The Spider's Strings
Seok-jun and Mina located the infested chimeras without much difficulty shortly after they began their search. "Why are there so many?" If there was one thing they hadn't anticipated, it was that the creatures numbered far more than just one or two. Five of them loomed as large as small hills, while several others—relatively smaller and twisted into different grotesque shapes—crawled and squirmed across the ground.
"It seems the reason the swamp had so few monsters was because of these things." The rotting wetlands were a domain ruled by undead creatures, a place where weak bodies and limited individual strength were compensated for by overwhelming numbers. Yet the pair had faced surprisingly few monsters until now. Under normal circumstances they would have suspected an anomaly from the start, but there had been one variable.
"What about the A-grade hunter who entered before us?" After all, an A-grade hunter had come through the gate ahead of them. Seok-jun had reached the gate right before the siren sounded, but the explanation for how someone else could have entered first was simple. It must have been Seong-gyu. The man who had lost to Seok-jun in their duel had been receiving treatment at this hospital. According to the nurse, his injuries hadn't been serious; he recovered quickly and slipped into the gate soon afterward. That was why neither Mina nor Seok-jun had found the scarcity of monsters inside particularly strange.
"What should we do?"
"It's been graded as C-rank, so I doubt even an A-grade hunter would struggle alone." Seok-jun seemed to share her assessment. He narrowed his eyes, studying the chimeras' movements with careful focus.
"The fact that we can't see that A-grade hunter is what's bothering me."
"Right?" Individually the creatures were certainly annoying but couldn't compare to a true C-grade monster. Their sheer numbers, however, confirmed an anomaly. The pair remained hidden against separate trees, careful not to alert the chimeras. Even in a low-grade gate, letting one's guard down during an irregular situation was simply common sense—or so they were thinking when it happened.
"Aaaah~ This is boring."
A shrill, unpleasant voice drifted from behind them, like nails scraping across a chalkboard. It did not belong to Seong-gyu. The childlike tone had barely registered when a sharp whoosh of violently displaced air cut between them.
-BOOM!
"Kyaa?!"
Startled by the impact, Mina staggered backward even as she reflexively gathered mana and unfurled a barrier to block the shockwave and flying mud.
"Seok-jun—"
"Do you really have time to worry about others~?"
"Ugh!"
The figure that charged her next swung a fist she barely managed to intercept with her rapier.
-CLANG!
The collision sent violent tremors racing up the blade and into her hand. The sheer power nearly made her drop her weapon. Human-shaped infested chimeras existed, but none should have been this strong. The force behind the blow far exceeded anything a simple C-grade creature could produce.
"Seong-gyu?! Why are you—?"
Yet as the spray of water thickened into fog, the attacker's identity was revealed and Mina froze in shock. Their assailant was no monster at all, but a human—the very A-grade hunter who should have entered the gate before them.
Whoosh!
"Ugh?! Stop attacking for a second—!"
He offered no reply. His iron-hardened fist simply swung again. Mina had no choice but to retreat, desperately dodging each strike.
"What? You two know each other? This just got much more interesting."
That voice...
Another voice drifted from somewhere nearby, speaking in Seong-gyu's place. Could it be a mental-type awakener? Perhaps a hunter with brainwashing mana was controlling him. But that made no sense. Seong-gyu was A-grade; common knowledge held that such manipulation wouldn't work on someone with mana that dense.
If not, then what?
Without brainwashing, there was no explanation for why Seong-gyu was attacking her. He gave no answers when she called to him, and the eyes that briefly met hers were glassy and unfocused. Only raw mana and muscle drove his assault.
"You seem to be thinking quite hard~ Shouldn't you watch your back?"
The new voice sent a chill down Mina's spine. She glanced behind her and saw what she had been too distracted to notice while evading Seong-gyu: one of the infested chimeras, the one nearly the size of a small hill.
He deliberately drove me here!
Whoever controlled Seong-gyu had forced her into this exact spot.
"Grrrrraaaawr."
As if to confirm it, the massive chimera reared up, proudly displaying its bulk. Mud and fragments of corpses dripped from its body as it bore down on her with crushing weight.
-CRAAAAASH!
A mountain of monster corpses slammed into their space. The chimera's sheer size created a shockwave strong enough to send ripples like a small tsunami across the ground.
"What the hell..."
Mina avoided the worst of the impact by launching a slashing strike at the creature and slipping through the gap she carved.
But it still wasn't over.
"Not bad. Show me more. I've been rather disappointed with the vessel I've had my eye on for so long."
"What have you been saying this whole time—!"
The unidentified voice continued to taunt her, and Seong-gyu slipped through the opening she'd created, fists still flying.
"Fine!"
Mina realized she had no choice. She drew her mana upward without restraint. Against another A-grade hunter there was no room for mercy. Power coiled around her rapier as she met his fist head-on.
-KAAAANG!
So heavy!
His strength surpassed even her maximum output. The hardened fist collided with her blade and showed not a single scratch.
A head-on fight won't work.
His mana, Iron Muscle, was clearly defense-oriented just as its name suggested. Mana of this type boasted overwhelmingly efficient use of its own properties. In a battle that relied solely on those properties, it could likely be maintained longer than any other type.
In that case.
Mina slid her rapier off his fist. The moment she did, another punch flew at her—but she was ready.
I have to aim for the weakness!
She guided the blade along the inside of his arm and stepped into his guard. She already knew his flaw. When Iron Muscle activated, Seong-gyu's joints stiffened completely, restricting his movement.
Just as I thought!
Even with her vision blurred by spray, she spotted the distinctly different skin tone at his joints and elbow. His movements had been more fluid than expected, meaning the controller also knew his weakness and had left the joints unhardened. Her guess had been correct.
I'm sorry, but I have to cut it!
She knew a potion could reattach a severed limb with ease. No matter the cost, she drove her rapier forward to subdue him—
-KAAAAAANG!
"Kyaaak?!"
The impact jarred her hand far worse than before. The joint she had tried to sever had been suddenly reinforced. Having struck full force against something so rigid, Mina wiped the involuntary tears from her eyes with her sleeve and looked up again.
"Oho, how dangerous~ How dangerous~ You really meant to chop this guy's arm clean off?"
His whole body... it's all hardened?!
Every inch of him had transformed into solid iron. One might assume such a state would render him immobile, yet Seong-gyu continued to move freely.
"Not bad at all. Struggle harder for me~"
"This is—!"
Whoosh! She met the incoming fist with her rapier, but he gave her no breathing room before swinging his other hand.
Why? How is he moving like this?
Even fully hardened, he attacked with complete freedom. The way he flowed naturally through motions that should have been impossible without flexible joints made it seem as though the penalty had vanished entirely.
Has his mana evolved?
Such cases existed. Just as B-grade hunters could ascend to A-grade, mana was not incapable of growth—Mina herself was proof of that. She had once been limited to wielding only a single sword.
But this quickly?
Even so, she had never heard of mana evolving so suddenly. Then she noticed it: when he moved, the color of his joints flickered for the briefest instant.
The penalty is still there!
The restriction remained. Yet even taking that into account, his unnaturally swift movements defied explanation.
"Ugh?!"
No matter how fast Mina moved, he matched her effortlessly and lashed out with kicks, forcing her into pure defense.
"How about it? Amazing, isn't it? Even someone like this can move this way when he's in the palm of my hand."
And the owner of that constantly intruding voice remained completely incomprehensible.
It feels like his feet barely touch the ground.
The moment the thought formed, Mina saw it.
This is it!
Seong-gyu closed in again, but she refused to panic. The instant his fist flew forward, she leaped to its outer side, manifested a flying knife, and slashed at the thin thread glinting along his arm.
Thud!
His movements dulled. She seized the opening and swung her rapier toward the top of his head.
Ting-ting-ting-ting!
The sound of taut threads snapping rang out one after another. At the same time Seong-gyu collapsed like a discarded doll.
"Haa..."
Clap. Clap. Clap.
"Ugh?!"
Just as Mina caught her breath, applause echoed through the swamp.
"Hyahaha~ Really now. That exceeded all my expectations. To notice my interference in such a short window."
"Huh?"
Only then did she remember the voice's owner was still present. As she scanned her surroundings, what she discovered left her utterly stunned.
"A spider?"
The creature clapping its two front legs together looked as though it had been carved from enormous jewels.