I Have Tamed a Spider Monster - Chapter 196 Chapter 197, Chapter 198 (Patreon)

Awaiting Us at the Western Forest was…
"Walking on a spider's web is something you don't do every day.”

"Of course not. Normally, you'd get caught in a spider's web, not leisurely stroll on top of it,"

"Indeed. Stay vigilant. An Ice Wolf might break through this web and jump out at any moment."

Before we reached the Western Forest, Talat had been defeating the Ice Woves as they appeared.
However, once inside the forest, that approach was no longer feasible.
Instead, we started using his spider webs strung between the trees to walk above the ground.
This way, the Ice Woves couldn't break through the web and attack us, allowing us to progress safely.

"Still, it's surprising that the Ice Woves' weakness is water."

"I was surprised, too. While testing which magic would work on them, I found that they froze and became immobile with water magic."

"I've never heard of ice being weak to water. This suggests that these creatures aren't typical monsters."

"I'd love to investigate more, but time is of the essence. Let's keep moving deeper into the forest."

We consumed our meals with portable rations and continued advancing at a steady pace.
Soon, we started to notice frozen trees along the way.
This can only mean one thing...

"Dribs Golems..."

"Indeed. They seem to have been drained of their magic and frozen solid."

"Does this mean we're in a Dribs Golem habitat?"

"We'd need to investigate further to be sure, but I don't think this is their habitat. Their true habitat should be further in."

"Further in..."

"These golems likely didn't escape in time."

"To think that even Dribs Golems, which can self-destruct, were defeated without a fight."

"That shows just how troublesome these Ice Woves are. If we had conducted a proper survey, it would have taken days to reach this point. We are fortunate to have you, Lily."

"No, it's more thanks to Talat than me."

"Ah, I see. Well done, Talat. Let's move forward."

As Rumaja said, the further we went, the more Dribs Golem remains we encountered, while the number of Ice Woves wriggling beneath Talat's web increased.
Rumaja seemed convinced that the leader of these creatures was ahead, so she had us slow our pace a bit.
This was to ensure we didn't run out of stamina when a battle inevitably ensued.
As long as we stayed on Talat's web, the Ice Woves couldn't reach us.

After advancing for another two hours into the forest, we finally found our objective.
A large red orb, taller than any of us, stood before us.
It was clearly a magic stone, but its size was extraordinary.

"... So there was a cursed orb after all.”

"A cursed orb?"

"I'll explain later. We need to destroy it quickly..."

Before we could approach the magic stone, it turned completely white and began to freeze.
The ice grew larger and larger, eventually transforming into a wolf.
Its head alone was larger than my height.
What are we supposed to do now?

----------

Cursed Orb: Ice Wolf King
Suddenly, a gigantic Ice Wolf appeared in the forest.
Of course, the 2nd Knights Order outside the forest must have seen it as well, but we had more pressing concerns!

"Whoa! Watch out!"

"Damn it! It's not just attacking with its limbs and head; it's attacking with its whole body!"

We didn't have time to grasp the situation around us.
Up until now, we felt safe as long as we were on Talat's spider webs, but now we had to dodge attacks not just from the wolf's legs, jaws, and tail, but also from ice spikes extending from its entire body.
This is beyond difficult!

"Damn, even at this size, offensive magic doesn't work! Water magic slows it down, but that alone won't solve anything!"

"That's true! How about we try dousing its entire body with water?"

"Can you do that, Lily? Only you and I can use powerful water magic here."

"I'll do my best! Talat, buy us some time!"

I commanded Talat to wrap a wall of spider webs around me, shielding me from the wolf's attacks for a while.
Now, to prepare my magic!

"Haaaa!"

"Hmm? You're drawing external magic to cast your spell... What? The wolf's movements are visibly slowing."

"Lady Rumaja, what's happening?"

"Ah, I see. So that's how it's been moving this massive body. I'll prepare my magic as well! Hold on for a bit longer!"

"Y-Yes!"

It seemed Rumaja was also casting a spell.
Wait, is my magic also drawing in hers?
Rumaja, like me, could gather and use the surrounding magic.
If we combine our powers, we can unleash a powerful spell!
As I gathered more magic, I could feel the surrounding area becoming devoid of it, and the Ice Wolf's movements slowed further.
This is looking good!

"Ready, Lily?"

"Yes!"

"Then, let's go!"

Rumaja and I synchronized our water magic.
I cast a spell that unleashed a torrent of water spears from above, while Rumaja cast a spell that shredded with a water vortex.
Both spells froze on contact with the Ice Wolf, but that was enough to immobilize it.
The wolf was pinned and stopped moving.
This should secure our victory.

"... It seems we've succeeded in stopping its movement for now."

"Yes, but what should we do next?"

"Fundamentally, it should be the same as the smaller Ice Wolves. In other words, Talat's poison should work."

"So, we just need to dissolve it with Talat's poison?"

"No, we don't need to dissolve it completely. Remember the giant magic stone we saw earlier? We need to extract it from the wolf and securely wrap it in threads to carry it out. That should make the Ice Wolf disappear."

"Understood. Talat, can you do it?"

(Leave it to me. I'll handle it.)

Talat approached the frozen wolf and began to weave threads around it.
As the threads wrapped around the wolf, it started to dissolve from the points of contact.
It seemed the threads contained a special poison effective against ice.
Initially, I wondered about the purpose of a poison that only melted ice, but it proved extremely effective against ice-based monsters.
You never know what will come in handy.

After about two hours, Talat had dissolved the Ice Wolf to its core and returned with a large cocoon.
This must be the giant magic stone.

(I brought it. But this magic stone is strange.)

"Strange?"

"What's the matter, Lily?"

"Talat says the magic stone is strange."

"Well, that's..."

(The magic stone has a woman trapped inside it. What could this mean?)

"Huh? A woman is trapped inside?”

I couldn't believe Talat's words, and neither could everyone else when I repeated them.
What on earth did you bring back, Talat!?

----------

The Ways to Open the Cursed Orb
"A person inside the cursed orb…? No, we can't investigate it here. Let's return to my mansion in the Royal Capital."

"Yes, understood."

The return journey was easy.
It seemed that the Ice Wolves had devoured all the monsters, as we didn't encounter any monsters or wild animals.
Since we had defeated the giant wolf that seemed like their leader, the Ice Wolves themselves stopped appearing.
Thanks to this, we were able to exit the forest in less than half the time it took us to enter.
The problem was, the 2nd Knights Order was waiting for us at the forest's edge.

"What are you doing here!"

"What do you mean 'what are we doing'? We merely returned after defeating the monster's leader."

"The monster's leader? What's that large cocoon?"

"It's the core of the monster's leader. It's currently sealed, but if the seal is broken, it might revive. I'll be taking it with me."

"We can't allow that! This whole monster incident is the fault of the Adventurers’ Guild! All profits from the monster belong to the country! Hand over that cocoon!"

"It's absurd to claim it's our fault. It was the Kingdom's Knights Order that failed to contain the situation before it spread. Isn't the protection of the highways the Knights' job?"

"We don't care about that! It was the 3rd Knights Order that shirked their duties! The 2nd Knights Order has nothing to do with it! Hand over that cocoon immediately!"

"... There are always people who can't be reasoned with. We have no choice and no time. We'll force our way through!"

It seemed negotiations between Rumaja and the 2nd Knights Order had broken down.
When Rumaja lightly cast a fire spell, the Knights ran away.
That level of fire couldn't even take down an ogre.
Is this country okay in terms of national defense?
I'll place my hopes on the 1st Knights Order, whom I haven't seen yet.

Anyway, with the 2nd Knights Order scattering like spiders, we safely returned to the Royal Capital.
I thought we might be stopped at the city gates, but Rumaja's glare got us through.
Rumaja is really strong.

We arrived at her mansion and went to the largest room, which was the living room.
I wonder what we're going to do here.
The cocoon Talat carried was just big enough to pass through the hallways.

"... Now, I've set up a magic barrier to block external magic. Lily, can you tell Talat to unwrap the cocoon?"

"Um, is it really safe?"

"Don't worry. If it starts to revive, I'll stop it with all my power."

"Got it. Talat, please unwrap the cocoon."

As Talat unraveled the cocoon, a giant red gem emerged from inside.
It was cloudy and hard to see, but looking closely, I could make out a human figure inside, just as Talat had said.
What should we do?

"Hmm... This is troubling. It doesn't seem like something that can be destroyed by magic."

"Should we break it by force?"

"Let's not. It might affect the person inside. Besides, we don't fully understand how this Cursed Orb works, so we can't act recklessly."

Hmm, what should we do?
While everyone was pondering, Talat started tugging on my sleeve.
Does he have an idea?

(Lily, can I eat the surrounding magic stone?)

"Eat the magic stone?"

(Yeah. That way, the person inside shouldn't be affected.)

"Rumaja, Talat says he can eat the magic stone without affecting the person inside."

"... That might be our best option. Go ahead, Talat."

(Leave it to me.)

Talat, given the go-ahead, eagerly started to bite into the cursed gem.
It seemed to be made of some kind of ice, as it slowly melted and was absorbed by Talat.
This might take a while.
Rumaja decided to keep all the adventurers involved in the mission at her mansion for the time being, unsure of how the Kingdom would respond.
I'll also stay at Rumaja's mansion while Talat eats the Cursed Orb.
We also notified Marquis Vardmoi while waiting for Talat to finish.

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