[Trait Acquired: Sword Spider – Organic Steel Chitin]
[Your skin can manifest the properties of the Sword Spider's bladed forelegs. Flesh can harden into razor sharp, steel like chitin capable of cutting like a forged weapon.]
[Trait Acquired: Spear Spider – Harpoon Limbs]
[Your limbs can elongate into lance like forms. Bone and chitin density increases at the limb tips, allowing high penetration thrusts and ranged impalement.]
[Trait Acquired: Shield Spider – Shell Plates]
[You can develop overlapping shell plates that manifest as scales, armor ridges, or carapace layers. Skin can thicken instantly when bracing, greatly reducing knockback and stagger.]
[Trait Acquired: Spark Spider – Kinetic Battery]
[Your body can store ambient electricity, static, or kinetic movement energy. Stored energy can be released as a powerful electrical discharge.]
[Trait Acquired: Spark Spider – Static Discharge]
[Enemies are shocked on contact. Discharge strength scales with stored energy.]
[Trait Acquired: Spitting Spider – Pressure Spit]
[Internal pressure sacs allow webbing to be expelled at high velocity. Accurate at medium range, capable of arcing shots for indirect hits. No recoil damage to the user.]
[Trait Acquired: Spitting Spider – Corrosive Web Glands]
[Dual function glands produce sticky silk infused with adjustable acid. Acid potency can be controlled for immobilization or lethal corrosion.]
[Trait Acquired: Spear/Shield/Sword Spider Body Parts]
[You may now manifest any portion of the Spear/Shield/Sword Spider's anatomy—arms, legs, or the entire physical form with perfect precision. These examples are not limiting; any part can be used.]
[Apply these traits to yourself, or store them?]
Maddy stared at the floating list, mouth slowly falling open. For a long second, her brain just… stopped.
"No way. No freaking way!"
Her heart kicked into overdrive as she read it again, slower this time. Sword limbs. Harpoon legs. Shell plates. Kinetic storage. Corrosive silk.
"I've studied and dissected so many spiders. There was even a spitting spider back on Earth but this? This is bigger. Deadlier. Upgraded. Gosh, this is amazing. I could live my dream life not just as a spider, but as a whole animal kingdom if I keep devouring other species!"
Her eyes gleamed as the realization settled in.
"This is the first time, the first species I've eaten that's even remotely Earth adjacent, and it turned into this. If a spider can become a sword, a spear, a shield…"
A slow grin spread across her face.
"Then what about other animals? Creatures that already exist on Earth but stronger here, evolved further? If I keep devouring monsters in this world… maybe I can surpass even the Dragonborn."
The thought steadied her breath.
"…And then I'll take revenge for the princess."
She looked back at the floating system text hovering in front of her face.
[Apply these traits to yourself, or store them?]
Maddy didn't hesitate.
"Apply all of them. Except the spider body parts. I don't want extra legs or spider arms popping out of my human body. Absolutely not."
She exhaled and added,
"Internal upgrades only. Armor under the skin, weapons when I need them. I'm keeping my human shape… for now."
[Response: By your command… applying all ingested traits directly to your body except spider body parts…]
Initializing…
Poof!
[Done.]
The moment the traits integrated, Maddy felt a jolt of electricity snap through her nerves. It wasn't painful; it was an awakening. Her skin felt denser, her senses sharper, and her veins throbbed with a humming warmth that made her feel like she could sprint for miles without breaking a sweat.
"Ooooh, that feeling. It's like I just chugged a gallon of high grade caffeine and my soul just hit the turbo button. I feel incredible!"
She glanced down at the bundle in her arms. The baby was out cold, his tiny chest rising and falling in a deep, post meal slumber. Despite the green spider guts staining his chin, he looked angelic—a perfect, miniature replica of the woman whose body Maddy now wore.
"Look at him… Fighting like a demon, eating like a shark, and now he's sleeping like he hasn't got a care in the world. You've definitely got your mother's face, little guy. I'll make sure you keep it."
She paused, studying him for a moment longer, then made her decision.
"An angelic face… the son of a demigod princess."
She smiled softly.
"You deserve a name fit for a prince. Sephiran. Yes. Sephiran. That will be your name."
The baby smiled in his sleep, as if he liked it.
Adjusting her hold on the child, Maddy began to walk deeper into the tunnels. As she moved, she noticed something she hadn't seen before. Floating in the air were thousands of tiny, glowing green orbs, drifting like fireflies through the dark. They were everywhere, pulsing gently.
"Hey, what are these green things? I've been seeing them ever since I got this body, but I didn't notice them when I was a worm."
[Response: These are particles of Mana, made visible by your Divine Sight. You are now perceiving the fundamental supernatural force that shapes this world and spawns its monsters.]
"Spawn monsters?"
Maddy paused, watching a cluster of orbs swirl around a stalactite.
"What do you mean by that? Like... they just pop out of thin air?"
[Response: Precisely. Mana is the source of all life here. It condenses in high concentration areas to create 'Spawn' monsters in their base forms. The creatures you have encountered—the Ogres and the Spiders are the result of myriads of evolutionary paths taken over generations.]
Maddy watched the Mana drift, a sense of awe washing over her.
"So the world itself is literally trying to grow things. It's like a giant, magical petri dish. That explains why everything here is so... extra."
She kept walking, the silence of the cave punctuated only by her footsteps. After a moment, she realized she felt a bit awkward talking to a disembodied voice in her head that didn't even have a name.
"You know calling you and just saying 'Hey' feels a bit rude. You've basically saved my life and turned me into a demigod. You need a name too."
The voice didn't respond immediately, waitng for her to continue.
"I'm going to call you… Lucy. It's short for Lucifer. In the stories back home, he was a fallen angel or a demon. Since you're helping me survive this literal hell, it fits. Plus, you have a girl's voice, so Lucy sounds way better than Lucifer."
[Response: Name 'Lucy' accepted. I shall continue to assist you, Maddy.]
"Perfect! Alright, Lucy let's find an exit before I run into anything else that wants to eat me or anything else I'm tempted to eat."
[Response: Name 'Lucy' accepted. I shall continue to assist you, Maddy.]
"Perfect! Alright, Lucy, let's find an exit before I run into anything else that wants to eat me—or anything else I'm tempted to eat."
Maddy paused, her voice becoming quiet and shy.
"Uhm… Lucy… I know this is kind of cringey to say, but I've always wanted a friend. A friend I could really talk to. Someone who would knock some sense into me when I'm not acting like myself. Can you be that friend?"
[Response: Of course, Maddy. To be honest, I was created to be your friend, but you freaked out the first time I spoke inside your head.]
"Who wouldn't, you dummy! Haha! And please… talk to me normally. You sound like a computer. I want a real conversation."
[Response: You got it.]