Chapter 3: How Do I Explain to My Father-in-Law

Chapter 3: How Do I Explain to My Father-in-Law

“Whoosh. Finally caught up with you! What the heck were you running from? I’m not some kind of man-eating demon!”

Seeing that the soldier had nowhere to escape, Aierjisi also came to a halt, demanding to know why he was fleeing.

“Because the moment I turned around and saw you running toward me, I got scared, and when I’m scared, I just can’t help but want to run away. By the way, are you human?”

The soldier pressed his trembling body against the wall, staring at Aierjisi in front of him.

【Fear: Panimir Soldier Exclusive.jpg】

“Of course I’m human! What else would I be?”

Aierjisi was thrown off by the soldier’s ridiculous comment. How could he think someone as adorable as her wasn’t human? Well, it’s not like she actually was.

“Aier, what’s going on here? Why are the city gates shut?”

Just then, Yake caught up, having enhanced his speed.

“I don’t know! Hey, soldier, why is this city gate closed? Is it not letting people in anymore? Do we have to use another gate?”

“I don’t know. Let me ask! Hey, senior! Why did you suddenly close the gate?”

The soldier rushed over to the gate and shouted inside.

“Huh? You’re still alive? You weren’t killed by those two?”

The old soldier was wide-eyed at seeing the younger soldier still breathing.

“We’re not assassins or anything. Just ordinary adventurers. This is our qualification badge; it should let us in, right?”

Aierjisi showed her badge with irritation. After confirming it was legitimate, the old soldier sighed in relief and opened the gate.

“Sorry about this, you two. We thought you were some weird creatures when we saw you come out of that white light, so we shut the gate. My bad! Here’s some hot tea as an apology; please enjoy!”

After apologizing, the old soldier poured each of them a cup of strong tea to warm them up.

“Alright then, now that the misunderstanding is cleared up, we have a thing or two we’d like to ask you.”

Aierjisi took a sip of tea and quickly inquired about her business here.

“What do you want to know? Go ahead and ask. I’ll do my best to answer if I know.”

The old soldier patted his chest. Aierjisi’s cuteness had won him over, making him want to impress her.

“I heard the king of this country has had his wife kidnapped. Did this happen recently?”

Having not been informed about when Ailin was abducted due to Gabriel’s blunder, Aierjisi had no choice but to ask the residents of Panimir.

“About that… sorry, but we don’t know either. The news spread about three days ago, but we couldn’t say when it actually happened.”

“I see… Thank you. I think I understand now. Let’s go, Yake; there’s no time to waste here. We need to head to the next place.”

If the news broke three days ago, the event couldn’t have happened more than a week ago, which meant there was still a chance for rescue.

“Oh. Thank you for the tea. Here’s a little something for you.”

Yake stood up, preparing to leave with Aierjisi. Before they left, he didn’t forget to offer the two soldiers a couple of donuts.

“Oh, thanks! It’s hard to find sweets like this in Panimir!”

Seeing the donuts, the two soldiers were thrilled. Treats like these were rare in their country; they could barely afford one in a month! To their surprise, this guy had gifted them two. Amazing!

“Aier, where are we headed next? Should we go directly to meet King Gaia?”

“I’d love to, but he is a king after all, right? You can’t just drop by whenever you feel like it. We need to think of a way to get close to him first.”

From her experience as a former princess, approaching a leader like a king as a traveler was no easy feat.

However, more urgent matters needed to be dealt with before getting close to King Gaia.

“Ah. So comfortable! It’s true that you can’t live in such a cold place without heating!”

Having checked into an inn with Yake, Aierjisi joyfully bounced on the bed. No doubt, it was the best inn, with such excellent mattress bounce!

Also, being an inn in a frigid region, heating was standard here. Though unlike Earth, the heating was provided by red crystals housing fire element spirits to warm up the enclosed room.

Meanwhile… inside the Royal Palace of Panimir.

“Gaia, remember this. If one day I’m not by your side and someone declares themselves to be my companion, ask them these questions. If they can match the answers, then they are indeed my true companion.”

“Ailin… Ailin!”

Gaia jolted awake, sitting up in bed. A nearby guard, noticing how sweaty he was, kindly prompted him to take off his clothes and helped wipe off the sweat.

“Your Majesty, you’ve finally awakened! We were all so worried about your safety while you were unconscious, fearing you might never wake up again.”

Upon learning that Gaia had returned to consciousness, the palace’s sage Ouxs rushed over to take charge of the palace’s affairs during Gaia’s absence.

“Still no news about Ailin’s whereabouts?”

Hearing Gaia’s inquiry, Ouxs could only shake his head. They had been diligently searching for Lady Ailin but hadn’t received any intel regarding her.

“Damn it. Where on earth did they take Ailin? If I don’t find her soon, how on earth am I going to explain this to the Ice Dragon King?!”

Gaia was in a panic. With Ailin’s fate uncertain, he had to move fast to find her. Otherwise, the kingdom would face the wrath of the Ice Dragon King, Ailin’s father. In a furious state, a dragon king could easily bring destruction to human realms.

“Your Majesty, please, don’t be so anxious. The inner guards dispatched worldwide are working hard to gather intelligence about Lady Ailin. I believe we’ll know her whereabouts soon.”

Seeing Gaia in such distress, Ouxs stepped up to comfort him. Truthfully… even he had no idea if they would manage to find Lady Ailin.