With a heavy thud, the last Dragonias collapsed to the ground.
It was missing its upper body—undoubtedly severed by Rei.
"Phew... That takes care of things for now. Honestly, I didn't expect them to give us this much trouble."
Muttering to himself, Rei flicked the blood from Death Scythe's blade.
Only then, belatedly, did it register that the Dragonias's blood was the same red as his own.
(Wait... surely the blood isn't red just because the scales are red, right?)
Given that the Dragonias were monstrous beings, it wouldn't have been strange for something like that to be possible.
After all, this was not Elgin but another world.
Still, when he looked at the wounded Centaurs and saw that their blood was red too, he corrected himself—blood was probably red in this world as well.
"Guruu."
Turning his gaze toward the cry, he found Set there, just as expected.
Despite having defeated the monstrous Dragonias, Set showed no signs of fatigue.
Naturally, he had no injuries, either.
"Set, good work. You really came through for us. Thanks in part to you, it seems there are no deaths among the Centaurs. ...Though a few did sustain serious injuries."
Fundamentally, both Rei and Set had intervened by charging into the most dangerous situations where the Centaur side was struggling during the battle against the Dragonias.
That was why, while there were seriously wounded, there were no dead.
"Gururu."
In response to Rei's words, Set let out a cry as if to say, I'm fine, leave it to me!
For Set, the battle against the Dragonias probably hadn't been particularly arduous, either.
From all appearances, he had no injuries.
Relieved by this, Rei stroked Set.
Several minutes passed. As Set was enjoying being petted, Rei sensed someone approaching.
He turned toward the presence and found Zai wearing a complicated—truly complicated—expression, with Dratt beside him looking visibly resentful.
From Zai's perspective, since Rei had used magic to defeat the majority of the Dragonias, he had wanted to finish off the remaining red Dragonias with their own hands if at all possible.
So it wasn't as if he had no feelings about Rei forcibly inserting himself into that battle.
However, what would have happened if Rei hadn't been there?
In this battle, miraculously, no one on the Centaur side had died.
That was entirely thanks to Rei.
If Rei hadn't been here, there was a possibility the settlement would have been annihilated by the Dragonias attack. ...No, it almost certainly would have been.
Considering that, there was no way he could voice complaints to Rei here.
"You saved us."
Ultimately, what Zai expressed was gratitude.
Dratt beside him surely had his own thoughts about Rei, but he wouldn't say anything unnecessary in this situation.
He had likely judged that—no matter how much his pride had been trampled—he couldn't complain about someone who had acted to save them.
In fact, if he were to voice dissatisfaction here, and someone asked whether he had been willing to annihilate his comrades... his family, his friends, and his entire settlement for the sake of that pride, he couldn't deny it.
...In that regard, Zai, who had spent more time with Rei than Dratt had, held no particular prejudice against Rei.
If asked honestly whether he found the current situation agreeable, of course he didn't.
"Glad you're safe too. ...By the way, I'd like to ask—what do you do with the Dragonias corpses?"
"...What do we do with them?"
Zai tilted his head as if not understanding the meaning of Rei's words.
He turned his gaze to Dratt beside him, but the only response he received was an equally bewildered expression.
(Hm?)
Rei found their reactions puzzling.
His understanding was that defeated monsters should naturally be used as food or materials, or put to use in whatever other ways were available.
...In Rei's mind, the Dragonias were already classified not as demi-humans like the Centaurs, but as monsters.
The fact that while Centaurs had a humanoid upper body—literally a human's upper half—Dragonias were like Lizardmen made even more ferocious was also significant in this regard.
Furthermore, the fact that they possessed no intelligence beyond instinct and could not hold a conversation was a major factor as well.
That was precisely why Rei had asked what they did with the Dragonias corpses in the current situation.
But Zai and Dratt were bewildered... and they exchanged glances as if to say, whatever happened to the hostility—no, Dratt's one-sided hostility toward Zai that Rei had seen before?
Eventually, Zai spoke.
"If we leave the corpses as they are, there will be ill effects. We simply gather and burn them."
"Does that include the corpse of that massive Dragonias you defeated?"
The individual that was far larger than the other Dragonias.
The opponent that Zai and Dratt—both of whom could be called the strongest among the Centaurs—had cooperated to fight, along with many other Centaurs, and had only barely managed to defeat.
By Rei's reckoning... by the standards of Elgin, it was likely a High-ranking Species or Rare Species among the Dragonias.
Given that it was such a being, Rei wanted to secure its corpse if at all possible.
(As for Magic Stones... well, I don't know if they have any.)
Since this was another world, there was no guarantee the monsters here had Magic Stones like the ones Rei knew.
In fact, the monsters inhabiting the lake that had teleported next to the Treant Forest didn't have Magic Stones.
Considering those circumstances, he needed to investigate whether the monsters in this world had Magic Stones at all.
That was precisely why he wanted the Dragonias corpses, but...
"That's right. What would we use corpses for? If these were animals or more typical monsters, we could at least use them as food."
Despite their vastly different appearance, the form of a Lizardman's upper body attached to a reptilian lower half was similar to that of a Centaur.
Given that, the Centaurs had absolutely no desire to eat the Dragonias.
...Moreover, if they ate Dragonias flesh, there was a risk they could end up like the Dragonias—driven by hunger and living on instinct alone.
"Then can I have the Dragonias corpses?"
"I... don't see any problem with it. If anything, considering the effort of disposing of the corpses, it would actually help us... but are you sure?"
Meeting Zai's questioning gaze, Rei nodded to indicate there was no issue.
He didn't know exactly how the Dragonias might be useful.
But as monsters from another world, they would hold immeasurable value in Elgin, and they would be of tremendous interest to Grimm, who had a researcher's temperament.
Given that, Rei had no objection to taking the Dragonias corpses.
After all, the very reason Rei could remain in this world was thanks to Grimm's cooperation.
Without Grimm, the hole that had opened to this world would have already closed, and Rei would never have been able to come here.
Or perhaps he would have been stranded in this world.
Considering those circumstances, feeling gratitude toward Grimm was only natural.
"Yeah, of course. I have an acquaintance who's quite passionate about research. If I give him the Dragonias corpses, he might figure something out. Depending on the results, there's even a chance that effective weapons or tools for fighting Dragonias could be developed..."
"Really!?"
Before Rei could finish speaking, Zai shouted.
Dratt, who had been listening, also directed a questioning gaze at Rei as if to confirm whether it was true.
And it wasn't just them.
Those around them who had been watching Rei, Zai, and Dratt didn't understand what Rei was saying, but since Zai had shouted, they turned their gazes toward Rei, sensing that something had happened.
For the usually stern and upright Zai to shout like this was a rare occurrence.
So it was only natural for them to wonder what had happened.
Moreover, the Centaurs were a clan that valued strength.
Given that, having witnessed Rei's magic and his direct combat, it wasn't strange for them to have various thoughts.
Among the Centaurs, some felt admiration... no, even reverence toward that power.
Perhaps if it had only been the magic he used first, he wouldn't have been held in such esteem.
The Centaurs were apparently a race that had difficulty using magic, and thus couldn't fully comprehend it.
They could understand that Rei's magic was impressive, but not exactly how impressive.
By comparison, the subsequent battle—Rei fighting the Dragonias with Death Scythe and the Twilight Spear—made his preposterous strength clear to the many Centaurs who fought without magic.
Furthermore, it wasn't just Rei who drew the Centaurs' gazes—Set did as well.
He had so effortlessly defeated opponents that they struggled to beat one-on-one.
As proud Centaurs, they couldn't deny what they had seen with their own eyes.
...While Rei had done this to earn the Centaurs' trust, having them develop deep loyalty like Zozo's wasn't particularly pleasant.
In any case, Rei tried to ignore the surrounding gazes and spoke.
"That's only a possibility, not a guarantee. Besides... I need to search for Anastasia and Fana."
Rei had originally come to this world to search for Anastasia and Fana.
Given that, he thought he should take advantage of the current situation.
(Then again, the fact that they're not in the Centaur settlement... could they have been caught by the Dragonias? In that case, there's a chance they might have been... eaten. No, Anastasia would probably manage on her own.)
Being an Elf, Anastasia excelled at Spirit Magic.
While not at Marina's level, Rei had seen with his own eyes that her Spirit Magic skill was reliable.
That said, considering the strength of the Dragonias, it was also an undeniable fact that he couldn't be completely at ease.
"So, Anastasia and Fana, was it? If you can find those two, something might be able to be done. That's what you're saying?"
"I said might. I can't guarantee we'll find something effective against the Dragonias."
"I understand. Even so, if something can be done about the Dragonias..."
"We can't endure any more of the grassland being encroached upon."
Dratt continued, spitting out the words in disgust after Zai's statement.
To Dratt, Zai's very existence was displeasing, and Rei—a two-legged outsider whom that insufferable Zai had brought from who-knows-where—was even more displeasing.
But even so, compared to the Dragonias, they were far preferable—of that there was no doubt.
The Dragonias devoured everything.
Animals, monsters in the grassland... and sometimes even plants.
In fact, several Centaurs had reported that when they went to scout Dragonias-occupied territory, the land had been reduced to what could only be called a wasteland rather than grassland.
...And even that information had been obtained from the few survivors, as the majority of those who had gone to scout had been devoured.
(Encroachment, huh.)
Rei couldn't fully comprehend everything that word entailed, but having seen the hunger-driven state of the Dragonias, it wasn't difficult to imagine.
"Anyway, you're fine with me taking the Dragonias corpses?"
At Rei's confirming question, Zai nodded as if to say there was no issue.
"If there's a possibility that the Dragonias corpses could help break through the current situation, there's no problem at all. After all, we would simply burn and dispose of them."
"Then, right away—"
Rei placed his hand on a nearby corpse and stored it in his Misty Ring.
Perhaps because not much time had passed since he first encountered them.
Those who had been watching Rei let out collective gasps of surprise.
Such reactions from onlookers were something Rei was accustomed to.
Having experienced it countless times before, he paid it no particular mind and methodically continued storing the Dragonias corpses into his Misty Ring.