〜Spider's Thought〜
Short Story
In the 2000s, there was an ominous forest in a certain place in Japan called "Hanging Suicide Forest". People who tried to develop it died one after another in mysterious circumstances. They were found several days after going missing, their neck were hanged by layers of spider thread, and turned to skeletons. A half-human, half-insect monster was captured on a security camera near the accident site, and rumors of a monster spider began to spread from there.
A tall man with scruffy beard named " Masaki Mikimoto" was in a special unit formed by the Metropolitan Police Department. He was a nature-loving man who grew up near the forest from an early age, and was a skilled sniper who was well-liked by his fellow members. He investigated the ecology of the forest even during breaks, and clicked his tongue when he saw the area that had been cut down for development.
"Ahhhhhh!"
As soon as it got dark, a scream from a member of the unit echoed from near the base. Mikimoto reacted faster than anyone else and shot the monster spider in the side. The seriously injured monster spider attacked Mikimoto, intending to kill him, but suddenly it felt a strange sense of déjà vu and relief, and left the scene without finishing it off.
Mikimoto recalled that the monster he had shot had a half-woman appearance, and that she gave off an aura that seemed to be wrapped around the forest itself, and felt a strong sense of guilt.
The monster spider hid herself well, and as she stroked the bloody wound, she remembered Mikimoto. Originally appearing half-human, she transformed into a more perfect human form and headed for the city to secure food.
Perhaps to confuse humans, her originally cute face in human form tempt many men, and they all became her food.
One day, after her wounds had healed considerably, she followed Mikimoto. He then headed for the forest, where he got into a heated argument with a contractor who was trying to resume development.
"Don't mess with me! Haven't you learned your lesson yet? We haven't even gotten rid of that creature... In the first place, it was born because you guys kept on trampling on this beautiful forest...!"
The manager brushed aside his hand as he roared.
"Your failure not to get rid of monster is bringing us so much trouble. Turn your violence towards the monster in the forest, you such a lapdog."
Hearing the man's words, Mikimoto raised his fist, but then lowered his trembling hands and entered the forest.
As he was investigating the forest's ecology and searching for clues about the monster spider, someone spoke to him from behind.
"Why do you want to protect this forest?"
Surprised by a voice that came from behind him without any sign of it, he turned around with his knife at the ready. He saw a cute woman crouched there, and hastily put his knife away.
"Sorry... I seem to have shown you our ugly argument earlier... This is the most beautiful forest in Japan. It is not a place that should be cut down because of some stupid human's ego, that's all. Who are you...?"
She opened her mouth in response to his question.
"I'm Kogane. I've always lived near this forest. I love this forest just as much as you do... oh!"
Suddenly she crouched down and closed the distance that her cheek were touching his cheek, and they were in a semi-hugging position.
"Wh-w-what's wrong?"
She held and show the viper by its neck in front of his panicked eyes.
"The vipers in this forest are highly poisonous. Go over there."
She threw the viper far away.
He was amazed at her speed and the courage she had in grabbing the viper with her bare hands, and the next moment he was laughing out loud.
"It makes sense that you've been living around here for a long time.
You saved my life. Please let me do something in return!"
Her motive of "I'm going to get close to him, the man at the center of the unit that will come to annihilate me again, and destroy the unit from the inside..."
helped her avoid realizing her true feelings of joy at being invited by a him, and her strange affection for him by herself.
...to be continued
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