The vessels tossed violently atop the surging waves, the frantic cries of the fishermen blending into a single chorus of terror.
As Rest soared toward the ocean, he looked down to see a massive shadow gliding leisurely beneath several of the fishing boats.
It was at least twenty meters long—roughly the size of a whale. Though the shadow didn't reveal its full form, its silhouette suggested a long, slender, serpentine body.
"So that’s the sea monster...!"
"Aaaaaagh!"
A portion of the creature breached the surface.
A tail-like appendage, clad in white scales and sporting blue-green fins, slammed into the water with tremendous force, sending a massive swell through the area.
The fishing boats pitched and rolled under the pressure of the artificial waves.
"Ah...!"
"Help! Someone, help!"
Unable to withstand the turbulence, the boats capsized, spilling the men into the frigid sea.
The monster didn't attack them directly. Instead, the shadow circled beneath the struggling men, generating a powerful whirlpool.
Caught in the vortex, the fishermen were dragged under, clawing their way back to the surface only to be sucked down again.
"Is this thing... playing with them?"
Watching from above, Rest’s expression twisted in disgust.
The monster wasn't moving like a predator hunting for food; it was toying with them, drowning them for its own amusement. Its behavior felt less like a wild animal and more like the innocent malice of a child crushing ants underfoot.
"Wind Control!"
Saving the drowning men came first.
Rest manipulated the wind, scooping the fishermen out of the churning water and carrying them safely to the shore.
He wished he could have lifted the boats as well, but this particular spell lacked the necessary output for such a heavy load.
"I’ve got the rest of you, too!"
"Whoa!?"
He snatched up the men still clinging to the wreckage and ferried them to the beach. Within moments, he had successfully rescued every last one of them.
"Gyaaaaaaaah!"
The monster's head finally broke the surface.
Its face was covered in the same white scales as its tail. Large, bulging eyes fixed upon the now-empty fishing boats.
"Gyaaaaaaaah!"
The creature let out a cry that sounded almost like a tantrum.
As if to vent its frustration at losing its playthings, it clamped its jaws onto one of the drifting boats, crunching the wood into splinters. Its long tail lashed at the water’s surface, sending up waves that threatened to sink the remaining vessels.
"That's enough. Don't push your luck!"
Rest unleashed his magic.
Thunder Bolt—a focused strike of lightning pierced through the water, striking the monster directly.
"Gyaaaaaaaah!?"
This time, the creature’s cry was one of genuine agony.
It abandoned its destruction and dove back into the depths.
"It's going down...!"
The shadow began to fade from sight.
Using his Life Search spell, Rest tracked the creature as it plummeted toward the ocean floor. Eventually, its presence drifted too far away to sense.
It had fled.
"I let it get away..."
The Thunder Bolt had clearly rattled it, but it hadn't appeared to take a fatal blow. It was a remarkably hardy creature.
It was massive, too—easily over twenty meters long.
"Long and slender... definitely more like a sea serpent than a whale. And those scales mean it’s likely some kind of fish, not a mammal."
Rest glared at the expanse where the monster had vanished, but the water was now still.
That thing had been using the fishermen for sport. To Rest’s eyes, it had been mocking them, tormenting them for nothing more than a momentary distraction.
No one had died during this particular encounter, but if such attacks continued, it was only a matter of time before lives were lost. Even putting the physical danger aside, the loss of the boats was a devastating blow. The entire village’s livelihood was hanging by a thread.
"If it just leaves for another territory, that's one thing... but if it stays, I’ll have to put it down for good," Rest whispered, staring out over the darkening waves.