When Arthur’s eyes met the spider’s, he shuddered with fear.

He swallowed hard, and prayed from the bottom of his heart that she would not pay him any attention, and that is exactly what happened, but he did not find enough time to feel relieved.

Suddenly, the massive spears that had filled the sky began falling to the ground like meteors, and unfortunately dozens of them headed toward the area he was in.

"Oh, shit, this is not good." Without any hesitation, he leapt from the tree, and fled at his maximum speed.

Boom!

A spear fell behind him, and the ground and trees exploded, and soil and shrapnel flew in every direction. The shockwave lifted him off the ground, and threw him several meters away.

His pupils contracted, and despite his panic, he did not allow himself to fall. That was just one spear, and there were more coming, any stumble, even a slight one, could cause his death.

The moment his body touched the ground, he rolled with great agility, absorbing the force of the fall, then in the next moment he rose without losing his momentum, and continued his dash fleeing.

But, unlike him, who was only hit by a few stray spears, the situation of Alvin and his companions was much worse.

...

"How is this possible?" Selene stared at the spears forming in the sky, her mouth open from sheer astonishment.

She could not comprehend, or rather accept, the fact that the Calamity Spider was still able to use a skill of this size and power, after all the fighting they had done against her.

This was unreasonable even by her standards. She was a respectable B-Rank Arcanist and possessed an Arcane Item that enhanced her skills and reduced her Mana consumption.

Within a few fractions of a second, many thoughts passed through her head, and in the end, she realized a horrifying truth: she could not protect her companions.

They were far away, and the punch she had taken to the face had given her a severe concussion, so her mental power had dropped, and it had become difficult for her to use complex skills.

She looked at Willard and Carlos sunk in the ground, and let out a long lamenting sigh, then in the next moment, the spears began raining down on them.

She raised her staff, and pumped into it all the Mana she had left, and at the same time said to Baldwin: "Support me."

Baldwin moved immediately, and placed his hand on her shoulder, and transferred a large amount of his own Mana to her.

Mana sharing was a rare ability, possessed only by supporters and healers, and a few exceptional individuals.

The reason behind that is simple. Mana is like blood. Its nature differs from person to person, and it also carries its owner’s unique signature. This makes merging it with another person’s Mana extremely difficult and could lead to a violent backlash if done carelessly.

A small, extremely solid barrier formed around them, in the shape of a dome composed of several different layers, extending deep into the ground, which increased its stability.

Selene stole a quick glance at Alvin, then redirected her full focus toward the incoming attack. She did not worry about him, he could handle himself.

Alvin’s reaction was similar to hers, he looked at his companions with a kind of regret, then unleashed one of his signature skills.

He drove the tip of his sword into the ground, and stood firm, then in the next moment something unreasonable happened, his body and sword petrified, and turned into a statue rooted in its place.

Boooom!

The massive spears began falling one after another, destroying everything in their path, and sinking deep into the ground. The explosions came one after another, and shrapnel flew relentlessly.

A nearby explosion woke Carlos, who had been unconscious. His eyelids trembled, and he opened his eyes, and at that moment he saw a massive spear heading directly toward him.

He did not find the time to understand what was happening, the spear pierced his body immediately, then a second and a third hit him, and the same happened to Willard beside him.

Within just seconds, their bodies turned to pieces, scattered in every direction by the shockwaves.

The rest fared much better, Selene’s barrier fulfilled its purpose, and successfully blocked the spears, in exchange for consuming all her Mana and Baldwin’s.

As for Alvin, well, his situation was stranger, for a large number of spears hit him directly in the head and shoulders, but instead of harming him, they shattered and turned to dust, while he remained standing unmoved.

Time passed very slowly, and when the rain of spears finally ended, and the thunderous sounds of explosions disappeared, the barrier around Selene and Baldwin shattered.

They fell to their knees panting. With a shocked expression, Selene muttered: "How? How is this possible? She is B-Rank like us, so why? Why is she this powerful?"

Chaos overwhelmed her thoughts, and fear took control of her, and she suffered severe shock, one she would not easily recover from.

In the end, all she could do was sigh: "My lord, I hope you forgive me for my utter failure."

A few hundred meters away, Alvin’s stone form began to crack, then the layer of rock that had covered his body crumbled. The moment he returned to normal, he leaned forward.

He leaned on the sword, and prevented himself from falling. He stood in place hunched over, while blood seeped from his nose and ears.

"We’ve been defeated... but the battle isn’t over yet." With great sorrow, he too sighed.

He raised his head, and looked in the direction the Calamity Spider had fled, his eyes filled with hatred, and he hoped the second group would be able to capture her.

Alvin and his companions were not the only humans who had come to carry out this mission, for they were part of a team composed of 15 people, divided into two groups.

A main group, specifically him and his companions, whose mission was to attack the Calamity Spider and capture her.

And a weaker secondary group, composed mostly of C-Rank individuals, whose mission was to spread around the spider’s nest, and prevent her from escaping.

...

Several miles away, the spider leapt in the sky, using hardened web barriers as footholds.

’Damn the humans, they destroyed everything, I lost my only chance to rank-up to A-Rank.’ She coughed up a large amount of blood.

She looked around, and thought about where she would go. She had lost her home, and had become weaker, so she needed a safe place to recover.

Suddenly, she felt imminent danger, then in the next moment, she saw a thin white beam, heading toward her from the ground below.

She quickly built a barrier beneath her, hoping it would protect her, but the beam pierced the barrier, and hit her directly in the abdomen, and at that moment its true form was revealed, it was a metal arrow.

"Ugh." She let out a muffled groan, and fell to the ground uncontrollably. She landed on her legs, dragging up soil and shattering trees in her path.

"This is the end for you, you evil monster."

From a nearby place, two armored men appeared, one tall and dark-skinned carrying a large metal bow, wearing a wide leather hat on his head, and the other short and stout, carrying a hammer, with many rings on his fingers.

The spider’s features contorted, and her legs trembled. She felt fear, frustration, and discontent, and could not accept what was happening to her. She lamented her fate, and deep inside cursed the humans with the worst words she knew.

Desperate, she summoned all the strength and determination she had left, and prepared to fight for her life once more.