#54. Spider Den
Twilight Spiders were trickier and stronger than the other monsters on Floor 7. They moved ridiculously fast, shot webs to bind your movements with special patterns, and had solid defense to boot. Their basic attacks inflicted poison, too, so the strategy guides recommended hunting them in parties of three or more.
Such Twilight Spiders swarming in numbers that looked overwhelming at a glance? That was obviously an abnormal situation. No ordinary Floor 7 challenger party could handle this difficulty.
Of course, I had a hunch about the cause of this massive outbreak.
"Don't butt in—stay behind me!"
Rizmel, the dark elf who talked big about testing my skills but now told me to hide behind her. The difficulty must be balanced around traveling with an elite NPC like her. Felt like a story-mode version. In other towers, these spider dens probably got cleared once by an NPC, dropping the difficulty afterward. Not that it mattered to me. My specs far outstripped any normal Floor 7 challenger's.
"You stay out of it."
I shoved past Rizmel and charged straight at the spider horde. The lead Twilight Spider reacted swiftly, spewing a web at me. Since she'd wanted to see my sword skills, I'd stick to swordplay this time.
Those webs were a pain to escape once they stuck, but they fired slowly and didn't have much range as compensation.
Thud! I dodged lightly with a foot plant, then leaped high and boldly landed on the spider's head.
Twilight Spiders varied in size, but even the basics were wild boar-level. And thanks to their body structure, once you mounted their back or head like this, they had no good way to hit you. The guides mentioned it as a tactic, but hardly anyone actually tried it. Makes sense—who the hell charges a poison spider the size of a boar and jumps on it?
"Whoa, fuck, this is disgusting."
The fuzzy hairs on its body surface felt nauseating. Grimacing, I slammed my sword down right away.
Squelch! Its exoskeleton was tough, but my Strength stat pierced it effortlessly. Translucent green bodily fluid sprayed out from the wound.
Twilight Spider fluids carried weak poison and strong corrosiveness on their own. That's why normal swords degraded fast when stabbing them. But ebony steel gear had high corrosion resistance, so my blade's durability didn't budge. Dark elf weapons were the real deal.
Whoosh! As I admired the sword's performance, shadows suddenly loomed overhead. Looking up, a massive Twilight Spider was mid-jump, about to crash down on me. Impressive jump power.
I used the head I'd just killed as a foothold, leaping to another spider's head to evade. Squelch! But right before the jumping one could smash my previous spot, something knocked it flying.
"Y-you idiot! What the hell are you doing? Don't you know how dangerous spiders are…?!"
Rizmel yelled, bow in hand from her back. So it was an arrow? For its size and weight, getting pierced by a single arrow and tumbling like that… Elite NPCs really were on another level. No wonder there were so many spiders—she was insanely strong.
"Get over here quick! You'll get hurt!"
"Didn't you want to see my skills?"
I chuckled dryly, cleaved another spider head, and charged the next one.
**
Once she realized I wasn't backing down, Rizmel threw herself into the fight, focusing on thinning the herd. Her archery was no joke, but her swordplay was even more absurd. I could drop most spiders in one or two hits, but in the time I took one, she'd slice two. I hadn't expected such a skill gap in mere mob farming, let alone PvP. Guess it was the difference in movement—her reactions and flexibility against lunging spiders were on a whole other plane.
"Looks like we've got most of 'em."
Anyway, Rizmel and I swept the swarming Twilight Spiders from the entrance. So many that the floor was puddled with mixed green fluids and venom.
"Finally, a breather. Why'd you pull such a reckless stunt…?!"
"You asked to see my skills."
"I never said to charge in like a brainless brute, you idiot human!"
Rizmel shrieked, rummaging in her side pouch for a small handkerchief and what looked like a potion. Judging by the color, an antidote type. She soaked the cloth and beckoned me closer.
"Spider fluid's all over you—trying to get sick on purpose? Gross, stick your face out!"
She grabbed my face and scrubbed vigorously. Come on, who gets sick from this?
"You rookies wouldn't get it, but if it gets in your eyes, nose, or mouth? Disaster. Can't help in a fight? Fine, just don't be dead weight!"
"Mmph."
"Hold. Still. I'm cleaning you up—can't you keep your lips still? I'll rip 'em off!"
By now, I had a rough read on her personality. All bark on the surface, but no different from other dark elves deep down. I pried off her antidote-soaked hand, waving that I was fine.
"You have no idea how nasty spider venom is. Mix it with their fluids, and it gets way stronger?"
She launched into a lecture on how bad Twilight Spider venom could mutate. Made sense why she was so paranoid, even if exaggerated.
"That dangerous, huh?"
"Yes! Why won't you listen?!"
Hmm, but saying it like that makes it hard to resist. Perfect—plenty of venom cocktail pooled right there. Ignoring her warnings, I scooped up a handful and chugged.
Gulp. The signature burning tingle of corrosive poison slid down my throat.
"H-hey! What the—spit it out now! Spit, spit!"
Rizmel freaked, but tasting it confirmed: nothing special. On par with Floor 6 zombie blood spray—wouldn't faze me.
**
Rizmel panicked at me downing poison but calmed once I explained my resistance. "Even with that constitution, never do it again!" She nagged about why I'd eat such crap but at least stopped trying to finger my throat to make me puke.
"So, spider extermination done?"
I sheathed my sword and asked. She shook her head, pulling out the note from earlier—now I saw it was more like an official directive.
"No, there were way more than expected. Must be a reason for the outbreak—we need to investigate deeper."
She added there might be a special mutated variant. Strategy posts said the inner habitat counted as a dungeon sans boss, but my experience screamed "unique boss that only spawns once."
"This isn't a mission for dragging along a human rookie… damn it."
Rizmel muttered, glancing at me. Despite the griping, she'd acknowledged my skills to some degree.
"Hey, human. Why'd you wanna join our scout team anyway?"
"To do stuff like this."
"Stuff like this? Humans always loved playing with poison spiders?"
Hard to explain, so I brushed it off, and she spouted nonsense. Why would humans like poison spiders?
"Said I wanted to hone my skills. Need real combat experience. Plus, helping your crew is a bonus."
She eyed me suspiciously, then snorted in approval. "Hmph, talking big now. I get why Elenoir dragged you along—you're totally that girl's type of rookie."
She patted my back, which felt oddly nice.
"But hey, Elenoir hasn't done anything weird to you, right?"
Suddenly, she leaned in close and whispered. Weird how?
"Like inviting you to bed or groping you? If so, shut it down flat. Got it?"
Her princess treatment was a bit off, but too annoying to argue—I just nodded. Right now, the boss in that den mattered more.