Witch Taming System-Chapter 24: Labyrinth Dive [6]

Truthfully, a dagger had never been Lancel’s main weapon.

It had only ever been a backup. One of many tools he carried when things went wrong. Something small and reliable that could still save his life if he ever lost his primary blade.

Now, however, it was the only weapon he could afford.

Lancel weighed the dagger in his hand as he walked through the labyrinth’s corridor. The balance was acceptable, but it still felt wrong. It lacked the grace he had once been accustomed to.

In the past, Lancel had never settled for ordinary swords. If he were to hold a blade, it had to be worthy of the name.

A Divine Blade.

Anything less had never felt right in his hands.

If he had been carrying a Divine Blade earlier, Lancel was certain things would have ended differently.

The threads that had taken Emily would not have held for even a moment. He would have cut straight through them and traced the line back to its source in one fell swoop.

But speculation meant nothing now.

Lancel slowed his steps as they approached the bend in the corridor. His eyes swept across the walls.

The others were preparing to form their defensive line when Lancel suddenly raised a hand.

"Hold."

The group froze.

He took a few careful steps forward, staring toward a dark patch along the upper corner of the cavern wall where the torchlight barely reached.

Then he spoke without turning around.

"Miss Hela."

The archer named Hela responded. "Yes?"

Lancel pointed toward the shadow above the bend.

"Thirty degrees above the corridor. Two body lengths past the crack in the stone."

Several adventurers squinted into the darkness, trying to follow his line of sight.

They saw nothing.

"Loose an arrow," Lancel continued. "Right there."

"I don’t see anything."

"It’s fine."

A brief pause followed before she slowly nocked an arrow.

"...Alright."

She drew the bowstring and adjusted her aim according to Lancel’s instructions.

Then she released.

Swoosh——

For a brief moment, nothing happened.

Thunk——

A wet impact echoed from the darkness.

The next second, a violent screech burst from the ceiling. A massive shape suddenly dropped from the shadows. Long limbs elongated as a grotesque creature crashed onto the stone floor.

Its body resembled a swollen spider, its abdomen pierced by Hela’s arrow. Several adventurers cursed and raised their weapons.

"Ambush predator!" someone shouted.

The creature shrieked again. Its legs twitched as thick strands of silk spilled from its abdomen.

Lancel stepped back calmly.

"That’s the one."

The leader stared at the creature, then glanced at the threads scattered along the ceiling.

"...So that’s what took Emily."

Lancel shook his head. "More like one of its kind."

He stepped closer to the corpse, crouching slightly as he examined the creature’s long limbs and swollen abdomen.

"I see. So it’s a Silkbane."

"...."

"...."

A few of the adventurers froze at the name.

Silkbanes were creatures that thrived in labyrinth environments.

They preferred tight spaces and high ceilings where their webs could stretch across narrow corridors. If a traveler passed without noticing the threads, the creature would simply hoist them into the darkness.

But the one lying on the ground was far too small.

When a Silkbane appeared alone, it was rarely alone. Most of the time, what people encountered was merely a worker of the nest.

Somewhere nearby, hidden deep within the labyrinth’s passages, there would be a Mother Silkbane.

That was the real problem.

Silkbanes were considered rare boss-class monsters. They were not creatures that newly discovered labyrinths were supposed to contain. Even seasoned adventurers treated them carefully.

And for first-time labyrinth divers... they were the kind of monster one should never encounter at all.

"How unlucky, Leader."

The leader frowned. "What do you mean?"

Lancel rose to his feet and wiped the dark fluid from his dagger against the stone.

"You’ve just been dealt a terrible hand," he said. "Out of all the labyrinths we could have entered, it had to be one with a Silkbane."

Silkbanes were rare encounters. Among the countless labyrinths scattered across the world, only a small fraction ever developed a Silkbane nest. 𝒻𝑟ℯℯ𝑤𝑒𝑏𝑛𝘰𝓋𝑒𝓁.𝒸𝑜𝘮

Perhaps one in a hundred.

Lancel had explored many labyrinths in the past, yet he had only encountered a Silkbane once.

And that alone had nearly wiped out an entire expedition.

He glanced back at the dead creature.

"Call off the expedition," Lancel said. "The priority now is escape. Once we get out of here, it’s best to leave this place to professionals who specialize in labyrinth nests."

This was no longer a job for ordinary adventurers. What they needed now were people who understood how to dismantle nests and burn entire ecosystems out of a labyrinth.

But just as the words left his mouth, something flashed above them.

The next moment, the leader was yanked upward.

"Ahhh...!"

A thick strand of silk wrapped around his torso and dragged him toward the ceiling with terrifying speed.

"Leader!"

"Cut the thread!"

Weapons flashed upward.

But nothing happened.

The silk barely even showed a dent.

"What the hell is this thing made of?!"

Another blade struck the thread, only to bounce off with a clang.

Lancel’s eyes narrowed. This wasn’t ordinary webbing. Silkbane threads were tougher than steel once hardened.

"Hold him!" someone shouted.

Mael rushed forward and leapt, trying to grab the leader’s leg before he was pulled too high.

Her fingers brushed his boot until the thread jerked again. The leader was dragged further into the darkness above.

"Damn it...!"

More silk lines suddenly dropped from the ceiling like falling ropes.

Several of them wrapped around the leader’s limbs, binding him completely.

"Cut it!" he shouted desperately. "Cut the damn thing!"

But the blades still couldn’t break the threads.

The adventurers could only watch helplessly as the leader was hauled higher and higher.

"Don’t let it—"

Then he disappeared into the darkness above.

Just like that, he was gone.

Mael turned toward Lancel, panic flashing across her face.

"Mister Lancel—"

"Run!"

Toward the exit.

There was no longer any reason to stay, nor any strategy left to discuss. The moment the leader had been taken, the expedition was already done for.

It didn’t matter if they would be rushing straight into a swarm of labyrinth dwellers.

That still left them with a chance.

A fifty percent chance of survival was far better than the zero percent chance of survival if they stayed here and tried playing it smart.