Here It Is
Car 1. As Mihail Raymond stepped into the compartment directly behind the engine room, he glanced around. Not a single person in sight. Though Car 1 was a first-class section with more generous spacing and luxurious seating compared to the others, the complete absence of passengers still felt odd. It stood in stark contrast to the other cars, packed shoulder-to-shoulder with people, yet Mihail showed no surprise. The reason this car was empty was because he had rented the entire thing for himself and his entourage.
"……"
The mage unit tasked with guarding the crown prince entered first, scanning the surroundings. They were already on high alert, wary of anything suspicious.
"I really don't matter at all, do I?"
Among them, a man who had been sitting alone in the spacious Car 1 without receiving so much as a greeting let out a dry laugh and shook his head. He was an ordinary-looking middle-aged man with a short sports cut and traces of time etched across his face. Even with the mage unit glaring at him with hostile vigilance, he showed not the slightest tension. Meeting Mihail's eyes, he casually raised a hand.
"Hey, welcome."
His attitude was so arrogant it bordered on treating the crown prince like an old drinking buddy. Considering this was their first meeting, his demeanor was blatantly disrespectful.
"Ah, do I need to use formal speech? I don't bother with it except when talking to Master, but if you want, I can. After all, you're the one who paid for this expensive magic train first-class ticket."
"No need. This isn't exactly an official setting, and I've never expected courtesy from someone in the underworld like you."
Mihail thought the man's nickname suited him perfectly as he focused more on the money than the crown prince's title. With a blank expression, he took the seat across from him.
"If you wanted, you could ride something like this anytime."
"I like making money, not spending it. Isn't the best part of this world using someone else's cash?"
Following right behind Mihail as he sat was a man with silver hair that faintly reflected a blue sheen in the sunlight, giving off an icy impression. Lucian Philodein, the man in charge of the crown prince's security detail. Under that piercing gaze, the man flashed a loose grin and leaned back into the plush seat.
"Ease up a little. It's such a nice seat—if you keep glaring like that, I can't even enjoy it properly."
"……"
"I get that you're tense, but don't go spreading that tension to everyone else, yeah? We're allies right now, at least."
"……"
"Honestly, what's the point of being tense? If I were an enemy, I could've wiped out the crown prince and everyone else here in an instant."
Arrogant beyond measure. It was an insolent attitude to take in front of a 7-star mage, but the man before them had every right to say such things. He was Greed, one of the Seven Deadly Sins of the underworld—and one of the few 8-star superhumans on the continent.
"The mission's the same. Protect the crown prince and every passenger on this train. I won't go so far as to suggest we become friends, but at least let's not glare at each other the whole time?"
Greed pulled out a soda from somewhere, poked a straw into it, and took a long sip while leaning toward the side seat. Sprawled across a three-person bench all by himself, he let one leg dangle into the aisle and closed his eyes.
"Ah, I really want a smoke. Guess even first-class can't do anything about the no-smoking rule?"
The way he clicked his tongue in regret was the very picture of a good-for-nothing adult. To think someone like this lazy, deadbeat uncle was one of the peaks of the current underworld. In a different sense, Mihail really didn't want him meeting Marily. It wouldn't be good for her education.
"The civilians' safety is guaranteed, right?"
Perhaps because the man's appearance didn't inspire much confidence, Mihail spoke with clear distrust in his eyes.
"It's fine."
Greed rolled onto his side. Then, propping his head up with his right arm while scratching his stomach with his left, he answered.
"The underworld has been granted permission for large-scale operations. However, indiscriminately harming civilians is not allowed."
"……"
"We don't want war with the Ellemental Kingdom either. I remember the terms of the deal clearly. Wouldn't want to get stuck with compensation fees for no reason."
I won't break the promise if it means losing my own money. It was a very Greed-like reason, and far more convincing than any lofty claim about the greater good.
"For someone saying that, you sure were quick to use me as bait."
This was the reason Lucian Philodein had been glaring at Greed from the moment he entered Car 1. It was also why the crown prince had canceled the airship reservation and chosen to travel by magic train, passing through other territories on the way back to the capital.
"Couldn't be helped. We originally planned to catch them before crossing the border, but they moved faster than expected."
Who would have imagined an 8-star superhuman would send his subordinates ahead separately, using his own movements as bait? Pride's scolding still rang vividly in his ears—how could he not have thought of something so simple, and was he trying to disappoint Master again? If that was the case, he should have taken command himself.
"Besides, it's not even dangerous bait. All we did was change the transportation from airship to train on the way to the capital."
Yes, that was all the underworld had asked of the crown prince. An airship had limited space for fighting and made protecting people difficult. In the worst case, if the core was destroyed, everyone aboard would be doing a bungee jump without a rope. Considering the altitude airships flew at, only expert-level ability users would have any chance of surviving.
"On top of that, I even boarded personally just in case. Even for a crown prince, getting guarded by a superhuman isn't exactly an easy thing, you know?"
Whether it was Count Cayenne guarding the border region with the Fan Empire or Hounds Mendelsohn, the headmaster of Benedict Academy—the continent's top magic institution—superhuman-level forces usually handled the core of a nation.
"Just sit back and enjoy yourself. Look out the window and enjoy the scenery. By the time we reach our destination, everything will be resolved without you even noticing."
Everything would proceed according to the deal. The underworld would handle all matters related to the Tugwi Guard. There was no reason for them to get involved. With Greed—an excessive force—assigned to the crown prince, the other side had also deployed forces far beyond what was needed to deal with small fry.
"I certainly hope so."
The train began to depart. Watching the scenery outside the window change with an uneasy gaze, Mihail let out a deep sigh. Despite speaking so confidently, the man still failed to inspire even an ounce of trust as he lounged lazily in his seat, sipping soda. Mihail shot him a resentful look.
At this rate, relaxing like he said is probably out of the question.
Until they arrived safely at their destination without incident, he wouldn't be able to let his guard down completely.
It was a truly sudden attack. It began with the train gradually slowing down. The moment the man sensed something wrong with the deceleration and stood up, thinking it was time to begin, the cargo car shook violently as if a powerful earthquake had struck. What followed was a brief moment of weightlessness. As the floor tilted and their bodies floated into the air along with the heavy cargo, they finally realized what was happening.
They were falling.
BOOOOOOM!
The cargo car that had plummeted from the sky sent the shallow valley water beneath it splashing high in all directions. The car crashed against the rocks and gravel below, partially breaking apart.
"Damn it."
The man who smashed open the crumpled cargo car's door and emerged cursed under his breath. Looking up, he saw a towering cliff and waterfall. Above it, a thick bridge came into view as he assessed the situation. Someone had detached the cargo car connected to the train. Then dropped it beneath the bridge.
This was clearly intentional. The fact that only one cargo car had been dropped instead of the entire train could only mean they had known about their presence and targeted them specifically.
"One, two, three, four, five, six……"
As if to confirm his suspicion, a voice belonging to the presumed culprit soon rang out. Sitting atop a protruding rock on the cliff, the attacker pointed at the survivors one by one with his finger.
"Seven, eight, nine, ten, eleven, twelve, thirteen."
After confirming their numbers, he grinned.
"And finally, fourteen. Perfect match."
Something the attacker threw landed in front of the wrecked cargo car. With a light splash, a man's corpse appeared—his joints twisted in the opposite direction. No, it was a half-corpse, barely clinging to life as it twitched faintly. He had been the subordinate who had been reporting on the crown prince boarding the train from outside just moments ago. At the sight of his horrific state, the man's expression twisted savagely.
"Who are you?"
"……"
In response to the man's—Do-cheol's—words, the attacker jumped down from the rock without a word. Despite his massive frame, he landed silently on the valley water without so much as a splash. Then he slowly walked toward Do-cheol and spoke.
"You look awkward. It's rare for me to meet someone bigger than myself."
The attacker's build was large as well, but Do-cheol was still a head taller. Not to mention the scars covering his body like medals. For a 7-star martial artist to end up like this meant his life had never been smooth. He had likely brushed against death multiple times.
No, maybe he already died once.
With that idle thought, the attacker arrived in front of Do-cheol. Looking up at him, he grabbed his hair without warning.
"Your eyes are too high."
BOOM!
The attacker—Wrath, one of the Seven Deadly Sins of the underworld—slammed Do-cheol's head into the valley floor. A louder explosion than when the cargo car had fallen echoed in all directions.
"The only one allowed to look down on me like that is Master."
Well, maybe Pride when he was scolding him for a mistake. With eyes twisted by madness toward his master, he was terrifying enough to suppress even his own rage.
"Attack!"
At the preemptive strike against their leader, the Tugwi Guard quickly drew their weapons. Mana wrapped around their bodies like tangible force as they circulated their inner energy. It seeped deep into their muscles, granting physical abilities beyond human limits and rapidly accelerating their movements.
"This is troublesome."
These were people who had survived falling from a great height while buried under heavy cargo. They were the ones originally planning to terrorize the airship. All of them were expert-level martial artists who had reached at least 5-star, surrounding him and launching their attacks.
"I'm not very good at controlling my strength, though."
He took a step. A shockwave rapidly expanded outward from the foot he planted. The valley water, which had been rushing violently due to the waterfall, instantly calmed. A stillness spread around Wrath. On his lips, an uncontrollable, destructive smile formed.
"Just don't die. I refuse to listen to Pride's nagging because of you lot."
The stillness transformed into motion. The air was pushed away in an instant. All those approaching him were blown backward by the intense wave of mana radiating in every direction. They bounced across the valley water multiple times before crashing into the cliffs.
"……!"
Something pierced through the pushed-aside air and flew straight toward Wrath's forehead. It was literally lightning-fast. A single flash of light like a beam sliced through the mana wave Wrath had released and pierced his brow.