with its head. It died the moment of impact.

Then the moth stayed like that. Touching the gem. Watching Sunny. Blinking twice.

‘Nice job!’ Sunny said, followed by a message appearing.

[ Level Up Available ]

‘Oh, I completely forgot! I was the one who ordered the giant beetle to go on a rampage, so it must’ve shared its experience gain with me! Though I don’t get it, why did I get points for the moth killing it?’

He looked at the fluffy beast. It had no ill intent in its eyes, only a childlike amusement. Even as a gigantic monster, it managed to stay cute.

‘Well… that’s a question for another day.’