"I found it!"
Anastasia's shout came just as evening was about to fall.
They had been running nonstop today except for lunch and a brief rest, so everyone who had been running—the Centaurs, Set, and the deer—were all proportionately exhausted. But the moment they heard Anastasia's words, there was no doubt that their fatigue vanished instantly.
...Though whether the two deer carrying Anastasia and Fana had actually understood her words was something Rei could not be certain of.
"Halt!"
Zai shouted upon hearing Anastasia's words.
At that command, the Centaurs gradually began to slow down.
There was no way they could stop immediately just because they were told to halt.
Well, if it were a group of only a few people, they might have been able to stop right away. But given the size of the Reconnaissance Unit, doing so would inevitably result in those running in the rear colliding with the ones advancing up front.
If that was the case, then gradually slowing down like this was indeed the quickest way to come to a stop.
Though it took a little time, the members of the Reconnaissance Unit came to a halt and naturally gathered around Anastasia.
Anastasia's words just now—that she had found it.
What those words meant was obvious when considering the Reconnaissance Unit's current objective.
"So, Anastasia. You said you found it... but where exactly is it? The general location of the headquarters was already mostly pinpointed beforehand using the Spirit Egg's power, right?"
"Yes. Compared to before, I'd narrowed it down significantly. But... this time, I was able to clearly identify the exact location."
"And? Where exactly is that?"
It was Rei who asked, but the others wanted to know just as badly.
The Centaurs in particular wanted to learn where the headquarters of the Dragonias—the creatures that had caused them so much suffering—was located.
The eyes they directed at Anastasia carried a gaze so intense that the word "powerful" alone could not describe it.
Anastasia, subjected to such stares, showed no sign of intimidation and opened her mouth to speak.
"Over that way... you can see a hill, right? The Dragonias headquarters is located beyond that hill. However, it goes without saying—be careful. The Dragonias's power that I can sense through the Spirit Egg is considerable. And... it seems they're aware that we're approaching, too."
The Centaurs stirred at the mention of the enemy being aware of them.
However, a small number among them—particularly Dolfina, who possessed magic skills rivaling the best among the Centaurs, as well as Rei and Vihera—reacted differently.
...No, rather, they could even accept it, precisely because they understood the enemy would notice their approach.
(The Spirit Egg that the other side desperately wants. The fact that they desire it means they must know exactly what kind of existence the Spirit Egg is. If so, it's only natural that they would be able to sense the Spirit Egg approaching their location... it wouldn't be strange, would it?)
Of course, that was assuming the Dragonias's objective was the Spirit Egg as an existence.
If they simply wanted any entity that contained a certain level of power, there was a possibility they hadn't noticed the Spirit Egg's presence.
(Or is it precisely because they're fine with any power that they sense the Spirit Egg approaching their location? For that matter, the Dragonias themselves are an unusual existence to begin with. Expecting me to predict that would be unreasonable.)
Telling himself that, Rei asked Anastasia once more.
"So the Dragonias headquarters is beyond that hill?"
"That's right. Probably... no, I'm almost certain that's the case."
At Anastasia's confident assertion, Zai looked toward Rei.
Receiving that gaze, Rei nodded, and after a moment, Zai spoke again.
"First, we need to confirm the exact location of the Dragonias headquarters. From here on, it wouldn't be surprising for Dragonias to appear at any moment, so everyone, please be as careful as possible."
Following Zai's instructions, the Centaurs responded in unison.
The Dragonias headquarters... they had been chosen from their settlement and had traveled all this way in order to find it.
Thinking back on those days... most of the Centaurs found themselves recalling, for some reason, the days they had spent training with Vihera daily rather than the hardships of their mission as a Reconnaissance Unit.
Days that had been far more grueling than fighting the Dragonias.
...Even though they were about to move to confirm the Dragonias headquarters, when they thought back to their mock battles with Vihera, they felt no fear at all.
It wasn't that Vihera had intentionally repeated those mock battles for this purpose, but battles against the formidable opponent that was Vihera had, strangely enough... no, perhaps quite naturally, given the Centaurs courage.
"Alright, let's go."
Whether judging from the state of the Centaurs that there was no immediate problem, Zai made the declaration.
The others had no objection to his words either, and they headed toward the hill.
...It was only natural, but as they approached, many of the Centaurs showed signs of nervousness.
As if preparing to move at a moment's notice, no matter what happened.
(This is a bit problematic.)
It was Rei who sensed danger upon seeing this.
It was fine to be prepared to respond immediately, but from what Rei could see, it seemed like many of them were overly tense.
Of course, there were some who were not that nervous—some who held an appropriate level of tension—but they were a minority.
Being chosen for this Reconnaissance Unit meant they were considered skilled individuals in their respective settlements. But even so, when they considered that the Dragonias headquarters was right nearby, it was unreasonable to expect even such skilled warriors not to feel nervous.
"It's fine to be nervous, but being too tense isn't good. Well, even if I say something here, whether that'll actually relieve the tension is questionable at best."
Nervousness wasn't something you could bring on just by wanting to be tense, nor was it something you could avoid just by not wanting to be.
Given that was the case, ultimately they had no choice but to manage it themselves.
(Come to think of it, they often say that writing the character for "person" on your palm and swallowing it helps relieve nervousness... but I wonder if that actually works? Or thinking of everyone watching you as potatoes, and so on.)
Those were very commonly heard methods for relieving tension, but if asked whether they were actually effective, Rei could only say the results were dubious at best.
Even while thinking about such things, the party continued over the hill...
"Huh?"
Who was it that muttered that?
Or perhaps, even the person who had spoken wasn't aware that such a sound had slipped from their own mouth.
Thinking that... Rei also found himself agreeing with the sentiment.
After all, despite Anastasia having said that the Dragonias headquarters was beyond the hill, there was nothing that looked like one anywhere in sight.
"Anastasia?"
Zai, in his position as the leader of the Reconnaissance Unit, asked with a questioning tone.
Had she not found the enemy headquarters using the Spirit Egg's power?
That was the meaning behind his question.
Those other than Zai also directed questioning looks at Anastasia, wondering what was going on.
A few even cast looks suggesting that Anastasia might have been talking nonsense.
But Anastasia, receiving stares from those around her, showed no sign of fluster. Still mounted on the deer, she simply pointed at the ground.
And from that attitude of hers, Rei also understood what Anastasia was trying to say.
Because that was something he himself had anticipated as a possibility.
"Underground?"
"Correct. I mentioned that much before we departed, didn't I?"
Anastasia answered Rei's words casually.
For her, those words from Rei were probably something she had expected.
That was why she responded that way. But that was only because it was Rei and Anastasia. For the Centaurs who hadn't heard about that or had let it go in one ear and out the other, the idea that the Dragonias headquarters was underground was completely unexpected.
(Well... thinking about how the Spirit Egg was buried underground, and the Dragonias came seeking it, it's not that strange a story, is it? It was precisely because they were underground that they desired the Spirit Egg buried in the earth. ...Though the fact that they only started moving around the time we arrived is a bit questionable. That must be why Anastasia had said it was underground.)
If the Dragonias had moved before Rei and the others arrived, it was highly likely they could have obtained the Spirit Egg without encountering any resistance.
The timing being too perfect was what ironically aroused strong suspicion in Rei.
However, since the Dragonias headquarters was underground beneath the grassland that lay before their eyes, it was also an undeniable fact that they could not stay here like this forever.
"In any case, if the Spirit Egg's information is correct, then the Dragonias headquarters is beneath that grassland... which means the problem becomes where exactly we enter."
Given that the Dragonias were coming and going, it would naturally be strange for there not to be a suitably large entrance.
However, as far as Rei could see, he could not find anything resembling a hole leading underground.
At the very least, hundreds—no, thousands, or possibly even tens of thousands—of Dragonias should have emerged from the headquarters.
Given that, an opening barely large enough for a single Dragonias to pass through—though it would be quite large given their height—should not be sufficient.
Moreover, the Dragonias had significant individual variation.
Even a standard Dragonias was quite large, but some could be as big as a giant. That might be a slight exaggeration, but it wouldn't be strange for Dragonias of such enormous size to exist.
"What's going on? I understand that this underground is the Dragonias headquarters, but... the problem is how we get there."
"More importantly, we've come right up next to their headquarters, and not a single one has come out to intercept us. Why is that?"
That was Vihera's pure, straightforward question.
Indeed, if this weren't the Dragonias headquarters but a human one—to use Vihera's birthplace of the Bestia Empire as an example—this would already be right in front of the castle.
If hostile foes were in such a place, it would not be strange for forces to come out to intercept them under normal circumstances.
And yet, not a single Dragonias had emerged to intercept them.
"The golden-scaled Dragonias that fled when it fought me and Set should have relayed information. Despite that, the fact that no enemies have appeared at all... is clearly strange, just as Vihera says."
At Rei's words, the Centaurs all looked around in unison.
But, as expected, there was no sign of any Dragonias anywhere, nor anything resembling a hole leading underground.
Expressions of bewilderment appeared among the group.
Even looking at it like this, all that spread out below was a vast expanse of grassland.
In this situation, how exactly were they supposed to reach the Dragonias headquarters?
Some of the Centaurs even began to think that perhaps Anastasia had made a mistake.
However... for those who had seen the Spirit Egg up close, the fact that they couldn't bring themselves to believe it was a mistake was also true.
"What should we do? Should we go down to the grassland once and investigate?"
"I understand what you're saying, Rei, but this is the Dragonias headquarters, isn't it? Then we should act cautiously. If we carelessly step in and Dragonias suddenly appear in massive numbers, it would be no laughing matter."
When Zai put it that way, Rei had no choice but to agree.
In truth, while the Centaurs of the Reconnaissance Unit had grown stronger, if they were attacked by vastly more Dragonias than themselves, the answer to whether they would be fine was no.
"Then what do we do?"
"Let's observe a little more from here. As long as the Dragonias headquarters is underground, there's bound to be at least some kind of clue."
At Zai's words, the Centaurs also seemed to have their own thoughts, as they carefully surveyed the landscape visible from the top of the hill.
Being creatures of the grasslands, the Centaurs had excellent eyesight.
Amidst all that...
"Guru?"
It was Set who suddenly let out a puzzled cry.