“I honestly didn’t expect you to be so much into that,” I said, lying atop Velariah in the hammock. We were still not wearing any clothes and Minia was watching us from the wall. I honestly wondered if she knew what we did earlier. She didn’t seem to convey a whole lot of emotions, other than the fact that she was happy because I was happy.

“El, you’re half spider. It only makes sense for you to use your… spidery abilities in the bedroom.”

I chuckled. “But still. Weren’t you scared or anything when stuck in webs like that?”

Velariah shook her head. “I’m never scared when I’m with you, Elania.”

“Awww, that’s so sweet.” I kissed the elf in response.

“Besides,” Velariah continued. “I love how you’ve grown more comfortable in all this.”

I didn’t reply. I simply kissed her once more as I clapped to turn out the lights.

Finally, I could rest my eyes. This darkness wasn’t a whole lot different from closing my eyes. I just needed to be careful when laying my head to the side to not poke my new eyes.

I carefully laid my head down and found the new eye on that side to be no issue when I held it between two pillows.

I would love to be able to close them, though…

“Having a spider girlfriend is truly amazing...” Velariah said dreamily.

“Hmm, an elf is fine, too,” I replied.

“Thank you, El,” She whispered. “I hope you had a nice birthday.”

“I had an amazing one, mostly thanks to you, Vel. I love you,” I said, before kissing her once more in the dark.

“I love you too, El. Good night.”

“Good night.”

I held on to Velariah with as many limbs as I could and held her in a tight hug. I could feel her heartbeat start to slow down as we both relaxed into peaceful sleep.

_______________________________________________________________

I woke up with the elf still snoozing peacefully below me. There was something that stood out, however. It appeared my spider eyes had another sheet of white before them through which I saw my red hair only vaguely.

“Vel?” I shook her awake in slight panic as I turned on the lights.

Wait, she was still completely clothless.

“El? What’s up?” She asked, rubbing her eyes.

“Did I molt again? How many days has it been?”

“Huh? What are you talking about? It’s morning.”

I brushed away my hair to fully reveal my spider eyes and saw Velariah staring,

“Oh,” She spoke softly. “I see what you mean. No, you didn’t molt, not as far as I’m aware.”

She looked at my side eyes with great interest. “What happened?”

A very specific thought entered my mind.

Could it be?

“Can I?” Velariah asked as she extended a hand to my head.

I nodded. “Please do, I can’t really see what I’m doing.”

“Four eyes, but you can’t see. How ironic.”

“I meant that I don’t want to accidentally poke it.”

“I know, I was just kidding.” She giggled.

I sat up and let my legs dangle from the edge of the hammock as Velariah got on her knees to remove this layer of what I knew as molt.

I was still intrigued by the fact that this only appeared around my eyes.

I disregarded it as hopefulness took its place.

Velariah managed to remove the two plaques with ease. My vision remained unchanged.

Now came the true test.

I slowly, and very carefully, moved a finger under my right eye, tracing the skin that led up to it.

Then, I felt something that wasn’t there before.

I was overjoyed and cheered in my mind when I found that I’d somehow grown an eyelid overnight. I gently lifted it with my finger, trying to get a feel for the muscles that controlled it. This seemed to be how I needed to learn how to use new body parts, after all.

I could see Velariah before me, looking at me with interest and relief. She knew that not being able to close my new set of eyes had been weighing down on me.

These eyelids were large, though, far larger than the ones in my normal eyes. It wasn’t too surprising considering these eyes were straight-up bigger, and needed more to cover them, as they also protruded a fair bit.

I pulled down my upper eyelid and repeated the same process with my left eye.

I had closed them!

I had closed my eyes, and I couldn’t be happier.

I must have looked like a fool. I never imagined I could be this happy about being able to close my eyes. There would be no more hair accidentally getting in them, or anything of the like.

I had a large smile plastered on my face.

I focused on the muscles that I’d just felt when manually closing my eyes and opening them.

“Woah, El.”

“Oops, did I scare you?”

“A bit. Suddenly having two large eyes open in front of me was a bit...”

“Creepy?” I asked.

“Not really. I just wasn’t expecting you to learn how to use them that fast, I guess.”

I closed them again, and kept them closed.

“Sweet relief...” I said softly.

“You seem quite euphoric today.” Velariah looked me in the eyes. She seemed just as relieved as me.

“Vel, you have no idea...”

“You’re right, I don’t. Anyway, what did you plan on doing with that silk?”

She pointed her head towards where I’d bound her to the wall the night before.

“We can hardly let Elly clean that up now, can we?” She continued.

I sighed. “I’ll get rid of it, I guess.”

My eyes went from the silk to the large molt that still lay next to Velariah’s clothes-chest.

“What are our plans for the day? Will we invite Master Endomir over to come and have a look at that?”

“There’s that,” Velariah said as I stepped out of the hammock. “There’s checking with the tailor about prices for that new silk. You may want to check with Dworag when it comes to modifying or getting a new helmet. Other than that, it’s just the usual stuff. We could go to the dungeon, or see if any interesting quests popped up.”

“Think your father is doing alright?” I asked out of concern.

“If you mean his health, he’ll be fine. He’s been through worse — far worse. If you mean his investigation, I reckon he’s making progress. There’s not much we can do at the moment, anyway.”

“I suppose you’re right. I was looking forward to going to the dungeon. I guess we have to see if we can trade my old helmet for something better suited. I doubt adjustments to it will work.”

I sighed. “If only I could not use a helmet at all.”

 

“Every warrior’s dream. Unfortunately, they are the difference between life and death,” Velariah commented. “Also, you should take care of your weapons sometimes, or better yet, have Coldanus do it for you.”

“I suppose you’re right, once again. I have no clue how to do it, and from what I’ve seen so far, I trust his work.”

“Vel?” I asked.

“Yes?” She replied as she hopped out of the hammock and made her way to her chest.

“Where are my clothes?”

The bags which held them for so long had disappeared.

 

“I have them here in my chest, together with mine. Here...”

She tossed me a black bra and shirt to match it. I caught them and started putting them on in front of the mirror.

“I’ve been thinking...” I started.

“About?”

“Getting a different weapon. I don’t feel like my spear is quite cutting it. I find it hard to use when I charge, which seems to be my most effective method of combat in open areas. I was thinking… Do you have swords on poles? I have a feeling they should do nicely.”

“Uh, I know the weapon you mean, but we don’t have them in this village. You’d have to ask Coldanus to craft one specifically for you.”

She put on some underwear before continuing. “That would kind of make riding you pointless, though. That’s not a bad thing, per se.”

“Hm, I guess you’re right. I should get Dworag to cancel this saddle thing then. In case you’re feeling bad about that, I’ll probably need your or someone else’s help to learn how to use it. I’d prefer yours, if possible.”

“I think I’ll be able to help you with it, at least to some degree.”

“Thanks, Vel. I do fear I’ll have to get back to training soon as well...”

 

“Oh, you guessed that right. Swinging a sword on a pole won’t be easy on the arms.”

I sighed. “I figured as much.”

I put on my clothes and continued my routine in front of the mirror. I used the time to practice blinking my new set of eyes. I got the hang of it quite quickly, although, for some reason, blinking them was highly uncomfortable. It seemed I was better off either leaving them open or closed.

 

I kept them closed for now. I imagined it would be good to open them for a while to get used to them further, but right now, I was going to enjoy this.

I finished brushing my hair and gave the brush to Velariah while I started removing the silk from the walls.

It came off far easier than I expected, even when I used my human arms. I had everything balled together by the time Velariah finished.

“Where do we put this?” I asked, staring at the soccer ball-sized ball of silk. “I imagine we aren’t going to sell this.”

“Uh, that would be quite awkward. I suggest just tossing it in the fireplace when nobody is there. Here,” She said while extending a hand. I gave the ball to her, and she put it away in her clothes chest.

“We’ll get rid of that later. You ready to head out?”

I nodded.

I was about to walk over to the door when I noticed Minia. I hadn’t actually given her any time yet.

I walked up to the small spider and reached out to her, petting her. Minia let out a flow of appreciation and gratitude which made me smile.

I waved with one of my pedipalps and said goodbye to the spider before turning to Velariah, who was looking at us with great interest written on her face.

We entered the dining area, where the other party members, surprisingly, were not present.

I had to do a double take. I even opened my other eyes to see if my normal eyes were deceiving me.

They were not.

“Are we early?” I asked.

“I have no clue...” Velariah replied.

Elly entered the room from the kitchen. “Good morning, Velariah, Miss Elania. If you’re looking for the others, they are currently going through books upstairs. I was just preparing breakfast, I’ll be done in a bit.”

“Thanks, Elly,” Velariah said before taking a seat.

“Thanks,” I spoke. “By the way, you can drop the Miss before my name too.”

“Not a problem,” She said before walking back into the kitchen. The smell of freshly baked bread was cut off when she closed the door.

I closed my side eyes again and moved the usual two chairs aside to make space for me at the table.

“Any idea what got them interested in books so suddenly?” I asked.

Velariah shrugged. “No idea.”

“Vel, how about you make sure that the others stay upstairs? I’ll get that silk and toss it in the hearth.”

 

“Good idea.” Velariah stood up and made her way upstairs while I walked back into our room, stepped over the hammock, and fetched the ball of silk from the chest. Minia gave off an aura of confusion, and I told her I forgot something.

“I’ll see you later, Minia,” I said while waving again.

 

I entered the dining area once more and made a beeline for the hearth, which was currently burning low. I placed the ball of silk on the wood and it went up in flames almost immediately.

It seemed non-fire-resistant silk was highly flammable.

At least I’d gotten rid of it quickly.

While Velariah was still upstairs, I walked to the hallway and grabbed my helmet. I put it on and opened my new eyes to see if this piece of armor was worth salvaging if proper modifications were made.

The top part of the helmet seemed to cover most of my extra eyes. If anything, Dworag was going to have to make holes for them. The thing that worried me most though, was the part that they protruded from my head, as such, anything even nearby would drastically limit my field of vision.

What a struggle.

I reckoned the best possible solution would be a horizontal slit. The problem with that was that a lot of the protection that a helmet gave would be forfeit.

Then again, If I stood at full height, there wasn’t a lot that could even come close. Spears and the like would probably be the only things that could reach me. Trolls and large enemies could still pose a threat, though…

Hopefully, the dwarf would have some kind of solution…

I took the helmet off again and closed my side eyes. I put it back where it was before making my way back to the table in the other room.

Elly was setting the table for breakfast and I heard footsteps coming down the stairs. My party members entered the room, followed by Gray.

I imagined I could have saved the ball of silk for him to play with. The thought of him playing with that silk, in particular, made me change my mind.

I lowered myself as he ran up to me to circle around a couple of my legs before ending up in front of me. I petted him lovingly as the others took their seats.

“Good to see you doing much better than yesterday, Miss Elania,” Draco said while Elly walked in with the last items for breakfast; cups of coffee and one half-cup of tea. She placed everything on the table before going upstairs. It made me conclude she already had breakfast. At least, I hope that was the case.

“Thank you, Draco. Has Velariah told you guys?”

I looked over at the lizardman who nodded in response.

“This is so much less of a struggle now. Though, I have to admit, seeing with only two eyes again feels a bit… shallow. I don’t know how to explain it.”

I wasn’t lying. Despite being happy I could now switch from two to four eye vision at will, using only two eyes made me feel uneasy. It made me feel… incomplete.

I imagined training would have to be done…

 

“Any plans for today?” Seralyn asked during breakfast.

“I think Elania and I will have to make a stop at several shops first. After that, we could go to the dungeon, if you guys want. I was kind of looking forward to fighting that thing we left behind last time.”

“Some other adventurers already killed it, though,” Seralyn said.

“I have good hopes that Arch has a spare one somewhere,” Velariah said with a smile.

“A spare giant lion-dragon hybrid monster. Now, that’s something,” Seralyn grinned.

“It’s Arch we’re talking about here,” I commented.

“Good point,” Draco said. “It’s kind of a special case when you can talk to the dungeon, isn’t it?”

“You have any ideas for monsters?” I asked. “I could always ask him to come up with something,” I grinned.

"Thanks for reminding me. I have to take that vial of borer material with me," Velariah said.

 

"You think the dungeon will be able to help?" Nira asked.

 

Velariah shrugged. "It's worth a shot."

 

I nodded to her remark.

 

We finished our breakfast and stood up to go about our daily business in the village.

 

"You guys got any plans for today?" I asked the others.

 

"I planned on checking the guild for any quests," Draco said.

 

"I'll see the local bowmaker and have him string this wonderful new silk of yours to my bow," Seralyn continued.

 

"I didn't have any plans," Nira spoke softly. "I guess I'll join Draco at the guild and wait there until you guys are done."

 

"Good idea. I imagine Kaniar and his squad are waiting for us there. Do let them know we are likely to go to the dungeon today. Actually… do we still have his squad’s support?"

I imagined things may have changed while I was out.

“We do,” Velariah spoke. “Until my father is certain the village, and you, are safe.”

That was good to know. It was unfortunate I was still not considered to be safe, though…

“Right,” Velariah started her conclusion. “We’ll see you guys at the guild when we’re done, then.”

We entered the hallway together. Seralyn was the first to leave as Draco, Velariah, and I were still putting on our armor.

Draco and Nira left soon after as I waited for Velariah to finish, with my helmet in my hands.

“Do you think Dworag will be able to fix my vision issue with this helmet?” I asked. “I tried figuring out a bit on my own earlier, but I saw no easy solution.”

“He’ll probably find a way. He’s a smart dwarf.”

“And flirtatious,” I added.

“There’s that, too,” Velariah replied with a smile.

Velariah finished with her armor and strapped the leather belt with her pack around her waist before we headed out.

The skies were cloudy for a change. It was muggy and I felt like there was going to be rain soon, possibly quite a bit, too.

Maybe this wasn’t the best weather to head out to the dungeon. Then again, I had yet to hear about rain underground. I hoped it would stay dry, though…

I had all my eyes open and my hair brushed behind my ears to get further used to my huge field of vision.

My mind was already wandering off to the beast in the dungeon. My mind was looking forward to fighting, and beating it. I was kind of disappointed another group had already managed to kill it, but I had no doubt Arch would ‘create’ another one of those monsters.

But first, we had a round of errands to do…

Of those errands, Coldanus would probably be the most interesting one.

I was curious to see what he could make.

Some kind of naginata would be cool, if not effective...