We are in front of the Sanctum of Ugmjir, which is right here… at the mouth of the cave. It’s not… something we’ve seen before. But as we glance inside, there are torches already placed on each side, as if inviting us over. “Are you sure this is safe?” Prince Faelar asks, as he steps his foot against the soggy soil. The creak from the cave’s wall leaks water from above, despite there being no bodies of water nearby. Then again, the soil has been wet for quite some time. But as luck would have it, our feet have yet to sink our bodies from the floor. “It is… Because Kuro says so?” Chloe answers, as we continue trodding down the road. “Just keep following our lead, Prince Faelar. This is what you want, after all.” Chloe has been gripping me for quite a while. She is prepared for anything that can appear, including any ambush from above or below. And she is now using her butterfly knife. Although this is branded by military soldiers and the like as impractical during a war, I can’t den
As we get deeper inside the cavern, the only sound our ears can hear is the voice echoing inside our heads. Although playful noises fill the silence, the only living beings roaming inside the cave are just the three of us. I can confirm it. When I view my map, the only thing that becomes available is the three markings, which indicate our position.Speaking of maps, I have one in my system. But when I check the landscape of the cave, it shows me nothing but a dark place filled with fog of war. Fog of war is referred to as enemy units, and often terrain, being hidden from the player. For now, Chloe and we are the players. Thankfully, the more land we cover, the brighter the map becomes, letting me view the landscapes of the temple.For now, we have yet to encounter anything out of the blue… not until the torches begin to lessen and the light at the farther side of the hole becomes dimmer. Chloe has to emit light out of the tip of me… the gun, just to create the perfect luminance to see
Soon after, a brilliant line envelops the place, revealing… everything in our surroundings. As soon as the tube appears, we’ve discovered our enemy.The first thing our eyes have registered are long but slender limbs belonging to an insect. There are eight of them. These limbs and the creature’s body are elevated from the ground and rest on the ceiling. A white substance carries these beasts. And when I glance above my head, silk crowns the roof. Some dances, despite the absence of wind. While the other threads gently fall against the ground, kissing our faces.And what do we know… These creatures are known as “Arachnid” or commonly called “Spiders”. These creatures are a menace back in my world. Right now, they are a force to be reckoned with, not only because of their number but also… their heights.These spiders are akin to a combination of the hairy tarantula and a black widow. Why do I think these are black widows and tarantulas? It’s because of the excessive hair covering their
“Are you familiar with hand signs, movements, or whatever they call it?” I ask, voicing my concern.Chloe and Prince Faelar look at each other at first before shrugging their shoulders. Prince Faelar afterward raises his hand, hoping he can somehow guess his way from my question.“Is that the part where mages use hand signs to cast a spell?”If only I had a head, I would’ve already shaken it. “No. That’s possible, but it’s from a different franchise. We don’t do that here.”“Now, hand signs are like these….” I say, and begin my lengthy speech, hoping this can save us later.And then… we finally move forward.There is a cliff in front of us. So Chloe and Prince Faelar have to be careful before reaching the bottom. Thankfully, Prince Faelar and Chloe manoeuvre their way and descend to the ledge, where we meet face-to-face in front of the den of freaking spiders.Looking them up close is different. These arachnids have multiple eyes, which are eight of them, if I am not mistaken. Each ey
Prince Faelar walks backward for two minutes straight and avoids stepping his feet on the critters’ limbs. Chloe is also right beside the prince. However, not everything goes as planned.Eventually, Prince Faelar knocks over a sleeping spider, which ultimately wakes the arachnid up and startles the rest of the herd. Prince Faelar afterward falls over the spider he has tripped over, and stares face to face with the insect.It isn’t just that. When Chloe turns to the side, the mother spider widens all her eight eyes and glares in Prince Faelar’s direction. For a few seconds, it becomes quiet. It’s not because the spider chooses to neglect Chloe and Prince Faelar, but… they study their prey before devouring them for their next meal.The name of the mother arachnid is “Brood Mother”. It’s an iconic name, but this is not the right time for me to paint a beam on my face just because we’re facing a legendary enemy. If Chloe dies, it will be the end of our journey. And if this prince bites th
“I… I see,” Chloe reacts, and nods. “I’ll do just that, Kuro!”And so, Chloe does the job. As soon as the princess reloads the gun, she uses the first [Meld] bullet and adds water and ice elements on the shell. The floor instantly changes. It doesn’t turn into something, but the entire ground becomes slippier and more difficult to move in. Furthermore, the temperature decreases… Naturally, because the [Meld] bullet fills one fourth of the area with ice that is nearly impossible to thaw. “Brr… It became chilling, Owari. Do you feel that?” Chloe reacts, and grits through the cold.The Prince feels the same thing as he hopelessly brace himself with his own hand and shakes his head. He then mumbles to himself how he regrets not bringing any coat to protect him from the cold. If my face is showing right now, my mouth would’ve already curled downward. “I’m a gun, remember? I can’t feel anything, unless they’re emotions - the cold one, you know?. Now that’s a different thing,” I kid around
The spiders continue appearing one after the other. A screeching sound envelops the place as the spider desperately awakens itself from its slumber and joins in the fight with the rest of its family. The funniest part is that the Brood Mother doesn’t care if it accidentally kills one of its kind. Apparently, it even eats her own children for the sake of regenerating itself once it falls from the icy floor or Chloe shoots it with the regular gun. I also want to note that these bullets fired by Chloe are all headshots, meaning they deal more damage than regular shots. But it is to no avail. “How many eggs can you even produce?!” I mutter. But my voice doesn’t reach anyone, not even the Brood Mother herself. Those eggs hung from above are the cause of this all. If one spider dies, another egg hatches, and it flows into a pseudo-infinite cycle. I tell Chloe to try and shoot one of the eggs dangling over our heads, but… there’s too many of them. Again, fire is also effective. And I wou
We have one major problem. It’s not about the plan I have mentioned but the arachnids circling and obstructing our way. If we don’t deal with these midget spiders, we will have to face them even before performing our task.I voice that concern to Chloe and the Prince Faelar about the situation. For a second, nobody can come up with an answer. Everyone thinks that dealing with the swarm of spiders hinders our plan. We have to make an escape plan while fighting against these small-fries of an enemy. And that is when the guy beside us shows up and becomes useful. The Prince is the one who stretches his mind to come up with an answer. His veins pops up on his head, despite being a few years younger than us. Prince Faelar is also desperate enough to want to help. So I let him be. This is the best opportunity for him to fight and gain experience in surviving while using his spells to its utmost value. Basically, this occurrence is a test for him to prove his wits.“You know how flame wor