Watcher 24 sneered at Yame's defiant shout, her expression growing ever more sinister. With a single wave of her hand, countless spiders swarmed from the shadows, their black and purple forms scuttling over the ground and buildings, creating a scene of sheer dread.
"Such foolishness," she murmured with a chilling laugh. "You have no idea what true despair looks like."
At her command, several giant spiders emerged, their sharp legs scraping against the ground with ear-piercing screeches. Their hulking bodies rose, venom dripping from razor-like fangs and corroding the earth with every drop. Without hesitation, they lunged toward Yame and Syoruha with terrifying speed.
"Tempest," Yame whispered, her voice calm but commanding. With a sharp motion, a swirling storm erupted around her, scattering the incoming spiders and webbing. However, the shredded webbing, far from neutralized, became more adhesive, attaching to walls and ground to form a sprawling, natural trap.
Despite the tempest's protective force, several strands of webbing found their mark, clinging to Yame's shoulders and arms. The chilling touch of the sticky threads made her shudder, their constricting grip unyielding and malicious.
"Ugh, disgusting," Yame muttered, her brows furrowing as she tried to pull the webbing from her arm. Yet the more she tugged, the more the threads resisted, as though imbued with a sinister will of their own.
"Yame, behind you!" Syoruha's urgent shout broke through her concentration.
A massive spider had silently crept up, its venomous fangs glinting in the dim light as it prepared to strike.
Syoruha clenched his fists, golden light radiating from his palms as he spread them wide.
"Solar Leaf—ignite!" he roared, slamming his hands together.
A cascade of glowing leaves materialized, burning brightly as they scattered across the battlefield. The light seared through the swarming spiders, reducing them to ashes, and ignited the webs with a series of sharp, crackling bursts.
"A light wielder?" Watcher 24 hissed, her crimson eyes narrowing. "How inconvenient." Her smile twisted into something darker. "Then let me show you true despair."
Her slender fingers clenched into a fist, and the incinerated spider remains crumbled into black ash. With a guttural hum, the ash coalesced into new spider forms, larger and armored with metallic sheen. Their glowing red eyes locked onto the duo, radiating bloodlust.
The largest spider leapt high into the air, casting a massive shadow over the battlefield. Its impact shook the ground, sending tremors that cracked the pavement. Simultaneously, strands of webbing lashed out like whips, converging on Yame and Syoruha from all directions.
Without hesitation, Yame and Syoruha stood back to back, unyielding as the monstrous forms bore down on them. Wind and light surged forth, a tempest and radiant storm colliding with the enemy's relentless assault.
Yame darted forward, her figure a blur as wind propelled her toward the giant spider. Twin wind-forged daggers appeared in her hands, their razor edges glinting. With a swift motion, she plunged them into the joints of the spider's massive legs. Sparks flew as the blades ground against the metallic shell.
The spider roared, its colossal body thrashing violently in an attempt to shake Yame off. She held on, her legs gripping its back as she fought to carve deeper.
"Cover me!" Yame barked.
"On it!" Syoruha responded, his hands aglow. Summoning another burst of light, he fired arrows of energy at the oncoming webbing, burning through the strands and clearing a path for Yame.
But the battle was far from over.
From the shadows, Watcher 22 loomed with a sinister grin, flanked by a horde of demons and mischievous sprites armed with six-barrel guns. They unleashed a relentless hail of bullets, forcing Syoruha to divert his energy to conjure shields of light.
"Damn it, Yame!" Syoruha shouted as he deflected another barrage. "Finish that thing quickly—there's more trouble coming!"
"I'm working on it," Yame replied in a voice devoid of panic, even as her daggers finally pierced through the spider's protective carapace, tearing a gap into its metallic frame.
Before she could deliver the final blow, an ear-splitting screech filled the air. Watcher 27 had joined the fray, her whip-like weapon summoning a swarm of bats that dove toward Yame and Syoruha in a frenzy. Their shrill cries struck like needles, momentarily disorienting Yame and giving the spider enough leverage to hurl her to the ground.
Yame landed hard, rolling to her feet just in time to see webs surging toward her from all directions.
"Not... today," she muttered, summoning a spiraling current of air that shredded through the adhesive threads as they closed in.
Breathing heavily, Yame stood ready, her body aching but her spirit unyielding. Syoruha stepped beside her, light radiating from his hands.
Watcher 24's laugh echoed through the battlefield. "Do you see now? Resistance is meaningless. You are my prey, and you cannot escape my web."
"Perhaps," Syoruha replied coldly, "but the one who's trapped is you."
As his words resonated, a brilliant flare erupted from Yame and Syoruha, their combined powers surging forward. The battlefield ignited in a storm of wind and light, a force so potent it threatened to tear the very fabric of darkness apart.
The battle wasn't over, but in this moment, Yame and Syoruha stood defiant, their determination burning as fiercely as the light they wielded.