A night far too short for Rest came to an end, and he returned to the wetlands where the worm had once made its home.
"It's dry…"
"Yeah, completely dried out."
Not Rest's heart, mind you — but the wetland where they had fought the worm.
Yesterday, the explosion Rest had triggered had turned what was once marshland into barren, dry earth.
And sitting atop that hard, cracked ground was not a small hill — but the corpse of the Elder Worm.
The massive worm, its head blown clean off by the explosion, lay on its side while bird-type monsters pecked at its body.
"I can't believe a worm this enormous actually existed…"
"It truly deserves the title of 'Elder.' Rest-sama's naming appears to have been spot-on."
Gazing up at the worm's remains, Ostley and Earlie spoke in tones laced with disbelief.
"Hmm… There's no way we can eat all of this. Maybe we should just cut off a small portion and call it a day?"
"Don't you dare. I'm putting my foot down right now."
Rest immediately shut down Yuri's ominous suggestion.
"I won't stop you from taking materials back for research or anything like that, but if you try to take any of this home as food, we're done. Absolutely not."
"Mm… Being cut off would be problematic. I'll refrain, then."
Seeing that Rest was unwilling to budge, Yuri drooped and murmured dejectedly.
Rest could practically see the phantom of a tail hanging limply behind her back, but this was not something he could compromise on.
"Indeed… Perhaps we should call some people in to have it properly butchered and transported?"
Ostley considered for a moment before making that suggestion.
"A wyrm is kin to dragons. Even a single dragon scale fetches a high price on the market, and while this wyrm's carcass is quite badly damaged, it should still net a fair sum. The proceeds from the sale will, of course, belong to Count Clover."
"I see… Deduct the shipping fees and any labor costs from that."
"As you wish."
Rest didn't know how much a charred wyrm would actually sell for, but it should more than compensate for a full night's work.
"…Thank you."
"Hm?"
Urla tugged at his sleeve.
He turned around to find those vividly colorful eyes he had seen the night before gazing up at him.
"Thank you… You really helped me out…"
"Yeah, no problem."
With the elder wyrm defeated, development of this area should advance by leaps and bounds.
Rest's magic had turned the wetlands into dry ground, though the moisture would likely return after some time.
(On top of that, I've earned a favor from House Lavender, one of the great noble families of the East. For a few days' work, that's more than enough.)
The future of House Clover — and of House Rosemary, its liege — was looking bright.
All sorts of things… truly all sorts of things had happened, but the problem here was solved.
(Development on the western side is mostly done too. From here on, I can leave it to others.)
The long development phase was finally coming to an end.
From now on, he would take his time building a town on the land that had been given to him, do whatever else he pleased, and live at a leisurely pace.
(Right… I also need to look into the queen dowager…)
"Here you go."
"Oh... what is it?"
While Rest was thinking about the future, Urla suddenly held something out to him.
Without thinking, Rest accepted it... and saw a ring with a purple gem set into it.
(Purple... is it amethyst?)
He wasn't knowledgeable about gems, but it felt that way somehow.
"Thanks."
"A thank you... so this is a present?"
"Yeah."
"Hmm..."
Rest examined the ring thoughtfully, turning it over in his fingers.
The ring didn't look particularly expensive.
The setting was old and dull, and the gemstone was small.
It truly seemed like a simple gesture... a small token of appreciation.
(There's no crest or anything, so it's definitely not a family heirloom.)
"Take it. Keep it."
"No, but..."
"Keep it."
When he tried to hand it back, she pushed it right back at him with surprising force.
It was an unusually strong attitude for her. For someone so reserved, she was being remarkably assertive.
"Alright... I'll keep it then."
With no other choice, Rest tucked the ring into his breast pocket.
Urla's expression softened with relief, her cheeks flushing red as she nodded with satisfaction.
"Good."
"......?"
Rest tilted his head but... decided not to think about it any further, figuring it was fine as it was.
The wyrms had been subdued, and the matters concerning the development of the Sabnock Plains were now all settled.
With that, Rest had fulfilled his duty.
He would finally be able to return to the royal capital after so long.