Hailey once again felt useless.
'Should I be doing something?'
'What should I do?'
'Should I fight it!?'
'That thing!?!?!'
A flurry of thoughts went through her head, but her classmates didn't wait for her to collect herself before they moved into action.
"Our path has been blocked off again, and that thing put out the flames so easily!! We're going to have to fight it if we want to get out of here alive!", Oliver shouted as he rushed forth, grabbing a knife from his side.
"Got it.", Serina replied quickly, holding out a hand as magic gathered in her palm.
[Slow]
[Named Humanoid Female Spider (young) speed has been reduced by 70%]
"Thanks for the assist, Serina!", Oliver shouted as he rushed forth, taking a quick swing at the creature's chest.
While this happened, the three who were trained in ranged weaponry stood by in a line with weapons aimed, awaiting a chance to fire upon the creature.
However, there was one man among these three who held absolutely no intention to fire.
This elven man grinned as he aimed his own crosshair on the heart of the creature, watching as the spider easily used her multiple arms to parry the knife attacks of the built student.
"So you've slowed me by 70%? Hahaha.... that's a pretty good skill, but unfortunately..... it's gonna take a whole lot more than 70% for you guys to even notice a difference."
"Be quiet, monster!!"
As Oliver shouted this, the spider seemed to grin with a wicked smile.
"You refer to me by 'that thing', 'it', and 'monster'. I take it then that means that to you..... I am nothing more than a mere creature?"
As the spiderling easily fought off the attacks of the man, the magicians in the unit faced forward, preparing spells to attack with, however they couldn't find an opening in which they wouldn't hit their comrade.
"Shit.... if only I was better at magic control.... I'd be able to hit that thing easily...", Edward murmured.
"I can't hit it either.... not without sacrificing Oliver.... we have to wait for an opening.", Vivian stated, watching closely with concern.
"He'll definitely make one. Just keep watching closely.", Victor stated with thinned eyes, only one of which was visible while the other was hidden behind his parted hair.
"Ah..... I suppose as the host, I should be accommodating you as guests. Hehehe..... forgive me, I've been only paying attention to the one in front of me. How.... rude. I should be making an attempt to address all of you and your needs, no?"
It was in the next moment that the spider who was dressed in an elegant outfit disappeared from the sight of Oliver.
He swung his dagger one more time, but this time was not parried.
Rather, he whiffed the air.
'Where did she go? Where did she go!?!?!'
Hailey watched as this happened, unable to even perceive the movement of the spider.
It was as if she teleported.
'Her movement should be slowed, yet she doesn't seem slowed at all!!
"Agh!!"
"Wha-"
"Shit!!"
In the next moment, turning around, Hailey saw something which could not have been real, yet her eyes forced her to believe in that which was happening around her.
It was only a moment that the spiderling had disappeared from her eyes, and yet in that moment 9 people had been wrapped up nicely in cocoons with their heads sticking out.
'What.... how did she..... hey.... this isn't funny..... don't spiders.... wrap up their prey so they can eat it later!?'
"How did she wrap us up!? One moment I was free and the next I'm like this!!"
"Did she stop time or something!?!?!"
"Is she really slowed!?!?"
All the members of the 1st and 3rd division had been swiftly wrapped up.
"As if I'd let you get away with that!!!"
Rushing forward, Natalia stuck out her arms and cast a spell which emitted an orange glow.
Her entire body brimmed with power as the mana flowed, her expression filled with determination.
She felt as if her veins were going to burst, yet even so she continued pouring power into the spell.
"Weaken!!!", she shouted as the orange energy seemed to transfer from the girl to the spiderling, then disappearing.
[Named Humanoid Female Spider (young) Strength has been reduced by 95%]
"Oliver! Hailey! Gary! Attack her now! She's.... ngh... weakened... ugh.... and slowed!!", Natalia ordered, falling to one knee in exhaustion.
"On it!"
"Alright."
Garett and Oliver rushed forth with their knives, both of them seemingly filled with a new determination as their comrade sacrificed her own body for the sake of victory.
However Hailey was frozen.
She merely watched as the two rushed forth, fearless.
'How..... can they still move!?'
'How..... are they not overtaken by fear!?'
Her legs begun to tremble, and even if she told them to move, they refused.
'I..... really am just useless..... in every way.... aren't I?'
Tears begun to stream from the eyes of the girl as she watched the two join the fight, fighting on either side of the spiderling who used one insectoid arm to block their flurry of attacks.
'The others are tied up.... the magicians can't cast spells without the right hand motions..... and the silk is probably too strong for them to break..... but..... even so.....'
Hailey fell to her knees, unable to do anything at all but watch as the few who remained fought desperately against the monstrosity.
'Is..... is her strength and speed truly reduced!?!?!'
Looking at the reactions of the spiderling, she didn't appear effected in the least by the massive debuffs which had been applied on her.
'How..... is she still fighting like that!?!? And against so many of us....'
And in the next moment, Hailey felt herself become constricted.
'Wha.....'
Looking around, she too was now wrapped in a cocoon.
'Even Gary... he couldn't even defeat her..... I thought..... I thought that he was strong..... I thought he was so fast I couldn't even see him..... but compared to this..... to this..... MONSTER.....'
Looking around, Hailey took note that everyone in the room had been wrapped up now, and were all captured in cocoons.
'I don't even feel like she was trying.... she.... she wasn't even trying!!!!! What.... what the hell!!!! Why.... why... why did they send us on this trip!?!?!? WHY THE HELL DID THEY EXPECT US TO TAKE ON THIS THING!?!?!?!??!'
Veins bulged in the eyes of the girl, and her breathing became ragged.
'They said that they did their research on this area!!! They were the ones who told us to come to this cavern to exterminate it's inhabitants, so clearly they knew the threat it contained!!! They must have known..... they must have known!!!!!'
The sniveling image of Mrs. Elisa and the principal appeared in the mind of Hailey, and she grit her teeth with anger.
"They must have known..... and even knowing..... they sent us to die at the hands of this monster....."
Veins drew themselves across the forehead of the girl, and she couldn't hide her own malice.
"Those assholes....."
"You know, it actually makes me quite happy when you call me a monster like that. It makes me feel like I've done something right. Haha...."
The spiderling casually walked around, eyeing each of the now constrained students with a toothy smirk.
Her dress was not torn in the least, as not a single attack had even grazed her.
Not a scratch was present on her body, and the strength displayed by those who attacked her was nowhere to be found.
It was a complete and utter loss.
Fifteen on one, and yet before most people were even given a chance to do anything, they had all been captured.
'Are.... are we all going to die!?', Hailey thought.
Her mind frantically went into a state of panic as she faced this monstrous creature, who appeared to have nothing more than a sadistic bloodlust in her expression.
"Are..... you going to kill us?", Natalia asked quietly while looking down with grave expression.
"Am.... I..... going..... to..... kill you... hmm..."
The spiderling put a single finger to her chin as she paced in thought, before a horrid smile crept across her face.
"Well..... I am supposed to be your host for today. Therefore before anything..... I'd like to treat you to dinner."
Shooting out a series of threads from her hand, she tied up each of the 15 cocoons and begun dragging them along.
"Come now, my guests. Welcome to my humble abode. I'll be serving you all some of our finest delicacies tonight. You may consider me to be a monster, but I am a member of a society, just like you all. So I would like to introduce you..... to our culture."
The eyes of the students went wide as the spiderling said something so insane, however they weren't even left time for surprise as they were dragged along the ground.
"Ugh...."
"Oof...."
"Ah, forgive me for the harsh treatment. After all..... while you are guests..... you are still nothing more than pests who have invaded my home. And for that.... I can't treat you with the utmost respect."
Shooting out a series of sticky webs, the fires which had been lit earlier on the structure were quickly doused, and the group was dragged along into the home of the creature.
'Where..... are we being taken.....'
'To.... be eaten....'
'It's to be eaten, right?'
'We're not the guests.... we're the food, right?'
Filled with these thoughts, the students couldn't help but look around in terror.
'How could a monster speak the human language and communicate like this in the first place?', Hailey thought. 'It's strange!! It's odd!! It's..... dangerous!!!'
The group was taken through the home, and to their surprise, it had the appearance of a normal home.
While everything was made from silk, there was furniture and utilities within this place, which was beyond strange.
'It's.... so human....'
'What.... is this creature....'
And then, the students were brought to a dining room.
There was a long table with silverware and plates already having been nicely prepared, as if she had been expecting guests for a dinner party.
Lifted up by the threads of the spider, she sat them all in their own seats, still constricted and unable to move.
She then took her spot at the head of the table, smiling as she thinned her four eyes.
"You know.... we have a lot to talk about, people of the Alliance. After all..... you consider your own nation to be isolationist, no? You have holed up in your own country, and your military tends to do nothing more than defend your borders."
The students were shocked, and shivers went down their spine as the spiderling said these things.
'How.... does she know about politics?'
'How does she know about things like nations and armies....'
'Is she.... really a monster?'
At some point, the students stopped thinking of Berith as an 'it', now referring to the spiderling as a 'her'.
The students themselves didn't take note of this change, however it most certainly occurred.
"Why then..... have your armies invaded our lands? I thought you were supposed to be neutral.... however you have now committed a grave sin by attacking our lands. And I am sure that my masters..... would agree."
The eyes of the students went wide, and they were too surprised to even say anything.
Silence filled the room, and a few moments later, one student spoke up.
"What.... do you mean by that? Y-your lands!? This.... this is the monster realm, right!? There.... there are no lands!! There is no nation here!! There can't...."
Natalia spoke out, however the doubt was clear in her voice.
"Or..... could there be..."
Looking at Berith, the monstrous creature before her, she felt nothing more than fear.
However, there was something more than just fear.
Within her, she also felt a strange sense of humanity.
It was just a slight amount, but the fact that they could converse, and the fact that this monster knew so many things which only a person could know, Natalia doubted her own conviction that it was impossible for a nation to exist here.
"We have a High Queen which we serve, and we even have a number of rulers who have been given control over each of our cities. Of which.... I happen to be one. I introduced myself before.... but I suppose I should say it again? I am the Queen of Insectoids..... a slave of the Queen of Evil, the Determined."
At this statement, each and every student was filled with immense horror.
The Determined was a name well known throughout all human lands, including the Alliance.
It was a name which was associated with terror, chaos, destruction..... and suffering.
"W.....the Determined? You expect us to believe something as insane as that!? Hah! As if I would be so gullible!! You say some crazy things, monster!!"
Breaking the silence was Edward, who eyeballed Berith with malice.
"Let us out of here!! If you consider yourself to be so human, then show us some mercy and let us go!!"
At this statement, the spiderling cocked her head at a 90 degree angle, confused at the statement of the boy.
Then, while her head remained cocked, an evil grin drew itself across it and her four eyes thinned.
"Ah... you seem to be mistaken."
The spiderling stood up, walking past the seated students as she headed over to the boy who spoke.
"Wha..... why are you coming over here...."
The boy became flustered as the spiderling walked over, slowly placing her two human hands on his shoulders from behind.
Then, grabbing his chin, she inspected his face with a smile before whispering into his ear, loud enough for everyone around to hear.
"I never said that I consider myself to be human. After all..... to be human means to make the decision to be evil, despite having the ability to freely choose. At least for us monsters, we are merely following our instincts. Tell me then..... between those like me who do things because that is how we are.... and the humans who cause suffering to all those around them by their own choice..... which one of us are the real monsters?"
Carefully placing her hand, which had a white glove covering it, onto the neck of the boy, the spiderling let out a feminine laugh.
"Hehehe... ah, but that's right. I do have that sense of humanity in me. I do have the decision to decide between right and wrong. And even so... I choose to do evil. So perhaps that makes me the greatest monster of all?"
It was in the next moment that a knock was heard on the door.
"Lady Berith, we have prepared the food. Is now an acceptable time to serve it?"
Letting go of the neck of the boy, the spiderling made her way over to the door.
"Ah, perfect timing. Yeah, go ahead. Bring em all in."
"Of course, my queen."
The spider known as Berith took her own seat once more at the head of the table, and in the next moment a number of carts were rolled in.
Each cart had at least 10 different platters on them, and there were around 20 carts in total.
Each cart was pushed by an insectoid with human features, all of which were wearing either fine suits or the dresses of maids.
'They....'
'Really do act like people.....'
The students were filled with horror at seeing the oddly human customs which these monsters used, however even more terrifying was the statement that the spiderling had made.
'And yet....'
'They are nothing more than monsters on the inside....'
'They.... this.... what have we stumbled into!?'
'Did the principal know about this?'
'Did our teacher know about this!?!?!?'
'Did they send us here knowing all this!?!?'
'To this place..... to this place of monsters, where death is all but guaranteed!?!?!?!?'
Rage begun to fill the minds of the students as they came to a grave realization.
'Were they..... collaborating with these monsters!?!?!'
The possibility that these humanoid monsters were working with the school was one which seeped it's way into the mind of the students.
"What do you do when insects invade your home? You call an exterminator, right?"
The silver platters were placed onto the table, lined up by one another in front of the students.
The fresh aroma of cooked meat filled the noses of the elves as they looked to the spiderling in terror.
"And when wild animals invade your property, you call a hunter."
Each of the servants grabbed the handles on the platters, smiling lightly as they awaited the signal.
"And when people trespass on your property.... I suppose you call the guards?"
Placing her hand to her chin in thought, the spiderling shrugged off the notion.
"And when soldiers invade your territory with the intention of eliminating you..... then you assemble an army..... and you eliminate them. Is that not how it works in the human realm?"
Many gulping sounds were heard as the students watched the spiderling, who waved her hands.
"However here in the Dictatorship..... we are not fans of waste. We like to make good use of everything that falls into our hands."
The lids were lifted off the platters, to reveal the cooked head of an elf on each one.
"Blergh!!!"
"Urgh!!!"
"Agh!!!!"
"EEK!!!"
"Kyaa!!!"
Screams of terror, the sounds of hacking and the splatter of puke could be heard from each and every one of the students.
All except four, who carried serious expressions, as if they had seen something like this so many times before.
"There were so many who entered our lands today..... so I personally took it upon myself to eliminate them. Heh hehe...."
The spiderling made this statement with joy, crackling to herself as she looked around at the tormented and disgusted expressions on many of the students.
"After all..... I was given the permission to do so."
At that moment, a chord was struck in each and every one of the students.
These words, spoken by the spiderling, confirmed in their minds the thoughts which they had been harboring this entire time.
"You..... monster....."
"Let me out of here!!!! I'll kill you!!!! I'll kill you, and then I'll kill every employee in the school!!!"
Edward begun to shout out in hatred, and all the students around him agreed with his own sentiments.
"We'll..... destroy them...."
"The people who made this happen...."
"The monsters who did this....."
Sitting back in her seat, the spiderling raised a single finger up.
"How repulsive. I've served as a good host, my servants have gone out of their way to provide this excellent cooking for you, and now you all have lost yourselves in anger? It is unfortunate, but I cannot condone this."
It was then that the students who were making enraged attempts to escape their cocoons and fight once more saw a glint in the air.
The glint of wires which were spread through the room.
"Die, fools."
In that moment, Hailey looked around with horror as the heads of all 14 of her classmates were sliced clean off.
Blood rushed from the bodies, and spraying all over the table and walls.
Each of their heads fell forward, landing on the plates which had been set on the table.
"Wha... why....."
The girl looked around in pure horror as tears came to her eyes.
She couldn't think straight, for she saw nothing more than death around her, and this was too much for this one girl to process.
"Why... why..... how..... no....."
If she was not constrained, she would have held her own head in torment, yet she could not.
The tears flowed, and her lip quivered as she watched the blood flow from each of the necks of the students.
It was then that Hailey overheard the crackling voice of the female spiderling, speaking in mocking tone.
"But..... I do need a messenger to return to the Alliance. And you seemed like the weakest one. Therefore..... I suppose you can consider yourself lucky that you were so useless."
With a grin, the spiderling raised a finger.
"I'll let you free. Here."
The female spider humanoid pulled a string on her finger, and the cocoon which had wrapped around Hailey unstrung itself, freeing the girl.
"I'm your host, after all. It wouldn't be right, as a host.... to force my guests to stay beyond their limit."