While the mercenaries were trading blows with the fist-sized spiders, a massive black shadow rushed out from the depths of the forest.
Aldric's heart skipped a beat. He shouted, "Eddie, loose arrows! Everyone else, retreat across the river!"
By now, the bundles of dry grass Yuen and Eddie prepared were piled under the trees at the forest edge.
Hearing the command, Eddie fired several fire arrows into the piles, igniting them.
Flames surged from the dry grass, catching the bushes and saplings, slowly spreading into the forest.
But it wasn't fast enough to stop the malevolent shadow.
Aldric had barely taken two steps back when the black shape burst through the firelight, its massive mandibles stabbing straight for his head.
Instinctively, Aldric raised his shield to block the sudden strike. Only then did he see the monster clearly—a giant spider as tall as a man.
Conrad, wielding his spear behind Aldric, gasped. "Gods... how can such a thing exist?"
Faced with such an unnatural monster, turning and running might seem rational.
But if they ran, they would be picked off one by one, ending up as dried corpses like the missing villagers.
Could they outrun this thing in the woods?
Aldric discarded his short sword, drew the greatsword from his back, and held his shield in one hand and the heavy blade in the other. "I'll block it! You guys find openings to attack! If we don't kill this thing, none of us leave alive!"
He slashed at the joint of the spider's leg, trying to cripple it, but the spider lifted its leg effortlessly to dodge.
Sea Serpent's Strike clanged against the spider's carapace with a dull thud. It didn't penetrate. The shell was as hard as his own Elementium plate.
Would Aldric lose?
Of course not.
This was where the battle entered Aldric's domain: the Boss Fight. He was an expert here.
"This spider is too big to fly! As long as we block its pounce, we can grind it down!"
Aldric kept moving, positioning himself in front of the spider, using his shield to deflect its mandibles. He commanded, "Conrad! Bring your shield up! Stand with me and take any hits I miss!"
Conrad didn't question. He stepped up immediately to Aldric's flank.
"Yuen, Ander! Take your spears and stand behind! Stab hard! Don't let it break through to the backline!"
"Eddie, find weak points! Eyes, throat! Kevin, watch yourself!"
Real combat wasn't like a dungeon where the boss just auto-attacked the tank.
Though grown to an impossible size, the spider still acted like a predator—cautious, striking only when sure.
In nature, when hunter meets prey, it's either a chase or a standoff followed by a sudden killing blow.
The Giant Spider calmly observed the six prey, looking for weaknesses.
When it saw an opening, it would coil its eight long legs and lunge, stabbing with its chelicerae like spears.
Aldric countered like he was fighting a spearthrower: block with the shield, then close in to hack at the body.
Every clash rang loud in the air. After every clash, Aldric shouted, "Steady! Steady!" to calm the team.
Under his protection, everyone was safe. Conrad caught the few attacks that slipped past.
But the shell was too hard. Yuen and Ander were too far back. The only effective damage came from Aldric's greatsword.
Aldric's shield was Elementium—it could block Old Gods. Conrad's was wood.
Conrad's shield had holes punched in it every time the spider struck. If they didn't kill it soon, his shield would break, and he would die.
If the pincer formation broke, the spider would bypass Aldric and slaughter the others.
Aldric put more power into his swings, hoping to kill it while they still had stamina.
Perhaps hurt by Aldric's heavy blows, the spider feinted, then suddenly lunged at Eddie, who was shooting from the back.
Eddie had no shield and no armor. One hit meant death. He threw himself to the ground.
Kevin was standing on the flank of the spider's charge. Seeing this, he gripped his sword with both hands, twisted his waist, and delivered a powerful horizontal slash to the spider's front left leg joints, severing one and wounding another.
The spider shrieked. As it tilted left, its head whipped toward Kevin. Its chelicerae stabbed into Kevin's right waist.
"KEVIN!"
Aldric threw away his shield. Gripping his greatsword, he leaped onto the spider's back. He drove the blade horizontally between the chest and abdomen segments, then used his body weight as leverage to drive it down, pinning the spider to the ground.
The Giant Spider collapsed, legs twitching, then went still.
"Kevin! Kevin!"
Seeing the monster dead, Aldric scrambled to Kevin, cradling the boy's head. "Kevin, how are you? You can't die!"
Kevin coughed blood, speaking slurredly. "Teacher... is this death?"
He gasped rapidly. "I think I see heaven... it's so dark..."
"You won't die!"
Aldric fumbled in his pouch for herbs—garlic, plantain, white thatch...
But the wound in Kevin's abdomen was massive. Herbs couldn't stop this bleeding.
"Holy Light! Fuck! Lay on Hands! Why won't it work?!"
Aldric tried futilely to channel the Light within him, but felt only emptiness.
Why? If you gave me nothing, why send me here?
Rage burned in him. Save the continent? Save Westeros?
I can't even save the person next to me! Who can I save?!
Just as despair consumed him, a faint, almost imperceptible attraction pulled at him from the spider's severed thorax.
He turned. Instinct told him there was something inside that could save Kevin.
"Kevin, wait for me. Don't die!"
He drew his dagger, knelt by the carcass, and cut open the stinking, twisted tissue of the chest cavity. He dug around inside until he pulled out a white, round, fleshy tumor.
Aldric stared at it, feeling the familiar magical fluctuation radiating from it. His body screamed that if he ate it, he could touch the power of the Sun again.
But... could he eat this raw?
He looked at the boy dying on the ground. He gritted his teeth and shoved the entire tumor into his mouth.
A vile stench assaulted his brain. For a second, Aldric almost saw heaven too.
But he suppressed the nausea, clamped his mouth shut, chewed twice, and swallowed.
Immediately, a wondrous change occurred. A cold energy, distinct from muscular strength, flooded his body like ice water. Mana. It was under his command.
He coughed and shouted, "Strip him! Wash the wound with strong wine!"
Washing wounds with alcohol was common medical knowledge in Westeros. They had prepared some.
Conrad and Ander immediately cut away Kevin's armor and clothes, pouring the potato vodka over the wound.
Washing away the blood revealed two terrifying gashes, inches long.
Aldric scrambled back to Kevin. Seeing the pale face and weak breath, confirming a spark of life remained, he placed a hand over each wound.
He looked up and prayed:
"Whoever the fuck sent me here, you take responsibility! This is my student, my partner, my link to this world!"
"Now that I have mana, let me cast Holy Light! Heal him! Or I'm never finished with you! Light protect us!"
He bowed his head, channeling the mana according to his memory. As the prayer ended, the strange energy converted into warmth, flowing out of his palms.
His hands began to glow, brilliant as the morning sun.
The wounds on Kevin's waist began to knit together visibly. When the light faded, only faint red scars remained.
By now, the sun had set behind the western mountains. A north wind blew, pushing the fire deeper into the forest.
The spiders, cut off by the fire, fell into chaos after their leader's death, turning on each other.
The smarter ones fled. Under the firelight by the riverbank, only a comatose boy and four dumbstruck men remained.
Yes, Aldric was dumbstruck too. For thirty-two chapters, he thought his strong body was his cheat.
Turns out his real cheat was chopped off a monster and eaten raw.
"Aldric... Captain... My Lord..." Eddie's dry voice broke the silence. "What... was that?"
Aldric turned, his gaze unfocused. "What was what?"
"That! That!" Ander gestured wildly. "The whoosh and the bright light!"
"Oh. Oh, that." Aldric swallowed. "That was... the grace of the Sun God, An'she..."
An'she. A god no Westerosi had ever heard of.
But no one questioned it. They knew Aldric was from the East, a land of confused faiths and many gods.
And mortals didn't question miracles they witnessed.
After a silence, Conrad suddenly grabbed Aldric's arm. "Captain! Juan! My brother! Can you help him?!"
"Juan?" Aldric frowned. "Isn't he dead?"
Resurrection... don't know if that works...
"No! He's not dead! I checked, his heart is still beating, just very slow! If you don't help, he will die!"
Right. Aldric remembered some spiders on Earth injected neurotoxins to keep prey fresh in a coma.
Aldric checked his mana. The massive heal on Kevin drained most of it, but a little remained. Enough for another spell?
"I... I'll try. No guarantees."
Aldric went to Juan's "corpse." He cupped the back of the neck and cast Cleanse and Flash of Light.
The golden light flickered briefly this time, then went out.
Aldric lowered Juan's head. "Sorry. The power I got from the spider is exhausted. I did my best."
The light in Conrad's eyes died. He forced a smile. "It's okay, Captain. It's Juan's fate..."
Suddenly, Juan's voice spoke. "Conrad... are you dead too?"
Conrad's heart stopped. He looked down to see his brother-in-law's eyes open, staring at him.
"Captain... didn't you say the power ran out?"
Aldric looked regretful. "Yes. So the wound on his neck didn't heal completely. He'll need time to recover."
Conrad looked at Aldric, then at Juan. He didn't know what to say.
Because the fire Eddie started had blocked the exit, the Investigation Team had to sleep against the cliff wall that night.
Though healed by the Holy Light, Kevin had lost too much blood and remained in a deep sleep.
His teacher stayed by his side, never leaving.
The warriors who witnessed the miracle were filled with awe. They didn't dare approach Aldric.
They whispered among themselves, discussing the grace of An'she and why Kevin's horrific wounds healed without scars.
But even whispers sound like thunder in a quiet night.
When Conrad proposed the seventh theory—that Aldric was actually a witch in disguise—and everyone agreed, Aldric couldn't take it anymore. He coughed loudly.
"Alright, everyone rest. Pick a sentry, the rest sleep. We have work tomorrow."
"Yes, Captain!"
They shut up instantly.
Tonight's battle had proven Aldric's strength.
In the army, especially in a cold weapon era, personal combat power commanded respect.
If they followed him before because he was the organizer, now they worshiped him. Why? Because he was the strongest, and he could save lives.
But even in the silence, Aldric couldn't sleep. He kept replaying the feeling of casting spells.
So this is the power of An'she? This is the power of the Holy Light?