Chapter 368: The Missing Daniel Couple

The man who once owned his own restaurant in Carolina now looked noticeably weathered. Ron figured it wasn’t necessarily because the Daniel Couple mistreated him. Rather, it was the drop in status from head chef to a mere kitchen hand that had crushed his spirit. Combined with the fact that he wasn’t wearing a chef’s uniform today, his linen coat and wide-brimmed hat made him look more like an old country farmer than a personable chef.

"Are you Mr. Baka?"

The man was peeking around the entrance to the government hall like a thief, drawing curious glances from several staff members. Ron seized the moment he looked away again, strode forward, and clapped him on the shoulder.

"You’re not in Rose City. What are you doing here?"

Startled, Baka let out a girlish shriek. He violently shook off Ron’s hand and jumped half a meter into the air. "W-W-Who’s there!"

"It’s me. Calm down," Ron said, signaling for Yelena to sheathe her scimitar. He stood before Baka with his hands behind his back. "What’s the matter? You don’t seem very happy to see me."

"No, absolutely not!" Scared half to death by Ron’s surprise approach, Baka struggled to refocus his eyes. When he finally made out the person in front of him, the terrified cook nearly collapsed onto the floor. "Lord Ron! You’re the person I most wanted to see right now!"

"I’ve been dying to see you!"

"Don’t shout out here. Let’s talk inside." Baka’s booming voice had attracted the attention of nearly everyone nearby. A few nosy people even opened their windows and craned their necks to look out, forcing Ron to quickly usher Baka inside. "I don’t recall us being close. Why would you be dying to see me?"

"How could I not?" After entering Ron’s office, Baka took out a Pan Flute with a dark blue tassel and placed it on the desk. "Do you remember what this is?"

"It’s a Pan Flute..." Ron picked up the instrument. If he remembered correctly, Daniel was quite skilled at playing it and had even shown off a little before. However, he couldn’t recall the specific features of that particular Pan Flute. "Is this Mr. Daniel’s?"

A Bard would be unlikely to part with his instrument so easily, just as a Warrior wouldn’t abandon his sword and shield, or a Ranger his animal companion. Ron sized Baka up. As long as the man hadn’t gone insane, he wouldn’t steal, rob, or trick Daniel out of his instrument only to hand it over to him.

"That’s the one," Baka said, nodding eagerly. "Try blowing into it!"

"I don’t know how to play this. What do you take me for?"

"You don’t need to know how!" Baka said hastily. "Just blow! You’ll understand once you do!"

Dubiously, Ron brought the row of holes to his lips. He could swear he didn’t even try to change the notes, but as he "played," a melodious tune flowed from the Pan Flute on its own!

And within the music, the tense Ron could clearly hear a name: Ron!

"What’s going on?!" Ron shot to his feet and grabbed Baka by the collar. "Stop with the riddles and tell me what happened, clearly!"

"What happened to Mr. Daniel and Lady Liya?!"

"Calm down, calm down!" Baka, who was much stockier than Ron, had clearly turned over a new leaf; despite being held by the collar, he had no intention of resisting. "I don’t know what happened either! That’s why I came looking for you!"

"Ron, let him sit down and explain it properly," Yelena interjected. The Shadow Spirit glanced at the half-open door, where the Half-Elf was standing, seemingly hesitant to enter.

"Aive, come in and listen," Ron said, releasing Baka and waving Aive, who had just arrived at the door, inside. "He has news about your aunt and uncle."

"I know. He found me first while you were looking after that Priest." The Half-Elf Warrior’s brows were tightly knit. She had a travel pack on her back, looking as if she had come fully prepared.

"Mr. Baka, please tell us what you saw and heard again. Ron needs to know."

"Alright. It was one evening, just after dinner time," Baka began, trying to find a balance between speed and clarity. "I was in the back kitchen peeling potatoes, prepping ingredients for the next day’s stew. Suddenly, I heard the sound of orderly footsteps from outside, followed by the voices of the waiters talking to them."

"Everything seemed normal at first, so I didn’t go out. After all, greeting guests isn’t my job. But then, the waiters started loudly reminding the newcomers that the Night Wind Tavern has lodging upstairs and dining downstairs. The people wouldn’t listen and insisted on going up."

"The argument only stopped when the master and mistress came downstairs. The mistress seemed to be in a bad mood and said a few words to them, some of it in the Elf Language, which I couldn’t really understand. The master, meanwhile, was trying to smooth things over with a smile."

At this point, the former Ogre’s body trembled slightly. "Then... then things got strange. Almost as soon as the mistress said one more thing to them, I couldn’t hear anything at all. A moment later, I heard those same orderly footsteps from outside again, and then everything went quiet."

"And then?"

"Then... I waited a while before going out," Baka said, his face falling. "They’re both good people, but the mistress can have a bit of a temper sometimes. I thought it was just one of those times, so I didn’t dare to disturb them. After about five minutes, ten at the most, I finished peeling the potatoes and went out."

"The tavern doors were wide open. There was no one on the first floor. The waiters, Legislator Daniel, and Lady Liya were all gone. I searched upstairs and downstairs, but it was the same everywhere."

Baka took off his hat. "I found it very strange. I quickly checked the counter and the inventory, but nothing was missing. So, it couldn’t have been robbers after money. But the master and mistress’s luggage wasn’t packed either, which means they didn’t leave on their own—and besides, why would they take several waiters with them if they were just going out?"

"In my confusion, I found this," Baka said, pointing to the Pan Flute in Ron’s hand. "I found it under a chair. Mr. Daniel loves it; he would never forget it unless it was an emergency. And when I tried to blow into it, it started playing music on its own, and the sound inside was just like what you heard."

"I figured Mr. Daniel was telling me to find you, so I immediately packed my things and rushed over here." Recalling his journey, the former Ogre’s face filled with utter terror. "But I never expected that the master and mistress’s disappearance was only the beginning of the nightmare..."