"Ragni, stay here," I nodded at the dragoness towards the nest.
"I can take care of myself, even with such a wound."
"But someone has to protect the nest and keep it warm."
"Alright, but try not to linger there too long."
Leaving the dragoness behind, we entered a dark passage. It led straight ahead without any turns, cutting through the mountain almost entirely. At its end, there was a white wall of interwoven cobwebs, just like the first nest.
"We'll try not to draw attention," I said, making precise strikes to carve a passage in the wall, igniting the fallen cobwebs before they reached the ground. And it was the right decision because beyond the passage lay a massive chamber several times larger than the first nest, and it was filled with cobwebs. If I had set the wall on fire, the flames would have engulfed the entire passage. "It's quite warm in here."
Inside the chamber, it was very warm, but at the same time, the air was stale, with a faint smell of decay.
"Quite unpleasant, but I wouldn't want to stay here," Hilda walked ahead and stumbled upon a row of white cocoons. "Are these eggs?"
We looked around; several rows of similar white cocoons stood along the walls.
"Too many for laying eggs," I approached one of the cocoons. They were about a meter in diameter and two and a half meters in height, and the smell of decay clearly emanated from them. "I'm afraid these are like preserves."
I cut open one of the cocoons with my blade, and its contents filled the air with a putrid stench. Inside was a desiccated corpse in Nordic clothing. We involuntarily covered our mouths to avoid the foul smell.
"I wonder how long this poor soul stayed here?" Katrina stepped back, but there were more cocoons around, and she didn't want to get close to them.
"Probably not very long," Hilda faked swinging an axe at the medallion hanging around the mummy's neck. "A trade guild emblem, similar to the ones worn by the group of merchants kidnapped last week."
"Are you saying he reached this state in just a week?" Katrina shuddered.
"Mmm, external digestion," Rizel examined the body and found a charred hole in its clothing. "Spiders inject digestive enzymes into their prey, and they get digested while still alive. Then the spiders simply drink them up. Quite applicable for feeding offspring too."
Katrina struggled to hold back her urge to vomit.
"It's horrible. He was still alive when he got trapped in this cocoon."
"We can't help these victims now. It would be best to burn everything here later, thus ending the suffering of those who might still be alive."
"Alright," Kat clenched her fists, "but we need to make sure the laying is destroyed too."
"I think this is it," Rumy headed towards the center of the room.
The only source of light was a narrow opening in the wall opposite the entrance. A narrow beam of light illuminated the center of the room. Surrounded by stone columns, there were yellow eggs covered with a thin layer of cobwebs.
The room was quite spacious, and dozens of giant spiders could easily lurk on its ceiling. Behind the row of cocoons along the walls, there were several rings of stones piled around the center. Perhaps they resembled a nest. In the very center, there was a small platform about forty meters wide, where the eggs lay.
"So, what do we do? Smash them and make our way out?" Valkyrie cautiously circled their clutch, her axe handle gripped tightly.
"We should make sure nothing attacks us from the darkness," I tried to peer into the ceiling, but there was no sign of any movement. "We might face dire consequences if we act recklessly."
"Hmm, as I've been reading about venomous spiders and monster spiders, there can be quite large specimens, up to half a meter in diameter," Kurone's voice came from the silver skull again.
"Well, then we can consider these representatives of the local fauna as special specimens."
"You know, the larger they are, the smarter they tend to be. And the biggest ones sometimes behave like birds. The females stay to guard the nest while the males go hunting for prey."
"Oh... Do you think the big mama is still here?" Hilda tilted her head back and leaned against a column next to the clutch.
"It's quite possible. And by the way, females are usually larger."
"It doesn't make this any easier," Hilda huffed angrily. "Do you think she's here?"
I didn't like this place. The platform was a perfect circle surrounded by eight stone columns, reaching high up to the ceiling. The diameter of the clearing was almost forty meters, and the columns were arranged in groups of four, forming a passage opposite the entrance.
"Darn," I scrutinized the spot where the columns extended. The dim light didn't reach the ceiling, but the columns seemed to end slightly lower, and something black gleamed amidst the cobwebs. "Everyone slowly backs out."
"What?" Hilda raised an eyebrow in surprise and followed my gaze. "Do you think she's much bigger?"
"Yes, for example, that might not even be a column," I stepped back and pointed to the spot where Hilda had leaned.
"Come on, that can't be," the princess touched the surface of the column. It was warm and rough, coarser than a rocky surface. "In pieces!"
As soon as the Valkyrie leaped away, the pillars shook and pulled themselves out of the floor. They quickly bent under their own weight, and their owner lowered herself to about two meters. The entire center of the room was occupied by a giant spider, and one of her heads was larger than any of us.
"It looks like we've stumbled upon her," Hilda slowly stepped back, not releasing her grip on the axe.
"We barely dealt with that one," Katrina also slowly retreated.
We stood on opposite sides of the monster, but all eight multifaceted eyes were fixed on us.
"Now we need to hide among the rocks; this creature can see in the dark. Try to get out of her line of sight."
Finally, the mistress of the lair made her first move. Raising her front legs, she lunged at me and Asura. I leaped to the side, but Asura drew her katana and held an ice barrier in front of her.
"No! Don't try to block her attack!" I tried to warn her, but it was already too late.
The giant paw crushed the icy shell, and the force of the blow sent the swordswoman flying to the edge of the clearing. Forgetting about me, the spider rushed towards her wounded prey.
"Stop!" Hilda leaped after the spider and swung her axe at its hind leg with all her might. The blade only managed to penetrate the armor about ten centimeters, but it had little effect on the monster's mobility.
At least it distracted her. The spider jerked its leg, and the princess, along with her axe, flew to the side. The monster couldn't actively attack within its own nest, so it bent its legs and loomed over the clutch, selecting a new victim.
Then, the same thing that caused excruciating headache before happened again. The spider let out a piercing roar, the screeching sound tearing through my eardrums. The pain was much more intense this time, and it immobilized me. However, the monster seemed unable to move either in such a state.
This sound affected everyone except for Rumy. Hilda and Katrina suffered the most. The girls curled up, trying to cover their ears, but the pain pierced through them anyway. Rumy grimaced with annoyance, apparently immune to the effect of the cry, but she still hesitated to attack the spider.
The sound stopped, and slowly my senses began to return. My vision was still blurry, but I could stand on my feet, which couldn't be said for the others. Asura rubbed her eyes, trying to recover, but it seemed that she wasn't severely affected either. Rizel was breathing heavily, but it appeared that her barrier protected her from the attack. Katrina and Hilda lay lifelessly on the ground, both already unconscious, the worst that could happen in a dangerous battle.
"Rumy, we need to get them out of here," I pointed to Hilda while preparing to grab Katrina.
"Alright... What's this?" Rumy looked at Hilda. The girl who had just been lying on the ground unconscious got up and walked towards the monster's jaws. "Hilda, hey!!"
She couldn't hear us; she was slowly approaching the monster.
"Darn, she can't hear us," I looked into the princess's eyes. She was still unconscious; she was fully under the monster's control. "Rumy, take Katrina away."
I rushed to help Hilda, but the spider had already brought its fangs over the prey.
"What a bunch of incompetents," a unfamiliar voice came from the shadows behind the circle of stones. In the next moment, a massive shadow struck the monster's head, sending it flying into the wall. "Grab your friend and hide!"
I glanced at Rumy and picked up Hilda, but with her armor and axe, she was a bit unwieldy.
"Won't you help me?"
Rumy left Katrina with Rizel and Asura and helped me take cover behind the stones.
Taking shelter in the shadow of a stone ridge, we hid from the spider's sight, but we still had a formidable pursuer to deal with.
"Tch, and they sent me to help?" The dark figure met us in our hiding spot.
"And who are you?" I whispered, not wanting to attract the monster's attention. Glowing green eyes were looking at our group from the shadows.
"You don't need to whisper. This creature has serious hearing problems; otherwise, it wouldn't have paralyzed its own children with its cries," the figure slowly emerged from behind the ledge. The spider had flipped on its legs and rushed to the clutch. It turned its head towards the exit and sat there waiting for us to emerge. "Well, she can sit like this for a long time."
"So, who are you?" I raised my blade and tried to ignite a dim light to examine the stranger.
"I wouldn't recommend lighting up. She can see perfectly in the dark, although she relies more on ground vibrations for orientation. If you start clattering around with your boots, she'll notice you right away," the girl casually pointed at Hilda's boots.
I couldn't see the face of this stranger clearly, only a long dark gray dress that reached the ground. Given her nearly two-meter height, she looked grotesque. The unknown woman had a monotonous, deep voice, indicating that she was a little older than us. And most importantly, the girl had burning green eyes, just like our scythe-wielding girl.
"So, you're... a necromancer?" I asked.
"Well, technically yes, but we'll talk about that later. First, we need to get rid of this," the girl glanced at us. "Sooo, three warriors who are at least not affected by her magic, and one necromancer, some help at least."
"And there's us," Katrina regained her composure, but struggled to get up.
"Hmm, no, better without the dead weight," the answer was sharp.
"Hey! I can fight!"
"Doubtful. You've already succumbed to the spider's magic, and if you step in front of her again, you'll be as mindless as your friend, following her orders. And if we're unlucky, she might even send you after us."
Katrina lowered her head in guilt.
"What was that just now? You obviously know more about this monster than we do," I inquired.
"Of course, I've been fighting her for a long time. It's her 'special' mind magic. The stronger the mage, the easier it is for her to control them. That's why I fought her alone, so there would be no surprise attacks from behind. But apparently, you're not very strong in magic, as her attack only caused you a headache. She had a much stronger effect on your friends. We'll have to fight with what we have. Show me at least what weapons you have."
We exchanged glances and obediently showed our weapons to the stranger.
"I see, paired blades," the girl raised one of Rumy's gilded blades. "I didn't think anyone else could handle them. But they won't help much here, maybe just distract her."
"If I hit her vulnerable spots, I can offer more significant help."
"Tch, no, better not rely on luck. And what do we have here?" The girl slightly drew Asura's katana from its sheath. "A good piece, and enchanted too. With such magic, the spider's strength won't have much effect on you. Are you skilled with it?"
"I'm excellent with the katana, but not so much with ice magic," Asura honestly admitted, hanging her head.
"Well, well, it's not much better, a katana is good weaponry, but you need more strength to crack her armor, like in that axe," the girl pointed at Hilda. "Of course, hardly any of you can lift it. It's understandable, such a thing is beyond an ordinary person's capability."
The girl's gaze stopped at my blades.
"Heh, I haven't seen those in a long time... But alas, they are utterly useless here."
"But!" I tried to object but was quickly silenced.
"What but? You won't even scratch her with those. Do you think dozens of dragons fell just from her claws? But this might be interesting," the girl took Rizel's silver staff in her hands. "Is it what I think it is?"
"Be careful; it doesn't surrender to just anyone."