Maschur held the rear, cutting down any spiders that tried to push through the flames from Muir's explosive rounds. The golem kept charging forward at the front.
The worst part of fighting in the narrow passage was dealing with the spider corpses.
Fortunately, Ronin still had Owl stored in his ninja tool pouch.
Whenever the number of spiders the golem had crushed reached a certain point, Ronin would activate the Fun Fun Cloth, wrap up the bodies, and drop them behind the group. It kept the path clear for the team while also creating obstacles for any spiders still chasing them.
The mercenaries were visibly surprised by the ability. It clearly belonged to the Conjuration category, which didn't match the type they had assumed Ronin belonged to based on his previous fights.
Even for a genius it was extremely difficult to master both Transmutation and Conjuration to a high level. Unless Ronin wasn't a Transmuter at all, but a Specialist.
Ronin noticed their expressions and gave a short explanation. "It's not my own ability. I borrowed the right to use it from someone else."
He didn't offer any more details. That was enough.
There was no way he was going to actually release Owl in front of them.
The mercenaries relaxed after hearing his answer, though they still looked a little embarrassed for having stared.
Ronin just smiled and let it go.
With Owl's help, they moved through the passage much faster. When they finally exited back into the three-way hall, the sound of rapid gunfire and occasional explosions reached their ears.
While they had been exploring the underground city, the spiders had apparently pushed through the passages and even broken out of the ruins entirely.
Ronin glanced toward the entrance of the right passage with concern.
"That side isn't too dangerous, at least not in the areas we've already explored," Muir said, reading his expression. "If you're worried, let Vanessa go in with you first. The rest of us will help the kingdom's soldiers deal with the spiders that got out."
Ronin nodded. "Sounds good."
Vanessa emerged from the shadows, gave Ronin a small wave, then sank back into the darkness and sped toward the right passage entrance.
Ronin flashed forward as well, no longer holding back. Any spider that got in his way was sent flying with a single punch or kick. Some died instantly from the impact. Others survived and tried to scramble back up.
Before they could rise, Nen bullets punched through their bodies.
The mercenaries were providing cover fire, making sure none of the spiders that had taken direct hits from Nen abilities had the chance to awaken Nen themselves.
These giant spiders had incredibly strong physiques. If one of them survived a Nen attack and had its aura nodes forcibly opened, there was a real chance it could develop Nen abilities—even if only through instinct. That would make it dramatically more dangerous.
The mercenary group had learned this lesson early. Any target struck by Nen had to be confirmed dead as quickly as possible.
Ronin moved fast. In moments he was nearly caught up with Vanessa.
Inside the right passage the number of spiders actually decreased. More of them seemed to be desperately trying to force their way into the middle passage instead, as if something in there smelled far more appealing than whatever waited outside.
They cleared the spiders blocking the entrance and stepped inside together.
They still ran into a few stragglers, but after several minutes the spiders disappeared completely. Instead they began encountering other explorers who had entered the passage earlier and had already cleared out most of the spiders in this section.
Ronin's arrival made them ask about the situation outside. Not everyone had the luxury of dealing with the spiders as easily as Ronin and Muir's group.
He gave them a quick summary of what was happening beyond the passage. What they chose to do with that information was up to them.
Throughout the entire conversation, Vanessa never once showed herself.
Thanks to the Sharingan, Ronin could clearly see her moving through the shadows. The others had no idea she had passed right by them.
Her Nen ability really was perfect for assassination work.
Ronin couldn't help but think it.
The two of them moved quickly and didn't give the other explorers time to ask more questions before disappearing deeper into the passage.
The people left behind exchanged glances but showed no immediate desire to head outside and join the fighting. With the kingdom's soldiers and the mercenary group already handling things, they figured it was safer to wait a little longer.
After traveling through the long passage, they arrived at an area that felt completely different from the grand underground city. This place looked more like a tomb complex.
Looking ahead, they could see countless rooms and clear signs that people had once lived here.
Vanessa stepped out of Ronin's shadow. "This was the first area we explored after we arrived. There aren't many monsters here—just traces of past inhabitants. We still don't know how the people who lived here were connected to the underground city."
She continued walking. "The rooms with the Kurta-related traces are a little farther ahead. I'll take you there now. The captain already collected everything important, but he'll show it to you once we're back outside."
Vanessa moved ahead of him. Ronin followed, his eyes scanning the rooms they passed.
Signs of heavy searching were everywhere. Since the Etoria Kingdom didn't seem particularly concerned about preserving the ruins, the people who had come here clearly had no intention of treating the site with care.
"These disturbances aren't just from our group," Vanessa added. "Some of them are much older."
Ronin thought for a moment. "Tomb robbers?"
"Yeah. The first people to discover the Mahavi Ruins were a group of grave robbers. Their greed is what released the monsters from the middle passage. When those monsters attacked the nearest town, the Etoria Kingdom finally took the ruins seriously."
As they moved deeper, the chaotic signs of looting began to thin out.
Instead, they started seeing people standing guard outside certain rooms. When the guards spotted Ronin and Vanessa, they became visibly cautious.
Once they realized the pair had no hostile intent and weren't trying to steal anything from the rooms they were protecting, the guards relaxed slightly—though they still kept a close eye on them until the two had walked past.
Some of these guards were from the same group that had entered the ruins with Ronin's team. Others had clearly been working here much earlier.
Before long, Vanessa stopped.
Two people were standing guard outside the room in front of them.
Both were wearing the familiar combat uniforms of Muir's mercenary group.