The morning sun illuminated Valmaris as Ash’s party gathered near the Adventurer’s Guild. The atmosphere buzzed with a mix of excitement and tension. For the first time, the four members of Emberlight would tackle a dungeon labyrinth—a D-tier labyrinth, known as the Silkweaver’s Nest. This mission was a crucial test of their coordination and skill.

  “Fifteen floors, mostly insectoid monsters, and a giant spider at the end,” Ash summarized as they reviewed the information retrieved from the Guild’s archives. “The monsters drop intermediate-grade magic stones and insect plating that can be sold at a decent price. If we play this right, we'll be able to afford better equipment.”

  Grant swung his sword experimentally. “Sounds straightforward enough.”

  Nel adjusted his mage’s robes, his expression aloof. “Just don’t expect me to deal with any creepy-crawly nonsense.”

  Leona, adjusting her light armor, gave a determined nod. “I’ll do my best to support everyone.”

  Ash smiled at the group, his heart swelling with pride. “Alright, let’s go.”

  The moment they stepped into the labyrinth, the air changed. The damp scent of earth mixed with something musty, an almost suffocating stillness settling around them. The walls were jagged and uneven, glistening with moisture as if the stone itself was sweating. In the distance, a faint skittering echoed, making Nel shudder involuntarily.

  “This place reeks,” Grant muttered, wrinkling his nose. “Like something’s been rotting down here.”

  “More like something is still alive,” Ash corrected, tightening his grip on his sword.

  The chittering of mandibles grew louder, and from the shadows, beetle-like creatures emerged, their obsidian carapaces gleaming with a faint metallic sheen. The moment they noticed the party, their legs twitched, and they surged forward in a tide of gnashing pincers and clicking limbs.

  “Grant, front and center! Leona, cover him!” Ash shouted, gripping his sword tightly.

  Grant roared as he charged forward, his blade sweeping in wide arcs. Each swing cleaved through the beetles’ shells, ichor spraying across the stone floor. The beetles retaliated, some climbing up Grant’s legs, their mandibles snapping.

  “Get them off me!” he bellowed, stomping to shake them loose.

  Leona raised her staff, her voice steady as she chanted. A faint golden light enveloped Grant, soothing the minor cuts and bruises. “Keep fighting! You’re fine!” she encouraged.

  Nel smirked, stepping forward. “Let me handle this.” With a flourish of his staff, he conjured a wave of frost, freezing a group of beetles in place. “Simple creatures, simple magic,” he mused, grinning with satisfaction.

  But as he turned to boast, another beetle lunged at him from the side, its sharp pincers scraping against his arm. Nel cursed, stumbling back, his spell disrupted. “Damn it—”

  Ash was already moving. He intercepted the beetle with a swift strike, knocking it away before turning to Nel. “Stay focused! Magic isn’t enough if you aren’t watching your surroundings.”

  Nel scowled, rubbing his bruised arm. “I had it under control.”

  “No, you didn’t.” Ash countered, already moving on.

  As they ventured deeper into the labyrinth, the air thickened with humidity, making their movements feel sluggish. The walls were now covered in strands of sticky webbing, clinging to their skin with each step.

  “I hate this place,” Nel muttered for the third time, swiping at a strand that stuck to his robe.

  “Not a fan myself,” Grant admitted. “Feels like something’s watching us.”

  They didn’t have to wait long for an answer.

  A sharp clicking noise echoed from ahead, deliberate and unnatural. From the shadows, a Giant Soldier Mantis emerged, its emerald-green carapace shimmering under their torchlight. Its scythe-like arms gleamed as it raised them in a menacing display, the jagged edges lined with a faint, unnatural glow.

  “Formation!” Ash barked. Grant stepped forward, gripping his sword with both hands, while Nel and Leona took their positions behind him.

  Grant didn’t wait for an opening. “I’ve got this!” he growled, charging head-on.

  “Grant, wait—”

  Too late. The mantis dodged to the side with eerie precision, its razor-sharp blade slicing across Grant’s shoulder. He let out a sharp grunt, stumbling as blood dripped onto the stone floor.

  Ash cursed, stepping in to cover him. “That’s what happens when you don’t think!”

  Grant gritted his teeth, his fingers tightening around his hilt. “I’m fine.”

  Leona rushed to his side, pressing a glowing hand to his wound. “You’re not fine,” she whispered. “You can’t just brute force everything.”

  Grant didn’t respond immediately. For the first time, Ash saw something flicker across his expression—not just pain, but doubt.

  Meanwhile, Nel saw his chance. “Move aside,” he declared, conjuring another spell. A sphere of fire formed at his fingertips. He released it too soon.

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  The fireball struck the mantis, but not in a vital area. Worse, it barely singed the creature’s shell, leaving it completely unfazed. The mantis turned toward Nel, its red eyes gleaming with an almost calculated malice.

  Nel’s smirk faltered. “That… should have worked.”

  The mantis lunged.

  Nel barely had time to react before Ash slammed into him, knocking him out of the way. The creature’s scythe sliced through the air, missing Nel’s head by inches.

  “You almost got yourself killed!” Ash snapped as they scrambled back.

  Nel swallowed hard, his earlier arrogance nowhere to be seen. “I… I miscalculated.”

  Ash didn’t have time to berate him further. The mantis was already attacking again.

  “Focus up! Leona, keep Grant moving! Nel, you listen to me from now on!”

  The rest of the battle was tense but calculated. Grant, despite his wound, found his footing, adjusting his strategy. Nel hesitated before casting his next spell, this time waiting for Ash’s signal before releasing a precise blast of fire at the mantis’s exposed joints.

  With a final coordinated strike, Grant’s sword cleaved through the mantis’s head. The creature twitched once before collapsing, its metallic sheen dulling as its lifeblood seeped into the ground.

  Grant exhaled heavily, shaking the tension from his hands. Leona shot him a pointed look. “Think before you act next time.”

  Nel, for once, was silent.

  Ash nodded at the group, satisfied. “Let’s take a short break before we continue.”

  The party settled against the cool stone walls of the labyrinth, catching their breath. Grant rolled his shoulder, wincing at the lingering sting of his wound, while Leona quietly checked their supplies. Nel leaned against his staff, rubbing his forehead as he tried to regain some of his spent mana.

  “This place drains you fast,” Nel muttered. “I need a few minutes.”

  Ash nodded, surveying the tunnels ahead. The distant skittering of unseen creatures never truly stopped, a constant reminder that they weren’t alone.

  Grant exhaled sharply, leaning his head back against the damp stone wall. "So, how much worse do you think it’s going to get?" he asked, rolling his shoulder to test Leona’s healing work.

  Leona shot him a pointed look. "If you don’t learn to be careful, worse than it needs to be."

  Nel scoffed, adjusting his grip on his staff. "At least you’re predictable, Grant. Charge first, think later."

  Grant smirked. "And at least you’re consistently useless when it matters."

  Nel narrowed his eyes. "Excuse me? Who just saved your reckless hide from getting diced by a mantis?"

  Ash sighed, rubbing his temples. "Enough. We made mistakes back there, all of us. Let’s not repeat them."

  The group fell silent for a moment, the weight of their recent battle settling in. Then, in an unexpected moment of levity, Leona spoke up, "If nothing else, at least we know spiders are next. Hope none of you have arachnophobia."

  Nel visibly shuddered. "I hate this dungeon."

  The air grew colder as they ventured deeper. The oppressive silence was broken only by the faint scuttling sounds echoing from the shadows. The webbing thickened, the strands pulsing faintly as if alive. Distant, glowing red eyes flickered in the darkness, watching.

  Ash shivered. “Be careful, we’re not alone.”

  The air grew colder as the party ventured deeper, the oppressive silence broken only by the faint scuttling sounds echoing from the shadows. A sticky webbing began to cling to the walls, their torches casting unsettling shadows of spindly legs and twitching mandibles.

  The lower floors tested their endurance. Man-eating spiders skittered from the shadows, their venomous fangs glinting in the dim light. Nel shuddered every time they appeared.

  “I really hate spiders,” he muttered. “Why couldn’t it have been something less disgusting?”

  Ash tried to ignore Nel’s complaints, focusing instead on leading the group safely through the labyrinth.

  Ash held up a hand, signaling the group to stop. “Stay alert. They’ll try to ambush us.”

  Leona shivered as she glanced at a corner where a tangle of webbing swayed gently. “I don’t like this. It feels like they’re watching.”

  “They are,” Nel said grimly, his staff glowing faintly. “But if they think we’re easy prey, they’re in for a surprise.”

  As they moved forward, a faint clicking sound grew louder. The group froze as a massive spider emerged from the darkness, its glossy black body reflecting the torchlight. Its eyes glinted like tiny rubies, and venom dripped from its fangs.

  “Spread out!” Ash barked.

  The spider lunged, its movements unnervingly fast. Grant intercepted, his sword slashing downward and severing one of its legs. The creature hissed, its mandibles snapping as it skittered sideways to avoid a follow-up strike.

  “Watch out!” Leona cried as smaller spiders poured from cracks in the walls, their chittering growing louder.

  Ash spun, his sword slicing through the first of the smaller spiders that lunged at him. “Grant, keep the big one busy! Nel, burn the swarm!”

  Nel raised his staff, fire flaring to life as he unleashed a wave of flames. The smaller spiders shrieked as they were consumed, their charred bodies collapsing in heaps. “I can’t keep this up forever!” Nel warned, sweat dripping down his face.

  Grant grunted as the larger spider’s fangs scraped against his armor, leaving a faint trail of venom. “You just worry about the little ones!” he growled, slamming his shield into the spider’s face to push it back.

  “Leona!” Ash shouted, pointing to Grant. “He’s exposed!”

  Leona nodded, her hands glowing as she cast a protective spell on Grant. A faint shimmer enveloped him, bolstering his defenses. “That should help, but be careful!” she said.

  The larger spider reared back, spewing a sticky web that ensnared Grant’s sword arm. He cursed, struggling to free himself as the spider prepared to strike.

  “Damnit!” Ash dashed forward, his blade flashing as he severed the webbing. He pivoted, driving his sword into the spider’s abdomen. The creature screeched, its legs thrashing as green ichor spilled onto the ground.

  Grant ripped his arm free, using the opening to cleave his sword through the spider’s head. It collapsed with a final, shuddering twitch.

  “That was close,” Ash said, his breathing heavy. He turned to Nel, who was leaning against his staff, visibly drained. “How are you holding up?”

  Nel waved him off. “I’ve got a little left in the tank. Just... don’t expect miracles.”

  The tunnels grew narrower, the webbing thicker. At every twist and turn, spiders skittered into view, only to be dispatched by the increasingly fatigued party. The walls seemed to pulse with an unnatural energy, and the scuttling sounds never ceased.

  Finally, they emerged into a cavernous chamber. In the center stood a pulsating cocoon of webbing, surrounded by dozens of spiders of varying sizes. Atop the cocoon perched a massive queen spider enveloped in an eerie black aura. Her bloated body glistened with venom. Her mandibles, each as thick as a man’s arm, moved with unnerving grace as she turned her many eyes toward the intruders.