Getting hit by one of those could probably kill Kumoko instantly.
Faced with this overwhelming situation, Kumoko could only rely on the incredible speed granted by her Godspeed skill to dodge frantically.
At the same time, the apes renewed their assault on the walls. The corpses of the apes Kumoko had poisoned earlier, far from deterring them, now served as gruesome stepping stones, helping the others climb even faster!
"This is trouble!" Kumoko realized just how determined these apes were to kill her. They were coming at her with the resolve to die, intending to take her down with them.
She now had only two choices: Run, or fight to the death!
Given the huge disparity in strength and numbers, running seemed like the smartest option. With her speed, she might be able to escape, even if she took some hits along the way.
But... if she ran, the Earth Dragon, still helpless in his evolution cocoon, would be doomed.
Looking at the motionless rock shell containing the Earth Dragon, Kumoko hesitated.
Once... she had been abandoned by human society. She didn't belong anywhere, not at school, not at home. No one noticed her. Back then, she felt even smaller, even more powerless than she did now as a spider.
Broken home, parents gone their separate ways. At school, bullied by annoying classmates who saw her as a weak outsider because she didn't fit in. In Japan, bullying was incredibly common.
Kids formed tight-knit cliques, fiercely excluding anyone different. Those who didn't belong were targeted, ridiculed, insulted.
And she, unfortunately, became one of those targets. She got used to enduring the world's malice.
She understood perfectly that every clique needed a scapegoat, a common "enemy" to unite against, solidifying their bonds.
So, many people ganged up on her simply because they could. Bullying her had no consequences; the cost was zero!
Walking through the school halls, everyone's laughter felt like daggers. No one noticed the loner sitting in the corner.
No one cared. If anyone did show her kindness, they'd immediately face the collective wrath of the class!
That was Japan, a society with one of the highest suicide rates. Life was suffocatingly oppressive.
But even then, small and helpless, she clung to a tiny sliver of hope, trying to find joy in small things, dreaming that someday, someone would appreciate her for who she was.
Then, she was reborn as a spider. At first, she was devastated. She'd been reasonably cute in her past life, but now she was a terrifying spider monster. Who would ever pay attention to her now?
But then she met the Earth Dragon, also from another world. And Kumoko found that he didn't seem disgusted by her at all. He even looked out for her, helped her level up.
It felt like they were comrades who had fought side-by-side for years! That feeling started to crack open her closed-off heart, just a little. At least... she wasn't alone anymore!
In that instant, Kumoko made her decision. No matter what, she wouldn't back down again. She would protect the Earth Dragon! She would ensure he evolved safely!
"DIE!"
"DIE!"
"DIE!"
Her eyes blazed with fury. Her MP drained rapidly as she synthesized massive amounts of potent poison, hurling it down at the apes below with desperate rage!
Dozens of apes hit by the poison shrieked and fell... but Kumoko didn't gain a single point of EXP. Because as they fell, the Giant-Mouthed Apes were killing themselves.
Suicide! By dying by their own hand (or however apes do it), they denied Kumoko any experience. That was the Giant-Mouthed Apes' resolve even in death, they wouldn't benefit their enemy.
This meant Kumoko couldn't rely on leveling up to restore her HP and MP anymore. Her mana bar was dropping fast.
Worse, many apes had already climbed past the initial obstacles. The pile of their comrades' corpses below had become a grisly hill several meters high, allowing them to easily scale the rest of the way and reach her position.
The Giant-Mouthed Apes weren't as fast as Kumoko, but they were still quick among monsters. Their attacks came like a furious storm.
"So fast!" With her mana nearly gone, Kumoko could only react desperately. But the onslaught was too intense. She kept getting hit, her HP steadily decreasing.
One Giant-Mouthed Ape managed to grab one of her legs! Its strength was immense. With a sickening crack, it snapped her leg clean off. Blood spurted from the wound.
The pain was blinding, heart-wrenching. Her HP plummeted dangerously low.
But the pain also ignited her fighting spirit! Ignoring her mangled leg, she spun around and lunged, sinking her fangs into the ape that attacked her.
Her [Poison Fang] skill was now LV 10, dealing significant damage. That one bite was enough to kill the ape instantly!
….
The Giant-Mouthed Ape she killed didn't have a chance to commit suicide this time. Its EXP flowed into Kumoko's experience bar. But the EXP from just one ape wasn't nearly enough to level up.
In moments, she was completely surrounded by the swarming apes. Their eyes were bloodshot, fixed solely on her.
Their only thought was revenge for their fallen comrades, completely disregarding their own lives.
They were like mindless killing machines, utterly relentless. Seeing their comrade die right in front of them didn't deter them at all; it only made them charge forward even more frenziedly, like tireless warriors launching a final assault.
Kumoko, however, burned with an equally fierce determination. Fear was gone. She lunged directly at the nearest ape.
The ape swiped at her back, leaving three deep, bleeding gashes. Her HP bar flashed critical only single digits remained.
Kumoko didn't have the [Sloth] skill yet, the one that let her use MP to prevent HP from dropping to zero. If her health hit zero now, she would die for real.
But Kumoko didn't care anymore. Even the intense pain faded into the background. Her only focus was killing the enemy.
Enduring the blow, she closed the distance and sank her max-level poison fangs deep into the ape's neck.
The artery was severed instantly. Blood sprayed everywhere! The Giant-Mouthed Ape died on the spot, its EXP flowing into her bar.
"Still not enough!"
"Need more!"
Gritting her teeth, Kumoko leaped towards the next closest ape. This time, though, she had no HP left to spare. If she got hit even once, it was game over.
Luckily, she had just enough mana left for one last use of [Thread Control]. This was a spider-specific skill allowing precise manipulation of her webs. Combined with her naturally sticky and poisonous threads, it was a powerful tool.
Attaching a strand of silk to the cave wall, Kumoko used her Thread Control skill to perform an incredibly complex aerial maneuver, swinging through the air.
The next moment, she landed perfectly behind her target ape. Aiming for its unprotected neck, she bit down hard again.
[Experience Gained. Individual - Small Taratect Leveled Up from LV 2 to LV 3.]
[HP and MP Restored. All Basic Attributes Increased.]
Finally! She leveled up! If she hadn't leveled up right then, she probably would have died right there in the Elroe Labyrinth. Kumoko felt a wave of relief wash over her.
Early on, that n%I=W skill was truly god-tier. Leveling up instantly wiped away all negative statuses and fully restored HP and MP.
But she didn't have time to celebrate just yet. Because down below, at the cave entrance, new, different monsters had just appeared.
….
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