The Spider Woman moved through the tunnel at an unreasonable speed, not bothering to carefully inspect her surroundings. With her “Enhanced Senses” and her radar-like scanning skill, she was practically able to perceive everything in her path within a full mile.

  Within just a few seconds, she reached the tunnel Arthur had fallen through. Even so, she didn’t stop and kept running, only halting after moving several hundred meters past it. Only then did she notice that Arthur’s faint scent had completely vanished.

  She frowned deeply in irritation and turned back. This time, she examined the path with greater focus, quickly locating the tunnel. Without any hesitation, she jumped in.

  She fell through it with an indifferent expression, landing gracefully inside the long cavern on her bare feet.

  At that very moment, time froze.

  Every hair on her body stood on end, and all her senses screamed in terror. Her eyes widened, and she froze in place, unable even to breathe loudly.

  The water rippled quietly, and the area was swallowed by an eerie silence.

  Suddenly, the glowing roots began to brighten and dim, while the dark shadows of the cave shifted as if they were living beings lying in wait.

  Chaos erupted inside her mind as she felt an oppressive, suffocating mass of mana descend upon her like mountains. Worse still, the sensation of being watched changed—she was being watched.

  Far above, atop the strange tree, the black dragon opened its eyes and slowly raised its massive head, crowned with long, razor-sharp horns.

  With his movement, the fungi danced in delight. Unbothered by this, the dragon turned his gaze toward the direction where the Spider Woman stood, murderous intent filling his eyes.

  Roooaaar!

  He opened his massive, dark maw and unleashed a thunderous roar that caused everything around him to tremble.

  The powerful sound surged through the network of tunnels, accompanied by a faint shockwave laden with dust. When it reached her, her hair whipped about chaotically, her body trembled, and the crushing pressure bearing down on her intensified.

  And that wasn’t all.

  After the roar faded, a faint buzzing sound emerged from the tunnels behind her. Gradually, the buzzing drew closer, growing louder and more intense.

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  The water beneath her rippled in a single direction, as if fleeing from something, while the walls above her shook violently.

  The Spider Woman took a deep breath, gathering what little courage she could. She broke free from the paralysis of fear that had dulled her senses and slowly turned to look behind her.

  What she saw made her pupils shrink.

  Hundreds of massive insects and beasts infected with fungus were charging toward her like a herd of enraged bulls.

  Ants, centipedes, rodents—and things far stranger than those.

  The tunnels were packed to the brim from floor to ceiling. The monsters crashed into one another as they ran, roaring with savage fury.

  “Damn it.”

  The Spider Woman couldn’t find a single word capable of describing how she felt at that moment, settling instead for a curse.

  Yet despite not fully recovering from the shock, she didn’t remain frozen. She mobilized every ounce of mana she possessed, releasing hundreds of thick, sticky webs that sealed off the cave behind her.

  Then, concealing her presence, she fled at her maximum speed.

  She knew the barrier she had built wouldn’t hold for long, but she didn’t care. She didn’t look back again—in fact, she no longer cared about anything. All that mattered was getting out of this place.

  But it wasn’t going to be that simple.

  Suddenly, the walls in front of her shattered, and several D-Rank fungal centipedes lunged out, attacking immediately.

  She gritted her teeth and raised her right hand. White spears formed beside her and shot forward like bullets, smashing the bodies of most of the centipedes.

  Without stopping, she dodged the remaining ones, placed another barrier behind her, and continued running.

  Once again, a massive swarm of ants poured from the walls ahead, forming a living blockade with their bodies.

  They opened their jaws and unleashed a torrent of deadly green venom, surging toward her like a tsunami, burning and melting the walls, making fungus grow everywhere.

  The Spider Woman didn’t flinch. With terrifying calm, she opened her mouth fiercely and sprayed an even deadlier flow of venom. She intercepted the violent green wave, swallowing it easily, then continued forward, melting the ant barrier and every fungus that had grown.

  Behind her, from under the waterway, a massive spiny mole appeared, striking her unexpectedly. The moment it reached her and nearly bit her neck, her silk cloak at her back split open.

  From her smooth body, a sharp black leg shot out, piercing the mole straight through its heart. Another leg extended, smashing its grotesque head into pieces and hurling it far away.

  The Spider Woman roared with intense anger, no longer holding anything back. She partially transformed into her true form—gaining more legs, her body growing slightly, and four additional eyes appearing on her face.

  Like a speeding train, she surged through the tunnel. Every monster in her path was either dodged or killed. Inside, she thought with regret:

  'There’s no point in hiding my presence now. As long as I’m in this place, these monsters will keep attacking me. Apparently, their master made me the target that must be killed. I have to escape.

  Damn it… I was foolish and naive. I thought the beast ruling this area was weak, but I was wrong—terribly wrong. It’s incredibly strong, ranks far above me. I just couldn’t sense its presence well because it’s deep underground.

  No, that’s not all. There’s something else here with dense mana—and it’s very calm.'

  She turned her head slightly, looking at the glowing roots stretching into the unknown, and muttered, "The same mana is radiating from these roots, but much weaker."

  Tremor!

  Suddenly, the ground shook beneath her, scattering her thoughts. A dangerous look appeared on her face, and from the wall beside her, a massive C-Rank centipede lunged directly at her.

  Her eyes widened as the threat became clear. She hadn’t regained her full strength yet, and facing a C-Rank monster wasn’t easy—especially a fungal one, which was hard to kill. Yet, she showed no hesitation or panic.

  She shrank slightly, dodged the attack, then released hundreds of webs, binding the centipede and preventing it from following her. After about thirty minutes of continuous fleeing, she finally reached a safe area.

  — — — — — — —

  Author’s Note:

  Alright, this chapter is titled “Let the Spider Woman Feel a Little of the Fear She Made Arthur Experience.” By the way, I really enjoyed writing this chapter—I think it turned out well. (Do you agree, or will you hurt the feelings of this author? ??)

  Anyway…

  Some of you might wonder why the dragon reacted to the Spider Woman’s presence but ignored Arthur. It’s simple and clear:

  Arthur is just an insect at E-Rank, while the Spider Woman is a monster radiating a B-Rank aura. Entering another monster’s territory is naturally seen as a hostile act.

  Finally, if you enjoyed the chapter, I hope you leave a comment, a positive review, or anything else that can support the story.

  For even more support, here’s my Patreon account:

  https://patreon.com/Umbryth