After defeating the Queen, the days that followed were spent visiting the settlements that had cooperated with the Reconnaissance Unit and sending the dispatched warriors home. Along the way, they encountered settlements under attack by Dragonias swarms, and there were even times when Dragonias struck just as they were preparing to make camp.
Once camp was set up, defenses were solidified by Earth Walls created through Rei's Terrain Manipulation. But if they were attacked right as preparations began, fortifying their defenses was impossible.
...However, just because their defenses weren't up didn't mean Rei and his group were weak.
Rei, Vihera, and Set went without saying, but Zai and the other Centaurs also possessed more than enough skill to be called an elite force.
Because of this, the Dragonias that attacked out of hunger met a single fate: having their corpses stored away by Rei as materials.
There were also times when they coincidentally ran into Dragonias swarms while traveling, but unlike camp preparations, these situations were straightforward. At the campsite, they'd had to protect non-combatants, which added some effort, but on the move, the non-combatants only needed to stay in place or wait at a slight distance—and that was that.
As a result, even in those instances, the only thing that happened was an increase in Dragonias corpses stored in Rei's Misty Ring.
By the time the Reconnaissance Unit's numbers had dwindled considerably, they arrived at Dolfina's settlement.
"If I could, I would've loved to travel with you, Rei. The magical knowledge you possess is incredibly enticing," Dolfina said, a regretful expression on his face.
Rei agreed with that sentiment—conversations with Dolfina were certainly stimulating when it came to magic. That said, Dolfina's settlement, as had been the case before, was a fairly closed-off place. For that reason, if Rei were to stay even briefly, there was no doubt it would cause an uproar.
(The reason for its closed-off nature stems from this settlement's Chief... Dolfina's father. If Dolfina were to become Chief, would that change? ...I suppose it's possible.)
It wasn't that Rei didn't think so, but a deeply ingrained culture of isolation wouldn't necessarily disappear so quickly. If that was the case, then it would require a long-term perspective, making it difficult to fix the settlement's insular nature right away.
"I'm glad you feel that way. But, well... you'll be busy with various things after this whole affair, won't you? Even with the Dragonias situation resolved, that alone won't make all the trouble disappear overnight."
From Rei's perspective, it was true that this whole endeavor had left him with plenty to think about. But right now, he needed to get Anastasia to Elgin as quickly as possible. Once that was taken care of, he wouldn't mind returning here and taking care of various things.
...That said, whether he'd even be able to come back to this world once he returned to Elgin was an entirely separate question.
"Well then, this is it." With those parting words, Dolfina led the others back toward the settlement.
Rei, Zai, and many others watched them go—though "many" was relative. Compared to when they had departed the Underground Space where the Dragonias Queen resided, their numbers had already dropped to less than half... no, down to about a third.
"Alright, which settlement is next? ...I feel like I'm gradually getting used to this sort of thing," Asdena remarked.
Several Centaurs nodded in response. When the Reconnaissance Unit was first formed, their numbers had grown with every settlement they visited. But that unit existed, naturally, only until the Dragonias Queen was defeated. Now that it was over, disbanding was only natural—and conversely to when it was formed, their numbers shrank with each settlement they stopped at.
At first, many had been unaccustomed to this kind of parting and likely felt a twinge of loneliness. But after several days of it, they grew used to it as if it were the most natural thing in the world.
"Asdena, your settlement isn't far either, is it? Getting used to saying goodbye isn't such a bad thing."
"...I suppose you're right."
At Rei's words, Asdena wore a conflicted expression but nodded all the same. Rei seemed to have his own thoughts about Asdena's demeanor, but he didn't press any further.
He didn't press further... but the problem arose that evening, right around the time they had finished setting up camp and were about to start preparing dinner.
"Rei, would you fight me?"
"...Huh?"
At Asdena's sudden request, Rei's first thought was that he must have misheard something. But judging by Asdena's demeanor, there was no mistaking his sincerity.
Rei let out a dumbfounded sound, and though the others around them hadn't said anything aloud, there was no doubt they were all wondering the same thing: what on earth was Asdena talking about?
Rei and Asdena had engaged in mock battles several times before. Vihera accounted for most of the actual sparring sessions, but Rei participated often as well. In that sense, Rei had been through a fair number of mock battles with Asdena.
And in every single one of those mock battles, Rei had won. Given that, even if they held another one, the odds of Asdena beating Rei—while not absolutely zero—were as close to zero as one could get.
"A mock battle? In that case—"
Rei was about to say he wouldn't mind obliging and that they should get started, but Asdena cut him off.
"No. Not a mock battle. A real fight."
"...Huh?"
Another dumbfounded sound escaped Rei's mouth. A real fight naturally meant there would be no holding back like in a mock battle. If things went poorly, someone could even die. Yet why Asdena would ask for such a thing, Rei had absolutely no idea.
"Are you serious?"
"Dead serious."
He asked just to be sure, and the reply came instantly. It didn't look like he was joking at all.
(He's serious.)
Rei understood that much. What he didn't understand was why Asdena wanted to fight him—and a real fight at that, not a mock battle. If asked whether there was any need for such a thing in their current situation, Rei would shake his head immediately. Now, if Rei had somehow earned some kind of grudge from Asdena, that would be a different story. But Rei had no recollection of anything like that.
Granted, considering Rei's personality, the possibility that he'd earned someone's resentment without realizing it couldn't be completely ruled out.
At any rate, since Asdena was this determined, Rei turned his gaze toward Zai. As the one leading the Reconnaissance Unit, Zai's permission would be needed if they were going to fight a real battle rather than a mock one.
But even Zai couldn't simply nod at Asdena's proposal. They had all survived the battle against the Dragonias without major injuries. As the unit's leader, it was only natural for him to want to send everyone home unharmed rather than letting them get hurt in a fight with Rei.
"Are you serious?"
Zai uttered the exact same words Rei had asked. And naturally, the answer that came from Asdena's mouth was the same as before.
"I'm serious."
"...Understood. Then I'll permit it. But try not to kill each other if at all possible."
Judging from Asdena's demeanor, Zai must have concluded there was no stopping him. Telling them not to kill was his last, feeble act of resistance.
With Zai's approval, none of the others would object. Granted, if it had been Vihera, she could have put a stop to it. But Vihera was a woman who loved battle by nature. That held true even when she wasn't the one fighting—she enjoyed watching others clash. And above all, since Rei was the one fighting, she had zero intention of intervening.
(Though I have no idea what Asdena was thinking, challenging Rei like this. The gap in their strength is the real problem.)
She didn't exactly hate watching a one-sided rout, but a proper back-and-forth was what truly let spectators enjoy themselves. In that sense, while there was no doubt both Asdena and Rei would be fighting seriously, whether she could truly savor it from the bottom of her heart was questionable. Even so, the fact that she was looking forward to it was partly because she knew Rei's true ability—but more than that, it was a classic case of love being blind to flaws.
"Clear the area! Rei and Asdena are going to fight! And not a mock battle—a real fight!"
A Centaur shouted, and a space for the bout was hastily cleared. The campsite was already enclosed by walls, and they couldn't go outside. ...Well, if Rei used Terrain Manipulation again, they could, but for now he showed no inclination to do so.
Right around the center of the campsite, Rei and Asdena faced each other. Asdena held his spear; Rei held Death Scythe and the Twilight Spear as usual.
In terms of sheer physical size, Asdena was overwhelmingly larger. But since both of Rei's weapons were long-shafted, to the spectators the difference in their frames didn't seem all that great. If anything, because most of them knew Rei's true ability, it was Rei who appeared the more imposing.
In that moment, the one most visibly overwhelmed by Rei's presence was Asdena himself. Precisely because he stood directly before Rei, he was bearing the full, head-on brunt of what could only be called a fighter's Fighting Spirit that Rei radiated.
"Hah... hah... hah... here I come!"
His breathing already ragged from merely standing there facing Rei, Asdena suddenly surged forward.
True to a Centaur, his mobility was exceptional. And through the mock battles with Vihera and the countless clashes with Dragonias, he had trained himself to reach full speed by his second or third step, if not his first.
"Oh!"
Gasps of astonishment rose from the watching Centaurs. Everyone present understood Asdena's ability perfectly well. But even so, seeing him genuinely launch an all-out attack at Rei, the sheer intensity drew involuntary cries of surprise.
...Even so, Rei, who had been watching Asdena bear down on him, felt no particular shock. Asdena certainly possessed impressive mobility, but Rei had seen it several times during the mock battles with Vihera. And more importantly, Rei had fought numerous monsters, many of which were far faster.
For Rei, no matter how quick Asdena was, dealing with that speed wasn't especially difficult. ...Naturally, though, Asdena surely knew Rei could match his pace. He'd demonstrated as much time and again during the mock battles with Vihera, and had even used similar footwork against Rei himself.
Asdena grew stronger with every fight. His body mechanics, center of gravity, and countless other details refined his technique day by day, little by little.
But even so, for Rei, handling it was not difficult. No matter how fast Asdena was, compared to Vihera, he was naturally outclassed.
"Hah!"
With a spirited shout, Asdena unleashed a thrust, fully loaded with the speed and power of his charge. It was a strike with absolutely no holding back—if it wasn't stopped, the spear's tip would run clean through Rei's body.
Screams erupted from several of the watching Centaurs. They must have judged that Rei was about to die.
...In reality, piercing the defense of Rei, who wore the Dragon Robe, would be virtually impossible with that level of force.
At any rate, deeming there was no need to bother taking such a blow, Rei swung Death Scythe.
With a sharp metallic clang, Asdena's entire body was sent flying.
"Oh."
Rei sounded mildly impressed. If Asdena had let go of his spear, his body wouldn't have been thrown so violently—but the spear would have been knocked far away, leaving him disarmed. Against someone like Rei, that would have ended the fight on the spot.
That was why Asdena must have chosen to hold on and be sent flying along with his weapon. ...Though the fact that not just his hands but his entire body went numb from that single deflection was something even he hadn't anticipated.
"Uwooooooh!"
And once again, Asdena charged toward Rei.