Chapter 125 Spider 12
When Lin Yue was little, he was as delicate and adorable as a snowball. Back then, many children in town followed him closely, as if being his friend was a great honor. Later, unnoticed, Lin Yue's relationships with his peers were thwarted by Zhao Chunhong's nitpicking and verbal abuse.
He was a man of few words. He wore a gentle, polite smile to everyone he met, regardless of whether they were offering compliments or sarcasm. His fragile heart, made of soft flesh, was coated in layers of icy mud. He kept to himself, accustomed to immersing himself in a world of his own.
The lingering emotions from past experiences faded with the spider's attack. Lin Yue was like a lone traveler in a rainstorm. Although he had nothing to shelter him from the wind and rain, he didn't care and continued forward aimlessly, not knowing where to go.
Suddenly a warm hand appeared.
As he was being bitten by the spider, in his despair and helplessness, he longed for a pair of hands to reach out and rescue him—how could he dare ask for someone to save him? With a stick or a stone, or anything else, to crush him to death? He couldn't bear the pain of his flesh being torn apart. Every second in the spider's grip, the pain between his bones, his internal organs, and his flesh trembled and tore.
But he didn't wait. Then, his body trembled, and he smelled an unfamiliar, sweet, fragrant scent. It was... it was Xu Zhao's scent.
Lin Yue's tears were like rising bubbles, one by one, bubbling out and crowding into his eye sockets, like a bubbling spring, clear and clean.
His dangling fingers curled up a few times. He carefully recalled the changes in his body. The eyeballs on his forehead were covered, and the spider legs and the belly hanging from his hips could not be hidden. His fingers were intact and looked human. He clenched his sweaty palms slightly and quietly wiped the bristles on the legs.
It's clean now.
He raised his hand tremblingly, nervously, but barely raised it halfway. The warm hand in front of him suddenly disappeared from his sight. He stared at it, somewhat unwillingly, as it picked up the dirty straw on the ground.
Xu Zhao's arms were sore from lifting the boulder yesterday. She ignored Lin Yue's resistance, saying only that she was making her position clear. She picked up the straw again and stepped on the pile of straw next to the cabin, where the stone urn was placed.
The stone urn was upside down. Stepping on it would allow her to climb to the roof. It was a bit more laborious, but that's what she did yesterday.
As he climbed up the stone jar, he said, "If you think I'm doing this for something, then understand that I need your spider silk."
Climbing with the straw was difficult, and she staggered, falling back to the ground. She stared at the scattered straw with a frustrated look. After calming herself down, she turned and stared at Lin Yue, who was half leaning against the wall, refusing to leave. Xu Zhao felt that his presence, staring at her, was affecting her movements. After all, he was a beautiful man, and being stared at directly made her feel awkward.
Xu Zhao: "Your health is the most important thing. No matter what, repairing the roof and blocking out the sunlight will be good for you."
Lin Yue leaned against the wall and bit his lower lip.
His hair, damp with sweat, faintly revealed two spider eyes hidden beneath them. They were pitch black, like a seemingly endless abyss. Xu Zhao sensed his discomfort and glanced at him briefly. Inexplicably, he felt that those two spider eyes, devoid of human emotion, felt a little… aggrieved?
strangeness.
What is there for him to feel wronged about?
After Xu Zhao finished speaking, he saw that he was still standing straight in front of him. The sunlight was shining on the boy's cold white chest, which seemed to glow fluorescently. Unconsciously, he said with a hint of urgency, "...You should go back to the house. I'll repair the roof and leave."
She stopped looking at Lin Yue and casually picked up a handful of spider silk. There were plenty of them around. She wrapped them around the thatch and hung them on the wooden spurs that jutted out from the hut. Then she set out to climb the stone jar. Before she could even get to the top, a shadow suddenly enveloped her.
Lin Yue leaned against the wall and walked over to her, his eyes still filled with tears.
Xu Zhao had been so busy for as long as she could remember, with no family, no friends, only exhaustion. She didn't understand how Lin Yue could do it, wounded all over, yet stubbornly standing before her, aggrieved and pitiful, yet resisting alienation with his attitude.
She lowered her legs from the stone jar and stood up straight with her arms folded. She didn't owe Lin Yue anything, and if he didn't need her help, there was no need to keep trying to please him.
Listen to what he says and leave.
Xu Zhao stood straight, his head tilted slightly upwards. Lin Yue's back was slightly arched, still half a head taller than Xu Zhao, but this half-head height didn't add to his imposing presence at all.
Seeing him just standing there in a daze, Xu Zhao asked, "Do you have anything to say?"
Lin Yue hummed and bit his lip: "No."
Xu Zhao was confused: "Huh?"
Lin Yue took a breath, mustering his courage, but his tone was still a little weak. Xu Zhao before him seemed like a light feather, ready to float away if he wasn't careful. The spider's terrifying and hideous legs pressed slightly closer, shortening the distance between them.
"You can take as much spider silk as you want. I'll give it to you anytime. You said you were helping me because... we're friends, not because you want anything in return."
After a pause, he finally raised his eyes. The wind blew, lifting his hair. His four bright black eyes glued to her. He was like a child asking for candy, and if he couldn't get it... he could only cry.
"We're friends. Right?"
Xu Zhao was stunned at first. Lin Yue took a few anxious steps forward, staring at her with wide eyes, afraid she would regret it and remind him, "You said it yourself. Just now. Isn't it?"
That was said so long ago. When Lin Yue didn't react, she assumed he disagreed. After all, they knew nothing except their names. She'd just casually said they were friends, not really taking it to heart. Now, being reminded of this so forcefully, she couldn't help but laugh.
"Yes. We are friends."
Xu Zhao saw Lin Yue's expression, as if a heavy burden had been lifted off his shoulders.
Not only that, his eyes slid over her palms several times.
Xu Zhao lowered his eyes, his palms covered in dust, splattered with blood, and spider slime. He hid his hands behind his back. They were now friends, and Lin Yue had brought it up himself, so he was clearly happy. So, he spoke frankly, expressing his concern: "...I've brought some medicine you've used before in your backpack. I think you're more familiar with it than I am. I also have some clothes you've worn. Please bandage the wound again. It's quite scary."
I'm really afraid that he will suddenly fall to the ground like broken porcelain, just like last night.
Lin Yue was well aware of his current physical condition. The wounds on his waist and abdomen hadn't healed yet, and even the slightest movement would draw out large amounts of blood. It was dark and cold, with dried blood all over the ground. He didn't want to go back to the house. So he stood there, staring blankly at Xu Zhao's movements.
The stone urn, upside down on the thatch, was precarious. Yesterday, Xu Zhao had easily climbed up, but that was when her arms were intact. Now, not only had her ankle been sprained, but she also had trouble lifting her arms. Even if she grasped the roof, it would be difficult to climb back up.
What else can I think of?
Lin Yue glanced at the oval belly hanging behind him. He carefully avoided Xu Zhao, fearing that the disgusting bristles would touch her and cause her disgust.
"Let me do it."
Xu Zhao refused: "Your situation is not possible."
In the sunlight, Lin Yue coughed occasionally or swayed a bit, feeling even less stable than a swaying stone jar.
Lin Yue knew his physical strength. If he recovered, he could climb to the roof himself. Or use spider silk to weave a spider web connecting the roof and the ground. Due to his physical condition, he couldn't do it at the moment, but...
"You can step on my belly."
Hmm? My belly... which belly?
Xu Zhao first glanced at his flat, thin abdomen, then at his oval, black belly covered in fluffy spider hair. A faint, sparkling blue color emerged. When it met the boy's delicate, frail waist and abdomen, it created a strange beauty.
In fact, it is not necessary to repair the roof now.
But after saying it, Xu Zhao asked him, "...Are you sure it can bear my weight?"
She showed no disgust, not even fear. Lin Yue breathed a sigh of relief, determined to prove his worth to her, that he wasn't just some monster lying on the ground waiting to die.
"Yes. My shell is harder than theirs. Even if you hit it with a stone, it will take a long time to break."
After a pause, he asked softly, "...Do you feel uncomfortable?"
Xu Zhao knew he was asking about her reaction to seeing his baby bump. Not wanting to lie, she answered honestly, "Not bad."
Then she added, "The color is beautiful. By the way, I have a question. Under what circumstances would you lose control? I mean, would you suddenly want to hunt?"
When Lin Yue woke up again, he no longer heard the spider's voice in his head. Even the force that wanted to seize his body seemed to have disappeared. But he couldn't be sure if it would appear again, or even whether he was safe.
He clenched his fingers, his eyelashes trembling, his eyes clear and pure. His lips moved, and he heard the sound of his chest beating violently, vibrating his eardrums.
"No."
Xu Zhao: "Hmm?"
Lin Yue raised his face and showed a weak and beautiful smile: "A few days ago, I became like this. I was too hungry and lost control. I won't be like this again."
Xu Zhao heard him say, "I'm sorry."
Xu Zhao: "Don't say that. You didn't hurt me. At the last moment, reason prevailed and you didn't eat me. If that were the case, if you had just filled your stomach, that wouldn't have happened."
Lin Yue clenched his fingertips and nodded.
In fact, he wasn't sure he would lose control again.
Lin Yue would never make unrealistic promises, nor would he disregard the safety of his friends.
But this is who he was before.
At this moment, he lied without being sure whether it would cause any danger to Xu Zhao.
Xu Zhao, relieved at the answer, secured the stone urn and tapped the top, beckoning Lin Yue over. Lin Yue mobilized his sturdy legs. His upper body, human, was delicate and beautiful. The spider's single eye hidden in his hair seemed like superglue, clinging to Xu Zhao's every move.
That beautiful and delicate face showed Lin Yue's usual fragile expression.
Lin Yue stood atop the stone urn, her legs gripping the wall for stability. Her large belly slumped to the ground, and Xu Zhao, after repeated inquiries, dared to step on it. It felt strange. The seemingly hard black carapace, when her soles touched it, felt like stepping on a pile of soft cotton.
From the bottom of the belly, white spider silk emerged and wrapped around her ankles, firmly pinning her to the belly.
Xu Zhao faced forward, unaware of the spider silk spitting out from the bottom, so sticky that it seemed to completely wrap around her ankles, but it suddenly stopped, and after ensuring her safety, it stopped spinning.
Lin Yue stood up straight.
Xu Zhao grabbed the roof and leaped upward with her long legs. The spider silk at her ankle broke, cascading down along her foot and landing on Lin Yue's upturned face. He reached out and gently parted the silk stained with Xu Zhao's scent, his fingertips inadvertently touching the sole of her shoe.
He made a grasping motion. Immediately, Lin Yue lowered his eyes and withdrew his hand.
Xu Zhao knelt on the roof and stretched out his hands: "Give me the thatch."
Lin Yue handed it over.
"Slower."
Xu Zhao: "It's very safe. Besides, even if you fall from this height, you'll be fine."
Lin Yue stretched out his arms and lightly supported the soles of her feet: "It will hurt."
Xu Zhao: "That's right. I'll be careful."
The hole in the roof was filled with thatch. Xu Zhao had no building skills, so she could only patch the hole with difficulty. A gust of wind could blow it over again. As she was pondering what to do, she felt a gentle tap on her ankle.
Xu Zhao turned around and looked at Lin Yue who was lying on his back.
"What's wrong."
Lin Yue's cheeks were pale and her lips were trembling. Her eyes swept over her slightly swollen ankles and her trouser legs stained with blood.
When the wind blew, Xu Zhao's kneeling position on the beam was unstable, and he swayed a few times and almost slipped down.
He stood on the ground and could do nothing to help.
"The beams of the house are unstable. It's not safe to stay here any longer. Come down."
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