I keep myself low and hidden while observing the spider women moving around the cave and thinking about the current situation. The best choice would be to avoid any contact if possible and sneak past them, continuing on my path to meet the others. Additionally, they are most likely heading my way too, which means they are about to run into the Arachnes at some point.

But, that humanoid-looking girl keeps bothering me. I think it’s fair to assume that she’s something that could be considered an albino amongst her kind. Many of them aren’t treated too well in nature back on Earth and are often ostracized due to their differences. 

While it’s mostly about being a danger to the group as those differences might make it easier for predators to spot them, I don’t think it’s that in this case. I wouldn’t be surprised if she is hated so much only because she looks different from them.

In any way, call me a fool, but I want to go down there and help her. But, even so, I’m not as stupid to just charge straight at them and valiantly save the damsel in distress. First of all, I need to know if she even can or wants to be saved.

Even if the girl is treated like dirt and waste, she was most likely born into this community and is still a part of it. The other spider women can still be considered her family, her nest, her home. If she held no attachments to this place, she would have definitely tried to escape the abuse. But, no matter how skewed and forced onto her they might be, she could very well believe herself to be truly a lesser being and accept her slave-like role for the community.

Unfortunately, I can’t confirm anything without actually interacting with the girl, which could prove to be extremely dangerous. I’m pretty confident in handling the number of Arachnes in this chamber but who knows how many more there are and what’s the hierarchical structure of their den. The women present here are clearly workers or something.

Noticing that most of them are slowly beginning to leave the stone room through various exits after finishing their tasks, I make a quick decision to use that opportunity if it actually presents itself to me. To not waste this chance, I get in touch with Shino while observing the movements down below.

~Hey. How are you guys doing on the other side?~ I ask.

~We are fine, Sensei. There were some lizards or other monsters on our path but nothing too dangerous. We are slowly moving your way.~

~I’m glad to hear that. Now, I have to take care of something here so I will stop heading your way for a moment. As for you, I need you to do something. When you stumble onto tunnels with many spiders, do not engage them if possible, and stay away. Do not go further on that path. You can still try to look for an exit around or another way or just stay near them while waiting for me.~

~Why?~

~How do I say this… I might possibly be somewhere in the centre of a quite dangerous spider nest. I do hope to avoid direct confrontation but it might not be possible. It would be risky if you attacked it from the outside or were spotted going in so I would rather you stay near. If things go to shit on my side, I’ll run towards you and we’ll regroup to handle the enemies together while retreating.~

Silence answers me for a moment and I can feel Shino’s worry through our bond even though some distance separates us. I didn’t want to lie to her about my situation. That would only make her worry even more and could lead to her making rash decisions when she would learn what I have gotten myself into.

~Alright, Sensei. But, please, be careful. I know that you are strong, but still. We will be waiting for you as you requested.~

I smile to myself and focus my mind on reaching with my consciousness through the bond we share and bring my presence to Shino, just like I did with Cornelia long ago, letting her feel like I’m giving her a gentle hug from behind. I can sense her smiling back and I return to the situation below.

Most of the spider women have left and the rest looks like they are preparing to do the same. Two of them drag a cocoon each behind their backs as they skitter outside. I’ve already seen another pair wrap the lizard-like monster one of the Arachnes has brought earlier with their webs into such form so I’m pretty sure they are all going to eat or deliver food somewhere. A big part of this chamber is storage for their captured supplies.

As expected, the humanoid-looking girl keeps doing her job without paying attention to the bigger spider women leaving and they don’t bring her with them either. From what I can see, she was tasked with expanding the storage and is using her six spike-like legs to dig through the stone, which is clearly exhausting and not that easy, even though she is able to make okayish progress. Her spider legs must be incredibly durable and sharp.

I’m fairly sure I won’t be getting a better chance to approach her than this so I hastily shape my weapon into a long whip and coil it around a nearby stalagmite, starting to rappel myself lower and lower over the steep wall of the cavern.

She either doesn’t have too great hearing or the noise she is creating chipping away pieces of rock masks the sounds of my descent well enough for her not to notice it yet. I have to reel the whip back two times while somehow hanging onto the protruding parts before I hit the solid ground. Going down is always much more nerve-wracking than going up. Especially without any safety equipment.

Glancing around, I get the feeling that I can see a little better in this darkness. Led by it, I check on my status, and surely, Darkvision has appeared under my Common Passives. Be it from the fact that I have used mana to slightly enhance my eyes or the fact that my race can see much better, or maybe both, my ability has been acknowledged by the system. Good timing.

No new Arachne has appeared in the room while I made my way here and only the humanoid girl keeps striking the hard stone on the other side of the chamber. Still very careful, I slowly move closer and closer, thinking about how to approach her and which language to use if she even can understand me. From the conversations of the other women, I think they used Terrerian. That’s my safest bet.

I stop some distance from the busy Half-Arachne. Arriving much closer, I can finally see some more details about her.

She seems to be quite short, perhaps around Shino’s height, more or less. Besides the six obvious onyx spikes that extend from her back and are currently stabbing the stone in front of the girl, nothing else breaks the image of just a normal humanoid woman. 

Her ears are short but slightly sharp, just like Sirgia’s, and she has very short silvery hair. Just a single glance tells me the other Arachne grabbed, tore, cut, and mistreated it a lot with how unusually short, messy and jagged it is. She could be taken for a boy from behind if not for the lack of the necessary dangly bits to be called one.

Most of the women had quite long hair, often reaching their spider abdomens, but they must have kept ruining not only this girl’s body and have gone for her hair in their spite too, to make her look even less than them as much as it was possible.  

Her beautiful almost pure white skin is dirtied by countless bruises, blemishes and scars pretty much everywhere. It pains me so much from just moving my gaze over her wounded and hurt body. It’s just another reminder that every world is a cruel place that cares not for its inhabitants and who they are.

But, I don’t really have time to think about unnecessary things like that right now. If I manage to get her out of this hell, I’ll make sure to slowly but surely teach this poor girl about care and affection, something she has clearly never experienced in her life.

To do that, though, I need her to agree to come with me. I should not let my hopes and expectations get ahead of me. I need to steel myself for the possible rejection or even instant hostile reaction. I can’t bring her back forcefully and risk her hurting anyone I hold dear as much as it would pain me to leave her here alone or have to hurt her in self-defence. Priorities must be kept.

So, silently reshaping my artefact into a sword, I try to assume the least threatening posture I can while holding a weapon in one hand. Chances that she doesn’t recognize the sword as a weapon even if she had never seen one in her life are quite low. Instincts are a thing.

“Hey,” I speak calmly and in a quiet voice, using Terrerian.

She immediately jumps forward towards the stone while spinning around and presses her back into the wall that she has been excavating. Rough breaths escape the cute lips that decorate her adorable face, which would be much more charming if not for all the bruises and cuts staining it.

Calming her breathing from the arduous exercise of chipping the stone away, her six black spider legs point my way and slowly move around while her eyes scan my figure. All six of them.

Again, just like her back, her front has just a single feature that clearly differentiates the white-skinned girl from any other humanoid woman of petite stature. At the back, it’s the six onyx spikes coming out of it. At the front, it’s the six eyes filled with darkness as deep as an unending abyss.

She has two big ones at the same height as most of the humanoids but there are two more pairs of tear-shaped eyes above her silvery brows, on her forehead, each smaller than the previous one.

As for her figure in general, she is very petite just like I have said earlier. I’m pretty sure some of that is due to her being literally starved and exhausted almost to death, but I have a feeling that even with proper nutrition and care she would be quite small and thin. 

Regarding her chest department, she’s quite flat, although not completely. You can still make out the two tiny mounds that surround her small nipples. Again, it’s possible that she’s extremely malnourished and her body would gain some umph after getting on the right track of recovery. But, not that it matters. 

Another small detail that I catch is the fact that she seems completely hairless except for her head. Her white skin glistens alluringly even in this darkness and proudly presents its smoothness to the observer. At least at the parts that aren’t damaged. Needless to say, not even a tiny silver strand can be found around her girly parts, looking just as petite as the rest of the body. It somehow reminds me of Lianne for a moment.

Considering that I had the time to completely check her out from both front and back without getting impaled by the sharp onyx spikes instantly, I can assume that the first part of the plan to get in contact has succeeded. Now, we need to somehow proceed as smoothly.

I have noticed her deep obsidian eyes focusing on my hand most of the time while she was analyzing me just like I did, so I try to very slowly—keeping my gaze on her face—shove my sword into the ground by my side. The tip of the blade sinks into the stone floor with a quiet shiiing and I leave it there.

The girl moves her three pairs of eyes back to my face and observes me attentively, with a bit less tension now. Her spider legs keep hovering in the air while aimed in my general direction. There’s some space between us and someone would have to step closer to get in range of the other person so I think she feels decently safe with this.

But, I am mistaken. She is actually the first one to begin closing the distance between us, with a slow and very attentive step. One of her top spider legs extends forward much more than the others as she walks towards me and it soon arrives at my neck, pointing its extremely sharp tip at my throat.

Watching me carefully, she comes to stand in front of me with that safety measure hanging just millimetres from piercing my skin. She’s almost a head shorter than me, now that I can fully confirm that. 

With faintly noticeable curiosity, she starts looking me over from up close while the five remaining legs poke my clothes at different spots.

I have no idea why it feels like the right thing to do but I vanish all my attire into my storage ring and slowly extend my hands to the sides. 

The sudden change spooks the girl a little and the five spikes jerk back as she takes a step backwards. The one at my throat presses into my skin more, without puncturing it though. She tilts her head adorably after a moment and moves closer again. The surprise and curiosity are now even more apparent in her deep black eyes.

The girl’s sharp spikes poke all around my body very gently, with me experiencing just a tiny prickle when she cautiously stabs me with some uncertainty. Her gaze wanders over my front until it locks on a certain place. 

I swallow my saliva while watching four of the spikes head down and thank the Goddess that I can control that part even with how much my heart is pounding right now and pumping the blood through my system.

As if inherently understanding that she is dealing with something extremely sensitive and delicate, the girl doesn’t use the tips of her sharp limbs to poke my junk like the rest of my body and, instead, brushes against it with their edges, nudging my member and family jewels with even more curiosity. I’m pretty sure it's the first time she sees male parts considering how normal Arachnes reproduce. Maybe I’m even the first male that she has met in her life.

The threatening leg gradually withdraws from my throat and I raise a brow at the petite girl. Very hesitantly, she steps even closer to me, bit by bit while observing my face for any reaction. Feeling like she has deemed me safe to approach, for now, I let her do so.

Getting in range of her humanoid limbs, she hesitantly extends her small hand towards my torso and stops before her fingers touch my skin. Not seeing any reaction, she places her slightly chilly palm on my solar plexus and her small mouth opens a little. 

She unhurriedly drags it over my pecs, ribs, stomach and other parts of my front. I think the temperature and low heat that my body emanates has surprised her a little. From her touch, I can assume that her kin is a bit more cold-blooded in not just character.

I don’t really mind letting such a dainty girl cop a feel or two of me, but we aren’t exactly plentiful on time. I have no idea when her big sisters will come back and interrupt her curious examination.

Therefore, very calmly, I start moving my right arm lower. She obviously notices it instantly and watches me intently, still keeping her hand on my stomach. I try to mirror her previous actions and lazily bring my hand closer to her while observing her facial expressions, which are quite lacking and stuck at very neutral.

I stop in front of her skin just the way she did and wait for a moment. Not seeing any reaction, I gently press my palm between her small breasts and confirm that her skin truly is a bit colder than mine and it isn’t just her fingers.

Just like I let her touch me, it seems that she has nothing against returning the favour and letting me graze my fingers over her slightly chilly torso. I avoid getting any ideas unfit for the moment and just gently rub her tummy, skipping over the bruised spots, hoping this little amount of mutual skinship will be enough to prove the lack of malicious intentions.

Then, after a moment, I take a step back from her and smile softly as the girl watches me curiously.

“Can you understand me?” I ask calmly in the same language as before.

She tilts her head a bit, making me think that perhaps she doesn’t and only has reacted to my voice earlier, but she follows that motion with a faint nod a moment later. My smile grows a little bigger.

This will make things much easier.

“Does it hurt anywhere?” I place my right palm on my chest.

She stares at it for a moment and four of her six legs bend towards her body. Each spiky tip points at a different bruise over her alabaster skin.

“I can make it not hurt if you let me,” I say and sit down cross-legged on the cold floor while glancing at her face.

After a brief pause, the girl steps closer to me and tries to join me on the ground in the same manner. She has some trouble weaving her legs together like I did and sits on her butt instead with her knees to the front and slightly to the sides. Accidentally, it gives me the perfect view of her precious little mound with how it kisses the ground.

Ignoring that little detail, I extend my hand towards the girl and she curiously places her palm into mine. Squeezing it gently, I activate Rejuvenate and gradually heal up her wounds. Bit by bit, most of the blemishes, bruises and scars fade away from her snowy skin. Her eyes dart to various parts of her body during the treatment.

After finishing, I keep holding her petite hand while she starts examining herself and touching the healed places with the other one. Then, she looks at me with that completely neutral expression of hers, glancing at our joined hands a few times.

“Do you like my warm body?” I ask.

She nods.

“Want to get closer?”

I pull her hand just a little and wait to see if she will let me bring herself to me. There’s some hesitant opposition for a few seconds but it soon disappears. She awkwardly stands up and steps into the space between my crossed legs as all of her six spider limbs coil around her waist like a bunch of armoured belts or a protective corset.

Turning around, she slides into my lap and I gently hug her from behind. Her hands hold onto my arms while I brush her thighs with my fingers. It’s hard to get a read on this emotionless spidergirl but I hope she is comfortable. She feels safe enough to at least allow for this so I think we are on a good path. Thank the Goddess she is a curious type rather than a kill-on-first-sight type.

While we sit like that, I summon a waterskin from my ring, of course, making a few motions with my hand in front of us first to not spook her again. The spidergirl jumps a little when it materializes out of thin air and unravels one of her spikes to poke it.

Before she accidentally makes a hole in it, I pull the cap and spill some of the crystal clear liquid into my other hand, bringing it closer to her face. She stares at it for a brief moment, leans in to sniff the water, and dips the tip of her tongue in it.

Realizing what the liquid is, she starts to slowly drink it from my hand. Her tongue tickles my palm as she keeps awkwardly kissing it to scoop as much water as she can while I pour more. We keep it like that until she stops and leans back into me. Some droplets travel down her chin and fall onto her small chest, trailing even further, but I don’t think she cares.

Next, I bring some of the most easily digestible foods and rations I have on me and let her pick a few to snack on since I don’t really know what fits her diet. Besides meat, I guess, if she is any similar to the other Arachnes. I wonder if they make a soup of you like some spiders before sipping on your insides.

Afterwards, I just keep rubbing her thighs and arms, enjoying her slightly colder skin as much as she seems to enjoy my warmth. Since a few long minutes have passed already, I’ll, unfortunately, have to move forward.

“Did the others capture you and force you to do tough things on your own?” I ask calmly.

She shakes her head quite soon after hearing the question this time. Perhaps she has warmed up to me a little.

“But they did force you to work hard while hurting you, right?”

She nods faintly.

“So, you were born here?”

Another small nod.

“Will you get in trouble because I stopped you from working?”

A moment of pondering before a nod follows. I feel kinda bad now.

“And if you could somehow leave this place, to get away from the people that hurt you, would you do it?” I get to the point.

She turns her head around and stares at my face from below with all six of her jet-black eyes, most likely figuring out the hidden insinuation in my question. This spidergirl might be a bit smarter than I first assumed. 

But, before I get an answer, very easily recognizable noises reach my ears. Tens of sharp spikes poke rhythmically into the hard stone ground. The skittering ladies are coming back at the worst possible moment. And, it seems that I’m not the only one to notice as the girl’s head snaps to the side a moment later.

Her spider legs unravel from around her tummy and I lean back a little to make it easier for her to dig herself out of my lap with their use. She raises her body with those mobile black spears and plops onto the ground in front of me as I stand up too.

Taking a step back, she looks between me and the nearby entrance to a tunnel. She seems hesitant and I’m fairly sure I know why. The moment the other Arachnes arrive here, we will be enemies. She will have to take their side and face me if they order her to. It’s how things have been here so far and it’s not that easy to suddenly change everything.

I resummon my gear and pick up the sword. “Don’t worry about this. I won’t let them know you met me. Just tell me one thing. Would you like to come with me? To my own nest? My family is just like me. They won’t hurt you. If you promise that you won’t hurt them too, I can take you with me and let you stay by my side. Nod if you want that. Shake your head if you would like to remain here.”

While the skittering grows louder, I keep stepping back from the spidergirl and waiting for her response. She stares into my face with that neutral expression of hers. Our time starts to run out and I sigh somberly. Figured she would find it hard to make such a decision.

But, before I turn around to jump away from her, my eyes catch the faintest nod of her silver-haired head. A small smile finds its way onto my lips and I nod back at her.

“Leave everything to me then. If they order you to attack me, don’t hesitate. I’m strong. I can protect myself. We’ll see each other later. Better get back to work before your big bad sisters will have a reason to hurt you more. I would hate to see more scars on your pretty face and body, you know?”

And with that, I push myself towards the other side of the chamber, as far from the spidergirl’s position as possible. Stopping in front of an entrance to a side passage, I switch my artefact into a greatsword and prop it on my shoulder while facing the hole.

Soon, the silhouettes of many blue-skinned and white-legged Arachnes with black abdomens start showing up in front of me. The first three come to a halt and make the others stop too. Their impressive breasts jiggle seductively. All of them have long hair in dark colours and shades.

“What?!” One of the leading women furrows her brows and squints her six eyes.

“An intruder!” The second gasps in shock.

“A prey has come to us!” The third one cackles.

“We will see who is the prey here,” I say coldly.

The crowd of Arachnes falls silent, most likely surprised that I can both understand them and even talk back. The first one opens her mouth to say something but the third woman lunges at me with her massive spider body. That’s the one that said I was prey.

Oh well.

Six void chains burst out of the walls around her and catch each of the Arachne’s legs while she is still in the air. They quickly retract and pull the white limbs to the sides, stretching them to their limits.

I snap my fingers and the sound of torn flesh echoes through the stone corridor. Six big spider legs hit the walls around the same time as the spider woman’s abdomen falls onto the ground with a thud. A loud screech follows, naturally.

With a single step, I show up in front of the legless Arachne, spurting blue blood from the six holes in her black lower body, and behead her in one swift strike of my mesmerizing violet blade. The corpse stops moving a moment later.

The other women hiss at me and spread out. I plop my blade back on my shoulder, standing in front of their dead friend.

“Bring me to your queen. Or I will find her myself. I can’t guarantee how many of you will be left alive if you choose the second option. I have a tendency to get distracted when surrounded by many enticing women.”

The other two Arachnes at the front charge at me too. I sigh and shake my head. Why can’t they ever learn with just the first casualty?

This time, one of them shoots a stream of acid my way from her spider ass while the other launches a webbing to follow. I dodge the dangerous liquid, using more Void Chains to tie her whole body to the ground and block the sticky thread with my greatsword.

Before its owner has a chance to react, I twirl the blade around the white rope and yank the Arachne towards me. She tries to fix her posture in mid-air but I rush forward and slice her vertically in half while passing under the monster woman.

I glance at the incapacitated one and throw my weapon towards her. The huge blade soars through the tunnel while spinning and lodges itself in the chest of my target. The Arachne screams for a moment, grasping the hilt, but life escapes her body before she can do anything regarding it.

Snapping my fingers again, I bring the sword back into my hand as it obediently returns to its master. A neat function that hasn’t seen a lot of use recently. I have practised launching even greataxes with my new strength and I guess I should make use of that more. It feels cool.

“So.” I glance around, spotting a few spider women now also behind my back, coming here after hearing the turmoil. “Should we get this party started or will we meet the host first?”

Seems like seeing three mutilated bodies of their kin is enough to make them waver and one of the Arachnes steps forward.

“Follow us.”

Nodding, I do as told. Around seven women besides that one escort me. They keep quite a bit of distance from my position and I can’t blame them for that. I’m almost certain they are just workers like I have thought earlier.

And my guess is proven right just a few short minutes later. Our group walks into a different cavern where two similar Arachnes stand guard but they wear chitin cuirasses over their humanoid torsos, chitin helmets on their heads, and wield big bone spears. Their spider parts look a bit different too. Definitely tougher.

But, not tough enough to stop my sword. One of the guards launches herself at me after the worker woman explains the situation to her and I have no choice but to defend myself. One swing, one less spider.

There are no more surprises and the other sentry takes the duty of escorting me through their nest. We go through a few different chambers. Mostly storages but also sleeping quarters, some crude and primitive workshops, and even what looks like a small underground hot spring. I do not see anything resembling breeding grounds though. I’m pretty sure it’s close to the queen or something. I can see her wanting to keep an eye on all the eggs.

Finally, we reach a giant room with what looks like a throne carved out of a big slab of rock, fitting an Arachne. How does a throne fitting an Arachne look? Well, Just imagine a wide enough normal royal throne without the armrests. The queen is currently perched on that fancy stool with her legs underneath her spider body.

As for the queen herself, she doesn’t look as much different from the other Arachnes. She might be a tad bigger, has a bit thicker legs and a little more noble edges to her face, but that’s pretty much all. She does pack an outstanding fucking rack, though. These things clearly defy gravity with how huge yet perky they are.

But, there’s another small difference that makes me squint my eyes at her. And it’s not the painted tattoos over her whole front but what rests against her stone throne. Instead of a spear or other melee bone weapon, it’s closer to a staff or something. We might be dealing with a magician and she might be trouble.

The queen awakens from her slumber or whatever she has been doing and her eight eyes open when the sentry brings me in front of the stone chair.

“What is the meaning of this?” she asks her subordinate in a cold tone.

The warrior Arachne bows. “My Queen, this thing appeared in one of our food storages and killed three of our workers and one guard while demanding to speak with you. It’s strong.”

“Oi. Never seen a Human down here?” I glance between them.

The queen furrows her black brows at me. “You are bold, Human. And no, we haven’t ever seen your kind in our domain. Now, what are your last words before my Royal Guard dismembers you for this transgression?”

Two rows of Arachnes form behind me. All of them are armed to their teeth. Their black chitin armour is in the form of a full plate rather than just cuirass and there are additional layers of protection on all parts of their bodies, not just on the humanoid section. They also wield various big bone weapons, from halberds to greataxes. No magicians, I think.

I sigh heavily and pinch the bridge of my nose. “Does it really have to go like this? Can’t we perhaps not murder each other for no reason? I did intrude on your territory but it was your people who attacked me in the first place.”

“What do you propose then, Human?” the queen asks with a smirk, most likely thinking that I’m just playing for time to delay the inevitable.

“A deal.”

“A deal?”

“Yes.” I nod. “You will give me one of your Arachnes as compensation for the rude conduct that your subjects have shown to me and I will leave without pursuing any further actions, forgetting everything that happened.”

The queen’s face switches into a scowl and she roars, “Tear this Human to shreds!”

“Oh well. I tried, right?”

I jump back to avoid getting impaled by the spear of the sentry woman that has been escorting me and land in the middle of a group of the elite warriors called the Royal Guard, starting to launch themselves at me.

“It’s showtime!”

I smile, activate Crushing Fury, and shape my weapon into a big double-headed warhammer again, slamming it into the ground in front of me with all my strength.

The whole cavern rumbles and bits of the ceiling fall off as I create a shallow crater in the queen’s throne room. Most of the warrior Arachnes lose their footing and I quickly cash in on that.

Pushing myself off the ground from one spider woman to another, I swing my hammer down and mercilessly crush their abdomens with powerful strikes. A cacophony of loud splats fills the air as I end one enemy after another, getting dirty with their blue blood in the process.

With all five Arachnes that fell into my pit already gone, I get out of it with a strong lunge and land on the edge of the shattered hollow. Immediately, a bone greatsword swings at me diagonally downwards and I dodge with a spin.

*THUD*

My hammer slams into the side of the attacking spider woman and sends her flying with a mighty impact caused by my boosted stats and the effect of Crushing Fury, alongside the noise of chitin breaking into pieces.

*SPLAT*

She crashes into the wall of the chamber and turns into a big blue stain.

“Looks like your den has truly been destined for a makeover, dear Queen. Let’s not let it wait any longer then!”

I chuckle loudly while a powerful urge to obliterate my opponents runs rampant through my whole body. Avoiding another slash aimed at me, I dive under the attacker this time and slam my hammer into their abdomen from below.

Just like before, the Arachne is hurled into the air, vertically straight this time. Contrary to her friend, though, she hits the stalactites that cover the ceiling like the ugly popcorn decoration some gods of home design deemed to be a popular thing back in the ’50s and ’60s. 

The poor warrior falls victim to a slightly more deadly version of that trend and gets skewered by tens of sharp spikes, dying on the inside. Just like the people who moved in after those who thought it was an epic idea to use popcorn ceiling decoration.

As the blue liquid drips onto the ground from high up, I begin a dance of death with the other members of the Royal Guard. One by one, each Arachne is sent flying towards some random direction and either splatters on a wall or gets impaled on something sharp. In no time, I deal with about fifteen of them. Not without receiving some occasional grazes here and there, of course, but I’m clearly doing better than the spider women.

By accident, one of the bodies is flung towards the queen and she barely ducks under the living projectile. Not for long, though. It soon turns into a dead one after painting the wall behind her blue.

Seeing some space around me, I place the long handle of my weapon behind my neck and hang my arms over it. A wide smile paints my lips as I pant roughly. Oh boy. I almost turned into a Hobsmurf with all this blue over me.

I glance towards the queen, who is clutching her staff to her body now. “I can do this all day.”

With another deep chuckle, I lower my posture and prepare myself to lunge towards another Royal Guard warrior.

“Wait!” The queen’s voice reaches my ears and I stop. “About that deal…”

I stand up straight and nod my head with a big grin. “A wise choice indeed.”