Ten days passed.
Caelen checked his inventory every morning. And every morning, the Queen Spider Egg sat there. Quiet. Motionless. Until today.
[Queen Spider Egg: Status – Cracked]
[Estimated Hatch Time: 1 hour]
[Warning: Pet bond will form immediately upon hatching. Requires care, food, and training.]
Caelen sat on his bed, staring at the glowing message.
"A pet, huh," he murmured. "Guess I'm becoming a dad."
Zira knocked and stepped in. "What's with that face?"
"The egg's about to hatch."
She blinked. "Wait, now?"
"Yep."
She came closer, peeking over his shoulder as he pulled the egg from his inventory and placed it gently on a thick cloth. The shell was glossy black with red lines, pulsing faintly.
Caelen lit a lantern and set it nearby.
Tiny cracks began forming.
Zira squatted beside him, ears perked. "You think it'll be dangerous?"
"It's a queen spider, so… probably. But the system says it'll bond with me."
As they watched, the shell cracked further. A sliver fell off. Then another. Eight thin legs pushed out from inside, followed by a small, round body the size of a kitten.
Then came the eyes. Too many eyes.
And finally, a tiny chittering sound.
The baby spider stretched its legs, blinked all its eyes, and stumbled toward Caelen.
[Queen Spider Hatchling – Bond Formed]
[Species: Shadowweave Queenling (Rare)]
[Status: Calm / Hungry]
[Skill Inheritance: Web Creation, Wall Crawl, Danger Sense (Lv.1)]
[Passive: Silk Production – 5 per day]
[New Title: Tamer – Unlocked]
[Pet Window – Unlocked]
Caelen blinked as dozens of messages popped up.
The spider crawled into his lap and sat there like a loaf of bread, legs tucked in.
Zira stared. "It's… cute."
"I didn't expect that either," Caelen said.
He reached out slowly. The spider nuzzled his hand, then rubbed its front legs together.
[Pet Named?]
Caelen looked at Zira.
She shrugged. "You're the dad."
"...Alright. How about—Skitter?"
The spider clicked happily.
[Name Registered: Skitter]
Caelen placed Skitter in a large wooden box lined with silk scraps. He added leftover meat and some crushed berries. The spider dug into it.
Meanwhile, Zira watched with a strange expression.
"You think it'll get… huge?"
Caelen rubbed his neck. "Probably. But if it's tamed, maybe we can ride it one day."
Zira raised an eyebrow. "You want to ride a giant spider?"
He shrugged. "Might be faster than a horse."
Word spread quickly. Villagers gathered outside Caelen's house just to catch a glimpse.
"That's the queen spider's baby?"
"It's so small!"
"Can we raise one too?"
Caelen held up his hand. "This one hatched from the boss cave. It's bonded to me. I'm not sure if more eggs exist, but if we find any, we can try."
Dorgrim and Borin arrived next, both with notebooks.
"We need to study its silk," Dorgrim said. "If it grows, it might produce the strongest material we've ever seen."
"Already planning armor?" Caelen asked.
"Always," Borin said proudly.
Skitter peeked out from his box and clicked a few times.
Then it shot a thin thread across the room and yanked a berry toward its mouth.
Everyone went silent.
Garin whistled. "That thing's already smarter than half the village."
By evening, Caelen added a few new enclosures near his house. He'd constructed a spider shelter using planks, netting, and woven silk inside. Skitter wandered happily across the walls.
He checked the system window again.
[Pet Level: 1 → 2]
[Silk Production increased to 6 per day]
[New Skill: Venom Thread (Lv.1)]
Zira leaned against the doorway, watching him.
"You really take care of things," she said softly.
Caelen glanced over. "It's part of the job now."
She stepped inside, brushing her fingers over the edge of the enclosure.
"You always say that… like this is a job. But you don't have to. You just… choose to."
He looked at her, a little unsure how to respond.
Skitter jumped to the roof of the shelter and clicked three times, like laughter.
Zira smirked. "Even your pet knows I'm right."
Caelen chuckled. "Yeah, yeah."
The next day, Caelen met with Dorgrim, Borin, and some scouts at the town hall.
"We're heading deeper into the mines," Dorgrim said. "Looking for more ores, but if we find more spider nests, we'll tag them."
"Good. Let me know if you find more eggs," Caelen replied.
He held up a small jar. Inside were thin threads Skitter produced overnight.
"Try this in armor-making. It's stronger than last time."
Borin took it with wide eyes. "By the forge... This might replace iron mesh."
Villager POV – Tilo (Young Goblin/Zira liltle Brother):
Tilo had never seen a pet spider before. Especially not one that purred.
He visited Caelen's house every morning just to see it stretch its legs and eat meat. Skitter didn't mind him, and even let Tilo toss it pebbles to play with.
One day, it even made a web hammock in the corner.
Tilo stared at it and whispered, "One day I'll tame something too."
[New Dream Set – Beast Tamer Path Discovered]
His ring blinked.
He looked at it, heart pounding.
Back inside, Caelen held Skitter gently and looked into her many small eyes.
"Welcome to the family," he whispered.
Skitter responded with a gentle thread that wrapped loosely around his wrist.
[Bond Strengthened – Companion Bonus Unlocked]
[Future Evolution Path Revealed – "Shadowweaver Matron"]
[Warning: This pet must be raised with care. Neglect may cause loyalty to drop.]
Caelen closed the window and stood.
"Alright, little one. Let's build you a nest big enough for your future."