Dad is Back From a Deserted Island - Chapter 42

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This chapter was translated by Lunox Novels. To support us and help keep this series going, visit our website: LunoxScans.com
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Father has returned from the Deserted Island
Chapter 42

“Vivian?”
When I returned from the restroom, an empty table greeted me—no one was there.
Even with someone supposedly watching her, I was so consumed with worry about Vivian that I’d managed only to wipe the chocolate and filth from my hair and face, leaving my drenched clothes unchanged. In that moment, my mind went blank.
Barely collecting myself, I sought out a Cafe staff member to ask what had happened.
“Pardon? Didn’t I call for someone to take her away?”
It was like a thunderbolt from a clear sky.

* * *

“What is all this commotion?”
Having finished the pressing matters he’d been attending to, Eduard settled into his carriage and noticed the Department Store in the distance was in considerable turmoil.
His weathered eyes narrowed with intensity.
The Department Store was one of his greatest achievements. He invested considerable effort in its management, and yet such chaos?
“Grandfather, that looks like the Guard Militia insignia, doesn’t it?”
Luca, who had been sitting quietly beside him, leaned toward the window at the commotion and pointed out the emblem emblazoned on the carriage.
“The Guard Militia?”
Eduard’s aging eyes still couldn’t quite make out the Guard Militia’s emblem from this distance. Yet his expression had already grown grave.
If the Guard Militia had been summoned separately when guards already protected the Department Store, something serious had undoubtedly occurred.
“What has happened?”
As Eduard descended from the carriage, leaning on his cane, those present—despite their distress—quickly recognized the Valmont Family crest and bowed their heads in haste.
“There’s no need for formalities in such circumstances. Rather, I asked what has happened.”
“A child has been abducted, sir.”
“What?”
“The perpetrators were quite deliberate—they deliberately spilled a beverage on the guardian to make them leave, and then took the child.”
“The guardian is now— Oh.”
Upon seeing a familiar silhouette explaining the situation to the Guard Militia officer, Eduard sighed.
“Jean de Lamber?”
The moment I heard my name called, I spun around like lightning, and the face I saw was one I recognized.
“…Sir?”
In mere hours, I had become so haggard that I barely recognized myself, yet I managed to acknowledge Eduard.
“Why is Jean de Lamber here— Wait, is the missing child Vivian?”
At those words, Luca’s face beside him turned ashen.
I nodded slowly, my expression grave.
I had heard that she’d spilled a beverage on her guardian, and the sight was utterly deplorable. Though the liquid had been wiped from her hair and face, her clothes were marred by an unidentifiable brownish stain.
“I shouldn’t have left my post like that—”
Eduard patted Jean de Lamber’s shoulder as he buried his face in his palms, offering what comfort he could. Even knowing that no solace could truly reach a parent who had lost their child.
“We’ll find her. It wasn’t as though we discovered her absence after a great deal of time had passed. You said you returned immediately after washing her face and hair.”
“Grandfather.”
Luca called out to his grandfather. Seeing the determination in his grandson’s eyes, Eduard summoned the Guard Militia commander and issued his orders.
“Restrict all passage through the City Gate until the child is found. No—there’s no need to prevent people from entering. But search every carriage and person attempting to leave without exception.”
Eduard did possess a title, though not one that granted him authority to issue such commands.
But he possessed something far greater than authority.
“I shall bear full responsibility for any damages incurred by this directive.”
He had wealth.

* * *

Vivian sat inside an old carriage.
Clatter, clatter.
The carriage lurched violently over every pebble, making for an uncomfortable ride, yet Vivian was too preoccupied with worry for Jean de Lamber to notice her discomfort.
Anxiety gnawed at her as she fidgeted restlessly with her hands, her words tumbling out in a nervous stream.
“Is Father hurt badly? He said it wasn’t hot, that he was fine…”
“…”
“But when will we arrive? Does the doctor live so far away?”
“Ugh, you’re so noisy.”
As the carriage turned into a deserted alley, the Young Lady’s demeanor—which had been gentle and soothing until now—shifted abruptly.
The child’s small frame stiffened at the sudden change in atmosphere.
“Are you oblivious or just stupid, little one? You won’t be seeing your father anymore. You’ve been kidnapped.”
“W-what?”
The young man who had been sitting upright suddenly propped his feet up on the seat across from him.
The Young Lady—or rather, the woman—frowned and swatted his feet away, but he merely chuckled and placed them back up.
“Phew, I thought I’d die from the tension. This little one should fetch a decent price, don’t you think?”
“Absolutely. She’s so strikingly beautiful that she stands out even from a distance. Why else would we have gone through all this trouble to bring her along?”
The gang had been observing the father and daughter from the moment they entered the Department Store.
Jean de Lamber, a handsome man with chestnut hair, had certainly caught their attention, but Vivian—with her rare pink hair and doll-like beauty—had immediately become their target.
After confirming that she was not nobility and had no significant connections in the Capital, they proceeded with their scheme without much concern, speaking freely in front of Vivian.
“True enough. Her hair color is quite distinctive. It would’ve been nice to take her father too—his head’s so shiny—but adult men are a different matter, aren’t they?”
“They’re not like children.”
“Right. Little ones like this don’t even need to be restrained.”
“I-I want to get down. P-please let me go home…”
Vivian was trembling with fear as the horrifying conversation unfolded around her. The woman smirked at the sight of her distress and spoke.
“You said your home is far from here anyway. How would you get back if we let you down? A little thing like you would be torn apart by stray dogs.”
“That’s right, little one. Just come along quietly with us, and you won’t die.”
“No, no! I want to go back to Father!”
Though her voice trembled with tears, Vivian spoke her mind clearly. A small child clinging to her bag and shaking could pose no real threat to the gang.
“How are you going to get back, huh? Do you even know the way? Do you?”
The young man grabbed Vivian roughly by the nape of her neck and lifted her, forcing her to gaze out the carriage window.
Identical-looking walls and the dreary scenery of shadowed alleys blurred past. There was no way Vivian could know her way through the unfamiliar Capital’s streets.
“Just behave and do as we say. Follow orders when we get there, and we won’t hurt you, got it?”
“Hic, hic-sob. I want to go home….”
“Hey. Stop it. The kid’s crying.”
“Why are you pretending to care?”
“Shut up!”
At the woman’s words, the young man chuckled and set Vivian back down in the chair. The carriage never slowed, racing onward until it finally halted before a dilapidated Warehouse.
Vivian was dragged inside, tears streaming down her face, gripped firmly in the man’s hand. Resistance was futile—an adult male could easily overpower a seven-year-old child.
The Warehouse, situated in shadow, was dark and damp even before sunset.

“I’m sorry! Please let me out!”
“Sir, ma’am. Please. It’s too dark here….”

The memory of the Attic Room before Jean de Lamber’s return flooded back, and Vivian’s breathing grew increasingly ragged.
“There’s nobody around here, you see? Even if there were, they’d all be scum like us. Nobody’s coming even if you scream for help, kid.”
I couldn’t comprehend what the man was saying. A high-pitched ringing echoed relentlessly in my ears.
Unable to breathe properly, I clawed at my own chest.
“Gasp, huff, wheeze….”
“Huh? Why is the kid like this? Hey, hey! Breathe!”
The woman, realizing this was more than mere fear, panicked and shook Vivian’s shoulders.
She shook so violently that the bag hanging from Vivian’s shoulder tumbled to the ground.
“Squeak?!”
The poorly fastened bag burst open, spilling its contents, and a divine beast that had been sleeping peacefully jolted awake from the impact.
The woman screamed at the sight of the black monkey that had tumbled from the bag.
“Kyaaah! What is that? A rat, a rat?!”
“What rat looks like that?”
[What in the world is this…. Where is this vile, squalid place, and who are these humans…. Vivian?]
Kiki, still drowsy-eyed, immediately bristled upon seeing Vivian clawing at her chest.
“The kid’s carrying some strange animal. What kind of beast is this? Could we sell it for money?”
Kiki, far smaller than Vivian, posed no apparent threat in the gang’s eyes.
The man who spotted Kiki spoke carelessly. But the divine beast, grasping the entire situation from those few words, was.
[How dare these ignorant wretches.]
Enraged.

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This chapter was translated by Lunox Novels. To support us and help keep this series going, visit our website: LunoxScans.com
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