Chapter 44: The Mechanical Spider

I arrived at this large door. Its surface was covered with bumps and hollows, but I couldn’t find anything like the palm scanner from the magic cannon earlier.

I ran my hands over the door randomly.

‘Open sesame, open sesame!’ I muttered. ‘Why isn’t it working?’ I felt around quickly, but I touched every spot I could reach at my height, and the door still wouldn’t open!

‘What’s going on? Why isn’t it open yet?’ the Prince behind me said angrily.

‘Ah, I’m done for, done for…’ I blurted out in panic.

Just then, I heard a grinding noise of gears from inside the door, like a mechanism starting to move.

But I had already touched that spot a moment ago. Why did it work now?

‘Princess! I think the door is opening!’ No sooner had I spoken than the door exploded with a loud boom.

Broken stones rained down. ‘Ah! I’m dead! Dead! GG! This time I’m definitely done for!’

I was in despair, but at that moment, a familiar pulling force grabbed me.

Then I heard the wind whistling past my ears. The princess had pulled me back!

‘Damn, that speed! Too strong!’ I exclaimed without thinking, completely forgetting to play cute.

‘Wow, the princess actually saved me!’ I thought, but then she threw me against the wall with a thud.

‘Damn, I was just starting to like you!’

But then I noticed the murderous look on her face. She stared sharply at the blasted doorway and drew the longsword from her hip. ‘All soldiers, be alert! Something is coming out! Prepare defensive magic!’

‘What? Is there really an enemy behind that door? In a ruin?’

I was still hesitating when a huge laser shot out from behind the door.

I watched as the laser pierced straight through all the defensive magic arrays!

In an instant, the vigilant soldiers who had been standing in the middle of the road were reduced to just their feet, not even a drop of blood. They were instantly killed!

I stared wide-eyed in disbelief. This Blood Wolf unit… I don’t know if they were elite, but at least they were part of the capital’s garrison, under the Grand General! How could the magic arrays be so fragile!

Based on past experience, this must be triggering a boss battle.

MMP, I don’t have any abilities yet! Why am I facing a boss? Can’t a guy get a break?

‘Ah…’ I was too scared to feel scared anymore. I just sighed.

I thought, this time I’ll have to rely on the princess’s skills.

All the soldiers behind panicked and started retreating. The princess ordered, ‘What is this? A magic cannon? Everyone, fall back!’

Huh? Retreat immediately? I was just thinking I’d have to count on you, and one second later you slap me in the face by ordering a retreat?

‘Ah, run!’

‘Hurry!’

A crowd of people shouted, but then I heard the sound of a huge stone sliding in the distance.

‘No good! The rear is blocked!’

The rear is blocked? Damn it, what a stupid plot!

How could this happen?

‘Damn it! What do we do! The door can’t be broken!’ a soldier just finished saying when I saw glowing runes appear on the stone walls, ceiling, and floor of the space I was in.

The runes spread quickly across the floor like a circuit board, but many of them were Chinese characters!

‘Explosion magic, Three-Star Heaven Break!’

‘Collapse! What? Earth magic can’t be used?!’

‘Hey! What are you doing! This is underground! If it collapses, we’ll all die!’

‘Damn! It’s indestructible!’

Some soldiers argued, but it sounded like they had no way to escape.

Just as everyone was at a loss, the princess still stood before me, her face full of anger, showing no fear at all.

Is she… going to take it on alone? Was the retreat order for the soldiers to retreat?

‘What kind of behavior is this! Is this how Yun Feibai trained you!’ she yelled, then spat in disdain, ‘Tch, all of you are useless!’

At that moment, the monster that had fired the laser appeared! From behind the door crawled a giant mechanical spider, nearly filling the entire tunnel.

‘Ah, this really is a boss encounter!’

But the princess in front of me showed no fear. She quickly chanted, ‘Light’s Blessing, Water-Closing Mind Curse, Focus Stance, Wind-Walk, Light-Speed Movement, Wind’s Edge Blade, Sword Strengthening, Erosion Blade, Dragon Steel…’ Her pace quickened until I couldn’t make out the words.

‘That princess sure speaks fast, and she’s casting buffs, right? So many buffs, is she that Overlord guy?’

I watched as she and her three swords were enveloped by layers of magic arrays. I had no idea how powerful she would become, but I felt there was hope!

The mechanical spider had six metallic, saw-toothed legs. Each leg had a chainsaw. Its upper body was essentially a magic cannon, with a large crystal cannon in the center and six smaller, independently movable turrets around it, making it look like a spider with seven eyes. But calling it a spider was an understatement, it was a mobile artillery platform!

The princess finished reciting all her buffs like a mantra. She gripped her silver longsword tightly and vanished from my sight in an instant.

Then I heard a rapid sequence of metallic clashes, like a fast drumbeat.

My eyes were useless. I couldn’t see what the princess was doing at all. I only caught fluorescent trails darting all over the mechanical spider, but no human figure.

What confused me even more were the people behind me. They were just watching, same as me. Hey, that’s your country’s princess! Aren’t you going to help?

The mechanical spider seemed agitated. It thrashed wildly, and its small turrets kept spinning.

It seemed the princess was too fast for the turrets to track, so the spider didn’t attack at all; it was just being slashed by the princess.

And that wasn’t all. Large magic arrays appeared around the spider, summoning icicles, lightning, and flames that kept attacking it.

The spider was flung into the air by icicles, engulfed in flames, and then frozen in a block of ice wrapped in lightning. But within half a second, it shattered the ice.

Time passed, but the spider showed no damage at all! It kept writhing angrily.

Just as I was starting to doubt, I heard a sound like a snapping string. Then the princess retreated back to right in front of the spider.

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