The moment the spider woman spared his life and the hellish pain finally subsided, Arthur forced himself upright. He responded in submission, his body trembling with fear.
"Yes… I understand. I won't do it again. Please… just don't hurt me."
The spider woman watched him in silence for several seconds. Once she was satisfied with his sincerity, she spoke indifferently.
"Go now. Don't return unless you bring me decent food."
Hearing her words, the tension gripping Arthur's body eased slightly. He slowly backed toward the exit, his tail tucked tightly between his legs.
"Y-Yes. I'll do it. I'll bring you whatever you want."
The moment he exited the web-filled nest, he turned around and fled at full speed. He didn't stop until he had put nearly two miles behind him.
Only then did the fear and submissiveness vanish from his face, replaced by a cold, sharp glint in his eyes.
'That damned whore… does she really think something like this can break my will? Hah. What a joke. I didn't survive all that just to be tamed by a filthy insect.'
It had only been a single month since he arrived in this world, yet in that short time he had faced countless dangers and trials, enduring every kind of pain imaginable, both mental and physical.
As a result, once his mind settled, he had grown far tougher, far more resistant to physical suffering than before.
To him, the spider woman's attempt to tame him through torture was nothing more than a futile effort—like pouring water onto sand. Completely pointless.
Of course, he had no intention of letting her realize that, lest she resort to even more extreme measures.
He shook his head in disgust, the corner of his lips twisting into a faint, mocking smile.
'I was worried for nothing. It seems she can't read my thoughts, she can only sense my intent. Still, I shouldn't lower my guard around her. She might be smarter than I give her credit for.'
The seriousness returned to his expression. He activated "Enhanced Senses" and began searching for tracks or scents that might lead him to suitable prey. Then he suddenly stopped, struck by an important realization he had almost overlooked.
'Wait. If I can't use "Dimensional Storage," then hunting large numbers of weak monsters isn't a good idea. Transporting them would be a nightmare. In that case… I should focus on quality. Bigger targets.'
He let out a long sigh, silently wishing for the system to resume functioning as soon as possible so this annoying limitation would disappear.
Without wasting any more time, he resumed his search. Before long, his nose caught a strong scent, proof that several monsters were nearby. Without hesitation, he followed it and soon found a small herd of F-rank deer.
The deer weren't valuable enough to be worth bringing back to the spider woman. Still, he decided to hunt them anyway.
After all, he needed food just as badly—his body was running on fumes.
His empty stomach growled, and his eyes filled with greed and a thirst for blood. Slowly, he crept toward the unsuspecting herd. The moment he was close enough, he burst forward at full speed, pouncing on a large deer heavy with meat.
The herd finally noticed him and scattered in panic, fleeing in all directions. Arthur paid them no mind. His gaze remained locked on the prey he had chosen.
In mere fractions of a second, he caught up to the deer, seized it, and—without the slightest mercy—tore open its throat. He devoured it ravenously until nothing remained but bones.
[ +? ]
When he finished and his hunger was partially sated, a satisfied look appeared on his face.
A lazy yawn escaped him, followed by a strong urge to sleep. Under normal circumstances, he would have taken a long nap and rested properly—but unfortunately, he still needed to hunt more monsters.
With a quiet sigh, he shook off the heaviness in his limbs and stood upright. Before searching for his next prey, he cleaned himself with his tongue, licking the blood from his fur, then rolled around in the dirt to dull his scent.
After that, he began roaming through the forest, following the smells he picked up and the tracks he discovered, moving from one area to another. Yet he found no worthy targets—only small, weak monsters that weren't worth the effort.
As more time passed, he wandered several miles away from the spider's nest. That was when he noticed something strange.
The tiny webs spread throughout his body began to move on their own.
A faint pain followed.
He frowned in confusion and muttered, "What's going on…? Is that bitch doing something to me, or did I trigger this myself?"
Suddenly, a strange—yet oddly logical—idea crossed his mind. Without hesitation, he decided to test it and confirm his suspicion.
He sprinted forward, deliberately putting more distance between himself and the spider's nest.
Just as he expected, the webs inside his body grew more violent, and the pain intensified rapidly until it became unbearable.
The moment he could no longer endure it, he turned around and ran in the opposite direction. Gradually, the pain eased, little by little, until the webs finally settled within him and everything returned to normal.
He came to a stop, understanding dawning on him.
'That explains a lot. I was wondering why she allowed me to roam so freely… but it seems the webs inside me are basically a tracking and detonation device. If I cross the allowed boundary, she can kill me remotely.'
He shook his head lightly, feeling no real surprise at all. It was only natural that the spider-woman would monitor him and restrict his movements.
Because of that, he didn't feel particularly upset, or even annoyed.
In truth, he never intended to stray too far from her in the first place. He had no way of knowing whether the wolf pack was still lying in wait, and with the system offline and his physical condition unstable, he was far from his peak.
In his current state, he was vulnerable. Using the spider's oppressive strength as a deterrent—something he could retreat behind whenever he ran into serious trouble—was simply the smart choice.
Arthur despised, from the depths of his soul, having been reduced to a submissive slave. But that didn't mean he was incapable of exploiting his current situation in one way or another. Fortunately for him, that human mind of his was brimming with ideas.
Now that he had a clear understanding of the radius within which he was allowed to move, he changed direction and headed toward the large lake. From what he had seen so far, it was the best hunting ground in the area.
When he arrived, he concealed himself among a cluster of bushes and waited patiently for thirsty beasts to come and drink. It didn't take more than half an hour before a herd of massive rank D buffalo finally appeared.