Looking at the massive number of corpses scattered across the ground, Rei reached for Flame Magic—then paused, considering an alternative.
Burning the corpses was certainly the quickest approach. But now that he had defeated the Queen—or more precisely, now that Terrain Manipulation had leveled up from severing whatever core she had left behind—he wondered if he could deal with them even more efficiently.
He figured that intact Dragonias corpses buried in the ground would serve as better nourishment for the surrounding plant life through microbial decomposition than if they were reduced to charcoal. That was the reasoning behind the idea.
Of course, burying corpses came with its own set of precautions.
For one, if they were buried too shallow, wild animals or birds might dig them up.
Fortunately, his current Terrain Manipulation could create holes five meters deep, so that wasn't a concern. Besides, in this location—the former Dragonias headquarters—virtually every animal that could have served as food had already been hunted and killed, so there was little to worry about on that front.
However, with the Queen that had ruled this land now defeated, the surrounding area was essentially unclaimed territory with no current ruler.
That being the case, the possibility couldn't be ruled out that monsters or animals which had survived the Dragonias might come seeking this place as their own territory.
(Though I did kill the Queen, there's a high chance that surviving Dragonias still have other bases. But ultimately, without the Queen, they should naturally disband over time. ...I have no idea how long a Dragonias lifespan is, though.)
While mulling this over with Death Scythe in hand, Vihera approached and asked, "Hey, Rei. Are you sure about this? The corpses are scattered over a pretty wide area."
Her observation was dead-on.
Since they had fought Dragonias arriving from multiple directions in various locations, it was only natural the corpses hadn't gathered in one place.
Given that, even with Rei's Terrain Manipulation, handling all of them would have been difficult before the skill leveled up.
The biggest limitation at level four had simply been how deep he could dig.
The difference between 150 centimeters and five meters spoke for itself.
"Yeah, no problem. Thanks to the Queen. Here we go."
At Rei's words, the surrounding Centaurs turned their gazes toward him.
Everyone knew what he was about to do. They had camped at sites where Terrain Manipulation had been used many times before, so the Centaurs were already familiar with the skill.
Even so, their expressions carried a hint of skepticism as they watched him prepare to act.
"Terrain Manipulation."
Pressing Death Scythe's chisel tip into the ground, Rei activated the skill.
In the next instant, the areas where the Dragonias corpses lay sank roughly five meters.
The Centaurs cried out in surprise as the corpses vanished before their eyes.
That said, even sinking them 150 centimeters would have been enough to hide the corpses from view at their current distance.
"Hey, Rei. Mind if I go take a look at where the corpses were?" Asdena asked.
The bodies had disappeared right before his eyes, but he clearly wanted to confirm whether the ground had actually sunk as deep as Rei claimed.
"Yeah, go ahead. Just don't get too close and fall in."
At Rei's warning, Asdena immediately headed toward where the Dragonias corpses had been.
He wasn't the only one. Several others followed after him.
When they reached the sunken ground, they peered into the hole with evident caution.
The pit was unmistakably deeper than the trenches Rei had previously created around their campsites with Terrain Manipulation. Not just somewhat deeper—it was on an entirely different scale.
"This is..."
Asdena had heard the stories, but seeing the depth firsthand still left him stunned.
Before he could recover, Rei called out to his back. "Heeey, Asdena. Come back already. I'm going to fill that hole!"
"R-right. Got it. Coming back."
If they had to dig a hole like that themselves, just how much labor would it require? The Centaurs had reasonable confidence in their physical abilities, but even they couldn't accomplish something like this instantly.
Astonished that Rei could do so, and harboring a touch of genuine awe, Asdena made his way back.
Rei, showing no sign of having noticed Asdena's reaction, surveyed the area, confirmed that every Dragonias corpse had sunk into the earth, then activated the skill once more.
"Terrain Manipulation."
Previously, he had simply lowered the ground. This time, he raised the surrounding earth that hadn't sunk, filling the holes.
Just like that, the pits he had created vanished in an instant.
"Woooooah!"
Gasps of admiration rippled through the watching Centaurs.
Listening to their reactions, Rei turned his gaze toward the ramp leading to the Underground Space.
"Admiring it is all well and good, but for now, we head underground. We were lucky there weren't any Dragonias left up here, but we can't completely rule out the possibility of more showing up."
At Rei's words, the Centaurs' expressions turned serious.
They were no doubt recalling yesterday—when Dragonias had suddenly appeared in overwhelming numbers... specifically, the very corpses Rei had just buried deep underground.
Why there were no Dragonias here today was a genuine mystery to Rei as well, but he set that question aside. Worrying about it now served no purpose.
(Then again... it's a real long shot, but is there any chance the Dragonias have all gathered in the Underground Space?)
Since the Underground Space had served as the Dragonias headquarters, it wouldn't be strange for surviving Dragonias to use it as a temporary base.
Ordinary Dragonias driven by hunger wouldn't be capable of such calculated behavior. But if there existed among them a highly intelligent Dragonias capable of command, it wouldn't be unusual for them to take shelter inside.
"Set, can you tell whether there are any Dragonias underground?"
"Guruu..."
Set rumbled apologetically.
Set's senses were far sharper than Rei's, and naturally, its sense of smell was extraordinary. On top of that, it possessed the Sense of Smell Enhancement skill, so under normal circumstances, it should have been able to detect whether Dragonias were present.
However, Dragonias corpses had littered this very spot until moments ago. Even after Set had left carrying the unconscious Rei yesterday, many more Dragonias must have gathered here. Some of them had surely entered the Underground Space, and with all those scents saturating the area, even Set's remarkable nose couldn't determine whether any remained inside.
That was why Set had openly shown Rei it couldn't comply. Someone vain might have claimed otherwise, but Set was completely unburdened by such pretensions.
"In that case, we have no choice but to go see for ourselves. Well, if there are any, we just defeat them. Simple enough."
Rei's tone carried no great tension.
He had defeated the Queen, along with the intelligent Dragonias, including the seven-colored scaled one. Naturally, even if other Dragonias attacked, with Rei, Set, and Vihera all present, dealing with them would pose no real challenge.
Moreover, since they weren't using the Spirit Egg's power this time, Anastasia could be counted on as combat strength as well.
"Then let's go."
At Vihera's prompt, the Reconnaissance Unit led by Zai set off toward the Underground Space.
"Whoa, I'd heard about it, but... how far does this ramp go?" one of the Centaurs muttered in awe as they descended.
It was a slope so long it seemed to plunge to the very bottom of the earth. For Centaurs who lived on the open grasslands, many had likely never descended such an extended ramp before. The fact that it led underground only amplified their unease.
"H-hey, Rei. I'm sure it's fine, but... it's okay to keep going like this, right?"
"Yeah, no problem at all. When we came through here yesterday, there were a huge number of Dragonias in the Underground Space."
And those massive numbers had remained even after Rei had burned the majority with magic—enough to still be called massive. Despite the considerable mana he had expended, that many had survived. Just how many Dragonias had originally occupied this Underground Space? Thinking about it was troublesome, to say the least.
Though the majority of the survivors had been red-scaled Dragonias capable of withstanding Rei's magic.
"Ah, the ramp ended!"
"Stay alert! There could be Dragonias!"
Rei barked the warning in response to the excited shout from ahead. With their surroundings still uncertain, there was no such thing as being too cautious.
There was also the possibility—slim, but not impossible—that something other than Dragonias lurked in the Underground Space. A completely different monster entirely. Given that barely a day had passed, the odds were extremely low, but not zero.
And then—
"All clear! No Dragonias or any other enemies!"
Rei felt a small measure of relief at the call.
That said, the Underground Space was vast. From the entrance alone, it was impossible to survey the entire area. He couldn't definitively call the situation safe—but at the very least, the absence of visible threats was a stroke of fortune for the Centaurs.
"Whoa, incredible... It's this huge? How far does it go?"
The voice of one Centaur, staring out at the seemingly endless expanse, reached Rei's ears. The others said nothing, but from the atmosphere alone, Rei could tell many shared the same sentiment.
In terms of sheer scale, the grasslands the Centaurs called home were certainly vast as well. This underground space, expansive as it appeared, was overwhelmingly smaller by comparison. Yet the simple fact that it existed underground was apparently enough to leave them awestruck.
Many of the Centaurs present had taken part in excavating the Spirit Egg, so they understood firsthand just how grueling such labor was. Knowing that, the question naturally followed: if they had to carve out this much space underground, how long would it take?
It was only natural to wonder.
In truth, Rei suspected the Dragonias hadn't dug this space themselves. Based on what he knew, the Queen had most likely created it using Earth Spirit Magic.
(Oh, come to think of it... this is painfully obvious in hindsight, but the Queen must have been much smaller before entering this Underground Space, right?)
The ramp was fairly wide, but even so, considering the Queen's final size, there was no way she could have fit through it. Which meant she had entered when smaller, then grown inside.
Now that she was dead, it was a realization that came far too late to matter.
"Rei, where was the Queen?"
At Zai's question, Rei pointed toward the far reaches of the Underground Space.
"Over there. But even if you go to where she was, there's nothing left. I burned her completely. Do you still want to go? Honestly, it'd be a waste of time."
"That's..."
Rei could see the fierce conflict playing out within Zai.
But in the end, perhaps deciding that as the leader of the Reconnaissance Unit he had to confirm the Queen's death with his own eyes, Zai asked Rei to guide him to the site.