"Where... am I?" I muttered, slowly opening my eyes—only to be met with a suffocating darkness that barely let me see past my own two feet.
The first thought that crossed my mind was, "That's it, huh? That's how I die?"
But… it didn't feel like I was dead. Everything still felt real. My body was still that of the game's weakest unit.
The fact that I could breathe, feel my blood flowing, and sense my own weight meant I was still very much alive.
Alive—and suspended in the air.
There was no ground beneath me. I felt as if I were dangling, swaying gently back and forth like a puppet on a string.
Looking up, I understood why.
From the coat…? A white, silky thread extended upward, taut with my weight. It vanished into the darkness, anchored to something I couldn't see.
At first, I didn't understand what was happening, so I decided to wait and see how things played out.
Minutes passed. I realized I was being lowered when I noticed a few jagged rocks on a nearby wall slowly moving upward relative to me.
After what felt like an hour, the rocky floor came into view.
When I judged the height to be safe enough, I cut the string that had kept me alive and cast a spell I'd been holding in reserve during this long descent.
"[Feather Fall]"
I knew I would land on my feet thanks to my unique passive, but that didn't mean I was immune to fall damage. My passive only protected me from tripping and face-planting—not from gravity.
I landed smoothly and quickly drew both daggers, taking a defensive stance in case anything was nearby.
Thankfully, no enemies were in sight.
"If I fell down here... I must be on one of the lowest floors—maybe the last one," I reasoned, waiting for my eyes to adjust to the darkness.
"Which means I'll meet them eventually… if they make it all the way to the bottom."
That is, assuming I really was on the bottom floor. If not, I'd need to move forward until I found them.
But first…
"I need to see what's up with this cloak."
Why had there been a white string that saved me from falling?
I removed the cloak and inspected it.
Nothing seemed unusual about the furry exterior. The real surprise was inside. Leaning closer to the leathery lining, I froze.
A set of eight glowing red eyes stared back at me.
"!!!"
I instantly tossed the cloak away and raised my daggers.
From its dark interior, eight hairy legs emerged. A spider—about a meter tall... I think—cautiously stepped out, watching me with its guard also raised up.
Its body was covered in brown hair, and on one of her legs, the necklace—that artifact I found on that dungeon—that allows kaida to advance a tier if she falls behind.
Seeing it triggered a memory: my fight against the cloak's original owner, the lich.
"Are you… the same spider that helped me before?" I asked, lowering my daggers slightly. The spider didn't seem aggressive.
Of course, it didn't understand me. Tilting its head, it bit the cloak, then tossed it toward me.
I caught it and quickly slipped it back on.
The cloak now felt slightly lighter, and the mana I had sensed within it before was gone.
It didn't take long to connect the dots.
The spider had been inside the cloak. The cloak had belonged to a lich—a creature specializing in controlling undead. Naturally, it would need a way to carry its minions.
This cloak was an artifact, capable of storing monsters inside it.
"Here!" I said, holding the cloak open.
After a moment's hesitation, the spider climbed up my leg, over my back, and vanished into the cloak's interior.
The weight shifted slightly—barely noticeable—but it was there.
"!!!"
The sound of falling rocks made me spin around.
Three orcs stood in the doorway. Each wore crude, piecemeal armor barely covering their vital spots. One wielded an axe, one a sword, and the last a pair of iron gauntlets.
Worst of all—the room had only one exit: the doorway they were blocking. No escape.
If I wanted to leave, I'd have to kill them.
The problem? I couldn't win against three orcs alone.
The orcs began laughing, swinging their weapons mockingly. My hands trembled.
"Huh…?" I stepped back, trying to think of a plan, but all I could feel was fear.
I'd fought orcs before, but three armed ones standing together was different. They seemed taller, more menacing.
The gauntleted orc barked something at the others, who laughed again.
Then, he stepped forward. Each heavy footfall made the ground shake.
My breathing turned ragged.
But… they weren't taking me seriously. The other two stayed back to block the exit, leaving only one to fight me.
This was my chance.
Still, if I started winning, would the others join in? Taking down even one would drain most of my mana. If they called for goblin reinforcements, I'd be finished. I had no area-of-effect spells.
"Huack!"
My thoughts shattered as the orc threw a punch.
I dodged, and the fist smashed into the wall—elbow-deep—leaving a crater. He had to wrench himself free with his whole body.
I took my chance, feinting for his shoulder to cripple one arm.
But…
He kicked the wall, sending a shockwave through the air that blasted me backward.
I landed on my feet a few meters away. As the dust cleared, the orc grinned—mocking, drooling.
While dangling earlier, I had reserved my spells: Sandstorm, Wind Hammer, Wind Scythe, Wind Infusion, Whisper Current, and Feather Fall.
Feather Fall was already spent.
"[Wind Infusion]"
Wind wrapped around my daggers, sharpening their edge.
I just needed him to come close—or for me to close the gap—so I could unleash Sandstorm and Whisper Current.
I charged—
"Heurck!" A rock slammed into my stomach.
One of the other two orcs was laughing, hefting another stone.
Before I could react, the gauntleted orc was in front of me, fist cocked.
No time to dodge. I raised my arms to block, knowing it would be useless.
At the last possible moment, something yanked me backward.
"Huh…?"
The orc looked as confused as I did—until I glanced back.
The spider had saved me. Again.
If I called the spider out, would it actually fight alongside me? I wasn't a monster tamer—I had no guarantee it wouldn't just turn on me in the middle of battle.
"Keep me safe from lethal attacks!" I shouted, not knowing if it could even understand me, let alone obey.
I dashed toward the gauntleted orc, weaving past the rocks hurled by the others at the doorway.
Two heavy steps later, I planted my feet firmly, bracing for its next strike.
The orc's fist cut through the air like a boulder falling from the sky. The wind pressure alone nearly knocked me off balance. I ducked beneath it, sliding forward.
"Haaa!" I roared, slashing upward with both daggers.
The blades cut into its side, but only shallowly. Even with Wind Infusion, my weapons stopped midway through the strike. Still—I'd drawn blood.
Keeping my momentum, I slipped behind it.
Too much wind-up. Too many openings when it misses.
If I played this right, maybe—just maybe—I could scrape out a win.
I readied my next spell.
But before I could cast, something slammed into my back. The force broke my stance and sent me stumbling right into the gauntleted orc's waiting arms.
The axe orc had abandoned its weapon at the door and joined the fight.
The gauntleted orc drove an elbow into my chest. The impact stole the air from my lungs.
Before I could recover, the unarmed orc grabbed me by both arms, lifting me effortlessly and stretching them wide apart. Its grip was iron, unyielding.
I thrashed desperately, panic fueling me as I saw the gauntleted orc winding up another devastating punch.
But I couldn't break free. Even if the spider tried to help, these orcs were simply too strong.
"Hhhhk—!" My breath hitched, spittle mixed with blood flying from my lips.
The orc's punch crashed into my gut. For a moment, I felt as if my body might tear apart at the shoulders.
"Kihahaha!"
"Gahaha!"
The two orcs laughed cruelly as the gauntleted one drew back for another strike.
Another blow landed squarely in my stomach. For a moment, I felt as if I was about to pass out.
"H-help..." The word slipped from my lips in a broken whisper.
"Gaaaah!" The unarmed orc suddenly screamed. Its grip faltered, and it released me.
I crumpled to the floor, legs barely holding me up. The spider had leapt from my cloak, sinking its fangs into the orc's neck.
Before I could react, a thread of silk wrapped tight around my waist. The spider yanked, flinging me away from danger.
I landed several meters back, gasping, clutching my stomach. The spider followed immediately after, standing between me and the orcs.
I nearly collapsed but forced myself to stay upright, gritting through the pain.
"W-will you... fight with me?" I asked, voice trembling.
The spider gave no response. Of course not. It couldn't understand me.
"Then stay here. I want to try something."
Even without understanding my words, the spider stepped back, anchoring its silk to my waist, ready to pull me out if things went wrong.
"Haaa..." I steadied my breathing, forcing my focus back onto the fight.
The unarmed orc began running back to the door, searching for his axes.
I began a run toward that specific orc. If he got a hold of his sword, then this fight would quickly become harder.
As soon as I started my sprint, a white string—faster than me—connected with the orc's feet. The spider tugged on it and caused the unarmed orc to trip and fall.
Seeing that, I began to run faster. But the gauntleted orc quickly stepped to my side, winding up a punch.
"[Wind Hammer]"
The horizontal trajectory of this hard-hitting spell really helped out. The spell clashed with the orc's attack, which caused a shockwave that shook the entire floor.
Despite that, I kept running toward the unarmed orc. I won't have another chance like this one!
The orc with the iron gauntlets began following me. Since it was slower, I had enough time to get close.
Once close enough where the two orcs are inside the same range.
"[Sandstorm]"
The spell came out of my hand, and it quickly engulfed the entire room.
With no time to waste, I struck the blades of my dagger against each other, causing the sound of metal clashing to form.
With that sound, I then used my second spell of the chain.
"[Whisper Current]"
I whispered in a low tone and aimed at the middle point between the two blinded orcs.
With that, I tugged twice on the thread wrapped around my waist.
It seems the spider understood me, and I was quickly pulled away from that place.