Cira clacked her orichalcum staff against the ground as young and old man before her watched on in wonder. Mana resonated beneath their feet and through the island.

“Go on, then.” Cira stated impatiently, “Who is Marie? What has endangered her? I am searching, but the more you can tell me, the better.”

This island looked rather plain with minimal foliage and almost no wildlife. The spring split the island in two with a thin river, but this was another weirdly round island with much space on the interior. Cira used the staff to spread her sight throughout the island, but her focus was nothing like it was on Fount Salt. Tunnels were difficult to explore even if she didn’t have to visit them personally. Two at a time was the max unless she wanted to deal with a headache. An island this small would still take most of the day if it came to it.

“U-uh!” The young man spoke, falling to his knees again, “She is my darling wife… And I let her go! Oh gods, why… why did I let her go?!”

He was in hysterics, while the old man seemed too mad to follow suit. “This damn fool… I told you two to stay away from the caves! They ain’t busy like down below. Anything could move in. You shoulda known better than to let her go!”

These people are terrible at explaining things. Isn’t this an emergency? So, people don’t live on this island, I take it… What else lives in caves? I don’t expect to see nymphs, but something much worse.

“Can you be more specific?” Cira urged. The old man looked on the verge of tears but clenched his jaw and continued with heavy words.

“We only heard ‘em once… but I’m sure of it.” He looked Cira dead in the eyes, hope dwindling, “Cave spiders.”

“Ah… I was worried about that.” And it seems they don’t make webs until around half depth from the surface. But alas, here they are. “What in the world are you sending some girl alone into the caves for? What is wrong with you people?”

“I-it’s not what you think!” The husband pleaded, “She wanted to—”

“Silence.” Cira noticed signs of burned silk at a point. There was a clear struggle as one section of the tunnel. It was completely torched with scratches torn into the blackened stone. This must be the encounter, or maybe she tried to get away… I must admit, it’s not looking good for poor Marie. “I will return with an update shortly. Please prepare my payment in the meantime.”

Cira was swallowed by the earth as the two men gasped in awe.

Down we go. If I know anything about cave spiders, which I unfortunately do, this girl should have upwards of two days from the point she was captured. It grows progressively more unpleasant as the captive only has so much blood to be extracted before it starts getting cold.

Judging by the mana fluctuations in the air… it hasn’t been a day. Just wait, Marie! I’m coming to save you!

Cira stood within a dark capsule of earth, because it was more comfortable than if she sank through the earth like water. Having a little wiggle room just made her feel better, and she increased the ambient light within so she could observe the stone. It was a little darker than that of Acher but didn’t seem quite as dense.

A strange tingle in Cira’s chest made her flinch and she started to channel mana until a burst of salt twinkled in the faint Lamplight.

“Ptah!” Cira spat out a mouthful of grainy white crystals, “Nina! It’s… it’s you.”

Cira couldn’t help but smile, and it had nothing to do with the prima salt she inhaled.

“So… you still wish to travel with me, do you?”

Cira didn’t mean for those words to come across mentally, nor did she expect anything back.

“Travel!” The little nymph fluttered about the enclosed space, “Friend!”

Cira almost teared up as Nina seemed to strain her whole little body to conjure a black sorcerer’s hat—Nina sized, of course.

“Then let’s get to it.” Cira was more determined than ever for her first straightforward job in ages.

They continued sinking through the earth, dodging spider tunnels and working their way to the scene of the crime. This was not the site of battle, but the trail leading from it.

Following a cave spider through its own home by tracks alone was not an easy task. They left no trace on their own webs, so Cira could only follow the mana. Vitality radiated from such creatures who consume blood for sustenance in the form of life mana, however, and this made it a simple matter to find Marie.

The girl couldn’t be a year older than herself, and with an aura that was almost impressive had she not been stupid enough to march straight into a massive network of spider nests.

Seriously, what kind of idiot would do that? She thought with a tinge of self-deprecation.

The father in this little spider family would surely have been consumed by this point—his nutrients had naturally gone toward his offspring.

Aside from the big fat mama spider, whose abdomen was a head taller than Cira and a fair deal more round, there were six of her young which each still dwarfed Nina.

Cira was almost worried about putting the little nymph in danger, then noticed she was sitting on her shoulder, a pleasant grin playing on her lips as the brim of her hat hung over her eyes.

Hang on… since when can you smile?

Whatever… Gotta focus on Marie.

Even the mother likely only took a couple ounces of blood at most per serving. The children would be lucky to get half that before filling up.

Granted, this would happen two or even three times a day. The human body was resilient. Marie had probably lost consciousness recently. She was certainly in danger, and Cira determined these were especially thirsty spiders based on the girl’s condition.

This tale has been unlawfully lifted from Royal Road. If you spot it on Amazon, please report it.

They’re about to have another meal now… I need to stop them fast.

The cave system grew more complex as she further descended, but it was close enough now to let herself enter. With a plop, her and Nina were deposited into the middle of the spiders’ nest. Cave spiders acted independently, but unfortunately due to the limited space islands afforded, they often lived in communities.

Hydraulic joints gushed blood through their disgusting legs as they clicked and clacked and scraped against the stone as she appeared. Cira let the warmth of sunlight flow through her.

“Prismagora.” Cira called upon the staff that even her father trusted, “You know what to do with spiders.”

With eyes clenched shut, Cira walked over the ashen webs while they blew away on the wind generated from her sorcery. It was disturbing that she now had to consciously try not to see the spiders’ souls when her eyes perceived nothing else beyond their lids. As if the world accepted her reversion, they disappeared in short order.

I don’t like this place… But that’s all the more reason to hurry.

Just in case she accidentally opened her eyes and saw mangled carapaces wrapped in charred web, leaking caustic blood upon the grimy stone they inhabited, Cira pulled a scrap of cloth out of her pocket and wrapped it around her head.

Spatial sight was there to help her along, though she refused detail when she could. For the most part, Cira was operating on sound and the touch of her feet against the ground.

Don’t worry, Marie. I’m here.

It was unnerving to have to manually dismiss souls when she knew they were spiders. It almost defeated the purpose of closing her eyes in the first place, but if she didn’t have to look at them, it was always better. The radiant light she could clearly feel made her feel safe. No need to perceive it in any other manner.

Cira arrived in an open corridor and realized her destination was at hand. The six children ignored their incapacitated prey and backed up in fear, leaving the mother cave spider to face Cira alone. She did not shirk this duty, no. She Approached with a clickety clack as her nauseatingly bulbous abdomen weighed down the webs she trounced upon to meet her newest prey.

The arrogance of this vile creature was palpable, and against all logic, Cira pulled the cloth from her face. She did not enjoy what she saw, but that’s not what this was about. She was feeling particularly upset, and it would not be right to destroy something with hatred in her heart without staring it in the eyes.

She did not, however, consider how many eyes she would have to stare down, “Begone.”

Light radiated from her palm and they turned to ash, exoskeleton and all. The girl fell to the ground as the blew away.

“Uh… huh?” The girl spoke, having bumped her head on the way down, now that she was encased in healing light. “Wh-what happened?! Oh gods, the spiders!!—”

“Relax.” Cira assured her, “I have destroyed them.”

She had countless fang marks across her skin, and they all sealed up before her eyes. Still, this didn’t stop her from crying out.

“N-no! Get them off me!” She swatted against each wound, trying to keep the spiders from biting her again. She was no longer restrained in a pseudo-cocoon of web, wrapped up like a juicy snack. Now that Marie could move, it was not easy to come to grips with reality.

“They’re gone,” Cira tried to put a hand on her shoulder but was swatted away. Marie shrieked, scooting away on the ground only to convulse when her elbow stuck on a dab of web.

“Gahhh!! Get them off—”

Shit—Fine. Let’s be done with this.

Cira was starting to shake too, and this was the worst place she could think of to reminisce.

“Breeze Haven.” Her voice transcended space, “I have arrived.”

Cira now stood in a tranquil garden with the young Marie. The girl hyperventilated on the ground, but crisp grass seemed to calm her as she sprawled out on her back.

Her eyes took in a façade of sunlit clouds that seemed to stretch in every direction.

Now that’s interesting… Cira was indeed on Breeze Haven, but she was not beneath the real sky nor Paradise’s. It wasn’t a place she recognized, and certainly not the void for that matter. The sky seemed to comfort Marie, though Cira knew it was not real. What it was, and more importantly, why, still escaped the sorcerer. It was not the time to study, but it was a relief to call upon Breeze Haven when she needed it most. They laid here for a while.

“What… what is this place?” Still sprawled out on her back and counting golden clouds, Marie’s voice slowed as she seemed to have calmed down somewhat.

“Breeze Haven.” Cira spoke its name because she thought it was comforting in nature. “Not many get to see my home, you know.” Pirates notwithstanding.

Cira was proud, but she was also sincerely enjoying the entourage of sunrise. Or is this a bright summer sunset? The sky is so pleasant here.

“Who…” The girl finally propped herself up on her shoulder and stared at Cira, mouth agape, “Who are you?!”

This elicited a chuckle, “I am Cira. The wandering sorcerer. Your foolish husband and father commissioned me to save your foolish self.”

Shame weighed on her face as tears fell, “I… It’s all my fault… I should have known I wasn’t strong enough.”

“Confidence is a tool, a burden, and a commodity,” Cira replied, well-versed in the ways of sorcery as she was, “It can form a key, but give it too much weight and you will never turn it. Assign it too much value, and these skies will make you regret thinking it ever belonged to you.”

“Wh…what?” The girl sat bewildered in the grass as Cira summoned an apple from her garden, “Here. You must be famished.”

___

Cira decided to cook this girl breakfast, lunch, and/or dinner. The time at which this meal took place was something the sorcerer neglected to determine, for it was unimportant. Of course, it was the wiser choice to nourish her so as to allow her body to recover that which cannot be acquired through basic healing. Cira definitely thought this girl should eat by all merits, but she also wanted to spend just a few more minutes here.

Breeze Haven was great. It was her home. This place in which her and her home existed, however, was completely foreign to her. The worst part about it, though, was how familiar it felt. Nothing ever changed, while calming clouds brushed by in the soft golden light. Depending on the density of the clouds, they carried oranges and reds as well, like watercolor or a rippling lake’s shimmers.

Rarely had Cira seen anything so beautiful, and she was no closer to deciphering it by the time they finished their wormwiches.

“But Cira…” The girl spoke with trepidation, looking over her should. “I don’t know… if I can handle this… Those monsters sank their fangs into me and… and drained my blood. It was never more than an hour before one of them got hungry. It—it was torture! How am I supposed to live?!”

Tears pooled up within the gravy remnants on her empty plate.

“But you do live, do you not?” Cira’s words turned serious. “If I could confidently remove your memories of the last day, I would… but my father once refused the same demand.” Tears welled up now in Cira’s eyes, reminiscing against her will. A shudder ran through her chest, “Don’t feel too stupid… I once got myself into the same situation… You may never forget what their fangs felt like, but most days it won’t even cross your mind. I promise.”

Spiders larger than Cira’s palm were marked for death, while spiders exponentially larger were to be eradicated with conviction. This was the sorcerer’s code, as it were. Her father’s did not seem to change the larger they got past his palm, but after Cira spent a morning in a spider nest as a young girl due to her own foolish arrogance, she decided not even the long-dead gods could stop her from appending the code in this way.

It hasn’t crossed my mind in years… but why wouldn’t Dad erase my memory of it? I dare say, that was almost as bad as anything I did beneath that demon—well, maybe. Who cares if I’m exaggerating—it was terrible. Unable to move a muscle within the bindings of web while they bleed me dry… It mattered not to them how I felt, because warm blood was what they wanted.

While blood sorcery was quite powerful, Cira had always had an aversion she swore wasn’t related.

Forget it. This girl may have experienced the same ordeal… but she is alive now. That’s what matters. The spiders will never catch her again.

“You…? Were caught by the cave spiders before?” The girl asked through tears, somewhat hopeful to find a kindred spirit.

“Indeed…” Cira shook. “It was unpleasant to say the least… but I never snuck out alone at night again. If you truly wish, I can try to curse the memories away, but I would prefer not to.”

“That’s… that’s okay.” Marie gripped her chair with white knuckles, “I’ll… I’ll just try to forget…”

The two sat in silence at the table, working through the bushel of berries Cira gathered while they both ruminated on their past horrors.