“That’s way too big…”
The tsuchigumo (giant spider) was far larger than I had imagined.
I had thought the black ants were big, but this was on a whole other level.
To give an example, it was about the size of an elephant I’d seen at the zoo.
Sharp claws, resembling swords, grew from each of its legs. If those pierced you, there would be no chance of survival.
Its eight eyes pointed in different directions, scanning the surroundings. Beneath its eyes, fangs like those of a wild beast were visible, dripping with fresh, red blood—likely from a recent meal.
As I was being overwhelmed by the grotesque sight, Kurt made his move.
He slashed at the creature with his sword.
The tsuchigumo, despite its massive size, dodged the attack with unbelievable agility. Then, it lifted its large abdomen and began shooting sticky webs from the tip of its tail in a wide spray.
In response, Kurt deployed his magical horns.
As the magical horns extended around his legs, his agility and jumping power appeared to skyrocket.
He skillfully dodged the spider’s web spray at sharp angles.
Is that… body enhancement magic?
He hadn’t mentioned anything like that before, but does he have abilities beyond just fire magic?
As I became fascinated by the possibilities of his magical horns, Kurt continued dodging the spider’s attacks, occasionally taking advantage of openings to land slashes.
However, every attack from his sword was deflected by the creature’s sword-like legs, preventing him from delivering a decisive blow.
Watching the frustrating back-and-forth, I began to notice something strange.
Kurt hadn’t used his fire magic even once.
In a situation like this, intentionally holding back his strongest ability must have some meaning.
“Hey, Ayra, why isn’t Dad using his fire magic?”
“That’s because of the tsuchigumo’s nature,” she responded while maintaining her magic barrier.
“The threads it spits are highly flammable. If Kurt were to use fire magic here, it would be disastrous.”
That thread is flammable? If I had been fighting it alone, unaware of this, I probably would have used fire magic.
The thought sent chills down my spine.
Once again, knowledge proves essential.
If those threads covering the walls caught fire, it would spread like an explosion. While Ayra’s barrier might protect us from being directly burned to death, it would take considerable time to put out the flames. We could easily succumb to suffocation, carbon monoxide poisoning, or the surrounding heat.
“And the tsuchigumo’s skin is resistant to heat. Even a self-sacrificing attack wouldn’t be effective.”
“…”
What a bad match for Kurt.
He had seemed confident, but now I was starting to worry.
In reality, the battle had reached a stalemate.
The tsuchigumo expertly defended against all of Kurt’s attacks with its legs. Kurt dodged its counterattacks and looked for an opening, but his strikes were becoming less frequent.
It was starting to look like the fight against the black ants earlier.
At this rate, he would eventually run out of stamina.
Even though I had promised not to interfere and just observe, wouldn’t it be better to assist him?
As long as I didn’t step out of the magic barrier, I’m sure they’d forgive me.
Besides, I wouldn’t be directly attacking—my goal would be to create an opening for Kurt. That’s what he seemed to be aiming for too, so it should help.
With that decided, I considered how to do it.
Fire magic was out of the question, so I’d have to rely on water magic.
The tsuchigumo was defending against Kurt’s attacks using all eight of its sturdy legs. If I could stop even one leg, it would create an opening.
I imagined a spell to bind the spider’s legs.
First, I compressed my magic power to create water with the hardness of steel.
I shaped it into long, snake-like forms.
At the ends, I added sharp fangs, designed to bite into the target and not let go.
Since the tsuchigumo had eight legs, I’d need eight of them.
The image I created in my mind was that of a water dragon with eight long necks, reminiscent of a hydra.
Water restraints that wouldn’t let go once they bit down.
I decided to name it “Water Bite.”
The image solidified.
I extended my right hand, deploying my magical horns, then channeled my magic power into them, imbuing the spell with water properties.
The magical horns started to form a chain in front of my hand, ready to activate the spell.
I locked my gaze on the tsuchigumo, preparing to fire.
But in that instant, the tsuchigumo vanished from my sight like smoke.
“…!”
Where did it go?
I began to scan my surroundings, but I had no time.
A pair of huge, red eyes suddenly appeared right in front of me, so close I could feel its breath.
“…!”
I reflexively jerked back.
In an instant, the spider had closed the distance between us.
Such speed… I didn’t see it at all.
Fortunately, Ayra’s magic barrier saved me from being attacked directly, but the sharp tip of the tsuchigumo’s claw stabbed into the barrier, nearly tearing it apart.
“Tch…!”
Ayra quickly responded by raising her magic power.
The magical horns extended from her left shoulder down her arm.
When they covered her entire arm, she lunged forward with determination.
She tackled the tsuchigumo, striking it with her shoulder.
The impact sent the giant spider flying.
From her slender frame, such power was unimaginable.
It must have been thanks to the magical armor on her left arm.
Under normal circumstances, her arm would have shattered.
The tsuchigumo tumbled about ten meters through the air before regaining its footing.
It was already poised for a counterattack, but the next moment, its movements abruptly stopped.
What just happened?
As I wondered, I saw a single line appear down the center of its body.
A moment later, the creature split clean in two.
Behind the collapsing giant, Kurt stood with his sword raised.
He had seized the opportunity created by Ayra’s tackle to deliver the final blow.
“Damn, that thing was a real pain…” Kurt muttered as he sheathed his sword.
Ayra smiled slightly.
“Took you long enough. Aren’t you the famed ‘Quick Slash’ Kurt?”
“Shut up! That one was just a bit livelier than usual.”
“Well, if that’s the case, I suppose it can’t be helped.”
“Hmph.”
The two exchanged words like children.
They must have a close and trusting relationship.
As for me, I had tried to assist Kurt, but it hadn’t worked out.
I never expected the tsuchigumo to be that fast.
I couldn’t even imagine such agility in a creature that size.
Kurt had been right—this was my lack of experience.
If it weren’t for Ayra’s barrier, I might have been killed in that moment.
Realizing that, I knew I had to train even harder.
As these thoughts passed through my mind, Kurt turned to me.
“You okay?”
“Yeah, I’m fine. All thanks to Ayra.”
“Nero sure knows how to give compliments. He’s going to be popular one day—unlike a certain someone.”
Ayra glanced at Kurt with a smirk.
Kurt’s face contorted into a scowl.
“…Anyway, looks like it’s all over. We’ll leave the cleanup to the church and head back.”
With this, the townspeople would no longer be in danger of being attacked.
But as long as monsters existed, peace was only temporary.
Sooner or later, another creature would find its way into town.
That’s the reality the people of this world must face.
The burden placed on the shoulders of monster slayers was immense.
“Let’s head back.”
Just as we all turned to leave at Kurt’s signal, we heard a small voice.
“Um…”
It was Fine, who had remained silent and frightened the entire time, finally speaking up.
Even though the monsters had been defeated, she still seemed tense.
“What is it, Fine?” her mother, Ayra, asked.
Fine pointed with a trembling hand toward the wall.
“Look… over there.”
We followed her gaze to see the bodies of townspeople wrapped tightly in the tsuchigumo’s webs.
They must have been taken as food and had been dead for several days. Their bodies were withered or rotting, like mummies.
To the tsuchigumo, perhaps this was the perfect “aged” meal.
Why was Fine pointing at these corpses?
I looked closer to see what had caught her attention and found it.
Among the countless bodies, there was a small figure, almost too easy to miss.
It was a boy, about the same age as Fine and me.
Unlike the other corpses, his skin still looked fresh, untouched by decay.
He hadn’t been caught for long.
Just as I realized this, I saw the boy’s eyelids twitch.
“That boy… he’s alive!”
“What!?”
As soon as I said that, Kurt rushed over to the boy.
He checked his condition and nodded.
“He’s still breathing. We can save him! Ayra, help me!”
“Got it.”
Together, they swiftly cut through the webs with their swords, and the boy’s small body fell out.
Ayra caught him and then turned to look at Fine.
“You did well to notice.”
“…!”
Fine’s eyes widened in surprise at the praise but soon softened into a smile.
