A month later, a carriage was traveling on a small road in Johnston.
"This isn't the mission you told me about!" Locke looked at Irene who was sitting opposite him helplessly.
"Please, please!" She tried to act cute at Locke. "I had no choice but to find you."
Locke rolled his eyes.
Initially, there wasn't a mission to investigate the mines in Felix's territory, but it didn't matter anymore.
They only had one mission now, and that was to help Irene avoid this blind date.
That's right, a blind date.
Irene was born in Johnston, a small province in the southeast of Aomar. Her grandfather used to be a powerful local viscount, but his position had declined in recent years.
In her father's generation, he only had the title of a baron, and his territory was only a few small towns and a town that could barely be considered a small city.
Although the family's influence had declined a lot, the foundation passed down by their ancestors was still there. In terms of wealth, it was enough for them to live comfortably for several generations.
Because of this, her parents spent a lot of money and asked a noble they were on good terms with to get her into Princeton Royal Academy.
If everything went according to plan, Irene would probably return to Johnston after graduation and inherit the family business passed down to her by her parents. She would also inherit her father's title and manage the surrounding towns.
However, this wasn't her dream, nor was it her wish.
After studying in the imperial capital for nearly two years, how could she be willing to return to her family's rural territory? She felt that she would go crazy if she had to stay there for the rest of her life.
Irene's parents were reasonable people. Otherwise, they wouldn't have chosen to send their most beloved daughter to Princeton. They had a son and a daughter who could be trained to be the heir of the family.
This time, Irene asked for Locke's help mainly because of her uncle.
"What do you mean by Viscount Shimak's child falling in love with me at first sight? I haven't even seen that Willon Shimak once!"
"It must be Uncle Bissell's doing again. He's always trying to restore the family's former glory."
"I don't want to get married so early. Locke, you have to help me!"
Irene held onto his hand and pleaded with teary eyes. Whether there were tears in her eyes or not was still up for debate.
"Got it, got it!" Locke answered impatiently. It was easy to imagine Locke's mood at the moment, being used as a shield for no reason.
But after all these years of studying in the academy, only Elaine and Henry could be considered his friends, so it was only right for him to help her out this once.
From Irene's description, he found out that Uncle Bissel was his father's elder brother. He'd also inherited the title of baron, but he'd never forgotten to become a viscount.
Viscount Shimak was one of the few viscounts with real power in the John Thurston Province. A century or two ago, Irene's family might have been on equal footing with Viscount Shimak's family, but now that her family had fallen, they could only look up to him.
There weren't many viscounts in the province of Johnston, but there were many nobles below the rank of baron, so the division of ranks was very obvious.
This time, Irene's family had received a letter from Shimak's family. If Irene could marry the eldest son of Shimak, Shimak would be willing to propose a motion for Irene's family to become a viscount again at the noble council in Johnston.
Not only Irene's uncle, Baron Bissel, but even her parents were tempted by the offer.
Which noble didn't want their family's glory to be carried forward in their generation?
This was also why Irene hadn't finished her studies this semester and rushed back.
The mine investigation mission in Felix's domain did exist, but the mission location wasn't far from Irene's family's territory. It could be considered a border, so it would take less than a day to complete.
"How do you want me to help you?" Locke asked curiously. He couldn't possibly let a mid-rank Knecht like him defeat the nobles who wanted to force her to marry.
Mid-rank Knechts were considered powerful in Faustian, but they were nothing in Aomar. Any viscount could easily find a few mid-rank Knechts as guards.
"Hmph," Irene cleared her throat and said solemnly.
"Locke, be my fiancé!"
"Pfft!" Locke almost threw the teacup in his hand.
The carriage arrived at their destination in the evening three days later.
It was a garden with a strong natural smell. As soon as he got out of the carriage, Locke could clearly feel the environment around him. Whether it was the humidity of the air or the fragrance of the soil, it gave him the illusion that he was back in Maple Village.
It had been a year since he left Faustian. Locke sighed.
Although it was November, there was no snow in Aomar like the winter in Faustian. In this country, it usually only snowed in December or even January of the following year.
The temperature was a little low, but the fields were still green. It was the winter wheat that the farmers had just planted after the autumn harvest.
"Irene, my niece, you're finally back!" A burst of hearty laughter came from not far away from the carriage. A group of people walked over, led by an old man with a head full of silver hair, but his body was still as robust as ever.
Behind the old man was a middle-aged couple dressed in luxurious clothes. Judging from their appearances, the middle-aged woman bore a strong resemblance to Ailian.
Irene didn't respond to her uncle's greeting after she got off the carriage. Instead, she ran towards the middle-aged couple behind the old man. "Father, mother!"
"Oh, it's our dear daughter." The middle-aged couple hadn't seen their daughter for a long time. The atmosphere was particularly warm as soon as they saw each other.
Apart from the middle-aged couple, there was also a teenager and a younger girl surrounding Irene. Locke had heard from Irene that they should be her younger brother and sister.
"May I know who you are?" The silver-haired old man had long noticed Locke getting off the carriage with Irene. Although Aomar's culture was liberal, it was unacceptable for unmarried men and women to stay in the same carriage in a small place like theirs.
"Hello, Uncle Bissell. My name is Locke, I'm Irene's classmate!" Since he was going to be her fiancé, Locke just called the old man 'uncle' and shook his hand.
"Oh, hello!" Although Bissell was still a little puzzled, he still extended his hand when Locke shook his hand.
Not just anyone could enter the Imperial Academy. Since Locke was Irene's classmate, he must have a powerful background as well, the old man thought.