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In the face of mortal danger, Parcio blurted out the entire story from beginning to end. This man had come from Flowerdance City. It was said that this period happened to be the egg-laying season of the Mother of Redflame.

The so-called Mother of Redflame was the broodmother of the Lava Spiders, a being akin to a Spider Queen. Each time she laid eggs, she could produce several thousand at once, each the size of a chicken egg. Among them, however, there would always be one special egg.

This egg did not hatch into a spider. Instead, it contained a rich essence of fire and vitality. Those who discovered it named the object “Redflame Stone.” It could be used in medicine, brewing, alchemy, and even serve as the core for energy cannons.

On the market, a single Redflame Stone could fetch around 10,000 gold coins. Of course, that was in the NPC marketplace, and even then, it was priceless and rarely available.

In Flowerdance City, someone was purchasing Redflame Stones in bulk, offering exorbitant sums or even trading rare goods in exchange.

Naturally, the thief group Parcio belonged to set their sights on the Mother of Redflame. Since it was her egg-laying period, they wasted no time. After preparing their tools, they set out for the Blackcrystal Lava Lake.

It was about half a day’s journey from Saintbloom Village if one traveled in Gray Wolf Rapid Stride state.

Fortune favored them: the Mother of Redflame was at her weakest. They snatched the Redflame Stone right before her eyes, along with a good number of lava spider eggs, which, they thought, some deranged alchemists might find useful.

Enraged, the Mother of Redflame sent nearly every lava spider swarming out of the nest. Originally, they had over fifty men, but during their frantic flight, they had exhausted nearly all their stalling devices.

More than a dozen thieves were brutally killed, bitten or burned alive without exception. As exhaustion set in, the survivors scattered and fled in panic, only to run into this dead land where aimless zombies blocked their path.

Thus began a three-sided slaughter.

“I’ve told you everything… miss, can you let me go now?” Parcio begged humbly.　　
“How do I know you’re not trying to trick me?”
“Injustice! How would I dare deceive you? Cough, cough… could you maybe take your sword away first?” he said fearfully, pointing at the shallow cut on his neck.
“Who took the Redflame Stone?” Starry ignored his pleas and pressed on.
“Goforth! That traitor!” Parcio’s face twisted with hatred. “He took the Redflame Stone and vanished. By now, he must have returned to Flowerdance City to claim his reward!” His resentment was clear and genuine.

“Forget it. I don’t have the time to deal with this. Go.” Starry sheathed the Autumn Moon Sword.
“Thank you, miss, for sparing me! Thank you!” Parcio cried in gratitude, immediately turning to run.

As expected of a thief, his sprinting speed nearly rivaled her Thousand Flash Steps.

Suddenly, Parcio spun back around. “Miss, here are two lava spider eggs for you. Just don’t spread word about this!” He reached into his clothes at the collar and pulled out two milky-white eggs, tossing them toward her.

‘Unbelievable! He had been hiding things in his clothes all along!’

Starry leapt lightly and caught the two eggs in her hand. By the time she regained her composure, Parcio had already vanished without a trace.

He must have gone into stealth…

Unlike ordinary pet eggs, this type¹ required incubation time and carried a survival chance restriction.

‘Should I use it?’

Starry already had Starmew, and her main body had the little beetle…

‘Wait… where did the beetle go!?’ Zane looked around but could not find it anywhere. ‘Had it eaten too much and died?’

He quickly opened the panel of the Sacred Scarab.

It leveled up? Even its grade had advanced from “None” to “Common.” Both vitality and strength had gained half a star. What’s going on?

At that moment, a spider stumbled forward in a strange posture…or rather, it seemed to be dragged forward. Its legs dragged across the earth, yet it should have been dead. So why was it still moving?

Starry raised her sword high, poised to strike. But before she could bring it down, the spider’s body suddenly split open from within, and a pair of sharp antennae pierced through its flesh.

‘That antenna… looks strangely familiar.’

…

‘Holy crap, aren’t those the little beetle’s horns?’

The corpse of the Lava Spider had been hollowed out completely, and from within crawled a beetle the size of a palm. Zane’s mouth twitched. What are you, a spawn?²　

***

After accepting the death match challenge, Endless Sea and FleetingDream entered the dueling map. Just like when Starry had faced another swordsman before, the arena copied the original map and positions exactly as they were.

The ground around them was littered with boulders and stone fragments, severely restricting their movement.

The two stood in silence, staring each other down. No words were exchanged, for in moments like these, talking too much would only throw one’s state of mind off balance.

FleetingDream advanced steadily, each step deliberate.

Endless Sea remained rooted in place, waiting for his opponent’s attack. Though he had learned Charge as a reward from the Forgotten Tower, it wasn’t a skill he could use recklessly. At this distance, even if he rushed in, that man would surely predict and dodge it.

“What’s wrong? Afraid to move?”

Endless Sea ignored him.

“Tch!” FleetingDream clicked his tongue. This time, he stopped walking slowly and suddenly charged forward in his battle boots!

Endless Sea pulled out the Fractured Hammer and Guardian’s Heart.

To be honest, the Fractured Hammer was only a low-grade Rare weapon, already far behind the needs of the top tier. But since equipment drop rates were abysmally low, Endless Sea had never replaced it.

With only five yards left between them, FleetingDream suddenly shouted, “Charge!”

‘What!? He has Charge too? At this range, it’s impossible to dodge!’ Endless Sea instinctively activated Guardian Shield. That way, when he took the brunt of the opening combo, he wouldn’t lose too much HP.

Yet FleetingDream stopped right there, still five yards away, watching him with a smirk.

“F̲u̲c̲k̲!” Endless Sea cursed. He hadn’t expected the guy to be this sly, calling out the skill just to bait his defenses!

Now that Guardian Shield had been wasted, once its duration ended, FleetingDream was sure to launch his assault. He couldn’t afford to just sit back! He had to use the damage reduction window to trade some HP in return!

With a sharp thought, Endless Sea triggered Charge!

**Whoosh!**

His figure blurred, shooting forward like an afterimage.

“Huh?” FleetingDream was clearly unprepared. He hadn’t thought his opponent would have Charge as well! After all, skill books dropped even less often than equipment, and obtaining one for a swordsman’s prized technique was near impossible.

The damage wasn’t bad, and FleetingDream was left stunned. Seizing the moment, Endless Sea smashed a hammer down on his head.

FleetingDream staggered, his head spinning from the blow. Such was the raw might of a heavy weapon.

‘Don’t stop! Keep going!’

Blows rained down in a messy flurry, his cloak whipping about with every swing. In the blink of an eye, nearly a third of FleetingDream’s health had vanished! Just as he was about to recover from the stun, Endless Sea followed up with a Taunt!

For the moment, his opponent could only swing clumsy basic attacks, a pattern easy to evade—just watch the lift of his arm, and the strike’s landing point was obvious. Dodging in between, Endless Sea hammered him twice more.

‘I have to admit, smashing someone with the Fractured Hammer really did feel satisfying!’