The Spider King of the Desert

If players were asked to name the single most difficult terrain to clear in the individual matches, the vast majority would choose the desert without hesitation. Sand stretched in every direction, an endless golden sea. The sky offered a strip of blue, but the merciless sunlight hammered the eyes so fiercely that even that small comfort was almost impossible to enjoy. It wasn't that the jungle or the snowfields were easy to explore. Those places at least carried the faint promise of discovery, which made the psychological burden lighter. No, what made the desert truly hellish wasn't the environment or the mind-numbing boredom. It was the desert's own special breed of monsters.

"Where the hell do these damn bugs keep crawling out from?!"

Park Jocheol had begun his individual match in the desert, and the nonstop ambushes finally pushed him to explode. Beside him, Namgung Cheonho spat out another mouthful of sand and nodded in weary agreement.

"You're telling me. My eyes are burning, I'm chewing grit with every breath, and the stress is off the charts."

The monsters were insects, so none of them felt overwhelmingly powerful on their own. A solid stab could slice through even the toughest chitin exoskeleton. The real problem was their variety—centipedes, spiders, scorpions, all carrying venom. Worse, they retained every hunting instinct of ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠their real-world counterparts. They stayed perfectly hidden beneath the sand, giving off no presence until they erupted with a sudden bam! and swarmed the players. The heat already drained stamina at an alarming rate; the relentless attacks made the mental toll brutal.

"Jocheol, doesn't it feel like fewer of them are charging us than before?"

"Hoo... That's because we've killed so many."

"It's tragic that not all of them carry treasure."

By now the pair had slaughtered at least a hundred bugs. Yet Lv.1 and Lv.2 monsters were apparently treated as mere trash mobs; successful hunts almost never dropped anything. The only rewards they'd gained were two Rings of Swiftness that raised agility by 1 each, obtained from the first Lv.3 rock centipede that had attacked them. At this pace, only a handful of people would ever gather all five treasures and escape the individual match.

"This could go on forever! Isn't there anything we can do?!"

Park Jocheol shouted at Namgung Cheonho, his face twisted in frustration. The ground had finally gone quiet, but now he felt the same ominous vibration rising from below once more. Every time that tremor appeared, a swarm followed. It might be the root cause of this endless, grinding battle.

"There's something big underground. We need to take it out."

"There's one way, but... if we're unlucky, you're going to swallow a lot of sand. Ready to try?"

The moment a spider burst from the ground, Namgung Cheonho drove his blade into its belly and spoke. Park Jocheol turned to him with renewed hope. The man had also cleared the second floor. Just as Park Jocheol himself had been transformed beyond recognition upon reaching the third floor, Namgung Cheonho must have gained superhuman powers of his own.

"Whatever it is, let's make it count!"

"You asked for it! Jocheol, step back a little!"

Namgung Cheonho flashed a quick smile, then began forming hand seals the instant he finished speaking. Scorching wind slowly gathered around him. The air grew heavy. Then—

He slammed his palm against the ground. A violent gale exploded outward from the point of impact, hurling sand high into the air. It was the Taoist magic he had learned on the second floor. Against players who had already become superhumans it probably wouldn't cause serious damage, but in this situation it was the perfect technique for dragging hidden insects out of the earth.

"Let's go!"

"I'm definitely eating sand!"

At Namgung Cheonho's signal, Park Jocheol leaped into the newly formed crater.

Dozens of insects, large and small, registered on Park Jocheol's sensory radar. The pit was deeper and wider than expected, an underground space so solidly reinforced with rock that it was easy to forget the surface was nothing but sand.

"Bright Flower!"

Namgung Cheonho arrived a beat later and thrust his finger into the ground. Small luminous blossoms sprouted everywhere, bathing the cavern in soft light.

The insects had never expected prey to willingly jump into their den. All their heads snapped toward the intruders at once. A chill raced down Park Jocheol's spine.

"Ugly bastards..."

But that wasn't the end of it.

Behind the swarm crouched an abnormally massive spider. Its dozens of rolling eyeballs made Park Jocheol feel as if he might develop arachnophobia on the spot.

"Spider King, huh..."

Click. Park Jocheol adjusted his grip on his sword and prepared to charge. From here on, all they could do was dance with their blades until the hunt was finished. No other options came to mind.

"Mr. Park Jocheol."

"Yeah?"

Namgung Cheonho, standing behind him, called out cautiously.

"Could you clear a path to right in front of that spider?"

"You have a plan?"

"It's a bit of a personal request, but..."

Neither of them were ordinary people without power anymore. They had transcended human limits and stepped into the realm of supernatural ability once only found in fantasy novels. Their powers had limits, but they had reached the level where they could create breakthroughs even in desperate situations like this.

"Have you ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠ever set a spider web on fire, Mr. Park?"

"No, but... wait, can you shoot fire too?"

"It's something like my trump card."

Life sparked in Park Jocheol's eyes. He had never burned spider silk before, but he knew very well that fire was the natural enemy of insects. And the romance of launching fireballs from one's hand—every man had dreamed of that kind of magic at least once!

Slash—! Rip—!

"Follow me!"

"Thank you! I've always wanted to try shooting fire!"

Park Jocheol carved through the swarming bugs, heart pounding with excitement as he charged toward the Spider King. Namgung Cheonho followed close behind, forming new hand seals even as he ran. He had gained the power to wield the strength of immortals—something closer to magic or spirit arts in fantasy terms. He had been waiting for the chance to use this particular strike against a giant insect-type monster.

Whoosh—!

A jet of flame erupted from his hands, a long, powerful stream resembling a fire hose from a fire truck. The surrounding bugs, obeying their king's command, threw themselves into the path of the flames. But Namgung Cheonho's fire was far beyond what mere Lv.1 or Lv.2 insects could block. The Spider King remained motionless in its nest, exactly as the description had warned. The blazing stream struck its underbelly dead-on, and the creature's abdomen caught fire instantly.

Boom!

"Kiiiiieeeeeeek—!!!"

The spider began thrashing in agony, slamming itself against the walls in an attempt to extinguish the flames.

"Now!"

Park Jocheol wasn't about to miss the opening. Leaving the visibly exhausted Namgung Cheonho behind, he rushed the Spider King. The raid experience he had gained hunting monsters on the second floor shone brightly in this moment. Even while burning, the king still had enough mind left to send its minions at him. Heads flew with every swing of Park Jocheol's blade. The spider webs that had covered the floor had already been reduced to ash by Namgung Cheonho's flames. Nothing could stop him.

Crash!

The charred webbing finally gave way beneath the Spider King's weight and collapsed. The giant arachnid flipped onto its back, exposing its burning belly. Park Jocheol seized the opportunity and leaped with all his strength.

Tang—!

The king's legs twitched, trying to bat him away. But Park Jocheol's airborne form was faster than the awkward swing.

"Haaap!"

His sword thrust forward. Both men believed this would finally end the infuriating desert battle.

That is, until the spider silk shot out from the edge of its abdomen.

"Guh!"

The sudden impact knocked Park Jocheol's sword from his hand just as it was about to reach the king's belly. The silk sent him flying backward. Since he had been airborne to deliver the final blow, there was no way to control his trajectory.

Crash! Roll—!

He tumbled across the ground, coughing violently. Blood sprayed from his mouth. The direct hit to ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠his abdomen had damaged his internal organs.

"Ughhh..."

Namgung Cheonho's mind reeled as he watched his companion collapse from the surprise attack. ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠He had used too much energy lifting the sand, illuminating the cave, and firing the flame cannon. Thinking the best move against insect monsters was fire had become their downfall.

The flames on the Spider King finally died. The creature slowly rose. Its sand-colored body was now charred black, and every movement looked painful, but the critical fact remained: it could still move, while the two humans could not.

"Damn it...! Cough...!"

Park Jocheol, sprawled on the ground, struggled to tear away the silk binding him. But after rolling across the floor, the sticky threads had fused to him. His arm might be broken; he couldn't muster any strength.

"Kieeeeee!!!"

At the Spider King's shriek, both men could only accept their fate. Inside the dark underground tunnel, the glowing flowers had already withered, plunging the cavern into shadow. Their bodies refused to move.

"Jocheol, go back to the lobby first."

Rather than become food for this repulsive spider, it was better to escape the individual match stage. They would lose the items they had obtained, but that was preferable to being chewed apart alive.

But at that moment—

Crackle.

"Huh?"

At the edge of their failing vision, where the spider should have been approaching, a small light began to form.

Crackle-crackle!

What started as a faint glow grew brighter and more beautiful with every second. Like a single ray of moonlight illuminating a dawn path, the light stretched across the ground and poured into the cavern where the spider waited. What Namgung Cheonho saw in that brilliant path was Kim Siin, standing tall as dozens of sword beams erupted from the tip of his blade and rained down upon the spider.