"Really?" Achill immediately turned to Org in surprise. He had never expected this big shot from the Magic Council to know his grandfather, much less to have apparently been an old friend of his.
"But because of work, I hadn't seen Albert for decades." Org seemed lost in his memories. "When I suddenly heard of his death eight years ago, I hurriedly dropped everything to attend his funeral. Not seeing my old friend one last time before he died is the greatest regret of my life..." At that, Org shook his head with a wistful sigh.
"Although we hadn't seen each other for years, we never stopped exchanging letters. It was through my old friend's letters that I learned about you, too. So when I heard he had passed away, I originally intended to adopt you..." Org gave a helpless smile. "But you suddenly vanished. I devoted a great deal of manpower and time to searching for you, yet we couldn't find a single lead. It was as though you had disappeared off the face of the earth. The only clue we found was the silver earring you dropped beside the Kasom River, the keepsake your parents left you..."
"Earring?" Achill froze briefly, then understood. This was something he knew quite well. He remembered that, according to the memories in his mind, there should have been a pair of those keepsake earrings. Yet he had only ever had one while at the Tower of Paradise. Org's explanation made sense: the other had probably fallen onto the riverbank when "he" slipped into the river, allowing someone else to find it.
"But now I understand. Your companion who knew what happened to you, Miss Erza of the Fairy Tail guild, told me that eight years ago, you were captured and taken to