"You have a point, but they'll appear together, right?" Sophia asked.
"Seems so," Li Fan couldn't give a definitive answer, but according to the current established history of the Monster Hunter world, that was indeed the case.
"Thank you for your reply. I'll speed up the production of the Froggie plush keychain."
"Alright, goodbye."
The two left the plushie shop and let out a sigh of relief simultaneously.
"Sophia gives off a strange vibe, especially when she talks about the legendary Guild Knights," Yodora mused.
"That's because you haven't seen her before," Li Fan informed her.
"Oh! You've had dealings with the Guild Knights too?" Yodora exclaimed incredulously. Li Fan's past seemed too eventful for his experience.
"I've only heard some gossip."
"What gossip?"
"Sophia is incredibly fond of monsters, almost to the point of obsession. When sketching, she meticulously observes and records even the slightest movements. For monsters she can't witness firsthand, she'll ask others to mimic their actions for her. Perhaps this extreme fondness is what led her to join the Guild Knights as a receptionist."
"That sounds... a bit like you, actually." Yodora realized.
"It's different. My relationship with monsters is purely friendly. Hers is… Sophia once considered the Brachydios her first love."
"Uh… what?" Yodora's mouth hung open, frozen in place.
"In any case, her thoughts are hard to fathom. And the disappearance of the legendary Guild Knights seems to have affected her greatly. I have a feeling something might go wrong." Li Fan pondered.
"Sophia isn't a receptionist anymore, so it shouldn't be a problem, right?" Yodora speculated. A receptionist could cause significant harm by carelessly distributing contracts to unqualified hunter teams or maliciously altering information. But Sophia was no longer a receptionist, so it was unlikely sewing plushies could pose a threat.
"Let's hope so. We should also start preparing." While the Elder Dragon and the unknown monster might not actually attack Dundorma, combat drills were certainly necessary. Furthermore, gathering intelligence was crucial. Unfortunately, their team only had two hunters, which led Li Fan to consider leveraging the Guild's resources and the recently recruited treasure-hunting team.
As evening approached, Sophia tucked her drawing board into her backpack, put on her favorite green shawl, and picked up her sewing kit before heading out. She locked the door of her plushie shop. Dundorma's commercial street was rather deserted due to the Elder Dragon's invasion of the city.
"Miss Sophia!"
Hearing the call, Sophia turned her head. Aiden, clad in armor, jogged over with a smile, scratching the back of his head. "Can I treat you to dinner?"
Sophia glanced back towards the plushie shop before shifting her gaze. "How did you know I was free?"
"Uh… haha, I noticed the plushie shop has been closing early lately."
"In that case, you've observed me before." Sophia mused, a hint of wariness in her eyes.
"No! I absolutely wasn't spying on you! It's just that every time I return from training at the arena, I happen to see you closing up shop." Aiden quickly explained.
"I believe you. But I'm sorry, I still have many orders to complete." Sophia said without apology, gesturing to the sewing kit she was carrying.
"Then I won't disturb you… Miss Sophia, please don't overwork yourself." Aiden advised.
"I know." Watching Sophia's retreating figure, Aiden slumped his shoulders in disappointment, but a smile soon returned to his face. "Right! She's just busy with work lately; she hasn't explicitly rejected me, which means I still have a chance!" Aiden became optimistic again.
In a medium-sized warehouse at the port of Dundorma's water channel.
"Cult Leader, here are the materials you requested." A man in black robes and a hood knelt on one knee, presenting a stack of sheet-like objects wrapped in black cloth with both hands.
A green-robed figure, also in typical Dragon Worshipers attire, gently took them and whispered, "Mirapoleias will absolve you."
"Cult Leader, the Elder Dragon is about to arrive, and port cargo volume has significantly decreased. The believers went to great lengths to bypass Guild inspections. Everyone is eager to know, do we need to flee this time?" the black-robed man asked respectfully.
"Disaster is inevitable. Fleeing or not is meaningless."
"Then, can you tell us the specific time of the predicted attack by the Elder Dragon and the unknown monster in advance?"
"It's not appropriate to reveal it yet. I will inform you when the time is right… By the way, the red-robed preachers by the central plaza fountain, where did you find them? They can't even memorize two months' worth of words."
"Apologies, Cult Leader! It was our fault for misjudging talent." The black-robed man lowered his head again.
"Alright, I have matters to attend to. You may withdraw." The black-robed man retreated slowly, walking out of the warehouse. The green-robed figure pulled down his hood, and Sophia's face was revealed in the slanting moonlight. After changing clothes, shouldering the bundle of leaf-like objects wrapped in black cloth, and grabbing her sewing kit, Sophia took a rail car to the northern city gate. After showing her five-star editor's medal to the guards, she successfully exited the city and then took a PoPo bus. She continued her journey until she reached the outskirts of the ruined ancient city, a place littered with rubble, at the border of the plains and the desert. The Ruined Ancient City was not a dangerous place, but there were frequent reports of giant monster sightings. Strangely, the descriptions of the monsters in these reports varied from witness to witness. Crawling dragons, standing figures, coiled snakes… These reports were often accompanied by sandstorms, leading the Guild to dismiss them as misidentifications or mirages, failing to garner any serious attention. Nevertheless, even without a hunter escort, an editor conducting ecological surveys alone was an extremely dangerous act.
"Esteemed editor, I admire your courage, but it's the middle of the night. It's best not to push yourself. The sand skiff will reach a town in two more hours; you can rest for a night and come back during the day." The sand skiff captain advised.
"Don't worry, Captain. My accompanying hunters have arrived early. I'll summon them with a signal flare once I disembark." Sophia informed him as she organized her belongings.
"Then I'm relieved… Hey, Treasure Hunting Team! You've arrived at the Ruined Ancient City. Remember to bring your belongings." The captain called out as the sand skiff slowed down and lowered its sail.
"Thank you, Captain Meow! Gold, Silver! Pearl! Emerald! Let's go!" Treasure called out.
*Pat!* Emerald, who was sound asleep, popped a bubble on her nose and stirred, rubbing her eyes. "Set sail… hoist the sails… Meow." As the sand skiff departed, in the silent, dark desert, only Sophia and the treasure-hunting team remained.
"Cats, why haven't you departed yet?" Sophia stood still for a moment, then curiously asked as she saw the treasure-hunting team still waiting.
"We're guarding you Meow! Don't worry, we'll stay right here until your hunter teammates arrive. We're not going anywhere." Treasure informed her.
"That's very thoughtful." Sophia gave a dry chuckle.
"You haven't released your signal flare yet. Did you forget to bring it Meow? I have one here! What color is your agreed-upon signal?" Gold and Silver said, opening their backpacks to reveal various colored signal flares.
"Uh… black."
"Oh! An ink signal flare Meow!" Gold and Silver said, handing one over. Sophia's eyes twitched; she hadn't expected them to actually have one.
"Releasing an ink signal flare in the middle of the night… how strange Meow…" Pearl mused, stroking her chin.
"I remember now! The agreement was that they would wait for me inside the Ruined Ancient City. I'll head there first." Sophia picked up her sewing kit and walked briskly towards the ancient city.
"Alright, target: Ruined Ancient City! Treasure Hunting Team, let's go Meow!" Under Treasure's call, the treasure-hunting team formed a line and excitedly marched towards the ancient city. Sophia clenched her fists and gritted her teeth, but there was nothing she could do. After walking for over ten minutes, the scale of the exposed ruins of the city walls grew larger. Passing through a tilted stone archway, Sophia and the treasure-hunting team entered a circular open area. Countless fragments of ruins emerged from the sand, making the entire area extremely cluttered. On the opposite side of the stone archway stood a castle, severely eroded by wind and sand, its basic outline barely discernible. Seeing smoke rising from the castle towards the sky, Sophia, alerted, quickly hid behind a slanted stone pillar and peered out.
"Judging by the style and color of the tents… it looks like a Guild field research team." Sophia quickly concluded.
"It's Guild personnel Meow! We absolutely cannot be discovered." Treasure exclaimed.
"Indeed. What if they notice… What are you all hiding here for?" Sophia stopped mid-sentence, realizing something was amiss.
"We… we're here to treasure hunt in the ancient city Meow." Treasure said, glancing sideways.
"Heh, why would treasure hunters be afraid of being discovered by the Guild?" Sophia slyly smiled.
"This… this Meow…" Treasure looked troubled.
"Aren't you the same, Meow?" Pearl raised a paw.
"That's right Meow."
"Exactly Meow." Gold and Silver, hands on their hips, chimed in.
"Then, since our goals are similar, why ask about motives?" Sophia's words caused the four cats to look at each other for a long time, unable to find any flaws.
"So, let's all act independently… And don't follow me." Sophia said with a stern look, then left the stone archway. Seeing her leave, Gold and Silver's cat ears drooped, and they sighed, "What do we do Meow? There's no route to go deeper into the ancient city. Otherwise, we'll definitely be discovered by the Guild."
"The mission Li Fan assigned this time is strange Meow. He knew the Guild would visit, yet he told the treasure-hunting team not to be discovered." Pearl mused.
"Li Fan must have his reasons for doing this, Meow. Everyone, don't be discouraged. Let's split up and search for a route." Treasure encouraged them, and the four Felynes went their separate ways. However, before Treasure could run far, he saw a long shadow cast on the sand behind a stone pillar.
"Ah! You're too cunning, eavesdropping Meow!" Treasure cried out. But Treasure didn't know that Sophia, who had overheard their conversation, was equally shocked. *I've been discovered!* However, Li Fan hadn't reported the full truth to the Guild, otherwise, it wouldn't just be a field research team visiting the ancient city. Wait, could it be that his intelligence was limited, and he only wanted to test the Guild by guiding them there? At the same time, he feared the Guild might withhold information from their investigation, so he sent a cat treasure-hunting team to confirm the Guild's investigation progress. This made sense! But did Li Fan truly possess such strategic capabilities? Sophia fell into deep doubt. Soon, however, she suddenly broke into a smile. Although it was earlier than expected, at this point in time, no one but him could stop the unfolding events. The figure behind the stone pillar flickered and quickly disappeared. Treasure wanted to pursue, but saw Sophia step onto a broken rock face and skillfully move along the ruined city walls. It was as if she were returning home. Treasure, unfamiliar with the terrain, was unable to pursue. After a while, climbing a rope ladder, Sophia reached the top of the castle. She unfolded the black cloth she was carrying, revealing gray, leaf-shaped insect wings.
"Time to eat, Sparkle." Sophia said, then tossed the entire stack of gray insect wings into the air.
*Clang! Clatter!* The seemingly light insect wings, after hitting the ground rapidly, emitted a metallic hum. The Guild's field research team, who were camped there, immediately became alert. The night watch members picked up their weapons and stood guard, while dozens of members rushed out of their tents.
"Defense formation!"
"What's happening?"
"I don't know, it seems something fell."
"Don't worry, we're close to Dundorma. Even if it's an Elder Dragon, reinforcements will arrive quickly."
Amidst a flurry of urgent communication, the field research team quickly stabilized. They had only arrived and set up camp today as assigned. In their eyes, this was an extremely easy field research mission. The reason was that the ancient city ruins had been explored countless times, and much of the ecological information required no investigation; they only needed to confirm the current state.
*Thump! Thump!* A series of rapid footsteps sounded.
*Whoosh! Whoosh! Whoosh!* Countless golden threads extended from beneath the sand, coiling and binding around the surface of the ruins. A field researcher holding a Great Sword saw a giant steel beam, half-buried in the sand, being rapidly wrapped by swirling golden threads. He swung his sword at it.
*Screech! Sparks flew!* The field researcher was immediately repelled. He hadn't expected the seemingly soft and light threads to have the texture of steel.
"Over there! Something is climbing the wall!" A female field researcher pointed in a direction. Behind the mottled earth-yellow city wall, a scythe-like hook, emitting a golden glow, hooked onto the wall's edge. A second hook followed closely. As the hooks secured themselves to the wall, a pair of segmented compound eyes, glowing with an eerie purple light, slowly rose from behind the wall.
"What… what kind of creature is this!" a male researcher exclaimed.
"Calm down! Record the information! Combat teams, maintain defense! Try to buy time for recording!" Although the middle-aged team leader also felt a sense of dread, he issued orders. Sophia, on top of the castle, was unfazed by the research team's actions. Instead, she opened her sewing kit and began to knit the unfinished monster plushie.