If there was one thing Joe had learned since arriving on the second floor, it was to expect the unexpected. So while the path to the plateau was now free of enemies, Joe refused to charge in straight away. The battle's fast pace had drained him of stamina, leaving him exhausted. It was getting to the point where his Vitality could no longer keep pace with his enhanced Strength and Speed. He expected his weight didn't help either. Though he had likely lost a few pounds, the high-speed movements still placed significant pressure on his joints, making it harder to take advantage of his high stats. Joe sighed. He hated the idea of spreading his free points too thin. He was already focusing on Strength and Agility with Will being another important stat. If he had to also place stats in Vitality, he would soon fall behind on the later floors.

Putting the subject to the side for later, Joe headed back to the entrance to grab a food bar from his pack. Biting into the hard block caused Joe to wince in distaste. The flavor was terrible, tasting like a mix between cardboard and stale bread, but he still scoffed it down without complaint. It was one of the cheapest food items in the shop, providing everything his body needed to keep going except for taste. Of course, he would gladly trade it in for a burger and fries. One of the things he missed most from Earth was the food. Sure, overeating was why he had been overweight, but there was nothing better than classic comfort food after a hard day's work.

An hour later, Joe made his way unobstructed to the base of the plateau and began to climb up the rock face. Though he had no experience rock climbing, his enhanced strength made the experience as easy as walking. Eventually, he reached the top where he got a panoramic view of the whole cavern. The scene looked like something out of fantasy with the rolling luminescent grass giving the environment a serene glow. For a brief moment, Joe’s shoulders relaxed as he took a minute to take everything in.

Turning his gaze back to the plateau, Joe hefted himself up and inspected the area for any possible traps. So far, his fear of having to cut his way through thousands of spiders had proved unfounded. No other creature had appeared to block his path, making the challenge more straightforward than expected, but Joe refused to let his guard down. He doubted the heavens would create a challenge so simple, especially after the fight for the first fruit.

Unfortunately, he didn’t need to look far. At the end of the plateau, just behind the fruit bush was a naturally formed cave cut into the rock wall. The entrance looked like a gateway to an abyss, causing Joe to hold his breath as he stared into its depths..

"Yep, something is definitely waiting for me there." Joe mused with certainty.

The inside was pitch black, preventing him from seeing what was waiting inside. But, it was painfully obvious what the Tower had planned. The risks of proceeding were high, but the rewards were almost too good to give up. If he ran up and grabbed a few of the berries, he could be gone before whatever was waiting could respond.

However, Joe soon shook himself out of his stupor. Now wasn’t the time to risk it all. He could head back and continue grinding while coming up with a plan. Deciding to play it safe, Joe turned to leave.

However, the moment he turned his back, a loud screech filled the cavern, cutting through the air like nails on chalkboard. Unfortunately, whatever was waiting was already aware of his presence as out of the dark hole emerged a giant spider the size of a small car. Its carapace was midnight black with eight huge dark eyes glancing straight at him. It hooked onto the side of the hole with its spindly legs and hoisted itself out of the pitch-black interior.

Before Joe could take another step, the giant spider launched itself from the cave straight towards his position. Joe reacted instantly by jumping to the side just in time to avoid getting crushed.

Joe knew he was in trouble. The spider had jumped over 30ft without issue. An impossible feat for a being so large. He wanted to cry at the unfairness of it all, but there was no time to lament. If he had to fight, then he would. He unsheathed his sword and took a defensive position, readying to evade the next attack and launch a counter.

However, the speed of the spider was too fast. It launched another charge. This time it hit out with its front legs, managing to clip Joe in the side, flinging him toward the middle of the plateau. The hit felt like he had been punched in the gut by a wrecking ball, causing him to cough out a mouthful of saliva while clutching his stomach in pain. With one hit, Joe knew fighting was no longer an option. He needed to escape. He jumped up and launched himself toward the bush with everything he had.

The spider, not expecting Joe to race toward the treasure, let out a hair raising roar before bolting after him. The sight was truly horrifying but Joe stuck to his plan. He reached the bush and grabbed one of the berries before bolting away toward the plateaus edge on the far side.

The spider, refusing to let him leave, thundered straight towards him in order to cut him off. It caught up and slammed its front leg into his back, flinging him over to the plateau’s edge. The power behind the blow was half the strength of the Ogre. It wasn’t enough to break bones but it left him gasping for air. Fortunately, his armor had mitigated some of the damage.

Seeing its prey down, the spider strolled over, its fangs now oozing with lethal venom. Joe knew he had only two choices. Be killed by the spider or jump off the plateau. The choice was obvious. He grasped his sword and rolled off the side, screaming out as the ground rapidly approached.

The plateau was the height of a multi-story building, and Joe dropped like a rock towards the bottom. He twisted his body and braced for impact, managing to hit the ground feet first, while rolling forward to soften the blow. Pain shot up his legs as the crash caused several bones in his legs to break, but at least he had survived. Joe lay on the floor, looking down at his bloody appendages. He had a moment's respite, but he knew he couldn't relax. He began crawling through the grass towards the exit, yet the giant spider refused to let him go.

It jumped from the plateau, landing on the ground next to him. Joe gazed up incredulously at the spider with tears in his eyes. He knew he was in trouble. It let out an ear-piercing hiss before plunging its fangs deep into his torso.

The leather armor, which had protected him from wolves and goblins, was pierced through like paper. The pain of being impaled by fist-sized fangs made Joe let out a guttural cry. He knew he had messed up, so with the spider preoccupied with injecting its venom, Joe gripped the hilt of his sword and plunged the blade directly into its head.

The edge penetrated halfway through the spider's carapace, making the spider pull back and roar. But Joe knew it wouldn't be enough to take it down. He could feel the poison take effect as purple veins began to needle their way along his arms and face. With any chance of surviving looking slim, Joe opened his robe and shoved the berry into his mouth. Intent on at least gaining something from this respawn. The berry had a succulent sweet taste that filled his body with energy, helping to alleviate some of the pain. Joe tried to move his arms. However, the venom finally took effect, fully paralyzing him. All he could do now was wait for the inevitable. He sensed the spider crawl up beside him. Joe squeezed his eyes shut, bracing for the end. As though responding to his wish, the spider plunged its fangs into him again, making everything go dark.

***

Joe's mind stirred as a warm flow of energy spread around his body, waking him from his stupor. It felt comfortable, gentle, like he was back home in bed after having awoken from a good night's rest. Everything around him was dark. Where was he? Was he dead? Joe couldn't help but exhale in relief. Happy for the experience to be over. However, he couldn't help but be slightly annoyed. This time he had gambled and spent a sizable amount of DP, all for it to end in failure. He had only obtained a single berry, a pitiful achievement. Joe pondered his next steps when he noticed something was off. He was still breathing!

'What's going on. I’m alive?' Joe tried moving his hands and feet but felt them restrained for some reason. Joe eventually managed to open his eyes. The image in front of him was hazy, but his vision slowly cleared up. It was dark, but he could see webs! Spiderwebs! Suddenly the realization hit him. He'd been encased in a cocoon of webbing.

"Holy mother, I don't want to die like this." Joe's heart began palpitating rapidly. He'd prefer to respawn now than be eaten later, but the skill only activated upon death. In other words, he could only wait here for his eventual demise. He wasn't sure where the giant spider was or if it was coming back anytime soon, but he doubted he had long. Joe began to stumble around his back pocket for a knife. He had started to keep a few spare weapons on him for emergencies, and this was one such time.

Using all the strength, he could muster. Joe reached his arm behind him. The webbing was strong, but his high stats gave him some leeway to move. His hand scrambled until it finally felt the knife handle. Slowly he pulled it out from his belt, careful not to cut himself. With the blade in hand, Joe began carefully slicing at the webbing.

The threads were strong but couldn't resist a sharp blade. He repeatedly cut away until he felt the knife break through the outer cocoon. Once freed, he sliced the rest of the webbing away until finally, after twenty minutes, he had managed to free his upper body. Joe pulled the webbing off his face and examined his surroundings. He was located at the base of the plateau. As if he had been left here for a later snack. At least he wasn't attached to the ceiling. Joe took a moment to inspect his body. The puncture wounds in his stomach were still there but had miraculously begun to heal. Even the purple veins on his face and body had begun to fade.

"How is this possible?" Joe asked in shock.

Suddenly, he remembered the soothing flow of energy from eating the attribute fruit earlier. It was the only thing that made sense. He quickly checked his stats and his eyes went wide when he saw his Vitality had increased by 3 points. The berries turned out to be Vitality attribute fruits. Exactly what he needed. With no sight of the giant spider nearby, Joe carefully took out two potions from his robe and guzzled them both, helping to cure the remaining wounds on his stomach and feet. He could feel a burning sensation as the bones in his legs repaired themselves, but he kept his mind focused as he continued to cut away the rest of the webbing, eventually freeing himself completely.

It was strange that the spider hadn't returned, but Joe decided not to push his luck. He couldn't face this enemy head-on, and a frontal attack was suicide. However, that didn't mean he planned to leave. The berries were too enticing to give up. What he needed was a plan.

After sneaking back to grab his sword, Joe made his way to the cavern entrance. The entry connecting the cavern to the tunnel was relatively small in size. Big enough for a human to enter but not large enough for a giant spider. Joe breathed a sigh of relief. No matter what happened, it wouldn't be able to leave the cavern, making it the perfect attack point.

Not wanting to waste a moment, Joe grabbed his pack and returned to the forest. The sun shone high in the sky, suggesting he had been in the cavern for more than a day. He enjoyed the fresh breeze and warm sun on his face before pulling out his survivalist book and flipping to the chapters on traps. For his plan to succeed, he would need stakes, lots and lots of stakes.

***

Once again, his survivalist book proved its worth, providing multiple trap ideas he could leverage. Each was more sophisticated than the last. In the end, he had decided to go with a simple stake trap.

After two days of preparing, Joe returned to the cavern and climbed the plateau, ready to enact his suicidal plan. The crucial part of the plan was luring the spider into the trap. However, this part would be the easiest. Joe looked at the remaining red berries with a sense of trepidation. He knew the minute he grabbed them, all hell would break loose.

He took a deep breath to calm his nerves. It was now or never. He rushed up to the bush and quickly grabbed all remaining berries before stuffing them into his mouth. Whatever happened, he would make sure he got the Vitality bonus points. The screech of the spider aired through the cavern as the spider crawled out of its hole again. But this time, Joe was already on the move. He quickly climbed down the plateau using a premade rope and sprinted across the grass, each step taking him several meters in a single bound.

Seeing its target escape, the spider launched itself from the hole, slamming into the grassy ground, causing a cloud of dust to rise. Yet Joe was securely in the lead, reaching the cavern entrance only a moment later. He turned around the corner, ducked under the mass of wooden stakes, and grabbed a giant spear. The spear was the size of two people and had taken an hour of sharpening to make. Now he waited with bated breath.

The spider screeched in anger and charged with a renewed burst of speed, its legs making it move faster than a cheetah. It reached the entrance and swung around the corner. Joe smiled. The spider was moving too quickly to prevent what was about to happen. He watched the spider plunge itself straight into a wall of spikes.

Multiple tips shattered on impact, unable to break its tough carapace. Others, however, ripped into its body, causing the spider to hiss in agony. Joe used the opportunity to heft the large spear, aim it, then thrust it into its mouth. The spear tore straight through its mouth into its brain cavity, sending blood pouring out like a waterfall. The spider thrashed, causing most of the trap to break, but Joe was ready. He jumped back and started to grab rocks and spears to pelt the spider from a distance. The spider tried to crawl through the tunnel to reach him, but at this point, it was merely a waiting game.

Eventually, the thrashing and hissing subsided, leaving only the quiet echo of water and blood dripping into small puddles. Joe held a broken spear in his hand as he gazed upon the collapsed monstrosity in front of him. It took a moment for the realization to hit him. But when it did, Joe couldn’t help but laugh out loud. He had succeeded.