First entering the abandoned mine, there wasn't too much that could be said for it except for the one or two sightings of abandoned mining tools such as pickaxes, and the rusted mining cart tracks that still remained along with some of the equally rusted carts themselves. There were also some stalactites and stalagmites, though so far they didn't really compares to the ones seen in the cave back in Phong Gi.

"So this is the mine where 'Ol' Red' lives," said Emmy as he looked around, taking in everything the mine had to show. "We'd best be on our guard."

"Agreed." Desmond nodded as his hold on Johanna's hand tightened slightly. "Luke, it's very possible that he will have a bad temperament. He may not listen to you. To be on the safe side, we should have a backup plan."

"Oh, no need for that," Luke assured, smiling confidently up to the professor. "I'm sure I can sort this out!"

Seeing Luke's confidence didn't do much to raise much hope, though it didn't heighten anxiety or nerves about confronting Old Red either. Going further into the mine, a faint sound of running water could be heard. Steadily rising in volume until they arrived in a chamber of the cave. There was light from the cracked ceiling coming in which shun off the pools of water inside and made the little grass there was inside a little livelier then it was.

Near the edge of the water was Old Red. He laid on his belly, and looked to be taken quick, short breaths. With the water here, the theory of the sheriff's that Old Red's watering hole may have simply dried up was automatically crossed out. Though it neither answered why Old Red kept coming to Torrido.

Seeing the group, Old Red stood on his paws and snarled towards them though it sounded a little strained. Having little faith that they could be considered friends. Trying to keep his slight fear from showing, Luke stepped a little further in front of the group in order to communicate with the red wolf. Before speaking, he took a deep breath and kept a straight face as he spoke clearly.

"Old Red, please listen! We don't mean you any harm! We just want to know what's wrong so we can help." Old Red responded in growls, though Luke just looked on as though he were simply conversing with a human, though a look of light surprise took his face.

"Oh, you are?" More growls. "So that's why!"

"What did he say?" asked Aurora, looking between the wolf and Luke.

"The reason he keeps visiting Torrido is because he wants to find the girl who once saved his life." At the revelation, the wolf's ears began to droop a little and he actually began to look depressed. "He doesn't think he has very long left, and he wants to thank the girl before it's too late."

"So… he's ill?"

"I'm not sure. He just says that he's in terrible pain. He can't find the girl himself because every time he goes into town, the people just run away in fear." Hearing this sad misunderstanding gave Elaine a melancholy feeling for Elaine. Anyone who was aware that they were dying would want to see a loved one or friend one last time before moving on. Saying goodbye would be hard. But it must be harder when there's no one to actually help you find that person.

"Maybe we could find her. She could still be living here," Johanna suggested, a small frown on her face as she looked to Old Red.

"He might even give us his pendant," Luke added in, only for Old Red to growl loudly, ferocity replacing his depressed state.

"I don't think he's keen on that idea," Johanna commented.

"No, he isn't," Luke admitted sheepishly. "It's really precious to him. It was a gift from the girl, and now he wants to give it back."

"But she can't need the aura stone as much as we do," Aurora said, slightly despondent from the Azran egg's history here. "What should we do?"

"We should still help him," Johanna said, voice softly firm though she didn't look at anyone directly. "It's only fair for him and the girl."

"He says the girl is quite short, and the last time he saw her, she was wearing a red scarf and had plaited black hair," Luke translated when the wolf gave another growl. "Come on, let's go find her!"

There was no room for argument (though no one had anything to go against helping the ill wolf), so the group left the mine to allow Old Red to rest on the small amount of living grass and once outside began to make their way back to Torrido. However, nearing the jail they spotted the sheriff outside and talking with a short, old lady in a plum shawl and walking stick with a type of fabric on top. Though it sounded more like the pair were arguing.

"Sheriff Flint, if I didn't know better, I'd say you was scared of the ol' boy!"

"Ma'am, if you don't mind me sayin', the only one who's happy 'bout Ol' Red comin' to pay us all a visit is you!"

As the argument went on, it was quite clear the lady seemed to really like the idea of Old Red coming into town, even saying it added a bit of excitement to the daily life. She definitely seemed full of life, even at her age. When the argument neared its end, the lady walked away. Faintly grumbling something they couldn't quite make out. Maybe it wasn't exactly their place, but if the argument involved Old Red, they had to ask just in case they found anything useful.

"Oh, that old gal? Well, we all got pieces of crazy in us, but she's jus' got bigger pieces than most," Sheriff Flint explained when they enquired him about the argument. "I'm worried one o' these days, she's gonna get herself into a whole lotta trouble. Heck, it's like this every time Ol' Red pays us a visit. Some say she's the one callin' the beast over."

"But Old Red's just a gentle giant," Luke said with a slight upset frown. "I hope that bossy old woman isn't bullying him…"

"Gentle giant?" questioned the sheriff, not hiding his disbelief. "Have you got eyes in the front of your head, boy?"

"Ah, Luke here is, let us say, a great lover of animals," Professor Layton explained, with a little haste. "He believes that, deep down, they all have a gentle side."

"That's sweet, but don't go sidin' with the ol' lady jus' cause it sounds nice. I reckon she's off her nut."

It shouldn't have been too surprising in all honesty that Sheriff Flint quickly dismissed Luke's words. With Old Red coming to Torrido quite frequently and unintentionally causing some havoc in town, no one would just readily accept the explanation at the drop of a hat. It would take some time for that to happen, regardless of what happened from here on now. But they had to find that little girl with the braided hair. It could have been one of the more… easier tasks they've had since beginning this journey. While the description wasn't absolutely perfect, it did give enough ways to identify the girl. Though the chances of her wearing a red scarf were slim. But in all they still had a chance of finding her.

But when they did ask about a girl with the description they were given, they were able to be given a name, Scarlett, and even a likely location for her to be in which was the saloon where she was supposed to be doing some cleaning up at. So that was immediately their next location. Returning to the familiar place, which had calmed down since the celebrations held not too long ago, they instantly spotted a little girl with braided black hair and a red scarf hanging around her neck. No doubt this was Scarlett, or at the very least the girl Old Red was looking for.

Talking to the young girl, she was very much surprised by what Old Red had requested.

"H-hold on a minute. You're sayin' you 'spoke' with Ol' Red?" Scarlett asked, looking at Luke before she broke into a smile. "Oh, I knew it! Ain't no one believed me an' Gramma, but we knew Ol' Red was a kind soul!"

The girl had thankfully been very happy to come with them to visit Old Red back in the mine. True, Elaine wasn't quite sure why the girl's mention of her grandmother had stuck out a little. Perhaps this grandmother was the same old lady they saw arguing with Sheriff Flint at the dried creek? Their eyes looked similar at the very least, and the old lady did seem like Old Red. But for now, they would just focus on getting to the mine.

Though bad timing or luck, perhaps a strong combination of both, showed up when they did arrive just outside the chamber that Old Red had been lying in up to now. Currently, he stood on all legs as he stared down at Bishop and Rook. Maybe it was only a matter of time until they appeared here. But that still didn't change that they weren't truly welcome.

"Who are those two clowns?" Scarlett asked before Elaine pulled her back.

"Just… Stay calm," Elaine muttered as she watched. She had already noticed the gun Bishop was holding, and didn't believe it wise to take any possible risks.

"Got you, you big, stupid dog," Rook muttered, just as Bishop held up his gun.

"Hand over the egg, or you'll be sorry!"

"Professor, what are they doing?!" Luke asked in a panic.

"This doesn't look good…"

"Listen, you've had your warning," Bishop said. "Now let's see how tough you are. Take this!"

Click… Click, click…

Elaine's heart had raced momentarily until she realised the grave, serious error on Bishop's part. Elaine actually allowed herself to smile slightly at their misfortune, though she didn't allow herself to relax.

"… Bishop, don't tell me…" Rook trailed off, looking as though he ate something awful as he kept his eyes on the wolf who was glaring down at them both.

"It… It's not loaded! What do we do? What do we do, Rook?!" Bishop asked again, looking up to the taller man as though he was the only hope left. And that might have been the case for Bishop.

But Rook was silent, as was Bishop. Both unable to say anything to break the tense, uncomfortable silence. Old Red was more than happy too, and gave what had to have the loudest roar today. No sooner did the roar end did Bishop turn around to flee, quickly followed by Rook. They were so focused on fleeing that they ran right past the group as though they did not exist.

"Phew," Luke sighed in relief. "It's a good job they aren't the most dynamic duo." Luke smiled up to Old Red as he and Scarlett approached the wolf. "Look, Old Red! We've got the girl!"

"Aww, don't worry your pretty little…" Scarlett paused and then corrected herself. "Pretty big head anymore, Ol' Red. I'm here now. So, please, stop scaring the townsfolk. D'you think you can do that? For me?" For a moment, the wolf looked excited as he looked at Scarlett. And probably would have smiled if he could. However, it didn't take long for his ears to droop, and for him to say something to Luke that shocked him.

"What?!"

"What's wrong?" Scarlett asked.

"He says you're not the one he's looking for!" Elaine's jaw dropped a little. How could they have gotten the wrong girl? How could this girl just coincidently match Old Red's description?

"What?" Scarlett seemed just as confused as the rest of them. "But how? An' I was so sure he'd taken a cotton to me…"

It wasn't good news. And it certainly didn't help that the wolf looked worse than he did when they first saw him. Wherever the real girl was, they were going to have to find her. Quickly. Apparently the real problem was that while Scarlett may have matched the description more or less perfectly, she didn't smell the same. It was a little frustrating, but they would figure something out. Hopefully.

Though, with the possibility of the girl not actually being a local from the town, it didn't really give much space for optimism to grow. Though Scarlett had been kind enough to invite them to her home to ask her grandmother since she would likely know since she knows everyone who's passed through Torrido.

Inside the house though, there was no sign of her, much to Scarlett's concern. But they waited inside anyway since there was still a likelihood of her coming back here. Elaine noticed an old black and white photo of a happy couple and little girl in a photo frame. Must have been Scarlett and her parents.

"Are these your parents?" Elaine asked as she gestured to the photo.

"It looks really old," Luke commented. Scarlett, surprisingly, shuck her head.

"As it happens, no. That's Gramma with her parents back when she was my age."

"Is that so?" enquired Professor Layton as he looked at the photo himself. Elaine looked back at the photo. The resemblance between the younger grandmother and current Scarlett was as strong as Elaine's to her cousin, Madeline. Pieces seemed to fit together as she realised that they had been on the right track. They just didn't consider that the girl Old Red was looking for had likely aged since he last saw her. They just had to wait for Scarlett's grandmother for confirmation.

"What in the blazes are you strangers doin' in my home?!" At the front door stood the old woman from before who was arguing with Sheriff Flint. Thinking back on what she was saying to the Sheriff, it was slightly obvious, albeit not too strongly.

"Oh, Gramma," Scarlett exclaimed happily. "I was worried sick about you! Where in tarnation have you been?" Scarlett's grandmother however was already quick to assume the situation.

"Scarlett! Have these rascals been harassin' you? You hush now. They're going to vamoose, quick-sharp," she snapped, glaring at the group.

After managing to convince the lady that none of them were hunters and avoiding her walking stick (though Elaine's slightly sore nose begged to differ), Professor was able to point out that it was actually Scarlett's grandmother, Ruby, whom Old Red was looking for. The same person who saved his life years ago. With everything cleared up, the old lady was more than happy, even eager, to see Old Red right away.

"Here she is, Old Red!" Luke said to the wolf when they returned to the mine. "This is the person you were looking for, isn't it?" Old Red kept a suspicious look as Ruby approached him.

"Ol' Red? Is that really you? That helpless li'l pup I rescued way back when?" He seemed slightly aggressive at first, but stopped. He must have caught her scent since he became fairly benign then. Ruby smiled up at him.

"You finally twigged, then? It's me, Ol' Red. It's Ruby." Old Red stuck his tongue out and sat, acting more like a dog now if anything.

"Well, someone likes a good pamperin'! Look at you, all puppy-dog-eyed an' mellow as honey." Old Red gave a small howl and Ruby frowned.

"You ain't changed a bit, ol' boy. You knew you was hurtin', an' you tried to see this decrepit old lady one last time. You're a real tear-jerker, you know that?"

Elaine had to agree with the old lady as she watched from the side-lines with the others. It was a touching moment, but a sad one.

"He promised to return that pendant to you one day. That's why he was so desperate to find you," Luke explained sadly.

"That so? That so…" Ruby looked back up to Old Red with a sad but fond look. "When I gave you that pendant, I thought of it as a sign that there'd always be a special bond between us. Always.

"Doesn't feel right to be… takin' it back. But… if it's what you really want." Old Red made some soft noise of agreement and lowered his neck to allow Ruby to carefully remove the necklace from his neck.

"There we go."

It was strange though. Old Red, as soon as the pendant was removed, seemed a little livelier then before. Up to now, Elaine had almost been unaware of the slight forced breathing sound coming from him, but now he sounded clear enough for Elaine to realise that something just changed with Old Red just then.

"What's the matter, 'ol boy?"

"He says the pain went away!" Luke explained. He sounded a little amazed by it, and for good reasons. Ruby looked down at the pendant and a look of realization came to her.

"Oh my! So this pendant's the thing that's been causin' you all that bother? Is that what you're sayin'?" Ruby gave a relieved chuckle. "Golly, you were jus' such a tiny pup when I met you. I didn't think about it getting' tight around your neck as you got bigger!"

It was wonderful to see that Old Red was fine, and wasn't going to die any time soon by the looks of it. But it was still good that he sought Ruby out, otherwise, an innocent act of a child may have unintentionally brought about his end, unless someone else happened to come by and thought of the solution. Though with how Old Red could appear at first to most, chances of such possibility were slim.

But it was a case of all's well that ends well, as Emmy had pointed out.

Ruby had also been very willing to hand the Azran egg to them. That made three now. Just two more.

Two more.

They were close to finding the Azran Legacy. So very close. But Elaine still had yet to know what Desmond intended to do from there. She couldn't just ignore it. It had to be confronted, and soon.