Taming the Evil Saintess

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The train as a means of transportation was far from being commonplace on the continent due to several practical reasons.

Trains were primarily used to connect vast specific sections of the continent, mostly consisting of freight cars, while passenger cars were relatively few in number. Even those were considered an exotic mode of travel for the upper class due to their expensive prices, which dictated the current position of trains in the continent.

Thus, it was only natural that Ophelia and I, taking such a train, had to disguise ourselves as upper-class nobles.

“Alright, stand in front of the mirror like that.”

There was no need for Ophelia to worry. As much as I hated to admit it, Ophelia’s looks were quite outstanding. They say the completion of fashion lies in the face, after all. In that sense, Ophelia was the best model one could ask for.

Just draping on noble clothing sold at the market made her look stylish.

The problem lay with me.

Watching me in front of the mirror, Ophelia slapped her forehead.

“Elliot, you….”

“Don’t say it, I already know.”

“You really look absolutely ridiculous.”

Brushing off my protests, Ophelia came closer and fixed my tie around my neck. It felt a bit too close for comfort, but it seemed like Ophelia was conscious of it too, judging by the slight redness in her ears.

“Ahem.”

Stepping back, Ophelia took a glance over my outfit and then remarked.

“No matter how good the clothes are, you still look like a nouveau riche….”

That was a blunt fact.

“Ophelia, isn’t that a bit too harsh?”

“No, how can it look this mismatched?”

When I had my hero profile shot back in the Empire, I was clad in plain clothes, so I hadn’t realized it until now: this body of Elliot’s had nothing to do with elegance.

After some deliberation, Ophelia tried swapping my hat out for another and even used plain fabric instead of flashy colors, but the result remained the same.

“…Hmm.”

“Should we just go like this?”

I cautiously asked, and Ophelia nodded reluctantly.

“Well, there’s no choice. Let’s go as the nouveau riche and his daughter.”

“That’s not going to fly.”

I sharply rejected that idea.

*

Aside from my catastrophic fashion sense, there was one more overlooked fact.

Trains were a means of transportation.

I’m sure many would retort, but all I had to do was remember that my companion was Ophelia.

“…Crap.”

Ophelia was terrible at all forms of transport.

And the train was no exception.

While it was much better than the violent rocking of a ship or wagon, and even Blackie’s back, Ophelia still wasn’t doing well at all.

“Why didn’t I think of this….”

I sighed and began to pat her shoulder while she sat on my lap.

She curled up like a white cat, a gesture not befitting an adult.

Every time she moved, her bosom, which had notably increased over the past few years, brushed against me, making things a touch awkward.

“Just rest for now.”

The upside to this was that trains were the domain of the upper class.

Since I had reserved a luxurious first-class cabin, there was no big problem. I laid Ophelia down on the bed in our compartment and scanned the outer corridor.

The train was about to pass through a tunnel. At that moment, the lights inside the train would mostly go out.

Perfect timing for stealth.

I had intended to have Ophelia accompany me, given her expertise in lockpicking, but with her current condition, that was out of the question.

I had no choice but to break in.

I unfolded a white handkerchief and laid it over Ophelia’s face as a gesture of respect.

“Crap, I’m not dead.”

Ophelia whined, but I ignored her and headed towards the passenger compartment leading to the cargo hold.

There, I fixed my appearance in the restroom, waiting for the train to pass through the tunnel. At the same time, I took out a mask from my pocket and slipped it on my face. A fine outfit paired with a mask created quite the discord.

Shwoosh!

With a sound that felt like it could rip through the air, darkness enveloped the area.

I dashed through the unlit corridor using my enhanced vision.

“Cough!”

The crew member in the passage leading to the cargo hold didn’t manage to stop me. A light tap to the back of his neck took him out effortlessly.

The following cargo compartment was locked, but with a quick jab infused with mana to the connection, it opened easily.

The cargo hold was filled mostly with expensive items, as anything less wouldn’t meet their price standards.

“Is this the place?”

I recalled the specifications of the box listed in the request letter and surveyed my surroundings. The cargo hold was dark without a single light, but I ignited mana in my hand to see a short distance ahead.

It didn’t take long to locate what Gersen needed.

In the very center of the cargo hold, clearly within a lavish glass case, was an item.

What rested inside the glass case was a treasure chest, small enough to fit in Ophelia’s hand.

Maybe it contains a ring or something?

“Well, doesn’t matter.”

I walked up to the glass case and removed the cover.

It seemed magically secured, but I was quite confident in my mana management skills.

As I poured mana into the magical device and stirred it, a sharp ‘click’ sound echoed as it broke.

I picked up the treasure chest inside.

“Easy peasy.”

I began to wonder if it could be this simple.

Now, all I had to do was get off at the station right before the tunnel.

However, before returning, a strange curiosity brewed in me. What could possibly be inside this small chest that Gersen was willing to go after the future emperor’s item?

Slowly opening the lock on the chest, I—

Swoosh.

“Put that down and get lost.”

A strange voice.

At the same time, a chilling sensation spread across my neck.

Someone had placed a knife against my throat.

“Tsk.”

I clicked my tongue.

Failing to catch the presence of an intruder who approached behind me in the noisy train was clearly a blunder.

“Calm down, let’s handle this peacefully.”

I asked, but the man behind me responded by tightening the blade against my neck.

“First, shouldn’t we at least know who it is we’re dealing with?”

There was no way to shake off someone with a sword at my throat, even with my reputation.

So, I filled the void with idle chatter to stall for time.

The man chuckled softly and replied.

“An associate.”

An associate, huh….

“Are you here to steal this too?”

Though he didn’t reply, his silence was a confirmation.

Well, if information had fallen into the hands of the Mercenary King Gersen, it was unlikely others wouldn’t be interested either.

Surely, I wasn’t the only one aiming for the treasure.

“No further talk is needed. Hand that over and I’ll spare your life.”

I shrugged at the man’s words.

“Sorry, but I need this item too.”

“It’s not something a punk like you should covet.”

“Punk? Do you know who I am?”

At my question, the man scoffed and kicked out my heel, throwing off my balance.

“Common thug.”

“Ha, if I was a thug, I’d have set a bomb on the tracks. I would’ve opened the safe clumsily too.”

“What?”

The man misunderstood and asked again, and I took the opportunity to toss the jewelry box behind me.

He turned around to chase after the flying box, and amid that window, I lowered my stance and lunged at him.

No weapons were permitted, so there was only my fist.

“Ugh!”

The man was taken aback and swung his sword, but I countered by throwing a mana-infused punch that knocked it aside.

I seized his legs and wedged him under my arm. He crashed to the floor of the cargo compartment.

As I crushed his left hand, he cried out in agony and dropped his sword. Not letting my guard down, I gripped his neck.

“Alright, let’s check that meathead of yours.”

Pinning him to the ground, I pulled off the mask he was wearing.

Revealing a plain-faced man.

His attire screamed typical thug.

“Which group do you belong to?”

“I can’t tell you…!”

“Really? Then I’ll just have to make you.”

“What?”

There were several ways to do this.

Among them, the most effective one was….

“I’m planning to hand you over to the imperial guard just like this.”

“What?”

“You’re caught attempting to steal the princess’s belongings by an upstanding citizen like me. I mean, wouldn’t decapitation be an honorable way to go?”

“That’s utter nonsense!”

“Hey now, think about it. Who of us two is more credible? At least I look like I could be from a noble lineage, right?”

“You look absolutely ridiculous for that!”

“….”

It seemed not all of Ophelia’s opinions were invalid.

Feeling quite frustrated, I pulled his hair and slammed his head down onto the train floor a couple of times.

“Ugh, what kind of scum—!”

“Now that’s harsh. We’re both here to steal, aren’t we?”

Of course, handing him over to the guards was my last resort.

I didn’t want to take the risk of failing the request either.

It would be wiser to slip away quietly here.

“So, who sent you? If you don’t answer, you’re gonna die at my hands.”

“…Ugh.”

“Soon, the train will pass through a tunnel. At that point, you won’t have darkness to escape into, you know?”

It seemed that the slight punishment made him realize I was serious.

I picked up the sword he had dropped, and finally, he revealed the truth.

“It’s a guild! It was the guild that sent me.”

“Adventurer Guild? Mercenary Guild? Which one?”

“Th-that….”

Just as he was about to speak, my body started to float.

No, it wasn’t just my body. The cargo, the man beneath me, the treasure chest—all of it was lifted into the air.

It was only after that that I realized gravity had not disappeared, but the explosion that followed confirmed it.

Boom!

“Crap….”

It’s a classic scene from Westerns.

The outrageous stories of bandits planting bombs on the tracks.

How ironic that right now, that was precisely what was happening.

BAM!

The derailing train flipped over.