Chapter 56
At Abel's calm gesture, Ariel let out a long sigh and looked at him with an expression that said he was hopeless.
"Disguised as a crew member..."
I had imagined it as a possibility, but I never thought it would actually work.
Since the children of high-ranking figures from every country were aboard this train, its security would be beyond imagination.
Naturally, I understood that only verified crew members were allowed to board.
"..."
No, seriously, how did he get on?
Skillfully brushing aside her reproachful gaze, Abel sat in a chair inside the compartment and spoke as though it were nothing special.
"Well, it's the safest way to infiltrate this place, isn't it?"
"...That is true."
"Come on, sit down. We need to discuss how to stop the attack on this train, don't we?"
Click.
As he said this, Abel calmly offered Ariel some snacks prepared on the train's table and smiled.
"But why did you disguise yourself?"
Ariel remembered.
She remembered how Abel's face had changed shape all at once when he removed his disguise.
It was a disposable magical disguise item, something she herself often used because she had various things to do.
An item in the form of tape that kneaded and transformed the shape of one's face.
With that question, Ariel quietly looked at Abel.
***
"Ah, that?"
I heard Ariel's question and answered lightly, as if it were nothing important.
"I just thought it might be fun?"
"Pardon?"
"That's half the reason. It was a prank to see whether you'd recognize me right away if I disguised myself."
The other half was to see how quickly she would grow wary of a stranger.
Ariel silently stared at me as I spoke as though it were nothing, then slightly frowned and opened her mouth.
"That is genuinely rude, so you should stop doing it. I'm saying this sincerely."
It wasn't simply a voice snapping at me.
Rather, it was a voice filled with concern for me.
Yet that voice gave me an oddly familiar resonance.
"..."
Even I would have found this kind of conversation irritating if I had been on the receiving end.
It meant deceiving an equal partner who had sought cooperation, under the pretext of putting her to a test.
Had I unknowingly been influenced by House Nebula's training? Or had my old habits as an NIS agent in my previous life surfaced?
Either way, the fact remained that I had done something to her that I shouldn't have.
"I'm sorry."
Testing someone as a joke was something one did to a subordinate; it was not something I should do to an equal partner when I was the one who had asked for her help in resolving this train attack.
"I really am sorry."
I lowered my head deeply and apologized to her.
Fortunately, Ariel didn't say much, and as she urged me never to do it again, the tense atmosphere gradually began to ease.
.
.
.
"There's something I'm curious about."
Once the atmosphere had returned to normal, Ariel looked at me and opened her mouth, unable to hide her curiosity.
"Hmm? What is it?"
"How exactly were you able to disguise yourself as a crew member?"
She tilted her head as if she were genuinely puzzled.
"I understood that there was no way to board this train, even if you were a crew member."
What? She didn't know?
"You don't know?"
"Pardon...?"
It seemed she really didn't know.
Seeing Ariel's reaction, I became certain.
Well, only truly high-ranking nobles knew this method, so it wasn't strange that she didn't.
Although she was a saint, that had nothing to do with political power, and she wasn't the sort of person who coveted power, either.
"It is true that this train has extremely tight security."
In fact, its security was so stringent that even House Nebula would have to make a fairly serious attempt to break through it.
I believe it was due to the intervention of that man, the chairman of [Crocus Academy], among those who managed this train.
"But a parent's feelings are another matter."
"Yes...?"
Parents, all of a sudden?
Ariel looked flustered by the unexpected word that had suddenly emerged.
I, too, had been flustered the first time I heard this.
It was only natural to wonder why anyone would bring up parents while discussing security.
"These people were clever enough to let someone board this train if they paid a certain amount."
Then here was the problem.
Most of the people aboard this train were heirs to various families or powerful figures, or children cherished to a comparable degree.
So how would it look from their parents' perspective?
No matter how impressive the security they advertised, any parent who didn't naturally worry would not be a parent.
Moreover, it was true that many parents were even more worried about life at [Crocus Academy], where countless races mingled together rather than humans alone.
That was when one human came up with a genius idea.
[If you're that worried, pay a certain amount, and we'll let someone you personally hired board the train.]
"Ah, of course, paying money alone doesn't mean that just anyone can board."
If that had been the case, they wouldn't have been able to boast about this level of security in the first place.
"You have to pass procedures lasting at least a month, or even years, and sign a contract in the name of the God of Contracts, promising to refrain from any hostile action, whether conscious or unconscious."
"..."
It was a method known only to a tiny number of nobles—in other words, information unknown to anyone below the rank of an imperial marquis.
Besides, even after pouring in an enormous sum of money, it offered protection only inside the train for a few days at most, making it one of the methods used by extremely few people.
It was so appallingly inefficient that I would never have applied for it myself.
Ariel had been listening quietly, but now she looked at me and spoke as if something had caught her attention.
"Years?"
"..."
"Abel, you just said that one had to pass procedures lasting at least a month, or even years, right?"
"Isn't that right?"
"When did we learn that this train would be attacked?"
Three days ago.
"But then how did you become a crew member after skipping all those procedures?"
Ariel's gaze gradually grew sharper.
"..."
"..."
For the record, she knew very well that threats and negotiations were House Nebula's specialties.
A little while later.
She stared quietly at me, who seemed determined not to speak no matter how much pressure she applied, then sighed as if giving up.
"All right. Then how do you plan to stop this attack on the train?"
At her question, I slowly opened my mouth and began explaining the rough outline of my plan.
***
First, the rough outline of the plan was as follows.
There were four collaborators aboard this train: Ariel and me, along with Mist and Bellias.
Ariel's focus was on interacting normally with the people aboard and gradually expanding her sphere of activity.
The other three, excluding Ariel, had all infiltrated the train as crew members or by other means.
As a crew member, I would slowly take control of parts of this enormous train with my smoke.
Mist and Bellias, who had been separated from me, would monitor their respective positions for anyone suspicious.
That was the basic outline of the operation.
For the record, we had agreed that this operation would be carried out in secret.
Ariel was a saint and thus an exception, since she could help us.
But when I considered whether the other students or people aboard this train could help us, I decided they couldn't.
Once Ariel and the others had heard this basic plan and agreed to it, I began moving as a crew member.
...
"Crew member!"
A young woman who looked like a noble lady shyly held something out to me.
"Please take this."
"What is this...?"
"I heard your blood sugar drops when you work long hours, so I brought you some chocolate... Anyway, please take it!"
Scurry.
"What was that...?"
...
"Um, well..."
"Yes. Is there something I can help you with?"
"Ah, sniff... Could you help me?"
This time, it was a white-haired rabbit beastkin.
The way she called me with fidgeting, restless gestures seemed quite suspicious.
Fortunately, another beastkin dragged the rabbit beastkin away as if abducting her, and the incident petered out.
Besides them, there were daughters of nobles or merchants, as well as women of other races with angel-like appearances, known as the Heavenly Wing race.
I began getting involved with all sorts of women.
...
A short while later, in the crew lounge.
"Whew..."
After confirming that no one was around, I leaned back in my chair, gazed at the ceiling, and sighed.
The attention from the female students was beyond anything I had imagined.
Perhaps because that attention was genuinely innocent, it felt even more mentally exhausting than I had imagined.
After staring blankly at the ceiling for a while, I suddenly became conscious of the formal, suit-like crew uniform I was wearing.
It was a crew uniform made to meet the formal standards required when dealing with nobles.
In other words, it was a suffocating outfit.
'It's suffocating...'
It was the lounge, and there was no one wandering around nearby, so it should be fine, right?
Once that thought occurred to me, I immediately busied my hands to make myself comfortable.
I undid the top buttons of the crew uniform, took off my hat and tossed it aside, then ran a hand through my hair, and my body finally relaxed a little.
"Phew..."
Once I could breathe a little, I began to wonder why I had to do this in the first place.
I had come partly to confront the unidentified organization, but why was I doing a crew member's job that had never been part of my plans?
"The chairman..."
Oh, right. Because of that damn woman.
"..."
Actually, there was something I hadn't told Ariel.
It was true that a way for high-ranking nobles to board this train really existed.
Nothing I had told Ariel was a lie.
Right. There were no lies, but there was information I had left out.
No matter how skilled House Nebula was at threats and negotiations, there were definite limits.
The reason everything had proceeded so smoothly in just three days was that it had been made possible by the cooperation of the chairman of [Crocus Academy].
The only remnant of the hero still left in this world.
The holy sword belonging to the nameless hero who had slain the Demon King with immense power gained through a contract forgotten even by history.
The chairman of [Crocus Academy] was the spirit within that holy sword.
"Damn..."
And the condition the chairman had imposed was this.
[It is impossible to fully trust your words.]
[But since an attack really could occur, I propose a deal.]
[I will cooperate, so as long as you are aboard the train, work as a perfect crew member.]
[In exchange, if the attack really does occur, I will grant one request, so long as it does not go beyond reasonable bounds.]
Because I had accepted these terms, working as a crew member was an extra burden never meant for me.
“I understand, but…”
An attack on the dedicated train bound for the academy.
It was something that had never happened despite [Crocus Academy] having existed for hundreds of years.
And yet the one who had brought information about an attack was not Duke Nebula, but his heir?
The people of the family already knew that I was the one with real power, but those who didn't know that naturally had no reason to take my words seriously.
It was almost strange that the chairman had even agreed to negotiate with me.
"..."
I began staring blankly at the ceiling to pass the time.
Since my smoke was beginning to spread through the train, it was more worthwhile to sit in one place and gather information than to walk around.
It was then, while I was refining the information conveyed through my smoke.
Crackle.
A subtle ringing suddenly sounded in my ear.
At the same time, Mist's voice began to sound in my head through the patch attached behind my ear.
[This is Mist. I found a somewhat concerning magic circle, and I need an expert's opinion. Saint Ariel, could you come to Room 12-3 for a moment?]
[This is Ariel. Yes, but there are many people around, so it may take a little time. I'll head there in about 30 minutes.]
[Understood.]
At the sound coming from Bellias's special communicator, I straightened the clothes I had left undone and got to my feet.
I had rested enough, so it was time to move.