Kapitel 268: Trapped hives
"I mean yes, there are underground hives and I can dig holes but then what?"
He doesn't seem very good at problem-solving. Or maybe he just keeps telling himself that he can't.
"You have mandibles, right? Find something long, like a bone, a stick, or even a stalactite, and nibble on it till you get a pointy end. Then you place those spikes in a hole and cover the hole with whatever you use to make the walls of your hive. Just make it thin enough to break when they step on it."
"How are you so good at coming up with this? Am I just useless?"
I give him my best evil glare and he shudders. Where is all that negativity coming from?
"Since you've taken a liking to my suggestion, let's try it out. Off to the dungeon we go!"
I return to my room that's not too far away from Jake's and join him in a dungeon of Navi's choice. It's a forest dungeon filled with dense trees and thick foliage. Any intruders? I check the dungeon map and see a few red dots but they are small and far away.
Jake arrived before me because I had to go to my room first. However, he's just quietly flying nearby as if waiting.
"Jake, what are you doing?"
"Me? Nothing! Why do you sound angry? I did nothing wrong!"
"I am not angry. I am disappointed and somewhat annoyed. And you did do something wrong. Do you know what?"
"What did I do wrong?!! I literally did nothing!"
I nod my head and see him get even more confused.
"Exactly, you did nothing. Why did you do nothing?"
He starts to erratically move from side to side and up and down. Is he nervous? Scared?
"You never told me to do something! Was this a secret test? Did I fail? I never got the message! Navi told me nothing!"
Navi?
<Your training. I won't interfere unless you ask.>
"Sigh. Jake, you didn't fail any tests. There are no tests. I am trying to train you to be a better monster not test you. However, I can only train you. You have to take the initiative to use this training yourself. You can't always wait for someone to tell you what to do and do the thinking for you."
"But you didn't-"
"I told you how to make traps, didn't I? Why not try to make one before I got here?"
"You just told me about it, I hoped you would show me because-"
I cut him off again.
"Because you were afraid you would mess up. That's the whole advantage VR dungeons gives us. We can afford to mess up as many times as we want. What can happen? Death isn't permanent for us! There is only one way you can fail. By giving up!"
Jake doesn't answer. His movement pattern grows more erratic and the sound of his wing buzzing becomes louder and louder.
"Fine, I can't forcefully teach you to show initiative. But I can damn well teach you how to make traps. Even if I have to mother you through it in the process. Start by digging a hole in front of that tree."
"Aren't you going to show me?"
"No."
He buzzes around for a while before seemingly giving up his resistance and deciding to do as I say.
"How big does the hole need to be?"
"I don't know. Start digging and I'll tell you when to stop."
He starts to dig with his mandibles but evidently, he's never done this before. Getting a decent hole will take him a while.
Navi?
<You called?>
How important is it for Jake to get some strong skills?
<It would be really useful but why do you ask?>
I can feel that my instructing skill can force out a skill if I put enough pressure on him. However, by doing so, I will be playing into a bad mindset he's already in. Chances are that I make things worse. So I thought I'd ask for permission before doing anything.
<Give me a second.>
Sure thing.
<...>
<...>
<Okay, I consulted Angst and our bosses. They think you should do it. Angst said that the only way Jake would ever leave the hole he dug for himself was if he got some confidence. And a skill that doesn't involve hiding or running away would do just that.>
Guess I'll try then. Stop me if you think I'm going too far.
<Will do!>
Thus, I wait for Jake to dig a hole. It takes him a while but he eventually digs a hole that satisfies my requirements. Next, I have him sharpen a few sticks and stick them into the bottom of the pit.
"Good, now you just have to cover it. I trust you know how to make a hive wall?"
"Finally something I'm good at!"
Jake excitedly begins to draw a sticky substance from his abdomen, forming it like putty and begins to build a cover over the pit.
The coloring slightly gives away what it is but with a few decoys and some underbrush on top of it, no one will notice.
"Can you guess what comes now?"
"I-I don't know?"
"Now we test it."
"So we just wait for some adventurers to come by?"
"Nah, we'll just see how easily I can crush you!"
Saying that, I break into a run towards him. Jake is currently flying above his trap and it takes him a while to register first my words, then my actions. By the time he reacts, I'm only two steps away from the pitfall.
Proving that he's not completely oblivious to tactics, Jake flies toward the opposite side of the pitfall. Since this is a test, I play the clueless adventurer and run headfirst into his trap.
I set my foot down on the wax flooring and it begins to crumble below me mid-stride. It begins to give in a bit early, a more seasoned adventurer might still be able to shift his weight back and avoid it. However, I choose to just dive in.
Wöchentlicher Energiestatus
-- Power-
Rangliste 
-- Power-
Stein