Chapter 010
Chapter Title: The Spider Princess, Talatunia
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【11】
Gulliver was sure he had passed the test.
After all, he had survived this long without being eliminated.
Plus, he had a reliable party around him.
The reason he hadn't been eliminated yet was simple.
The first group of examinees he met was one that believed in cooperating to defeat monsters.
He had joined their party then and had been coasting on their efforts ever since.
The party was exceptionally skilled.
They had even handled a troll with ease.
In the previous battle, the Fire Ball Gulliver had launched had even finished the troll off.
‘I really am talented.’
He patted himself on the back.
But his luck had run out.
“Aaaaaahhhhh!”
Gulliver screamed.
The student who had been the party's leader frantically crushed his bead and escaped the World of Heroes as his arm was being chewed off.
*Kieeeeeeeek!*
The massive monster let out an ear-splitting shriek.
It was a monster he had never seen before.
A monster in the shape of a giant spider.
Of its ten legs, all but the front two were bent at grotesque angles.
The abdomen that spun silk was gruesomely crushed, and its head was half torn off.
Though it looked like little more than a corpse, the horrifying creature was still clinging to life.
*Kieek! Kieeeeeek!*
“F-Fire Ball!”
Gulliver hastily cast a spell.
*Fwoosh! Boom—!*
The Fire Ball struck the spider squarely in the face.
“Hahaha! H-how do you like that! A taste of my Fire Ball!”
Gulliver clenched his fist.
But as the smoke from the Fire Ball cleared…
The spider emerged, completely unscathed, and Gulliver’s face went white.
*Kieeeeeeeeeeeek!*
“Ah, aaaaaah!”
As the enraged spider charged, Gulliver screamed and fled.
The knight students gripped their weapons to stop the spider.
*Thwack—! Crunch!*
“Keuk!”
But they were sent flying by the spider’s strength.
The monster was far beyond anything they could handle.
“How are we supposed to beat something like this!”
One student shrieked in a voice bordering on despair.
With trembling hands, Gulliver pulled a blue bead from his pocket.
‘I-I have to escape! B-but if someone else defeats it, I might still pass the test!’
With no intention of fighting the spider himself, Gulliver wavered, hoping someone else would defeat it for him.
It was then.
“Wind Fang.”
*Crr-ack—!*
*Kiaaaaaak!*
A fang of wind descended from the sky, embedding itself in the spider’s back and splattering dark purple blood.
*Tssssss—!*
The wound healed in an instant.
“…What a monster.”
Abad, floating in mid-air with Fly magic, grimaced.
*Fwoooosh—!*
This time, a flame descended.
The flame soon converged into a single point.
Celia, having gathered an aura of fire on her rapier, her eyes glinting, thrust it forward.
*Kwa-gak!*
*Kiaaak!*
The spider, its head pierced, shrieked and swung its forelegs.
Celia hastily dodged out of its attack range and landed on the ground.
“Tch! It healed from this too?”
Celia and Abad, who had rushed over as soon as they heard the screams, had immediately attacked the spider.
But despite taking direct hits from magic and Aura, the spider recovered completely.
“A type of monster I’ve never seen before.”
“It might be a demon from Tartaros.”
At Abad’s mumble, Celia readjusted her grip on Flame Storm.
“And it seems to be the challenge of this test.”
“Hmm? Indeed. Was this the key to conquering this world?”
A smile played on Abad’s lips.
Raising his staff, he began to chant in the runic language.
The magic of wind surged around him.
Startled by the sight, Celia ignited her Aura.
‘As if I’d let you get the first strike.’
If defeating the giant spider was the test's challenge, then to secure the top spot, she had to defeat it before Abad did.
What had been cooperation until now had just turned into a competition.
*Fwoosh!*
Celia’s red eyes flashed.
At the same time, an aura of fire gathered at the tip of Flame Storm.
Pulling her left arm, which held the sword, back, Celia took a thrusting stance.
*Cra-ack—!*
Her feet dug into the ground.
‘Prominence!’
The most powerful attack Celia could muster.
A thrust that focused all her Aura into a single point!
*Fwoosh—!*
A blade of crimson flame shot forward.
*Kiaak?*
The flame pierced through the half-torn head, passed through the spider, and exited out its rear.
“Alright! No matter how good its regeneration is, this should be enough…”
*Thump—! Thump—!*
*Kieeeeeeeeeeeek!*
“No way!”
The giant spider pushed itself up and let out an ear-splitting shriek.
“A magnificent attack, but…”
Floating in the air, Abad wore a smug smile.
“There’s a clear difference between the destructive power of a knight and a mage.”
Abad spread his hands and completed his spell.
“Rafale.”
A secret spell of the Llewellyn family.
A raging gale swirled, enveloping the spider.
“Aaaaaah?”
“I-is that really a spell from a mage our age?”
The other examinees, caught in the gale, cried out in shock.
‘It’s over.’
Abad’s expression was full of meaning.
However.
“What?”
The magic dissipated, revealing the giant spider.
Its body was torn to shreds by the gale.
But the giant spider’s body was rapidly regenerating.
The attack from Abad, who could be said to possess the greatest offensive power among the current examinees, had failed.
A look of dismay crossed Celia’s face.
‘How are we supposed to defeat something like this?’
***
“As expected of the talents Jerdinger and Llewellyn are so proud of! An attack of that magnitude at their age!”
The aide exclaimed in admiration.
‘They chose competition over cooperation.’
Watching the two, Albi’s lips curled into a smirk.
The desire to be the best wasn't a bad thing.
After all, Celia and Abad had the skill to back it up.
‘But can they truly defeat that monster with their strength alone?’
A monster that regenerates infinitely cannot be defeated without a decisive final blow.
Among the examinees, only Celia and Abad were capable of landing an effective attack on that monster.
But even their current skills were not enough.
‘If you are truly of heroic timber, then overcome this trial.’
***
‘Just as I thought.’
Leo’s eyes, having followed Celia and Abad, glinted.
‘It was the Spider Princess, Talatunia.’
He had suspected it when he saw the troll corpses.
The way they were eaten was identical to this monster’s method.
The daughter of the Demon Queen Silatuna, a monster who once ruled the Forest of Demons.
Normally, she was a terrible disaster capable of destroying a nation on her own.
But she wasn't in her prime state right now.
Her body was mangled, barely maintaining its original form.
Her head, which once radiated a terrifying magical power, was half torn off.
Compared to her peak, she had been reduced to a pathetic monster.
‘Albi’s left eye must hold the Fairy King’s magic.’
Fairies.
High-ranking magical beasts that had coexisted with elves since ancient times.
The palm-sized fairies with transparent wings were beings that held immense magical power.
Since only elves could form contracts with fairies, they were extremely rare in the human world.
Five thousand years ago, Talatunia had devoured the Fairy King’s right hand.
Luna had not forgiven Talatunia for ravaging her homeland and eating her contractor’s right hand.
The Spider Princess, who had single-handedly destroyed a nation, was killed by the [progenitor of the nebula].
And yet, thousands of years later…
Talatunia was alive.
The reason was simple.
‘It’s inside her stomach.’
The Ring of Life, the symbol of the Fairy King.
The ring, which granted infinite life force, had been devoured by Talatunia along with the Fairy King’s hand.
Leo readjusted his grip on his sword.
He took a throwing stance and let it fly.
*Whoooosh! Thud!*
*Kiaaaak!*
Talatunia shrieked as Leo’s sword embedded itself in her head.
He then stood next to Celia and spoke.
“Looks like you’re having a tough time.”
“Stay back, Leo. This isn't an opponent you can handle without being able to use Aura.”
Blades of wind whipped down from the sky, striking Talatunia.
Writhing in pain, Talatunia glared into the air, let out a shriek, and leaped.
Thanks to her tremendous jumping power, she reached Abad in an instant.
“Wind Break!”
Chelsea, who had been following close behind, activated the spell she had prepared.
*Kra-ga-ga-gak—!*
A whirlwind of blades descended upon Talatunia.
Her attack on Abad thwarted by Chelsea’s interference, Talatunia crashed to the ground.
*Kooong—!*
The ground shook as Talatunia landed.
“Brother, are you okay?”
“Thanks, Chelsea.”
Abad smiled at his sister and descended to the ground.
He had judged it was too dangerous to remain in the air.
The other examinees who had followed them surrounded Talatunia.
“How do we defeat that monster?”
Abad muttered in a serious tone, and Leo asked.
“It just keeps regenerating?”
“Yes. Even the strongest spell I can cast didn't work.”
“Same with my attack.”
Celia let out a sigh.
“Is that so? Then it’s simple.”
“What?”
“If you can’t beat it alone, you have to work together. It’s a simple concept, isn’t it?”
“Leo, this greasy guy and I are competitors.”
“Why are you calling my brother greasy!”
Chelsea, standing beside them, flared up.
“For once, I agree with Celia. The one who defeats that monster first will take the top spot.”
Hearing Celia and Abad, Leo looked at them as if they were pathetic.
“What if you can’t defeat it?”
“What?”
“What if that monster can revive itself infinitely? What if your Aura and mana run out first?”
Leo spoke coolly, looking at Talatunia, who was beginning to exude killing intent.
“If the test is to conquer the World of Heroes, then the moment we fail to defeat it, we all fail.”
“That’s absurd! If my brother and Celia Jerdinger can’t defeat it, then no one our age can. That would mean the test is flawed.”
Chelsea pouted and retorted.
But Celia and Abad couldn’t argue with Leo’s words.
It would certainly be unfair to be failed just because they couldn't defeat that monster.
But the world was, by nature, unfair.
“Even if we combine our strength, it will take time to prepare an attack powerful enough to kill that thing in one blow.”
Despite being under the focused assault of thirty examinees, Talatunia was completely unfazed.
In fact, the examinees were being pushed back.
It was clear they wouldn't last much longer.
Watching the scene, Celia spoke in a grave voice.
“Who can possibly hold that monster off during that time?”
Abad glanced at his sister, Chelsea.
‘Even Chelsea isn’t strong enough.’
One wrong move and she could lose her life.
The World of Heroes was a virtual world.
But death here was directly linked to real death in reality.
As the two wore serious expressions, Leo let out a smirk.
“I’ll hold it off.”
“What did you say?”
“I can hold it for about five minutes.”
“That’s suicide! You can’t even use Aura!”
“That’s why five minutes is my limit.”
Leo turned his body.
“So, for the next five minutes, you two gather as much power as you can.”
“What if the attack we gather for five minutes fails?”
Abad asked coolly.
Hearing this, Leo chuckled.
“Then we all fail together. But I don’t think you’ll fail to defeat it.”
“Why?”
“Fire and wind have been friends for a very long time. Because they have good synergy.”
Speaking leisurely, Leo walked toward Talatunia.
Watching him, Celia spoke.
“Get ready, Abad.”
“Hoo— I never thought we’d end up joining forces like this.”
With a slight smile, Abad began to gather his mana.
***
*Clomp— Clomp—*
“Ughhh.”
“Are you okay?”
“B-barely! But how are we going to… that monster…”
“For now, I’m going to try and hold it off for five minutes.”
“What?”
The fallen knight student looked up at Leo in surprise.
“Let me borrow this for a moment.”
Leo picked up the polearm the student was using.
It had a different kind of weight to it than a sword.
*Thump— Thump—!*
*Kieeeeeek—!*
Talatunia, left with nothing but primal hostility, let out a low shriek at Leo.
“This brings back memories.”
Leo smiled coldly.
“It’s been a while. I’m going to smash that ugly mug of yours to pieces, you insect.”