Reunion With their Former Teacher

"It all started during the first term this year," Principal Steibern started to recount the events that transpire in her academy.

"There is a student reported missing after she failed to get back to the dormitory in two days. She was last seen with a male student, who also happened to disappear the same night. Thinking of this as just another case of elopement, common in youngsters nowadays, the school decided to brush it off as such. However, after the academy received reports from her parents that the two hasn't contacted them since, the school decided to dig deeper into the matter."

Sofia and Fei were listening intently to the story. As a third party, they are unbiased towards intel gathering, so the story so far is certainly helpful for them to draw conclusions.

"When the academy looked into it, it wasn't just two students who were apparently missing. Almost twenty students failed to report to their classes and dormitories in the last few weeks. Of course, the academy contacted their parents regarding their absence, but they are as clueless as we are to their whereabouts."

"We are in a bind, with no additional information or leads to start with. That's when one student went to my office to talk about something that is perhaps related to the missing students." she continued.

"She was a freshman at the academy, so I didn't quite remember her name. But her story goes that as she was heading back toward the dormitory., she was suddenly attacked by a creature. Knowing nothing of it, she assumed that it can only be a monster,".

"So our informant wasn't sure as well whether what she saw was a monster, huh?" Sofia chatted. Having leads is important, but an unverified and unreliable lead would only make the investigation harder to accomplish.

"Yeah, I was skeptical about it at first, thinking that maybe she was hallucinating or something. But only when she described its appearance that I became sure that it was indeed a monster," the principal replied.

"Can you describe it for me?" Fei interjected, curious as to what is the description of the unknown assailant.

"Yes. It was twilight when the attack happened, so she only caught a glimpse of the monster's body. She said that it was walking on all four legs. Its body is that of a lion's, and its tail is reminiscent of a scorpion's stinger." she said.

"A chimera?" Fei concluded. Chimeras are a mix of creatures, often the result of a mana abnormality in an area, forcing different creatures to adapt to their environment. The stronger of the creatures would retain

"Does it have horns?" Fei asked the principal. She shook her head. "So it hasn't reached a stable form yet, huh?". Fei's knowledge of chimeras lets her asses the creature without seeing it firsthand. Once a chimera has developed horns on its head would only mean that the beast has stabilized its form from the recent fusion. Coincidentally, the number of horns on a chimera is representative of its strength. They usually have a single horn, but there are cases where two-horned chimeras are spotted, though rarely. A chimera's strength is dependent on the type of creatures that merged, so there are no set countermeasures for this beast.

"If it has a scorpion's tail, perhaps a Forest Scorpion was part of the merge. As for the dominant one, we really can't identify it aside from the fact that it is a monster with four legs that is stronger than a forest scorpion. There are several tetrapod monsters, but those that are ranked higher than a C-rank Forest Scorpion are only a handful," Fei explained, showing off her expertise.

"Can we ask the student in question? And the area as well where the incident occurred," Sofia requested Principal Steibern. She readily agreed, telling them to wait for a while as she fetched for the student.

"Still, to see you enjoy being an adventurer. I can't help but be reassured that you are enjoying your life to the fullest," she said to Fei.

"Of course!" was her quick response.

"And for you, Ms. Cheele. Your years of being the student council president still stick to you, even after graduating," the principal then shifted her attention to Sofia.

"No, not at all. This is just the way I am," she immediately replied.

"I see. Still, to see you here again after that incident. I hope that you will continue to see this school as your treasured place," Principal Steibern said.

"Incident?" After having heard of the topic just now, Fei can't help but be curious as to what the two were talking about. "What is this incident you two are talking about?" she added.

"Oh, she hasn't told you?" Principal Steibern said, then looked towards Sofia. "Well, I think it would be better to hear it from her directly," she said.

"Ehhh~ keeping secrets, huh? OK, I won't pry. Sofia!" Fei suddenly focused her attention on Sofia, who was surprised after suddenly becoming the subject matter. "You can tell me anything, just don't force yourself, OK?" she assured her.

"Oh my! Having a dependable senior sure is nice," Principal Steibern added.

Sofia was silent. Despite that, she can't help but appreciate her carefree but understanding senior.

Soon after, a knock can be heard from the door.

"You called for me, Principal?" a young female voice could be heard on the other side. Principal Steibern gave her permission to enter, so she did.

"Ms. Fei, Ms. Sofia, this is the student in question. What was your name again?" she asked the student.

The girl, confused by the sudden summons, squeaked out her name.

"I-I-I'm Cybel! I-It's a pleasure to be of your acquaintance!" she said.

"Ms. Cybel, these two are your seniors and adventurers. They are here to investigate the report you've said to me earlier. Please guide them towards the area, as well as answer their questions if they asked you," Principal Steibner said.

"Y-yes! I'll do my best!" was Cybel's response. "W-well then, please follow me, Ms. Fei, Ms. Sofia," she said as she ushered them outside the office.

"Huh? Wait, aren't you coming with us, Sensei?" Fei asked Principal Steibner.

"Sorry. I, too, wish to personally accompany you two, but as it turns out, there are more pressing matters that I needed to attend to. You know, as a principal," she replied.

"Oh, I see. We'll see you later then Sensei!" Fei waved goodbye to her.

"Thanks for the assistance, Principal Steibern," Sofia thanked her for the hospitality, before closing the door behind her.

"Well then. Ms. Cybel, please lead the way".