"Who! Who's there?"

Ronald walked openly into the ice sculpture exhibition with Phil.

He didn't hide his arrival, so the person hiding there immediately noticed them, and someone stepped out nervously, ready to face the crisis.

Soon after, the person hiding there met Ronald's gaze in the dim room.

The other person recognized Ronald's face, and the initial tension and vigilance instantly disappeared from their face.

"Ro... Ro... Mr. Ronald!"

"Why are you here?"

The one speaking was a robust middle-aged man whom Ronald happened to know—Searial.

This was the explorer he once met during the Twin Streams City ruins expedition.

And now, in such a way, he met Ronald again!

Explorers have quite a deep obsession with certain things. After asking Ronald why he was here, Searial quickly scanned the area with his eyes.

Realizing Costate wasn't with Ronald, his expression immediately became somewhat disappointed:

"And where is Miss Costate?"

"I remember you two were always inseparable, weren't you?"

"Costate is protecting my friend while searching for something, and as for me..." Ronald, being naturally honest with such a companion from past adventures, immediately indicated Phil in his arms with a glance, "I'm helping this child look for his father, and the clues led us here."

"Looking for a father..." Searial murmured softly.

This explorer understood Ronald's actions and immediately gave up on asking about Costate.

Moreover, Searial was also someone who could differentiate between priorities.

Upon hearing Ronald's introduction, his line of thinking immediately shifted to the child in Ronald's arms.

"A little girl's father, wait!"

"Mr. Ronald, could this child's father be..."

Searial's expression changed, but before he could voice his guess, Ronald spoke up first:

"Her father is a detective named Waboden Longmeier."

"..."

Upon hearing this name, Searial's expression lit up first, then quickly darkened.

He hesitated and glanced at Phil in Ronald's arms.

For a moment, he couldn't decide whether to tell the truth.

"Uh—"

Suddenly, Ronald felt the little girl in his arms shudder.

Sometimes—silence itself is an answer.

For news that even made an explorer like Searial hesitate to share, Ronald could guess just by this point that Phil's father's situation was not good.

But Ronald still decided to make an effort:

"Searial, I have spells that can heal injuries. Maybe there's still a chance?"

Ronald made his intentions clear, and Searial no longer hesitated.

The explorer shook his head with a grim expression and, with an apologetic tone, said:

"During my past explorations, I've come across people who claimed to reverse life and death, but they were all frauds. Ronald, can you really do that?"

"..."

To reverse life and death.

Searial's ultimatum was still somewhat tactful.

But both Ronald and Phil in his arms understood the underlying meaning—the father of Phil, Waboden Longmeier, was already dead.

Unless there was a power to resurrect the dead, there was no hope of saving him.

"Tear!"

At this moment, Ronald felt Phil's arms tighten around him.

—This child was in deep pain.

—Yet she still held back her tears.

"..."

In silence, Ronald adjusted the spell on his body.

He knew the solidness of his body might harm this little one, so he unhesitatingly let go of his defenses at that spot, allowing Phil to barely maintain her spirit that was on the verge of collapse.

"..."

"Searial? What's happening here?"

As Ronald and Phil faced the worst news, another person boldly stepped out from the back of the ice sculpture exhibition.

The ones hiding here hadn't heard any fighting between Searial and the newcomers, nor received any prearranged signals. In such a situation, naturally, someone mustered the courage to come out and investigate:

"Oh? Mr. Ronald!"

"Giovanni?"

It turned out to be another acquaintance.

No one knew what had happened, but Searial had somehow teamed up with Giovanni.

Ronald was initially puzzled by this sight but soon understood.

After all, these two were adventurers active near Waterfall City. Meeting in a tavern and then deciding to act together amidst a sudden war situation was only logical.

And seeing Giovanni also coming over, Searial quickly whispered a reminder:

"Giovanni, that child is Waboden's daughter."

"..."

Giovanni's originally open mouth promptly shut.

A simple reminder was enough for this explorer to understand everything happening in the ice sculpture exhibition hall.

However, the situation was tense.

Though Giovanni was mindful of Phil's feelings, he also understood what the most urgent matter was. So he said a few brief words and immediately led Ronald and Phil to the hidden place in the back.

The explorers' hiding spot was originally where ice blocks were stored in the ice sculpture exhibition. It had now, under the influence of a spell, become a temporary refuge for these people.

Moreover, upon arriving here, Ronald saw more familiar and unfamiliar faces.

Professor Dowen, Betina, Clara...

Almost all the explorers he had encountered during his two expeditions were here now.

It was likely due to the tense situation in Waterfall City.

Forcing such a group of like-minded individuals to come together.

What further surprised Ronald was the caster he previously sensed.

It was just a brief encounter, but the caster, Fregel Krein, left a deep impression on him.

He was a caster conducting research in the northern regions, accompanied by a snowman summon at the time.

"Oh, Mr. Ronald."

At this moment, Fregel stood up and bowed to Ronald.

Having returned to the civilized world, he once again encountered mystical individuals in Waterfall City, and naturally understood who this Ronald was, thus immediately showing his respect.

Ronald responded with a friendly look.

In some sense, it was actually this caster who sheltered these explorers. By maintaining the spell to control the ice storage environment, it allowed these people to hide here without freezing to death.

Soon enough, Fregel learned Ronald and Phil's purpose.

He then proactively extended an invitation to Ronald:

"Mr. Waboden, he... I have preserved him in the back."

"Though it may seem cold, I think Miss Phil should see him one last time."

If you find any errors ( broken links, non-standard content, etc.. ), Please let us know < report chapter > so we can fix it as soon as possible.