Perhaps because they noticed that Lanen used the word "need" instead of "want," neither Lanen nor Sophia ended up hanging from the wall or ceiling.
"Tell me, why do you need to borrow Smell Beasts?"
With a hint of curiosity, the Magical Flora and Fauna teacher asked them sternly.
Hearing the teacher's question, Lanen's tightly clenched heart finally descended from his throat back into his chest—being able to communicate was a good sign. His biggest fear was being hung up without a chance to explain, which would have been troublesome.
"Teacher, it's like this. We have a classmate named Beta Victor, who also attended your class. But now, he's gone missing."
"Just like those students who disappeared in recent years, he vanished last night. However, he was carrying a sachet filled with Ross Grass, and the sachet was magically enhanced to amplify the scent of the grass. That reminded us of what we learned in your class."
"We were hoping to borrow a few Smell Beasts to try tracking Beta by their ability to detect the scent of Ross Grass."
After listening to their explanation, the teacher pondered for two seconds and then, surprisingly, proved to be very understanding.
"Alright, I can lend you three Smell Beasts, Mr. Lanen Banner and Miss Sophia Reed."
Just as Lanen and Sophia were about to thank her, they froze in surprise—the teacher actually remembered their names.
"Don't be surprised. As a teacher, I naturally don't want any of my students to go missing, and I also hope the cases of missing children from the past two years can be solved. Or are you surprised that I know both of you? As a teacher, remembering all your students' names is a basic skill. After calling roll once, I pretty much remember everyone. You two, come with me." With that, she unlocked the door.
After receiving the three cages, Lanen and Sophia repeatedly thanked the teacher: "Thank you so much, teacher. We'll go look for Beta right away."
"Alright, be careful and stay safe. I wish you success. Also, be careful not to let the Smell Beasts escape—they're quite valuable. Of course, if they do get lost, it's not a big deal, since this place has the highest concentration of Ross Grass, and they'll eventually return here. But," she raised an eyebrow, "it's best to avoid unnecessary trouble, right? Now, hurry up and go. He might be in danger."
Lanen and Sophia quickly left, heading toward the school gate to meet up with their companions.
...
Watching Lanen and Sophia walk away, the Magical Flora and Fauna teacher silently pondered for a moment. Then, she quietly followed them from a distance.
...
"You got them? Good. Did you buy the ropes?" Seeing Hal and the others already waiting at the school gate with cages in their arms, Lanen called out.
"We've got everything. What's next?"
"Next... Let's get a map first. I remember the bookstore up ahead has one."
The map was crudely printed, consisting entirely of various lines, but at least the labels were clear, and the scale was roughly accurate.
Taking advantage of the remaining daylight, they found a large set of steps. Lanen spread the map flat, pulled out a ruler, and began marking directions and assigning tasks:
"We have four Smell Beasts and nine people in total. We'll split into pairs."
"Tie the Smell Beasts with ropes, then gently open the cages. They should instinctively dart toward the direction of Ross Grass. What we need to do is record this direction—" Lanen gestured on the map.
"—At your current location, mark the exact direction with a line. Then, we'll extend the lines and exclude any that point toward the school's greenhouse. The intersection of the remaining lines should give us Beta's approximate location."
"We'll do this first to narrow down the area. Once we have a general idea, it'll be easier. Now, I'll assign locations."
"Here, here, here, and here... These eight spots are in the city center, west, north, and south, avoiding the east where the school is located. Combining these should give us a good result."
"Later, Sophia and I will take the west. Elina and Hal, you'll take the south. Heidi and Tina, you'll cover the north. Vera, Camry, and Julie, you three will form the last group and handle the center. Each pair will cover two points in their assigned direction, take a map, mark the directions, and then we'll regroup in the city center. You three, stay put after finishing your measurements." Lanen meticulously assigned the tasks.
"No time to waste. Does everyone know what to do? Let's find carriages and get moving."
The covered carriage moved slowly. Lanen repeatedly urged the driver to go faster until the driver refused impatiently. He suspected the other groups were doing the same.
The carriage creaked to a stop. Having already tied the rope to the Smell Beast during the ride, Lanen pulled out a silver coin, paid the fare, and received a handful of copper coins in change. Without waiting for the carriage to leave, he grabbed Sophia's hand and dashed across the mottled cobblestones toward a nearby stone platform.
Under the golden glow of the sunset, Lanen spread the map on the platform, comparing the surrounding streets and signs to confirm their exact location. Then, he rotated the map to align its orientation with the surroundings.
He placed the cage on the ground, gripping the rope tightly. Once the Smell Beast inside calmed down, he signaled Sophia to open the cage door.
The Smell Beast, seemingly thrilled by its newfound freedom, leaped out of the cage and stood still, sniffing the air. Its whiskers and nose twitched before it suddenly darted in one direction.
"That's it!"
As the Smell Beast landed and was restrained by the rope, Lanen carefully noted its starting position and where it was stopped by the leash.
He used a small stone to scratch a line on the cobblestones, connecting the two points.
"Perfect... just like that..." Lanen murmured.
Taking the map from Sophia, Lanen carefully aligned it and marked the line.
"Let's head to the next spot." Seeing Lanen finish marking, Sophia grabbed his hand and pulled him along.
The next point wasn't too close.
After swiftly completing measurements at both spots, Lanen and Sophia boarded a carriage. Lanen couldn't help but worry about the others' progress.
Everyone else had already arrived at the meeting point. Since the northern group had the farthest to travel, Lanen's team was the last to arrive.
"Did everything go smoothly?"
"We've all got our results. Just waiting for you. Please compile them quickly," Heidi urged.
Fortunately, everyone had done their part, and the results were encouraging.
Lanen carefully transferred the measurement points and their corresponding directions onto a single map, then extended the eight lines with a ruler. Two clear intersections appeared on the map.
As expected, one intersection pointed to the school's greenhouse, which likely had the highest concentration of Ross Grass in the entire city. The other location, however—
"It's actually here?!"