“The biggest mistake a warrior, general, or even adventurer can make is thinking that levels determine everything. After all, everyone has had it drilled into their heads from an early age that levels do mean everything, from parents wanting their children to grow strong, to entire careers being limited based on one’s Class and Attributes.
They are not entirely wrong, in that higher levels and the right System makeup can provide many advantages, but their view is still limited. A single advantage does not win a battle, let alone a war.
If a level 5 Swordsman went up against one who was level 6, most would immediately jump in to point out that the level 6 fighter would win. But what if the level 5 had a more powerful weapon? Then those same people might complain that money creates an uneven playing field.
So now I ask, what would happen if the level 5 Swordsman ambushed the level 6? Or fought with the sun behind them? Or prevented their opponent from getting a restful night’s sleep?
Anyone who would complain about an uneven playing field now is an idiot. True battles, war, they’re never fair! You make use of every advantage you can get if you don’t want to end up dead! String up the corpses of their children if you have to, as long as it’s you and your soldiers going home, anything is fair!”
-Excerpt of guest lecture at the Shostran Royal Military Academy by General Montgomery Fairwind, one year before being tried and executed for war crimes.
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Click was seated on a tall stalagmite that extended far enough into the air to give them a 360 degree view of most of the cave, and it was more than enough to keep track of their target. Two days of near-constant vigilance gave the [Spider Commander] plenty of information to come up with an idea of how the [Alpha Hunter] operated.
That big jerk was an idiot, but Click wasn’t. Enough so that the [Spider Commander] knew that a direct confrontation would lead to their inevitable death, so there they stood, trying to better understand their enemy.
In the far distance, the [Alpha Hunter]’s party of fifty lesser spiders made quick work of any fly or other insect they came across. There had been a swarm of them recently, most of them around the remains of the predator the leader had slain, which had rotted too much for even the hungriest of spiders to make a meal out of. While most of the air was thick with bugs, Click could make out a visible path carved out through the omnipresent swarm where the [Alpha Hunter] had been. For such an idiot, it was at least an effective one.
Click was tempted to grab one of the flies out of the air for a quick snack, but a loud noise in the distance grabbed their attention.
“URROAAHHH!!!”
A lone predator howled as the [Alpha Hunter] lept onto its back and bit down hard with envenomed fangs. Poison pierced fur and skin alike as the creature contorted its body in an attempt to shake off the attacking spider. The [Alpha Hunter] simply performed a backflip and landed on its eight legs on the cavern floor, without a care or concern in the world.
Pfft, Showoff.
The other spiders tried to follow along. They didn’t have as much success individually, but who needed to do things perfectly with an army? The large numbers swarmed the predator and pushed it even further on the defensive.
The creature kicked off most of the spiders and flattened the few that remained on its fur on the nearby stalagmites, but it didn’t otherwise try to run, despite it being clear that it wouldn’t win the fight. It just took a few steps back and repositioned itself, letting loose another howl every few seconds.
What was it- ah, that’s what!
All of a sudden, three more predators jumped into the fray from out of nowhere. Even on the rocky tower, Click didn’t see where they came from or when they arrived. Black fur billowed as the trio blurred onto the battlefield, fangs bared, and eyes filled with piercing hatred.
They all launched themselves at the [Alpha Hunter] at once, ignoring the forty smaller spiders. The lead spider effortlessly jumped out of the way, making use of its comparatively smaller size to avoid fang and paw alike.
The fight went on for half a minute, and none of the predators could nick a score on the lead spider. The [Alpha Hunter] on the other hand applied plenty of envenomed bites to the predators, though none of them seemed to be showing any effects of the poison running through their veins. In fact, it was the [Alpha Hunter] who was beginning to slow.
Wham! A speeding paw slammed into the lead spider and sent it flying into a nearby rock formation. One of its legs was bent out of shape, and it struggled to get back up. The fight should’ve been over, but…
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The [Alpha Hunter] straightened itself out and ran back into the fray.
Click just stared at the idiot, too shocked to even think about the disapproval they wanted to lay onto the lead spider.
But the [Alpha Hunter] was far away, and took time to return back to the battle. In the meantime, the predators took the opportunity to thin the enemy herd, so to speak, and began to eat and step on the various spiders around them.
Click’s brethren put up a valiant effort to defend themselves, the hunter spiders giving their all in the fight back. Curiously though, some of the web spiders the [Alpha Hunter] dragged along began to spin webs where they stood and launch them at the creatures. The attacks didn’t do much, but the few that hit vulnerable spots such as the eyes worked as somewhat effective distractions. Too bad they weren’t effective enough.
As the spider death toll began to climb, a few members of the group began shaking. It looked as if they were mimicking a human shiver. After witnessing the death of one of their brethren, any nearby spider would begin to shiver as well. The chain continued until spiders who hadn’t seen a drop of blood were beginning to shiver also, as long as they were surrounded by enough of their jittery brethren.
By the time the [Alpha Hunter] had returned, the entire group was shivering, and the lead spider too began to mimic the motions. Something in that motion pulled forth some deeply buried instinct, and made the battle junkie idiot do the unthinkable. It turned around and ran.
The [Alpha Hunter] ran back to its white-pillared home and didn’t even look back as the rest of the spider swarm followed. The predators tried to catch it, but it was too deft and easily evaded their attacks, as if empowered by some new energy solely dedicated to fleeing.
Click themself had to push back at a rising instinct to run back home as well, but held fast as the sensation eventually faded. The distance was probably why it wasn’t as bad, but if it could make a bloodlusted fool like the [Alpha Hunter] flee, then it must have been nearly irresistible over there.
What was that? The [Spider Commander] thought to themselves. It was definitely some kind of instinct, that’s for sure. But something so powerful? It makes sense, however.
Click imagined facing one of the predators and felt the urge to run back home just from the thought alone!
It looks like that particular instinct triggered when a hunting party of spiders was about to face total annihilation. That also makes sense, since it would keep at least some of us alive to live and fight another day. The [Alpha Hunter] was beginning to slow down by the end of the battle against four adult predators; it definitely would’ve died if it weren’t for that instinct…
Click’s mind immediately went abuzz with thoughts, plans, and schemes. Here was a weakness, a surefire way to get rid of that idiot once and for all! But there were so many safeties that prevented the situation from happening. The [Spider Commander] would just have to perform some sabotage.
Juvenile Dungeon Spider Commander (Level 9)
Name: Click
Soul Link: Rockfort Hamlet Dungeon Core Ṁ̶̡̄̒͜o̷͚͍̊͒̃̓̿ǰ̵̧̢̭̫̪a̷͇̋̿̿̽͘ ̵̨̛̥͎͉́̋̈͘D̵̝̭͇̓̎̅ȋ̷̯͔̤̑͋̑t̴̛͉͈̟̽̑͑h̸̪̲̩̗̀̉̃͝͠ä̵͕̼̠́̊̓̕b̴̗͕̏͊̂̓̚ä̷̡̰̱͕̒̌̋
Classes: N/A
Statistic
Amount
Health Points
23
Body
18
Intellect
172
Soul
21
Skill Name
Level
Description
Venom Gland
7
Secrete a toxic substance from your mandibles that can harm lesser creatures.
Silk Spinning
12
Secrete a sticky string that can ensnare weaker creatures. Effects of external forces such as gravity are weakened while moving on the substance.
Command Subordinates
15
Command subordinate members of your organization. They will follow your will as if it were an instinct. Can target specific subordinates to command.
Observation
1
Obtain System information about a target.