Home/The Ice Age Came? And I Just Got Married?!/ch 114

Chapter 114.

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Victor, the leader of Haywood's survivor faction, liked Acorn Village.

Above all, this village was special.

"I don't understand why this place is so warm."

"How can a place like this still exist?"

"Captain, I don't want to leave this village for even a step."

Victor couldn't help but laugh at his people's comments.

He'd been anxious about following Eve—but it had been the right decision.

Haywood had agreed to join Acorn Village on the condition that they hand over all their Winterstones.

And that decision had not been wrong.

"What exactly is the Duchess of Cheshwind?"

Victor couldn't easily answer his people's question—he didn't know either.

Haywood's survivor group had never been large—maybe ten people.

Thanks to that, they could merge into Acorn Village, but it wasn't without awkwardness.

"Oh dear—we just finished expansion, and now we have to start construction again."

"Hahaha—more people is good. They all look capable."

"We heard the Duchess clearly—they'll be in charge of village security."

"Long time no see—who knew we'd end up in the same shelter?"

The villagers were mostly welcoming.

The camaraderie from surviving Lowell Amusement Park still lingered.

But Victor and his people were more curious about the village's secrets and Eve's identity.

Victor cautiously broached the subject.

"Isn't the Duchess a noble? I heard she's a duchess."

"Ah—if you're asking about her, we don't really know either."

Even the Lowell survivors, who'd been part of the village for a while, didn't fully understand Acorn Village or Eve's true nature.

"Aren't you uneasy?"

"Uneasy about what? What—worried she might be a demon? Hahaha!"

The villagers laughed.

"We suspect she's more likely a mage from three thousand years ago—supposedly extinct."

"If she's the last mage left in this world, aren't we lucky?"

The villagers whispered among themselves, then laughed again.

A mage.

But too many had witnessed her power at Lowell Amusement Park to dismiss it.

And then there was the Winterstone power she'd used to save them from the snow monsters at Haywood's base.

It could only be called magic.

Lost in thought, Victor heard one villager speak cautiously.

"Ah—but you should be careful with that one."

"That one...?"

"The Duke of Cheshwind."

The Duke?

"Try not to offend him if you can."

Victor tilted his head—the villagers lowered their voices.

"He's wary of all young men—well, anyone, regardless of age or gender, who might threaten the Duchess."

"Be careful when speaking to her—especially anything inappropriate."

"What do you..."

But Victor never got his answer.

People near the village gate began to murmur.

"It's the Crown Prince!"

"Right! I've seen his face in the papers!"

"My goodness!"

Victor was stunned.

The Crown Prince? That Crown Prince? Of Grandon?

"Is he here to save us?"

At someone's whisper, hope filled the people's eyes.

But the Crown Prince's appearance was far from savior-like—he looked worse than the people he'd come to help.

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"What on earth happened to you?"

I'd worried about Clare and Aiden meeting—but Aiden's condition was worse than expected.

He arrived with his knight Vincent, Logan's aide Nathan, and the agent Brian.

All of them were in terrible shape—torn clothes, dried bloodstains everywhere.

Aiden sighed and rubbed his face.

"We were attacked by snow monsters on the way."

"Snow monsters?"

Everyone looked at him seriously. Aiden reassured them.

"Don't worry—we drove them off."

"More precisely, they fled."

Nathan corrected.

"They fled? Why?"

At my question, Aiden answered,

"They seemed reluctant to come near this village."

Come to think of it, the snow monsters that had attacked the White Veil army never entered the village.

And even before that, there had been no attacks.

"More importantly—I'm glad you're safe, Duchess. You have no idea how worried I was when you disappeared."

Hearing that, I realized I hadn't seen him since Norton.

"Ah—I'm sorry for worrying you unintentionally."

"No need to apologize—"

Aiden stopped mid-sentence, his eyes widening as he looked behind me.

"Clare?"

A brief silence fell in the greenhouse.

Peep! Peep-peep!

Chippy, looking annoyed, started throwing acorns at everyone—probably disliking the sudden crowd.

Russell and Kaelan took the brunt of the attack, but bound and gagged, they could only endure.

I watched Clare and Aiden nervously.

Julian, who had been tapping his foot impatiently, clapped his hands to draw attention.

"Alright—now's not the time. We have interrogations to do."

"Why do you sound excited, brother?"

"Uncovering truth is always interesting."

He was dying to interrogate Russell and Kaelan.

"I invited His Highness because I thought he should know about White Veil."

Aiden, who had been staring at Clare, reluctantly nodded.

But Julian quickly took charge and removed Kaelan's gag.

Pfft— cough—

Kaelan spat.

I didn't need to step in—there were plenty of sharp minds to handle the interrogation.

Graham, Julian, Marcus the negotiator, and Crown Prince Aiden.

They all stared coldly at Kaelan. He swallowed nervously.

Then Julian suddenly turned to Aiden.

"Your Highness—the interrogation may involve some harsh language. I ask for your understanding."

Aiden looked at Julian for a moment, then nodded quietly. His eyes had also turned cold.

"Don't worry—I came not as a Crown Prince, but as someone seeking the truth."

Julian pulled up a chair, set it before Kaelan, and sat down slowly—as if chatting with an old guest.

"Ah—relax."

Julian picked his ear and smiled.

"You came here ready to die anyway—in this weather, you must have had a hard time."

I'd forgotten—Julian was known as "Professor Lunatic" at the academy.

Graham once said he was considered the loosest screw in the research institute.

Different from Logan—while Logan was a madman driven by obsession, Julian was the type who'd do anything for research. Even if he was my brother, it was true.

"If you came after my sister, you must have expected some torture, right?"

Julian's violet eyes sparkled—slightly unhinged.

"I have a lot of experiments I want to try in this weather—may I?"

"Snap out of it, brother."

I stopped him. Marcus stepped in.

"Junior—why exactly did you want to kidnap the Duchess?"

"Do you think I'll tell you?"

Kaelan let out a defiant laugh.

I watched him, then walked over and removed Russell's gag.

Everyone looked at me—I answered simply.

"This one seems like he'll talk."

Russell replied without hesitation.

"Because the Duchess is the 'Keeper' of the Heart of Frost."

"You damn bastard!!"

Russell's answer sent Kaelan into a frenzy. Clare immediately subdued him, slamming his head to the floor. His gag was replaced, muffling his curses at Russell.

Aiden watched the scene with a complicated expression—but that wasn't my concern right now.

I turned back to Russell.

"What does that mean?"

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