Chapter 113: Help arrives
The Spider Queen screeched aggressively at the boy standing between her and Mia.
Without warning, its abdomen twitched and several thick webs shot toward him at high speed.
Mia, who was still lying on the ground, looked at the Spider Queen in horror. She wanted to warn the boy not to fight it. The creature had just killed almost their entire party without much difficulty, so there was no way someone who looked around her age could survive against it alone.
But before she could even say a word, the boy disappeared from where he stood.
Her eyes widened.
All she could see was a streak of black rushing straight toward the Spider Queen.
The incoming webs were only inches away from reaching him when a silver flash appeared.
Slash!
The webs were cut cleanly in half.
The Spider Queen released another irritated screech. Its front limbs moved slightly, manipulating the dozens of nearly invisible threads it had spread throughout the forest. Each thread was connected to something—a tree trunk, the ground, a branch high above, or another web hidden between the vegetation.
That was how the Spider Queen hunted.
Its threads were so thin that they were almost impossible to see with the naked eye. Any creature unfortunate enough to run into one at high speed could have its flesh sliced open before even realizing what had happened. For more cautious prey, the Spider Queen could simply manipulate the threads directly and force them toward its target.
That was exactly how it had killed Mia’s party.
However, the boy was different.
Several threads surrounded him from every direction, closing in toward his neck, arms, and legs. Just before they could reach him, his hand moved toward the katana at his waist.
A flash of silver crossed the forest.
Slash!
Every thread around him snapped apart.
The Spider Queen released a low screech of surprise.
Its threads had been reinforced with mana, making them difficult to cut even with enchanted weapons, yet the boy had sliced through them as though they were ordinary string.
He didn’t give the creature time to think.
He continued rushing toward it.
The Spider Queen manipulated another set of threads and sent them toward him while leaving several others untouched as traps. Even if he managed to avoid the threads it controlled directly, he would surely run into one of the hidden ones.
At least, that was what the Spider Queen expected.
The boy ducked beneath one thread aimed at his neck, twisted around another heading toward his chest, and jumped over several positioned near his legs. His movements were fluid and precise, as though the supposedly invisible threads were clearly visible to him.
His katana moved just as quickly.
Every time a thread blocked his path, the silver blade flashed and cut through it.
The Spider Queen became increasingly restless.
Nothing was working.
Since attacking him from the ground had failed, it suddenly bent its legs and leaped toward the trees, intending to return to higher ground.
But its jump was cut short.
Something black wrapped around one of its rear legs.
The Spider Queen screeched in surprise before the force suddenly pulled downward.
BAM!
Its massive body slammed into the forest floor.
"Screeeech!"
The Spider Queen cried out in pain as dirt and leaves were thrown into the air.
"Where do you think you’re going?"
The boy slowly walked toward it, his katana hanging loosely at his side.
The Spider Queen forced itself upright and hissed menacingly. Then it charged, its sharp legs digging into the earth with every step.
It was several times larger than the boy.
Anyone watching the fight without knowing what had happened beforehand would’ve probably thought the difference in size made the fight completely unfair.
They would’ve been right.
Just not in the Spider Queen’s favor.
When the creature reached him, one of its sharp front legs came crashing down.
The boy twisted his wrist and raised his katana.
Clang!
Steel met the Spider Queen’s hardened limb.
Another leg came from the side.
Clang!
Then another.
Clang! Clang!
The Spider Queen attacked repeatedly, each limb capable of impaling the boy or tearing him apart if it landed properly.
Yet none of them reached him.
His right hand moved rapidly as he redirected each strike with his katana. Whenever one leg attacked from above, his blade was already there to intercept it. When another came from the side, he changed the angle of his wrist and parried it away.
The Spider Queen became furious.
All eight of its legs began moving.
Attacks came from several directions at once, attempting to overwhelm the small figure beneath it.
The boy’s expression didn’t change.
His left hand remained inside his pocket while his right continued holding the katana.
He blocked the first strike.
Then the second.
Then the third.
Whenever the Spider Queen increased its speed, he simply matched it.
Clang! Clang! Clang!
The constant collisions echoed through the forest.
For some reason, when the Spider Queen looked down into the boy’s deep purple eyes, its movements hesitated slightly.
Those eyes were cold.
Completely calm.
There wasn’t even the slightest trace of fear in them.
For the first time, the Spider Queen felt threatened.
Mia, who was watching from a distance, could only stare with her mouth slightly open.
’How is he this strong?’
She had expected him to be killed almost immediately.
He looked around her age, and from the amount of mana she sensed from him, he should’ve been an Ascendant just like her.
Yet he was fighting a Greater Beast head-on.
Not just surviving against it.
He was winning.
This was the same creature that had effortlessly killed a group made up of Early and Mid Ascendants, yet the boy hadn’t even been pushed backward.
Mia couldn’t understand it.
"Alright," the boy suddenly said while blocking another attack. "I think that’s enough."
His katana disappeared from sight.
Slash!
Something black flew through the air.
The Spider Queen froze.
A moment later, pale blue blood sprayed from one side of its body.
One of its long legs had been completely severed.
"SKRIIIIIEK!"
The Spider Queen screamed in agony as the missing limb crashed onto the ground.
Its pain quickly turned into rage.
Several remaining legs rose above the boy before slamming down violently.
BAM! BAM! BAM!
The ground shook repeatedly.
Each impact created another crater and sent more dirt into the air until a thick cloud of dust completely covered the area.
"No!"
Tears immediately formed in Mia’s eyes.
She could no longer see the boy.
Had the Spider Queen finally gotten him?
She placed both hands against the ground and tried forcing herself to stand so she could help, but her legs trembled and gave out beneath her.
She fell back down.
Mia clenched her teeth.
She hated this.
Someone had come to save her, and she couldn’t even stand up to help him.
’I’m so weak...’
The Spider Queen eventually stopped attacking.
Its legs remained raised as it stared suspiciously into the dust cloud.
Something felt wrong.
Despite repeatedly striking the ground, it hadn’t felt any of its legs pierce flesh.
The dust slowly began settling.
Then the boy appeared.
He was standing in exactly the same place as before.
Completely unharmed.
His katana rested casually against his shoulder as he looked up at the Spider Queen.
Mia’s eyes widened before relief immediately washed over her.
The boy sighed.
"You were slamming your legs around like you were dancing." He tilted his head slightly. "Are you finished now?"
The Spider Queen trembled.
What the hell was wrong with this human?
Why wouldn’t he just die?
Why couldn’t he simply become food for her and her children?
The boy lowered his katana.
"My turn."
Black mana gathered around his free hand.
The Spider Queen barely had enough time to react before the boy stepped forward and punched it directly in the head.
BOOM!
The front of its head caved inward.
Its enormous body was lifted from the ground and sent flying backward before crashing through several trees.
BAM!
Broken branches and leaves scattered everywhere.
The Spider Queen collapsed onto the ground, pale blue blood pouring from the deep wound across its head.
"Screech! Screeeech!"
Its agonized cries echoed through the forest.
Then the boy appeared beside it.
The Spider Queen’s instincts screamed.
It immediately bent its remaining legs and jumped into the air.
To escape.
That was the only thought left in its mind.
It finally understood that it couldn’t defeat this human.
The boy looked up at the fleeing creature.
For him, everything seemed to slow down.
The Spider Queen’s massive body barely moved through the air. Leaves floated almost motionlessly around him, while droplets of pale blue blood hung suspended between the branches.
He calmly returned his katana to its sheath.
Then he moved.
The ground cracked beneath his foot.
And a streak of black shot upward.
In an instant, he appeared above the Spider Queen while it was still suspended in the air.
His hand wrapped around the hilt of his katana.
Mana poured into the weapon.
The sheath trembled and the blade hummed with power.
He slowly pulled the katana only a fraction of the way out.
Then his figure flickered once, and blurred downwards.
He passed straight through the Spider Queen and descended toward the ground.
His boots touched the earth softly.
The katana was already back inside its sheath.
For a moment...
Nothing happened.
The Spider Queen continued moving through the air.
Then the sound arrived.
Slash! Slash! Slash! Slash!
Dozens of cuts echoed through the forest at almost the exact same time.
Thin white lines suddenly appeared across the Spider Queen’s body.
Then they separated.
Its massive body split into dozens of clean pieces.
Pale blue blood sprayed through the air as chunks of flesh began raining down toward the forest floor.
The boy didn’t even look up.
Before any of the blood or remains could fall onto him, his body sank into the shadow beneath his feet.
A moment later, another shadow shifted beside Mia.
The boy rose from it and appeared directly in front of her.
Behind him, the remains of the Spider Queen crashed onto the ground.
Mia stared up at him.
Her face was covered in dirt and tears, while her entire body still trembled from everything that had happened.
The boy looked down at her.
"It’s done," he said calmly. "No one’s going to hurt you anymore."
Mia’s lips trembled.
"T-thank y—"
Before she could finish, whatever strength had been keeping her conscious finally disappeared.
Her eyes rolled back and her body went limp.
She fainted.