Faces grew larger in the child's eyes, warped and twisted...
It seemed as if countless wails and roars rang in the child's ears...
The child's face was deathly pale.
Her whole body shook like a leaf.
"No..."
The child felt as if she were drowning.
She had almost drowned once...
The despair and anguish from that time remained fresh in her memory.
Her last memory was of her mother's worried, anxious face.
When she woke, her mother wrapped her in a tight embrace.
She was stunned for a long while.
A scorching drop landing on her neck startled her back to awareness.
So hot.
Only then did she realize her mother was crying.
She felt lost and helpless.
Then she began to cry, too.
She and her mother held each other and cried...
Afterward, her mother made her a delicious cake.
The cake's soft sweetness and her mother's smiling face melted away the fear and panic in her heart.
"No!"
The child screamed.
She thought she was screaming.
In reality, her voice came out weak and trembling.
She was so scared.
There was no way she could make herself stop being afraid.
But...
No matter how scared she was...
She didn't want her mother to become another member of the Big Spider's collection.
No...
"You're not allowed to go after Mom."
The child managed to speak with difficulty.
Her eyes brimmed with tears.
She was so small, yet so stubborn.
"Oh?"
"Why?"
"I really like your mom."
"She's my mom," the child stammered.
"I'm not giving her to you."
"Don't you have a mom?"
"Go find someone else."
"Sure."
The icy voice was full of malice.
"Find someone for me."
"Trade them for your mom."
"Ah..."
"I don't have anyone..."
The child murmured.