From Blade To Spell

Inside the tent. 

Boss Spider was reading the notes he had found inside a cave. He studied them carefully, hoping to uncover clues about how to increase the power of his spider.

He was so absorbed in the text that he didn't notice someone quietly pulling back the curtain and watching him from a distance.

Outside, Aaron had already spotted the bandit. But what about the spider?

He remained hidden, observing silently. What surprised him most was how relaxed the man appeared. Boss Spider looked like a leader, yet he wasn't vigilant at all.

But then again, he didn't need to be.

This was a secret mission. There were no expected enemies, and the bandits under his command feared him, or rather, feared his pet spider. That fear was well-earned. With the creature, Boss Spider had once killed a knight in combat.

That victory had inflated his confidence.

And with confidence came carelessness.

At the same time, Boss Spider, still absorbed in the notes he had found inside the cave, suddenly felt a sharp pain in his head. His vision blurred, and his consciousness began to fade. The last thing he saw was an unfamiliar man with a bow, staring at him with cold, unflinching eyes.

Meanwhile, Aaron checked the map and discovered that the Level 2 spider was hidden inside a barrel.

He hesitated.

The lid was tightly sealed, and if not for the small air holes, the creature might have suffocated. But it hadn't.

Aaron picked up the barrel and carried it to the campfire. The bandits had done a good job collecting wood, so he simply added more fuel and placed the barrel directly into the flames.

Then he began clearing the corpses, dragging them one by one and piling them roughly 200 meters away from the camp.

After finishing, he mounted his horse and rode back to find Maria.

She wore an anxious expression. The forest had already grown dark, and Aaron could see red dots on the map, Level 1 wolves, just 700 meters away.

"Miss Maria, please follow behind me," he said calmly.

He took the lead, and Maria followed with a confused look. 

"Aaron, did you find any traces of the Spider Bandits?" she asked.

Aaron replied while riding, 

"Don't worry, Miss Maria. I've already dealt with Boss Spider. You don't have to worry about him anymore."

Maria let out a quiet sigh of relief and followed him to the camp.

But just as they arrived, a sharp, shrill shriek erupted from the campfire.

Aaron froze.

The Level 2 spider was still alive.

His eyes widened, and he turned to Maria. 

"Miss Maria, please head inside the camp, for safety."

Maria's face turned pale. The scream was unlike anything human. Though curiosity stirred within her, fear quickly drowned it out.

She obeyed without a word.

Aaron, on the other hand, suddenly saw the burning spider. Its body was charred, but it still possessed a tenacious vitality as it rushed out of the fire. What stunned him most was that the spider's target was none other than himself.

He drew the sword from his waist and slashed with all his strength. The spider was fast—faster than he expected, and managed to dodge the blow. But in its pain, it still lost a few of its legs to his blade.

It screamed again in agony. Its mobility was no longer the same, yet its ferocity remained undiminished. With all its strength, it charged at him once more.

Aaron didn't back down. He swung his sword again, this time with perfect timing. The blade cut clean through, splitting the spider in two. Its body twitched for a few seconds… and then lay still.

Aaron wiped the sweat from his forehead, relief flooding his chest. This fight had drained him both physically and mentally, especially the spider's bloodthirsty fixation on him. 

It was a kind of killing intent he had never experienced before.

On the other hand, Maria, who had been watching the fight between Aaron and the spider, was stunned. The visual impact was overwhelming. She had heard stories about all kinds of monsters from her father, but this was the first time she had seen one with her own eyes.

Even though the spider was relatively small in size, it was undeniably powerful. What shocked her most was its speed. It moved far too fast for something so badly burned.

Fortunately, Aaron had managed to deal with it.

Aaron then looked at Maria and said, 

"Miss Maria, you can find a tent to rest."

With that, he headed toward the largest tent, the one Boss Spider had occupied. Inside, he found the notes the bandit had been reading. Although he didn't know exactly what kind of notes they were, he felt he could still make sense of them. In this world, knowledge was scarce and mostly reserved for the wealthy. Some types of knowledge were restricted to core members of noble families only.

He began searching the tent and soon found a cloth pouch. Inside were twenty gold coins, along with two red gemstones and an emerald.

He didn't know their exact value, but they were likely worth a few gold coins, or more.

Then he noticed a box filled with mice, likely kept as food for the spider. He decided to release them outside the camp the following morning.

Continuing his search, Aaron discovered a palm-sized wooden box, carefully hidden among Boss Spider's clothes.

He opened it curiously, and was stunned.

Inside was a blue glowing stone.

As soon as he touched it, a mysterious voice echoed in his mind:

"Energy Stone detected. It can be absorbed to upgrade the map."

A virtual panel appeared beside the glowing stone:

"Do you want to absorb the Energy Source?" 

"Yes / No"

Aaron didn't hesitate. He selected Yes.

The blue light dimmed rapidly, and within seconds, the stone crumbled into dust.

The voice returned:

"Map upgrade complete.

"Range increased to 5000 meters. Depth sensing unlocked, up to 500 meters. Mood detection activated via emoji display."