Third person POV
Along the way to Wallisville, Nathan asked the duke what had happened to him that made him and his small entourage sit by the roadside with their belongings. "My elaborate horse carriage was stolen by some bandits," the duke replied back while being melancholic of that happening. That happened less than an hour ago.
"Those guys let me and my entourage keep our stuff," the duke continued with the same melancholy, "but we won't have the carriage back."
One of his two attendants then responded by patting his back gently.
Nathan, who was sitting across the aisle from the duke and his entourage's, became sympathetic for him and his two attendants.
A bit later, at 9:34 a.m., the bus had arrived at Wallisville, a big town in the heart of the Dukedom of Geran. The six passengers, as well as the duke and his two-men entourage, were stunned that they had arrived at their destination in just a fraction of the time. There Russell pulled over at a street and opened the door. "Okay, we're here. That'll be 25 copper coins, 15 silver coins, or 9 gold coins, please." His passengers were stunned to hear such a cheap fare in different payment options.
The two milkmen were also stunned, knowing that story about Russell is true in terms of fares.
So, six of them grabbed their belongings and stood up, before walking to the front.
Only the duke, Kane Taqua, and his entourage remained on their seats because their destination is the Blue Jay Estate.
There the six passengers paid the fares to Russell.
3 paid in copper coins, 2 paid in silver, while the sixth one paid in gold, before getting off the bus.
"Thank you, have a great day!" Russell said to them with a farewell.
The young bus driver then closed the door and counted the money he had received from them.
Knowing that those 6 people had paid accordingly in different ways, Russell unlocked his money box, tossed the money in it, and closed it, locking it with its sole key.
After that, Kane and his entourage moved to the middle. "Youngster," the duke said to Russell, "I'll tell you where my estate is. Just continue your drive." Upon hearing that, Russell said to him, "Okay, sir."
The young man in a bus driver's attire then shifted his gear to Drive and continued on to Kane's destination.
This prompted Cassius behind them to keep on following them.
A bit later, at the outskirts of the northern part of Wallisville, the bus arrived at the front gate of Kane's estate, the Blue Jay Estate. As the name suggest, Kane's estate has blue flower gardens that gives its blue appearance. Those flowers are blue daisies and even a rare species of blue roses. But, the two guards of the front gate, clad in their knight's attire that bears the seal of the dukedom, stopped them, asking Russell about his business and the purpose of entering into that estate. "Good morning, my good sirs," Russell replied back nicely with a smile while readjusting his bus driver's cap. "I am here because this man is the owner of this place."
Then, with confidence, Kane appeared via the window by the front row of seats, looking at his estate guards. "Hi there, I am back."
Upon seeing their noble master, the two guards were agitated and quickly apologized to him for their minor inconvenience with a welcome back as well, before opening the gate for them.
With that Russell went in with his bus, and Cassius followed shortly thereafter.
Luckily, the estate guards recognized Cassius because of his ID as a royal spy, as well as because Cassius had visited the estate a few times before. Later on, Russell parked his bus at a grassy, vacant field, which was used to hold events like weddings, and opened the door. "Okay, sir, we're here." His party and group gazed at the palatial house from their windows, being amazed by its elegance.
Kane and his entourage were happy that they had arrived at their estate home finally after a long diplomatic trip to the Zale Valleys Kingdom.
That was when their horse carriage was stolen while on their way to Wallisville.
So, the duke and his two-men entourage grabbed their belongings and stood up, going to the front. John had just woken up from his nap. Kane grabbed a small coin bag full of gold coins, silver coins, and even a real sapphire gem. "Thank you. Here, take this. It's my way of showing my gratitude for helping me and my men in our crisis." Russell was surprised and overwhelmed by the duke's reward. "Woah, sir, you could've only paid me the regular fare, and or, I'll make it free if you don't mind."
"No, I insist, young man," Kane replied back in insisting. "You may have it as a token of my gratitude."
Eventually, Russell accepted with gratitude.
And before Russell would ask him what was his position in society, Cassius got off his horse and went to the door. "Russell! That man is the current Duke of Geran!" Russell and his party and group then heard that and were shocked to hear it.
"Yes, and apparently, his horse carriage was stolen by some bandits," Nathan revealed to them, "thus, that was the reason why that guy and his two subordinates were found by the roadside with their belongings."
Russell and the others got that, connecting the pieces of the short-lived mystery.
"Yes, I am Kane Taqua, Duke of Geran!" Kane proudly responded.
Kane's last name gave Russell a hint about Elai, who has the same name as Kane's.
He knew Elai's last name from Azalea before, as Azalea knew her as an annoying, SS-ranked hero in their guild.
His mind said, "Huh…Elai-san had the same last name…"
Before Russell hypothesizes Elai's possible relations with Kane, Kane says to him, "Say, you and your group looked a bit tired from your long trip, right? Why not come to my house?" Russell snapped out of his thinking and was shocked at his invitation. His party and group were shocked, too. Cassius smiled to persuade them to accept it.
"Are you sure about that, Mr. Kane?" Nathan asked Kane.
"Yes, and if you want to stay in this town for a night or two," Kane replied positively and confidently responded back, "you may stay in my estate's own guesthouse so all of you don't have to check into an inn."
The middle-aged duke then pointed at the guesthouse, which was 3 stories tall and had the same ornamentations and color scheme as the main house, for a bit.
Upon seeing that, Russell and his party and group eventually accepted his offer.
Russell wanted to explore Wallisville later, too.
Cassius was happy to hear that his group had accepted Kane's offer.
So, Russell turned off the engine of his bus, pulled out the key out of the key slot, and tucked it into his suit pocket. Then, he unbuckled his seatbelt, stood up, and grabbed his knapsack. Luckily, his money box key was attached to his ignition key in a metal ring, and his book and map were inside his knapsack. Then, as Russell wore his knapsack, his party and group stood up and grabbed their belongings. John came out and stretched a bit like a dog before Azalea came and carried him in her arms while her magical staff was on her back.
John felt being carried by anyone like humans.
Then, all of them got off, and Kane led them to his palatial home while his entourage carried their and his belongings. Cassius went with them as well, leaving his horse behind. And then, as Russell, Kane, and the others are entering the palatial home, a young boy in finely made clothes runs to Kane and gives him a deep hug. "Father!"
That boy was Caspian Taqua, the third child of Kane.