"Dang!"
A resounding noise—produced by the clash of rock and the hard shell of an insect—signaled the end of a fierce battle. Rocky stood up and scanned his surroundings, finding no trace of the monstrous insect. Suddenly, his leg was embraced by none other than Lylah.
"Hehehehe! You're amazing, Rocky!" Lylah exclaimed. Rocky's heart felt warm at the sight of Lylah's innocent smile. (Author's Note: Well, that's if you still have a heart, Rocky -_-//)
However, Master Sage glared at Rocky, deep in thought as if a hundred questions swirled in his mind. Seeing his master's stern expression, Lylah couldn't help but ask, "What's wrong, Master?"
Master Sage chuckled to regain his composure. "Nothing! I'm just curious about where Rocky got his fighting skills."
At that, Lylah's thoughts wandered as she inspected Rocky inquisitively. "What? Is that strange? I was used to fighting in my past life!" Rocky declared firmly, though his words came out only as a series of grinding sounds and clashing stones.
"Hmm... Perhaps it's because he is my creation! The genius of a thousand years! Hahahaha!!" Lylah roared proudly, puffing out her chest. Her exclamations were promptly met by two playful taps on her head—one from Master Sage and one from Rocky.
"Ouch! Why do you two love tapping my head so much? Waaah! You're so mean! Waaah!" Lylah's eyes welled up with tears as she let out a loud whimper. Unlike before, she now rolled on the floor.
"Grrrrr…" Amidst Master Sage and Rocky's watchful gaze, a sudden vibration and an indistinct sound—somewhere between a growl and a whisper—filled the air.
In an instant, a foreboding premonition struck both Master Sage and Rocky. Master Sage's hair stood on end as a deafening thud echoed; if Rocky still had any hair left, he would surely be in the same state.
When they turned toward the source of the noise, the area remained shrouded in darkness with only a faint light illuminating part of the room. Master Sage pointed his staff in that direction and cast a light spell.
Soon, a gigantic cocoon—as large as the room itself—was revealed. Master Sage immediately commanded a spirit of fire to burn the cocoon. Unfortunately, as the energy dwindled, the intricate webbing that formed the cocoon did not burn in the slightest; it didn't even blacken.
"Ack!... srat!" The sound of tearing followed, and a sickle-shaped leg emerged, landing right in front of Rocky and Master Sage.
"Rocky, fall back!" Master Sage's order was promptly obeyed by Rocky, who turned and hoisted Lylah onto his shoulders. Meanwhile, Master Sage drew a magic circle from his staff, which surged backward and passed through his own body. His body began glowing with a bluish-green light, and miraculously, he floated and glided toward the exit, following Rocky.
"Kyaaaaaa...." The scream of the monstrous spider resounded loudly enough to dislodge several pebbles from the ceiling.
"Hey! Rocky! Why are you carrying me upside down like that? Lower me! I'm still mad at you and Master!" Lylah protested, her cheeks puffing as she realized she was riding on Rocky's groin, her back turned.
"Lower me! Quickly, lower me now!" she struggled to break free, but then a roar—or was it a shriek?—from the spider in front made her face go pale instantly. "No! You don't have to lower me! Carry me forever, Rocky!"
Rocky and Master Sage neared the exit, but just a few meters away, a web was suddenly flung, covering the door entirely.
Rocky, who led the group, attempted to slash the web with his stone arm, but as the string met his stony hand, only a small spark erupted.
"Damn! What exactly is that spider web made of?!" Rocky fumed, frustrated by his futile effort.
"Damn! Is this web from adamantium spiders?" Master Sage groaned, instantly on alert.
"Adamantium spiders? Isn't that a bit much? Why not just iron spiders?!" Rocky and Lylah blurted out simultaneously (although only Lylah's words could be fully understood).
Master Sage nodded, "No, in truth, this is a rare spider among the iron ones… perhaps the rarest of all evolutionary anomalies. And if the spider we fought earlier was indeed an iron spider…"
"Huwa... does that mean we're lucky, Master?!" Lylah replied. Her question was swiftly answered by a smack on her bottom from Rocky.
"Smack! Watch your head! In fantasy, adamantium is the hardest metal! If this spider is truly of adamantium, attacking it will be exceedingly difficult!" grumbled Rocky.
"Ouch! Why are you like this, Rocky!" Lylah exclaimed in irritation.
Distracted, Master Sage roared, "Silence! We must find a way to either escape or destroy that spider!... It is extremely dangerous due to its unyielding body!"
Lylah, rather than complying, crossed her arms and puffed out her cheeks like a hamster with a mouthful of seeds.
"Hmp!" Lylah turned her face away, refusing to meet her master's gaze.
At that moment, the monster known as the adamantium spider was trying to break free from its cocoon—apparently using it as a platform for evolution. Observing closely, Master Sage noted, "Rocky, Lylah! We're in luck! The evolutionary process may not be complete... or perhaps only halfway done!"
"Halfway? What do you mean?" Rocky asked. Although Master Sage couldn't fully grasp Rocky's inquiry, he understood that the stony golem was questioning the incomplete formation of some parts.
"I mean, several parts of its body are still not fully formed—meaning they're soft or not as hard as adamantium. Alas, those two front legs, the sickle-shaped ones, have already formed perfectly! Damn it!"
Rocky set Lylah, now irate, aside near the door enveloped by the web, and then charged at the adamantium spider with all his might. His speed was astonishing—comparable to a cheetah or even faster—despite his stony composition. Seizing the opportunity, Rocky clenched his hand, readying his mightiest blow.
Meanwhile, the spider, still partially emerging from its cocoon, flexed its twin sickle-like legs toward Rocky. But Rocky moved with superior speed, easily dodging both strikes as the legs crashed onto the stone floor.
Capitalizing on the moment, Rocky leaped and struck the spider's forehead. "Crack!"
"Damn! That was hard!"
Alas, as Rocky grasped the spider's forehead to deliver his blow, his arm shattered instantly upon impact.
"Sling!" Almost simultaneously, the adamantium spider's sickle-like legs sliced Rocky's body into three pieces. For a moment, Rocky's consciousness drifted as he struggled to process the sudden turn of events.
"Rocky!" Lylah's cry resounded as she saw, beneath her, a gaping maw ready to swallow him whole.