White, sticky, disgusting egg sacs lined every surface––the floor, the walls, even the ceiling. It was a metaphorical ocean of eggs. My stomach heaved at the sight, and my skin crawled.

Thankfully, they hadn't hatched yet, or we'd be swimming in eight-legged monsters. Some of the sacs twitched, suggesting they were close to hatching. I shuddered.

“Nope.”

I shut the door and turned to Clover. My face must have been bone-white, matching the hand still clamped to my sword. I didn't care.

“There are too many spiders. I'm not going in there. One wrong move, and those eggs will wake up. Then we'll be dealing with the parent, wherever it is, and any spiderlings that hatch.”

Clover grimaced, exasperation sharpening her tone. “Frederick, we have to get through there. I know you hate spiders, but it can't be that bad.”

She hadn't seen past me into the room. Wordlessly, I stepped aside and gestured to the door. “Look in there, take a long look, and then tell me I'm overreacting.”

Even without my hatred of spiders, walking in there as we were would guarantee our deaths. There was no safe corner to stand in, and once those things started waking up, we'd be surrounded. We'd already underestimated the monsters once, and I, for one, didn't feel like getting pinned by their father. Their mother had been more than enough to give me nightmares.

Clover brushed past me and opened the door, her lips pulled into a scowl. When she looked inside, the scowl faded into a blank stare. Silence stretched for a beat before she shut the door and faced me, her skin taking on an ill tint.

“Right. First of all, I'm sorry for doubting you. That…would be a long and painful death.” She eyed the door, her gaze narrowed as she considered our lack of options. “But we can't turn back now. The people need that herb, and I don't know how long they'll hold out.”

I knew that, but how could we get through that mess? We couldn't get the herb if we were dead.

Her grip on the still-glowing mace caught my attention, and an idea sparked.

“What if you throw a lance in and slam the door?” I offered, my mind weaving the plan as I spoke. “The area it affects is nearly the entirety of that room. If you throw the lance, it should kill most of them, right?”

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She nodded slowly, her gaze sliding to the closed door again. “That might work, but it looked like some of the eggs were stacked in layers. It should get rid of most of them, but a few might still hatch and chase us. Illuminating Lance is exhausting, and I need time to recover between each throw.” She lowered her voice. “There's also a potential Adolescent Giant Spider waiting for us after that. I didn't see it when I glanced around, but it could be sleeping under all the eggs.”

Which meant she should save her mana in case she needed another lance.

There had to be something we could do to kill the stragglers. Something that didn't require mana… I glanced back the way we came, looking for anything useful, and when I caught sight of the trapped room, I grinned.

“What if we lead the survivors into the spike trap? We know where the pressure plate is now. I can step on it while shielded and skewer them!”

Clover followed my gaze to the trapped room and snorted, “And here I was, telling myself I wouldn’t set foot in there until we left. At least this time, it'll work in our favor.”

She shook her head, determination blooming. “Alright, we'll do that. I'll throw the lance and leave the door open. The leftover spiders will be hot on our heels, so you should go ahead and get ready in the other room. I'll join you in a second.”

I raised an eyebrow and looked at the door pointedly. “You really think I'm going to leave you here alone, with that many spiders chasing you? Not a chance. We’ll both run once the lance hits, and when you're safely out of range, I'll trigger the spikes.”

She'd be tired after the first lance, and I refused to risk her getting hurt or worse while I could prevent it. Those spiders would be dazed, but not for long. If something happened or one got too close to her, I'd be here to ensure she was safe.

She opened her mouth to argue, but I glared and used my best my way or no way voice. “No, I won't hear any more about it. It's this, or we leave to get something flammable to light the web on fire.”

Unfortunately, flint and steel weren’t enough, or I would've already suggested it.

Her mouth clicked shut, and after another glance at the door, she blew out a breath and shook her head.

“Fine, but I'd like to remind you that I can handle myself. I'm only agreeing so we can stop wasting time arguing.”

I nodded. “That's fine. I don't care why you go along with it. And for the record, this isn't me saying you can't handle it. That's a lot of spiders, and anyone could be overwhelmed in your place. We're too squishy and mortal to be throwing ourselves into that mess, and I refuse to put you at risk when it's not necessary.” I grimaced. “Well, more at risk, since this entire plan is dicey.”

The tense line of her shoulders eased, and the irritation left her face. Something warm took its place, and she sighed. “I'll be fine, but… thank you for being concerned.”

Then she shook herself and faced the door. “Now get ready. The spell will dissipate when I break line of sight, so once it's hit as many of them as possible, we'll run.”

I nodded, bracing for whatever waited ahead as she slowly opened the door. Again, a shudder of disgust slid down my spine, but I forced it aside to really look at the room.

I couldn't make out the Adult Giant Spider, so she was probably right about it sleeping under the eggs. Hopefully, it would be unable to follow us, but if it could…we'd deal with that when it became a problem.

For now, we had a plan to see through and a few hundred egg sacs to destroy.