Chapter 200: Hunting the Worms
“【Water Bolt】!”
“GYAOOOOOOOOOOO!”
The spell cast by Rest struck the Worm with a powerful torrent of water magic. The intense pressure of the water laser hit the creature, causing it to unleash a furious roar.
“GYAOOOOOOOOOOO!”
“I see… Water attribute magic is less effective,” Rest observed, noting how the Worm continued to thrash about, undeterred by the attack.
The creature they were battling was a Worm… specifically, its larval form. After defeating the first one, Rest had continued exploring the Wetlands, engaging in combat with Worms several times. This was the fourth one they faced. All the Worms encountered so far had been in their larval stage, and they had yet to come across a parent individual.
While fighting, Rest was testing various spells on the Worm to identify its weaknesses.
“Wind attribute magic works well. Water and Earth attributes hardly affect it at all. Fire and Lightning attributes seem to have moderate effectiveness, I suppose?”
“GYAOOOOOOOOOO!”
“【Wind Storm】!”
“GYAOOOOOOOOOO!? ”
The advanced wind attribute magic unleashed a torrent of razor-sharp winds that shredded the Worm’s massive body. This spell was designed to scatter wind blades over a wide area, typically not used against a single target. However, with a creature as large as the Worm, the destructive power was fully realized.
“GYAAAAAAAAAA!”
The Worm, drenched in its purple bodily fluid, attempted to crush Rest by slamming its body down.
“YAAAAAAAH!”
“GYAO!?”
But just then, a shadow darted in, delivering a powerful kick to the Worm’s head. With incredible speed, Yuri had intervened, her kick strong enough to sever a human torso. The impact startled the Worm, slamming its head into the muddy ground.
“Now’s our chance!”
“Got it… Leave it to me!”
Rest activated another spell. The surrounding light dimmed slightly as a sphere of light appeared in his hand.
“【Amaterasu】!”
And then… a beam of concentrated light was unleashed, piercing through the Worm’s head.
“GYA…”
The Worm let out a pained groan before collapsing into the mud, lifeless.
“And there we have it… the Light attribute. Living underground, it’s only natural that it would be vulnerable to it,” Rest mused, having gathered a good understanding of the Worm’s weaknesses after their fourth encounter. With this knowledge, they would have the upper hand when facing a parent individual.
“…So noble.”
From a distance, Ula murmured, watching Rest’s battle. Though her words didn’t reach his ears, he felt a strong gaze piercing through the curtain of her long bangs.
“…Impressive. Truly remarkable,” Ostre, a soldier from the Lavender Barony, praised in place of his lord.
“Even if it’s just the larval form, that makes four Worms defeated. You’ve cast numerous advanced spells and still show no signs of exhausting your magical power… I am genuinely in awe.”
“Thank you. I appreciate the compliment, even if it’s just flattery.”
“Flattery it is not… No, it’s truly astounding…”
“Mm… Rest-sama is amazing…”
“Such splendid and magnificent magic. I must express my utmost respect for your one-man army prowess… as the young lady has stated.”
“No way… there’s no way she spoke such a long sentence, right?”
Ula and her female attendant were as lively as ever, but it was clear that Rest was being praised.
“That makes four. I wonder where the parent Worm is hiding?”
Despite their search through the Wetlands, they had yet to encounter a parent individual. Neither their magic to sense presence nor the Shadow unit had picked up any signs.
“Hmmm… If only the ground were solid, the search would be much smoother,” Yuri said, pulling her foot from the muck with a look of exasperation. The Wetlands were literally drenched, with half of it consisting of various-sized swamps, some deep enough to submerge an adult.
It was a place where one could hardly progress without a boat, and many areas were too muddy to traverse. Rest had been using magic to create solid footing, but it was taking many times longer than it would on flat land.
“It’s already evening. Let’s pull back and come back later.”
A lair teeming with powerful monsters. The thought of spending the night on the squishy, muddy ground was chilling.
“Camping… yay!”
Ula suggested something, and Yuri clapped her hands together, her voice filled with excitement.
“Oh, camping sounds fun!”
“The young lady suggests we set up camp outside the Wetlands on solid ground. If we keep stepping out of the plains, we won’t make any progress in our exploration of the Wetlands. We should establish a base somewhere and settle down for our search.”
“That makes sense…”
Nodding in agreement with the attendant’s explanation, Rest understood that exploring the Wetlands would take much longer than on flat land. They should prepare for a prolonged effort and establish a base nearby.
“Just in time, I’ve also mastered the Monster-Repelling Barrier. Let’s find a suitable spot.”
Rest and the others retreated from the muddy Wetlands back to the flat land. By then, the sun was setting in the western sky. After cleansing themselves with magic, they began to set up their tent and establish their campsite.