93 Years Until the Rescue Ship Arrives – Chapter 64

—————————————————————–
Translated By Arcane Translations
Translator: Mod7
—————————————————————–

◇◇◇◆◇◇◇

Five minutes earlier,

While Juho was desperately trying to reason with the AI,

“Hmm.”

Princess Arachne, sensing the deaths of the two scouts she had sent, glanced at the remaining spiders. But none met her gaze.

They were instinctively afraid.

The scent of ripe flesh emanating from the cave unnerved them.

“Two are dead. Good. This time, three of you will go.”

Arachne had commanded eight spiders.

One had been executed as an example,

Two had died trying to enter the cave,

So only five remained.

And now, she was sending three more.

“Y-Your Majesty…! Mercy!”

“Mercy? What mercy?”

Arachne smiled sweetly, emptying her teacup onto the grass. Her elegant, regal demeanor betrayed no remorse.

She had already chosen the three who would go. Or rather, she had already chosen the two who would stay.

“The three of you, go. Retrieve both males.”

Only the two most timid and obedient spiders would survive. They were too afraid to defy Arachne, and in this moment, they were simply grateful to be spared.

“B-but…”

“Go! The Queen has spoken!”

They even urged the other three forward. Arachne had chosen them for a reason. Their quick thinking and subservience were valuable assets.

She would eventually dispose of them as well, but until then, they would be useful servants.

She needed a few underlings to handle the menial tasks. That’s why she had spared these two, the most docile of her half-sisters.

“You two, wait here with me. Just in case.”

“Th-thank you… sob, thank you…”

The two remaining spiders groveled, showering Arachne with praise. They wouldn’t dare defy her.

The three chosen spiders reluctantly headed towards the cave.

If they succeeded in capturing the two males, they might survive.

But disobeying the Queen meant certain death.

They had no choice.

Choice,

Was a privilege reserved for the strong.

We all knew the outcome.

Juho and Amy had easily eliminated the three spiders.

“They’re already dead?”

Arachne smiled, pleased. Juho’s surprise seemed to be quite effective.

“Alright. Why don’t you two go prepare the bath? I’ll handle this myself.”

Her confidence was unwavering. Even after losing five of her followers, she showed no signs of fear or hesitation.

And that confidence stemmed from her sharp insight into Juho’s character.

“B-but how can we leave Your Majesty alone…?”

“Just go. You’re annoying me.”

“Yes, Your Majesty!”

The two spiders scurried away, unable to comprehend Arachne’s intentions. They were too simple, too naive.

Only Arachne, stretching and running her fingers through her hair, understood the true nature of this game.

“Hmm- ahem-”

While she wasn’t truly sad,

She let a few tears fall, following her instincts, playing the role of the heartbroken female.

Arachne had been waiting for this moment.

Tears?

That was easy.

She simply thought of something sad.

Like her dead sisters, or her parents’ dysfunctional relationship…

“…”

Having primed her emotions, she entered the cave.

“Juho.”

A thrill of anticipation, mixed with a hint of fear, ran through her.

“You always surprise me.”

She carefully surveyed the scene, trying to understand what had happened. Juho’s voice echoed in her ears.

“…Arachne, I apologize for killing your kin. But I’m sure you understand the power of the weapon I possess.”

Arachne, skilled at deception, could easily detect the underlying tension in Juho’s voice.

“Don’t try anything foolish. I don’t want to kill you, Arachne. We only want one thing. To leave in peace.”

She smelled blood. But it wasn’t the blood of her kin.

It was the scent of a male’s blood.

Arachne sensed that Juho’s companion had been injured. This was strange. She had only ordered them to capture the males…

“…”

Her mind raced. This meant that Juho’s plan had gone awry.

Where had he made a mistake?

A weapon malfunction?

That weapon, whatever it was, was clearly beyond Juho’s control. Arachne sensed another presence within the cave.

Somehow,

There was another female with him.

The female body her sisters had brought back-

It had been transformed into a weapon.

“How could you… I trusted you…”

And so, Arachne’s voice was filled with genuine hurt.

She didn’t care about the deaths of her followers. They were expendable.

But she couldn’t tolerate Juho being with another female. His affection, his heart, belonged to her, to Arachne.

“How could you do this…? You tricked me again…?”

So she stumbled into the cave,

Partly acting,

Partly driven by a deep-seated longing and possessiveness.

She wanted a different relationship, something unlike her parents’.

She wanted to bind Juho to her, to make him hers, completely,

Not with spider silk and venom like her mother,

But with something far more powerful, something inescapable…

◇◇◇◆◇◇◇

It would have been better if she had been angry.

Arachne stumbled into the cave, her appearance a picture of misery.

Her hair was disheveled, her face stained with tears. She collapsed onto the ground, sobbing like a heartbroken child.

“Just kill me. You were going to kill me anyway, weren’t you? You never loved me. I gave you everything…”

“…Arachne.”

Amy immediately began charging her pulse laser, but I stopped her, my voice sharp with anger.

“Stop! I told you not to act without my permission!”

“Doctor, but she-”

“I don’t want to hear it. Be quiet. This is my problem.”

My head throbbed. I had never anticipated this outcome.

I had simply intended,

To intimidate the spiders with Amy’s power and escape.

“You never cared about me. Not from the moment we met…”

I cautiously approached Arachne, wary of a potential trap, a sudden attack.

But seeing my approach, she sobbed even harder. Despite her sharp features and predatory aura, she was still capable of childlike emotional displays.

“Just kill me! Kill me and leave! I don’t want to live anymore. Mother, Father, my sisters… they’re all… dead…”

Her words were true.

I felt a pang of guilt, similar to what I had felt for Aria.

I had fought so desperately to survive.

But my actions had caused irreparable harm to Aria and Arachne.

“Kill me too. I won’t resist. Just kill me and leave. Then at least I can see my family again…”

Arachne knelt before me, offering her head, a gesture of complete surrender.

Damn it,

My head throbbed. All my actions, all my choices, had led to this moment.

The guilt I had suppressed, hidden beneath the relief of survival, resurfaced.

“That’s not true. Really…”

Arachne didn’t attack,

Didn’t try to take advantage of my vulnerability.

She simply buried her face in my clothes, sobbing uncontrollably. I couldn’t see her face, but I knew she was heartbroken.

The tension, the anticipation of battle, dissipated, replaced by a profound sense of shame and regret.

She hadn’t done anything wrong.

While she had initially attacked me, forcing herself on me, she had treated me with kindness ever since.

“Sigh, damn it.”

I gently stroked her hair, trying to comfort her.

I couldn’t bring myself to kill her. Perhaps Amy had been right about my weakness, my inability to make difficult choices.

“I’m not going to kill you. So please stop crying and get up…”

I tried my best to reason with her,

“And if you don’t?”

But I couldn’t meet her tearful gaze.

“You’ll leave me here, alone in this hell? Then just kill me. I’ll never be able to rebuild my kingdom. If this is what love is, I wish I had never experienced it.”

Behind me were Isaac, on the brink of death, and Amy, her face impassive,

And before me was Arachne, clinging to me, begging for death.

“So kill me.”

“May I comply with her request?”

“…Shut up, Amy.”

◇◇◇◆◇◇◇