Boarding the Mana Train to Frostwood Citadel
Twenty-three minutes after leaving the gates of the Imperial Academy in Karimille. If your pace is on the slower side, call it a generous twenty. There stood the Karimille train station, proud and imposing.
"Was it always this close...?" Beni murmured, gazing up at it. There was a strange sense of emptiness in her voice.
Well, can you blame her? The first time she came to school, she couldn't find this short path and ended up circling around endlessly. Karimille's streets are a maze, sure, but Beni's sense of direction back then was on another level of disastrous.
"Didn't you take the train to get here?"
"I did, but... it just feels so strange now..."
She seemed embarrassed to admit it outright, so she deftly changed the subject. I had no intention of dwelling on it either, so I quietly checked my watch.
"The train should already be in by now. Let's head out."
"Yes!"
"Got it, ma'am."
Even though the station was relatively close to the academy, we'd left with plenty of time to spare. We still had about fifteen minutes until departure. But mana trains typically stopped for around thirty minutes, so it was probably already there.
Sure enough, as we headed to the platform, a massive, rugged locomotive sat neatly on the tracks. It looked like a horizontal cylinder, painted jet black, evoking images of the steam engines I'd only seen in pictures. The difference? No smokestack. It was the epitome of eco-friendly transport.
Including grinding humans into it for fuel—which is where the eco-friendliness becomes a problem.
Still, I'd never felt guilty about riding one. The ones getting pulverized to death were irredeemable monsters who weren't even remotely human. Sure, some came to earn quick cash or volunteered as batteries because they couldn't afford third-class tickets... but they regulated it so there were no health issues. Of course, "not squeezing too hard" didn't mean it wasn't grueling work. That's why they paid so well.
Take Beni right here—she'd been running deliveries all day, which should leave anyone laid up for at least a full day after, but she was clocking five days a week. That's what caught the supervisor's eye as unusual.
"Miss Beni. Not that way."
Scratch that. She wasn't exactly next to me anymore.
She'd naturally gravitated toward the locomotive at the front, only freezing in surprise at my words.
"Ah, sorry. Force of habit... I've only ever boarded from the front."
I let out a sigh of relief at her explanation. For a second, I'd feared she'd triggered "Number Two Bad Habit for Directionally Challenged People: Suddenly Veering Off into a Side Path." Apparently not.
"Hm? Hold on a moment. Does that mean you rode in the locomotive even coming to the academy? They must have covered your transport costs."
"Well... it felt like a waste..."
Fair enough, from a poor girl's perspective. They probably allocated enough for second-class... which wasn't chump change. Burning that on a single day's commute would sting. Third-class was an option, but if you're pinching pennies, might as well go all in.
"Second-class is a first for me too!"
Riley shouted in response. Her reasons were the polar opposite of Beni's, though. She'd probably ridden first-class. As foreign royalty in all but name, they couldn't stick her anywhere lower—and sealing this hyperactive giant dog in a private cabin made sense too.
"Second-class? Not third?"
"Neither."
"What?! Th-then first-class...? That's overkill..."
I'd be fine with third. Beni looked like she was about to say exactly that.
Yeah. Honestly, I get it. Why shell out extra for assigned seats? I wanted to bask in a sweltering third-class car packed with plump ladies pressing in from all sides. I'd tried it once on leave—man, the foggy heat from all those bodies, getting jostled and squished... pure bliss.
But that joy didn't last. The Angras Empire had great benefits for wounded soldiers, including free second-class mana train rides. No idea why active-duty folks got it too... Anyway, every time I'd go buy a third-class ticket, a station attendant would grab me and drag me to second-class.
Can't exactly make a limping soldier stand the whole way. Sure, I could hide the injury—thicken my aura into an exoskeleton and walk normally. But that wastes aura in the air, which bugs me.
Sounds like some PTSD vet who can't let go of their gun post-discharge... but this world's full of monsters popping out anywhere. Cities are safe-ish, but rural areas? Straight out of Joseon-era Korea with beasts prowling like mountain lions. Sea things slinking into villages from river mouths.
They had "lighthouses" at estuaries for defense, but security's made to be breached. Small fry riding rivers inland causing casualties wasn't rare. Humans can't live completely cut off from water.
Train stations and tracks got decent protection, but to my 21st-century Korean eyes, it was still a danger zone. Going unarmed just to satisfy some lust? Nah. And even if I did... this cane came with my sergeant stripes. Forgetting it by accident screams rudeness.
"With Lady Riley here, we can't go below second-class anyway."
"Ah... yeah, you're right."
Beni nodded in agreement. You can't shove VIPs into standing third-class. Second-class was the bare minimum; first-class was the norm otherwise. Beni had only recently gotten used to it, and since she didn't flaunt her status, it was hard to feel real... but Riley was nobility too. Beni had been floored when she first learned.
"Thanks to you, Lady Riley, I get to try first-class."
"Hmph. Don't mention it."
"Better get used to it. You'll be riding it plenty over the next three years."
"Three years... yeah. Unless I quit the club early, it'll be until graduation..."
She trailed off, eyes glazing over as she pondered something. Probably multiplying first-class fares by her expected trips over three years.
But that distraction didn't last. The moment we boarded the first-class car, her eyes widened at the sleek interior. Can I really go in here? Her legs hesitated, as if thinking that.
"Whoa!"
"Eek?!"
...Riley charged ahead without a thought for Beni's sudden stop. Beni staggered from the shoulder-check—no, boob-check—and I steadied her by the shoulder.
"Th-thank you..."
Tempting as it was to play dumb and pull her into a hug... twisting an ankle would be a hassle, so I held back. Stop looking up at me like a lost puppy. That mix of anxiety and tension was agonizingly tease-worthy.
Of course, as a pro masochist, I wouldn't fall for it. But no guarantee others wouldn't.
Yes—limited aggro on one sandbag means competition...!
"Lady Riley. Let's work on watching where you're going."
"Oh. Sorry. You okay?"
"Y-yeah. I'm fine."
...Shaking off those weird thoughts, I cleared my throat lightly and corrected her. Minor slip-ups in the club were fine, but causing issues with outsiders reflected on me as chaperone.
"So, where are our seats?"
"Let's see... this way."
I checked our tickets and found our room. First-class was a long corridor lined with rooms on both sides. More like a downsized dorm than a train—Beni trailed me, gasping in awe.
"This is... a seat? Oh my god..."
The interior matched. Sliding doors opened to plush sofas flanking a table for two. Big windows for scenery, curtains with elegant patterns. Not seats—a mini room.
"This is actually one of the cheaper first-class options."
"Th-this is?"
"Bed compartments are nicer. Sometimes shared by groups."
Our trip was just over two hours—no need for beds.
"Let's stow our bags first. Can't stand forever."
"R-right."
We dumped our stuff in the corner and sat. Naturally, I got the solo spot. The gulf between students and faculty ran deep. Not that I minded—the view was nice.
I glanced at the silver chain on Riley's waist, then averted my eyes, worried I'd stared too long. She hadn't noticed, so I smoothly changed topics.
"Miss Beni, ever been to Yugten?"
"Uh... no. First time."
"Ma'am, you didn't ask me?"
"Yours would be a problem if you had. Have you?"
"Nope!"
Yes. Figured as much. I sighed softly and muttered to myself.
Of course. Her official entry to the Empire was recent—prior visits would've meant smuggling.
"I've heard the name, though. Something about frostwood trees..."
"More precisely, 'freezing trees.'"
Yugten—Frostwood Citadel—lived up to its name with a special tree at its heart. Not fruit-bearing ice or translucent blue, though. Folks imagine that, but it just supernaturally chilled the air around it.
"Looks like a normal tree on the surface. Big, but approaching it closely is forbidden."
"So you've been there, Lieutenant?"
"Yes. Once."
I nodded at Beni's question.
"Frostwood leaves retain their effect even after falling. The tree also mass-produces ice via its chill. Where do you think it's used most?"
"Restaurants? Keeps food from spoiling."
"Right on food preservation. But not in regular eateries—people are cheaper."
Obvious conclusion. Overhyped 1st Circle mages littering the streets vs. leaves from one unique tree—which is rarer?
"In other words, frostwood leaves go where 'human mana' is pricier. More precisely, where mana value is high."
Tap. I drummed my forehead tattoo.
"The military."
Conscript armies run cheap labor, and the Angras Empire's no exception. But mana expenditure changes that. Mana makes fire, ice, flight. Aura boosts soldiers, enables lethal spells.
Mana's mission capacity, endurance, fuel, ammo, meds—an all-in-one miracle any Starcraft alien would envy.
Thus, people are the military's priciest resource. Aura recharges with food and rest, but combat leaves no time. Can't afford mana drain from AC leading to ammo shortages in ambushes.
So armies substitute humans where possible. Steam engines? No coal or oil in this eco-isekai...
"Basic use is preserving rations and meds, plus hospital cooling. Strategic material—most leaves go to the military."
"Was that requisition trip why you went?"
Beni guessed along the flow. I shook my head.
"Went to suppress lunatics trying to torch strategic assets."
"Ah."
Technically, our band assisted suppression forces, but close enough.
"So yeah, memorable city."
Not for beauty, but the beatin' I dished out... Water under the bridge. I shoved the memory aside and gazed out the window.
Vibrations hummed through my seat as the scenery began to shift. Soon, the mana train pulled away from Karimille station.