152. A solitary spider's lone journey

Clear blue sky.

Thick green trees.

Red blood gushing.

Hmm.

Out here is wonderful.

Inside the labyrinth was dark, all rock, no variation in color.

The middle layers were, in a sense, spectacular—but overwhelmingly hostile.

Now that I’m outside, seeing the blue of the sky, the green of the plants—this is the first time I’ve seen these since being born into this world.

Huh?

Blood?

I’ve seen enough of that.

There were monsters inside the labyrinth that spat green blood.

The green of that blood and the green I see now—there is no comparison in value.

Huh?

So it’s blood?

Don’t worry about it.

Just a soldier turned mosaic.

Yes.

Surrounded.

After passing the checkpoint, the next obstacle was a fortress.

Wow.

How many monsters come out of the labyrinth, anyway?

But if they're building fortresses, they must come out fairly often, right?

Well, technically, they were already built—correct.

But I destroyed them.

Hehe.

Yeah, right.

After all...

If attacked, one defends.

If the attack hits the fortress, it collapses.

See? I didn't do anything wrong.

I'm claiming innocence.

So don't come rushing in.

Honestly, these fortresses are fragile.

Alaba wouldn't suffer much damage from a spell of that strength.

Comparing them to Alaba might be unfair, but still—just a few magic strikes and it crumbles? How is that possible?

The seismic resistance is laughable.

No, probably no seismic resistance at all.

Blood from people buried beneath the collapsed fortress seeps from all sides.

Digging this up just to eat it is a hassle I can do without.

I’ve eaten enough to be full.

Nope.

Leave it be.

Level 3 has increased again. No troublemakers. Now I can finally take a relaxed stroll.

Shall I explore the outside world for the first time?

Hmm.

Which way should I go?

Beyond the fortress, there’s a fairly large road.

Following the road likely leads to a town or similar settlement.

Use spatial mobility—ascend to the upper air.

Survey the surroundings from above.

Ah.

A settlement-like structure appears ahead on the road.

Surprisingly close.

To the right, leaving the road leads to open plains.

To the left, plains continue slightly, then trees gradually increase, forming a forest.

Turning around, the plains stretch further, transition into forest, and beyond that, mountains become visible.

The passage between continents was described as a gateway, so I assumed the exit would be near the sea. Yet it appears to be inland, unexpectedly.

Beyond those distant mountains, perhaps the sea lies?

What should I do?

I’ll skip the town, for sure.

I won’t spare those who attack, but I’m not a monster who slaughters defenseless villagers.

A common resident won’t yield much experience gain anyway.

I’m interested in human food, but causing trouble here isn’t worth it.

The fortress is already destroyed—too late to turn back, I suppose. Still, dwelling on it only means losing.

So, the plain to the right, the forest to the left, or the mountains behind.

Mountains it is.

Not that they seem especially high.

Perhaps around one thousand meters in elevation.

If I cross the mountains, the sea should be on the other side. I’ll wander through for sightseeing.

Monsters not found in labyrinths might exist in mountains too.

Deer, bears, boars.

Compared to labyrinth monsters, they’d seem rather palatable, wouldn’t they?

And perhaps I could even sample mountain delicacies.

Mushrooms, fruit.

Fears of mushroom toxicity are outdated.

Thanks to the status resistance gained from the title "Overlord," I’m unaffected.

After all, I’ve merged all status resistance effects—sleep immunity included—and evolved directly into full status immunity.

Hah hah.

Whether poison is present or not, nothing is inedible to me now.

Still, are raw mushrooms even tasty?

I’d prefer to roast them, really.

Once I reach the sea, I’d like to enjoy genuine seafood.

Not those fake sea creatures found in mid-tier zones, but real fish and shellfish.

Ah, incidentally, the pufferfish—otherwise known as the Water Dragon, one of the four spirits the summoner commanded (laughably)—was, as expected, a pufferfish.

The flesh was edible, but the toxic parts were problematic.

It would have been ideal to remove the poison, but my spider body lacks the dexterity required.

If I were Arachne, my limbs would be usable—cooking might then be possible.

In my previous life, I consumed almost nothing but instant food, but I can at least manage basic cooking.

Still, that ability is still far off.

Cooking, huh.

If I learn fire magic, I could probably prepare simple dishes.

But I remain weak to fire, so acquiring fire magic requires a significant investment of skill points.

No choice.

I can’t afford to spend precious skill points solely for cooking. I’ll have to learn it gradually, observing someone else use it somewhere along the way.

Once I reach the sea, I’ll have swimming as a skill too. I can practice swimming until I acquire it.

I’d like to test how much spatial mobility functions underwater.

I probably won’t drown.

In my previous life, I was awkward with movement, so swimming wasn’t particularly good—but I wasn’t completely helpless either.

Whether spiders can swim is unknown.

But it should be fine.

Probably. Likely. Definitely.

With that in mind, let’s go.

Full of resolve, I set out.

Destination: the bounty of mountain and sea!