The sleeping Anastasia woke up—or more accurately, she was woken roughly an hour after Rei and Set returned to the settlement with the two Deer and the Centaur who had been tending to them.
Preparations to depart the settlement were nearly complete. Everything had been arranged so they could set out the moment Anastasia woke. Even so, the exhaustion from excavating the Spirit Egg had barely receded.
Physical stamina, mental fatigue, magical power—to fully recover from all of it, she would need much more rest. Perhaps a full night's sleep, at the very least. Rei could vaguely predict as much.
(No, considering the power I can feel from the Spirit Egg, one night might not even be enough. Wouldn't she need two nights... or more?)
Rei possessed extraordinary physical stamina, and as for his magical power, anyone with the ability to sense it would be so overwhelmed they'd collapse in confusion at its sheer magnitude.
Taking that into consideration, since Anastasia lacked extensive experience, Rei couldn't know exactly how much rest she would need to fully recover in her current state.
However, even without knowing that, given the situation at hand, he couldn't afford to let her rest for that long. That much was certain.
The moment the Spirit Egg was excavated, the Dragonias' behavior visibly changed.
When that happened, what would happen once night fell? Or just how many Dragonias were currently heading toward this settlement from their headquarters or other bases?
Given those circumstances, it was better to strike the Dragonias headquarters as soon as possible.
That being the case, while Rei certainly had his concerns about Anastasia's current condition, he needed her awake.
"Sorry. I would've let you sleep longer if I could."
"...It's fine. You woke me because that wasn't possible, right?"
Whether it was because her head wasn't fully clear from just waking up, or because her stamina, mental fatigue, and magical power hadn't recovered, Anastasia was still somewhat unfocused. But she seemed to understand Rei's words well enough, responding accordingly.
To her, Rei handed some chilled Fruit Water he had taken from his Misty Ring.
"For now, drink this and clear your head a little. I'm going to need you to give it your all from here on out. So rest up even a little."
"...Right. I know."
Anastasia replied briefly to Rei's words and drank the Fruit Water she had been given.
The chilled drink slightly awakened Anastasia's consciousness.
(Could it be that my usual state just after waking is something like this?)
Watching Anastasia, Rei found himself thinking that.
In reality, when Rei woke up on days he wasn't working, he was far worse than Anastasia was now.
Even several minutes after waking—and sometimes for nearly ten minutes—it wasn't uncommon for him to remain groggy and in a daze.
Since he was the one experiencing it himself, he probably had no real sense of just how bad it was.
"So, how much have you recovered?"
Once Anastasia finished drinking, Rei asked her.
At his words, Anastasia closed her eyes and assessed the condition of her own body.
If there were status screens like in a game, she could check things like HP and MP at a glance, but since no such thing existed, she naturally had no choice but to judge her own physical state herself.
And from Rei's perspective, it was clear that Anastasia was by no means in perfect condition.
...Though the fact that she seemed to have recovered somewhat compared to before her nap was slightly reassuring.
(Well, whether she can use the Spirit Egg in this state to find the enemy headquarters... that's a tough question, but I'll just have to ask her to do her best.)
As Rei was thinking that, the Deer beside Anastasia stood up.
"Pyui."
"Oh my."
At the sound of its cry, Anastasia finally noticed the Deer beside her and looked surprised. Then she spotted Fana and the second Deer a short distance away, and was surprised once more.
"What's going on?"
"After you excavated that Spirit Egg, the Dragonias started breaking through the grove's trees normally. Once that happened, I judged there was no longer any need to leave the trees standing, so Set and I pushed through while breaking them."
As a result, a simple path had been created, and the two Deer had followed it to reach the settlement.
When Rei explained this, Anastasia nodded in understanding.
Having passed through the grove herself, she had probably thought it would be utterly impossible for the two Deer to travel through normally.
In fact, without Set making a path, there would have been nothing they could do.
"As long as the Deer can leave from here on their own, once you locate the Dragonias headquarters, we can move out immediately. So... how about it? Can you find the Dragonias headquarters using the Spirit Egg's power?"
"I wonder. I think I can probably manage, but it's my first time doing this, so I can't say for certain. I don't think I'll know whether I can pull it off until I actually try. Besides... even if I succeed, I probably won't be able to participate in the battle."
Since it was her first time, she had no way of knowing exactly how much it would drain her.
But from what she had felt when she touched the Spirit Egg, she understood that she would almost certainly be left in a state of extreme exhaustion—whether that was a Spirit Mage's intuition or not.
"I'll handle the fighting along with Vihera, so don't worry."
Rei told her that, but Anastasia wore a somewhat... no, a decidedly dissatisfied expression.
For the intensely curious Anastasia, the Dragonias headquarters was a fascinating subject.
On top of that, she harbored strong curiosity not only about the headquarters itself, but also about their queen... or perhaps king.
Since she couldn't participate in the battle, she wouldn't be able to see such beings up close.
...For Anastasia, not being able to witness that was likely a source of considerable stress.
Rei understood that as well, but even so, he couldn't bring Anastasia and the others to the enemy headquarters when they were likely to reach their limits.
"Sorry."
"...It can't be helped."
Though still somewhat displeased, Anastasia replied to Rei.
It was true that she was frustrated about not being able to see the Dragonias headquarters or the enemy queen or king up close, but that didn't mean she could instantly restore herself to full health in the current situation.
Given that, making unreasonable demands here would only needlessly give the Dragonias more time.
Using the Spirit Egg's power to find the enemy headquarters, sleeping soundly tonight, then resting for another full day tomorrow just to be safe, before departing the day after.
From Anastasia's perspective, that was undoubtedly the best course of action. But giving the Dragonias two days could very well result in casualties among the Centaurs here.
Anastasia was exceptionally curious, but when asked whether it was acceptable to sacrifice Centaurs to satisfy her curiosity, she couldn't readily nod in agreement.
If the Centaurs being sacrificed were hostile enemies, she might have been able to accept such a trade-off.
But the Centaurs here were those who had come from their respective settlements to resolve the Dragonias situation.
Not all of them were friendly, but there were those who treated Anastasia kindly... and above all, there were those like Damran who looked up to her.
When asked whether it was acceptable to sacrifice such people even so... the answer was, naturally, no.
That was why, though clearly reluctant, she quietly complied with Rei's words.
The fact that she remained reluctant despite understanding the various circumstances spoke to the sheer intensity of Anastasia's curiosity.
"Alright then, now that you've accepted it... let me ask you straight. Can you find the Dragonias headquarters using the Spirit Egg's power?"
"I can't guarantee it. I think it's probably possible, but honestly, I think it would be better to call Marina, who's far more skilled than I am."
Anastasia had her own pride as a reasonably capable Spirit Mage.
She wouldn't go so far as to call herself the strongest in the world, but she did believe she possessed top-class ability within the Kingdom of Mireana.
But... even so, she couldn't possibly think she could beat Marina.
When she met Marina... no, when she saw the Spirit Magic woven into Marina's home, Anastasia had instinctively understood that.
That was why, if Marina were here, she would be able to make better contact with the Spirit Egg than Anastasia could, and she would be able to manage its overflowing power somehow.
That was why she had spoken Marina's name aloud... but unfortunately, calling Marina here was impossible.
In this location with no particular landmarks to speak of, it would be difficult for Rei to ride Set all the way to a place connected to Elgin.
"Since she's not here, calling Marina in the first place is an unreasonable proposition."
"I know that, but... you're not a Spirit Mage, Rei, so you don't understand how incredible this is."
"No, you don't have to be a Spirit Mage to tell that some kind of tremendous power is radiating from the Spirit Egg."
Even Rei, who lacked the ability to sense magical power, could tell that some form of power was emanating from the Spirit Egg.
If even Rei could sense it, then just how much power must Anastasia, as a Spirit Mage, be feeling?
After all, from the moment she arrived at this grove, she had said that the Spirit power here was thick.
For Anastasia, who had said that, to see the Spirit Egg—which radiated that thick power—up close and touch it... naturally, that would impose a significant burden.
However, with Marina, whose skill surpassed Anastasia's, absent, they had no choice but to have Anastasia use the Spirit Egg to locate the Dragonias headquarters.
"...It can't be helped. We can't stay like this forever, so I'll do it now."
"Please do."
Rei took back the cup that had held the Fruit Water and gave a brief reply to Anastasia, who murmured somewhat languidly.
Anastasia gave the Deer beside her one last gentle pat, then steeled herself and approached the Spirit Egg.
Naturally, the Centaurs watched Anastasia do so.
...while keeping a certain distance.
For the Centaurs, what Anastasia was about to do was simultaneously fascinating and terrifying—wondering what exactly would happen.
That was why they kept their distance: so as not to get in Anastasia's way under any circumstances, and also to ensure that if something happened to her, they wouldn't be caught in the fallout.
In reality, if something happened to the Spirit Egg—a being that was essentially Spirit power given material form—keeping this much distance wouldn't make any difference.
"Suu... haa... suu... haa..."
Anastasia paid no mind whatsoever to the gazes directed at her from around her, taking deep breaths to focus her concentration.
Her focus was astonishing; the voices of those around her no longer reached Anastasia's ears at all.
All that existed was herself and the Spirit Egg before her.
In that state, she gently reached out her hand and touched the surface of the Spirit Egg while making full use of her abilities as a Spirit Mage.
Its appearance was that of what could be called a giant black pearl, but its power was something on an entirely different magnitude.
Kin! The moment she touched the Spirit Egg, a metallic sound rang inside Anastasia's mind.
Naturally, only Anastasia could hear that sound; no one around her could.
(So far, so good. If there's a problem... it starts from here.)
The instant she thought that in the corner of her mind, Spirit power poured into Anastasia from the point of contact with the force of a raging torrent.
"Guh...!"
If she let her guard down even slightly, she would burst like an overinflated balloon.
Struggling to deflect the power flooding in with overwhelming force, Anastasia focused even more deeply.
How much time passed after that, Anastasia couldn't tell.
It felt like mere seconds, but also like hours... or even days, depending on how she thought about it.
Thinking such thoughts, she let the power flowing from the Spirit Egg pass through her, controlling it skillfully... and eventually, the Spirit Egg's power spread outward in ripple-like waves.