Arthur took a step back and curled into himself, staring at the empty corridor with intense nervousness as part of his act. He waited for her response.
In truth, he wasn't lying; he really couldn't use the skill, and more importantly, he didn't understand why the System wasn't working.
Because of their bond, the spider-woman sensed his sincerity and fear. However, she didn't withdraw her domineering aura. On the contrary, the pressure emanating from her increased, as she noticed he wasn't telling the whole truth.
Inside her cocoon, she furrowed her brow in confusion and scanned his body from the inside using her webs, searching for anything unnatural. But this only added to her bewilderment regarding him.
'This makes no sense. I have examined him several times over the past few days, and he looks like any other ordinary wolf. I don't understand why he is so intelligent and cunning.
Is it because of a superior Bloodline? No, that alone isn't enough; his Rank is too low, and he hasn't awakened his Primal Core yet. And why isn't his skill working? He isn't lying about that, at least.'
Her concern didn't stem from nothing. During the short time they had spent together, she had tracked his movements and monitored his actions with extreme care.
Arthur didn't know this, but she actually knew everything he had done. She had seen how he hunted the crocodile in an illogical way, how he exploited the chaos to hunt the buffaloes, how he was intentionally testing her, and she even knew that he was acting the entire time.
She let out a long sigh, feeling the mental prowess she took pride in become utterly useless.
No matter how much she thought about it, she couldn't find any logical answer to explain his strangeness and uniqueness, and this wasn't something she could simply ignore.
Her inability to see through him completely, despite the vast gap in their Ranks, could only mean a few things—and every single one of them was worse than the last.
Naturally, she could have simply eaten him and rid herself of this exhausting nuisance. Yet she couldn't bring herself to do it. Her awareness of just how different he was only fueled her curiosity.
Deep down, she felt challenged, and she wanted to uncover his truth no matter what it turned out to be.
'There's no point in thinking about this any further. Only time can reveal everything. For now, all I can do is observe.'
The Spider Woman shook her head in frustration and stopped bothering herself with probing his secrets—at least not during her recovery period.
Once she regained her composure, she shifted her focus to the second issue that had been bothering her as well: his inability to use his storage Skill. Fortunately, this time, she wasn't completely in the dark.
When she had examined his body earlier, she had noticed that he was burdened with severe internal injuries that hadn't fully healed yet, and that gave her a fairly clear idea of what had happened.
Lost in her thoughts, she remained silent for a long time. Her oppressive aura continued to crush Arthur, making his tension spike.
He stopped acting altogether, real fear filled his mind, and his genuine emotions and intentions began to leak out.
'Damn it, why is she staying silent like this? Did she realize I'm lying? Is she thinking about how to deal with me right now? Tsk, this bi.. no, stop.
I can't show hostility. She's clearly watching me. Maybe she's doing this on purpose, trying to push me into revealing what I'm thinking.'
He didn't need any proof to validate his suspicions. He had always treated her with extreme caution, viewing her as a being of superior intelligence.
So he quickly regained his composure, emptied his mind of everything, and put on a stupid, harmless expression.
The sudden shift in his emotions caught her attention and broke her train of thought. After a short while, she finally withdrew her oppressive aura and spoke.
" So you can't use the Skill, and you don't even feel it anymore. Is that correct?"
The disappearance of the pressure, along with her voice echoing inside his head, brought Arthur a bit of relief. He answered immediately.
" Yes. I'm not lying. I really can't use it, and I don't know why. Is there something wrong with my body?"
Once again, the Spider Woman fell silent for a brief moment, then replied—this time in a calm voice.
" I don't know. But judging by your physical condition, your Primal Core might be damaged."
She let out a faint laugh, filled with mockery.
" If that's true, then you're in serious trouble."
'Primal Core?'
Arthur was stunned, confusion washing over him. This was the first time he had ever heard of such a thing. Instinctively, he wanted to know more, and without any hesitation, he asked,
" What is a Primal Core? And what happens if it's damaged?"
The faint smile on the Spider Woman's face vanished. She stared at him in shock and responded sharply.
'You don't know what a Primal Core is? Are you an idiot, or are you mocking me, you lowly creature?'
Seeing her exaggerated reaction, Arthur immediately realized he had messed up. He had asked about something he was supposed to know.
Still, he didn't try to backtrack. He truly was ignorant, and he had no intention of wasting this rare opportunity—not when he might gain even a little knowledge from it.
He didn't answer right away. Instead, he quickly analyzed the situation, weighed his words and actions, and began flattering her, feeding into her pride and dominance, hoping to appease her.
'No, no, how could I ever dare mock you, my lady? I'm truly just an ignorant creature who knows nothing. My knowledge can't even be compared to your great wisdom.'
Her honeyed words, submissive posture, and seemingly sincere attitude left the Spider Woman momentarily speechless.
She stared at him with a strange expression, finding his behavior oddly amusing—slightly funny, yet deeply irritating. Even so, she didn't take any harsh action against him.
After a brief pause to consider, she decided to answer his question, just this once. In a cold tone, she said:
"Listen carefully, because I won't repeat this again. All beasts like us possess a special magical organ called the Primal Core.
This core is the essence of our lives, no less important than the heart or the brain. It carries our bloodline, a portion of our vitality, and is where all mana gathers."
She paused briefly, giving him a moment to absorb her words, then continued:
"In short, the Primal Core—together with one's bloodline—determines a beast's potential and the path of its evolution. If it is severely damaged, especially before it has fully matured like in your case, may almost completely halt your progression