Gauss was now as far from the adult as the nest allowed—on the opposite side—putting the maximum distance between them. At the adult’s earlier movement speed, it wouldn’t be closing that gap quickly.

He steadied his breathing and gathered mana.

At last, the three smaller ones skimmed up to him, sliding into range.

Boom!

His focus narrowed.

Three Magic Missiles locked straight onto the smallest one’s torso; by his sense, its upper body was relatively frail.

Vmmm! The missiles ripped the air and slammed into its upper abdomen.

Under the force-field’s destructive power, the wax-white upper half burst apart.

Then the second—and the third.

In a chain of explosions, the monster was blown cleanly in two; the upper half dropped to the floor.

That’s it?

The thought popped up—same species or not, this seemed too weak. But a heartbeat later he realized something was wrong.

No kill text from the Adventurer’s Manual.

His “4/5” progress hadn’t budged.

Sure enough, in the next instant the blown-apart upper half began to flow—the webby slime around it slithered like a living thing across the floor, pooling and re-forming.

The upper body didn’t matter? The real “core” was in the spider lower half with the three pairs of legs? At least for the non-adult forms.

So thinking, Gauss slipped away from the kicking strikes of the other two.

Even far below the adult, their cutting wind was already apparent.

A normal human would be sliced clean in two from such a kick.

He ran the last exchange back through his head.

At the moment of the bisect, a red light had seemed to well up from below—and only then had the upper half knit itself back together.

From the torso down—that’s where the core seemed to be.

And the spider lower body’s carapace was tough as iron—so the only way was…

A plan took shape.

He flicked another glance at the adult sitting the doorway like a fisherman on his stool.

Even as the fight started, it still hadn’t moved—a referee-calm dragonfly captain.

“Hoo…”

Gauss layered on a fresh Omni-Armor, ignored the two larger juveniles, and fixed on the smallest.

He raised the staff; blue light kindled at the tip.

He frowned—the mana flow felt oddly sluggish.

He gritted his teeth. The Magic Missiles still went off.

Boom! The smallest one’s barely re-formed upper half was blown apart again.

This time the seam at the lower carapace connection was exposed—there, a node pulsed with a dim red light.

There!

Gauss’s eyes narrowed; he locked the spot and forced the balky mana into motion.

“Magic Missile!”

Sapphire spheres leapt from his hand—

—and struck true beneath the glowing node on the torso.

Pale slime splattered out.

Three missiles drove into the center of the lower body and detonated inside.

Thoom. A dull blast shook the nest.

The spider ghoul’s lower half spasmed violently—and then went rigid, dead.

“Spider Ghoul Slain ×1”

[New Title Earned: ‘Ghoulkin Hunter.’ This title upgrades with kill count.]

[Current Effect: Ghoul Miasma Resistance – Against spider ghouls and related advanced ghoulkin, you gain extra resistance to ghoul corrosion damage.]

“Fifth Elite Monsters Activated. Unlocking Path of the Elite, Stage 2…”

“Unlocking…”

Text flickered quickly across his vision.

He let out a breath—objective achieved.

But he was exhausted…

A heavy, wordless fatigue washed over him, as if mind and body alike were being hollowed out.

There was something wrong with this nest.

He spared the other two juveniles a glance—they were already closing—but he had no fight left in him. Even the adult Spider Ghoul, after he’d killed one of its kin, still made no move to strike.

He had no intention of continuing.

“Retreat!”

Sluggish mana flowed from his sleeve toward the teleport scroll.

As the scroll soaked it up, it began to activate.

At the same instant the scroll flared—

—the adult that had been watching coldly… moved.

Its gaze locked straight onto Gauss.

As if realizing he could escape by some special means, a pallid energy surged over its body.

Thud!

Its blade-sharp legs, now sheathed in that white flow, exploded with far more terrifying force.

Zzzst!! It seemed to rip the air; with a blur of legs it lunged for Gauss.

So—it had been holding back the whole chase.

A prickle of fear ran through him—thankfully he’d kept his distance. If he’d tried the scroll in the nest or a narrow corridor earlier, it would have cut him down before it fired.

As the scroll blazed brighter, his eyelids grew heavy, his thoughts muffled.

He saw only a ghoul-quick shape rushing in, swelling in his blurring vision.

BOOM!!

The leaping Spider Ghoul brought the white-sheathed leg down like a battle-axe—full power, nothing held back. One touch and it would shatter his ward and cleave him cleanly in two.

The pressure of that strike seemed to freeze the air.

Thunk!

The leg scythed through—Gauss’s form split without resistance.

The floor behind him was carved by a long, clean gouge.

A heartbeat later, Gauss’s body shattered—

—only a remnant image.

The scroll had fired in the nick of time, snatching him away before the killing blow landed.

“Mnnn!!” the adult shrieked—rage thick with I-had-you-then-you-slipped-away.

Three hundred meters isn’t far in the open—but in a twisting labyrinth of tunnels it can be a kilometer or more. Far enough to shake most pursuers.

Three hundred meters away, in some corridor of the labyrinth, space twisted; a body popped into being—and crashed to the floor.

Thud!

He hit the stone and didn’t get up.

The black-haired man fell into a heavy sleep right there on the flagstones.

And around the bend at the corridor’s end, a serpentfolk—golden scales on his lower body—was humming a tune as he slid quickly along the stone.

Alone, with no one else about, he was a little relaxed.

Suddenly he lifted his head; his forked tongue tasted a familiar scent.

He cocked it to one side, and slid swiftly toward the source.

He soon found the familiar figure lying on the ground.

“Huh? Isn’t this that kid?”

“What’s he doing sleeping here?”

He flicked his tongue in surprise and looked around warily. No sign of a camp; a few spore-mosquitoes nearby were already edging toward the sleeper.

The serpentfolk looked at Gauss’s defenseless posture… then at the circling bugs. The golden tip of his tail twitched.

He thought for a moment—and then slipped both arms around Gauss’s waist and hauled him up.

Forget it.

Let’s pick him up and carry him out.