Spider 22:
Three times.
I have run away at full speed three times now in this new life.
First, from my new family in this world, who were eating each other.
Second, from the Humans who raided my home with my weakness, fire.
And finally, I have just ran away from an army of centipedes called ????? ??????s.
That was freaking terrifying, please don't tell me I am traumatised by that, I don't need panic attacks getting in my way in more serious situations.
Or worse, in front of other people who will then make fun of me!
No no no, I can't be scared! Nai wa!
Inner Critic: Oh really, Hiiro?
Don't sass me, Inner Critic!
I mean, running away was the right choice, but not because I was scared! Okay?!
Whew...
So, let's review what actually happened.
I resumed my exploration of the labyrinth and soon came across a new enemy, an ????? ??????, which looks like a centipede.
It was looking the other way, and when I had Appraisal-san appraise it, she failed.
I got the species name, but it didn't show me the centipede's Level.
Having long since given up on head-to-head combat, I instead launched a surprise attack.
I sneaked up before it and wrapped it in threads before it could do anything.
It was such a total victory I was almost disappointed with the ease of it.
Not that I am going to complain, not after some nerve racking encounters with other Monsters.
Anyway, it was gross to eat like everything else and I felt stiff after eating, more on that later.
Then Appraisal-san hit LV4, and I think I should mention that the drunk feeling, or at least I think that's what being drunk feels like since I have never actually drank alcohol before, whenever I appraise something is more or less gone now.
In case you are wondering, no, the reason I did so poorly against the frog is not because I had Appraisal-san active.
I turned it off when I was fighting, don't assume I'm that dumb!
Inner Critic: You are though, Hiiro.
Am not!
Anyway, the new features are the HP, MP, SP and EP bars, those are health, magic power, stamina and energy respectively.
Since I no longer feel dizzy when Appraisal-san is working, I have her keep my own appraisal result on all the time since then to see my resource bars.
I then saw another centipede and got super excited at the prospect that I would be able to see my opponents' HP, MP, SP and EP.
But as you would expect from my luck, Appraisal-san failed me yet again.
I was so mad at the time that I failed to notice the appraisal result showed the centipede's Level, which was 2.
Looking back now, I wonder why Appraisal-san failed?
I was LV6 then so it couldn't be the Level difference, right?
Yeah, I have absolutely no idea on that one, hopefully it won't matter at all at higher Levels.
Back to it, the centipede was looking in my direction but didn't notice me.
I am guessing those things have poor eyesight, lucky break.
So I climbed onto the ceiling, positioned myself directly above the centipede and attached a thread to the ceiling as I used it to descend on the ignorant fool.
Once I was close enough, I leaped onto my prey.
The centipede panicked as I wrapped it up and bit it to death.
I then got [Paralysis Resistance] from eating, thus explaining the stiff feeling I got from eating the centipedes, it was Paralysis, which is probably what they apply to their prey, good thing they never got the jump on me then...kind of.
After the meal, I realised the EP bar was refilled by a bit, and I ran around to test my theory on the SP bar.
The SP bar emptied quickly and I felt exhausted...and my stomach hurt.
Inner Critic: How stupid can you get, Hiiro? Everyone knows it's a bad idea to run around right after eating a meal. What good is your knowledge from when you were a Human when you keep forgetting to use them?
I know, Inner Critic. Nai wa...
Moving on, thanks to that experiment, I now know the SP bar is my immediate energy that recovers quickly on its own while the EP bar is my total energy that can only be recovered by eating stuff.
But wait, what about thirst? I don't remember feeling thirsty, or having ever drank water in this new life.
Do the Monsters I have eaten contain enough water for me?
Actually, I don't remember seeing any source of water around here at all.
Huh, we don't need water to survive? I guess that's just how things work here.
Benefits of...magic or whatever, I guess.
After catching my breath, I kind of went on a rampage killing and eating many centipedes and forgetting to make gravesilks for them until later.
Levelled up to 7 on my third kill.
Got the [Stealth] Skill from my fourth kill.
Acquired the [Assassin] Title on the fifth kill and got [Stealth] and [Shadow Magic] from it.
From my sixth kill, I got the [Monster Slayer] Title and acquired [Strength] and [Solidity] from it.
And finally, I got the Skill [Overeating] on my seventh kill.
I...um...overreacted, thinking the Divine Voice called me fat.
But at least that snapped me out of my mindless killing and eating spree so I can actually take a proper look at what I got.
Just so we're clear, I was never fat, okay?! Nai wa!
Inner Critic: Insecure much, Hiiro?
Oh shut up, Inner Critic!
Despite how little I exercised, I was skinny as a skeleton, except for my legs.
They were just perfectly, sexily slim, and were the only part of my Human body I was proud of.
Eh? They were so weak they could break horrifically at any moment?
Pfft, who cares about that? I was living in a safe environment back then.
Though I suppose all of that no longer applies with this spider body and dangerous labyrinth.
Nai wa...
Anyway, I began experimenting with using my web as I hunted more centipedes.
In the end though, the only practical technique I developed is my Mobile Web.
A net I make before heading into battle, carried by my two front legs.
It simply allows me to use thread without making it mid battle from my butt.
Then the incident occurs.
I found a large hole in the ground.
When Appraisal-san checked what's inside, I got hit by an overload of results.
My brain was bombarded with so many < ????? ?????? LV2 Status: Appraisal Failed >s from Appraisal-san I almost fainted.
Talk about spam, just like that time with the wolves, deers and other Monsters before I made my first home.
Good thing I didn't, because I soon realised after recovering from that massive headache that an army of centipedes was looking at me.
I obviously booked it, but not because I was scared! Okay?!
Everyone knows you can't win when you are severely outnumbered, duh!
They chased me for a long time, but I eventually outran them.
I got carried away killing weakings, got complacent and almost died to them.
Makes sense when you think about it, they swarm their enemies, paralysing them before eating them alive.
That's how they get away with being so weak on their own, because they normally worked together in massive numbers.
But what about us spiders?! Why can't my kind work together too?!
I remember there existing species of spiders that form colonies and share a web fortress of sorts.
Why must my kind kill and eat each other?! We are supposed to be a family!
How come in both lives I end up in a bad family?!
Nai wa! Sigh...
Now that I think about it, am I actually pretty fast?
I mean, I'd always been fast in my past life, I just didn't have the ability to last more than a few seconds of top speed running.
Inner Critic: You do realise you barely got away from the centipede army right, Hiiro?
Yeah, I shouldn't get too excited or ahead of myself.
What else? Oh right!
Appraisal-san reached LV5 when I appraised the centipede army.
What new features did you get, my gal?
Appraisal-san: < Smaller Lesser ???????? LV7 Nameless Status: Weak >
"Shut the hell up, Appraisal-san! Who are you calling weak?! That's my job!"
Inner Critic: My job actually, Hiiro.
"Can it, Inner Critic! And how the heck is status supposed to be useful with how vague it is, huh?! At least tell me how exactly I am weak so I can actually get a clue on what to work on! Huff...huff..."
Inner Critic: Okay, calm down there, Hiiro.
Yeah, you're right, thanks.
I mean sure, I'm weak.
But it all boils down to how you fight, y'know?
Like how low tier characters can still get results in the hands of good players.
I just have to compensate for my lack of strength with raw skill.
So let's see, my character is geared towards speed, has traps and damage over time.
If I can ambush my opponents and restrain them in webs, I basically win immediately.
And if that doesn't work, I will stay evasive with my speed while looking for an opportunity to web them up with traps and reads.
Yes, finally, I have figured out my fighting style.
It's not flashy, it might even seem cheap, but winning is all that matters in a game of survival of the fittest.
If only I had a way to apply that d.o.t safely before I restrain my enemies, which otherwise makes having d.o.t pointless right now.
If I could, then I can wither down my opponents, slowing them down and making it easier to restrain them, thus winning more easily.
As it stands, I don't see how d.o.t can be incorporated into my playstyle.
Still, I am so glad to have made some real progress.
Maybe one day, I really can erase 'defeat' from my vocabulary, heh.
But for now, I shall sleep, I am utterly exhausted from running away from those centipedes.
Inner Critic: Good night, Hiiro.
Zzzzzzzzz-Eh!?
Why do I suddenly feel like I am in grave danger!?