The sentries keeping watch around the settlement initially mistook the approaching group for enemies.
Given the devastation they had suffered at the hands of the Dragonias, such wariness was only natural.
Moreover, Zai—their strongest warrior—was currently absent from the settlement.
That being the case, if the Dragonias were to attack, the warriors who remained would have to defend the settlement on their own.
That was precisely why they had made preparations to respond at a moment's notice, ready for whatever might come.
"Something's approaching!"
Had it been daytime, identifying the approaching party would have been far easier.
But with the sun already sinking toward the horizon, they could tell that someone was approaching, yet had no way of determining what kind of beings they were.
Even so, jumping to the conclusion that it might be Dragonias was only natural for the Centaurs tasked with keeping watch.
"What? Is it the enemy!?"
"I don't know. Just make sure we're ready to counterattack immediately, whatever happens. Otherwise we won't be able to respond when the time comes."
"Understood, I'll gather the others right away."
"Do it."
After relaying the brief message to his comrades, he steadied his grip on his spear, bracing for an attack at any moment.
But... as he stood there, spear clutched tight, waiting and preparing for an assault that never came... the lookout's eyes eventually went wide.
Once the group had closed the distance enough, he finally recognized who was approaching the settlement.
"Zai..."
The lookout murmured the name under his breath.
Then, startled by his own voice, he snapped back to his senses and hurriedly turned his gaze back toward the figure... toward the one approaching the settlement.
Could it have been some kind of mistake?
That was what he thought as he looked again, but the figure in his line of sight was unmistakably Zai.
There were a few others besides Zai that caught his attention, but regardless, there was no doubt that Zai had returned safely. Telling anyone not to rejoice at that would have been unreasonable.
"It's Zai! Zai's back! Zai—the one who formed the Reconnaissance Unit and set out—has returned!"
He shouted those words at the top of his lungs.
At first, many of those inside the settlement who had been preparing for battle, thinking that perhaps the Dragonias or some other threat had attacked, couldn't immediately comprehend what the lookout was shouting... but they grasped the meaning of his words an instant later.
"Is it true!?"
Numerous Centaurs who had armed themselves and been preparing for combat... no, not just the warriors, but the non-combatant Centaurs as well rushed to gather outside the settlement.
That alone spoke volumes about how deeply Zai was beloved in this settlement.
"Zai!? Hey, you're not seeing things, are you!?"
"Yeah, look. Over there!"
When the first Centaur to come outside pressed the one who had called out Zai's name, the lookout pointed toward the far side of the grassland... at a considerable distance still, but close enough for anyone living on the plains to make out the figure of Zai.
Seeing that the figure in the indicated direction was indeed Zai... many raised cheers of joy.
Centaurs by the dozen broke into similar reactions.
Naturally, the commotion from the settlement reached the ears of Rei's group as they approached.
"Well now. That's quite a welcome. Probably the most enthusiastic we've gotten so far, wouldn't you say?"
Anastasia, riding on a deer, murmured with a hint of surprise. But Rei, riding on Set's back a short distance away, let out a sigh of exasperation before opening his mouth.
"If we're talking about the most enthusiastic welcome, wouldn't that settlement that fawned all over you take the prize?"
"That's..."
Rei's words were by no means an exaggeration.
The welcome they had received at the settlement Anastasia had previously helped was truly overwhelming.
...In reality, it was likely Anastasia and Fana alone who were being welcomed, not Rei and the rest.
"That was... that was a completely different situation. Different, I tell you."
Anastasia's cheeks were flushed red as she insisted, and anyone watching could tell she was clearly embarrassed.
Even for Anastasia, being welcomed with such over-the-top fanfare had apparently been too much.
Of course, she had no complaints about it.
Embarrassing as it had been, it wasn't as though it had been unpleasant.
"Hehe, it certainly was entertaining back then. ...Even if we were left out."
"We were welcomed too, in a manner of speaking. Though it was more of a modest reception, at best."
Rei offered that in response to Vihera's teasing words.
In truth, they hadn't been ignored as Vihera claimed.
Meals had been properly prepared for them, and words of gratitude were spoken.
...It was just that the Centaurs in that settlement had been far more favorably disposed toward Anastasia and Fana.
"Ugh..."
As if vividly recalling the memory in response to Rei and Vihera's words, Anastasia—and Fana, who looked as though she had been half-dragged into the situation—both appeared sheepish.
That said, since Fana was wearing a mask, her sheepishness was something one could only glean from her overall demeanor.
Naturally, the party continued onward during this exchange... and before long, Rei's group arrived at Zai's settlement.
"Zai! If you're back, does that mean... the Dragonias situation!?"
The first to call out to Zai was someone Rei recognized.
He was one of the Centaurs who had been with Zai when Rei and Set first arrived in this world and encountered him.
Having been Zai's friend from the start, he must have been worried sick about Zai departing with the Reconnaissance Unit.
There was no way Zai wouldn't be touched knowing an old friend had been worrying about him.
He smiled, nodded, and spoke.
"Yeah. We went to the Dragonias headquarters and killed the Queen. ...Though it was Rei who killed her. We never got the chance to fight the Queen ourselves."
At those words, many who had come to welcome Zai turned their gazes toward Rei.
That said, there was no suspicion in those looks.
The Centaurs of this settlement understood Rei's strength better than anyone.
After all, when this settlement had been attacked by a massive horde of Dragonias, Rei... or more precisely, Rei and Set, had trampled through those very Dragonias.
When it took multiple Centaurs to barely hold their own against a single Dragonias, Rei and Set had annihilated an entire swarm.
Considering that, they could accept that the words coming from Zai's mouth were no lie. ...Or rather, they were forced to.
"It's true, but Zai's strength also grew considerably during this journey... whether I should call it a journey is debatable, but either way, there's no doubt his abilities improved significantly through this whole affair. Enough to take on two Dragonias by himself."
"No way!"
The words burst from the mouth of Zai's friend in response to Rei's claim.
Even knowing Zai's strength, it was a claim hard to swallow.
It went without saying that fighting one-on-one and fighting one-on-two were vastly different.
Moreover, the opponent was the Dragonias, a creature stronger than the Centaurs.
In a sense, they could even be described as natural enemies.
That was why they couldn't simply take Rei's words at face value, and the other Centaurs nearby, while well aware of Zai's abilities, couldn't bring themselves to believe it either.
But Rei showed no sign of concern for their bewilderment as he shook his head.
"It's the truth."
Hearing him state it with such absolute confidence, the listening Centaurs began to think that perhaps it might actually be true.
...And given that Zai genuinely could handle two Dragonias at once, Rei showed not the slightest hesitation in making that declaration.
"Anyway, the detailed report comes after I've spoken with the Chief. Standing around talking here and delaying the report to him would be a problem."
"That's... well, true enough."
Since Zai's words were perfectly reasonable, the Centaurs nodded... and then, as a separate matter from Zai's situation, they voiced something they had wanted to ask but hadn't found the right moment for.
"That's fine and all. But what about those two riding the deer? They look like they've got two legs like your group, Rei."
At those words, the others who had not yet noticed Anastasia and Fana became aware of their presence.
"Anastasia and Fana. The two I was searching for. We happened to encounter them while operating with the Reconnaissance Unit."
"Huh..."
At Rei's words, the Centaurs' gazes turned toward Anastasia and Fana.
Of the two who received such stares, Anastasia did not seem particularly bothered.
Fana, however, quietly slipped behind Anastasia, along with her deer.
Unlike Anastasia, Fana was by no means accustomed to appearing before crowds.
That was precisely why being suddenly subjected to the stares of so many strangers had startled her.
...Had they been acquaintances, it would have been a different story.
"Anyway, I intend to have Zai report on that matter as well."
After all, participating in the Reconnaissance Unit had originally been in exchange for information about finding these two.
Of course, Rei had no intention of demanding any additional reward.
Had he gained nothing from the battle with the Queen, he might have considered doing so... but fortunately, Rei had obtained a result beyond compare: the level-up of Terrain Manipulation.
Given that, he had no intention of demanding further rewards under the current circumstances.
...Though if this settlement possessed any sort of Magic Items, he might have been tempted to ask for them.
"Leave it to me. ...Alright, I'll leave things here to you for now. Oh, and let those four rest, and give them food and drink."
Saying that, Zai headed into the settlement.
"Huh? Wait, that's..."
The Centaurs who had come to welcome Zai likely wanted to hear not only about Anastasia and Fana, but also about the Spirit Egg.
Seated atop a wooden mikoshi, the Spirit Egg.
Even those who were not Spirit Mages could feel a kind of pressure just from looking at it, as though it radiated an overwhelming presence.
Since it was genuinely that kind of object, it was only natural for those viewing it to feel such pressure.
If there had been anyone present who could carelessly perceive the power of spirits, it would not have been surprising for them to panic at the Spirit Egg's existence.
"For now, we call this the Spirit Egg. Apparently, the Dragonias Queen was searching for it. We couldn't just leave it where it was, so we ended up bringing it with us."
What came from Rei's mouth was a rather ad hoc explanation, but even so, the Centaurs seemed to understand that this was a dangerous object.
Given that the Dragonias Queen had been after it, telling them not to feel a sense of danger from it would have been unreasonable.
"S-so... what are you going to do, bringing this Spirit Egg or whatever it is here?"
"This settlement... or rather, Zai, will be guarding it."
At Rei's matter-of-fact answer, the Centaurs reacted with expressions that said, "I knew it."
For those who had suffered at the hands of the Dragonias, a Spirit Egg that the Dragonias Queen had been seeking was something they would honestly prefer not to have, if given the choice.
"Wait a minute! Hold on! Why do we have to guard something like that!?"
"Simply because Zai was the strongest in the Reconnaissance Unit."
"If we're talking about strength, you're stronger, aren't you!? Then you guys take that dangerous thing with you!"
The other Centaurs agreed with the one shouting those words.
They believed that possessing such an object might invite attacks from Dragonias-like creatures again.
In fact, considering the power the Spirit Egg held, the possibility of someone thinking that way was by no means zero.
(Maybe I should just secure a promise from them to guard this Spirit Egg in place of a reward, instead.)
The thought occurred to Rei suddenly, and he couldn't bring himself to think it was wrong.
Rather, he found himself wondering if it might not even be the best option given the current situation.
...The problem was whether Zai and the others would accept it.
From Rei's perspective, the only ones with the ability to guard the Spirit Egg were Zai and his people.
But whether Zai and the others would willingly take on that task was another matter entirely.