Dear Not Cunning Witch

Part 2

The wizard’s mood had been down in the dumps until a little while ago.

Slaughter was on the list of things he wanted to do now that he was back out in the world, but what he wanted to do most was to do battle with his life on the line. There was a lot he had to practice again because he hadn’t been able to use magic in over a decade, but the reason why he was cooperating with a worthless group like the Ingram Armed Revolutionary Army was because he dearly missed the thrill of battle. He craved to do battle against his brethren, and he was thirsty for the kind of stimulation that put him on the boundary between life and death.

But he hadn’t had the chance to do battle yet. He had known that wizards were a group of people most loath to take action, but he hadn’t thought that his opponents would send over ordinary soldiers with no defenses whatsoever. He thought that he had given sufficient warning last night by slaughtering a dozen or so soldiers, but Hugo Alpheus was apparently a bigger coward than he had originally thought. To think that he would stay in the rear lines with his tail between his legs despite his overwhelming talent. Perhaps Hugo was an amateur who had never killed anyone before, but Israel Alpheus was surely lamenting from the grave.

And so, the wizard had no drive to do anything. It offended him that the enemy was simply shooting at them from afar, but, annoyingly enough, wizards generally found it difficult deal with guns. Guns were convenient and neat in that they could be shot from anywhere and kill their targets in one clean hit, and they could not be countered by simple spells.

The wizard wanted to save as much of his magic as possible for his battle against Hugo Alpheus, and he had nothing to do but kill time when he wasn’t responding to enemy gunfire. It was ever so boring, but the train would be taken from them in the blink of an eye if he trusted the unruly mob that couldn’t even shoot a wine bottle ten meters from their face to do their jobs.

The problem lay in the fact that the wizard wasn’t very patient. One hour passed, then two, and he was slowly growing irritated. He forgot his earlier resolve by the time the third hour had passed and ran outside the train.

The enemy had withdrawn as soon as he had made his appearance. The wizard had chased after them while ignoring the Revolutionary Army’s attempts to dissuade him. He had killed one or two people by firing his magic indiscriminately, but it hadn’t quelled his anger. He had pushed himself last night, but, fortunately, his star, Muzetta, was at its strongest at the moment. And he trusted the great star to watch over its pitiful son.

But this thought hadn’t lasted for very long.

He had been staring blankly at the fading flames when he slowly looked up to the heavens. The stars weren’t out yet, but he could feel it with his keens senses as a wizard.

Muzetta, the Inverse Star, had frozen over.

“What the hell has he been doing while hiding…….”

He smiled fiercely as the cold winter wind belatedly breezed past him. Who would have thought that Hugo would throw the heavens into disarray just to put Muzetta to sleep? It looked like he would have to reconsider his evaluation of Hugo Alpheus.

Hugo Alpheus was no coward. Hugo might actually be even more stubborn than he was.

The wizard calmly organized his thoughts as he returned to the train. The area around the train was clearly in the middle of winter. To think that Hugo had been able to summon the winter when it was late spring —no wonder he was talented enough to be called the Wizard of Winter.

But there were a few things that struck the wizard as suspicious below the surface. For starters, Hugo Alpheus could not be completely fine after casting such a large spell. It was late spring going into summer, and Muzetta, which had poor affinity with his birth star, Valdivia, was currently in power. He should have found it difficult to cast even the simplest of spells for at least another five days or so.

And that wasn’t the only thing the wizard was suspicious about. The plan had seemed simple and obvious at a first glance, but it was actually incredibly sensible when he actually considered the details. Some would say that it was foolish to cast such a large spell when Muzetta, the Inverse Star, was in power, but from another point of view, it was possible to cast the spell precisely because Muzetta was in power.

Summoning the winter in late spring threw the heavens into disarray. He had heard that Hugo Alpheus had previously summoned the winter in the middle of summer inside the White Hall, but the inside of a building, which was completely closed off, was markedly different from the open outdoors. Accordingly, one of the biggest reasons why his spell had succeeded was because Muzetta had already thrown the heavens in disarray to begin with.

Which was greater: the limitations on Hugo imposed by his poor affinity with Muzetta, or the benefits he received because the heavens were already in disarray? It was a question not easily answered.

The wizard had researched well in advance, and he knew that Hugo Alpheus was not well-versed in astronomy. Astronomy, which required one to memorize the locations of every star in the sky and calculate their trajectory by the angles of their orbits, was regarded as one of the most difficult subjects in magic. Hugo Alpheus was the type of wizard to cast magic with his inborn talent and senses instead of relying on theory, so the wizard doubted if he had actually done all the calculations necessary to summon the winter.

Moreover, even if he had managed to awaken Valdivia and summon the winter, the spell itself could not last for long. The spell would end after only a few short hours —but Hugo would have had to sacrifice at least ten days for what was no longer than a moment. And, while Hugo Alpheus had almost certainly passed out, the wizard was completely fine —he would only find it a little more difficult to cast spells.

The wizard could not comprehend Hugo’s decision no matter how hard he tried. He pondered over the question as he climbed back on the train. Then, the fidgety Revolutionary Army came running up to him.

“Lord Wizard, you were safe! Have you finished off the enemy?”

“No.”

The wizard picked up his pace. The pointlessly long train had over ten freight cars. He had wasted considerable time just travelling back and forth between the engine room and the train’s rear.

But the wizard stopped in his tracks just as he was about to clear the fourth freight car. The confused members of the Revolutionary Army asked him,

“Is something wrong?”

This wizard was frugal with his words. His frigid eyes were quickly scanning his surroundings when he suddenly felt vibrations from beneath his feet. The tremors passed to the walls and the ceiling, and the entire car was shaking something fierce like there was an earthquake happening.

“W-what in the……?!”

The sudden shaking threw the Revolutionary Army off balance, and they fell to the floor in a mess. Even the wizard, who had just barely managed to stay standing by grabbing onto some cargo, was bewildered. He pried open his lips and uttered a few incantations, but the frozen star did not respond.

It was only a few minutes later that the tremors subsided. The wizard staggered toward the exit as the Revolutionary Army, who had rolled around the floor while being hit against all sorts of loose cargo, emptied out the contents of their stomachs in one corner of the car. He had a bad premonition about this. And, just as he had predicted, the iron doors refused to budge.

“What just happened, Lord Wizard?”

the Revolutionary Army asked him with great difficulty. There were no windows in the freight car, so they had no way to confirm the situation.

He glared at the doors without a word before he finally began moving. His hands passed over the doors and studied the walls for some time. The once-smooth walls had been crumpled.

“……It was magic.”

A chilling noise melted into the silence. It had sounded like sobbing at first, but it was revealed to have actually been laughter as it grew louder. The members of the Revolutionary Army were pallid as they looked up at the wizard. He apparently found something extraordinarily amusing, as he had even thrown his head back to laugh out loud —it was truly uncanny.

“Those rats. Do they think they’ve bested me with this?”

the wizard muttered as he suddenly stopped laughing.

They had another wizard. Hugo Alpheus was there too, as he’d predicted, but there was still one more. Why hadn’t he thought about the possibility? It was only now that he could understand why Hugo Alpheus had summoned the winter. Hugo was being so audacious precisely because he had a comrade to back him up.

Crunch. The wizard turned around as he ground his teeth together. He, too, had a card hidden up his sleeve. He had only just managed to return to the world after ten long years. He did not intend to back off quite just yet.

 

* * *

 

Colonel Oxley was dumbfounded as he watched the miraculous scene unfolding inside the tent. He had heard that some wizards knew how to communicate with animals, but this was his first time actually seeing it in person.

A small cuckoo had flown into the tent and had folded its wings as it perched at the head of the table. Hester listened intently to the bird’s warbling before she gave it some sparkling jewel dust. The bird ate it happily.

“The wizard has entered the freight cars.”

Hester confirmed the coordinates on the map. She needed only a moment before her spell was manifest.

“What sort of spell did you just cast?”

“I wrapped all the freight trains in wood. Sir Hugo has made it difficult for the enemy wizard to use magic, so he will not be able to leave the freight trains for the time being.”

Her spell had allowed her to control nature. She had consoled the roots of the trees that had been cruelly cut down by human hands decades ago and had encouraged them to grow. Controlling life was one of the most difficult magics there were, but Hester had an innate affinity to nature and could cast such spells with relative ease.

Hester looked down at the map with shadowed eyes. The wizard would not be able to move for the time being, as the tree branches had grown like tangled vines and were choking the freight cars. They only had until the winter that Hugo had summoned was dispelled —four or five hours. It was up to the Ingram Army to subdue the Armed Revolutionary Army and rescue the hostages while the wizard was out of the picture.

She bit down gently at her lip as she looked to the darkness outside. Waiting quietly was more nerve-wrecking than she had imagined. She would have made it as bright as day if she could have things her way, but her allies needed it to be dark to successfully launch a surprise attack, so all she could do was wait to hear back from them. She wanted to run to the train this instant.

If only she could have things her way.

Hester did her best to suppress the thoughts that surged up in her mind. Her first and foremost priority was Diana’s safety. Hester had never been in combat before, and especially not against guns, so the best she could do was to support her allies with magic from the rear. What if someone got hurt because she had selfishly decided to rush to the train? What if Diana got hurt? Just imagining it made her hands grow cold.

And so, all she could do was have faith. Hester was ignorant about military affairs, but she was certain that the king would not have dispatched an unruly mob to handle such a critical situation. She didn’t know how skilled the army was, but she trusted in the fact that they were Ingram’s elites. Besides, the wizard was out of commission at the moment. There was no reason why the army wouldn’t be able to complete their mission.

Hester took a deep breath as she slowly closed her eyes. She offered up an earnest prayer as the darkness flooded in. She prayed that Diana would be safe. That her one and only sister would return safely back into her arms.

Diana was both her only remaining family and the only ray of hope in her otherwise empty life. Hester had only ever been thinking of Diana —even as she mastered magic under the tutelage of her heartless teacher, even as she desperately paid back the debt her mother had left behind, and even as she had been betrayed by the one other person to whom she had ever opened her heart. Everyone always said that her life was blessed, but the Diana was the only blessing she had ever known. Diana was the sole star that illuminated her life.

So you must survive, even if you’re the only survivor.

Hester prayed ceaselessly. She recited every prayer that she knew. So that her prayers may reach the chaotic heavens, that the star that gave her magic would hear them.

But it wasn’t the stars that answered her prayers.

Boom!

She suddenly heard something explode. Several birds flew into the tent without prior notice as she jumped up. The gears in her head spun rapidly as she listened to their respective chirping. Hester barely managed to lean against the table as she reeled. It was only then that the birds’ chirping registered in her ears as words.

The freight cars. An explosion.

Hester had no idea what had happened. Valdivia, the Winter Star, had yet to disappear, and Muzetta, which had a bad affinity with it, was weakened. It was absolutely impossible for the enemy wizard to use magic for the time being because the heavens had suddenly been thrown into chaos, so she could not even begin to guess how he had caused the explosion.

She straightened out her distracted thoughts as she recalled the freight cars’ coordinates. If the cars had exploded, then all she had to do was tie them up again. Cold sweat dripped down from her forehead, but she paid it no heed. Things were still under control —for now.

Just then, a soldier ran inside the tent and said,

“Ma’am, the hostages have safely evacuated the train and are heading toward camp!”

Hester immediately ran outside the tent. The chilly winter wind breezed through the thin fabric of her clothes, but she did not have it in her to care. She was running so fast she could hardly breathe.

The open area that led to the tracks was very noisy. The field was being lit up by torches as it filled with sordid passengers. Hester could barely keep her head straight as the weeping and laughing crammed into her ears.

She looked around impatiently. She was searching for a familiar face in the sea of strangers.

“Lady Hester, you’re here!”

The colonel welcomed her from afar and approached her with a smile. With trembling lips, Hester asked,

“And my sister……?”

“We are asking after Little Diana as we speak. Please don’t worry,”

the colonel replied confidently. Hester bit into her lip. It’s okay, everything’s going to be okay. Thus, she managed to keep down her ever-bubbling anxiety.

Then, she saw a woman nearby and gingerly posed her a question.

“Have you seen a young witch who’s about this tall?”

The woman was carrying a newborn tightly in her arms. Hester barely kept herself together when the woman shook head no.

“Oh my goodness, oh no! The young lady wasn’t able to slip out of the train. She was caught by the wizard.”

She had more than enough time to leave the train, but she was delayed because she was saving my baby. My baby wouldn’t be safe and sound right now if it wasn’t for her. Are you her family, perhaps?

The woman was making a fuss, but Hester wasn’t listening. The headache-inducing noise had suddenly died down.

Hester stared blankly at the woman.

Drip. Drip.

And all she could hear was the sound of blood hitting the floor.

 

* * *

 

Turning back the clock to 4 p.m., when it was still late spring.

Only a bleak silence filled the train despite the mild weather. Nothing inside the train had changed even though it had already been over a day since the Armed Revolutionary Army had occupied it. The passengers were still in their seats, and there was at least one armed assailant in every car. The passengers no longer screamed or grew queasy when the heard the occasional gunshots from outside.

The true problem lay elsewhere.

Diana sighed in hunger as she clutched her stomach. It had been over a day since she had eaten her last meal. The assailants were acting like the hostages should be grateful they were even allowed to drink water, so it was highly unlikely that they would care that the hostages hadn’t been able to eat.

‘It’s still too much that they haven’t let us eat all day.’

Diana, who had been slumped over in her hunger, resolutely raised her head yet again. Perhaps they were trying to starve the hostages. Their cruelty wouldn’t make sense otherwise. To think that she might starve to death in an era that was said to be the most affluent in all of human history. No death could possibly be any more gruesome.

She gently stroked her hollowed stomach as she snuck a glance at Oliver. He had dozed off sometime around noon and was still fast asleep four hours later. Diana looked to him woefully, completely forgetting how soundly she herself had slept during the night. On the other hand, she also pitied him a little whenever she saw how horribly swollen his right cheek was after being socked by the wizard last night.

Diana took great pains to keep her eyelids, which felt extraordinarily heavy today, open. The assailant had been stuck to a window with his gun pointed outside for quite some time now. She was curious to know what the fuss was about, but, unfortunately, the assailant was pointing his gun out the window on the other side of the aisle. She had tried wriggling around to see what was going on, unable to best her curiosity, but it had been to no avail.

Then, she heard a strange noise from behind her. She had thought she was imagining things at first, but the noise wouldn’t stop and she couldn’t help but wonder if something had gone wrong.

Diana anxiously looked back. Then, a woman’s weeping joined the gasping that sounded almost like a death rattle. The other passengers looked equally nervous.

The assailant, who had only just then noticed the disturbance inside the car, quickly pointed his gun at them as shouted,

“What is it? Why’s it so loud?!”

An elderly woman just barely managed to reply though her tears.

“Something’s wrong with my husband. He’s not breathing properly.”

The assailant walked over to her while stomping in irritation. Diana quietly turned around and peeked over the back of her seat as she kept watch over the situation.

“Shit, well aren’t you quite the handful?”

the assailant muttered. The passenger apparently wasn’t doing so well. He continued,

“Hey, Granny. Shut up a bit, will you? He would’ve died soon anyway, so what are you crying so hard about?”

“Ahh!”

A chilling silence fell upon the car. The assailant turned back without any lingering regrets. He left behind only relieved mumblings about how the old couple were being loud and annoying.

Diana quickly turned back around to hide the fact that she had been peeking and froze stiff. The elderly woman’s cry that she had just heard wouldn’t leave her ears. What would happen to that elderly couple? What would happen to her husband, who was still gasping for breath? The assailant’s footsteps drew nearer even as Diana grasped her cold hands together and shuddered in anxiety.

But just as the assailant was about to pass them by. Oliver cracked his eyes open and tripped him.

“Ack!”

The assailant tumbled through the corridor in an unseemly manner. Oliver immediately climbed on top of him. He pummeled the assailant in the face, and the assailant, too, flailed his limbs and struggled desperately. Fists and curses flew between them.

Diana quickly moved to the next seat over and watched over their brawl. Oliver had the upper hand in terms of physique, but he probably wasn’t at his best since he hadn’t eaten in over a day. It took a while for the brawl to end.

She was growing impatient as she watched the situation unfold. Then, she just so happened to see the assailant gripping at the floor with his right hand. He had dropped his rifle as he fell, and it was lying near him. In her fright, Diana used magic before she realized what she was doing. She pulled the rifle back quietly, and Oliver hesitated for a moment before he snatched it up and pointed it at the assailant.

“Get up.”

The assailant ground his teeth together as he slowly picked himself off the floor. Oliver smashed the rifle against his head just as he opened his mouth to call for help. The assailant crumbled to the floor like a paper doll.

Oliver then ran quickly over to where the elderly couple was sitting as the other passengers stared blankly at the unconscious assailant. The elderly man, who hadn’t been breathing properly, was Oliver’s first priority. Oliver looked over the gasping and blue man for a moment before he promptly undid the man’s necktie and the top two buttons on his shirt. Then, he asked the passengers on the other side of the aisle,

“Would you have a paper bag, by any chance?”

A passenger handed him a paper bag with trembling hands. Oliver brought to the elderly man’s nose and mouth to help him breathe. Oliver then checked on the elderly woman once her husband’s breathing had stabilized somewhat. She didn’t look very well. She was bleeding from the side of her head where she had been beaten, and the bleeding wouldn’t stop.

A middle-aged man who had been sitting near the front of the car quietly approached them.

“What do we do?”

“We’ll need bandages and disinfectant. It’ll be better if we had ice too.”

“That’s not what I meant —I meant what do we do about him!”

It was only then that Oliver, who had been checking the elderly man’s condition in a hurry, finally looked up. A cold shadow fell over his normally mischievous dark brown eyes. The middle-aged man continued,

“W-what are we supposed to do now that you’ve gone and made him like that? What if the others come too?”

“Then are you suggesting we simply leave these people to die?”

“That’s not what I—”

“That’s exactly what you meant just now.”

The other man was rendered silent. Oliver turned to the other passengers and continued,

“The wizard passed through the passenger car an hour ago. And the Revolutionary Army has been engrossed with something outside the window ever since. I see now that there are soldiers standing out there.”

“Soldiers?”

The passengers rejoiced and tried to rush toward the windows on the left side of the aisle, but Oliver immediately stopped them.

“Please stay seated, everyone. The others will know that something’s up if you make too much noise.”

It was only then that the passengers slowly and stiffly sat back down. Quietly, Oliver continued,

“What I’m saying is that we’ll be safe for the time being as long as we keep quiet. The wizard and the Revolutionary Army are probably busy dealing with the soldiers at the moment.”

“For the time being? Then we need to act at once!”

“You’re right. But treating this couple comes first. Is there a doctor here?”

A middle-aged woman with round glasses hesitantly raised her hand.

“I’m a pediatrician, but…….”

“That’s fine. Do you have your medical tools with you?”

“No. I didn’t bring them with me because I’m on vacation.”

It was quite the awkward situation. Oliver pondered for a moment before saying,

“There should be household medications in the cafeteria. It’s not far from here, so I’ll go and bring some back.”

“Alone?”

Diana asked loudly before she could stop herself. The passengers immediately turned to look at her. Oliver stared back at her in a bit of shock before he chuckled in a refreshing manner and shook his head.

“Of course not. Has anyone here served in the military before?”

The passenger car was silent. Oliver watched as the passengers made eyes at each other for a moment before he shrugged. He continued,

“I only served in actual battle for about a year myself. And that was over ten years ago.”

Then, a man who looked about four or five years older than Oliver raised his hand.

“I used to serve in the marines for a bit a while back.”

“Great. Is there anyone else?”

“I’ve never served in the military, but I know how to handle guns because I like hunting. I can dismantle a rifle like that one with my eyes closed.”

Oliver nodded back in satisfaction.

He returned to his seat and opened his bag before he left for the dining compartment. There was a silver pistol in his hand when he pulled it back out.

“That’s a gun,”

Diana muttered as the blood drained from her face. She continued,

“Why are you carrying around something like that?”

“I had one just in case. For situations like now,”

Oliver replied like it was no big deal. Ever anxious, Diana hesitantly asked,

“……Will everything really be okay?”

Diana had no idea how normal people fought or how they were supposed to protect themselves. Oliver seemed to think the Revolutionary Army was just an unruly mob, but Diana doubted if he could really stand against them with just one measly gun.

“You stay here, Miss. I’ll be back soon.”

His large hand tussled her crimson hair for a moment. It normally would have vexed her to no end, but she could not find it in herself to grow irritated now. All she could do was stare gloomily at his retreating figure.

 

Twenty minutes later, the three of them returned with armfuls of household medications, water bottles, and emergency rations.

“There was no one in the dining compartment. They’re a lot more lacking in personnel than I’d thought.”

It was only then that the nervous passengers could finally take a deep breath. Oliver laughed and continued,

“We’ve also locked all the doors between the dining compartment and here, so it’ll be easy to tell if someone’s trying to get in. Why don’t we all eat a little for now? We won’t be able to act or plan on empty stomachs.”

The passengers returned to their seats and ate quickly and quietly. No one raised too much of a ruckus, especially considering that everyone there was wealthy and refined enough to be sitting in first-class seats, but they still ate extremely quickly because they hadn’t eaten all day.

Diana, too, was shoving her bread in her mouth with great haste. She only pulled herself together once her stomach had been satiated somewhat. She snuck a glance at Oliver while pretending to drink some water, but their eyes met when Oliver cleverly looked back at her.

“What’s up?”

Diana startled and began talking before she could stop herself.

“Um, what will you do now?”

“About what?”

“What do you mean about what? It’s not like you can just stay here and sit quietly after beating up the person who was watching us like that. And we don’t know when the wizard might come back…….”

There was little confidence in her mumblings. An amused light twinkled in Oliver’s eyes as he leaned closer.

“Miss. Are you worrying about me right now?”

Diana’s expression immediately turned cold.

“What kind of nonsense is that supposed to be? I’m worrying about me —me! I’m worried about myself! The man from the Revolutionary Army is out cold on the floor, and it might put me in danger too if the others find out!”

“Don’t worry. They probably won’t pay any attention to you.”

“……That didn’t sound very nice.”

Diana glared at Oliver. He had an extraordinary talent for saying things that sounded like both compliments and criticisms at the same time.

“Aw, don’t misunderstand. I’m just laying out the truth. Would you pay much attention to a girl who doesn’t even look of age yet during a critical situation like this?”

“And just who isn’t of age yet? Did you already forget that I’m nineteen?”

“I’m just saying that you don’t look it.”

Quietly, he continued whispering,

“So, just keep quiet and stay put.”

“What?”

“I’m telling you not to do anything.”

Diana stared at him. Oliver had a rather serious look on his face as he continued,

“Don’t do anything like what you did before if you can help it.”

“……I’ve no idea what you’re talking about.”

Diana turned to the window as she feigned ignorance. She wasn’t accustomed to being protected by someone who wasn’t either her sister or her teacher.

It didn’t take long before the passengers gathered together and began discussing amongst each other. They were, of course, talking about what they should do now.

“Isn’t it better if we wait quietly until the army comes to save us?”

“But we don’t know when the wizard might come back. And the rebel in charge this car is out cold too…….”

“How is the old couple doing?”

“How should we know? The doctor’s been with them this whole time, but they obviously weren’t doing so well, remember? I hope nothing happens to them until we’re rescued.”

“Actually, I’m pretty skeptical about the rescue itself. Didn’t you all see him too? There’s a horrible wizard here. Even an entire squadron from the army would be hard-pressed to go up against him.”

“No way. I’m sure there are at least a few wizards with the military too.”

“You think a wizard’s going to come save us? I’ve heard that they despise normal people like us.”

They needed to have at least a minimum amount of information to put together a plan. But the passengers, who had been trapped in the car under the Revolutionary Army’s watch, were completely ignorant as to the current situation. They had no way of knowing how large the military unit that had come to rescue them were or what the military was doing.

Suddenly, Oliver said,

“The wizards might despise us, but the king surely doesn’t. I’m sure the king would have immediately summoned any wizards in the area as soon as he heard about what’s going on.”

The passengers’ gazes fell upon him. He continued,

“To my knowledge, there’s a prominent wizard here in Penzas. We won’t have to worry about that particular issue.”

“There’s a wizard here?”

“Do you think he’ll come to save us? Wait, but if there’s a wizard here, then why haven’t we seen him yet?”

The questions poured out like a deluge. Oliver looked a little embarrassed as he brought his index finger to his lips.

“Let’s all keep quiet for now. Someone might hear us from the other cars if we’re too loud.”

“What do you think we should do?”

asked the middle-aged man who had bickered with Oliver earlier with a not-so-friendly look on his mien.

“My name is Oliver Fenley. You can just call me Mr. Fenley.”

The middle-aged man’s face twisted at Oliver’s sudden introduction. Quickly, Oliver continued,

“And as for what we do now —who can say? There’s only one way we can go, right?”

“Only one way…….”

“We can’t go backward, as you’re all aware. It’s obvious that most of the Revolutionary Army will be gathered in the second- and third-class seats, where most of the passengers are. Besides, the wizard was heading toward the rear of the train, and he hasn’t come back yet.”

“Then are you saying that we should stay here?”

Oliver shook his head no.

“Staying in this car isn’t necessarily the best choice either, since we don’t know when the wizard or the Revolutionary Army might come back. If we can’t go backward, and staying here isn’t a great choice either, then our only choice left is to push forward.”

The passenger car was rendered silent. More specifically, it was engulfed in quiet shock. The passengers were either staring at Oliver in astonishment or in blank amazement. He continued,

“I’m glad that no one’s calling me crazy, at the very least.”

He laughed in a carefree manner.

“The first-class car, where we are now, is pretty far from the other passenger cars. Originally, it was designed this way because the nobles didn’t want to be anywhere near the common folk, but it worked out in our favor today.”

Most trains were designed with the driver’s cabin and boiler room in the first car, followed by the passenger cars and the freight cars. The first-class car was usually the first of the passenger cars.

“There’s only the boiler room and the driver’s cabin in front of us. The train isn’t moving, so I doubt many rebels are watching the boiler room right now. It’ll either be just one or two, or there might not be anyone there at all. The problem lies in the driver’s cabin.”

“Wait, but why must we go forward in the first place? You have to explain why you think we need to go to the driver’s cabin,”

asked a middle-aged woman in a hurry. Oliver answered without skipping a beat.

“We desperately need outside help if we want to escape safely. We don’t even know what the situation’s like right now. There should be a communication device in the driver’s cabin, and we’ll be able to contact the troops outside if we get our hands on it. I’m guessing that the army won’t approach the train until it gets dark again, like they did last night. I’m sure you can tell just by looking outside, but it’ll be difficult for them to get close to us during the middle of the day because we’re so out in the open. Don’t you think it’ll take too long if we just sit around and blindly wait for the military to come save us? I think we’ll have a better chance of escaping if we contact the military first and plan something out with them instead of sitting here and waiting.”

Several people nodded in agreement. But, unlike the boiler room or the cafeteria, there was an 80-90% chance that an armed assailant would be waiting for them in the driver’s cabin. Many of the passengers exchanged nervous looked with each other.

“It won’t be possible for everyone here to go to the driver’s cabin. Besides, that would be inefficient anyway. Only those who are confident about their abilities should go. In the meanwhile, everyone else should pile things up against the door so it’s harder for the Revolutionary Army to get inside this car. So, who’s going to the driver’s cabin?”

The two men who had accompanied Oliver to the cafeteria were the first to raise their hands. Then, a woman in her mid-thirties also raised her hand from the back of the group. Oliver stared openly at her, and she shrugged gently and said,

“I’m technically a member of the reserved forces.”

“Why didn’t you say so earlier?”

“I have a child.”

There was a toddler about three- or four-years old clinging to her skirt. The woman stroked his head as she worriedly continued,

“He has no father. We don’t have any close relatives either. I couldn’t bring myself to volunteer so readily because he’ll be orphaned if I were to die too.”

“Are you sure about this?”

“Yes. I can do anything if it means my child will be able to get out of here safely,”

she answered resolutely. Oliver nodded before turning back to the other passengers. No one else volunteered.

“I want to go too,”

said a sudden young voice. The passengers turned their eyes to Diana, who had been sitting quietly next to Oliver until then. She had crimson hair, pale skin that suggested she hadn’t seen much sunlight, and a tiny frame. The passenger sitting opposite of her hesitantly tried to persuade her out of it when Oliver wore a surprisingly stiff look on his face and firmly said,

“No.”

He looked scary, like he was another person entirely, when the smile was wiped off his normally amiable visage. But Diana did not avoid his gaze. Instead, she stuck her chin up and boldly replied,

“Why not? Are you my guardian or something?”

“Miss.”

“Do you even know why I want to go with you? It’s because I can’t trust you at all. I absolutely don’t plan on dying here, and I’m worried that you might mess up.”

The passengers’ eyes grew sharp when they heard her heartless words. But Diana paid them no heed. She continued,

“Be honest with me. What would have happened earlier if I hadn’t helped you?”

What would have happened if she hadn’t used magic? If the assailant had gotten hold of the gun first?

Diana may be a talentless witch, especially in comparison to Hester, Hugo Alpheus, or the enemy wizard, she was still a witch who could make manifest things that ordinary people couldn’t even imagine. She couldn’t change the seasons or the weather, but she could still levitate guns in the air or open doors without touching them.

“I’m saying that you should use me better,”

she grumbled. Her spells might be trivial, but she could still have a visible effect on the success of their plan depending on how she used them. They could even reclaim the driver’s cabin without breaking a sweat depending on how well she did.

Oliver stared at her for a while before letting out a long sigh.

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“……But you have to stick right behind me.”

“Wait! You’re really going to bring her with you?”

asked the bewildered man who was holding the assailant’s rifle. A small commotion stirred up inside the car when Oliver nodded back. No one said it out loud, but it was obvious that no one thought Diana was very reliable. Diana looked around, offended, and glared at the man.

“I’m a whole lot more useful than you, you know?”

She swiftly walked past him before he had the chance to reply. He raised his hands incredulously in surrender. Oliver didn’t say another word, though he did shake his head a few times.