[CHAPTER 57]
Hoji and Mayna arrived at the entrance of Drain Station in an abandoned car and quickly made their way through the crowd.
The station was already packed with people to the point of bursting.
“You drive well and shoot well too. Maybe I should quit being a secretary and become a paladin?”
Adonis joked with his characteristic bright smile.
Mayna suddenly looked at his hands tightly wrapped around her shoulders.
They were white at the fingertips from tension, protecting her from the frenzied crowd that had lost all reason.
“Indeed. It’s really lucky that Sir Hiaron can drive. All the horses ran away, so we couldn’t take a carriage.”
“Well, then I would have become a horse myself, taken the reins, and pulled the carriage to safely bring you, Secretary.”
“But I can’t really agree with you about your shooting skills.”
“Eh? Are you upset?”
“You know I can’t lie.”
“It was your first real combat, and this is excellent for a start.”
“You fired five shots and hit once.”
Recalling Adonis spraying bullets at the centipede monster charging at the car, Mayna let out a soft laugh.
Seeing her laugh, Adonis also relaxed slightly and smiled.
“By the way, our secretary really is a fashionista.”
“…Don’t tease me.”
Mayna lowered her gaze with an embarrassed expression.
Wearing Caliph’s shirt over her dress, now a tattered mess, she walked through the station looking like a huge shirt swallowed her.
Adonis said with a hint of laughter in his voice.
“But you lost your glasses. Can you see ahead clearly?”
“Yes. I can see most things.”
After a brief hesitation, Mayna added.
“I wasn’t wearing glasses because my eyesight was bad anyway.”
Since when had that been?
She had only started wearing unnecessary glasses when she lost both parents and wandered the streets.
Born beautiful and growing even more so, Mayna had never thought much about her appearance.
Beauty was just as natural as air.
But after her family was torn apart overnight and she lost all protection, everything changed.
For predators salivating to capture the famously beautiful lady, beauty was…
‘like a sugar doll on top of a cake.’
Yes. Mayna vividly remembered the disgusting gaze of men looking at her as if she were food while she ran errands in the square.
If she could cast a face-changing spell, she would have done it countless times.
‘No. If I had such a spell, I would have changed my gender.’
Before the violence of those men closer to beasts than humans, her glasses were the minimum shield to protect herself.
Her bare face, her tightly tied hair,
Even the monochrome dress Caliph always mocked as looking like “a pigeon in Gillingham Square.”
It was a remaining trace for Mayna, who had realized early that she could not survive by appearing as a “beautiful woman.”
“Eh? So you didn’t wear glasses because your eyesight was bad?”
Mayna replied with a smile.
She endured the throbbing pain and walked for a long while.
Passing the unmanned ticket office and climbing the stairs with the huge crowd, they reached the platform.
The scene was pure chaos.
“What is happening here?”
“Wasn’t our city supposed to be safe?”
“Where would be safe with monsters appearing everywhere?”
“Ah, what should we do!”
Panicked people, wounded and bleeding.
Everyone was terrified.
“Where should we go to be safe?”
“We need to get out of Drain first, I think.”
No one seemed to know a destination; the priority was to leave this place.
Mayna looked around the platform with a worried expression.
The crowd stood in a tangled mess, raising their voices to speak, ask, or cry without any order.
Adonis nodded in agreement as Mayna spoke.
“We’ll be crushed before the train even arrives.”
The density of the crowd made it difficult even to stand.
“If the train comes…”
Mayna closed her eyes tightly, thinking how horrible it would be.
She could already see the enraged people running to get on first.
If that happened, feet would get tangled and chaos would ensue.
“We need to get them to line up.”
Adonis nodded again.
“Can you stay alone for a moment?”
“Of course.”
Mayna answered firmly.
Adonis patted her back with the hand that had been protecting her shoulders.
He weaved through the crowd and climbed a small platform meant for temporarily placing passengers’ luggage.
“Everyone, please look at me!”
He captured the crowd’s attention and calmly explained the need to maintain order.
“Do you understand? Please line up and wait.”
The terrified crowd showed some relief at the appearance of someone to lead them.
“Excuse me, we’ll be passing through.”
Mayna also made her way to stand beside Adonis.
Under their guidance, the previously chaotic crowd began to cooperate and line up.
Roughly 300 to 400 people formed two lines in the middle of the platform.
“When will the train arrive?!”
A man in the middle stomped impatiently.
“It usually arrives on the hour, but if the engineer understands the situation, it will come as soon as possible.”
Mayna answered calmly.
“Kyaaa!”
“I-it’s going to collapse, isn’t it?!”
Dust and debris began to swirl ominously from somewhere.
Mayna and Adonis exchanged anxious glances.
Then a welcome sound came.
“The train!”
The whistle of the steam locomotive sounded from afar.
The metallic clanging of wheels on the rails grew louder.
The hissing of the steam valve signaled that the train would soon reach the platform, and the floor trembled slightly.
The anxious passengers’ faces relaxed.
Mayna, standing in the back, counted the number of people again.
About 350.
‘Enough.’
Since it was not a train crossing the empire, this number of passengers could safely board, even if slightly over capacity.
“Are you okay?”
“…?”
“Miss?”
Mayna realized the elderly woman in front was calling her and replied, slightly surprised.
“Yes, ma’am?”
“Are you okay?”
The old woman’s expression grew more serious.
“You’re sweating a lot, miss.”
“Ah…!”
Mayna gasped, touching her cheek as it was soaked with sweat.
The cautious old woman touched Mayna’s forehead.
“Oh my. Like a fireball.”
The elderly man, apparently her husband, turned to look as well.
“I’m fine. Thank you for your concern.”
Still, the couple’s worried expressions remained.
“Does your stomach hurt?”
Mayna unconsciously clutched her lower abdomen and bit her lips.
‘That pain.’
It had started suddenly a few months ago, sometimes even causing her to lose consciousness at night.
Then a sound rang out.
The alert bell signaling the train’s arrival at the platform.
“The train! The train is coming!”
People cheered.
The train entered the tracks, its lights bright.
“Calm down, everyone.”
Adonis quickly calmed the restless crowd, anxiously scanning the platform.
Chik, chik—
Clack. Kururu…!
Finally, the train stopped with a pungent smell of smoke.
“Please board slowly and in order!”
Adonis guided the people from the front lines.
Mayna endured the growing stomach pain and helped Adonis.
With over 300 passengers safely on board, about thirty remained.
“Uh…?”
From the fifth carriage ahead, a familiar face peeked out of the open door.
Oily skin, dusky appearance.
Bright red hair and eyes filled with greed.
A face that could never be forgotten.
“Lord Ouke.”
