Chapter 26: Legendary
After finishing the negotiation, everyone briefly described their powers without revealing much.
The spearman, Schwartz, was a Third Constellation. His attributes leaned heavily toward lightning, stacking debuffs with it. He did not disclose his Level.
The archer, Artemi, was a Second Constellation. Her abilities allowed both long-range and close-range attacks when needed. She also did not disclose her Level, prompting the rest of the squad to opt for the same silence.
But one thing was clear.
Schwartz was their strongest link, and Nuri was their weakest. Even though Nuri had supposedly shown two Imprints, his stats were those of one.
Nuri had to cover that hole up tonight, which meant a sleepless night for him.
For now, they needed to gauge this Rift’s difficulty by sampling the weakest monsters. Having a Third Constellation on their team already felt like an ill omen, but it wouldn’t hurt to hope.
At the moment, they stood at the narthex of the cathedral with little to go on but gloomy shadows and ominous webs. Even after minutes of introduction and small talks, the silence never broke.
Silence unnerved Nuri more than anything else in the world.
Grinding his teeth, Murray scanned the building. "Form up. Hugo, Schwartz, you two are up front. Diana and Art, you two are in the middle. Nuri and I will flank."
"Spear formation," Schwartz added.
"Correct."
The formation was what Nuri had expected.
Hugo was a great tank, so it made sense for him to take the front. Schwartz was also an obvious choice to lead, since he had the longest melee reach and was the most powerful Explorer there.
The other two close-range dealers protected the mage and the archer. Artemi could even leave her position to execute quick maneuvers and catch targets off guard.
"Let’s move."
At Murray’s call, the party moved deeper into the cathedral’s nave.
The further they walked, the more the air seemed to tighten around their throats with each step. The cold air, mixed with a wafting sickly-sweet smell, gave them a false sense of security, but whenever a hiss echoed through the vast hall, they were snapped back to the frightening reality.
The constant push and pull filled them with dread, even though no monsters had appeared yet.
Diana decided to break the silence. She had probably had enough of this tense atmosphere.
"Does anyone know whose cathedral this is?" Diana asked, her voice rather shaky.
"Ain’t the Pantheon’s, that’s for sure," Hugo grumbled, then spitted on the floor.
Diana shuddered, clutching her staff.
"Then, could it be..." she trailed off.
To the Pantheon’s followers, this place would quickly feel wrong, both in a divine sense and in its very appearance.
There could only be one explanation for this place of worship. Either it was an ancient cathedral from before the Labyrinth, once used by a god of the Pantheon. Or...
’Outer Gods.’
The existence of Outer Gods frightened ordinary people because they were largely unknown and shrouded in mystery. People were always afraid of the unknown. Nuri was able to withstand it because Rosaria had transferred that knowledge to him beforehand; otherwise, he might have been just as jittery as Diana.
"Do not be afraid," Schwartz reaffirmed the group. "We all know Ancient Rifts always transfer Explorers to the most dangerous of places. The moment we give in, we’ll perish. Focus on getting out here alive."
Surprisingly, Schwartz managed to calm everyone down. Maybe it was Nuri’s dubious nature, but he had expected Schwartz to be a wolf in sheep’s clothing — all smiles, but full of malicious intent.
Maybe Schwartz was just an arrogant prick, trying his best to blend in behind those smiles. Nuri had seen plenty of that as a prince. Sons and daughters of noble houses always thought they were better than everyone else, but could not express it directly because of etiquette.
[Wouldn’t that be you? You are the literal embodiment of that.]
’I’m the humblest individual in every room I enter, what are you talking about?’
[Just proved my point.]
’Focus on the matter at hand, will you? You haven’t provided me with any useful info!’
Suddenly, Hugo raised a fist, stopping everyone dead in their tracks.
"What?" Murray hastily asked.
Hugo’s gaze fixed on the end of the nave, blanketed in webs and black fog.
"Something’s up there."
Everybody tensed, not daring to take a step unless Hugo signaled. Even Schwartz had to listen to him — the only detector they had.
"Where?" Murray asked, his voice low.
"End of the hall," Hugo said, almost choking on his words. "It’s up on the altar. It’s big. It’s hella big. But I... got no clue what it is — if it’s a giant ass meatball or multiple smaller pounds clumping together."
Nuri narrowed his eyes, straining to see what had made his unserious uncle so terrified, but the depth of the nave swallowed most of the light.
"How big?" Diana whispered.
Hugo turned to her and stared as if she had asked the worst question imaginable.
"Shit, man. It’s big! I ain’t going nowhere near that."
Schwartz raised a hand.
"Lights, please."
Diana exhaled slowly, then drew up a small flame between her cupped palms. It wasn’t enough to warm a kettle, but it was enough to push back the cathedral’s sinister darkness.
The party advanced within the firelight, keeping the formation tight. Nobody wanted to step beyond the sanctuary the flame had created. And despite Hugo’s earlier statement, he still courageously led the way, knowing that each step forward would slowly reveal what hid behind the curtain of fog.
Until it did.
Hugo halted, letting out a quiet gasp.
"Holy... shit," he cursed, uncharacteristically taking a step back.
Everyone followed Hugo’s stare as soon as the light cut through the fog. As their eyes fell upon the altar, no one dared to make a sound.
Nuri froze under a massive spider.
’...What the fuck.’
It was vast — so vast that his eyes couldn’t take it all in at once.
Its abdomen was the size of a small carriage, taking up the entire platform. But it wasn’t just sitting on the slab. More than half of it had grown into the altar itself. Shell and stone had fused so seamlessly that Nuri couldn’t tell where the connective tissue began.
The body was a deep black, and it shone like wet oil. Across its chitin back, bony yellowish lumps like rosary beads sprouted in dense rows.
Four of its hind legs had withered. They no longer held the spider up. Instead, the stone had risen around their bases like pillars, bracing the massive frame against the altar.
The front four legs were immobile, and they looked just like spider’s — but a thousand times bigger.
Its head was wrapped in layers of silk, all the way down to its jaw. The silk draped down on either side like a bridal veil.
But that wasn’t the end of it all.
Nuri noticed four thick ropes of silk attached to the spider. They stretched straight up to the high ceiling, anchoring themselves to the rafters.
’What in the actual fuck?’
Then, almost simultaneously, everyone, including Nuri, lifted their heads.
Golden lettering appeared before their eyes, revealing the same four lines that took their breath away.
[You have encountered a Legendary being.]
[Feast your eyes on Its legend, for It embodies greatness.]
[She who protects the brood she will never bear, all for the God who left her behind.]
[Kethsura, Tender of the Cradle.]
