Chapter 43 - Freaking Spiders. . . Why Spiders. . .

"Hey Arialle, how many wolves do you think we have killed so far?" I asked her.

"Hmm. . . Around 75 or more. Maybe. . ." She answered.

"Hmm. . . Alright. . ." I commented.

"So where do you think the Druid is? I mean I know he has to be in the cave since the King Wolf was guarding it." I asked.

"Probably on either the second or third floor of the place would be my guess." She commented.

"I'm thinking the third floor, or a hidden floor." I said.

"That is what I was going to say!" Titus exclaimed.

"SHUSH!!! Not so loud. . ." Arialle told him.

"Sorry. . ." Titus said.

"Well, while we are waiting. I'm going to use my stat points that I've got." I told them.

[Stats Arthrall Pendragon!]

[Name -- Arthrall Pendragon

Race -- Human

Age -- 18

Level -- 9 (+2)

Health -- 300/300 ((+190)) (+10)

Mana -- 200/200 ((+155))

Experience -- 1,070/7,680 (+400)

Title --

Defense -- 45 ((+45))

Strength -- 51 ((+36))

Dexterity -- 77 ((+49)) (+13)

Constitution -- 30 ((+19)) (+1)

Intelligence -- 40 ((+31))

Wisdom -- 10 (+1)

Talent Points -- 0 (-15)

Skills -- 2

Active Skill -- Multi-Barrage -- This skill is a multi-targeting skill, it allows you to shoot as many targets as possible. It also doubles the amount of arrows you place on your bow, which interns doubles the attack damage done.

it was during the day. It also allows you to hear anything within 20 yards of yourself.

Professions -- 2

Apprentice Leatherworker

Apprentice Skinner]

"That is done. . . Oh crud, I need to check my gear. It has been awhile since I last looked at them." I commented.

"Why do you have to look at your gear?" Titus asked.

"Because I have a couple of leveling pieces." I said.

"Oh. . . Ok dokie, that isn't too bad." Titus commented.

{Gear!}

[Arthrall's Gear]

[Battle Ranger's Shortbow

Rank -- Common

Level -- 6 (+3)

Experience -- 105/1,280 (+1,155)

Damage -- 31 - 45 (+15)

Dexterity -- +14 (+6)

Constitution -- +7 (+3)

Intelligence -- +14 (+6)]

Rank -- Common

Level -- 5

Experience -- 320/320

Defense -- +10

Strength -- +6

Dexterity -- +8

Constitution -- +4

Intelligence -- +6]

[Battle Ranger's Pendant

Level -- 5 (+3)

Experience -- 605/640 (+1,155)

Strength -- +12 (+6)

Dexterity -- +12 (+6)

Intelligence -- +12 (+6)]

[Battle Ranger's Cloak

Rank -- Common

Level -- 5 (+3)

Experience -- 605/640 (+1,155)

Defense -- +30 (+15)

Strength -- +6 (+6)

Dexterity -- +9 (+9)

Constitution -- +6 (+6)

Intelligence -- +3 (+3)]

[Wolf Skin Leather Bracers

Maker -- Arthrall Pendragon

Rank -- Common

Level -- 5

Experience -- 320/320

Defense -- +5

Strength -- +2

Dexterity -- +2

Constitution -- +2]

[Battle Ranger's Gloves

Rank -- Common

Level -- 5 (+3)

Experience -- 605/640 (+1,155)

Defense -- 30 (+15)

Strength -- +12 (+6)

Dexterity -- +12 (+6)

Constitution -- +6 (+3)

Intelligence -- +12 (+6)]

[Ring of Battle]

[Rank -- Uncommon

Level -- 5

Experience -- 320/320

Strength -- 10

Dexterity -- 10]

[Ring of Greater Holding]

[This ring has a giant empty space inside of it. The space is 20ftx20ftx20ft. It can hold corpses and items inside of it.]

[Bronze Ring]

[This ring was given to the user from the Adventurer's Guild. The ring has an enchantment on it that records the user's every move once the user is given a quest.]

"Hey Arialle, don't forget to upgrade your weapons. It will really help out." I told her.

"Alright, I'll do that now." She said.

"So, I'm going to guess my dexterity shot through the roof, but I don't want to view my stats again. . ." I mentioned.

"I can understand that. I'm actually about to level myself." Said Titus.

"How close are you?" I asked him.

"Eh. . . I'm about 4 mobs away from leveling." He mentioned.

"Oh nice! Well, you should level after we defeat the Druid. I really wish I knew the druids name. I'm tired of just calling him or her Druid. . ." I said.

"Hahaha. . ." Titus just laughed.

"I don't. . . That druid deserves to die for what he or she has caused the town." Arialle said.

"I can understand that." I commented.

{Hey Zoe, you want to help me in this cave?}

[Uh. . . What do you want me to do? Cause I can't exactly do anything. . .]

{Just keep an eye out for any hidden passages or doorways. Just in case I don't see them.}

[Alright. . . But no guarantees ok. . .]

{Ok, thank you Zoe.}

[No problem. . .]

{You ok?}

[Yeah. I'm fine, just wasn't expecting you to ask for my help is all.]

{Oh. . . If you don't want to help, you don't have too. . .}

[No, I will help! Don't worry, I'll help you!]

{Ok! Thank you again!}

[Yep.]

"You guys ready to head inside yet?" I asked them.

"I'm almost ready." Said Arialle.

"I'm ready." Titus said.

"How much time do you need Arialle?" I asked her.

"Another 10 minutes. I'm just going through my bag here to make sure I've got everything I need." She told me.

"Ok dokie." I commented.

'Hey you guys awake?'

{{I am!}} Onyx commented.

'Orion?'

{{Huh. . .}} Orion commented.

'Wake up bud, we are about to head into the cave.'

{{Oh ok. . . I'm awake.}} He said after a few minutes.

'Here, have a dried fish the both of you.'

After saying that, I pretended to reach into my backpack, and got two dried fish out of my inventory. I toss the two fish to the both of them. It also just dawned on me, I could have put that pair of pants into my inventory by pretending to put them into my backpack.

"Ok, I'm ready." Arialle commented.

"Let's head inside then." I said.

So we started walking into the cave. Once inside, something happened behind us. The rocks started falling into the entrance to the cave. We jumped further into the cave that way we didn't get crushed by the falling rocks.

"What the hell!" Titus exclaimed.

"I think the Druid knows we are here. . ." I commented.

"I also believe that." Arialle said.

"WHO DARES COME IN HERE!" Someone yelled.

"What the fuċk!" Titus yelled.

"IF YOU ARE COMING IN HERE AFTER ME! THEN YOU WISH TO DIE!" The voice yelled.

"IF YOU MAKE IT THROUGH THE THREE FLOORS WITHOUT DYING, THEN YOU WILL FACE ME! BE WARNED, THE FLOORS ARE NOT NORMAL FLOORS! I HAVE CASTED MULTIPLE SPELLS ON EACH FLOOR!" The voice yelled.

"Fuck. . ." I commented.

"What do we do now Arthrall?" Arialle asked.

"Honestly, I'm not sure." I answered.

"This sucks. . ." Titus commented.

"Indeed, but we can't let this druid live. This druid has caused mayhem in Iron Rock. It isn't fair to the townsfolk living there to be hunted by wolves for so long." I said.

"True. . . I just really really don't like this druid person." Titus mentioned.

"Neither do I, but we will end him." I commented.

"Which way do you want to go?" Arialle asked.

"Hmm. . . Let me see that map again Titus." I told him.

"Sure." He said.

He handed me the map after a few moments of him rummaging through his bag. I took a look at it, and I saw that there was really only one way we could go. Although, I did see some areas on the side of the tunnel that we could explore, but they just ended on a wall. So there weren't any doorways or anything like that. At least not on the first floor.

"Alright, so we can either just go straight towards the next floor, or we could search these side caverns first before heading down." I told them.

"Hmm. . . I would like to explore this cave to be honest." Arialle commented.

"I don't care, as long as we manage to get out of here." Titus said.

So we started walking slowly into the cave system. We saw all sorts of ore along the walls. I have no idea of what type of ore it was though. Especially with me being a Leatherworker and Skinner.

"Hey Arialle, do you know what this ore is?" I asked her.

"Um. . . Not really. It isn't any ore I've seen before. It could be a special type of ore, I'll ask Baldemar once we get back to town." She commented.

"Alright." I said.

We continued walking about another 10 feet, when all of a sudden I heard skittering. Like something was walking towards us on sticks. I motioned for them to head back the way we came. We rushed quietly back to the wall that collapsed.

"What is wrong?" Titus asked.

"There is something in here. I heard something moving up ahead of me. " I told them.

{{I also heard it.}} Onyx commented.

{{Same here.}} Orion said.

"Orion and Onyx also heard it." I said.

"Hmm. . . What did it sound like?" Arialle asked me.

"Well to be honest, it sounded like literally something walking with sticks for feet." I told her.

Arialle's eyes suddenly got huge.

"What is wrong?" I asked her.

"Spiders. . . Fucking spiders. . ." Was all she said.

"Spiders? Oh fuċk me running. . ." Titus commented.

"What is wrong? Spiders can't be that big of a deal." I said.

"Normally no, but these spiders are probably summoned by that druid. So we gotta figure they are going to be a pain in the ȧss. I also believe there will be a whole lot more of them." She commented.

"Great. . ." Was all I said.

"Unfortunately, I'm not great around spiders. I'm scared of them. . ." Arialle said.

"Well, can't you just go into stealth and not fight them?" I asked her.

"I could, but what about you guys?" She asked.

"I'll be fine, gotta remember I've got Orion and Onyx with me, and I can also just shoot them. Although, I'm running low on arrows." I commented.

"We might be able to find some here." Titus said.

"How do you figure? You think there might be some laying around here?" I asked.

"Maybe, you never know honestly." Titus commented.

"Eh. . . True I guess." I said.

"Alright, I'll go stealth and sit back. If you guys get over run, I'll come in and help, but to be honest I really don't want too. . ." She said.

"You are fine, just stay back, and let me handle this." I told her.

I started moving forwards slowly once again until I heard the skittering again. I walked a little bit further ahead, and that is when I saw the spider. It was about the size of Onyx, but it was green in color.

'Shit. . . It might be poisonous. Sit back for a moment.'

Orion and Onyx just nodded their heads, and moved back about 5 feet. I then moved just a tad bit closer to view its stats.

[Poisonous Spider

Level -- 10

Health -- 300/300

Mana -- 50/50

Strength -- 15

Dexterity -- 30

Constitution -- 30

Intelligence -- 10

Wisdom -- 5

Skills -- 1

Active Skill -- Poison Thread -- It can either shoot this thread towards an enemy target, or it can spin a spider's web to block an enemy from coming through it. It does 10 Poison Tick Damage over one minute of combat.]

I started moving backwards towards Orion and Onyx.

'Yep, I was right. It is poisonous. It can shoot out a Poison Thread that can do poison damage over time to us.'

{{Well, how do we kill it?}} Onyx asked me.

'Well, I could always have Orion use his Wind Blade, and at the same time I could have you use your roar to intimidate it. I could also just blast it with a couple of arrows.'

{{Up to you Arthrall, I'm up for either plan.}} Orion commented.

{{Same here. Just let me know what you decided.}} Onyx commented.

'I guess I'll try shooting it first to find out how much damage I can do to it.'

I started moving back forwards until I could see the whole spider. I took out 4 arrows and notched them onto my bow. I took aim at it, and fired them straight at the middle part of its body.

[-86 Damage!]

[-114 Damage!]

[-100 Damage!]

The last arrow actually missed its target, and broke upon impact with the ground. The spider didn't even get to do anything, as it rolled over, and started curling its legs into itself.

'I guess that works. . .'

{{Hahaha. . .}} They both giggled.

"Wow. . . You killed it with just a few arrows. . ." Titus whispered.

"It wasn't that strong actually. The problem is, if there is one, there will be a lot more in here." I commented.

[[Arthrall: Arialle, you doing alright?]]

[[Arialle: Yes I'm doing alright. Thank you for checking up on me. By the way, that spider was really weak.]]

[[Arthrall: Indeed it was. . . Just I'm not looking forward to the rest of this cave. . .]]

[[Arialle: Me neither. . .]]