I'm Not an Earthworm, I'm an Earth Dragon

Suddenly, Yuna burst in, her face flushed with excitement as she bombarded us with questions.

Normally, I could understand her occasional words, but she was speaking so rapidly that I couldn’t make out anything.

Why did such a language exist, and why hadn’t it disappeared? Myungho was busy explaining that it was all a misunderstanding, and Yuna was busy questioning him.

Even amidst everyone’s busyness, I distinctly heard the word “boyfriend” from earlier. Boyfriend. I imagined what it would be like to have someone beside me.

It sounded strange for someone who was once a man to be dating a man, but it was all hypothetical, so what did it matter?

…I tried to picture it, but the more I thought about it, the more agonizing it became, so I stopped. I couldn’t imagine myself acting cute, clinging to someone, and whispering sweet words of love.

Myungho? Well… he was taller than me, but… he was weak and timid. At least in his current state, it was a no-go.

If he became stronger than me, honestly… it might be okay. But not right now.

“Altera, tell Yuna you were just learning to speak! She’s not listening to me at all!”

He might be okay as a friend. Cutting off those thoughts, I clumsily conveyed the truth to Yuna to get Myungho out of trouble.

“Learning, to speak. Myungho, not boyfriend. Friend, yes. Boyfriend, no.”

“See?! I told you, not my boyfriend! I’ve been saying it all along!”

Myungho looked as if he had been dealt a blow to the heart when I denied he was my boyfriend, but he soon shook it off and asserted his innocence to Yuna.

Was she being that persistent? Come to think of it, this was the first time I had seen Yuna so excited since we started traveling together. Even Myungho probably hadn’t seen this side of her often.

That must be why he was at a loss for how to handle her, flustered and unsure. Only after hearing my words and Myungho’s did Yuna finally return to her usual expressionless self.

“Hmm… I seem to have jumped to conclusions. My apologies, Myungho. And Altera, I’ve shown you an unsightly side of myself.”

“No, it’s nothing like that… But in the future, please listen to what others have to say. I was really feeling wronged just now.”

She had calmed down. Yuna demurely apologized and took a seat. Then, as if to help, she sat next to Myungho and assisted him in teaching me.

For some reason, I didn’t like that, so I also sat next to Myungho. He didn’t seem to mind much when Yuna sat down, but he reacted when I did.

“…Altera? Wouldn’t it be easier to teach if you were on the other side…?”

“It doesn’t matter where I sit to learn. And is there any reason why I shouldn’t sit next to you?”

Yuna seemed to understand something, smiled slightly, and said something to Myungho. He, having nothing more to say, simply agreed and started teaching me.

Myungho, who had been squirming uncomfortably, soon became enthusiastic about teaching and was practically digging the letters out of the book as he imparted knowledge to me.

“…Why on earth do you pronounce 80 like that? How…? Four 20s? Isn’t there just a word for 80? You pronounce 70 normally, what’s going on with this language…?”

“I also think this word should disappear. But people keep using it, don’t they? It probably won’t happen. Everyone else is probably using it while feeling uncomfortable too.”

Putting aside the incomprehensible words, I pondered why I was sitting here. It definitely wasn’t affection.

If I had to put a label on it… possessiveness? That was easier to understand than the word love.

He was my only friend, and I suddenly felt bad because someone else was being friendly with him. What a petty thing to do.

“Anyway, you pronounce 90 as four 20s plus 10. I know, I also want to find the person who thought of this and hit them over the head with a dictionary.”

“Hmm. By the way, didn’t you say you were going on a Behemoth hunt tomorrow? Have you decided what role she’ll take? The usual attacker? Or a lurer?”

“How long have you been listening…?”

“How long? Since you guys checked out my room and went into yours. I was just curious for a moment, and it turned out like this.”

“I’m thinking of her being a lurer. She has more than enough ability, and wants fame, doesn’t she?”

“…Hey. Could you please tell me what you’re talking about? I don’t understand at all.”

When I called out to him, Myungho realized he had gotten carried away talking about things only he knew and apologized, briefly explaining what a lurer was.

“Well, a lurer is… simply put, the role of bringing the Behemoth to a place where the attack team can unleash a full-scale attack. You need to be agile and sturdy enough not to get caught or hurt by the Behemoth, and you need to be able to attract the Behemoth’s attention from time to time…”

“Why do you have to lure it? Can’t you just catch it? Is there really a need to go through such a hassle?”

Really. Instead of going through the trouble of luring it, why not just kill it on the spot?

I asked out of pure curiosity, and Myungho answered with a wry smile, saying he expected me to say that.

“A being with your level of power could do that. But… most can’t. Behemoths are creatures that are hard to even scratch with ordinary attacks. That’s why they prepare a hunting ground with fixed crossbows and cannons in advance. That’s why lurers gain great fame. It’s extremely dangerous.”

I see. So they mobilize cannons because it’s hard to kill them otherwise. Now I understood why they went through such trouble.

“I see. Then I should definitely be the lurer. Can I just kill it along the way?”

“…It’s not that you can’t, but then you’ll gain notoriety. That you took everything for yourself when everyone was supposed to share. Oh, of course, no one would dare complain in front of you. Since you’re the one who took down a Behemoth alone.”

How annoying. But I decided to give it a try, thinking it might be fun.

It would at least be more enjoyable than this number study. Besides, with Yuna and Myungho saying they would help, there was even less reason not to.

If even Yuna was joining, there was no reason not to, right? I pushed the numbers I wanted to kill into my head and looked forward to what tomorrow would bring.

“…Anyway, no matter what, you just need to bring it here! Then the bulkhead installed behind will rise, and we’ll hunt the Behemoth trapped inside!”

The next day, when I applied to participate in the Behemoth hunt as a lurer, the receptionist jumped for joy and immediately guided us to the luring point with the subjugation team.

It turned out that the attack team and the weapons to be installed at the luring point were ready, but the person who was supposed to be the lurer had suddenly disappeared, and they were in trouble when I showed up.

On a shallow cliff, there were huge, menacing-looking crossbows and cannons, along with ammunition, people to carry and fire them, and even pale-looking guys who seemed to be mages.

It certainly seemed like they were fully prepared. With this… well. I bet they could easily take down something like that transparent spider.

That Dalokos was a problem because it came invisibly and caused havoc, but if they were determined to kill it, it wouldn’t be impossible.

Myungho relayed the receptionist’s words to me. She said to bring it here no matter what.

And the Behemoth was currently heading southeast, leaving this grassland, so Myungho told me to hurry.

“You can do it without any problems. Just don’t get too excited and kill it yourself. Oh, and this Behemoth is especially large, so be careful not to get stepped on by mistake.”

“You worry too much. Just trust me and wait. I’ll bring it to you spectacularly.”

I grinned, showing my confidence, then infused my legs with mana and dashed southeast.

With no need to be mindful of my surroundings, I infused my legs with dragon scales and ran at full speed. I could feel a massive creature taking heavy steps in the distance.

Just over that hill, and I should be able to see it. When I reached the top, I saw the giant turtle I had seen on the way to Corvo a while ago, slowly dragging its belly on the ground.

It had a small hill on its back. I wondered how to get its attention, but since I couldn’t think of a good way, I decided to just go for it.

I infused golden mana into the earth, planted my hand on the ground, and created the largest rock spear I could hold.

With the tip of the spear reinforced with ore to maximize its destructive power, this should be able to attract the attention of the literally mountain-sized creature.

I staggered, regained my balance, infused my arms with so much mana that scales appeared, and hurled the rock spear at the Behemoth’s shell with all my might.

I didn’t want it to get stuck in the shell and die, so I aimed for the hill on its back. The rock spear collided, scattering sparks and dust, and stopped the Behemoth in its tracks.

I thought it would pierce through the mountain on its back. I could have thrown it even harder.

The creature looked startled and, unlike its previous sluggish movements, quickly turned around, its huge eyes darting around, trying to figure out what had happened.

“───────────!!!!!!!!!”

For the creature that seemed to have no clue, I kindly unleashed a roar from deep within, imprinting my existence firmly on the giant turtle.

I also threw a pebble at its eye for good measure.

───────────────!!!!!!!!!!!!

The creature finally seemed to get angry, roared so loudly that the ground shook, and charged at me with its massive body.

A race between a turtle and a dragon.

This is fun.

I infused my legs with mana, kicked off the ground with all my might, and ran towards the luring point.