"Om nom—bleurgh—blarghhhh…"
Even with the fearless determination of a soldier heading to battle, there are some things that sheer willpower alone can't overcome.
The moment the monster meat entered her mouth, Shiraori felt her head spin and her stomach churn like a raging storm.
A powerful, uncontrollable urge surged from her gut upward, puffing out her cheeks.
Her mouth was sealed tight with both hands, but it was useless—her body convulsed again, blasting through her defenses.
A putrid mess of bile-colored meat and blood burst from Shiraori's mouth, laced with spider stomach acid and an indescribably hellish stench.
It was the kind of smell that made you want to ascend straight to heaven—just to escape.
"Shiro! Shiro!! Are you okay?! Hang in there!!"
C.C. quickly pinched her own nose with one hand and used the other to clamp down on Nagami's nose.
Nagami, meanwhile, rushed to the collapsed white spider, shaking her like a ragdoll.
Shiraori looked completely soulless.
What do you do when someone faints?
Pinch their philtrum!
Where's a spider's philtrum?!
No clue.
So he went for her cheeks instead~
After a split-second of consideration, Nagami's evil hands began to squish and knead Shiraori's soft, white cheeks.
It kind of felt like cuddling a really fluffy cat.
"AAAHH! WHAT THE HELL IS THIS ABOMINATION?!"
Roaring in outrage, Shiraori ignored Nagami's teasing and grabbed another Elroe Corrosion Bug.
With a mighty swing of her forelegs, she flung it across the room.
"I knew it was gonna taste awful—but this?! This is next-level disgusting!!"
"What kind of mindset did anime-me have to actually eat this stuff willingly?!"
"No kidding. Just the smell alone is enough to make you want to puke."
Nagami had curiously taken a whiff himself, and now stood with a face full of sympathy as he stared at the pitiful pink spider.
Using his Appraisal skill, he confirmed that Shiraori wasn't in any actual danger—but her HP and SP were definitely dropping.
"This stuff shouldn't exist in the real world. If I had to describe it, I'd say… it's like leaving raw garbage out in the scorching summer sun for days, then adding spoiled milk and slow-simmering the whole thing."
Shiraori rolled around on the ground like a lunatic, completely on the verge of mental collapse.
Her expression screamed, death would be preferable.
"Well, there's no choice. If you want corrosion resistance, you have to do this. Even if you evolve into the Scythe of Death, without that resistance, you'd just kill yourself."
Nagami gently patted Shiraori's small head with a warm smile.
"Alright, Shiro. Time for your meal~"
With a grin, he skewered another Corrosion Bug that was happily munching on mold.
C.C. summoned a magic circle with her pale, dainty hands. A stream of flame burst out.
Behold: Grilled Elroe Corrosion Bug!
...Not that it made much difference.
It's like grilling poop—doesn't matter how fancy the cooking technique, it's still poop.
"Hang in there, Shiro! I'll help you through this!"
Looking at the grotesque grilled bug, Shiraori gulped hard and instinctively took a step back.
Her trembling legs betrayed her nerves.
"Just think about steamed lamb, braised bear paws, roasted duck, soy-sauce chicken, spiced sausage, honeyed pork belly, smoked fish, jellyfish salad, and—"
Nagami rattled off dishes for several long minutes.
Even though she'd never seen or tasted any of them, the names alone were enough to get Shiraori drooling.
Literally.
A puddle was forming under her chin.
"…Would imagining those flavors… help me eat this easier?"
She wiped her drool-covered foreleg across her mouth.
Her usual diet? Frogs. Centipedes. Bees. Lizards.
And Nagami's military rations didn't grant any EXP.
Truly, Shiraori was living in culinary hell.
She thought back on those delicious-sounding foods and then looked down at the indescribably foul-smelling grilled bug.
Turning to her companions with a completely broken look:
(╯‵□′)╯︵┻━┻
"I CAN'T DO THIS ANYMORE!!"
But no matter how much she protested, once her HP and SP recovered, her body obediently shuffled forward.
If she wanted to evolve into a humanoid form, this was a necessary step!
With all pride abandoned, Shiraori opened her fanged jaws and chomped down hard.
And then—
"BLEURGH—URGGHH—!"
As she gagged and retched between bites, the system chimed in her ears like a divine chorus.
[Proficiency reached.]
[Skill leveled up to LV10.]
At that moment, the system's voice was the most beautiful sound in the world.
Still clutching the bug's carcass in her forelimbs, Shiraori broke down into tears.
"Eh? What's wrong?"
Seeing the spider suddenly freeze, Nagami poked her on the head, confused.
No response.
He checked the system panel—
"She maxed it out!"
"I've… burned out…"
Her eyes glazed over, and her breath was shallow.
She looked like a terminal patient who had used up every last ounce of strength just to blink.
"You really gave it your all, Shiro."
With a rare gentleness, C.C. picked up the collapsed spider and leaned her against a nearby rock.
Whether in the anime or real life, people only ever saw the goofy side of this little spider.
The danger and pain she endured was always hidden behind her silly antics and dumb jokes.
And sure, yes—she was a dumbass.
But she was also trying her absolute hardest.
Other reincarnated humans had it thousands of times easier than Shiraori.
No joke.
You see, skill points come from your soul. And in her previous life, Shiraori had been… literally just a normal little spider.
That meant she started with a pitiful 100 skill points.
Meanwhile, Shurein Sagan Anarede—aka the Hero after Shiraori becomes a god—started with 100,000 skill points.
Even the vampire girl had 75,000.
That's not just a gap—it's the difference between Nightmare Mode and God Mode with cheats.
Even your average reincarnator had way more than native residents of this world.
Why? Because after thousands of years of system cycling, most souls in this world were so worn out, they were on the verge of collapse.
But reincarnated souls? Fresh, complete, and high capacity.
Sadly, no healing skills.
But luckily, Shiraori's Auto HP Recovery skill was at a high level.
C.C., who hadn't turned off her Appraisal skill the entire time, gently stroked Shiraori's head.
Seeing the HP bar begin to rise again, she finally let out a relieved breath.
Thinking back on the past two days, even with their help, this grind had been hellish.
It made her realize just how much faith and determination anime-Shiro must have had to do this all alone.
"Alrighty! Fully recovered!!"
One second, she was limp in C.C.'s arms, barely clinging to life.
The next, she was up on her legs doing a full-on spider dance, waving her limbs around like she'd just been resurrected.
C.C.'s face twitched as she watched this ridiculous display ruin any image of elegance Shiraori might've had.
That one sliver of respect she felt earlier? Gone.
She could only sigh.
Yup. Being a dumbass truly is… a mysterious gift.
'Maybe I was overthinking it.'
"Well, now that you've recovered," Nagami said with a faintly exasperated smile, "let's start today's hunt."
The two humans walked off side by side.
"Roger that!"
Shiraori pumped her forelegs like a boxer warming up, her long, slender black-and-white legs striding forward with determined flair.