<CHAPTER 7>
“And he’s speaking Hiphrian too… Could this child possibly be…?”
The moment Emilia thought about the events of the original story, one incident immediately came to mind.
The incident that happened before the original story began—the one in which the male lead suffered a severe injury.
“Could it be…?”
Baaang—!
At that very moment, the train let out a deafening blast, as if it were about to depart.
The child looked around in panic, then hurriedly ran back toward the train.
“Wait!”
Startled, Emilia tried to grab him, but the child had already reached the train.
She quickly picked up the bag she had set down beside her and followed him.
Thud!
The moment the two of them barely managed to board, the doors slammed shut.
The child hurriedly tried to head somewhere, so Emilia grabbed him by the shoulder.
“[Name, name.]”
“[Ivan! My name is Ivan!]”
The child answered without hesitation.
Emilia let out a small sigh.
As expected. It was the name she remembered.
The Emperor’s hidden illegitimate son.
And the child who would soon be killed by the Empress.
Since this happened before the original story began, Emilia didn’t know the exact circumstances. But one thing was certain—the person who had been bringing the child to the capital was the male lead.
Just then, a passenger passed them in the aisle, giving them a brief glance.
Ivan flinched and quickly hid behind Emilia.
Sensing something strange, Emilia grabbed one side of her skirt and used it to shield Ivan from view.
Once the passenger had completely passed them, she immediately turned around.
“[Bad person, here?]”
She whispered the question softly, and Ivan nodded as tears streamed down his cheeks.
At once, tension settled over Emilia’s face.
So that’s why he deliberately got off the train to ask for help.
Because he thought the people inside the train were dangerous.
What should I do?
Emilia turned toward the door.
But the metal doors were already firmly shut.
A moment later, the train began to move, making the carriage jolt.
According to the original story, the child had been killed by assassins.
And judging by the situation, the male lead—who was supposed to be beside the child—seemed to have been injured and unable to move.
The child was completely alone, with no one by his side.
No matter how she looked at it, this train seemed to be where the child would be killed.
I should have stopped him from getting on the train…
Realizing her own mistake, Emilia bit her lip.
“It’s okay. It’s okay.”
She patted Ivan’s back and hurriedly gathered her thoughts.
First of all, his clothes are way too conspicuous.
She had noticed it at the station as well, but his clothes were anything but ordinary.
The passenger who had just passed them had probably stared at him for the same reason.
“Let me just—”
Emilia was about to take off Ivan’s robe when she suddenly stopped.
There’s blood on his clothes.
The robe would certainly draw less attention than clothes stained with blood.
With a sigh, Emilia carefully wrapped the robe back around him and spoke softly.
“Come [over here] for a moment?”
Ivan tightly grasped the hand she held out to him.
Keeping Ivan hidden between her body and the large bag, Emilia moved as cautiously as possible.
I need to get him to my seat first.
The train compartments were divided into sections of four seats each.
And when she had bought her ticket, she had confirmed that the other three seats in her section were empty.
Since she had managed to get the ticket just before departure, there was a good chance they were still unoccupied.
Soon, Emilia stopped in front of the sliding door.
She grasped the handle and listened carefully.
Fortunately, she couldn’t hear a thing.
Slide—
Click.
Thank goodness.
Just as she had expected, the compartment was completely empty.
Emilia quickly stepped inside and shut the door.
Then she sat Ivan down on the seat and knelt in front of him.
“[Hurt person, where?]”
“[＃＃ is there!]”
What does that mean?
Emilia furrowed her brow, trying to figure it out.
But she couldn’t understand the child’s words.
So she tried asking in a way that would make it easier for him to answer.
“Hmm. Train—no, [front? Back?]”
“[Back!]”
Just as Emilia was painstakingly trying to determine where the male lead was, she heard voices outside.
She stopped speaking for a moment and turned her gaze toward the door.
Are they checking the train tickets?
Emilia turned back to Ivan and pulled out her own ticket, showing it to him.
“Do you have [this]?”
Ivan shook his head.
He’s going to get caught by the conductor… Wait. Something’s strange.
Of course, a railway employee could check train tickets.
But they usually checked a few passengers at random. They didn’t normally go through every single passenger one by one.
Don’t tell me…
Emilia carefully opened the sliding door without making a sound and peered outside.
Several compartments ahead, she could see the back of the railway employee checking passengers’ tickets.
He looked like an ordinary railway employee on the surface.
But there were bloodstains on the hem of his trousers.
He’s definitely looking for Ivan.
Emilia sucked in a breath and quickly shut the door.
At the same time, she heard the man speaking to the passengers in the next compartment.
It’s too late to take the child somewhere else…
Just then, Emilia’s gaze fell upon her large travel bag.
That’s it!
She immediately threw open the window and leaned her head outside.
As luck would have it, a wide river was flowing directly below them.
At this height, there shouldn’t be any sound.
Emilia pulled her head back inside and opened her bag.
Ah! The thing that lady gave me!
Her eyes widened as she took out just one pouch.
Whoosh—
Wind rushed through the open window, sending her hair flying.
Then Emilia threw everything inside the bag out through the window.
She felt a pang of guilt, as though she were littering recklessly, but—
Saving a person’s life is more important!
Ivan stared at her with wide, bewildered eyes at her sudden actions.
Emilia pointed at the now-empty travel bag and spoke in a hushed voice.
“Quickly, [get in here!]”
Confused, Ivan looked back and forth between Emilia and the bag before getting to his feet.
Then he climbed inside.
Fortunately, the child was small enough to fit inside without much difficulty.
“[No sound, okay?]”
Once Emilia confirmed that Ivan had nodded, she closed the bag.
Then she hurriedly sat down and straightened her clothes.
That was when—
Knock, knock.
Someone was knocking on the sliding door.
Stay calm.
The door slowly opened, and the man she had seen earlier appeared.
“What is it?”
“I’m checking the passengers’ tickets. May I see yours?”
The man stepped into the compartment and casually swept his gaze across the interior.
Emilia swallowed hard and quickly handed him her train ticket.
As soon as he took it, she swiftly withdrew her hand.
Her fingertips were trembling from the tension.
I can’t look suspicious. Not even slightly.
No matter how she thought about it, Emilia couldn’t imagine herself overpowering that man.
And even if I run, we’re on a moving train.
Meanwhile, the man checked the seat number written on her ticket.
Just as Emilia waited anxiously for him to return the ticket and leave—
“What is that luggage?”
He gestured toward the bag at Emilia’s feet.
