"Wha-" Dustin's smile immediately dropped from his face the moment he
saw who it was that came in through the door. His smile was replaced by
hostility. "Who let you in? Get out!"
"Don't be mistaken, I'm just here to see my daughter-in-law. This has
nothing to do with you." Rufus chuckled merrily as he hobbled in through
the door.
"Do you do you know each other?" Dahlia looked from one to the other,
perplexed.
"You're Dahlia, aren't you? As expected, what a beauty!" Rufus beamed
brightly. "Oh, right, I haven't introduced myself. I'm Dustin's father,
your father-in-law."
"Dustin's father?" Dahlia was taken aback by the piece of
information. Though there wasn't exactly anything special about Dustin,
he had exceptionally good looks. He was a fine specimen of a man if
anything. However, this old man before her was the farthest thing from
handsome. The two were vastly different in the looks department.
"What? We don't look alike?" Rufus chuckled nonchalantly. "This lad
looks like his mom, so it makes sense that we look nothing like each
other. If he looked like me, I guess he'd never find himself such a
beautiful wife like you."
"Don't say that, Mr. Rhys. You carry an air of prowess about you."
Dahlia felt a little awkward that he saw through her doubt so easily.
"Rufus Rhys! You saw the person you were here to meet. Now, would you
please leave? You're not welcome here!" Dustin exclaimed out of nowhere.
"Hey, watch it! That's rude!" Dahlia shot Dustin a glare. Then, she
swiftly turned around and smiled apologetically at Rufus. "Mr. Rhys,
Dustin's just in a foul mood today. Don't mind him. Please, have a seat!
I'll go make you a cup of tea."
"Great!" Rufus grinned.
"Hmph! Another freeloader!" Florence looked Rufus up and down as she
studied him haughtily. She could tell from his attire that he wasn't a
wealthy person. Sure enough, the apple doesn't fall far from the tree.
The slacker's father was a bum top.
"This must be my in-law! Unfortunately, I haven't got much for you.
As this is our first meeting, all I've got for you is this little gift.
Please don't mind it "Rufus produced a box from his pocket and handed it
to her.
Florence was awe-struck when she opened up the box to take a quick
look inside. A sapphire the size of an egg was laid inside the box. It
was so clear and exquisite. "This thing… It isn't a fake –stone, is it?"
Florence strongly doubted that it was a genuine gemstone. It was rare
enough to come by a regular sapphire the size of one's fingernail. But
this one was the size of an egg! It was shocking, to say the least.
"No way. This is a family heirloom." Rufus laughed
"An heirloom? That's great!" Florence immediately broke out into a
wide smile when she heard that. She reckoned that he was a fool to give
her something.so precious. A sapphire of that size
"How do you know such a prominent person?" She asked dubiously.
"I helped him before, so I guess he's just repaying me a favor."
Dustin chuckled.
Adam had been a sickly kid who had constantly been bullied, so Dustin
would stand up against those rich and arrogant youths of Stonia for him
and often taught them a lesson for messing with Adam. Because of that,
Dustin even earned himself the nickname "vile demon".
"I never would have guessed that you'd be affiliated with such an
important person. How did I not know this before?" Dahlia asked, curious.
"These are old-time stories. No point bringing them up." Dustin shook
his head.
"Alright then. I will not probe too much into your past. But in the
future, please do not act rashly," Dahlia warned in all earnestness.
"It's not every day you get favors from people like him. If you bother
him too often, Mr. Spanner won't want to help you all the time. You have
to rely on yourself.
"You don't have to worry. I know what I'm doing." Dustin smiled.
As they spoke, a hunched, middle-aged man with gray hair knocked on
the door and made his way in. It was none other than Rufus Rhys, the King
of Theswe!