About half an hour had passed, but he had finally managed to kill all the Flesh Grubs. His hands were bright red from the heat.
"Creating a few Fire Bolts isn't a problem, but when I create dozens, my hands burn..."
You have defeated 30 [Flesh Grub].
[You've obtained 60 Spark.]
Eiden looked down from the high rocky ledge. The cave floor now looked completely different. Dozens of Flesh Grub corpses lay on the ground in various positions, roasted and burned. Some were curled up, others stretched out, all turned a brownish-black color from the effect of the Fire Bolts. The organs beneath their translucent skin were now motionless, their internal fluids coagulated and dried up.
Yellow fluid puddles glistened here and there, forming small lakes of liquid leaking from the insects' bodies. The smell of burnt flesh and a sharp, sour odor hung in the air. The smell was so strong that Eiden wrinkled his nose.
"It's like I threw a giant barbecue party," Eiden muttered with disgust. "The world's most disgusting barbecue party. This is what happens when you kill 30 of them... I need to get out of here as soon as possible."
Carefully maintaining his balance, he looked at where the vine was hanging. It was a bit far, but he could jump to it.
"Okay, here we go..." he muttered, bending his knees and preparing to jump.
He took a deep breath and launched himself forward, extending his arms to try to grab the vine. His fingers touched the vine and gripped it tightly. For a moment, he thought he had succeeded.
But as his body weight bore down on the vine, it unexpectedly trembled and began to sway.
"What's happening?!" he shouted in panic.
His fingers slipped from the slick surface, and he completely lost his balance.
"Fuuuuck!" he screamed in that brief moment suspended in the air.
A second later, he fell about two meters down from the ledge, right into the middle of the pile of burnt Flesh Grub carcasses. Although the soft, jelly-like insect corpses somewhat slowed his fall, pain shot up his entire spine.
"Aaaagh!" he groaned, wincing in pain. "My ass! Damn it!" he said, holding his hip.
After lying among the burnt insects for a few more minutes, writhing in pain, Eiden took a deep breath and slowly tried to get up. He felt a sharp pain throughout his body, especially in his back and hips.
"Damn it, my new pants are ruined too," he grumbled, trying to shake off the sticky yellow fluid covering him.
He tried to find his balance among the piles of burnt Flesh Grubs to stand up. His feet slipped on the slick surface, he almost fell again, but managed to steady himself at the last moment.
"All this effort and pain for 60 Spark," he muttered to himself. "I hope it's worth it because everything hurts right now."
Looking around, he searched for a way out of this section of the cave. He wanted to get away from the insect corpses as soon as possible. There were two tunnel entrances before him; one small and low, the other slightly wider and taller.
"Hmm, which one?" he thought for a brief moment. "The wider one seems logical, at least I won't have to bend down."
He started walking toward the wide tunnel, hearing the crackling sound of the sticky insect fluids drying on him with each step. He created a new Fire Bolt in his hand, this time a more controlled and smaller Fire Bolt. It was just to light his way, not for fighting.
"Let the path be illuminated before me!" he said in a fake ceremonial voice, trying to cheer himself up a bit.
The tunnel ran straight for several meters, then sloped gently downward. The walls here were smoother, as if carved by human hands years ago. Eiden looked at the walls curiously; there were some marks on them, perhaps ancient carved inscriptions, but they had eroded over time.
The tunnel began to widen, and Eiden found himself in a new cave chamber. This room was different from the previous ones. The ceiling was higher, and there were giant mushroom-like formations in the center of the cave. These mushrooms emitted a bluish light, allowing the room to be visible without the Fire Bolt.
"Wow," said Eiden, his mouth hanging open in amazement.
He extinguished the Fire Bolt in his hand (threw it at the wall) and looked around in the cave's natural light. Under the soft bluish light of the mushrooms, the interior of the cave looked almost magical. There were different sizes of these mushrooms on the floor, walls, and even the ceiling.
He took a few steps and noticed that the ground beneath his feet was soft – there was a moss-like covering on the floor here. With each step, the moss slightly collapsed and reshaped itself. As he continued walking, he felt a sense of peace. This section of the cave was almost... soothing. Unlike the previous sections, it didn't give off a feeling of danger and tension.
"This place is nice... peaceful," he murmured as he continued forward. "Maybe I can rest a bit."
But then his eyes caught something on the cave ceiling. At first, he couldn't make out what it was. Among the glowing mushrooms hanging from the ceiling, something large was suspended. Upon closer focus, he realized it was a massive spider web, and in the center of the web was something large wrapped in a cocoon.
He took a few steps closer to get a better look, squinting his eyes. The bluish light vaguely showed the outlines of what was inside the cocoon. It definitely resembled a human.
Eiden's heart began to race. The facial features of the figure in the cocoon belonged to an elderly man with a whitened beard and a wrinkled face. The man appeared to be in his fifties and was motionless inside the cocoon. His eyes were closed, as if in a deep sleep.
"Help... me..." the man moaned.
"Hey! I can help you of course! But first tell me, what are you doing up there?"
"Went out... for some... air..."
"Then you can get down yourself, good day!" he said and began to walk back the way he came. He was bluffing.
"Wait!"
Eiden slowly turned around. "I'm listening."
"There's a giant spider... My team and I got caught in its web... Don't touch the webs! It can sense when someone touches its webs!"
"Ugh... A giant spider? I'll pass, see you!" he said and again started to walk back the way he came. It was another bluff.
"Wait! Tell me what you want! I can give you things, I have money!"
"Things I want? Let me think..." he said, putting his hand on his chin. "First of all, I'm hungry. I feel like I haven't eaten for days."
"Yes."
"I'm thirsty. I couldn't find any clean water sources around. I didn't want to drink water using the Summon Water spell, can't tell where the water comes from."
"What spe—"
"I've experienced memory loss. I barely know anything except my own name."
"Uh-huh..."
"And I'm a bit tired too."
"..."
"I also need a settlement to stay in. The only city I saw was on fire."
"I can give you what you want! Regarding your memory, there's a healer in our town who might be able to help. I own an inn! You can stay there as long as you want, just please help me!"
"I never forget a promise! Don't try to trick me!"
"My word is my word! But, how will you help?"
At that moment, Eiden was already holding a Fire Bolt in his hand. "With this."
"No, no! Don't you have anything else?! I'll fall!"
"Hey, hey! Stop yelling and leave the job to the professionals! How would you prefer I get you out? Should I find a ladder that reaches up there?"
"Alright... Aim carefully!"
"I'll try."
Eiden carefully aimed the Fire Bolt, targeting the very top part of the cocoon the man was wrapped in. He concentrated with all his mind on the Fire Bolt in his hand. If he aimed wrong, he could burn the man. "Get ready," he called out, "here it comes!"
He hurled the Fire Bolt. It hit the top part of the cocoon and began to melt the bindings. The cocoon slowly loosened, starting to sag downward with the weight of the man.
"I'm falling! Catch me!"
Eiden quickly sprang into action with his reflexes. He ran under the man and opened his arms. As the man broke completely free from the web and began to fall, Eiden adjusted his position and prepared to catch him.
The man fell into Eiden's arms. Eiden staggered for a moment but managed to maintain his balance. He felt that the old man was heavier than expected.
"Thanks," said the old man, freeing himself from Eiden's arms and standing on the ground. He was struggling to stand, his legs were numb from being in the cocoon for so long.
"So? Where is this spider you mentioned?"
At that moment, a clicking sound was heard from the far corner of the cave. Eiden reflexively turned in that direction. In the bluish light of the mushrooms, huge, furry legs began to appear, descending from the wall.
"I've jinxed it..."
The clicking sounds grew louder, and after the legs descending from the wall, the entire body of a giant spider emerged. Eiden's eyes widened with fear and astonishment. This was the largest spider he had ever seen—even bigger than a horse carriage.
The spider's body was shiny black with reddish patterns. Its eight eyes glowed blood red in the bluish mushroom light, and each was larger than an apple. Each leg was longer than a human's height and had sharp, hook-like claws at the ends. The mandibles around its mouth constantly opened and closed, dripping venom. This venom made a slight sizzling sound when it dripped to the ground and dissolved the moss covering.
As the spider slowly approached Eiden and the old man, it raised its upper two legs threateningly. A hissing sound from its mouth echoed through the cave, as if it were making an angry speech. Its eyes glowed with fury at having lost its prey.
"That's the spider I was talking about," whispered the old man, trying to hide behind Eiden.
Quest Updated: [First Dungeon]
Try not to die.
Objective: Clear out the cave 0/1.
Reward: Simple Shoes
Bonus Objective: Kill The Giant Spider.
Reward: 1 Monster Essence (lesser)
"Thanks for telling me beforehand!" he shouted into the void. "However... previously it had warned me that the surroundings were dangerous... now I didn't hear anything like that. This means that... I can defeat the spider. I think." he thought.
"Hey, old man! Try not to die, I'm going to kill this spider!"
As Eiden watched the giant spider slowly approaching, strategies were racing through his mind. A direct attack would be suicide. He could be torn apart with a single move from this monster.
"Look, the plan is simple," he said, turning to the old man. "I'll distract it, and you run towards the exit. Deal?"
"D-deal," said the old man with a trembling voice.
As the spider approached, clicking its mandibles, Eiden hesitated for a moment. His instincts told him to run, but part of him didn't want to miss this opportunity.
"Come on, eight-legged monster. Come taste my fire!"
Eiden raised his hand and concentrated to create a Fire Bolt in his palm. The Fire Bolt pulsed and grew in his palm, illuminating the cave with a reddish-orange light. Without hesitation, he hurled the Fire Bolt toward the spider's face.
The Fire Bolt left a crimson trail in the air but the spider dodged it with incredible agility. The Fire Bolt hit the cave wall, creating a small explosion.
"Damn, nimble thing!"
The spider hissed with rage and lunged at Eiden. Eiden quickly rolled to the right, narrowly escaping the monster. He immediately straightened up and prepared another Fire Bolt.
"Run!" he shouted to the old man. "I'll handle this!"
The old man began staggering toward the cave exit, constantly looking back.
Eiden launched another Fire Bolt, this time aiming for the spider's abdomen. The Fire Bolt hit the underside of the monster, and the spider hissed in pain. However, the wound didn't look serious—its shell-like armor had deflected most of the fire.
"I need to hit harder," Eiden thought. "But how?"
The spider suddenly sprayed a web. Eiden dodged it at the last moment, but lost his balance and fell to the ground. The spider didn't miss this opportunity and jumped on him.
In a panic, Eiden raised his hands while lying on the ground and instinctively created another Fire Bolt. This one was a bit smaller but hit the spider right in the mouth. The monster jumped back in pain, smoke rising between its mandibles.
"Ha! How did you like that?" Eiden called out, quickly getting to his feet.
The old man had approached the cave exit but couldn't speed up. His legs were still numb and he kept stumbling.
The spider was moving back and forth between Eiden and the old man. Apparently, it didn't want to lose either of its prey. Eiden realized this.
"Hey, ugly thing! I'm right here!"
He tried to create a larger Fire Bolt by joining his hands. As his concentration increased, a brighter, more powerful Fire Bolt formed in his palms. However, he was pushing the limits of the Fire Bolt spell—this spell could only grow to a certain size.
The spider turned to Eiden again and raised its two front legs in a threatening posture.
"Take this!" Eiden shouted and hurled the Fire Bolt toward the spider's open mouth.
The Fire Bolt hit its target directly. It went into the spider's mouth, and a moment later a muffled explosion came from the monster's abdomen. The spider writhed in pain, its legs flailing uncontrollably.
Eiden didn't miss the opportunity. He quickly prepared another Fire Bolt and hurled it towards the spider's now vulnerable abdomen. The second blow dealt serious damage to the monster. The spider's shell cracked and a greenish fluid began to leak from inside.
"Keep going!" shouted the old man from the cave entrance. "It's almost dead!"
A determined expression appeared on Eiden's face. He prepared a third Fire Bolt, this time with all his concentration. The Fire Bolt in his palms pulsed and glowed.
"This will be the final blow," he muttered to himself.
The spider was still writhing but was slowly beginning to recover. It staggered toward Eiden, as if seeking revenge.
Eiden waited for just the right moment to throw the Fire Bolt. When the spider lunged to attack, Eiden hurled the final Fire Bolt directly at the monster's open wound.
The Fire Bolt entered through the spider's cracked shell and exploded inside the monster. The spider jumped into the air, its legs contracting and bending, then fell to the ground. Its body convulsed several times before becoming motionless.
Eiden approached the spider's corpse, breathing heavily. He raised his hand, ready for any movement, but the monster was truly dead.
Bonus Objective Completed:
Kill The Giant Spider
Reward: 1 Monster Essence (lesser)
"You did it!" shouted the old man, running to Eiden's side. "That was incredible!" he said and coughed to suppress his excitement. "Anyway, you saved my life. I owe you."