Chapter 45
Chapter 45
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Translator: penny
Chapter: 45
Chapter Title: At the Eastern Gateway
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The train arrived at the Eastern Gateway.
Enji paused while carrying a large box. She was a station employee.
The station where the train stopped had few passengers but had been built with a lot of money, making it quite splendid.
The already quiet platform felt even more desolate today due to the rare rain, adding to the gloomy weather.
Enji hurried along, grumbling.
“Uh……?”
A forest scent wafted from somewhere. More precisely, it was the aroma of standing in the heart of a dense, rain-soaked forest.
Looking around, Enji spotted a person leaning against a pillar outside.
Standing in the obliquely shadowed spot, his face wasn’t visible, but from his silhouette, he appeared to be a tall young man.
Was he watching the rain, or waiting to pick someone up?
‘But the platform exit is on the opposite side…….’
Unknowingly, Enji stopped in her tracks and stared at him intently.
It felt as if the air in that space flowed more slowly.
The day suddenly sharpened, and only the sound of rain grew louder.
In fact, she wasn’t the only one who had stopped.
Though not bold enough to approach and speak, the people passing through the platform kept glancing his way.
Dazed for some reason, Enji stood there lost in thought for a long while.
What was that scent again?
The train’s main passengers were wealthy commoners, so it wasn’t unheard of, but occasionally there were some.
Passengers who smoked cigarettes with a unique, calming aroma instead of the harsh-smelling tobacco.
Enji knew they were an outrageously expensive luxury item.
It was ambiguous whether it was the smell of dense woods or wet earth, but Enji knew what that fragrance was called.
A colleague had told her a few days ago.
‘White agarwood.’
That’s right, it was white agarwood. Recalling it, Enji felt a bit proud of herself.
Distracted by the man, Enji reacted a beat late when an unfamiliar voice called from behind.
“Excuse me.”
“Huh?”
Enji startled and turned around.
The one who had stopped her was a stranger.
“Are you Miss Enjulos Dilrov?”
“Uh…… yes, that’s me.”
Called by her disliked full name after a long time, Enji made a sullen face.
But soon, she grew a little frightened.
The man questioning her showed no expression.
Judging by his dark skin, he seemed to be from the desert tribes. Though not particularly menacing, something about him was scary.
Strangely, his features were so vague that she doubted she’d recognize him if they met again. Even facing him directly, that’s how it felt.
“What is it?”
“I’m Hardin. I’m looking for a passenger. Were you working on the train to Akten six days ago, Miss Enjulos?”
“Six days ago…… ah! Yes. That’s right.”
Only then did Enji slightly lower her guard.
It had been a huge incident. Anyone who knew her even a little wanted to ask about it. Things had been chaotic for days.
That day, Enji had truly thought she was going to die.
When men drew swords, took passengers hostage, and started fighting among themselves, she thought she was done for right there.
Mid-conversation, Enji glanced at the man called Hardin.
Was he affiliated with some group too?
After the incident, investigators had come.
To grasp the situation, they questioned passengers and crew who had been on the train, but getting unsatisfactory answers, they soon shook their heads and left.
The staff hushed it among themselves, but rumor had it that the Forest Folk and the large Crimson Wheel Guild were involved.
The Crimson Wheel Guild had recently gained notoriety in the east, making money through illegal underground businesses, earning a bad reputation.
At the moment swords clashed, Enji had conveniently fainted, and when she woke, everything was over.
Fortunately, the situation ended without casualties.
To be precise, the armed group was subdued, and the Forest Folk, who hadn’t revealed their identities, slipped away leisurely.
The Grand Duke of Akten dispatched investigators, but it was just a formality.
Enji’s fellow employees whispered that the Akten lord and the Crimson Wheel Guild were in cahoots, so no punishment would follow.
But shouldn’t they be punished?
“People like that not getting punished is outrageous!”
Outraged, Enji insisted, and the man who introduced himself as Hardin listened silently before getting to the point.
“The person I’m looking for was on that train.”
Hardin calmly described the passenger he sought.
Light brown hair, blue eyes, a woman in her twenties traveling alone. He casually showed a sketch-like portrait.
“Do you recognize her?”
“Yes, I remember her well.”
Forgetting her grumbling, Enji’s eyes sparkled. Solo female travelers were very rare, so she remembered her clearly.
“She definitely said she was going to the Eastern Gateway to meet her husband…….”
At those words, the ever-expressionless Hardin visibly flinched for the first time.
She always wore a veil, so Enji had seen her face only briefly, but she remembered her appearance vividly.
She was an unforgettable guest.
Her soft, flowing light brown hair shimmered silver in the sunlight with every movement.
A round forehead, gently downturned eyes, and pale cheeks like something out of a classical masterpiece. Such features weren’t common.
She had said she was on her way to meet her husband and even showed Enji her ring.
But paradoxically, Enji remembered those words because she hadn’t fully believed half of the story.
Having worked as crew for years and seen countless passengers, Enji had a kind of professional intuition.
The woman consistently wore a black veil. Ordinary married women didn’t dress like that.
She had an air of deep circumstances. Though Enji hadn’t pried, she seemed less like someone going to meet a lover and more like someone parting from one.
Realizing this, Enji snapped to attention.
“H-however, I can’t disclose passenger personal information!”
Enji belatedly invoked her professional duty. It seemed a bit late, but she tried to look as stern as possible.
It was just as Hardin, who had introduced himself as such, opened his mouth as if to persuade her.
“Husband.”
She sensed a presence behind her.
Before turning, Enji knew who it was.
The white agarwood scent tickled her nose.
It was the man who had been leaning on the pillar, watching the rain for so long.
Unknowingly, Enji caught her breath.
His attire was unremarkable.
In a station frequented by wealthy train passengers, the man’s plain clothes without a single accessory didn’t stand out. Yet, for some reason, it was hard to look away.
“...My lord.”
Hardin tried to interject, but the man raised a hand to silence him and smiled faintly at her.
“Did she say that? That he was her husband?”
“Ah…… yes.”
Enji stammered her answer as if entranced.
Truthfully, she was a bit startled.
His cool, expressionless eyes curved gently as he smiled lightly. His low voice carried an almost oppressive weight.
Enji snapped out of it.
Intuition struck her. The woman who had introduced herself as Lilian Seneca might have lied.
Her stated status and name all seemed fake.
And the reason she boarded the train with a false name was undoubtedly because of this man.
Enji gripped her box tighter and took a few cautious steps back, full of wariness.
Whatever Lilian Seneca’s real name was, she had used a false one and identity to evade this man.
Enji resolved not to give him any information. Stalker pursuing her, or a lover parted by unavoidable circumstances—how could she judge?
Whatever her true identity, she had been kind to Enji. Enji wanted to help her.
“I’m sorry, sir. But I can’t share personal passenger information.”
Gathering her courage, she spoke firmly, though still tense.
“I’m not asking for that, so no need to be on guard.”
The man, sharp as a honed blade, said calmly.
Enji hunched her shoulders defensively.
No matter what he said to coax her, she intended to reveal nothing.
But rendering her resolve pointless, the man didn’t ask where she went.
“Was she safe?”
“Yes?”
“I heard there was an incident.”
“Ah……. Yes. That’s right.”
Of course. She had been on that train too.
Only then did Enji realize that the first question someone looking for a passenger on that incident train would ask.
“Was she injured anywhere?”
Enji was startled.
For a fleeting moment, the man’s low voice as he asked sounded suppressed.
Like someone barely holding back emotions.