Jens trudged forward carrying his bag that he had taken from the compartment. Schedel gritted her teeth at his attitude that suggested he had nothing more to say. Nevertheless, she hurried the two men Jens had pointed out to the back and followed behind him with one of the attendants.

The people who had been confined in two separate compartments cautiously raised their faces. From what they could overhear, that tall man was apparently Jens Will.

Would this renowned soldier save them? Could he handle all the terrorists alone?

Just as they poked their heads out the door with anticipation—

“Don’t stick your heads out. I can’t guarantee your lives.”

The man spoke in an inappropriately cheerful tone. The curious onlookers all retreated hastily back into their compartments, terrified.

Having efficiently removed the spectators, Jens reached the front exit and gestured to Schedel and the attendant who had followed him.

“You two need to guard this position.”

“I really don’t understand why I’m doing this…”

Though Schedel shook her head in disbelief, she helped position the attendant correctly and took her place near the door.

Jens nodded and then pried open the control panel on the wall. It contained numerous buttons and levers.

“First.”

He pulled one of the levers.

Since it was daytime, nothing seemed to change. However, the gas that supplied all the compartment lights through the pipeline was cut off simultaneously.

Even the gas lamps that lavishly decorated the first-class cabin, unnecessary in daylight, went out.

“Let’s begin.”

Jens opened his bag. Schedel, who had wondered if there might be a machine gun inside to capture the terrorists, looked bewildered at the contents.

The rectangular bag was filled with various sizes and types of tools, along with numerous gears.

* * *

“That’s what I get for buying cheap.”

Having bought a knife that young ladies typically purchased for self-defense to avoid drawing attention with high-end items, it had dulled after just one use.

Aira wiped the blood from the knife on the tattered dress fabric, then slid it back into the sheath tied to her thigh and folded her arms.

Though she retained the memories of rigorous training in the Republic and had a body enhanced by magic that allowed her to fight at a level similar to before her death, this weapon was inadequate.

Moreover, having focused on physical enhancement magic while at the military academy to keep up with strength training, she had few other spells prepared for this situation except for some emergency ones.

Unlike outside, there were witnesses inside the train car. It would be problematic if they later gave statements about her.

“I wish I had smoke magic. Perhaps I focused too much on physical enhancement spells. No, I can’t leave magical traces anyway.”

Aira sighed as she tried positioning the cloth corset she had been holding in her mouth against her face in different ways. It wouldn’t provide adequate cover. If anything, it would make her more conspicuous.

While contemplating her next move, she noticed the gas lamps attached to the exterior of the train.

“Maybe…”

Gripping the shaking railing, she leaned her body out from the train.

In the distance, the clattering train was heading toward—

“I can use that.”

After pulling herself back in, Aira broke the external gas lamp with a light movement.

* * *

“I’m dying of boredom. Is the boss having all the fun in the front car?”

“Idiot. That’s a hostage. The daughter we need to sell back to Sini for a high price—you think he’d touch her?”

“Hmm. The haul’s not great, so we should at least have some fun…”

One man discontentedly shook the bags they had collected. The two or three bags weren’t particularly heavy.

The man, stroking his chin, suddenly thrust his face toward the women huddled together in a corner.

“Hey. Is this really all you have?”

“Y-yes. Really. We don’t usually carry much cash…”

“Then what do you spend money with?”

“Ch-checks…”

The women, stripped of all their jewelry and held hostage, answered while streaming tears. The man clicked his tongue.

“Should we make them write some checks?”

“Don’t be stupid. The banks would catch us immediately. Besides, if we get caught doing that, you think the boss would let us off?”

“Damn it all.”

Aira, who was gripping the train roof and peering through the window to assess the situation inside, frowned.

It seemed the leader wasn’t in this car but had gone directly to the engine room beyond the tender car, taking the kidnapped daughter of the Sini family with him.

In any case, she needed to eliminate the terrorists in this car before going after the leader. They might flee to the rear cars and endanger Jens.

The problem was—

‘What a waste.’

Come to think of it, there had been gas lamps in the first-class compartment too. And though she hadn’t noticed because of the daylight, gas lamps were brightly lit throughout the corridors.

This unnecessary luxury had disrupted her plan to use the darkness of the tunnel. She had thought breaking the external lamps would be enough.

Why were the interior lamps lit in broad daylight?

‘Huh?’

Suddenly, all the gas lamps Aira had been staring at went out simultaneously. Since it was too bright outside for anyone to notice, neither the terrorists nor the passengers realized what had happened—except for Aira, who had been watching intently.

‘Why suddenly? Well, that works!’

Aira waited while holding onto the train roof. The cutting wind whipped around her body as the train sped along, but her small frame, enhanced by magic, remained perfectly still.

Whoosh.

After some time, the wind direction changed. Aira tensed her body.

BOOM!

The moment the train entered the tunnel with a thunderous roar, Aira quickly jumped through the window into the compartment.

* * *

“Um… Lieutenant Commander Will. That phone keeps ringing.”

“Ah.”

The internal telephone rang persistently, almost painfully to the ears. But Jens, who was busy dismantling all the buttons and levers from the control panel and manipulating them with tools from his bag, completely ignored it.

Unable to stand it any longer, the attendant cautiously called out to him. Jens, who had been intensely focused on adjusting something inside the control panel, simply shrugged and picked up the receiver, then immediately hung up, cutting the connection.

“Is… is that okay?”

“I’m not good at acting.”

Jens gave a cursory response while pushing several gears from his bag into the control panel. Then he broke the back part of the receiver he had just hung up and connected several wires from inside the control panel to it.

He calmly spoke into the receiver:

“Code number 656732, Lieutenant Commander Jens Will reporting.”

Schedel, who had been anxiously watching the door, turned to Jens in surprise.

“That’s the train’s internal phone.”

“Ah, thank you for informing me of something I didn’t know.”

Schedel bristled at Jens’s indifferent tone.

As she was about to say something more, Jens raised a finger to his lips.

“Shh. They’ll be coming from both directions soon.”

Bang! Bang! Bang!

No sooner had he finished speaking than gunshots rang out from the back door. Schedel startled and raised her gun toward the front door.

The individuals Jens had selected as capable of handling weapons seemed to have performed well, as the back door quickly fell silent.

But soon after, more commotion erupted as several more people rushed toward the back door. Amid the continued gunfire, Schedel and the attendant guarding the front door grew increasingly tense while Jens finished his communication.

“Ms. Schedel.”

“I really hate that form of address. What is it?”

“Don’t fire your gun like an amateur if you’re startled. You too, attendant.”

“What?”

“Those of you at the back door, don’t be alarmed either!”

“What on earth for?”

The two defending the back door also looked bewildered. Jens calmly explained:

“The tunnel will be quite long. I’m just trying to buy us some time.”

“Tunnel?”

Jens shrugged.

“No one will be able to move.”

BOOM!

The train was instantly plunged into darkness.

Normally, before entering a tunnel, an attendant would light the gas lamps attached to the exterior of the train.

While the first-class compartments always kept their gas lamps lit, the other class compartments relied on the indirect light from the external lamps to dispel the temporary darkness of passing tunnels.

But since Jens had shut off all the gas pipes in the train, no one could move—unless they had received assassination training.

Only after passing through the interior of Soro Mountain for quite some time on the way to Oculer did visibility return. Everyone on the train collectively sighed in relief, seemingly rescued from fear.

After the tunnel ended and people regained their senses, the terrorists in the rear seats apparently tried to enter through the back door again, judging by the gunfire, but the front door remained quiet.

“That’s strange.”

“W-what is?”

Schedel’s voice was strained from the constant tension. But Jens, in stark contrast to someone who should be tense, spoke in a puzzled tone:

“Why aren’t they coming from the front? I cut the communication line.”

When occupying a train, continuous communication is essential because of the large area that needs to be controlled. Therefore, if communication lines are cut, terrorists should sense something is wrong and converge from both directions.

He had planned to use this to reduce their numbers, but contrary to his expectations, no one came from the front.

“I don’t know. Maybe they’re busy.”

Jens narrowed his eyes, staring at the door, then walked over and opened it slightly. Schedel was horrified by his casual demeanor.

“What are you doing?!”

But Jens didn’t answer and looked upward. Thump, thump. A purple object tied to a string lightly hit the exterior of the train before the string apparently came loose and flew behind the train.

Witnessing this, Jens’s eyes widened as he reached a conclusion. He placed a hand on his mouth for a moment, thought more deeply, then opened the door wide.

“I need to go. Stay here.”

“What? To the front car?”

Schedel asked with a distressed expression, but Jens went outside without hesitation. Schedel quickly grabbed him.

“Alone? You don’t even know how many of them are ahead. Where’s your weapon?”

Jens pushed her away.

“It’s fine. Just close the door and verify who’s coming before you shoot. I might not return.”

“You really…”

Schedel gritted her teeth and held out her revolver to him.

“At least take this. Five bullets left.”

Jens shook his head.

“No need. You keep it—”

Refusing to listen, Schedel forcibly placed the revolver in Jens’s hand and went back inside, closing the door.

Jens stared blankly at the revolver in his hand.

More precisely, at his hand that had been trembling since gripping the revolver.

He had to bear all this because he didn’t expect anyone to understand.

Pain is subjective. It couldn’t be shared with anyone.

‘I know you can’t shoot a gun.’

“If you know, then stay put.”

Jens clenched his teeth, moved his trembling hand to barely stuff the revolver into his pocket, and leaped over the railing.