[Search Begins]
To search for Marina, who had gone missing, Tayte, my other maids Priim and Rebecca, as well as Eureka and Raul, and I decided to stay in Salencia a little longer.
Securing permission from the teachers, including Mr. Teixeira, proved to be the most challenging part.
Operating in a foreign country meant we couldn’t take arbitrary actions. However, the principal of Randolph Academy, who had caught wind of the situation, stepped in and granted us permission, saying, “If that’s the case, I’ll grant you permission.”
In return, he asked us to take Annette along with us. While he claimed it was for assistance, I suspected she was also meant to keep an eye on us.
Nonetheless, we had nothing to hide, and I welcomed the additional help with the search without any guilt.
Our search party, now consisting of seven members, promptly set off for the port town where Marina’s parents lived.
The port town was bustling with activity, as it was gearing up for a festival to honor the sea dragon, a tradition dating back to ancient times in these lands.
Although the festival was still a week away, the town was already teeming with people. It dawned on me why Astor Academy had scheduled its events to avoid overlapping with this festival. Once the festivities began and the crowds swelled, it would be challenging to make accurate judgments if we encountered suspicious individuals.
“Is it common for nobles in the Bramshal Kingdom to embark on searches like this for their maids?” Annette candidly inquired during our search.
I doubted that most nobles would go to such lengths, but for me, it felt only natural. “Marina is a cherished member of my household staff. If she’s in any kind of trouble, it’s my responsibility to help her.”
“I see,” Annette replied, struggling to grasp my perspective, likely due to our differing backgrounds.
Setting aside these contemplations, I scoured the town, but aimlessly wandering didn’t yield any clues.
“If only we were to have any leads…”
“Oh! I know-nya!”
I was grappling with the situation when Priim suddenly clapped her hands and exclaimed, seemingly recalling something.
“What’s wrong, Priim?”
“Well, you see, Marina once mentioned how much she adores this fountain in the town square-nya. She gets lost in its beauty, losing track of time-nya!”
“The fountain in the square?”
I pondered. Even though Marina might get lost in admiration, I couldn’t believe she would let herself lose track of time on the day of our departure, considering her diligent nature. Despite my doubts, we decided to head to the square, as it was our only lead.
The square was perched on a small hill in the heart of town, affording a magnificent view of the sea.
“I see… it’s not just the fountain; this view alone could captivate anyone.”
However, Marina, the person we were seeking, was nowhere to be found.
—At that moment…
“Young Master Barrett!”
Rebecca called out to me in a frantic tone. She seemed to have stumbled upon something significant. Rushing over, she showed me an item tightly clutched in her hand. The rest of our group gathered around to inspect it. It was…
“A hair clip?”
“This is Marina’s. I’m absolutely certain. You can even see her name engraved here.”
“?! Is that true?!”
Indeed, the hair clip was unmistakably Marina’s.
The presence of Marina’s hair clip in this location left no room for doubt—Marina had been here.
What could have happened?
[Search Begins]
To search for Marina, who had gone missing, Tayte, my other maids Priim and Rebecca, as well as Eureka and Raul, and I decided to stay in Salencia a little longer.
Securing permission from the teachers, including Mr. Teixeira, proved to be the most challenging part.
Operating in a foreign country meant we couldn’t take arbitrary actions. However, the principal of Randolph Academy, who had caught wind of the situation, stepped in and granted us permission, saying, “If that’s the case, I’ll grant you permission.”
In return, he asked us to take Annette along with us. While he claimed it was for assistance, I suspected she was also meant to keep an eye on us.
Nonetheless, we had nothing to hide, and I welcomed the additional help with the search without any guilt.
Our search party, now consisting of seven members, promptly set off for the port town where Marina’s parents lived.
The port town was bustling with activity, as it was gearing up for a festival to honor the sea dragon, a tradition dating back to ancient times in these lands.
Although the festival was still a week away, the town was already teeming with people. It dawned on me why Astor Academy had scheduled its events to avoid overlapping with this festival. Once the festivities began and the crowds swelled, it would be challenging to make accurate judgments if we encountered suspicious individuals.
“Is it common for nobles in the Bramshal Kingdom to embark on searches like this for their maids?” Annette candidly inquired during our search.
I doubted that most nobles would go to such lengths, but for me, it felt only natural. “Marina is a cherished member of my household staff. If she’s in any kind of trouble, it’s my responsibility to help her.”
“I see,” Annette replied, struggling to grasp my perspective, likely due to our differing backgrounds.
Setting aside these contemplations, I scoured the town, but aimlessly wandering didn’t yield any clues.
“If only we were to have any leads…”
“Oh! I know-nya!”
I was grappling with the situation when Priim suddenly clapped her hands and exclaimed, seemingly recalling something.
“What’s wrong, Priim?”
“Well, you see, Marina once mentioned how much she adores this fountain in the town square-nya. She gets lost in its beauty, losing track of time-nya!”
“The fountain in the square?”
I pondered. Even though Marina might get lost in admiration, I couldn’t believe she would let herself lose track of time on the day of our departure, considering her diligent nature. Despite my doubts, we decided to head to the square, as it was our only lead.
The square was perched on a small hill in the heart of town, affording a magnificent view of the sea.
“I see… it’s not just the fountain; this view alone could captivate anyone.”
However, Marina, the person we were seeking, was nowhere to be found.
—At that moment…
“Young Master Barrett!”
Rebecca called out to me in a frantic tone. She seemed to have stumbled upon something significant. Rushing over, she showed me an item tightly clutched in her hand. The rest of our group gathered around to inspect it. It was…
“A hair clip?”
“This is Marina’s. I’m absolutely certain. You can even see her name engraved here.”
“?! Is that true?!”
Indeed, the hair clip was unmistakably Marina’s.
The presence of Marina’s hair clip in this location left no room for doubt—Marina had been here.
What could have happened?
