The group slowed their pace as they approached the room. Despite the lack of communication, they still pictured an oppressive aura surrounding the officer.

The nobility and the government weren't an empty title. They were the elites of humanity, excelled in the arts of war and management. Above all, their affinity with Fons was unmatched.

The Fons governed the world. Those who ruled Fons, in turn, ruled the world.

With preparation, they who ruled over Fons—the Arbiters—could easily annihilate the group. No matter how the Captain planned his move, he wouldn't be able to bridge the gap of power.

"Don't do anything disrespectful. We'll be accompanying a big-shot."

Though the group was only going to meet an officer, the Captain's voice was deadly serious. The crew sternly nodded. They were of low status and couldn't afford to learn the basic noble etiquette.

Meeting the officer was a pipe-dream for them. Only the most talented or the luckiest could catch their attention.

A creaking noise interrupted the footstep. The group arrived at the gate, standing in front of the central control room.

As the gate opened, cold air leaked from the gap and chilled the group. The central control room flickered in the darkness. The unusual scene filled the ambience with creepy gloom.

An emergency lantern dimly lighted the room. The veil of darkness concealed its layout. The group only saw what the monitor's light revealed.

The rough, fleshy wall reeked of blood and strange odour, its exotic design exuding an otherworldly vibe that coated the world with a layer of mystery and unordinary.

The group knew they were in the domain of the Arachna, the monstrous species of an unknown origin.

Beside a black throne at the centre of the room, a figure rested still, his head hanging low. He laid on the floor that bound him. The dirty uniform fluttered and revealed his unnaturally pale skin.

The Captain gestured for his crew to follow him. Though the slippery floor was disgusting and hard to traverse, they could slowly tread on it.

Behind the group, a delicate dark-purple hand reached out with a pistol. The Arachna Lady aimed at the group, her azure eyes revealing cold apathy.

The preys had walked right into the web of death. The spider laid waiting.

Standing in front of the officer, the Captain stretched out to him. A loud gunshot resounded from behind as warm liquid splashed on his back. An intense metallic yet organic smell burst at his nose.

He spun around and saw a feminine monster—coating in Arachna's vibe but humanoid in appearance—standing before a collapsed body. She held a smoking pistol that turned unstable after one shot.

Soaked in the tender blood of her prey, she shifted her gaze at the Captain. Her illustrious pupils blended with the darkness yet stood out like shiny gems amidst a sea of corpses.

Taunting the group, she lifted her bloodied hand and carefully savoured it. The crimson stain couldn't conceal her carapaced skin which reflected a dark purple shade.

The Captain shivered. Stood before him an Arachna that defied his belief. She expressed intelligence and emotional desires, something no Arachna could.

Who was she? Why was she here?

The Captain gazed at the darkness beside the Arachna Lady. Two monsters jumped from the darkness. With their momentum they pushed their targets against the ground. The spiderlings sank their fangs on the shocked victims.

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"Kill the spiderlings!"

The screams piercing his ears, the Captain retreated. He kicked up his foot and sent a hidden dagger flying. He grabbed it and bounced on his feet, speeding to the spiderlings.

Though they had left all of their guns and gadgets outside, they still had daggers or knives concealing within their clothing just in case of an emergency.

The Arachna Lady commanded the spider legs on her back. They snapped at the Captain. Along with their momentum, she dashed toward him.

The Captain evaded it by jumping back and countered by slashing his dagger at it.

The dagger pierced the leg but couldn't cut through and merely left a light scratch. The Arachna Lady closed in and jabbed at the Captain's centre of mass.

The Captain spun, but the claw still stabbed his shoulder. He endured the pain and closed the gap, his dagger slashing at her.

The Arachna lady smashed her spider leg at the dagger. It escaped the Captain's grip. The Captain seized her neck and tightened his hands, his nails stabbing through the gaps between her carapace. Her acidic blood scorched his fingers.

Despite the suffocating sensation, the Arachna Lady remained smiling, her expression seemingly enjoying the moment.

She angled her pistol, the barreling aiming at the Captain's abdomen. He struck his knee against her stomach. They fell on the ground, the slimy substance covering their body.

The impact loosened his grip. The Arachna Lady headbutted the Captain, forcing him to push her away. As the distance widened, he grabbed the lifeless officer and shielded himself. A gunshot rang, but the impact didn't reach him.

A scream echoed.

The Captain watched one of his men dropped as a bullet penetrated his skull. It entered and exited at almost the same time. The body landed in between another struggle between a spiderling and a human.

The spiderling bit the man before dying, causing him to spasm and gasp for breath. He twisted in pain as his throat decayed a hole before his eyes rolled backward, his life fading.

Without the medical equipment, a nasty bite from a spiderling would spell doom to any unlucky, careless man.

Like a splash of watercolour, brain matter spewed and tainted the battlefield with white and grey matter, though no one paid attention to the beautifully gruesome scene.

"Angelica, bring in the guns!" The Captain shouted before throwing the corpse at the Arachna Lady. He lunged toward her centre of mass.

After the second shot, the Arachna Lady turned to the flying corpse and struck it aside with her spider leg. As the corpse diverted, the Captain appeared from behind and clashed onto her, stabbing his dagger into her abdomen.

Using the residue force, the dagger embedded into her body and broke from the handle. The painful impact knocked the two against the ground. They rolled a few meters away from their initial clash.

As the floor was bumpy and slippery, they didn't suffer many scratches from the surface.

The Arachna Lady frantically clawed the Captain. He endured the pain and grabbed her arms. He intended to incapacitate her, and if possible, kill her.

Despite being an Arachna covered in an armour-like carapace, her fragile strength couldn't compete with a strong man. She relied on her intellect and pain tolerance to outsmart and to outwit the unsuspected humans.

A metallic screech rang. The last crew member killed the spiderling with minimal injuries, though he had to disinfect and get rid of the venom as soon as possible.

He stabbed the Arachna at its brain through its mouth, its acidic blood covering him. The pain felt like a thousand knives stabbing his ever pore, scorching his eyes and flesh.

He dropped his knife and struggled to stand up. A groan of pain echoed as his flesh gradually rotted. When he moved, his skin would peel off and slump on the floor, resembling a lump of crumpled papers.

"Master, I've arrived."

As the man looked up, he saw Angelica. She stood in front of him, holding a gun in her hand. Her appearance was akin to an angel descending to assist a helpless mortal.

"Give it to me!" The man snatched the gun and looked around. Aside from him, only the Captain and the Arachna Lady were alive, tangling in their bloody struggle.

He aimed the pistol at them, though his hands were unstable, shaking in agony. His eyes burnt, and his head ached. He could easily miss and kill the Captain in this state.

In his current condition, he couldn't afford to fight another spiderling, let alone that insane Arachna Lady. He needed to survive—no matter the cost.

"Angelica, go help him."

He withdrew the gun and shakily pointed at the Captain and the Arachna Lady. He decided to sacrifice the android to preserve his life.

An android was a tool, easily replaceable. It wasn't worth it to waste his life when he could use an android, even if it meant a huge loss in the group's finance, though there was no one to reject his plan.

In the end, the man stumbled out of the room, its slippery floor causing him to trip several times. When he fell, the strange liquid on the floor would further aggravate his pain. His flesh turned from pinkish-red to dark crimson, decomposing into rotten flesh.

He leant against the wall and glided across it. His dragging body created a trail of crimson paint. The friction caused his face to twist into a nasty frown.

With every step he walked, bits of his flesh would tear apart and get stuck to the wall, giving a new design—a structure of painful regret.