Chapter 115

The journey of the train rescue team was going smoothly.

In the compartment where Josephine had taken down the ambushing bandit, the team was able to rescue several passengers.

So far, they had passed through three cars, killing three bandits and rescuing six passengers.

However, six was a pitiful number compared to the total number of passengers aboard the train.

Most of the passengers were likely still in the hands of the bandits.

“Have you by any chance seen my fiancé? He has black hair and wears glasses. He’s about this tall.”

“He was probably taken away. They dragged off the younger folks first. Only us old folks were left behind until the very end.”

“Oh no…”

The woman couldn’t hide her grief.

Josephine spoke up.

“Did you happen to see a bandit with a wound on his chest?”

“I’m sorry, but I don’t know. They ordered us to keep our heads down, so I couldn’t see anything. But I did hear what sounded like their leader urging the others to hurry. His voice sounded urgent.”

The passenger said the bandits all rushed out of the compartment at their leader’s command.

Estelle offered an optimistic thought.

“Maybe they ran away because they were scared of Josephine’s skill?”

“I hope that’s the case, but…”

If Estelle’s guess was correct, then the two bandits who had been lying in ambush near the entrance were merely sacrificial pawns meant to buy time.

But could a group of bandits, supposedly driven by money, really display that level of self-sacrifice?

From the unusually skilled leader to the strange distribution of their forces—

Something about it all stirred a sense of foreboding in Josephine.

Josephine made a swift decision.

“Let’s keep moving. All the way to the engine room.”

“Wait, lady knight. Can’t you just stay here with us?”

An elderly woman grabbed Josephine’s sleeve.

“If you leave, who’s going to protect us? We’re just helpless old folks.”

“I understand your concern, lady. But unless we secure the engine room, none of us will truly be safe.”

The woman still looked dissatisfied, but there was no more time to waste.

Just as Josephine was about to continue forward—

Clip-clop, clip-clop.

The sound of hooves rang out beyond the window, making Josephine turn her head.

Silhouettes flickered past the window.

They were bandits fleeing on horseback.

Among them was a man swaying atop his horse, clutching his chest.

It was the one who had sustained a serious wound from Josephine.

The people inside the compartment watched the bandits’ retreat with dazed expressions.

“Are they…?”

“Looks like they’re pulling back.”

“Could it be that the railroad strike team has already arrived?”

“That’s not possible, time-wise.”

“Then maybe they took everything they wanted and left…”

Josephine shook her head.

“Looking at them, they weren’t carrying much. They didn’t even take any hostages. For whatever reason, they seem to be fleeing empty-handed.”

“Strange bandits… But if they didn’t take any hostages, where are the remaining passengers? Don’t tell me…”

Estelle’s face turned pale, clearly imagining something terrible.

“We should search the entire train, just to be sure.”

Having seen the bandits retreat with their own eyes, Josephine and the rescue team quickly advanced to the rear engine room.

It was when they reached the car just before the engine room….the last cargo car.

Creeeak!

As soon as they opened the metal door, the sight before them made the rescue team gasp.

The passengers who had been captured by the bandits were all gathered there.

“We’ve come to rescue you.”

At first, their faces were filled with terror, thinking the bandits had returned—

But that fear quickly gave way to hope.

“Oh, thank the heavens!”

“We’re saved! We’re alive!”

“Please, untie these ropes!”

One by one, those who had been kneeling with their hands and feet bound were freed.

Among them were some of the train’s crew members.

“Thank you for saving us. We thought we were surely going to die!”

“Is anyone injured?”

“All the passengers are safe. But… two of us tried to resist the bandits and…”

Following his gaze, Josephine turned her head and saw two bodies in the corner of the cargo car, covered with cloth.

She bowed her head in silent mourning to pay her respects.

A crew member asked,

“What happened to the bandits?”

“It’s not certain yet, but it appears they’ve withdrawn.”

“Has the strike team arrived? If not, were there perhaps Rangers patrolling nearby? Honestly, we thought that was the more likely scenario.”

“That’s not the case. We fought the bandits ourselves.”

“Now that I look, you’re carrying a sword… I heard that a royal and their escort were aboard the train in the special-class car. Then you must be…”

Josephine nodded.

“Her Royal Highness the Princess ordered that the people be saved. I merely carried out that command. Some noble passengers aboard the train also lent their strength.”

“We can’t take credit for what we didn’t do. All of the bandits were handled by Lady Josephine alone.”

“Is that even possible?”

Everyone who had witnessed Josephine’s battle nodded, and the faces around them filled with astonishment.

Josephine then asked the crew,

“Is it possible to get the train moving again?”

“The engineers are dead. It was the first thing the bandits did when they boarded the train. But we’ve also received emergency response training, so we should be able to give it a try.”

“Please do.”

Nodding, the crew member led the team toward the engine room.

Meanwhile, the freed passengers were embracing one another and cheering, overwhelmed with the joy of survival.

Then someone began to shout, and the words spread like a wave until the entire cargo car was chanting in unison:

“Long live Princess Estelle! Long live Her Royal Highness!”

“Wait, hold on. Princess? That’s a bit…”

Estelle tried to stop them, looking flustered, but the people paid it no mind, chanting the names of either Estelle or Josephine with enthusiasm.

The joyful uproar reached its peak when two reunited lovers among the rescued passengers found each other again.

“Leon!”

“Miriam!”

Calling each other’s names, the two ran into each other’s arms, shedding tears of joy as they embraced.

“Thank you… for being alive.”

“I’m sorry… for making you worry.”

Then the lovers kissed, as if there were no one else in the world but the two of them.

Those watching burst into laughter and cheers.

Josephine was among those smiling at the display of affection. Estelle, noticing Josephine’s wistful expression and tightly pressed lips, let out a small chuckle and nudged her in the side.

“Want me to guess what you’re thinking right now?”

“…Please let it go, just this once.”

“You were thinking of Baron Winslet, weren’t you?”

Instead of answering, Josephine’s ears turned red.

Estelle giggled.

“I’m really glad. To see that side of you.”

“Yes. I’m glad I listened to you, my lady.”

The people they had protected and the bright expressions on their faces were warming both of their hearts.

Then, the crew members who had gone to the engine room returned.

One of them, wearing a grim expression, quietly approached Josephine and Estelle and whispered,

“We have a problem.”

“…Go on.”

“The train won’t move. We tried everything we know, but there’s no response. If I had to guess, I’d say we’re out of fuel.”

“You’re saying we’ve run out of fuel?”

“No. That shouldn’t be the case. Magic fuel is replenished at every station.”

“Then…”

“Someone must have taken it. Probably those bandits.”

A heavy silence fell.

Estelle glanced at the passengers, still drunk with joy, and let out a sigh.

“Then what do we do now?”

“There’s nothing for it but to wait for a rescue team.”

“The place where the train stopped is the midpoint between Casiville and Abellar. It’s the longest stretch on the entire route.”

Estelle looked out at the light streaming in from beyond the train with a worried gaze.

Long, stretching shadows.

Before they knew it, the sun was setting.

“We might end up spending the night here.”

***

Night arrived with a rose.

Meaning, Rose Bly came to my house.

Responding to my call for help late at night, Rose Bly showed up wearing a deliberately annoyed expression.

“Babe, seriously, don’t you think this is a bit much?”

“What is?”

“Calling me out like this again after just three days. Are you trying to kill me?”

“There was no one else I could ask.”

“You know I get soft when you say things like that. So, what did you get yourself into this time?”

“There was a fight.”

“A fight? You? With who?”

“There’s a crazy lizard at the Academy.”

I had gone to Monastrell to press her for the truth, and for the first time since possessing Winter Winslet’s body, I fought with everything I had.

The result was a draw.

I managed to deal significant damage to Monastrell, but I also ended up with a fractured leg and severe mana exhaustion.

Monastrell casually walked away, leaving me immobilized.

Since I didn’t get what I came for, it was practically a loss by decision.

After all, for a mage-class like me, a dragon is a natural counter—beating one is nearly impossible.

In the end, all that the battle with Monastrell left me with was a renewed chill settling in my heart and its aftereffects, and… a bizarre rumor that tarnished my reputation.

“Is that rumor true? That you were rolling around with a naked woman in the middle of the Academy…?”

“It’s nonsense.”

“Hard to say that when there were so many witnesses. Their stories were pretty consistent, too.”

“……”

One day, I’ll find Monastrell and pay her back for this humiliation.

Anyway, with my heart under strain from excessive mana use, I had no choice but to rely on Rose Bly and she readily agreed to help.

Thud.

As Rose Bly took off her coat, something fell from it, so I picked it up for her.

“A newspaper?”

“Oh, that. I brought it for you.”

“If it’s the Lambart Daily, I already subscribe.”

The Lambart Daily had been a useful source of information even in the original Candela of Judgment, and checking the paper Dalia brought each morning over breakfast had become part of my daily routine.

Rose Bly wagged her index finger from side to side.

“That’s not a regular edition. It’s a news article that hasn’t been released yet. It’ll be published tomorrow morning, but I thought you should see it ahead of time.”

“What’s it about?”

“Something might’ve happened to your fiancé.”