Rest soared through the night sky, arriving at the wetlands on the eastern edge of the Subnock Plain.
A frigid night wind brushed against him, yet he felt no chill; a fierce heat remained coiled deep within his core.
"Well then... time to start the slaughter."
As he looked down at the ground from above, Rest realized his spirit was unusually high.
Despite it being the middle of the night, his mind was incredibly sharp, and his body felt as if it were being consumed by an inner fire.
(Is this what they call "blood-boiling excitement"? I can't believe I had this much fighting spirit buried inside me!)
In truth, it felt more like a different kind of urge than mere fighting spirit, but he pushed that thought aside for now.
Enhancing his vision with magic, Rest scanned the marshlands below.
"Hmph..."
Even with night vision, he couldn't see the monsters lurking beneath the thick mud. If he wanted to hunt the Worms, he would have to draw them out from the depths of the mire.
"No problem. This will be easy."
Caught in his current "high," Rest began to weave his magic. It was a method he never would have dared to use if Yuri or Urula had been present.
"Monster Attraction."
Lines of light traced through the air above Rest's head, forming a complex geometric pattern. This circular magic circle functioned as the inverse of a ward; its purpose was to call monsters to the caster.
The man once known as the foolish prince, Rodel Aiwood, had used a magic item with this very effect on these plains to trigger the Subnock stampede. Ironically, Rest—the one who had struck Rodel down—was now employing that same tactic.
"Guru Maitis mentioned that spells to lure monsters are forbidden... She told me not to use them unless absolutely necessary, didn't she?"
If someone were to abuse this magic, they could easily bring about the ruin of a village, a town, or even a small country. For that reason, it was designated as forbidden magic, prohibited from being taught or used without express permission.
However, the one who had taught Rest this forbidden technique was Jarana Maitis herself, the most senior member of the Court Mages. Since she had only said "don't use it as much as possible," the current Rest—whose rationality was rapidly evaporating—decided it was perfectly fine to use it now.
"Oh, here they come."
It didn't take long for the spell to produce results. Multiple reactions flickered within the range of his Life Search magic.
"GYAOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO!"
The first one erupted from the mud. As expected, it was a Larval Form Worm. The creature lunged at Rest, its body writhing in an agitated state as it tried to sink its teeth into him.
"Star Eater."
Rest used Wind Control to dodge the Worm's maw, slamming a sphere of pure pitch-black energy into its flank. In an instant, a chunk of the monster's body was gouged away, swallowed into the void.
This was Dark Star—a miniature black hole capable of consuming anything it touched.
"GYAAAAAAAAAAAA!"
"Too loud," Rest muttered.
He glided through the air, systematically grinding away the Worm’s flesh and pulling the remains into the Dark Star.
"GYA... OOO..."
With its massive body partially devoured, the Worm collapsed back into the marsh. It sank into the thick mud and never resurfaced.
"Hahahaha! Looks like I’ve 'eaten' another Worm!"
To follow up his dinner with a midnight snack of more Worm... at this rate, he wouldn't be able to complain if people started thinking it was his favorite food.
"GYAOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO!" "GYAOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO!" "GYAOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO!"
A second, third, and fourth Worm burst out in rapid succession. Whether they realized their kin had been killed or not, they immediately marked Rest as their enemy and lunged. Even for someone of Rest's caliber, facing three Worms simultaneously was a grueling task.
"Flash!"
Rest pivoted, activating a different spell entirely. Although he had just been using dark magic, he now unleashed its polar opposite: light magic. A blinding radiance tore through the darkness of the night, searing the Worms' eyes.
"GYAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAA!?"
Worms were dragon-class monsters that lived underground. While their eyes had regressed, they weren't entirely non-functional. Being hit with a sudden, intense light in the dead of night was enough to paralyze them where they stood.
"Wind Control."
Rest, of course, had his eyes shut tight. Relying solely on Life Search, he flew through the darkness and slammed his Dark Star into the blinded monsters.
"That's two."
"GYAOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO!"
"Three, and four."
"GYAAA...!"
By making full use of his magic to baffle the enemy's senses, Rest took the Worms down one by one. From his earlier battle during the day, he already knew the most efficient way to kill them. While he didn't necessarily view his companions as dead weight, he found it much easier to fight when he could go all out without worrying about Yuri and the others.
"This is dangerous... I'm actually starting to enjoy myself...!"
Rest realized that he didn't actually hate combat. When he had fought Rodel, he had felt a strange sense of connection with his opponent in the heat of battle. He had never considered himself a battle maniac, but the effects of dinner were certainly amplifying his sense of exhilaration.
"I can do more... I can kill even more...!"
"GYAOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO!"
Suddenly, a chorus of screams echoed up from deep beneath the earth. At the same time, an enormous presence registered on his Life Search magic.
"Finally, you show yourself... You certainly kept me waiting."
Feeling a strange, almost longing sensation, Rest waited for "it" to arrive.
"GYAOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO!"
With an explosion of mud and silt, the creature finally appeared.
Rising from the depths was a Giant Worm, significantly larger than any of the Larval Forms he had faced so far. With its gaping, torn maw and sealed eyes, the Worm was massive enough to swallow a whole town. It loomed over the wetlands, finally coming face-to-face with Rest.