29
In a train with few passengers, the group that boarded en masse was bound to stand out.
Their clothes looked like uniforms from somewhere, but they were odd.
Uniforms usually have insignia, symbols, or medals that identify the wearer's rank or affiliation. But nowhere on their clothes was there any such marking.
That wasn't the only suspicious thing.
They had only passed by for a moment, but Juliet noticed something strange.
As they walked past, she saw that they had hidden mid-length swords inside their fluttering black cloaks.
Having been around the Duke's knights for seven years, Juliet couldn't possibly have failed to recognize them.
In principle, weapons were prohibited on the train.
Should she tell a crew member? But she worried that it might cause an even bigger commotion.
'...I hope it's nothing serious.'
Juliet glanced in the direction the men with the hidden swords had disappeared.
But the really strange thing happened when the train stopped at the next station. Another group of suspicious people piled onto the train.
They didn't seem to have swords, but they were clearly out of the ordinary even from a distance.
'They're really big.'
Juliet, who had been admiring them with wide eyes, briefly met the gaze of an middle-aged man who seemed to be the leader of the group.
He was a menacing man nearly two meters tall.
'He looks bigger than Sir Caine.'
Juliet calmly pretended to sip her tea, thinking of Caine, her former bodyguard.
But this man seemed even bigger than Caine, a former mercenary captain.
It was as if a bear had been humanized.
Unlike the group that had boarded earlier with large luggage, these men didn't seem to be hiding any weapons.
But they were all so burly that they didn't seem to need them.
Intuitively, it felt like this group would have the upper hand if they fought the men who had boarded earlier with hidden swords.
"…I'm sure of it. Roy is definitely on this train."
"Spread out and search as quietly as possible."
Roy?
Juliet hadn't intentionally eavesdropped on their suspicious conversation.
It seemed they were looking for someone.
As the train started again, the suspicious group soon moved to another car.
Juliet thought it would be best to return to her cabin before she got caught up in something troublesome.
She was also concerned about the men in black with the hidden swords, and having seen two suspicious groups, it was inevitable that something would go wrong.
'...But what about the scones?'
Juliet was reluctant, but decided she should return to her cabin. Her teacup was empty anyway, but just before Juliet stood up, Angie returned with a tray, and Juliet slowly sat back down.
'It wouldn't be bad to have tea and scones for lunch and then go back to my cabin. I can eat quickly and go back.'
"Sorry to keep you waiting! I'll hand them out one by one."
The people in the dining car, who had been eating politely, were filled with anticipation at the smell of freshly baked scones.
People sat quietly in their seats, waiting their turn like well-behaved children.
Angie, carrying the tray, had just reached Juliet when—
"Aaaagh!"
A faint scream was heard in the distance.
Then, the door to the dining car burst open.
"Everyone, don't move!"
And, sure enough.
Men in black uniforms appeared with cliché lines, drawing their swords and threatening the people in the dining car.
The only difference from before was that they were wearing black hoods that covered their lower faces.
"Kyaaagh!"
People screamed and slumped into their seats.
The men quickly scanned the people in the dining car, then pushed and threatened them with strangely curved jambiyas.
Crash!
Angie, who had been pushed, dropped the tray she was carrying.
With a loud noise, the metal tray overturned, and the scones spilled out.
Amidst the screams and panic, only Juliet remained calmly seated in her place.
Her gaze, holding a small dessert plate, was fixed on the tray of scones that had fallen to the floor.
It had all happened so quickly.
"L, listen. Let's put down the swords and talk…"
"Shut up!"
The man who had suddenly burst in grabbed a hostage to control the passengers. He chose the person who seemed easiest to subdue.
And he confidently shouted, holding a knife to the hostage's neck.
"You don't want to see this woman's head fly, so don't move!"
The man probably didn't realize what a mistake he had just made.
Unfortunately, the hostage the man had chosen was Juliet.
**
"!"
"Aaa, aaaaagh!"
The good-natured passengers obediently knelt down as the hostage-takers ordered, turning their backs.
In the suffocating tension, the passengers squeezed their eyes shut at the terrible scream that suddenly erupted from behind them.
The people thought that the poor woman who had been taken hostage had resisted and been killed.
These damned villains!
The terrified passengers trembled and inwardly lamented the hostage-takers' cruelty.
And they prayed that the poor woman who had been taken hostage had met the least painful death possible.
But the next moment, one of the masked hostage-takers crawled into their view.
"S, save me…!"
The hostage-taker thrashed on the floor in terror, as if he had seen something terrible, and then fainted.
'...Huh?'
The people in the train car, who had cautiously turned around, were even more puzzled.
What they saw were the men in black uniforms collapsed on the floor.
And the only person standing unharmed was a slender woman who didn't look threatening at all.
But Juliet didn't explain the situation to the bewildered passengers.
Tsk.
She glanced at the floor with a briefly regretful look, but it was only for a moment.
Juliet immediately opened the door to the next car slightly and checked the situation outside through the gap.
As expected, the outside was a chaotic mess, with the men with swords and the earlier group fighting.
Juliet released four or five butterflies through the door.
"Huh?"
"Again?"
"What is this… Aaaagh!"
And she let the excited butterflies flutter around the train.
The butterflies flew to the men who were indiscriminately wielding their swords, delivering nightmares and devouring their fears.
Marauders with murderous intent and malice. It was a feast for the butterflies, who grew stronger by devouring emotions.
It would probably take a long time for the butterflies to make a full circle around the train.
Leaving the terrible screams behind, Juliet calmly closed the door again.
It seemed like she needed to sort out the situation. Juliet thought intuitively.
These people weren't just ordinary train robbers.
There were two main groups causing chaos inside the train.
One group was the attackers who had boarded the train later. They were looking for something.
"Search every nook and cranny!"
"Sir!"
"Where are you, Roy!"
Juliet guessed that the person they were looking for was someone of high status.
The other group was the ones who had just taken Juliet hostage.
The men in black masks were probably the kidnappers who had brought 'Roy' here.
Attackers and kidnappers.
Juliet thought calmly.
It was none of her business.
But it was very much her business if the train didn't reach its destination properly.
Juliet thought it would be better to just return the kidnapped person to the attackers and resolve the situation.
But how?
How?
After thinking for a moment, Juliet suddenly remembered that the back of the dining car was the luggage car.
And that before the group in black masks boarded the train, they had definitely loaded some large luggage into this luggage car.
What could be in there that would warrant such measures?
"Ugh…"
The man in the black mask who had fallen to the floor writhed, unable to regain consciousness.
Juliet stepped on his hand once more as punishment for his insolence, then threw open the door to the luggage car.
Click.
The door opened easily, but it was so dark inside that she couldn't see anything at first.
She waited for her eyes to adjust to the darkness, but she didn't see anything special other than iron bars…
Wait, iron bars?
Juliet's eyes widened.
It was no wonder she couldn't see any other luggage.
Filling the entire luggage car was a huge cage made of iron bars, the kind used to transport violent carnivores.
Clang. The sound of heavy chains colliding.
Something moved in the darkness beyond the cage. The next moment, Juliet flinched in surprise.
A pair of golden eyes belonging to a huge beast were glaring fiercely at Juliet.
"…A wolf?"
Forgotten Juliet
