Chapter 31
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It was late afternoon.
“Hey lil’ bro, you in there?”
Without knocking, Alivia pushed open the door to Zairen’s room. Full of enthusiasm, she stepped inside.
‘Huh?’ She paused, and looked around the room. Aside from the bare bed, it was empty; no person was in sight.
‘That’s strange…’ Alivia pondered. ‘Where could Zairen have gone? He hasn’t left the cabin in days, and was just here last night.’
She glanced down at the floor and saw that a dull gray ring was resting on the wooden surface.
‘He even left left his ring here…’ She glanced at the ring, noting that it looked completely ordinary. However, since her brother liked it, she naturally was starting to find the dull gray color kind of appealing as well.
‘Maybe he’s in the village square,’ Alivia concluded. She turned and closed the door, and then walked out of the cabin and set out toward the village square.
An hour later, she was still puzzled.
In the square, she had asked people everywhere, and no one had seen Zairen.
If he wasn't in the cabin… And not in the square… Then where was he?
Rubbing her head, Alivia walked back to the cabin and reached Zairen’s room once again. She peered inside, and once again spotted the gray ring on the floor.
‘Didn't Zairen really like that ring? I always see him wearing it,’ Alivia pondered. ‘Why would he leave it behind?’
She walked into Zairen’s room, which smelled faintly like Zairen - a greatly relaxing floral scent. She bent down and picked up the gray ring.
She suddenly remembered that Zairen had actually injured his head very recently, and was still recuperating. She instantly became worried. What if he was stuck somewhere? Maybe he had been attacked and was too injured to return back to the cabin…
Zairen going missing for hours at a time was not a new occurrence. However, he would always return relatively quickly, within a couple hours at most. By now, it was already late afternoon. Zairen had always returned before the evening, so that he could join the family for dinner!
Moreover, she didn't know if she was being superstitious, but she had a bad feeling - she couldn't help but think that something had happened to her beloved little brother. Her mind repeatedly returned to an image of a lone gray ring resting on the floor, and she felt restless.
She bit her lip. ‘There will only be a few more hours of daylight. I’ll go look for him!’
Putting the ring on her finger and holding it close to her chest, she turned toward the door and ran out.
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For the rest of the day, Alivia searched everywhere around the forest. However, it was to no avail - not even a hint of Zairen could be detected.
In the end, once it turned dark, Alivia had no choice but to return home. Entering the cabin and seeing that Zairen had still not appeared, she became a bit distraught and worried. Although it wasn’t strange for Zairen to leave the cabin for periods of time, he almost always returned before dark.
She spoke to Grandpa Dinran about it. However, he merely comforted her and told her not to worry. After seeing the boy do so many unbelievable things, he was now completely certain that Zairen was someone who could take care of himself.
In the end, however, he couldn't help but feel a bit worried as well.
The next morning, Zairen was still missing.
At this point, Alivia was starting to get seriously worried. Before, she had clung onto the hope that Zairen had merely disappeared somewhere for a short period of time, and would come back soon. He had done that before.
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She had hoped that when she got up the next morning, Zairen would be in his room, sitting on his bed cross-legged as usual. Yet, when she ran into his room in the morning, she found it empty once again.
Zairen, missing for an entire day? That had never happened before! Once, in the morning, Alivia had spotted him sleeping on the ground, utterly exhausted, which had caused Alivia to raise her eyebrows. But, even that time, he was at least present in his room.
For the next few hours, she roamed around the forest, beach, and central square looking for any clues of where Zairen had gone.
However, she found nothing. It was like he had just… Disappeared.
At the end of the day, she talked to Grandpa Dinran, and they decided to give Zairen one more day to turn up. If he still hadn’t shown up by then, they would go talk to governor about this matter - it could be serious! Although they weren't sure the governor would care very much… They still had to try! Maybe he could send out a search party.
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Another day passed, and Zairen still hadn’t shown up.
Just as agreed, the first thing in the morning, Alivia and Grandpa Dinran arrived in front of the large, imposing Governor’s Mansion gates.
They held each other’s hand tightly, both biting their lips in worry. This was a last resort! If the governor couldn't help them… What if Zairen was in danger? There would be nothing they could do!
As they approached the gates, the two guards standing in front of the entrance held up their spears and shouted out: “Who goes there?”
Grandpa Dinran raised his palm in an non-confrontational fashion. “We come in peace. I’m known as Grandpa Dinran, and this is my granddaughter Alivia.”
The two guards glanced down at Alivia before looking back at Grandpa Dinran and nodding. “Speak.”
“We wish to speak to the governor,” Grandpa Dinran continued. “We have an urgent matter to discuss.”
“The governor is currently busy,” one of the guards said briskly. “You can tell us what you need, and we’ll see if we can help you.”
“Well…” Grandpa Dinran started. “My grandson went missing two days ago, and… we were wondering… Maybe the governor could send out a search party?”
The two guards faces dropped, forming sympathetic expressions, and they briefly glanced at each other before turning their attention back toward the two visitors. “Um… Well… We’re sorry to hear that. But as we said, right now the governor is busy. For something like that, you’ll have to schedule an official appointment and talk to him.”
“B-but…” Grandpa Dinran stuttered hurriedly. “My grandson… He could be in danger! This is important!”
“We hear you, Mr. Dinran,” one of the guards shrugged apologetically. “But we still can't let you in. It’s the rules. You’ll have to schedule an appointment, we’re sorry.”
“How long will that take?” Grandpa Dinran furrowed his brows.
“No more than three days.”
“Three days?! And just for scheduling the appointment?” Alivia couldn't help but exclaim. “That’s way too long! My brother could be dying right now!”
The guards sighed. One of them looked down at Alivia’s outraged face, and responded: “Little girl… Alivia, was it? We’re really deeply sorry, but the governor is booked full. You’ll have to wait just like everyone else.”
“B-but…” Alivia stammered. Her eyes were clouded with panic. How could she bear to wait three days? Zairen could be in danger!
Just at that moment, a familiar nasal voice rang out. “Huh, Alivia? Why are you here?”
Everyone turned their heads.
It was Finn, walking from a path in the woods towards the mansion.
The previously bratty Finn was nowhere to be seen. Now, he seemed to be much more mature, and was walking much more steadily, his chubby body bouncing around much less than before. His expression was also much softer, making him seem much more pleasant.
“Finn!” Alivia was surprised, and her expression lifted. She turned to face Finn and greeted him. “Could you help us? Zairen went missing, and we’re here to ask the governor to send out a search team. However, the guards won't let us go in.”
As she spoke, although she seemed friendly, a portion of her expression still couldn’t help but subtly reveal the wariness she had toward him. If this was a normal situation, she wouldn’t be too willing to talk to Finn, even with his recent change; however, right now, this was her only option!
“Zairen is missing?!” Finn suddenly shouted out. He furrowed his brows in disbelief. “Are you sure?”
He didn’t seem to notice Alivia’s wariness. In fact, with how concerned his expression became from hearing this piece of news, he appeared too worked up to focus on anything else.
“Yes,” Alivia quickly responded, eyeing Finn subtly. “He hasn't been seen since two days ago now, and didn't leave any message or anything. He’s never done anything like this before.”
“Missing… Missing…” Finn rubbed his chin, as if pondering something deeply. “How could someone that amazing go missing…?”
He suddenly lifted his head. “This is an urgent matter. We have to go discuss with my dad. Come with me…” He walked towards the gates and made a beckoning gesture toward Grandpa Dinran and Alivia.
The two guards at the gate were shocked. “Young master… You can’t just… You’re just going to casually let in these two random civilians?”
“Of course I am!” Finn declared. “They are my master’s family. Naturally, by extension, they are my family as well.”
“Master’s family?” The guards gaped. They had heard rumors about the arrogant Finn uncharacteristically calling some random black-haired little boy his ‘master.’ However, they didn't think they would be true!
So it was this missing boy that Finn saw as his master?
‘Master?’ Grandpa Dinran raised an eyebrow.
Although completely stunned, the two guards obeyed Finn and opened the gates. The three walked into the yard and then entered the building.
The guards closed the gate behind them. After seeing the three people exit their proximity, they bowed their heads together and started to whisper gossip.
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