028 – [Kumo] – Anti-shut-in-ification

Editing/Standardisation: kubor04
Formatting/Extras: APM
Original Translation: Blastron
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It’s been a while since I defeated the snake. There’s no real way for me to measure time here in the dungeon, so I don’t really know how long it’s been. In the meantime, all I’ve really been doing is eating and sleeping. I’m still not done eating the snake, and new food keeps getting itself caught up in my webs, so I can’t really leave. I started out by thinking this was a nice little vacation, but I’m starting to get a little worried. If this keeps up, I’m going to become a shut-in again!

I’ve accidentally amassed quite a mound of monster corpses. Seriously, yeah, a mound of bodies. …heh, Yamada’s body.(TL.1) Y’know, Yamada, a dude from my class? Back in my previous life? Ah, nah, well, it’s not like that matters anymore.

What’s important is that this pile of meat just won’t stop getting taller. I have been diligently killing every single thing that gets stuck in my webs, then onto the pile it goes. Back when I was still living in my real home, I’d eat everything as soon as I caught it. Now, though, I’ve got this snake to go through, and I don’t want to start anything else until I’m done with that, so… yeah, I’m building up quite a pile.

There haven’t been any ridiculous bodybuilders who can rip through my webs like that snake did, so for the most part killing everything has been super easy. At some point, a level six monster showed up, and it certainly was strong! …It’s in the pile now, though. Well, just because you’ve got a high level doesn’t mean you’re actually strong.

I’m level nine. Going by level alone, I’m on even footing with where that snake was. But the difference in raw battle power is straight-up overwhelming. I wouldn’t even trust myself to fight some of these lower-level monsters outside of my webs!

I really think that there’s some kind of species factor that weighs much more heavily into strength than level. If I fought against a foe of a superior species, I’d be at a serious disadvantage, even if we were the same level. You’d think that the difference in level would be a good indicator of relative strength, but it really looks like it only works like that when it’s two members of the same species. To give a really extreme example, imagine if that enormous spider from back then was only level one. There’s absolutely no way I could win that fight. No matter how hard I tried, a fight against something that huge would end in a flash. I really should be thinking of the difference in level as more of a suggestion.

Now that I think about it, though, when I was fighting that snake, it might have even had a level advantage! Through sheer chance, I only encountered it after I’d put together this simple home to rest in, which is basically the only reason I was able to win. If I were to have come across it unprepared, that would have been it.

So far, three quarters of this snake have vanished into my belly. Man, should I be thinking that I got through three quarters of that enormous thing, or that I still have one more quarter to go? Hm, with the flow of monsters steadily accumulating on top of my pile, I should probably think of it as still having a quarter left.

With this much stored up, there’s a serious risk that this stuff is going to start rotting before I can get to it. I mean, I have [Rot Resistance], so eating spoiled food might not be the worst thing I could do to my stomach. Even better, if it’s just a little bit rotten, I might be able to grind up [Rot Resistance]’s level while I eat! The taste? Man, I’ve been forcing myself to choke down all this disgustingly bitter poisonous food, I’m sure I can handle a little bit of rot.

Umf. Really, I can’t leave until I’ve gone through all of this food. I think that, if I can somehow finally finish off the rest of this snake, I’ll be able to get through the rest of my stores faster than they can accumulate. Assuming, of course, that another huge monster doesn’t show up before then. Seriously, if I don’t finish this up soon, I’m going to revert back into a crazy shut-in. I may have designed this home as a temporary one, but I’ve been stuck here long enough that it’s been getting built-up almost as my previous full-scale home.

Hm? Wait, you say? Why would I strengthen my home when all that’s going to do is make it catch more monsters, you ask? Hmmmmm?

Nah. Any monster who dares lay eyes upon this fortress will almost certainly flee. My previous home had been designed to lure and catch prey, so my webs had been built out of extremely fine silk, almost impossible to see. This home, though, is built out of thick, tough threads.

Oh, what a coincidence, my webs are vibrating again. Seems like yet another thing has blundered into them. Oof. My food supplies are still increasing, aren’t they. I really didn’t think gluttony would be so troublesome.

To start with, I walk over to where my prey have been ensnared. It sure seems to be struggling a ton; have I caught another huge monster? If that’s the case then there’s no way I’m going to be finishing up my food stores anytime soon, which will lead me even further down the path of the shut-in. I was really hoping for a small one! Ugh, too much food. First world problems.

{Elro Randanel – LV 3 – failed to appraise statistics}

{Elro Randanel – LV 3 – failed to appraise statistics}

{Elro Randanel – LV 4 – failed to appraise statistics}

I caught three things this time, in one go. Ahhhhh, are these the same three that I dealt with back at my original home? Don’t tell me these all come as a set. Getting three things at the same time is definitely way more than one big thing. …In terms of meat, that is.

I tie them all up more securely, pull them out of my web, then wrap all three of them together. This kind of releasable web is a new technique I came up with over the last few days. It’s super convenient, I don’t have to painstakingly cut through each thread to get things out.

I fix up the hole real quick, then make my way back inside while dragging my bundle. Ugh, this is seriously heavy, dragging all three of them. It would have been a huge pain, but I really should have carried these things one by one.

HrrrrRRRAGH! Whew, that was heavy to the point where I’m seriously hurting. Did I strain something? My HP certainly went down. Damn it. I’m going to take it out on these jerks! Sure, this might be extremely unfair, but they’re in no position to complain!

So, then, chomp! Chomp! Chomp!

<Experience has reached the required level. Individual Small Lesser Taratect has increased from LV1 to LV2.>

<All basic attributes have increased.>

<Skill proficiency level-up bonus acquired.>

<Skill points acquired.>

<Condition satisfied. Individual Small Lesser Taratect can now evolve.>

Uh, what?

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