"But all of you are acting the exact sa way,"
Narada said, her tone sharper now. The soldier's grin vanished, and he quickly walked away.
"These AI guards seem suspicious,"
she muttered under her breath, exhaling through her nose in frustration. She then spotted an old, drunken man sitting on a bench under a tree, looking at her with a mischievous glint in his eye. One hand held a bottle of alcohol while the other beckoned her to approach him.
Narada hesitated, studying the old man for a mont before deciding to walk toward him. After carefully assessing the situation, she concluded that he did not seem capable of harming her. As she got closer, the old man grinned and took a swig from his bottle before turning back to her.
"Miss, do you want to know how to get that little dog that turns into a handso elf?"
"Uh… do you actually know?"
she replied cautiously, clearly skeptical.
"Maybe. If you're willing to take on a quest, I might tell you,"
the old man said, his voice laced with mystery.
"What kind of quest?"
Narada asked, her curiosity piqued despite herself. Deep down, she really did want to uncover the truth about this rumor.
"Buy a bottle of booze,"
the old man said bluntly.
"Huh! That's a ridiculous quest,"
Narada exclaid, clearly annoyed.
"C'mon now! The information you'll get is worth far more than that,"
the old man laughed, taking another sip from his bottle.
"No thanks! I'm not that desperate to know. I'm only here to look for Siegfried anyway,"
Narada huffed, ready to storm off. She felt like the drunk old man was wasting her ti. But just as she turned her back, the old man called out a sentence that froze her in her tracks, her eyes wide with shock.
"Siegfried… oh, the young man doing a quest with his lover. I reckon those two are the source of the rumor about the little dog turning into an elf."
.....
A black van sped along a relatively empty road. Thanks to the modernized and highly efficient public transportation system, even during rush hour, traffic jams were nearly nonexistent. Soon, the van would leave the capital and reach its destination—a fruit orchard that Infinity Group had taken over eight years ago. It was the sa orchard that had once held precious mories for two people, long ago.
"Hey, up ahead. Look like the police are setting up a checkpoint. We might not be able to stick to the main road,"
the driver called out. Everyone in the van leaned forward to look, spotting several police vehicles pulling up. Officers began setting up barricades to funnel cars into a single lane for thorough inspections.
"No choice. Take the next turnoff. Be ready to deal with anyone trying to interfere with this route,"
the bald-headed man who was the leader, ordered. The driver nodded, quickly turning onto a smaller side road about 500 ters before the police checkpoint. Inside the van, the n dressed in black looked visibly tense. Their eyes scanned both sides of the road, as though expecting an ambush at any mont.
"It's still daylight. I doubt anyone would dare to act now. Step on it—we need to clear this area before nightfall, or things will get ssy!"
the bald-headed man barked, glancing back at the two unconscious passengers in the van.
"They sure sleep soundly,"
he muttered under his breath.
"Boss, it's a good thing they're both knocked out. If she were awake, we might probably haven't left the amusent park yet."
one of the n sitting next to Chang remarked quickly. He vividly rembered how deceptively strong Chang was despite her slim fra.
"I know, I know. I was just saying. But don't let your guard down. We can't afford any mistakes this ti. The boss has probably already called her father by now."
the bald leader said. The n in the van nodded and turned their attention back to the road. Outside, the landscape was overrun with dense trees and the decaying remnants of what was once a thriving area. It was now a haven for criminals, outlaws, and those who robbed and killed without a word, purely for the thrill of it.
.....
"Thankhun?"
"Yes, Mr. Pich. It's been a while. I didn't expect you to still recognize my voice,"
ca the reply from the other end of the line. Thankhun's tone was calm and emotionless, carrying a cold, distant quality.
"Why are you calling ? I'm busy packing to return to Thailand,"
Pichaya said, his hands trembling as he stuffed items into his suitcase. Ever since he received news that his only daughter, his most treasured Chayarin, had been kidnapped during a trip to the amusent park with her friends, Pichaya Rattanaruangrit had been unable to sit still. He had imdiately ordered his secretary to book the next available flight back to Thailand, canceled all his etings, and rushed back to his accommodations to pack.
"You must've heard about Chang,"
Thankhun said, his words stopping Pichaya in his tracks. He froze mid-motion, straightened up, and pressed his lips into a thin line before forcing himself to reply as calmly as possible.
"How do you know about this?"
"Is there anything about Chang that I don't know?"
"But this, no one else knows about this yet, unless you're..."
"Unless I'm what? You know I'd never harm that child unless it was absolutely necessary."
His words left Pichaya speechless, his jaw slack, his fists clenching tightly as they began to tremble.
"Why…"
Pichaya growled through gritted teeth, struggling to contain the seething anger building inside him.
"Because it had to be done. I had to do this to take back what you stole from ."
The icy tone in Thankhun's voice carried no emotion, no remorse.
"What did I steal from you? Why would you go so far as to kidnap her? Chang has nothing to do with this. She knows nothing about my business dealings. So why are you dragging her into this!"
Pichaya shouted into the phone. He wanted nothing more than to confront Thankhun face-to-face, to rip open his chest and see what kind of heartless monster lay inside.
"Because Chang is your only daughter—the one person who can make you do anything. Isn't that why she's always been a target for kidnappers? Chang is your heart and soul. She's the one person who can turn Pichaya Rattanaruangrit, the brilliant businessman, into nothing more than a docile, powerless kitten."
"I never thought… never thought you'd do this. Even if the whole world wanted to harm Chang, I believed you'd be the one person who'd never hurt her. I thought you'd protect her, not be the one to harm her like this. You've been close to Chang since she was a child. She trusted you. That child always smiled so brightly whenever she talked about you. And yet, you'd hurt the child who once said you were her first love?"
"If you do as I've proposed… I promise Chang will be unhard. But if you think what you stole from is more important than your daughter's life, if you choose that path, you'll never see Chang again—for the rest of your life!"
Though his tone was detached, Pichaya detected a faint glimr of compassion buried within his words.
"You wouldn't harm her, Thankhun. I know you wouldn't hurt that child!"
Pichaya said, clinging to the hope that Thankhun's feelings for Chang had not completely faded.
"Ti changes people, Mr. Pich. I've already kidnapped Chang. From now on, anything can happen. It all depends on your answer."
Pichaya stood frozen, gripping the phone tightly as he heard the line go dead. For a mont, he felt a slight sense of relief that the kidnapper was Thankhun. But that relief quickly evaporated as the reality of the situation hit him. Thankhun was no longer the sa man who once blushed and fumbled nervously in Pichaya's presence. He was not the kindhearted boy who held Chang's hand gently, guiding her through the orchard while sharing stories that made her laugh joyfully. That man was gone. And now, when Chang finally faced him again, how would her heart fare? How deep would her disappointnt run when she realized that the warm, kind Thankhun of her childhood had changed?
"Chang… no matter what happens, I hope you stay strong, as you always have. No matter how cruel the truth before you may be, no matter how much pain and disappointnt it brings, I pray that you'll overco it. And I pray that you'll always remain the sa Chang, my Chang. Wait for , my daughter…"
.....
At the amusent park's waste disposal area, k found no vehicles parked anywhere. All he saw were countless tire tracks crisscrossing the ground. He shook his head and sighed in frustration, realizing this would not be as simple as he had hoped. Whoever had kidnapped Chang and Idsara was clearly a professional, well-trained and ticulous. They had left almost no traces behind—except for Chang's phone, discovered by Moddang's group inside the Rabbit Hole, and Mi's sharp eyes noticing the sleeping prince wearing a wristwatch. Without those small clues, they would not have known the two had been abducted.
"This is bad. We'll probably have to call Id's father. But if his dad finds out, it'll beco an international incident. And Peach is going to have a ltdown for sure,"
k muttered, massaging his temples as he thought about notifying Idsara's father, the British ambassador to Thailand.
"Who's Peach, k?"
Mi's voice startled him as she approached, having overheard the na.
"Oh, Mi. Did you finish contacting everyone about Chang?"
k turned to her quickly, caught off guard. Mi studied him suspiciously.
"Yes. They said they're already spreading out to search for suspicious individuals, and all the checkpoints are set up. They should find them soon,"
Mi replied, relaying what Moddang had told her over the phone.
"That's fast, I'll give them that. But what if they got out of the city before the checkpoints were in place? I've got a bad feeling about this—it's not going to end so easily."
k analyzed the situation with a worried expression.
"It'll be fine. Those two can definitely handle themselves. But who's Peach?"
Mi suddenly circled back to her earlier question, almost making k laugh.
"Are you really that interested? Peach is, well…"
k teased, his face showing a sly grin. When Mi's sharp gaze locked onto him, k imdiately caved and explained the truth.
"Alright, alright, don't look at like that, Mi. Peach is Peach Blossom—Id's little sister. You know how spoiled she is. Even in the ga, no one dares to cross her. Outside the ga? Let tell you, when she throws a tantrum, everyone around her runs for cover."
"Oh, I see. In that case, let's head back and join Moddang and the others. Moddang said she's already contacted Chang's father. Uncle Pich should be back tonight. Are you going to call Id's family, or will you let the authorities handle it?"
Mi walked ahead, leading the way out of the waste disposal area to regroup with Moddang and Chang's bodyguards. k followed, still feeling a little disoriented. Was Mi genuinely jealous earlier, or was she just teasing him? She had accepted his explanation so quickly—too quickly. Or was she just pretending to believe him? Nervous, k glanced at her, trying to read her expression. He quickened his pace to walk alongside her.
At the Dreamland amusent park's parking lot, over twenty mbers of the Special Protection Unit had gathered. They had split up to search the amusent park for clues but had found little beyond vague statents from a handful of park visitors. Seeing no progress, 16 and 17 decided to move their operations to Chang's house. Emy and k returned just as the team finished packing up their gear. The two asked to co along, eager to stay inford about any updates. During the drive, k finally decided to call Idsara's father himself.
"Hello,"
ca a polite voice on the other end. Though the British ambassador to Thailand spoke Thai, his accent was slightly awkward.
"Um, mister… I an, Ambassador Henrius? Id's father, right?"
k asked nervously.
"Yes, that's correct. May I ask who this is and why are you asking about my son?"
the ambassador replied, sounding amused.
"This is k, your neighbor across the street. Today, I went to the amusent park with Id. We were joined by two female friends and three of their bodyguards..."
Mi rolled her eyes, wondering why k was detailing how many people went with them. Realizing this, k gave her a sheepish smile before continuing.
"I see. So, what's the reason for this call? And why are you calling my private number? (In the background, k could hear what he assud was the ambassador's secretary saying sothing.) If you're calling to report who my son spent the day with, I appreciate it, but I'm quite busy and will have to end this call."
"Wait. Id's been kidnapped!"
The hand about to press the end-call button froze instantly upon hearing what was just said. Henrius Chadler stared at the phone in his hand, stunned. If this was a joke, it was an incredibly cruel one. But if it was not who could possibly have kidnapped his son? Henrius brought the phone back to his ear and spoke in a stern, serious tone.
"What did you just say?"
"Id has been kidnapped along with Chang, one of our friends. Right now, we're heading to Chang's house because the Special Protection Unit is assembling there to plan their next steps,"
k replied, his voice dry and hoarse.
"Where is this kid's house? I'll go there imdiately!"
Henrius demanded sharply, his tone so commanding that k flinched. Turning to Mi, he gestured for her to provide the address since he did not know where Chang lived.
"Phetchklao Ho, in the Lake City district."
"Got it! I'm on my way,"
As soon as the line went dead, k let out a heavy sigh. Mi gently patted his back to comfort him before he turned to ask her sothing. Henrius said before abruptly ending the call.
"Chang's house is called Phetchklao Ho? I thought it would be nad after her family's last na."
"That house was a gift Mr. Rattanaruangrit bought for his wife. That's why it's nad after Mrs. Rattanaruangrit instead."
Moddang chid in after Mi nudged her.
"I see. But if it's in the Lake City district, they must be seriously wealthy,"
k remarked, nodding thoughtfully. He did not know Chang well, outside of the ga.No one added further explanation, knowing that k would soon see for himself just how wealthy Chang's family was—so wealthy that it made her life a constant target for danger.
-----
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