Chapter 51

Torn corpses, ravaged livestock, and overturned carts were scattered along the way. Some of them blocked the path, and they had to be removed to proceed.

Among them, Worm focused his gaze on a group of corpses. They were once soldiers of the Haiselk, a unit tasked with exterminating monsters.

Many goblins and wolf-type monsters had perished, but it wasn't the goblins or wolves that had wiped out the unit.

Worm wiped the blood oozing from the corpses with his finger.

"The blood hasn't dried yet."

The evidence didn't end there. Huge footprints were left everywhere.

"Three claws in front, one hook at the back, what kind of monster is this?"

Worm had experience in monster hunting, but only with E and D-class monsters. He had no experience with large monsters and couldn't identify it.

The overturned cart was shattered from top to bottom, and the crushed cargo emitted a foul smell, with what were likely human remains left inside.

The original form was unrecognizable; not only the limbs but any trace of a human shape was gone. Even the corpses ravaged by orcs and wolves still retained some semblance.

Worm dragged the corpses to the side of the road. Many had lost their limbs or parts of their bodies, making them much lighter than the war dead he usually carried.

Those killed in battle had more efficient fatal wounds. No one would take the time to tear them apart and crush them.

One of the cavalry threw severed limbs and heads into the forest. It was more efficient to dispose of them this way. The cavalry's values and priorities differed from Worm's, but they weren't wrong.

Worm couldn't bring himself to treat corpses carelessly, no matter how many he killed. However, if ordered, and if the benefit outweighed the murky guilt in his conscience, he would impale them on stakes and expose them to the trees.

Worm continued his work methodically.

He tied a rope to the remains of the cart and dragged it to the side of the road. Without a winch or pulley, he could only rely on manpower.

After finishing the towing, Worm had entered the forest. The trees suddenly shook. As Worm raised his gaze, a dull explosion sounded, and a cavalryman was flung into the air. Organs and fresh blood spewed from the mouths of the man and horse.

"It's an attack!"

The cavalrymen shouted in unison. The cause of the carnage was a massive monster's tail.

"It's a Rampage Dragon!!"

One of the cavalrymen identified the monster.

Dragons are generally classified as A-class. The dragon, with a length likely exceeding 7 meters, opened its enormous maw and roared to the sky. Worm, whose eardrums were shaken, grinned.

"So this is a dragon!"

Its scales were stained with moss and blood, and its limbs were long and thick like trees. Though it resembled a reptile, its ugliness was of a different kind.

"Don't stop moving, keep moving. We're jumping!!"

The cavalrymen started moving in unison. Worm tried to circle around to get within range of his magic, but the moment the massive body shook, the wind was knocked out of him.

It was an unprecedented speed. The dragon caught a galloping horse with its mouth, knocked down trees, and disappeared into the forest.

"Ah!? Mei was eaten!!"

"Damn, it's too fast!"

The distant rumbling of the ground approached again. Worm, aiming for the direction he thought it was heading, unleashed a full-power *Will-o'-the-Wisp* without regard for mana consumption.

A heat wave blew, and the blue flames rose to the height of the trees, turning the forest into a sea of fire. A massive shadow leaped out from the flames, roaring.

The terrifying speed was halted by the *Will-o'-the-Wisp*, and its body was engulfed in flames, but it continued to slam its limbs into the ground and swing its massive tail.

"Don't falter, keep attacking!!"

The cavalrymen tried to counterattack with magic and skills, but they couldn't penetrate the thick, hard scales. Even if they continued to burn it with *Will-o'-the-Wisp*, the Rampage Dragon, which had abandoned hit-and-run tactics, remained on the spot, trying to crush any visible soldiers.

If Worm continued to burn with *Will-o'-the-Wisp*, he might hit the soldiers, and the dragon's scales made the effect weak.

"There's no other choice."

Measuring the distance, Worm held his halberd at the highest position and charged with a wind attribute spell.

"*Burst*"

Worm, gaining speed, swung his halberd at the dragon's abdomen with a *Strong Strike*, but the blade stopped halfway. His hand went numb as if he had hit a metal pillar.

"Ugh!?"

The dragon, trying to crush the small human, spun its body on the spot. Worm dodged, and the massive body passed just above him, breaking trees at the base. Drenched in cold sweat, Worm instantly unleashed *Will-o'-the-Wisp*.

Blue flames spewed from the dragon's sides. The grass and trees, not directly hit by the flames, began to burn from the heat, but the scales only discolored.

"Roar, gah, GAAAAAAH!!"

Enraged by the searing heat, the dragon ignored the cavalry and focused on burying Worm.

Dirt clods were thrown at his body.

Worm, using wind attribute spells to accelerate in short bursts, dodged the relentless attacks. The size difference was significant. No matter how much he tried to cover his body with a mana barrier, one hit could change the situation.

Worm's mind was filled with a constant red alert. Even a glancing blow shook his core, and he felt the powerful wind pressure from the missed strikes.

While fleeing, Worm continued to unleash *Will-o'-the-Wisp*, which greatly displeased the dragon. Every time *Will-o'-the-Wisp* hit, the dragon bellowed, exhaling a putrid odor with its breath.

The roar, which even caused a headache, was erasing his concentration.

Worm continued to hit the dragon with *Will-o'-the-Wisp*, but he was being cornered. The scales all over its body continued to discolor, but he couldn't burn them off. The dragon, which could melt iron with its maximum firepower at close range, was showing an unbelievable resilience.

Trying to gain distance, the dragon-like creature wouldn't let Worm get away.

"Ugh, ughh!"

An arm that touched his body was almost torn off. Worm, who had resolved himself, felt his shoulder almost dislocate from a glancing blow.

There was no time to protect his aching shoulder. The dragon, which had adapted to Worm's movements, began to catch him.

Each strike became a delicate movement, and Worm moved like a madman, using all his senses, including his sixth sense and intuition, to sway like a leaf.

But a leaf, once its core is caught, collapses. The current situation was leading to a slow death.

"The legs have stopped. Do it!!"

Worm's wish for a breakthrough was suddenly granted. The magic users among the ignored cavalrymen had trapped one of the dragon's hind legs with an ice spike and one of its front legs with an earth wall.

The magic was too weak to capture the massive body, but it was enough to stop its movement for a moment. One of the cavalrymen, using the skill *Strong Shoulder*, threw a short spear and destroyed one of the dragon's eyes.

Shaking its body and searching for the culprit, the dragon turned its gaze away from Worm. Seeking retribution for the lost eye, it lunged at the cavalrymen.

"Do you like Welldan, lizard bastard!!"

Worm drew his sword from his waist, thrust it into the initial wound, and poured *Will-o'-the-Wisp* into it. Blue flames overflowed from the wound.

The dragon writhed, trying to shake Worm off, but he clung on, gripping the sword. Being slammed into trees, the air was forced out of his lungs, and his internal organs screamed in pain.

Still, Worm didn't let go. If he missed this chance, he might never get another to finish it. If he failed, the cavalrymen and those in the carts would be ravaged. Not only the guards but the subsequent units would also suffer.

"Ugh, ugh, ughh!"

Like grinding a pest into the ground, the dragon rubbed Worm against the ground. His armor creaked and wore down against the earth, and his flesh and skin were grated against the ground.

"Enough, die!!"

The blue flames burned through the dragon's insides, spreading internally while the *Will-o'-the-Wisp* clinging to the outside deprived it of oxygen and exposed it to high temperatures.

The dragon's wild movements gradually slowed. Suddenly, the moment came. With convulsions, the massive body collapsed to the ground.

Its mouth half-open, and its limbs moving slightly, the dragon finally stopped moving. Still, Worm continued to burn its abdomen until it was charred.