<CHAPTER 8>
“What’s in that luggage?”
Emilia’s heart dropped.
“Aren’t you supposed to be checking for passengers who boarded without a ticket?”
She quickly put on an irritated expression.
But the man didn’t seem bothered in the slightest.
“We received a report that someone carrying a large quantity of weapons had boarded the train.”
It was an outright lie, delivered without even the slightest hesitation.
When they’re the ones carrying the weapons themselves.
“Would you mind opening it for us?”
His request sounded more like a command.
What should I do?
If she outright refused, it would only make them more suspicious.
Was there some way to stop them from opening it without making it seem like she was hiding something?
Ah.
As she desperately racked her brain, a brilliant idea suddenly occurred to her.
“I’m sorry, but I’m afraid that’s going to be difficult.”
Emilia let out a deep sigh, as though the whole situation were nothing but an enormous inconvenience.
“I’m a maid in the service of House Eilake. There are some very precious things in this bag that my young lady asked me to deliver.”
She had decided to use Reina’s family name as leverage.
“House Eilake?”
The man’s eyebrow twitched upward.
Emilia immediately noticed his hesitation.
Of course.
Even though House Eilake’s influence had declined considerably, it was still a prestigious family in the capital.
And more importantly, they had no connection to the Empress.
If something went wrong after he was caught behaving suspiciously toward a maid employed by such a family, it could become a serious problem.
“If you’re really going to force me to open it, then I suppose I have no choice…”
Emilia let her voice trail off, looking thoroughly troubled.
“But I’ll have no choice but to tell my young lady about this. And she absolutely hates other people even looking at her belongings, let alone touching them.”
That was actually true.
Reina’s half-sister, Rosia, was extremely possessive of her belongings.
Reina, unaware of this, had once touched one of Rosia’s necklaces and nearly caused a disaster.
Emilia shook her head as though already giving herself a headache.
“She might even try to track you down afterward. I thought you should know that.”
“……”
The man seemed to hesitate.
He was carrying out a secret mission, after all.
If he left behind unnecessary traces or allowed someone to discover his identity, he would be the one in trouble.
But his silence dragged on.
I think I’ve almost got him.
Is there anything else I can do to make absolutely sure?
Just as she was thinking, Emilia caught sight of her own reflection in the window.
That’s it.
She tucked her hair behind her ear.
Then she deliberately showed her face to the man.
“This happened because my young lady struck me, too.”
Her swollen, bright-red cheek was now fully exposed.
When the man’s gaze fell upon it, Emilia lowered her eyes as though deeply humiliated.
“I was only trying to be considerate toward you, but… do whatever you want.”
Of course, if the man actually decided to search the bag, she was prepared to pull his hair out strand by strand.
She nervously swallowed.
Then the man finally spoke.
“…Forget it.”
He clicked his tongue as though annoyed.
Perhaps he had decided that rather than waste time arguing over something so trivial, it would be better to search another carriage.
The man turned and walked away toward the next car.
Clatter. Click.
“Phew…”
Only after the sound of his footsteps had completely faded did Emilia finally release the breath she’d been holding.
“[Is he gone?]”
At that moment, Ivan asked in a tiny voice.
Emilia quickly opened the bag to let some air inside.
“[Are you okay?]”
She was asking whether he had been able to breathe properly, and Ivan gave a small nod.
“[Did the bad man leave?]”
Ivan whispered softly.
“[Yes. He’s gone.] But…”
Judging by Ivan’s reaction, the male lead’s injuries seemed to be quite serious.
But taking Ivan outside with her would be far too dangerous.
After thinking for a moment, Emilia continued.
“[Will you] stay [here for a little while?] [I’ll go help the sick man.]”
Thankfully, Ivan seemed to understand her and nodded in agreement.
Rather than closing the bag completely, Emilia left it slightly open and covered it with her outer coat.
This should be okay, right?
She then checked the pouch she was carrying.
Inside were several small bottles of medicine.
Her friend Alex, Mrs. Anderson’s son, worked in the Imperial Palace’s pharmacy.
Thanks to him, the medicines were extremely precious—far beyond what an ordinary person could easily obtain.
I wondered if I’d ever have a reason to use these.
She never imagined she’d need them this soon.
Emilia glanced at the bag once more before stepping out of the carriage.
The man had already searched this area once, so he probably wouldn’t come back again.
Using the things Ivan had told her as clues, she headed toward the rear of the train.
Soon, she reached an employee-only section where passengers weren’t supposed to enter.
But she continued forward without hesitation.
Is this the freight car?
Then she spotted drops of blood scattered across the floor.
What’s that…?
Emilia froze for a moment before quickly following the trail.
She opened the door and stepped inside.
It’s Kaiden.
The male protagonist of this novel.
He was leaning against the wall with his head bowed, so all she could see was his smooth black hair spilling over his forehead and the sharp line of his jaw.
Yet even that was enough to make his extraordinary presence unmistakable.
Emilia tore her gaze away from him and stepped back outside.
What is this, Hansel and Gretel?!
She rubbed her shoe over the floor, erasing the drops of blood Kaiden had practically left there for anyone to follow.
…Well.
He seemed to have passed out, so he probably hadn’t had the luxury of worrying about something like that.
But how on earth did he avoid getting caught in the original story?
Wait.
Could it be…?
Suddenly, she remembered Ivan leaving the train and trying to ask the people outside for help.
Could the whole situation have ended because they caught Ivan before discovering Kaiden?
Emilia stepped back inside and knelt in front of Kaiden.
A dagger drenched in blood lay beside him.
Did he pull this out himself?
Emilia clicked her tongue at his sheer toughness and poured some of the wound medicine over the injury.
But I don’t have anything to use as a bandage…
She thought for a moment.
Then she glanced at Kaiden before lifting her skirt.
She grabbed the hem of her underskirt and pulled with all her strength.
But instead of tearing, the fabric simply refused to budge.
It worked perfectly fine in the movies!
Giving up, Emilia looked around.
Luckily, she spotted a piece of wood that had fallen from one of the crates being transported.
Using it, she finally ripped the fabric apart.
Riiip—
She placed the torn strip over the wound and slowly began wrapping it around him.
Then—
Tap.
A strange warmth closed around Emilia’s wrist.
—
The first thing Kaiden heard upon regaining consciousness was the faint sound of fabric brushing against fabric.
The next thing he felt was something tickling the back of his neck…
A breath?
Acting on instinct, he reached out and seized the wrist of the person touching his body.
Why is it so slender?
That thought flashed through his mind.
Then the owner of the wrist spoke.
“Oh, are you awake?”
The woman’s clear voice, soft as a whisper, felt strangely out of place in the midst of the situation.
