Johanna and the shapeshifter returned to the base to get an overview of how the rest of the groups were doing; the shapeshifter, of course, went in his cat form. As Johanna arrived back at the cave, she was greeted by Noah and Ethan.
"Mom, where have you been all day?"
"I was out there and discovered a hole; since there was no scout party there yet, I decided to close it myself, but there were already some spiders who had escaped, so I killed them all, filled the hole up, and then returned here."
"Ah, well, one of the Aikos scouts came here just now and reported that they were able to fill up seven holes today, and it seems like the cave stretches out in a long line away from our base, so they are currently travelling along the path of the cave on the ground."
"I understand. Are there any problems here?"
"Nothing happened; it's quite uneventful here, but I guess that's a good thing."
"Youre right, I will eat something and then sleep afterwards."
Johanna walked over to the little camp that was set up while she was hunting down the spiders and ate something with her "cat." After that, she went to a tent and fell asleep.
The next morning was as uneventful as the evening before, as nothing had happened. But since Johanna didn't want to do anything and waste her time any longer, she decided to help Aiko's teams fill up the holes and defeat the spiders that had surfaced in other areas. She departed with the shapeshifter turning back into an eagle, and since her magical power had fully recovered, she was even more excited to kill the spiders.
As they soared through the sky, Johanna and the shapeshifter scanned the forest below, searching for any signs of Aikos groups or herself. It wasn't long before they spotted another cluster of holes, each one a potential threat to their base, which were being filled up by Aikos soldiers and her right now.
Descending towards the ground, Johanna transformed back into her human form, her excitement burning bright. It wasn't easy for the shapeshifter to help Aiko since the shapeshifter had to keep his identity hidden, so he had to fight from the shadow, killing a spider only if he knew that there were no goblins in sight. Johanna, on the other hand, joined forces with Aiko's teams, ready to lend a helping hand to their mission.
Together, they fought hard since spiders kept emerging from the holes and digging up the dirt and rocks, trying to escape from the smoke that Aikos soldiers were trying to fill the holes with. It wasn't an easy battle, but the surrounding area was soon cleared of any spiders that had gotten out already. The only problem was that the soldiers couldn't fill the holes with anything that the spiders wouldn't just remove again. That's how Johanna got the idea that they should just roll burning logs into the multiple holes that the spiders were escaping through. She immediately set out to cut down some trees that they could then light on fire.
As the next spiders were pushing the dirt and rocks aside, Johanna took a huge leap with the burning log from a small hill and slammed it into the spiders with full force, smashing them back down in the cave with the burning log. The men from Aiko tried to seal the hole as quickly as they could; it didn't look like any more spiders dared to come close to the entrance since the burning log and the now-burning corpse of their brethren blocked their way completely. After this problem was solved, Johanna separated from the Aikos group and said her goodbyes. Once she was sure that there were no goblins or Aiko in sight, she turned back into a bird and took off again to search for any other smoke that appeared in the forest.
As Johanna was flying through the forest again, her keen eyes scanning the horizon for any signs of trouble, she noticed a thick cloud of smoke rising up from a distant part of the woods. Without hesitation, she changed course, determined to investigate the source of the disturbance. As she approached the area, she could feel the ground and air shaking; her heart sank at the sight that greeted her. Rising up from the depths of a dark cave was a monstrous creature unlike anything she had ever seen before—a truly giant spider, its body hundreds of metres in size, towering over the surrounding trees even though only half of its body was out of the cave.
Johanna's breath caught in her throat as she acknowledged the immense spider, its many legs shovelling across the forest floor. She knew that this creature posed a grave threat not only to the forest but to all who lived within it, even her goblins.
With a sense of urgency, Johanna transformed back into her human form, her mind racing with thoughts of how to confront such a formidable foe. She knew that she couldn't face the giant spider alone, but she also knew that she couldn't stand by and let it wreak havoc unchecked.
Johanna called out to the shapeshifter, hoping that he would hear her pleas for help since she knew that she hadn't enslaved him and that he had no obligation to assist her at all. But moments later, he appeared by her side, his feline form tense with anticipation.
"We have a problem," Johanna said, her voice grave. "There's a giant spider emerging from that cave, and we need to stop it before it destroys the goblin cave."
The shapeshifter nodded, his eyes narrowing in determination. "We'll need a plan," he said, his voice low.
Johanna nodded in agreement, her mind already racing with ideas. Together, they devised a daring scheme to confront the giant spider, using all of their strengths and abilities. With their plan in place, Johanna and the shapeshifter set off towards the cave, truly unsure if they would survive this whole ordeal. They knew that the fate of the village depended on their success, and Johanna was determined to do whatever it took to protect it.