Smoke Rising Outside the Window

As the seconds ticked by...

Finally, Lord Alden, the head of the Olden family and father of the missing noble, could no longer hold back.

He rose from his seat, walked straight to his wife's side, patted her tear-streaked shoulder as she wept like pear blossoms in rain, and told her to let go of their eldest son.

"I'm saying, if you want to cry, then cry—but what's the point of clinging to our eldest? Be good, let go!"

"I won't!"

"I've already lost one son; I'm not letting this one go no matter what!"

The City Lord's wife shouted, her voice thick with emotion. Not only did she dodge her husband's hand, but she also hugged their son even tighter.

"Ugh—"

The City Lord let out a helpless sigh. What a hassle. Where had that clingy, bird-like demeanor of hers from before marriage gone?

Seeing that his direct command had no effect, the City Lord had no choice but to change his approach.

He softened his voice first, then leaned close to his wife's side and began reasoning with her.

"Look, our eldest just came back from fighting monsters. He hasn't even taken off his inner armor, let alone had a sip of water."

"How about you switch targets? Hug me instead—I'll be your hostage. Let our eldest go rest for a bit, alright?"

The City Lord's wife was, after all, a young lady born into a noble family. Even if she was deeply caught up in her emotions, she wasn't an unreasonable shrew; she could still listen to reason.

So, upon hearing her husband's persuasion, she hesitated for a moment, then finally let go of her eldest son, crouching down to continue sobbing on her own.

However, the eldest son, now freed from his mother's grasp, stood there dumbfounded, staring at his weeping mother, unsure of what to do.

Only when he saw his father waving at him repeatedly did the eldest son finally get the hint. He bowed to his mother, promised he wouldn't go out again for a while and would stay home, then left the room first.

After the eldest son was gone, the City Lord looked at his wife, still crouched and crying. He reached out to pat her shoulder, then opened his arms and said, "Come on, I'm swapping places with our son as your hostage. Hug me."

"Scram!"

His wife said mercilessly, using the refined language of the Imperial Capital.

"Who wants to hug you? Don't even think about touching me until our son is found."

"You heartless man. If you hadn't kept pushing our second son every day to become a warrior, our boy wouldn't have gone missing."

"And on top of that, after you took him out for training, he's been missing for three days, and you, as his father, didn't notice a thing!"

"At first, when I realized something was wrong, you wouldn't even let me post missing person notices outside!"

"If it weren't for you, I'd have found our son by now."

Seeing his wife like this, the City Lord, who was so imposing outside, could only crouch down helplessly beside her, comforting and explaining at the same time.

"Don't say that. I am his father, after all, not his enemy."

"I noticed the day he went missing, I just didn't think much of it. After all, this kid has slacked off and run away from training more than once."

"And most of the time, he runs straight to you, or you have someone hide him, afraid I'll catch him and give him a beating."

Hearing this, his wife's sobbing paused slightly. "And who told you to set such a huge training load for him? He's my son—when he can't take the hardship and comes back, how can I just ignore him?"

The City Lord's eye twitched at that, but he had finally managed to coax a few words out of his wife. Now was not the time to lose his temper.

Seeing that his previous approach was working, the City Lord continued speaking softly beside her.

"Come on, stop overthinking."

"I've had people check the city defense's magic barrier and the gate guards on duty several times, and I've even gone to look myself."

"There's no trace of any demon intrusion on the magic barrier."

"The gate guards haven't spotted any suspicious individuals coming or going either."

"So the only possibility is that your precious second son ran off on his own without telling anyone."

"And whose fault is that? You pushed him every single day!"

His wife stood up, glaring at him in dissatisfaction, and even punched him a few times in the chest.

"You know full well that our second son doesn't have the same warrior talent as his eldest brother. So why not just let it go? Why do you have to force him to become a warrior every single day?"

"If your Olden family can't afford to feed this kid, then send him to my family to raise. I'll change his surname!"

"I guarantee my parents will love this child. They'll give him a share of the family's assets to inherit, ensuring he lives comfortably for life."

Hearing his wife's words, the Olden City Lord's brows jumped again and again, a small surge of nameless anger rising in his heart.

And in the end, the City Lord's anger was just that—anger.

The fury in his chest turned into a helpless sigh as he leaned against the wall and said to his wife, "Yawa, you know this."

"This child carries the blood of the Warrior's Homeland. Becoming a warrior is the ancestral decree passed down through generations. Letting him undergo warrior training is my final bottom line."

"Yawa, as the child's mother, I know you love him."

"But think about it—if we spoil him and let him live a life of ease, when the demons launch a full-scale attack, how will he protect this city?"

"Pushing the citizens behind you as a shield, and running off to save your own skin?"

"."

His wife Yawa stopped sobbing and fell silent.

On this point, her husband was right.

Even she herself had originally been drawn to this very trait in him, ignoring her family's objections to marry from the [Imperial Capital] all the way to [Fortress City · Frich], this dangerous frontier outpost.

"But... he is still our son, after all."

"."

At this moment, Yawa's attitude had completely softened. She leaned into her husband's arms, sobbing to pour out her unease.

Seeing his wife like this, Lord Alden's earlier displeasure vanished entirely. He gently wrapped an arm around her waist and pulled her into an embrace.

"Alright."

"Didn't I already listen to you and have people post missing person rewards all over the city?"

"Besides, you really are a noble's young lady—so generous with money."

"For that kid, I thought offering a reward of 10 Hutrall Gold Coins was already wasteful enough, and I even felt a pang of regret over it."

"But you, on the other hand, secretly added to it, tacking on a full thirty more Hutrall Gold Coins."

"Now this reward amount—never mind ordinary citizens and adventurers—even the legendary Shadow Warriors said to exist within the Empire might think twice about whether to target our son."

"The guards under my command are all howling over this bounty, working tirelessly day after day to inspect every passing vehicle."

"Then tell me... can they find our son Milo?"

His wife Yawa asked, somewhat anxiously.

"No problem. Just rest easy. News of our son will come back before long."

After seeing his wife to bed, Lord Alden stepped out of the room, leaned against the wall, and silently lit a cigarette for himself.

"Don't let anything happen, kid."

Inside the room.

Yawa watched the drifting smoke outside the window, and tears welled up in her eyes once more.

But this time, she covered her mouth with her hand, holding back her sobs.

This is not a filler scene—this person will play a key role in the later plot.