Kai's lungs burned as he reached the broken gate.
His head snapped towards the grating noise that came from the monsters in front of it. The sound itself sent shivers down his spine despite the rush of adrenaline in his body. And the sight—
All he could see were the massive limbs of three colossal spiders. Their bodies were the size of small houses. Their carapaces, a mottled obsidian black gleamed, reflecting under the sun's rays.
Each spider had eight spindly legs, each one thicker than a grown man's torso, and tipped with razor-sharp claws. Their multiple eyes scanned the chaos they'd wrought almost as if they were proud of it.
Kai recognised them as Arachne spiders, Grade 3 monsters.
His attention divided as he saw one of the Enforcers— Nelson standing his ground under the numerous legs aiming at him.
His heavy halberd swung with surprising agility, deflecting a swipe from one of the spider's claws. But the force of the blow sent him staggering back, the cobblestones erupting beneath his boots.
Before Kai could launch himself into the spiders, his focus was distracted further.
Merchants in the street abandoned their stalls, looking for places to hide, women clutched their children, screaming and praying for different gods who seemed to abandon the public once again like the fields, and a few guards who were present seemed to be hopelessly outmatched.
They attempted to form a line of defence, but even the weapons in their hands seemed to shake.
A guttural screech pierced the air, and another spider lunged for Nelson.
Its jaws, dripping with venomous ichor, snapped open, aiming at the Enforcer.
But Nelson rolled away just in time. The spider's mandibles slammed into the ground, creating a crater that sent up dust particles in the air.
His dodge seemed to anger the thick skimmed monster, but Nelson stood his ground. He yelled back, his voice firm as he swung his halberd.
But the spider showed surprising agility and moved back just in time before counterattacking. Its legs moved through the air at the same time, aiming at different parts of Nelson.
He deflected each leg that came his way, but the force of them kept pushing him back as he groaned in pain.
Kai couldn't watch from afar anymore. He saw Nelson trying, but if the Enforcer continued to defend against the Arachne spider alone, there was a higher possibility of him losing his life.
These were no necromancers, bandits or larvae — but monstrous spiders. Though the former cooking apprentice had improved, he was still far from taking on a Grade 3 beast on his own.
Kai inhaled deeply and steadied his feet before surging forward.
Mana weaved around his palms, flowing through his veins before a structure formed, glowing brightly.
It was [Flame Arrow]. The same spell he had used against the Archine Tower Mages and one which was an easy replacement for [Firebolt]. Unlike the latter, it took more mana to form and maintain, but with his higher reserves, he knew the impact and the damage will be higher against the multi-limbed creatures.
The flaming arrow erupted from his palms instantly, streaking towards the spider. The projectile, a sharp arrow of destruction, slammed into the creature's carapace, leaving a sizzling scorch mark.
The spider shook its head, its attention momentarily distracted from Nelson.
"Nelson! Aim for the lower abdomen!" Kai yelled before the spider could recover from the surprise spell.
Nelson didn't even take time to look back as he lunged forward, his halberd aiming there.
The remaining guards who were shaky in their feet, charged forward with the arrival of Kai.
He didn't waste another moment.
He sent more [Flame Arrows] aiming at the legs of the other two spiders who were making a fuss, reaching for their weak, wounded friend. The burning smell spread in the air as the arrows hit their mark and the spiders let out a painful growl.
The guards made their way towards the two arachne spiders, their swords waving left and right, surrounding them and hitting any spot they could.
But the spiders weren't making it any easier.
They moved swiftly, defending against the guards with their numerous legs.
On the side, Nelson brought back his heavy halberd and hit the abdomen once more, oozing heavy blood out of it, splattering the street like a wide canvas.
The spider screeched in pain hit back with a leg and Nelson sidestepped in a moment of swiftness. Not wanting to give it any more time, he charged up, aiming at the abdomen again.
To assist him, Kai sent out more and more arrows towards the spider, making it stagger backwards. Due to its massive body, it had no way of dodging, but it swung its legs in an attempt to defend itself.
The arrows burned its legs but failed to penetrate as the spider grunted and screeched.
Nelson moved to launch another strike and a guard's cry made Kai flung his head in his direction.
He saw a thick stream of white, sticky web catch a young guard full in the face. He cried out as the spider threw more web, wrapping his entire body and making it impossible for the guard to move.
The Arachne spider seemed to take pride in its work as it let out a happy grunt and moved towards the guards. The other guards around it tried to move to defend their comrade, but more webs came their way, wrapping around their arms and legs.
The guards squirmed under the webs, their screams muffled by the sticky substance as the spider tried to reel them in.
Not under my watch.
Kai fired up an arrow, sending it right into the middle of the thread that attached the web, burning it up as he saw someone familiar approaching the scene atop a horse.
"Lord Arzan!" Killian cried out.
As Killian appeared, Kai formed a spell structure and shot out a vortex of flames, trapping the spider to not let it move towards the guards. The flames burned the spider's legs as it tried to move through them, burning away the chitin and flesh.
At this time, Killian slashed through the webbing with his sword, freeing the trapped guards. All the while keeping his eyes on the spider which was soaring and screeching as it tried to get rid of the flames around its legs which bled.
Killian soon got rid of all the webs and turned his mount towards the spider, careful enough not to hurt the horse with all the fire.
Kai launched another volley of flaming arrows at the wounded spider's lower abdomen.
With Killian in charge and the arrows, it didn't take a long time for the spider to be heavily wounded. As the spider bled with reddish-black blood, it hissed and sprang up at the knight.
He moved just in time to escape the spider coming through the flames and aimed at its side, but the sword flickered away, not even managing to leave a scratch at the pristine shell.
Killian frowned as the spider moved to pierce him.
"Aim for the abdomen!"
Kai's voice brought back light to Killian's eyes as he rolled on the ground, escaping the attack. His sword moved like a viper striking, entering the spider and coming out from the other side.
Killian pushed the spider away as blood spilt on the ground.
In the background, the other spider seemed reckless as it continued to spit webs. Nelson tried to get through its thick carapace, swinging the halberd in every way possible.
Kai didn't move from his spot, trying to assist Nelson since Killian was already here to handle the third spider. Although his flaming arrows didn't kill the bastards, they wounded them enough for the fighters to harm them directly.
He unleashed spell after spell, giving Nelson enough time to move under the spider's legs and kill it.
With Kai keeping the monster distracted, he moved with ease, deflecting any attacks that came his way and hitting the same spot again and again.
The spider lost more blood second and unleashed a torrent of web towards Nelson, but it was clear that the Enforcer was trained well by Killian.
He dodged the web and planted his feet onto the ground, putting all his power into one thrust.
The spider tried to defend, but Nelson was swift and his weapon cut through two of its bleeding legs before smashing through its carapace. His face scrunched up in fury and concentration.
Blood oozed into the ground as Nelson kept twisting his halberd, wanting to see to the end that the spider was dead.
It was only after Kai put a hand on his shoulder that the man stopped. Looking back, he blinked his eyes.
"You did a good job. It's dead," Kai said, patting his shoulders.
"Y-yes, Lord Arzan!" The man muttered, lowering his head, his eyes moving towards the spider's corpse before he took a sigh of relief.
"Rest now. I will handle the last one."
As Kai said that, he turned back to see Killian battling with the last arachne spider. It was bigger than the other two, protecting its lower abdomen, unlike its fallen brethren.
Its eight legs deflected blows from every direction as the guards staggered back, not daring to come too close. When Killian rushed, swinging his sword in a vibrant arc, it shot out a thick web, directly on his face.
Killian cried out, momentarily blind as he tried to get the web out of his face.
That much was enough for the spider to move and jab with its legs. Just then, Kai moved, attracting its attention with a flaming arrow.
More and more arrows formed in the air as the spider looked towards him. The arrows wheezed through the air as they shot out webs to hold them back before leaping at him.
Kai didn't know if the spider recognised him as the strongest around here, but its eyes glinted as it charged, shooting more webs.
Unfortunately for him, he was done playing around.
As the webs reached him, something changed in the atmosphere. Mana surged all around him as something bubbled up from the ground.
Out of nowhere, a searing wall of flames burst forth, reaching ten feet into the air. The webs evaporated as they touched it, but the spider didn't take the cue.
It smashed right into it and let out a loud screech that everyone in the city heard. Flames licked at its body, slowly climbing on its legs and carapace. The ground scorched around it as a pungent smell filled the air.
While the spider hissed in pain, the wall disappeared and out from it, Kai appeared, holding a flaming spear.
The monster's eyes widened as it saw him and it tried to turn and run, but its eight legs weren't fast enough. The spear cut through its carapace, piercing its body as it staggered.
Its legs twitched for a few moments before going still.
With that, the last arachne spider crumpled.
"I feel good after being able to use these spells again. It feels like I'm back in my youth," Kai muttered, shaking his head.
[Firewall] and [Searing Lance] were two third-circle spells he had used often and being able to use them again felt good. Though he had partially expanded his reserves, it still had enough for more than a few spells.
He streaked the sweat out of his forehead and took one final look at the slain bodies of the spiders, their bodies leaking a viscous reddish black ichor that stained the cobblestones a sickly hue.
With a sigh, Kai moved towards Nelson and Killian who were tending to an injured guard.
The former cooking apprentice knelt beside a guard whose legs seemed to be stabbed by the spider's leg. By the way, he groaned, Kai was sure that a few bones were broken too.
He wasn't the only one as more guards rested on the ground, their injuries stinging as the adrenaline left their bodies.
Kai leaned a bit against the guard and used a minor healing spell. Immediately, a surge of mana hit the guard and the paleness of his face lessened. Although it wasn't enough for his wound to close, it still helped as he stopped bleeding and his complexion looked much better.
"He would be good in a few days. I will heal the other guards too, but first, what happened?" Kai asked, looking at Nelson.
He needed to know, to understand the chain of events that had led to this moment. If he was right, Nelson was here when the spiders burst through the gates.
Nelson lifted his head slowly, his eyes scanning Kai's face before settling on the latter's eyes. "We were conducting our routine patrol," he said, his words punctuated by ragged breaths. "Just making sure everything was secure at the gate."
He gestured towards the shattered remnants with a trembling hand. "Then, out of nowhere, we saw them. Three of those spiders. They were moving fast, like a pack of hungry wolves scenting prey. Before we could even process, one of them attacked the gate."
He grimaced as he recalled it. "We tried to hold them back, Lord Arzan, but they were… unstoppable. I sent a runner to inform you, but—"
Kai finished the sentence for him, his gaze steady. "But fortunately, I was close enough to intervene."
Nelson managed a weak nod.
Thankfully, Kai had reached as he saw the smoke from afar before the runner could come to find him.
He straightened, noticing how Nelson flinched for a second. It seemed like the young Enforcer wasn't used to talking to him and was nervous. "Enough damage has already been done," he muttered.
He looked at the shattered gate, then back at Killian and Nelson, his face masked with his usual grimness.
"Arachne spiders," Kai said, his voice low. "I've never seen any of those around here. Why now? These beasts typically avoid civilised areas, let alone a well-fortified city."
Killian's brow furrowed. "Perhaps," he said slowly. "The shift in seasons has something to do with it. Aurora has sprung, and since the winter is over, the dungeon would have opened up. Lots of beasts have emerged out of it."
A flicker of understanding crossed Kai's face. "So, these spiders came out of it."
Killian nodded. "It's a major possibility. But that still doesn't explain their aggressive behaviour. Dungeon monsters rarely attack cities directly."
Kak frowned. More questions sprang up in his mind. It didn't seem like a random attack to him.
An unsettling feeling, a premonition of something far worse, crawled up his spine. "There's more to this," he said, not wanting to believe his own words. "We'll see what this is all about. Send word to the hunters. We'll need them to track these creatures, to find the source of this attack."
He surveyed the scene once more, the civilians were already walking here and there now that the battle was over, though the guards tried to keep them away from the corpses. "We also need to tend to the injured and start on repairs."
-
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