CH 471.2

Let’s make it together!

The hamburg steak was a hit with Suzaku-sama.

I decided to serve Seiryu-sama and Genbu-sama’s share on a single plate and leave it with Suzaku-sama.

As for Teacher Neil… I last saw him at the dismantling shed, storing the head of the Bighorn Bull in a lab item box and carrying it to the research building…

“If you are thinking about Teacher Neil, then I just happened to see him return to his room…”

Just as Miria said that, Teacher Neil came running into the dining hall.

”Miss Cristea! Would you mind taking a look at this literature about Magic Beasts!?”

Kurogane and Mashiro stopped him as he rushed towards me with a lively expression on his face.

“… Teacher Neil, why don’t you have a dinner first? Otherwise, I won’t be answering any of your questions.”

“… Understood.”

After I smiled and took out a hamburg steak for him, Teacher Neil was taken to his seat by Kurogane and Mashiro, and he quietly began to eat. Good grief.

Teacher Neil finished his meal with great speed, took the dishes to the sink, and came to me immediately.

Oops, I was cleaning up and missed my chance to escape.

He ate so fast because it tasted so good, so it cannot be helped. I will accompany him.

“Miss Cristea, in this literature, it says…”

Teacher Neil said, piling up a stack of documents in front of me.

“Look here, in the central and southern parts of the Doristan Kingdom, there is a large cat-like beast with golden-brown and black spotted fur, but on rare occasions, a fully black-furred beast with the same shape and powerful magic appears. It’s called the Nightwalk Leopard, and it’s a ferocious beast with the appearance of a large cat. It’s all black and blends in with the darkness of the night to hunt its prey.”

Huh? Didn’t you know that before?

“And this one. There’s a beast called the Noir Panther that looks similar to that one in the west and some of the neighboring countries, but there have been sightings of this black Magic Beast over here as well. Another thing… Yes, Leon-sama is also a cat-shaped Sacred Beast. The females don’t have a mane like Leon-sama does, and their skeletal structure is a little different… There are no other Magic Beasts that look the same.”

Teacher Neil began to muse to himself.

(Hmph, how ridiculous. It’s you, humans, who decided to separate us into Nightwalkers and Noirs even though one is the other.)

Kaguya, who had her stomach slightly swollen from all the food she had eaten, said with a satisfied look as she washed her face. What? What do you mean?

“… Neil, this fella says that Nightwalk Leopard and Noir Panther are the same species.”

Kurogane conveyed Kaguya’s words to Teacher Neil.

“… Huh? Same species? Nightwalk Leopard and Noir Panther!?… Rather, Kurogane-sama, you can understand what this black cat is saying!?”

Teacher Neil leaned toward Kurogane in surprise, and got poked in the forehead and pushed back… t, that looked painful.

“Don’t draw near me so recklessly, I’m just telling you what she said.”

“Oh my goodness… Nightwalk Leopard and Noir Panther are one and the same? So they were called by different names and studied separately because of their different habitats… come to think of it, I have seen similar cases with other beasts… I ought to write a thesis on this right away! But, how do I prove it… aha! Kurogane-sama! Please interpret this Magic Beast’s words for me!”

“I refuse.”

Teacher Neil tried to latch on Kurogane, but was lightly shaken off and brusquely refused.

“Auu… no way… ah, Ma, Mashiro-sama! Can you understand this Magic Beast’s words!?”

“It’s too troublesome even if I could understand, so I won’t tell you.”

“No waaay!?”

Teacher Neil crumbled to the ground with tears in his eyes when even Mashiro rejected him.

“T, that’s right! Byakko-sama and Suzaku-sama… t, they disappeared!?”

If he can’t count on my Sacred Beasts, then Sei’s Sacred Beasts should be next… is what he probably thought, but after cleaning up, Sei and the others went back to their room as soon as possible. That was wise.

This… If he finds out that I can talk to Kaguya with telekinesis, I will be in a big trouble, so I shall keep my mouth shut.

“W, well then, we should also return to our room now…”

I took Kaguya in my arms and hurried back to my room, guarded by Kurogane and Mashiro.