This was not arrogance or an overestimation of his own power. He was simply stating, matter-of-factly, what he could accomplish.
In fact, Rei had expected that dealing with opponents of that caliber would not be particularly difficult.
Of course, that assessment was based solely on what he had been told. Since he had not witnessed them with his own eyes, he could not say so with absolute certainty.
Even so, the reason he felt they would probably manage was simple: after being teleported from Earth to Elgin, he had survived countless battles of the sort that an ordinary Adventurer might experience once in a lifetime—if at all.
That said, this world was not Elgin. It was another world in an entirely different sense.
Given that, a part of Rei did wonder whether he should approach combat here with a bit more caution.
"Zai, you saw the battle earlier, so you probably understand already, but fighting large groups like that is my specialty. That said, the red-scaled Dragonias that can withstand my magic need to be taken down individually."
"If the ones with red scales can endure fire, why not attack them with a different method?"
The Centaur race had few who could use magic to begin with, but Zai apparently had at least some knowledge on the subject, for he offered that suggestion.
Rei shook his head.
"Unfortunately, I can't do that. I'm fundamentally specialized in Flame Magic. I can use other types as well, but they're not nearly as powerful."
For the time being, he glossed over the skills of Death Scythe with that explanation.
That said, Rei's explanation was by no means an outright lie.
The Dragonias were genuinely strong.
The skills available through Death Scythe were diverse and varied, but among them, the ones capable of dealing a fatal blow to a Dragonias were not numerous.
Given that, Rei's explanation contained some falsehoods but was not fundamentally mistaken.
"Is that how it is... Chief?"
Zai asked Drum as if seeking confirmation, somewhat tentatively. Drum shook his head.
"I do not understand what kind of power Rei possesses, nor what sort of magic he uses. However, if Rei says so, then it is surely not mistaken."
At Drum's explanation, Zai could only nod in acceptance.
In truth, Rei was a complete unknown to Zai, and considering that, there was nothing further he could pursue here.
"My magic is powerful, but in exchange, it has various peculiarities."
"...Despite that, I cannot sense any mana from you, Rei. Do you possess the ability to detect mana?"
At Rei's words, Drum nodded, confirming that was indeed the case.
Watching the exchange between the two, Zai wore a puzzled expression.
As far as Zai was concerned, the only magic users he had ever known were Drum and one other—a person called the Old Woman.
So it was only natural for him to assume that anyone who could use magic also possessed the ability to detect mana.
"What do you mean?"
"The ability to detect mana through some means isn't something everyone has just because they can use magic. I don't have that kind of ability myself, for instance."
"Is that how it works? Then... does that mean Rei is inferior to the Chief as a mage? But that magic..."
"Zai. It is true that I possess the ability to detect mana, but that does not make me superior to Rei as a mage. ...Certainly, it is an advantage as a magic user—there is no mistaking that."
"Is that how it is?"
"Umu. ...So then, Rei. I can sense almost no mana from you. Given that you wielded such powerful magic, I would not think you lack mana... but might I ask why that is?"
The question was likely born of Drum's curiosity.
Rei understood that, and since it was not something he needed to hide, he held up the ring on his finger.
"This is a Magic Item called the Ring of the New Moon. It's a ring with a special effect—as long as I wear it, I can conceal the mana I possess. Truthfully, the amount of mana I hold is enormous. Enough that if someone with the ability to detect mana—like you, Drum—were to sense it directly, they would be thrown into a panic."
"...That much? Well, one could not wield such magic without that much mana. In that sense, it is something I can accept."
Rei was slightly surprised.
He had fully expected Drum to ask him to remove the Ring of the New Moon so he could verify the extent of his mana firsthand.
But Drum simply nodded as if satisfied with Rei's explanation alone, showing no sign of asking him to remove the ring.
"I was sure you'd tell me to take it off."
"If an old man like me were to feel that much mana from a mage capable of such magic up close, it would shorten my lifespan."
For some reason, Drum laughed happily.
Rei had no idea why he found it amusing, but since Drum seemed satisfied, he decided there was no need to press the matter.
"Anyway, today... won't work, but would it be acceptable for me to go defeat the Dragonias sometime tomorrow?"
At Rei's words, Drum looked troubled and turned his gaze toward Zai.
As chief of this settlement, he wanted to accept Rei's proposal.
But as a proud Centaur rather than a chief, he could not help wondering whether it was right to leave the fight against the Dragonias entirely in Rei's hands.
Even so, his hesitation lasted only a brief moment.
There was no question that he valued Centaur pride, but considering his position as chief, refusing Rei's proposal was simply not an option.
"Umu. I will ask that of you. ...However, it would be troublesome if something were to happen to you. Zai, take several others and go with Rei."
On the surface, this was dispatching Zai as reinforcements for Rei.
In reality, it was sending Zai and the others to witness Rei's strength firsthand—a gesture born from the desire to avoid slighting the pride of those in the settlement, at least somewhat.
Naturally, Zai understood the meaning behind those words.
Frustrated by his own lack of strength, he nonetheless bowed his head to Drum, who had shown consideration for him and for the settlement's warriors.
"Thank you, Chief."
"Think nothing of it. ...However, your gratitude should be directed at Rei, not me. If Rei had declined to take us along, this discussion would never have happened. ...What say you?"
With everything arranged to this point, Rei found it difficult to refuse.
More importantly, since he had no idea where the Dragonias actually were, he needed a guide.
If he flew through the sky on Set, he might spot them from above, but that would rely heavily on luck.
Far better to have the Centaurs—who already knew where the Dragonias were—guide him so he would not get lost along the way.
Additionally, Rei and Set were somewhat directionally challenged, and the fact that it was uncertain whether they could find their way back to this settlement if they took flight was a significant concern.
"Fair enough. I need a guide, and I don't know the customs or anything like that around here either, so having someone familiar with the area come along would help."
"Then..."
"Yeah. That would help us too. The real question is how long it'll take to get to where the Dragonias are."
As far as Rei was concerned, the Dragonias posed a fatal threat to the Centaurs—to any friendly presence in this world—and he wanted to deal with them if at all possible.
At the same time, he needed to inform Daskar about this matter.
What the Wisp had done and how it had opened a hole connecting to this world, and where Anastasia and Fana had gone.
At the very least, he needed to bring Daskar up to speed.
The one stroke of fortune was that the number of people who knew about the Wisp was small.
Thanks to that, the number of people with whom he needed to share information was not large.
...Of course, that also meant there were few people with whom he could exchange opinions.
Even so, given the current situation, if asked which to prioritize, Rei's judgment was that maintaining confidentiality came first.
(Well, Lord Daskar seems to have owed Anastasia a great deal, so he might be thrown into confusion.)
In any case, there was no question that Rei needed to inform Daskar first.
"The distance, if it hasn't changed from the previously reported location, is about five days one way."
"Five days... that's quite..."
Rei knew how fast Centaurs could run.
After all, he had traveled from where he arrived in this world to this settlement alongside Zai and his companions.
Considering their speed at the time, five days even at Centaur pace meant a considerable distance.
(Did the Dragonias we fought today run that entire distance? If so, what have they been eating? Judging by their condition, they were starving... in which case, if we traced the signs of their feeding... no, that won't work. The ones we fought today were only part of an advance party. If that's the case, even following those trails...)
The ones still out there were probably an advance party.
Either way, Rei needed Zai to guide him.
"Understood. Then... the day after tomorrow. I'd prefer to say tomorrow, but I have things I need to take care of first. Once I've handled those, we'll depart the day after tomorrow. Is that acceptable?"
"If Rei is fine with that, it's acceptable. We need to gather a certain number of people on our end as well."
As far as Rei was concerned, Zai alone would have been enough as a guide.
But Zai apparently intended to bring several others.
Rei started to say something, then decided to let it be—if Zai thought it necessary, Rei had no choice but to respect that.
Rei still knew almost nothing about this world.
Under those circumstances, if Zai insisted, Rei had to defer to his judgment.
The fact that he had the Misty Ring and didn't need to worry about luggage was also a significant factor.
"As for supplies, I have the Misty Ring—the same one I store my Death Scythe and Twilight Spear in. I can stow everything in there for the trip. Carrying baggage on the road is rough, after all."
How much food and water the Centaurs consumed in a day.
Beyond that, tents and various other gear—for a five-day journey, a ten-day round trip—naturally meant a great many things were needed.
Under normal circumstances, simply carrying all that luggage would slow them down considerably.
But with Rei's Misty Ring, there was no reason to worry about supplies.
Since this was another world, there was a possibility the Misty Ring might malfunction, but based on his experience using Magic Items like Death Scythe, the Twilight Spear, and the Sleipnir boots... and above all, from having used the Misty Ring repeatedly in this world already, he felt confident it would be fine.
"That would be a tremendous help, but... are you sure? You're already dealing with the Dragonias for us, and to go this far on top of that..."
"I don't mind. If it makes travel easier for Zai and the others, that helps us too."
"I see. ...Then, honestly, it's frustrating to admit, but I'll take you up on your offer this time."
"Hmm. It seems everything is settled. Rei, thanks to you, this settlement will be saved. ...You have my gratitude."
"Save that for after I've actually defeated the Dragonias."
As long as the Dragonias were not yet annihilated, being thanked at this stage was premature—the operation could still fail.
Of course, Rei fully intended to see it through to absolute success since he was going himself, but there was still much they did not know about the Dragonias.
Which meant the possibility that this operation could fail for some unforeseen reason could not be entirely dismissed.
"Chief, Rei. Leaving what comes next aside, the feast preparations should be finished by now. For now, let us enjoy it. After all, today we welcomed a new friend in Rei... and with his help, we annihilated the Dragonias without losing a single person."
At Zai's words, Rei and Drum exchanged glances, then nodded.