As the group ventured deeper into the abyss, they defeated a few spiders here and there until they noticed a tunnel-like structure.
"This must lead to the boss, right?" Amy asked.
"I think so," Kyle replied.
"Okay, let's go," Harden said as they entered the dark tunnel.
Amy used her wand to generate a ball of light since she was a light mage. (Mages are grouped into healers, fire, water, and light.) The farther they went, the more spider webs they encountered. When they reached the end of the tunnel, they noticed some blue crystals lighting up the area.
As they proceeded onward, they were shocked at what they saw. All the participants were entangled in spider webs, hanging from the top of the tunnel. Some were conscious and struggling, while others were already unconscious.
"I guess the boss is way stronger than they expected," Ling said.
"Hey, what's that?" Raizo said, pointing upward.
Amy directed her ball of light toward the spot he indicated, and they were met with six glowing red eyes—larger than any they had seen before.
Just then, the spider jumped down and roared.
"Since when do spiders roar?" Raizo said with a nervous smile.
The spider had the same characteristics as the others, but it was massive—far larger than anything they had faced so far.
"Let's see what the boss is made of!" Kyle shouted.
"Amy, close your eyes!"
Amy created a ball of light larger than any she had conjured before. As she activated the spell, a blinding light filled the room. The spider screeched, closed its eyes, and moved backward.
"Nice!" Kyle said as he ran forward and activated the assassin's skill, Stealth. The moment the skill was activated, his movements became completely silent. He rushed toward the spider and activated his poison skill, slashing at one of its legs. His blade, however, bounced off.
"Whoa, it's hard," Kyle commented as he jumped back.
The spider roared again and shot a barrage of acid at them. They all dodged, and Raizo jumped, drew his sword, and activated his skill, Six Path, striking the spider's head. But his blade bounced off as well.
The spider attempted to bite Kyle, but before it could, Amy shot a ball of light at it. Enraged, the spider rushed toward her.
"It's not fair that a creature like this is fast as well," Raizo said.
Before the spider could reach Amy, Ling rushed toward it and activated his skill, Paralyzing Touch Point, striking the spider with his index and middle fingers.
Immediately after, Harden jumped and performed the skill Axe Kick on the spider's head. A loud bang echoed throughout the cave. The spider recovered from Harden's kick and attempted to bite him. Harden smiled as he jumped back, thinking to himself, I had a hunch I could perform the skill after I saw it.
Meanwhile, Ling was stunned in shock. That's one of my family's secret techniques! How could he do it? Did he just copy me? This Harden guy… he's a…
While Ling was lost in thought, Kyle and Jake freed all the participants trapped in the spider's web.
"This damn freak caught me by surprise. It's time for payback!" said a participant wearing a tank top and knight pauldrons. He drew his longsword with a confident smile.
He and two other participants of the Knight class charged forward. One wore golden armor, and the other wore silver. They jumped toward the spider, but it shot webs at them, and they were too slow to evade.
The man with the knight pauldrons activated his skill, Knight's Honor, boosting his physical prowess and attack power. He slashed one of the spider's legs, which, to everyone's surprise, began to bleed.
"So that one's a strong one," Kyle commented as he ran at the spider and slashed the same spot the knight had attacked. The spider screeched and retaliated by shooting a barrage of webs at the participants. Some dodged, but others were caught.
At the same time, the spider seemed to have laid eggs, and numerous crimson spiders emerged to attack the participants.
"These again?" one participant muttered. "Isn't this only a bronze-rank gate? How is it so difficult?"
While the others were busy battling the crimson spiders, Kyle made his way to the boss.
"You're just an overgrown spider," he muttered as he activated his Blink Step skill consecutively, confusing the spider. (Blink Step allows an assassin to move extremely fast in short distances.) Running under the spider, Kyle slashed its hard underbelly, but his blade didn't pierce.
He then jumped onto the spider's back and began slashing rapidly. The spider shot webs at him, but Raizo, who had been following closely, jumped and slashed the webs apart with his Six Path Slash.
Ling and Harden simultaneously performed Paralyzing Touch Point, rendering the spider immobile. Amy concentrated her ball of light and shot it at one of the spider's eyes, piercing it.
The participant with the knight pauldrons activated his skill, Prevailing Justice, slashing another of the spider's legs. The spider screeched and began struggling to move, breaking free of the paralysis.
Harden leaped onto its head and released a barrage of attacks with his nunchaku. Fully freed, the spider jumped and shot acid mid-air at the participants. Amy countered with a barrage of light balls, but the spider seemed unfazed.
"This one's quite tough," Ling said as he widened his stance, extending his left palm forward and pulling his right palm back.
"Cover me," he said. "This might take some time."
Harden, Raizo, and Kyle ran forward. Kyle used Blink Steps, and Harden, feeling as though he understood the skill, thought, Might as well try.
As the spider shot acid at him, Harden suddenly vanished from the spider's line of sight and reappeared, landing another Axe Kick.
Kyle was in shock. "Is that the Blink Step? No, it's not possible. It can't be. He's from the martial arts class!"
Before the spider could react, Raizo appeared above it, his blade sheathed. His hand rested on the hilt as he activated the skill Cherry Blossom Bloom, enveloping his blade in a pink aura. He slashed the spider's hard back, which began bleeding for the first time.
Ling, having finished charging his attack, rushed at the spider and slammed his palm against its head, activating the skill Internal Rupture. The spider screeched loudly, coughing blood. Its already red eyes glowed even brighter as it entered berserk mode.
The spider roared and dropped about seventy eggs from the webs on the cave walls.
"Oh, we're screwed," a participant said, falling to the ground.