The Heir of Spiders... and the Rise of the First Watcher

The wind whistled in his ears, as if the dungeon itself was holding its breath.

And then—

[Dungeon Chest Discovered – Grade: Rare]

[Location: 34 meters ahead – Direction: Northeast]

Taiho's eyes widened as he stared at the notification.

"A chest?!"

He ran. No thinking. No planning. His heart pounded like fire had replaced his blood. Behind him, Sera moved silently, like a shadow bound to its master.

They reached an open chamber in the dungeon... and there, amidst scattered stones, the chest stood.

It wasn't normal.

Black, forged from Spiderstone. Thin threads pulsed from it, and a crown-like marking sat engraved on its top.

Taiho stepped closer.

He reached out.

But then—

BOOM!

[Warning: Trap Activated!]

The ground beneath his feet split open—and three hunters emerged all at once.

The bald one—leaping like a beast, sword gleaming.

The woman—spinning her spear like a deadly dancer.

The skinny one—grinning as he released a poisoned arrow blackened with venom.

"Die, you idiot!!"

But—

[Instinct Triggered: "Thread Shield"]

Taiho didn't move. His body did.

A transparent thread surged from his chest, coiling around him like a semi-visible barrier. It blocked the sword, the spear, and the arrow—all in an instant.

The three hunters staggered back, stunned.

"What the hell?!"

"He didn't even have a system minutes ago!"

"Was the intel wrong?!"

Taiho stood, hands trembling, eyes burning with fury. From his back, threads burst forth—like wings from a celestial creature.

"Wrong?" he said. "No… it's your fate."

He pointed forward.

"Sera. Let them taste the Queen's threads."

Sera smiled.

And in an instant—became death itself.

She leapt at the bald one first. Her thread didn't just pierce his body—it tore him from the inside, lifting him like a shattered puppet.

The woman tried to flee.

But a thread coiled around her ankle… then her wrist… then her neck—

She was yanked into the air, screaming.

Taiho caught the skinny one's arrow mid-air, stared at it, and said:

"Poison? You wanted to rip my guts open? Now… rip open your own."

A thread shot toward him. Entered through his mouth… exited his spine.

One second.

Three corpses.

Silence.

Taiho approached the chest.

He opened it.

[Rare Dungeon Chest Opened]

[Reward Acquired: "Monster Heart – Grade D"]

[Would you like to consume the heart?]

[Warning: Side effects likely – Risk: 73%]

Taiho stared at the heart in his hand.

Blue. Beating. Veined with black.

Sera spoke cautiously, "My lord, that heart is corrupted… you may not come out the same as you went in."

But Taiho smiled—his eyes glowing with madness.

"I didn't come to leave… I came to rule."

And he drove the heart into his chest.

[Consuming…]

[New energy merging with Spider Legacy…]

[Skill Acquired: "Death Web – Activated Thread"]

[User Status: Unstable]

Taiho screamed, falling to his knees, as everything around him began to tremble…

Threads exploded from his back, a swirling mass of shadows and silk forming something in the air…

Then—

An explosion.

Not fire.

Sound.

The monster's heartbeat fused with the Queen's legacy, shaking the entire dungeon like it heralded the birth of something… unnatural.

The threads burst from his body wildly—not like Sera's elegant strands. These were erratic. Rough. Laced with shards.

Taiho collapsed, drenched in sweat, back burning.

"Ahh… AAAAH!!"

[Body attempting to adapt to new monster essence…]

[Spider Queen's legacy intervening: Reconstructing physical form…]

His fingers shrank… stretched… exploded internally… then reformed. Bones screamed. Joints realigned. Tendons shredded and rewove themselves with magic threads.

Every breath was like swallowing rusted knives.

"Sera… kill me…" he whispered, shaking, but the voice that left him was… inhuman.

Sera approached slowly, knelt beside him, placing a hand on his forehead.

"My lord… no one survives this fusion. If you do… the world won't survive you."

Taiho trembled.

Then froze.

[Forced Activation: "Heir's Heart – Primal Shift Mode"]

[User Status: Unstable – Partial Awakening]

Suddenly, everything went quiet.

Taiho opened his eyes.

But they weren't his eyes.

Black flooded the whites of his gaze. A violet light, like a scorpion's sting, shimmered in his pupils.

"What… is this?"

His voice came out doubled. Two tones at once: his own, and another—deeper, ancient, venomous.

[Congratulations… You are now the "Primal Spider Heir"]

[Unique Skill Unlocked: "Death Web – Sweep Mode"]

[Skill: Emits venomous threads up to 50 meters. Anyone touched falls into a coma and is slowly consumed.]

Taiho stood—but it wasn't him standing.

His body was slightly taller. Muscles woven with fine threads visible beneath his skin. From his spine, six threads flowed freely, twitching on their own.

Even Sera took a step back.

"My lord… you've changed."

Taiho didn't answer.

He raised his right hand… and sliced the air.

A single thread flew out, slicing a distant boulder 20 meters away—faster than the eye could see.

"This isn't power…" he whispered. "It's a curse."

But deep within…

Something was smiling.

---

Then—

The dungeon trembled.

A deep sound echoed from below.

[Warning: Unclassified Entity Approaching]

[Temporary Name: "The First Watcher – Lord of Larvae"]

Sera gasped. Taiho turned toward the source.

"No time to rest, then…"

He smiled—but it wasn't human.

The ground shook again.

But this time… the cause was not from within.

Something… was coming from beneath.

The sound of slithering… of drool dripping from countless unseen mouths… of infinite tiny legs dragging across stone.

Sera dropped to her knees, eyes locked on the shadows forming in the narrow corridor that led deeper into the dungeon.

"This… is not its time yet…"

[Warning: Next Floor Entrance Opened Prematurely]

[Entity Exceeding SSS Danger Level Ascending: "The First Watcher – Lord of Larvae"]

Taiho didn't flinch.

He stood firm—his threads humming behind him, eyes glowing with that icy violet.

He whispered, as if not to Sera… but to the unseen thing drawing near:

"If you're coming… bring everything you've got."

He grinned—a smile twisted with pain and madness.

"Because this time… I won't run."

Then—

Darkness.

And from it… a pair of wide, yellow, hungry eyes emerged.

End of Chapter