Chapter 92

"Kusi, kusi, hu"

Beside the dilapidated pier, the sound of a young girl's sobs could be heard. Despite the many onlookers and soldiers, there was no noisy atmosphere, strangely quiet.

What was the reason? Perhaps it was because the kidnapped mermaid girl fell from the sky? Or maybe it was because the boy, who looked human, jumped up to catch her? Or was it the girl riding the black dragon who fell from the sky? No, the biggest reason was probably that the boy harshly scolded the mermaid girl. More accurately, the name the young girl called out from the beginning was the reason.

"Kusi, Dad, I'm sorry..."

"Promise me you won't do such dangerous things again, okay?"

"Okay, I promise."

"Very good, that's a good girl. Come here."

"Dad—!"

On one knee, Aichi earnestly taught the young girl, and despite being scolded, Miu honestly reflected and was allowed to throw herself into Aichi's arms... They looked like any ordinary father and daughter, just as Miu kept calling "Dad."

Faced with the kidnapped mermaid girl calling the human boy "Dad" out of admiration, and Aichi naturally treating Miu as his daughter, everyone was speechless. However, their thoughts were probably the same. In other words, "What's going on here?"

Aichi held Miu and comforted her. Gradually, the people around them regained their composure and began to stir.

Ignoring the confusion and noise around him, Aichi continued to hold Miu but felt a hug from behind... Turning around, he saw Kaori, who had her forehead pressed against Aichi's body, trembling slightly.

"It's okay... It's okay, kusi."

This time, it was Kaori who started crying. Although she looked strong, she must have been very worried inside. Even if she believed Aichi was fine, she couldn't help but worry, and Aichi couldn't miss that feeling. Moreover, after finally meeting, he disappeared again. She must have endured a lot.

"I'm sorry for making you worry. As you can see, I'm completely fine. So, please don't cry... When Kaori cries... it's really troublesome."

"Okay, kusi, then, can we stay like this for a little longer..."

Aichi, looking troubled, patted Kaori's head over his shoulder, but Kaori still couldn't stop her tears and buried her face in Aichi's shoulder. Her hands also tightly hugged Aichi from behind.

"Hey, you, what's going on, explain—pu!?"

"Huh? Sorry."

The captain, who had been splashed into the sea by the shockwave when Aichi jumped down, was drenched and asked Aichi without considering the atmosphere. However, he was pushed back into the sea by Tia, who had just run over (she had returned to human form as she landed).

Tia, who didn't care, ran to Aichi's side and hugged his head, pressing it into her chest.

"Nu oh!? Hey, Tia."

"I believed in you? Even though I believed... still, to meet like this... for a while, please give me some time, my master."

Aichi, struggling in her chest, glanced at Tia's expression. It was the look of someone protecting something important, with tears still in the corners of her eyes. This time, because he had asked Tia to do something very difficult, he had no choice but to let her have her way.

While creating this atmosphere, "Miu wants to be hugged too," Miu said, hugging Aichi's neck. Not knowing when she had arrived, Tsuki hugged Aichi from the side, and Shia from the other side of Kaori.

Under the gaze of the crowd, Aichi was surrounded by cute girls, young girls, and beautiful women. The surrounding gazes, which had been confused, gradually became warm and protective. On the other side, the mermaid self-defense group and human soldiers, who had been emitting a killing aura, also put down their weapons. (Ruri: Put down their weapons and picked up torches!)

"You people... again and again... obstructing the duties of the kingdom's soldiers, do you want to be arrested!"

The captain, who had climbed back up the pier, glared at Aichi and the others angrily. He held a weapon, ready to attack at any moment. At least, from the unusual closeness of the kidnapped person—Miu—it was unlikely that she was a kidnapper, but there were too many things that didn't make sense, and he needed to hear the whole story.

Originally, they had received an official escort mission from the branch manager of the neutral commercial city of Furen, Ilvana, and Aichi wanted to clear up the misunderstanding, but he lacked proof. Now, he had that proof.

Aichi had Tia return to the "Treasure Vault" and brought out the attribute plate and Ilvana's letter of commission, showing them to the captain.

"…What… is this a Gold rank!?! And a commission from the branch manager!?"

In addition to Ilvana's letter of commission, Aichi also showed the captain a letter detailing the events. It was written by the mayor of Ainesson and the captain's superior. After reading it as if he were going to eat it, the captain sighed deeply and, though hesitantly, saluted in apology.

"…I acknowledge the completion of your mission. Prince Nan Yun."

"It's good to clear up the misunderstanding. Although you probably have many questions, we are also busy. So, for now, don't ask… at least, let this child meet her mother. Is that okay?"

"That's only natural. But, the dragon and your jump, and that boat-like thing… as a kingdom soldier, I cannot ignore it."

Even though he had changed his high-pressure attitude and showed respect to Aichi, the captain could not ignore what had happened, and his eyes conveyed this resolve.

"Let's talk about that later? In any case, we have plans to stay in Ainesson. But, even if we report to the kingdom, it probably won't do much good. They already know about it…"

"Ah, I see. Well, we can talk about other things later. Let's take this child to her mother… Does she know about her mother's condition?"

"No, she doesn't know yet. It's fine. We have the best medicine and healers."

"I see, I understand. Then, let's talk about it after things calm down."

The captain, who finally introduced himself as "Sairzer," dispersed the crowd. He was a very dedicated person.

Although some people who knew Miu wanted to talk to her, Aichi stopped them with a look, as it would take too long to see her mother.

"Dad, Dad. Let's go home. Mom is waiting! I really want to see Mom!"

"That's right… let's go quickly."

Miu, pulling Aichi's hand with all her might, kept calling out, "Faster, faster!" For her, it had been two months since she last saw her home and mother. This couldn't be blamed on her. During the journey, under Aichi's care, she could laugh normally, but at night, she would think of her mother, and at such times, she was completely spoiled.

On the way to her house, Kaori, who had approached, asked in a worried voice.

"Aichi-kun. What the soldier said earlier…"

"No, it's not life-threatening. However, it seems the wounds are quite severe, and there are also psychological issues… With Miu around, the psychological issues should be manageable. As for the wounds, we'll have to see when we meet her."

"Okay. Leave it to me."

While this conversation was taking place, there was a commotion ahead on the street. It was the voice of a young woman and several others.

"Remia, calm down! It's too much of a strain on your feet!"

"That's right, Remia-chan. Miu-chan will bring them over!"

"No! Miu is coming back! If that's the case, I have to go! I have to welcome her!"

It seemed that a woman had run out of the house, and several others were trying to calm her down. Probably, someone had told Miu's mother that she was coming back. Hearing the voice of the woman called Remia, who was shouting desperately, Miu's expression suddenly lit up. Then, she ran with all her might towards a woman in her twenties who had collapsed at the entrance.

"Mom—!!"

"—!? Miu!? Miu!"

Miu, full of energy, ran to the entrance and threw herself into her mother Remia's arms, laughing.

Seeing the mother and daughter, who seemed determined never to be separated again, the gazes of the people around them became gentle.

Remia whispered "I'm sorry" countless times in Miu's ear. Was it because she had lost sight of her, or because she couldn't go to meet her? Or both?

The relief of her daughter's safety and the guilt of not being able to protect her made Remia shed tears. Seeing Miu's worried gaze, Remia gently stroked her head.

"It's okay, you know. Mom, Miu is here. So, it's okay."

"Miu…"

Never expecting to be comforted by her four-year-old daughter, Remia's eyes widened with tears as she looked at Miu.

Miu looked straight back at Remia, and in her eyes, there was genuine concern for her mother. The spoiled and lonely daughter before she was kidnapped, who was thought to have suffered more than anyone, instead worried more about her mother when they met again.

Seeing Miu, who was so surprised that she could only stare, Remia smiled and hugged her tightly. Worried that Miu might be injured, or that her heart had been broken, Remia had spent sleepless nights, even developing a mental illness. Now, seeing her daughter return, grown and safe, Remia could only smile wryly. Relaxing her shoulders and stopping her tears, her eyes were filled only with love for her daughter.

Miu and Remia hugged each other again, and suddenly, Miu let out a cry.

"Mom! Your foot! What happened! It's injured, isn't it!? Does it hurt!?"

Probably seeing Remia's feet through her dress, Miu noticed that they were wrapped in bandages and looked painful.

This was the situation Sairzer had mentioned, and Aichi had also heard the same story from the young man on the way to Ainesson.

Including Miu's kidnapping, the fact that her mother Remia had suffered a severe injury that left her unable to walk, and the reason for the mermaids' hostility.

Although it was said that Miu was kidnapped when she and Remia were separated, there were no witnesses on the mermaids' side, and they couldn't confirm it was a kidnapping. However, they insisted that Remia had seen the culprit.

While searching for Miu, who had been separated from her, Remia discovered a group of suspicious men erasing footprints on a beach near the coast. Although she had a bad feeling, she approached them to ask if they had seen her daughter... The men, looking panicked, suddenly began to chant.

Remia was convinced that Miu's disappearance was related to these men and was determined to find her, so she followed the footprints. However, another man, panicking, released a flame bullet as a countermeasure. Remia was lucky enough to avoid a direct hit to her upper body, but the flame bullet hit her feet, and the shock wave blew her into the sea. Remia lost consciousness due to the pain and shock and was later rescued by the self-defense group, who were searching for her, worried about her absence.

Although she survived, as time passed, the nerves in Remia's feet began to die, and she could no longer walk or swim. Of course, even if Remia wanted to go out and search for her daughter, her feet wouldn't allow it, so she had to rely on the self-defense group and the kingdom's soldiers.

Because of this, Remia was now in a state where she couldn't even stand.

Despite this, Remia still managed to show a pure smile that didn't worry her daughter, just like Miu, conveying "It's okay." However, instead of that, Miu chose to seek help from the person she trusted most in the world, "Dad."

"Dad! Save Mom! Mom's foot hurts!"

"Ah!? Miu? What did you just say..."

"Dad! Hurry up!"

"Ah, ah, really? So, Miu, Dad is...?"

Confused, a large number of question marks appeared above Remia's head. The crowd also began to stir. Various dangerous comments were heard, such as "Remia... did she remarry? How... could this happen," "Rem