SSS-RANK: Super Extraction System-Chapter 35: [35] The Eight-Legged Knights

Chapter 35: [35] The Eight-Legged Knights
The underground canyon was vast, a cavernous void that swallowed the light. The only path forward was a single, narrow bridge made of woven silk cables, suspended over a drop that had no bottom.
At the far end of the bridge hung the Golden Nest, the Queen’s sanctum.
Blocking the way stood the Royal Guards.
They were magnificent and terrifying. Unlike the feral Weavers, these Arachne Knights were built for war.
Their lower bodies were sleek, armored spiders, while their upper torsos were humanoid, encased in natural chitin plate that looked like polished steel.
They held scythes carved from the bones of lesser monsters, serrated and dripping with green venom.
[ ANALYSIS: ACTIVE ]
[ TARGET: ARACHNE ROYAL GUARD ]
[ RANK: B (ELITE) ]
[ ABILITIES: ARMOR PLATING / HIGH SPEED / WEB BINDING ]
[ WEAKNESS: JOINTS / EYES ]
"Two of them," Rhino grunted, his cybernetic arm spinning up its internal gyro. "And a long drop on either side. Not much room to dance."
"We don’t dance," Leon said, stepping forward. "We push."
The Knights hissed in unison. It sounded like steam escaping a pipe. They raised their scythes and charged.
Despite their bulk, they moved with frightening speed, their eight legs drumming a rapid staccato on the tension bridge.
"Engage!" Leon shouted.
Wraith Squad sprang into action.
Rhino’s Front
Rhino took the lead. He didn’t have cover, so he became the cover.
He activated a switch on his cybernetic arm.
CLANK-WHIRR.
The heavy metal plating on his forearm unfolded, expanding outward like a fan. Within seconds, it formed a massive, impenetrable riot shield.
"Come and get it, ugly!" Rhino roared.
The Left Knight crashed into him.
BOOM.
The impact shook the bridge. Rhino’s boots slid backward, carving grooves into the silk cables, but he held his ground. The Knight’s scythes hammered against the, sparks flying with every hit.
"Gideon! I can’t hold him forever!" Rhino yelled, straining against the weight.
"I’ve got you!" Gideon was behind him, hands glowing with green mana.
[ ABILITY: BIO-REINFORCEMENT ]
Gideon slapped his hands onto Rhino’s back. A surge of vitality rushed into the big man, knitting his muscles, hardening his skin, and replenishing his stamina instantly.
Rhino grunted, feeling the power. "Thanks, doc!"
He shoved back with his shield, knocking the Knight off balance.
"Seraph! Now!"
High above on a rock ledge near the tunnel entrance, Seraph was already aiming. Her white rifle hummed with gathered light.
She didn’t fire bullets. She fired hard-light lances.
PEW.
A beam of pure white energy streaked down. It hit the Knight in the shoulder joint, burning through the chitin. The Knight screeched, stumbling.
"Hit confirmed," Seraph’s voice was cool over the comms. "Armor integrity at 80%."
Leon’s Front
While Rhino held the line on the left, Leon took the right.
He didn’t use a shield. He used speed.
The Right Knight lunged at him, scythe sweeping low to cut his legs off.
Leon vanished. He slid under the scythe blade as a patch of darkness, reappearing on the bridge railing. He ran along the thin cable, defying gravity.
The Knight stabbed at him.
Leon jumped. He flipped over the Knight’s head.
"Iron! Marquis!"
His two Shadow Servants materialized mid-air.
Iron, the Vampire Knight, landed heavily on the bridge. He swung his greatsword, catching the Arachne Knight’s blade in a lock. Metal shrieked against bone.
The Fallen Marquis, a wraith of smoke, floated around the Knight’s head. He didn’t attack physically. He attacked the mind.
[ ABILITY: FEAR AURA ]
The Arachne Knight flinched, its movements becoming sluggish as the Marquis whispered ancient terrors into its primitive brain.
Leon landed behind the Knight.
He drove his daggers into the creature’s back legs.
Chitin shattered. But the Knight was tough. It spun its torso 180 degrees, an impossible, sickening movement and slashed at Leon with its off-hand claw.
Leon ducked, but the tip of the claw caught his shoulder. It tore through his stealth suit and drew blood.
[ DAMAGE TAKEN: MINOR ]
[ TOXIN DETECTED ]
Leon ignored it. His body metabolized the poison instantly.
"You’re tough," Leon whispered, his eyes glowing violet. "But you’re slow."
He didn’t retreat. He pressed the attack.
[ SHADOW MANIFESTATION: CHAINS ]
He slammed his hand on the bridge. Chains of solid darkness erupted from the floor, wrapping around the Knight’s legs, pinning it down.
"Iron! The head!"
Iron roared a silent sound and brought his greatsword down.
He chopped one of the Knight’s blade-arms off.
The Knight screamed, thrashing wildly. It spat a glob of webbing at Iron, pinning the shadow servant to the floor.
It turned its attention back to Leon. It reared up, preparing to crush him with its bulk.
Leon smiled.
"Trap card," he whispered.
He activated his new skill.
[ ABILITY: EXOSKELETON ARMOR (LV. 1) ]
The shadows around him swirled and hardened. They coated his body, forming a sleek, jagged suit of black armor that mimicked the Arachne’s own chitin.
Leon didn’t dodge the crush. He caught it.
He caught the Knight’s remaining arm with his armored hands. The floor beneath him cracked, but he held.
"My turn," Leon growled.
He channeled [ Venomous Strike ] through his armor.
Black veins spread from his hands into the Knight’s arm. The chitin turned grey and brittle.
Leon twisted.
He broke the Knight’s arm like a twig.
The creature fell back, defenseless.
Leon jumped onto its chest. He ripped his daggers free and drove them into the Knight’s neck, sawing through the soft tissue.
Green blood sprayed over his black armor.
The Knight shuddered and went still.
[ TARGET ELIMINATED ]
[ EXTRACT SHADOW? ]
"Later," Leon gasped, jumping off the corpse.
He looked over at Rhino.
The big man was struggling. His shield was dented. The Left Knight was hammering him relentlessly.
"Seraph! Suppressing fire!" Leon ordered.
Seraph unleashed a rapid volley of light bolts. They peppered the Knight’s face, blinding it.
Leon sprinted across the bridge.
"Rhino! Duck!"
Rhino dropped to one knee without hesitation.
Leon used Rhino’s back as a springboard. He launched himself into the air, soaring over the giant’s head.
He landed on the Left Knight’s shoulders.
The creature thrashed, trying to throw him off.
Leon grabbed its mandibles.
"Open wide," Leon hissed.
He drove a dagger straight down its throat.
[ VENOMOUS STRIKE: INTERNAL DISCHARGE ]
He released a massive pulse of toxin directly into the creature’s organs.
The Knight seized up. It made a gurgling sound, then collapsed sideways, sliding off the bridge.
It fell into the abyss, taking Leon’s dagger with it.
"Leon!" Rhino shouted, reaching out.
Leon backflipped off the falling carcass, landing gracefully on the edge of the bridge.
He watched the Knight disappear into the darkness below.
Silence returned to the canyon.
"Clear," Leon said, breathing hard. His shadow armor dissolved into mist.
"Show off," Rhino grunted, standing up and retracting his shield. He checked his arm. "Servos are overheating. But I’m alive."
Gideon slumped against the railing. "That was too close. My mana reserves are at 40%."
Seraph rappelled down from her perch, landing lightly beside them. "Two B-Rank Elites down in under three minutes. Efficient."
She looked at Leon.
"Your summons... they are stronger than I expected. The Marquis wraith... was that Kain?"
"A piece of him," Leon admitted.
Seraph’s eyes narrowed slightly, but she nodded. "A weapon is a weapon."
Leon walked back to the corpse of the first Knight.
[ EXTRACT SHADOW? ]
"Extract."
The shadow tore free. It was a jagged, beastly thing.
[ SHADOW ESSENCE: +50 ]
He didn’t manifest it. He consumed it to refill his mana.
He looked across the bridge. The Golden Nest was right in front of them now. It was huge, pulsing with a slow, rhythmic light.
[ SYSTEM ALERT ]
[ MEMORY FRAGMENT DETECTED ]
The extraction triggered a flash in Leon’s mind.
A vision. The Arachne Queen, deep in hibernation. But her mind was active. She was projecting her thoughts... communicating.
Not with her children. With someone else.
A screen of mist. A face appeared in it. A woman with horns and eyes of burning coal. A Demonkin.
"The truce stands," the Queen hissed mentally. "When the Vessel arrives, we will break him together. The Progenitor pays well."
The vision ended.
Leon blinked, shaking his head.
"She knows," Leon whispered. "She’s not just sleeping. She’s waiting. And she has allies."
"Allies?" Rhino asked. "More spiders?"
"No," Leon said grimly. "Other Royal Shadows. They’re communicating. Organizing."
He looked at his squad.
"This isn’t just a hunt anymore. It’s a war. And the enemy is uniting against us."
"Let them come," Rhino growled, racking a fresh shell into his shotgun. "I’ve got plenty of ammo."
Leon nodded. He looked at the Golden Nest.
"Let’s go wake up the Queen," Leon said.
He stepped forward, crossing the final stretch of the bridge into the heart of the enemy’s lair.