The Worm was a dragon-class monster—in other words, a subspecies of dragon.
In this world, dragons were regarded as the most formidable monsters. Save for exceptions like Sage-class mages or anomalies like Subnock—monsters that grew to monstrous proportions by gorging on the mana of the Magical Wilds—they had no natural predators.
The Worms were supposedly dragons that once ruled the skies. It was said they had been driven underground after losing a territorial struggle against other dragons. They were the weaklings of the dragon species: creatures that had lost their wings, whose eyesight had degenerated, and who survived by burrowing through the soft earth of the wetlands. That was the monster known as a Worm.
"They might be the runts of the litter, but they're still dragons... I thought that fight was over suspiciously quickly, but I never imagined it was just a juvenile."
"It certainly surprised me. I had no idea either."
Looking at the Worm's carcass lying there, charred by flames, Rest and Yuri sighed in unison. Although they hadn't exactly struggled, the Worm hadn't been weak, either. It had taken several intermediate-tier magic spells to finally bring it down. Unless one possessed a Court Mage-tier combat strength, a solo subjugation would likely be impossible for anyone else.
And that was only a hatchling... Knowing that was just a child makes me lose a bit of confidence in my own strength, Rest thought, his expression turning grim.
Urula peered into his face and tilted her head inquisitively. "Twice as large... can you do it?"
"The Parent Worm is apparently more than twice that size," Yuri interpreted. "Urula is asking if you can still defeat it, Rest. What do you think?"
"Well..." Rest fell into thought for a moment.
Receiving the gazes of the two contrasting girls, he voiced his honest assessment. "...I can't guarantee a win against an enemy I've never even seen. However, I haven't shown my full hand yet, either. If I play my trump cards, I'll have a fighting chance."
"Oh, that’s a relief. So he can win after all," Yuri said, her face brightening with ease.
Rest’s eyes widened at the unexpected reaction. He hadn't actually declared he could win. "No, like I said, I didn't go so far as to say I'd definitely win..."
"You can win. If it's you, Rest, I know you’ll seize that chance for victory, no matter how slim it is. I have faith in you."
"Mm... no problem. I'm relieved too," Urula added, nodding along in agreement with Yuri.
Rest wondered where this mysterious, absolute trust came from. The two of them seemed to believe in his victory without a shadow of a doubt. There was no hesitation in their voices; it was almost a bit frightening.
Had he really done enough to build that level of rapport? He didn't recall forming such a deep relationship with Yuri yet, let alone Urula, whom he had just met. It seemed their faith in him was far stronger than the belief he had in himself.
"If you're both going to go that far... then I'll win. Let's do this."
When two beautiful girls placed that much weight on him, he felt he had no choice but to commit. Regardless of the nature of their relationship, Rest wasn't cold-hearted enough to betray the expectations of people who believed in him so completely. One could call it being young... or perhaps just naive.
"For now, let's continue exploring the wetlands. While investigating the Worm's ecology and patterns, we'll hunt for the parent specimen."
If he understood its elemental weaknesses and habits, a strategy would eventually present itself. Ideally, he wanted to fight a few more juveniles before facing the Parent Worm.
"GYAOOOOOOOOOOOOOO!"
"Ah, talk about perfect timing. One's already come to us."
The cry of a Worm echoed from a short distance away. Searching for presences with magic, Rest detected a creature about the same size as the previous one, roughly twenty meters off.
"Well then, shall we?"
When pretty girls expect something of you, you want to live up to it... Flattery can make even a pig climb a tree, and men are simple creatures indeed, he mused.
It didn't matter if he possessed infinite mana or the title of a Count. At the end of the day, Rest was still just a man. When Yuri and Urula placed their full trust in him, he felt compelled to do everything in his power to respond to it.
Rest gave a pained shake of his head, overcome by a sudden, slightly pathetic sense of his own simplicity.