Chapter 6: Elroe Frog
Watching Shirazawa eat and vomit simultaneously, Wakaba turned her head away, unable to bear the sight.
"Hey, are you alright?"
"No..."
Shirazawa gasped for air, forcing his stomach acid back down. He then painfully extended a claw, tore off a large chunk of spider meat, and handed it to Wakaba.
"You eat too. I shouldn't be the only one suffering."
Wakaba hesitated for a moment but finally chose to open her mouth and take a bite of the unappetizing spider meat. Instantly, an indescribable bitterness flooded her taste buds.
"BLEGH—"
"..."
Shirazawa sighed and tore off another piece, stuffing it into her mouth. This was a Hell Mode start; to survive, they had to swallow it no matter how foul it tasted, because not eating meant death.
*I'm so jealous of those guys who reincarnate as princes, living a blissful, dazed life of luxury, opening harems, and flirting with their best friends until the grand finale.*
*Sigh.*
*The human world really isn't worth it.*
"Mmpgh! Mmpgh!"
Wakaba struggled, wanting to spit it out, but was ultimately forced to swallow. Her mindset was starting to shift, gradually accepting the reality.
*It's just a bit gross. I'll get used to it if I endure.*
She comforted herself this way, yet tears betrayingly streamed down her face.
"Waaaah, it tastes so bad... *cough*... munch munch... *cough*... munch munch..."
Looking at the resilient little spider, Shirazawa felt a mix of emotions. A spider this tenacious—it would be a crime if she didn't become a god.
"You okay, Wakaba?"
His gentle voice rang out, causing her to look up.
"Don't look down on me. It's not bitter at all, okay?"
Wakaba puffed out her chest, striking a pose as if it were nothing. But her reddened eyes gave away her true feelings.
"Then I'll leave the remaining half to you."
Shirazawa finished speaking and turned to walk away, leaving a dumbfounded little spider behind.
"Are? (Huh?)"
She quickly called out to him, "No way, you want me to eat the whole thing?!"
Shirazawa paused, looking back with a smile. "Otherwise? Do you plan on keeping it for a midnight snack?"
"..."
She pursed her lips and went back to the "feast." Better a short pain than a long one; she didn't want to suffer through this twice.
Shirazawa didn't go far. Looking at the surrounding environment, he narrowed his eyes in thought.
"This place is well-connected, a path monsters must pass through. Let's do it here."
With that, he stuck his spider butt in the air and began to incessantly produce silk. Not long after, Wakaba finished her "dinner" and walked over. Seeing Shirazawa wiggling his butt in that ridiculous silk-spinning pose... well, social death often comes quite suddenly.
"Don't just stand there, help out."
"Uh..." "Fine, it's just a spider spinning silk, no big deal!"
She comforted herself. Although she felt a mysterious sense of shame, Wakaba soon gave up her resistance and began to learn from him.
*Thwip—*
*Thwip—*
Soon, a massive web-net appeared before them.
"Alright, this will be our new home from now on."
"Ah~ whatever, I'm so tired."
Wakaba lay lazily in the woven net, eight legs up in the air, too exhausted to move.
"Wakaba, you probably got a title and skills just now too, right?"
Shirazawa also lay with his eight legs up beside her, comfortably stretching his limbs as he asked the little spider next to him.
"Ah, I think so."
Wakaba answered lazily with her eyes closed. "Getting skills without spending Skill Points is a lot like the games I used to play. That's good news."
"I just don't know what the conditions for getting titles are. It's a real pain in the balls."
Hearing this, Shirazawa's expression became strange. After a long silence, he squeezed out a few words.
"You... don't have balls to feel pain in..."
Wakaba looked blank for a moment before it clicked.
"Can you please not make those kinds of jokes at a time like this?"
"Hahaha..."
Shirazawa laughed carefreely, earning several eye-rolls from Wakaba.
"Alright, alright, I'm done teasing you."
He sat up, his expression turning serious and solemn. "The conditions for those titles actually aren't that hard. Once your Appraisal level goes up, you'll be able to see the Skill Library."
"Is that so... By the way, how do you know all this?"
Wakaba blinked. Shirazawa shrugged. "This is common knowledge, anyone would know!"
"..."
She suddenly lost interest. "Whatever, I'm going to sleep. Today was too much, I'm beat."
"..."
Shirazawa glanced at the little spider who had gone straight into "slacker mode." He muttered to himself—she shut down the conversation so fast he didn't even know how to respond.
*Should I tell her about the effects of
*Nah, it's not like it's anything urgent. I'll tell her later.*
*I'm going to sleep too.*
And so, Shirazawa and Wakaba fell into a deep sleep, one on the left and one on the right. With the web there, it served as an early warning system, so they didn't have to worry too much about monster attacks. Besides, this was the Upper Stratum; the monsters were generally weak, so it wasn't a major issue.
When they woke up, it was already late at night. Shirazawa opened his eyes to find that the little spider had woken up at some point and was looking around warily.
"What is it, Wakaba?"
He asked curiously, only to see Wakaba pointing toward a certain spot. Following her gaze, Shirazawa noticed a commotion on one side of the web.
"Something's coming?" "Looks like a monster got caught."
He froze for a second, then his face lit up as he remembered something.
"It's Frog-Sensei."
"Who is Frog-Sensei?"
Wakaba tilted her head in confusion.
"Er, just come with me and you'll see."
Shirazawa scratched his head, not knowing how to explain, so he simply led Wakaba toward the source of the noise. Sure enough, a large blue frog was trapped in the web, struggling incessantly and letting out unwilling screeches.
[Monster]: Elroe Frog
[Level]: Lv1
[Status]
HP: 65 / 65 (
MP: 45 / 45
SP: 55 / 55 (55 / 55) *(Stamina/Endurance. If this hits zero, you die. Can be replenished with food.)*
Avg. Offensive Ability: 35
Avg. Defensive Ability: 35
Avg. Magic Ability: 28
Avg. Resistance Ability: 28
Avg. Speed Ability: 30
[Skills]:
[Passives]:
[Description]: Danger Grade E. A brightly colored frog, about one foot in length.