“This train is a sleeper limited express bound for Tansen via Shubiland. A sleeper limited express ticket is required in addition to a regular boarding ticket.”
The conductor’s announcement played throughout the train, which had already left the Sherun metropolitan area and was speeding through the canal-lined countryside. The inside of the train car had a modern design, and its many passengers were each spending their time however they pleased.
An elderly woman sitting in a corner booth large enough for several people spotted a conductor and called out to him.
“Excuse me, I’d like to ask about this ticket.” The elderly lady stopped the conductor, holding up the ticket she had taken out. But the conductor had a somewhat cold look in his eyes. He looked down at the elderly woman and brushed aside her hand.
“Sorry, but ask another employee. I don’t know.”
“Um… What do you mean by that?” the elderly lady politely asked. But the conductor simply took off his hat and shook his bangs out without answering. It was Tsushima.
“Guess I’ll drop being a conductor. Causes weird misunderstandings.”
The elderly lady tilted her head, confused by Tsushima talking to himself. Ignoring her reaction, Tsushima tossed his hat out of a slightly open window. Then he shrugged at her before leaving the train car.
He had put on a stolen train station uniform in order to escape their pursuers. Their other diversions seemed to have done their job, as there was not a single person following him.
Loosening the tie of his uniform, Tsushima headed toward the prearranged train car. When he reached the passageway between cars, an announcement played.
“The next stop is East Sherun Station. We’ll be arriving shortly.”
The sleeper limited express gradually slowed, reaching East Sherun Station, located about twelve miles away from the massive Sherun Station. An exposed platform passed by the window, a sharp contrast from Sherun Station’s indoor departure areas.
Tsushima was relieved to spot two familiar people among the numerous passengers. When the train doors opened, he stuck out his face and gave them a signal.
Holy had left Sherun in Joe’s car earlier. They had arranged for Tsushima to throw off the Fourth Division by himself, then join back up with her at East Sherun Station.
Joe was the first to notice Tsushima. He raised his hand and approached him.
“Yo! How’d it go?”
“The battery life’s way better than it used to be. I’m impressed.”
“Right? I’ve been improving it in the ten years since I last saw you.” Joe grinned happily and puffed out his chest in an exaggerated manner.
Tsushima also smiled slightly, saying, “A decade is a bit of an exaggeration.”
Joe had handcrafted the masquerade mannequins Tsushima had used at the station. The man was a world-class talent in the realm of mannequin making, and he was likely the only one who could produce such sophisticated decoys.
The two men exchanged some friendly banter, but Holy, standing next to them, looked displeased. Only then did Tsushima remember he hadn’t properly explained the details of the operation to her.
Feeling a little awkward, he cleared his throat.
“So everything’s all right?” Holy asked, her eyes meeting Tsushima’s.
“It’s all going according to plan. Now we just have to ride this, and we’ll reach the Middle Sea by tomorrow.” Tsushima patted the blue body of the train and extended a hand to Holy.
“I guess it’s fine in that case.” Still showing some traces of dissatisfaction, Holy took his hand and jumped onto the train.
Joe watched their interaction with a smile and then dramatically clapped his hands when he saw Tsushima’s conductor outfit.
“Oh, that’s right. Almost forgot this—your trademark jacket,” Joe said, taking a coat from the bag he was holding.
“Guess I can’t keep wearing this conductor outfit forever, huh? Thanks.”
“Ah, but that look isn’t bad on you, either,” Joe teased, mixing in one of his favorite jokes. Tsushima looked at him and forced an embarrassed laugh in return. Then he changed his outfit on the spot, taking a cash-filled envelope from his pocket and tossing it to Joe.
“Here’s the money I promised you. Use it to lie low somewhere for a while; I’ll probably need your help again sometime.”
“Hey, whoa! Isn’t this more than I asked for?”
“I just said, didn’t I? That I’ll need your help again.”
“So it’s a deposit, then? I like how you roll! Take care now.”
The train whistle blew, signaling its departure. Left behind on the platform, Joe gave the two of them a final, slightly wistful look.
“Can’t believe you’re going this hard just for a job. I’m kinda relieved to see that old look back in your eyes.”
“Old look?” Tsushima asked. Joe pointed to Holy.
“Protect your client all the way to the end this time. With how you are now—”
Joe’s words were cut off by the door closing, preventing Holy and Tsushima from hearing what he had to say.
On the other side of the closed door, Joe raised his hand slightly to say good-bye. As the train started moving, he turned around and walked off.
As the two watched Joe depart from inside the moving train, Holy looked up at Tsushima.
“What’s up?” he asked.
“When Joe said, ‘this time’ just now, what did he mean?”
“Beats me.”
Way to spoil my mood with those last words. Although Tsushima cursed Joe inwardly, he couldn’t completely deny what the man had pointed out. When it came to girls of that age in the Balga Empire, Tsushima couldn’t help but get emotionally attached.
“Joe was just bringing up something minor from the past. Let’s not stand around. C’mon, get a move on.”
“There you go dodging the question again.”
As Holy directed those words of suspicion at him, Tsushima entered the train car.
He checked his ticket and started walking toward the second-class passenger compartments. Holy followed along like a tourist, looking around as if it were her first time on a sleeper train.
“Hey, these are private compartments, aren’t they? So do they also have baths and toilets?” Holy asked in a truly easygoing way. Then she even added, “Can we take a look at the other passenger rooms?”
Exasperated, Tsushima gestured for her to zip her lip.
“There’s no guarantee this train is perfectly safe. Don’t let your guard down.”
“What?! Didn’t you shake off the people chasing us?”
“We can’t be sure. If Informationists come after us in full force, we’ll have to readjust our plan on the fly.”
Tsushima glanced back at Holy as they moved through the passenger aisle. Seeing the look in his eyes, she also seemed to regain some of her nervousness.
They looked at a map of the train’s layout and saw they would need to pass through the dining car to reach their private compartment. Holy’s eyes lit up when she heard the words dining car. Tsushima led the way ahead.