A single Hanging Spider wasn't fearsome.
In swarms, they were terrifying, the most troublesome magical beasts on the Great Forest of Tob's outskirts.
Hanging Spiders spat webbing at alarming speed. Once entangled by a group, one would be swiftly cocooned in tough threads, impossible to escape.
Their webbing, renowned for its resilience, was a prized material.
But now wasn't the time to dwell on that.
Adam darted through the jungle, pondering how to shake the horde of Hanging Spiders trailing him.
The forest terrain hampered his speed.
The basketball-sized spiders, unaffected, used their webbing to swing between trees, moving swiftly.
Whoosh!
A sharp sound cut through the air behind.
Without thinking, Adam swung his sword back.
Splurch!
The lead spider screeched, sliced in two by his iron sword, pale green viscous fluid splattering the ground.
[Gained 23 Experience]
Hm?
Adam kept moving, but his eyes widened. That much experience?
Glancing at the pursuing spiders, seventy or eighty, if not a hundred.
Killing them all could yield two to three thousand experience, enough for two levels!
Swish! Swish! Swish!
Finger-thick threads shot from the swarm, targeting Adam.
Twisting his left foot, he dove behind a tree, using its trunk to block the barrage.
Some threads hit the ground nearby. On a whim, Adam slashed at them with his sword.
Twang!
The webbing bent under the blade, then snapped, emitting a faint, resilient sound.
Trouble!
Sensing the threads' toughness, Adam understood why they were valued as magical materials.
Thud!
His eyes sharpened. Kicking off the trunk, he surged forward, abandoning his position.
In a blink, several spiders surrounded the tree.
Though Adam escaped again, the gap between them was closing.
"If I had Druid, Forest Priest, or even Ranger skills, I wouldn't be this pressed."
Sweat beaded on his forehead as he dodged threads using trees for cover.
He couldn't delay.
The spiders' screeches were clear now; they'd catch him soon.
Use magic?
His only offensive spell, Magic Arrow, was useless against such numbers.
Wait!
His eyes lit up. A spell he knew might help.
"Warm!"
Gripping his sword, Adam spoke softly.
The Warm spell heated touched objects. Its low temperature and time requirement limited it to cooking or heating food.
Though he'd upgraded it with a skill point, the improvement was minimal, so he'd kept using it for meals.
Now, he wondered: if it could heat objects, could it heat weapons?
"Warm!"
In ten seconds, the sword grew hot, the searing heat radiating through his palm.
Rip!
Lifting his left hand, Adam tore the sleeve from his right arm, wrapping it around the hilt to shield his hand.
A minute passed quickly.
The sword reached 150°C, its surface shimmering with heat.
No physical change, iron's melting point was over 1,500°C, far beyond reddening at 150°C.
Swish!
The sound of webbing came again.
This time, Adam didn't dodge. He raised the scalding sword, slashing at the threads.
The resilient webbing parted effortlessly under the heated blade!
"As expected, even tough webbing has little resistance to high heat."
"Now, it's my turn!"
Grinning, Adam's gaze chilled as he faced the oncoming spiders.
Their true threat was their durable webbing.
Now, with his heated sword slicing through it, the tables had turned.
Thud!
Adam stomped the ground, halting his retreat. Instead, he charged the spiders.
"Fourfold Slash of Light!"
With a low shout, his sword traced four dark afterimages.
The scalding blade cut through the air, severing webbing and instantly killing four leading spiders.
[Gained 21 Experience!]
[Gained 27 Experience!]
[Gained 22 Experience!]
[Gained 25 Experience!]
Hiss!
Hiss!
Hiss!
Piercing screeches erupted.
As Adam stopped fleeing, the spiders quickly encircled him.
They scuttled across branches, hissing, their crimson eyes fixed on Adam atop the leaf-strewn ground.
Swish! Swish!
Dense threads sprayed from their abdomens. Working together, they wove a complex web in the air, descending toward Adam.
"Useless!"
Adam smirked, slashing upward.
The sticky web split in two under the heated sword, falling to the ground.
The spiders froze, their screeches faltering.
"Let the slaughter begin!" Adam sprinted to a tree, kicked off its trunk, and leaped into the air.
"Fourfold Slash of Light!"
Splurch!
Splurch!
Splurch!
[Gained 27 Experience!]
[Gained 25 Experience!]
[…]
His attribute panel flashed with updates.
Spider limbs flew, pale green, foul-smelling fluid raining down, filling the air with a nauseating stench.
Without their webbing, the spiders were lambs to the slaughter in Adam's hands.
***
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