Silas blinked, lowering his hands from his ears. His gaze fixed on the giant shadow emerging from the burning spider's lair.
[Altos, The Spider King has appeared]
Its upper body resembled a muscular man with broad shoulders and four rippling arms. From the waist down, a spider's body loomed, its circular back covered in spiky hairs. Thick, spindly legs clicked against the burning ground, sending ashes fluttering into the air.
The creature's head remained obscured by the night, but its gleaming green eyes pierced the darkness, instilling fear. They stepped backward as it straightened its arms, pulling a sharp stave from thin air. Moonlight revealed its black skin, mottled with patches of underdeveloped fur.
"How delightful," it rumbled, voice resonant and menacing. "We have always been the hunters. I didn't expect you to come this far."
The spider skittered forward, flattening the grass. "But every journey must end, and yours ends here."
A sharp gust of wind whistled past Silas's left. He blinked, realizing one of the spears in the monster's arm was missing. Terror seized him as he turned to his side. There, the missing stave was embedded in a Peacekeeper's chest. The man stood motionless, eyes blank.
The attack had been so sudden that Silas barely registered it. His legs trembled as he sighed, fighting to steady himself.
Silas turned back to the monster, but coughing behind him made him spin around. The man, whom he thought dead, coughed violently, his head shaking uncontrollably.
'What's his name?' Silas wondered, horrified as the man's head repeatedly struck the stave, creating a sickening thud.
"Get a grip!" Danavar shouted, unslinging his rifle. "That thing is too fast for us. Everyone! To the forest at once!"
The Spider King raised one arm, ready to attack again. The guards retreated, then broke into a run, eyes wide with terror. In their panic, they forgot to cast [Haste] to boost their speed. Survival instincts overrode their training, their only thought was to reach the safety of the forest.
Silas felt his vision sharpen and his speed increase as [Haste] took effect. Danavar, the captain of the guards, remained composed as he provided support to his men who had lost their composures.
He cast [Haste] repeatedly on the guards. Silas shook his head; he couldn't just watch. If all the guards fell, defeating the monster would be nearly impossible.
The second spear flew toward a group of soldiers, their cries piercing the air where it landed. Altos beast immediately prepared for the third one.
Raising his staff, Silas cast a [Barrier] to block the attack, knowing it wouldn't be enough. The stave hit the [Barrier], slowing down before shattering it destroy the shield into glass-like fragments. But the Peacekeepers were safe, for now. Silas sighed. 'Only one stave left.'
They hid behind tree trunks, panting, their legs giving out beneath them. Silas peeked out and saw the [Spider King] standing in its burning lair. Its laughter echoed, chilling their hearts.
"Captain, we must leave this place now," one of the Peacekeepers said, gripping his head tightly. Silas feared he might pull his hair out. "Let's just report it to the Church. Surely they would send a Lightservant to help us."
The [Spider King]'s laughter reached them. "What a sad sight. Do you think you can run from me? Do you think you can go faster than me? No, I'll chase every one of you to death. And when I reach your poor little town, I'll turn everyone there into my sons and daughters… I'll let you watch that spectacle."
"An eye for an eye. A tooth for a tooth. What you take from me, I'll take from you."
Silas's mind raced. In the game, monsters stopped chasing once you left their area. But this wasn't just a game. He didn't want to admit it, but the monster might be telling the truth about following them to the town. And if that happened, everyone would be in danger.
'It will be too late by the time the Lightservants realize what is happening. Gram will be their breeding ground. It's the perfect place, being cut off from the rest of civilization.'
"Captain," he said to Danavar, feeling strange using that title. "We can't risk the lives of the people in Gram. I fear there might be truth to his words about turning the townsmen into their kin."
"Shut up!" the guard who had been pulling his hair shouted at Silas. "Did anyone ask for your opinion? You damn filthy wizard, you're nothing but a curse-bringer. I'll make sure to report you to the Lightservants once we g—"
The man tumbled to the ground. Silas's eyes widened as he saw Bron punch the man in the face.
"You're not helping. Stop with your threats because this child has done more than you in this battle. Scumbag!"
The man pushed himself to a sitting position, wiping tears from his eyes. He buried his face in his palms, his shoulders shaking with sobs. When he finally looked up, his gaze burned with hatred. Silas realized, no matter how this ended, he would surely report him to the Lightservants. A knot of worry tightened in his chest.
"Stop, Bron," Danavar sighed. "Lex, get a grip on yourself. I have a plan. One of us must go back to Gram. I reported what happened in Gram to the Lightservants before we left. I expect the Church has already sent someone to help us. Someone needs to fetch them."
Lex paused, drying his tears, and stared at Danavar with desperate hope.
'I hope it will not be him. Please, not him,' Silas thought.
"What if no one is there, Captain?" another guard asked.
"I expect the worst, so I also called for help from a mercenary guild. I'm sure at least one of the groups has already arrived," Danavar said, nodding to his guards.
"Captain," Lex said, trembling. "Please let me b—"
"No," Danavar said firmly. "You're too confused and afraid to be sent out. Plus, we need your skills in this battle."
Danavar's eyes settled on Ken, the guard who had seen the Blue Signal from the other platoon earlier.
"Ken, I want you to go. Use your sight to make sure no one follows you."
Danavar handed potions from his bag to Ken, who looked at the quantity with surprise. "But Captain, isn't this too many?"
"No, I have enough. Besides, you'll need to keep using your [Farsight] endlessly until you reach Gram."
"Yes, Captain."
Danavar turned to the remaining guards, then glanced at Silas and the [Spider King].
"Ken, leave in five minutes. Make sure its attention is on us before you run."
Ken nodded, determination hardening his features.
"Now, soldiers, we will do all we can to kill that thing. That's the only choice we have," Danavar commanded.
The guards tightened their grips on their weapons, a mix of fear and resolve etched on their faces. Silas could feel the tension in the air, every breath heavy with the weight of their task. They had to hold off the [Spider King] and give Ken a chance to reach help, no matter the cost.
Silas raised his hand. "The [Spider King] follows a pattern," he said, voice steady.
He had noticed it earlier: the creature threw four staves, the first being the fastest and almost impossible to dodge. The second stave was significantly slower, making it easier to avoid. He shared his observation with the group. Danavar listened intently, eyes narrowing in thought.
"So, you're saying that once we dodge the first stave, it will be easy for us to avoid the remaining staves?" Danavar asked.
Silas nodded. "Exactly. But the problem is how to avoid or deflect the first one. It was so fast I barely saw it hit the ground beside me. My [Barrier] won't hold against it. It might end up piercing right through."
The guards sighed, glancing at each other in uncertainty.
"What if we use bait?" one of the Peacekeepers suggested, breaking the silence.
"Go on," Danavar encouraged, his gaze fixed on the speaker.
"Farmers use scarecrows all the time. Why don't we use something like that?"
Silas frowned. "But how are we going to make it?"
The guard shook his head. "Leave that to me," Bron said, picking a leaf from the ground and attaching it to the trunk of a giant tree.
Everyone watched in amazement as Bron manipulated the leaf except for Lex, who sneered at the idea. The guards quickly gathered dried leaves into a pile. Bron touched the heap, raised his hand, and slowly shaped the leaves into a man. The "leafman," as they called it, waved at them too.
'Then do you have a better idea, dumbass?' he thought of saying.
"Now we must first find the part of the forest closest to the [Spider King] so we can attack as soon as it throws its first stave to our leafman," Danavar said, scanning the area.
The leafman nodded and saluted to Danavar.
The group walked a hundred meters from their original spot before finding the right place. Danavar nodded to Bron, and Bron nodded back. Concentrating, Bron began controlling the leafman. The leafman walked and then ran, albeit awkwardly, like a drunkard.
The [Spider King] turned to the puppet, its legs clicking on the ground. It pulled back its hand, preparing for an attack. The spear shot toward the leafman, and the poor soldier exploded in a burst of leaves.
"Now!" Danavar shouted. "Attack!"
The Peacekeepers sprang into action, weapons and spells ready, moving with coordinated precision. The tension of the plan's success hung in the air, driving them forward.