Chapter 26: 7 months ago
-7 months ago-
"Ricky! Come back here!"
As he spun around, his emerald green eyes searching for the source of the voice, his light brown hair moved. A bright smile glowed on his small, red lips.
"Father!"
Running towards John, the boy wrapped his arms around him tight. It had been a long time since they actually took time off from their work and spent it together.
Ricky Smith, age 13, son of a merchant, was staying at Darell Village along with his father. Since Ricky's mother had passed away while giving birth to Ricky, John held up the promise he had made with her.
She wished for her child to be happy, even if he didn't have a mother. Even though a long time had passed, the words she left behind for John were still vague in his mind.
Hence, John hadn't held back from giving his utmost to raising Ricky. He did whatever he could to not make Ricky feel like he lacked a mother.
"Where are we going today?"
Expectation glowed in Ricky's eyes. For the past few days, he had been looking forward to what they would be doing every day.
It had been five days since they started staying at the village. Even though it was a village in the early stages of development, Darell had managed to expand itself to a size almost equal to that of a town.
"Let's go to the newly constructed garden."
Smiling, John took his son's hand in his and started to walk. Ricky eagerly trailed, looking forward to it.
They passed by the small inn called Twilight, and a bit more walking would lead them to the garden, whose construction was completed after a whole four months. John has had a role in the development of the village so far.
It was because John had bought the materials needed by the villagers along with him that they had managed to make some progress. Not to mention, he had given them discounts on costly materials.
"Wow!"
Ricky exclaimed as the huge green field came into his view. A path from the entrance, along with some trees and bushes planted on both sides, led to an open green field.
The flowers of different colours filled that small green field. One could enjoy the scene while sitting on one of the benches placed there. And to add to all this, there was a small café within the garden.
John looked at Ricky, whose eyes were craving some snacks. The corners of his lips curled up, forming a warm smile.
"Wait here. I'll be right back."
John ruffled Ricky's hair lightly and went towards the café. Little did he know that it would've been the biggest mistake of his life to leave Ricky alone.
"Two ice creams, please."
The woman on the counter turned around after flinching at the sudden voice. Pulling out a waffle cone, she used a scoop to place a ball of ice cream on top of it.
The ice cream was kept in a container that was made so that the ice never melted. Thanks to being equipped with a special gem called mana crystal that could store magic, it managed to keep ice cream from melting.
John put a gold coin on the counter and took ice cream. The woman's face went pale since he had paid more than the cost. John turned around with a smile and spoke while walking away.
"I'm in a good mood today. So, you can keep the change."
He was very happy that he got to spend time together properly with his son after so long. But that didn't last long.
As he reached near the bench where he and Ricky were sitting a while ago, his smile disappeared. He tried to look around, but no one else was there.
"Ricky?"
He muttered as he slowly began to check around the area he was in. An uneasiness grew within his heart.
Just a while ago, everything was going well, but then Ricky disappeared. Even though he looked around the whole garden, Ricky was nowhere to be found.
The ice cream had melted while lying on the hot ground. John held the collar of a guard within the garden, asking him the whereabouts of his only son. But there were no positive answers.
He sat on the bench for a while with his forehead covered in sweat. No matter where he looked, he couldn't find Ricky. It was almost dawn by then.
'The guards said that they would loom for him. I should head back. Maybe Ricky returned to the inn.'
Even after everything, John never gave up hope. But his hope was crushed after he returned to the inn. Ricky had not arrived there.
The time kept passing. The hours became days, and the days became months. But the whereabouts of Ricky were still unknown. The villagers tried their best to help John, but it wasn't fruitful either.
Soon, the garden where Ricky was last seen was sealed off. No one dared to enter the place, which looked ominous now.
John, who couldn't find his son even after six months, would think of only one thing.
'Had I not decided to take time off, would Ricky not have gone missing?'
He knew it wasn't his fault that Ricky disappeared, but he still felt guilty for it. So, John never got back to his work for six months.
Finally, on the seventh month, he was called over by the merchants association because he had not shown up for longer than he had told them. He had no choice but to visit the head office at Dragonaria Kingdom.
The first thing John did after arriving at Dragonaria was report to the merchants association. In the end, as a punishment for skipping his duties for a long time, John was asked to transport some goods to the Augustus Kingdom.
Just before he was about to leave the kingdom after taking care of his matters, John came across a group of adventurers who were heading to Augustus Kingdom like him.
It would've been bad if he were to run into some danger on his way back, so he let them tag along with him. He had nothing to lose, and more than that, John wasn't the type of person who could say no to others.
------------------------
"And that's what happened."
John said this while staring at the flickering flames of the candle nearby. Aliana listened to him with her eyes closed. Betty wiped away her tears.
At a distance, Rudia noticed the shadows of two people. Jaden and Claire were eavesdropping on their conversation all this time.
Sigh
Sighing, Jaden began to walk out. Claire stood at her spot for a moment in silence and then followed Jaden.
They had managed to get more than enough information. The only mystery left now was about Ricky, whom Claire and Jaden had met on the carriage.
"So, what now?"
Jaden stood beside the door of the inn, out of which Claire just walked out. Calire flinched and let out a sigh of relief.
Claire had already decided to try to search for Ricky after listening to the story John told a while ago. To do that, information alone wouldn't have been enough.
"First thing. We need to make a proper plan."
As Jaden understood her intentions, he felt somewhat weird. In the original story, he had shown her as someone who cared for people regardless of their status. Her actions were a bit similar, yet she felt different.
"I'll tell you the whole plan tomorrow. It's too late now."
Claire continued speaking while looking at the moon in the sky. Jaden was lost in his deep thoughts for a while before speaking up.
"Why are you trying to help them?"
He couldn't comprehend Claire's actions. Given how she was a day ago, it was natural. At the banquet, Jaden noticed her furious face but decided to stay quiet about it. m
Claire stood in one place and turned towards Jaden. She had a blank expression as she tilted her head slightly.
"Do I need a reason to help someone?"
Dumbfounded, Jaden looked at Claire, who walked inside the inn after saying that. He wasn't expecting a question instead of an answer. But he knew that Claire's words were right.
Jaden looked one last time at the sky before heading inside the inn. The night enveloped the world in a blanket of darkness, where the moon glowed gently, and the stars adorned the sky like shining diamonds.
"It's going to be a long night, it seems."
Thud
Jaden shut the door while mumbling this to himself. Aliana was waiting for Claire and him right in front of it.
Jaden tried to look behind her. Rudia, John, and Betty were still sitting in the same place. It seemed like only Aliana had something to say to them. Jaden was about to speak. But she spoke first.
"I suspect there is something odd going on in this village."
Claire nodded, agreeing with Aliana's statement. No matter how they looked at it, a child going missing for 7 months in a village out of nowhere was too suspicious.
It was either that the whole story was a true one or just something they had made up. But seeing John's face, Claire could tell that it was the truth.
Jaden wasn't totally interested in all this since they had nothing to do with him. Simply put, he was a person who wouldn't be bothered by what others did. But right now, he wasn't acting like himself.
"It seems like it."
He was thinking of taking part in Claire's plan. There was only one reason for this. One thing Claire and Jaden had in common was that they couldn't just leave children sad and alone.
They had both taken another thing into consideration all this time. Involvement of someone who harboured ill-intentions towards John. They had no idea who it might be, but that possibility looked more likely.
"But before that..."
Aliana spoke while pointing at three people sitting by the table with pale faces. Jaden was getting a feeling that something bad was going to happen soon.
"There's a small problem."
Aliana pulled him by the hand, and Claire quietly followed. Searching for Ricky was more than enough of a problem, but what else had come up?
The silence within the wooden building was too loud. Jaden began speaking while walking.
"What is it now?"
He could feel chills run down his spine. It was a familiar feeling that made his face go pale whenever he felt it.
Aliana didn't answer his question, but she let him listen to what Betty was telling them. Jaden looked at Aliana's face; she was smiling.
"S-sorry for the inconvenience. If I had prepared beforehand..."
Betty had messed something up. There were four rooms for passengers to rent out. One was in use. Two had double beds, and the last one was a small one with a single bed.
"It's fine. It's fine. Four of us can just share two rooms together."
John said this while trying to comfort Betty. It wasn't her fault that someone happened to be staying in one of the rooms.
Jaden flinched at John's words, and his expression became blank. He could tell what was going to happen next after seeing Aliana's smile.
"Yes. That's right. Mr. Smith should go and rest. We won't disturb him any further."
John wasn't someone they were too familiar with. He was just giving them a ride to their destination. And Aliana's words meant that he should be using the room with a single bed.
"O-oh. Is that so? I shall take you up on that offer."
John said this without hesitation and walked to the room. He was already tired from driving the carriage throughout the day.
Rudia glanced at Claire for a while and then at Aliana. She could tell what Aliana was trying to do. Letting out a sigh, Rudia held Claire's arm in her hand.
"Come. We aren't nobles like them."
She used their status as an excuse to drag Claire away. Betty never heard what Rudia had whispered in Claire's ears.
Jaden looked at the door in front of him and Aliana. He bit his lips with a single thought on his mind.
'Alone with a woman in the same room... At night... It seems like today's night is indeed going to be a long one...'
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