What Really Haunts the Dungeon — A Duel of Intellect and Awkwardness

The dungeon walls creaked with portent. Eris stood before the newly opened corridor, her eyes wide as she clutched Leon tighter, her fingers drenched in sweat. The horrible grinding sound filled the pitch black cave, and her heart raced in her chest.

"Okay, okay. If you think through this," Eris told herself muttering for comfort. Accustomed to the adrenaline of having defeated the Goblin King, she now felt the air thick with dread, as if worse things were lying in wait nearby.

Leon remained in her grip, but she could feel the energy of her nerves racing inside her like so many squirrels. He sighed inwardly. "You're always talking to yourself, huh?

But it was not only Eris who noticed this change in the atmosphere of the dungeon. An urgent message pinged suddenly in Leon's mind from The System.

[SYSTEM WARNING: Boss Encounter Initiated. At the top of the list: Secondary Boss: The Ironclad Spider.]

Eris froze. "Did… did you just say… spider?

"Oh man, this is going to be a fun fight," Leon muttered, the sarcasm practically oozing from his thoughts. "An Ironclad Spider? Really? Are you sure we're not just inventing random monsters at this point?"

But Eris was too preoccupied staring down the darkened hallway in front of her. At the end, there was a flickering light, beyond which the shadows deepened, as though the dungeon itself were holding its breath.

"Alright, Leon. Focus," Eris said, closing her eyes and shaking her head to cast aside the fear. "We can do this. I mean, you're just a sword. You don't even have spider-phobia, do you?"

"Spider-phobia? "Not even close," Leon thought laughing in his mind. "I only don't want to be a spider-squashing tool."

Eris had no time to respond as the ground rumbled and a great spindly beast crawled from the shadows. Its chitinous armor shone in the insufficient light and its eight legs scurried across the ground with unnatural speed. Its limbs tipped with razor-sharp claws, its eyes — those eight glowing orbs — gleamed with malice as it hissed, revealing a rack of jagged teeth.

"Ugh, this is worse than I thought," Eris whispered to herself, stomach churning. "Spiders. Really?"

[SYSTEM NOTICE: Ironclad Spider's Weakness: Vulnerable to slashing attacks on the underside of its body.] Use its slow movement against it when it rears back to attack.]

"Well, that's… useful," Eris said, looking at Leon, willing herself to stop hyperventilating. "It attacks slowly, right? So I have to go underneath it… and hit its underside?"

Despite the air of tension, Leon grinned. "That's the plan, kid. However, I'm sure your idea of 'getting under it' will be… interesting to watch."

Eris raised an eyebrow. "I don't know if that's encouragement or sarcasm."

"Take it as both. It's the only way you can survive." This, thought Leon, in a voice full of dry humor.

This was no ordinary dungeon beast: the Ironclad Spider. As it scuttled closer, its mandibles clacked ominously, and even the air seemed to thicken with the promise of venom. It was certainly cleverer than the goblins, and it was prepared to fight to the death.

It sprang toward Eris, its legs a blur as it lunged forward.

"Dodge!" "Leon!" he shouted, more urgently this time.

Eris barely had time to dive to the side, narrowly missing the sharp claws that followed in a deadly arc. She crumpled after a hard landing, the legs buckling under her before she rolled across the floor. "Ow, ow, ow! Um, not how I thought this matchup was gonna go…"

"That's what I was warning you about, kid. You see, you're a little too reckless for your own good."

The spider hissed once more, its legs scraping across the flagstones as it moved, getting in place for a new attack. Eris got back up, now panting a bit, her body still recovering from the clumsy tumble.

"Okay, okay. "Let's try this again," Eris said, her voice more focused now as she clenched Leon tighter. "I won't miss this time."

Leon could sense the change. The nervousness remained, but it was tempered with something else: determination. She was beginning to figure it out.

The spider, feeling her new confidence, sprung again, but this time Eris dropped low, taking advantage of her newfound speed from the System's increase. The Ironclad Spider miscalculated where she was, missed, its claws scraping on the stone floor.

"Now!" Eris shouted, swinging Leon in a broad arc. She struck at the spider's underbelly, as the System had taught. The sword sliced revealing the bright greenish-red of blood, oil, and chitin spellaing outward.

The spider shrieked in agony, rearing up with rage. It swung out, but Eris was already moving again, darting to the side and back into place.

"That's it! Keep it up, kid!" The System kept amplifying her skills, and Leon felt the energy flowing in his entire being, "Keep it up!"

Eris's feet moved fluidly, almost on instinct, now. But now, she was not just dodging, she was dancing with the spider. Each movement, each swing, felt more controlled, and the more she battled, the more confidence she drew.

Bloodied but undeterred, the Ironclad Spider made its final attempt to ensnare Eris in its deadly clutches. It arc'd back, its legs heaving below it, and charged with all its might. Eris felt the ground quake under the thing's weight, but did not panic. She knew what she had to do.

In one sweeping motion, Eris ducked under the hook of the spider's strike, and with one last great swing, she swung direct for the underbelly of the creature's body.

The blade sliced through the rest of the armor, burying deep within the spider's vital organs. The spider screamed one final, anguished scream, then collapsed, its huge body contracting for a few moments before falling utterly still.

[ SYSTEM NOTICE: Combat Complete — Ironclad Spider Defeated. ]

[ SYSTEM NOTICE: REWARD: +15 EXP, +3 SKILL POINTS.

[SYSTEM ANNOUNCEMENT: New Skill "Spider Slayer's Slash" (Active) Learned.]

Panting, her hands trembling slightly, Eris stared at the fallen beast. She couldn't help but grin. "We did it, Leon! We really did it!"

"You did it, kid. You're starting to get it." Leon had thought — a real pride phrased within him. "I'm impressed. "Actually that was much smoother than I thought."

"Well, I suppose the System really does know its business," Eris said, a self-satisfied grin spreading across her lips as she dried the sweat from her brow. "I'm beginning to think we are invincible now!"

"All right, let's not get too far ahead of ourselves," Leon thought, but he could not quite restrain a back of the mind chuckle. "Although, I'll say that this is the best I've felt in a long time."

This made it around ten minutes since the spider was dead, and therefore that the secondary boss encounter was over, that the dungeon started to feel less oppressive. The air brightened, and a secret door creaked open at the far side of the room, revealing a tiny treasure chest.

"Well well, guess it won't be a homecoming empty handed," Eris said as she sped toward the chest with a giddy grin.

Leon could feel it too. It was only the beginning of their journey, and with the System alongside, Eris was finally the adventurer she swore to become.

"Perhaps this whole 'reincarnation as a sword' wasn't such a bad deal after all.