As I kept running, I raised my hand, signaling my slimes to get ready. They immediately nocked their arrows, waiting for my command to let loose.
"Hold your fire," I said. I took a deep breath, focusing on what came next, a experiment that absolutely had to work.
"Now, use the oil you absorbed and coat the arrowheads with it." I ordered.
The slimes hesitated for a fraction of a second, as if the command needed to click into place. Then, without further delay, they acted.
From the cores of their bodies, where the oil had settled, the dark substance began to shift. It moved like an ink blot spreading through water, swirling its way toward the arrowheads.
The translucent green of the slimes became tinged with black as the oil traveled, concentrated and pooled at the arrow tips.
The arrowheads, designed like tiny sealed vials, quickly filled with the dark liquid. The oil swirled inside, while the outer layer stayed coated in the slimes’ protective substance, keeping it safely contained and avoiding any outside contact.
"Perfect," I muttered, the plan clicking into place in my head. But there was still one last piece, a crucial step to turn these arrows into something truly deadly.
I reached for the torch Kael gave me. "Here goes nothing," I murmured under my breath.
Bringing the flame close to one of the slime-covered arrowheads, I watched as the fire kissed the translucent surface. The slime casing shimmered in the light, holding the fire at bay.
It didn’t burn through. Instead, the flames skated along the outer layer, creating a halo of flickering light around the arrow’s tip. Inside, the oil-filled vial stayed untouched, safely sealed.
It was hypnotic. Each arrowhead seemed to glow faintly, the flames dancing and bending with the subtle movements of the slimes.
It was a delicate balancing act, the flames stayed close enough to the edge of the arrowhead but not deep enough to ignite the oil. The slimes held the arrows steady.
"Alright, team," I said, gripping the torch a little tighter as i kept running.
The slimes wiggled in response. Crossbows were raised, arrows locked in place, the flames at their tips.
This was it, the moment of truth. Time to find out if this sound strategy would actually pay off.
“Fire!” I yelled, my voice cutting through the chaos. That was the signal the slimes had been waiting for.
Without hesitation, they sprang into action. A sharp whistle pierced the air as the arrows flew, their fiery tips leaving streaks of light in the darkness. The glow danced against the swarm of spiders, a strange beauty amidst the chaos.
Every arrow landed perfectly—not that it was hard with the spiders packed so tightly together. The oil-tipped arrowheads sank deep into the closest ones, breaking apart on impact. The thin slime layer over the oil split just enough to let the flames catch, igniting the volatile liquid inside.
And then, all hell broke loose.
The first spider burst into flames, a bright flash of orange cutting through the cavern's shadows. Fire devoured it in seconds, its legs twitching and thrashing wildly as a shrill screech echoed off the walls. But it wasn’t over. The oil sprayed out, splattering onto the nearby spiders, turning them into burning, flailing messes.
The chaos spread fast, and the webs hanging around them only made it worse, fueling the blaze like dry kindling.
Another burst, then another. Each impact triggered a chain reaction, setting off the tightly packed swarm like fireworks. The fire didn’t just burn, it devoured. It spread across the spiders’ glossy exoskeletons, turning their slick black forms into writhing, fiery shapes.
Screeches echoed through the cavern, sharp and deafening, as the swarm spiraled into panic. The spiders thrashed and slammed into each other, their once-coordinated movements collapsing into a frantic attempts to escape the blaze.
Reading on this site? This novel is published elsewhere. Support the author by seeking out the original.
The fire spread quicker than I’d expected. It wasn’t just taking out the spiders, it was climbing, jumping onto the webbing stretched across the walls and ceiling. Thick silk threads caught like fuses, the flames racing along them and lighting up the cavern in a hellish glow.
I could feel the heat even from where I stood, waves of it rolling over me, making the air thick and hard to breathe. Smoke started rising, carrying the sharp stench of burning webbing and charred spider flesh.
Fennel, running just ahead, glanced back at me with wide eyes. “Damn, Leon! Remind me not to get on your bad side!” he shouted.
Kael was next, his face frozen in stunned disbelief. “I knew you had something bright in mind, but this?!” he yelled, coughing as he waved at the smoke. “Didn’t think you meant explosive!”
“That’s the idea!” I shot back, not taking my eyes off the growing fire.
Grizmar, clearly impressed but unwilling to show it, didn’t slow down. He glanced back just once, his face unreadable through the haze of smoke. “Keep moving!” he barked. “The fire might be our shield now, but if we stop, it’ll swallow us whole instead!”
A series of notifications began to flood my vision.
[Your slime defeated a Weblurker. EXP +2.]
[Your slime defeated a Weblurker. EXP +2.]
[Your slime defeated a Weblurker. EXP +2.]
...
A wide, satisfied grin spread across my face, I couldn’t help it. Every alert brought me one step closer to leveling up. Honestly, it wouldn’t be a stretch to say this one move of mine might push me up a few levels all at once.
There was no time to celebrate. The logs could wait, assuming we survived this. Right now, staying alive was all that mattered.
“Keep firing!” I yelled to my slimes, my voice rising above the crackle of flames and the spine-chilling screeches of the spiders.
They responded instantly, launching another barrage of fiery arrows. Each one hit its mark, erupting into a cascade of mini fireballs. The explosions ignited everything around them, the flames spreading faster and farther than I’d dared to imagine. The tightly packed spiders didn’t stand a chance.
With a quick glance back, I saw the flames racing to the farthest reaches of the cavern, where the Queen had been. For all I knew, they might’ve already reached her.
Then, through the smoky haze ahead, I saw it. A faint, silvery glow, the moonlight. The entrance to the cavern was just ahead. My heart leaped. We were close, so close.
“Almost there!” Kael shouted, running just ahead of me.
“Keep your eyes forward!” Grizmar barked, his voice cutting through the noise. “We don’t stop until we’re outside!”
But even as we neared the exit, my mind was racing. What about the Queen? The fire might have slowed her swarm and burned through her defenses, but she was the kind of creature that wouldn’t just let us leave like this.
What characterized a cavern like this? It was enclosed, with limited airflow. If the fire didn’t burn the Queen outright, the lack of oxygen and the buildup of smoke would definitely force her out. And that meant we might face her directly outside.
That thought hit me like a slap. If the Queen managed to escape the cavern relatively unscathed, we’d be in trouble. She was a boss monster, and even with Grizmar and Fennel, taking her on in open terrain would be a nightmare if she called out the spiders that was in the outside.
It wasn’t just about the fire. The real danger lay in the suffocating smoke that could fill the cavern and potentially create a pressure buildup. But what if I could make that smoke even deadlier?
A flash of memory hit me. Scarleaf herbs.
I had collected a bunch of Scarleaf outside the dungeon, planning to sell them for some easy coin. Most of the bundle was already gone, but I kept a few leftover leaves in my bag—they weren’t enough to make a full bundle to sell at that time, so i kept them tucked in my pouch.
On their own, Scarleaf was dangerous, toxic enough to poison someone if you consumed it directly. But what would happen when exposed to fire? It would most likely let off a choking gas, far worse than the smoke already creeping through the cavern.
My fingers fumbled at my bag as I kept running, the notifications of spiders being defeated still popping up. Finally, I pulled out the handful of Scarleaf I had left. It wasn’t much, but it would have to do.
I turned slightly and hurled the handful of Scarleaf into the fire behind us, aiming for the densest flames. The leaves caught instantly, curling and blackening as they burned.
The effect wasn’t immediate, but I knew what would happen. The fire would mix with the toxic properties of the Scarleaf, creating a thick, poisonous smoke that would fill the cavern and choke out anything that tried to survive within it.
Grizmar noticed what I’d done, his sharp gaze flicking back briefly. “Clever,” he muttered.
The last few meters felt like an eternity, but then, finally, we were outside.
The moment we stumbled out of the cavern, the cool night air felt like a blessing. But the relief was short-lived.
A loud, bone-rattling screech erupted from deep within the cave, sending chills down my spine. It wasn’t just any sound—it was the Queen. Her voice echoed through the cavern’s walls.
The ground beneath us trembled, faint at first, then steadily growing stronger, like something massive waking up and making its move.
“She’s on the move!” Kael yelled, his ears twitching as he spun back toward the glowing, smoke-choked entrance.
I didn’t need him to say it. The vibrations, the rumble of something massive crashing its way through the cavern—it all screamed the same truth.
Grizmar, still catching his breath, straightened himself. He slammed his shield into the ground. “She’s coming,” he said, his voice low, steady, and filled with a quiet dread. “And she’s pissed.”
My chest tightened as the screeches grew louder, closer, sharper.
The Queen was coming. And she was coming fast.