“What should I do with these guys?”
Yujin scanned the situation from atop the train roof.
Thud thud thud…
On the left side of the train, ten mounted bandits were positioned in a triangular formation—one at the front, two behind, three further back, and four at the rear.
They were arrayed in a classic cavalry charge formation.
He glanced to the right side of the train as well.
“Same there.”
Triangular cavalry formations flanked both sides of the train.
The spacing between each rider was consistent, indicating they were trained.
Considering they were skilled enough to snipe guards, they weren’t amateurs.
Probably mercenaries or former soldiers who had turned to banditry to make a living.
“There!”
“When did they get up there!?”
“We can’t get a clear shot!”
As expected, they were aware of the disturbance on the train’s roof, and some began separating from the group to create distance.
Most likely to find a clear shooting angle against the enemy above.
“You think I’ll just stand still?”
Clink!
Yujin drew shurikens from both sleeves and scattered them to either side with a flick of his wrists.
The sharpened metal shards shot out, glinting silver in the sunlight as they sliced through the air toward their targets.
Thwack!
The shurikens struck the bandits’ horses.
He could have targeted the riders directly, but striking the mounts was more effective.
Neighing frantically!
The horses began to panic as the metal shards pierced their flesh.
“Whoaaa!”
“Ah! Dodge!”
“They’re going to lose control! Scatter!”
The horses’ frenzy caused riders to fall off, becoming obstacles themselves.
Following horses tripped over the fallen riders, causing a cascade of mounts and bandits tumbling off the train’s sides.
“Did that cut them down by ten?”
Unfortunately, there were still ten riders left on both sides combined.
They had avoided the fallen comrades and spread their formation.
Now it was their turn to counterattack.
Clack!
The sound of metal clashing echoed.
A volley of rifle fire came simultaneously from ten marksmen.
Dodging by rolling aside was better than parrying with a dagger.
“Yikes!”
Bang! Tatat! Tatatata!
Bullets hammered against the train’s roof as Yujin dropped prone.
Judging by the shots, the bandits used bolt-action rifles with magazines holding 5–7 rounds.
Bang! Tatatata!
Three rounds left.
They had fired two before, so if he could just endure three more volleys, he’d find an opening.
Tatatataang!
Two rounds left.
Just two more volleys to wait through.
After a brief clank, the gunfire resumed.
Tatatang!
One round left—looks like one of them was out of ammo already.
The time had come.
Yujin slipped his hands into his sleeves.
He had a special weapon for situations like this, one against overwhelming numbers.
Tatatang!
“All out.”
He pulled two glass vials filled with magic stone powder from his sleeves.
The powder was imbued with a hallucinogenic enchantment.
Throwing them would quickly incapacitate even the small fry.
“Better to waste than regret it later.”
It was only proper to use your gear when needed.
He gripped the vials with a perfect throwing hold, sharpening his senses to start calculations.
“Judging by the trajectory…”
He estimated their positions from bullet marks, factoring in the train’s speed to calculate the optimal lead shot.
Once the calculations were done, he held one vial in each hand and aimed forward.
“Here goes.”
Still lying prone, he threw the vials to the left and right.
The bottles arced backward relative to the train’s speed and disappeared from sight along a clean curve.
Clink!
“Ahh!? What’s this…”
The bottles shattered upon hitting the bandits’ heads.
“Ahh!”
“It’s a monster! Run!”
“Screeeam…! I’ll survive!”
Screams and confusion erupted below the train.
The vials contained an illusion magic that induced terror—crafted by grinding down the corpses of Phantom Beasts that had tormented their party a century ago in the demon realm.
“So it works.”
The pounding of hooves gradually faded.
The bandits were fleeing in terror.
Feeling the threat was neutralized, Yujin sat up and looked down.
Clatter clatter…
The fleeing bandits’ backs receded into the distance.
They’d lost ten comrades out of twenty in total, so it was unlikely the bandits would try robbing this train again anytime soon.
Buzz—
“Meh?”
A beam of light suddenly swept over the bandits.
Where the beam passed, only soot and ash remained.
Both horse and rider vanished as if they had never existed.
“What the…?”
Yujin turned his head toward the shooter.
Tracing the direction of the scorched earth, he spotted a lone rider atop a hill, moving away from the train.
“Throwing dagger and shuriken emblems.”
The familiar insignia on the rider’s epaulet caught his enhanced vision.
Few bore that emblem on their shoulder.
The rider’s rifle was no ordinary supply weapon—it was covered in Magic Circles, a high-grade firearm.
“You bastard, finally showing up.”
The one who wiped out the bandits with a single shot was a Ranger.
*****
“Waaah! What’s happening!?”
Emilia crouched under a chair inside the passenger car, clutching her head.
She was avoiding getting hit by stray bullets through the window but also scared from the unexpected train robbery.
“This is the train to the capital… And it’s been attacked?”
She had ridden trains bound for the capital countless times.
Her school was in the capital, while her hometown was in the northwest Gerade region.
For reference, Gerade was also the homeland of the empire’s patron hero.
“This has never happened before!”
Of course, she had read in newspapers recently about increased train robberies by former soldiers.
The article she’d been reading before mentioned Rangers suppressing such bandits.
But those incidents were mostly limited to regional trains.
“Now even the capital-bound trains are being targeted?”
The empire’s vast territory meant poor security between regions.
But capital trains were frequented by imperial officials, so she thought nobody would dare touch them.
Should she blame her complacency? Or be shocked at the empire’s deteriorating security?
Bang! Tatatata!
The shots outside made her duck lower.
Thankfully, the bullets didn’t penetrate the window.
Other passenger cars were quiet too, so it wasn’t aimed at windows.
Tatatatata!
Yet the gunfire grew louder.
As if the bandits were desperately trying to hit someone.
If that someone was a guard, she silently wished for his soul’s peace.
“Huh?”
Suddenly, she realized she’d forgotten something.
Though she’d been alone in this car since the alarm, earlier a kind man who had paid her cargo fee had sat across from her.
“Mister?”
He had asked her to watch his seat and then left the car.
He hadn’t appeared since, not even now with the bandits’ attack ongoing.
“Mister!?”
Could he be the one under attack?
She had no courage to go out into the hallway and check.
All she knew was he hadn’t come back yet.
“What do I do…”
The gunfire outside seemed endless.
She didn’t know who had been hit, but she fervently hoped the kind man was safe.
It would be tragic if someone who helped her from the start ended like that.
“Please…”
She clasped her hands and prayed.
Normally, an imperial citizen would pray to the Goddess of Debt, Lucia.
But unlike others, her family prayed to someone else.
“Great-grandfather, please keep that man safe.”
Her great-grandfather was Ian, the empire’s patron hero.
“Most people don’t know this.”
Her family’s bloodline was a secret.
For some reason, it had been kept hidden since her grandfather’s generation.
Still, among family, they proudly worshipped the hero as their ancestral deity.
“Just as he watches over me, please watch over that man too…”
As she concentrated on her prayer,
“What are you doing on the floor?”
“Huh?”
Startled by the familiar voice, she opened her eyes to see the man staring at her strangely.
*****
“What are you doing?”
Yujin was taken aback when he saw the girl curled up under the sofa in the passenger car.
After sorting things out outside, he returned inside to find her alone, eyes tightly shut as if praying.
“Judging by the muttering, she must be praying.”
She was scared by the bandit attack and seeking any divine help she could find.
Though the danger was over, she still hadn’t recovered.
Seeing her like that was endearing in a way—so childish.
“Looks familiar.”
Like the saint he’d known in life.
The saint had longer, fuller blonde hair and a far more mature, beautiful figure than this girl.
“Should I scare her a little?”
She looked like a rookie about to go into battle.
It was instinct for a veteran to tease new recruits.
But he didn’t want to bother a young girl he’d just met, so he said softly,
“What are you doing on the floor?”
“Huh?”
The girl blinked, still dazed.
She probably hadn’t fully processed what had happened.
“The situation’s over. You don’t have to be scared anymore.”
“Really!?”
Her eyes widened in surprise.
Was she shocked that the bandits had left so easily?
Or was there another reason?
Hard to tell.
“Don’t be surprised.”
“Ah, did you chase away the bandits?”
She asked, disbelief in her voice.
She hadn’t seen him since he left, so she must have assumed he’d faced the bandits outside.
“Was that prayer actually for me?”
She seemed kind-hearted, well raised.
Anyway, instead of answering, Yujin put a finger to his lips.
That single gesture conveyed everything:
“Keep it a secret.”
He didn’t want unnecessary attention delaying things.
Better to quietly slip away after saving the train than become some publicized hero.
“Oh. Okay…”
The girl understood and became quiet.
Fortunately, she seemed to have enough sense.
Thanks to that, she sat calmly on the sofa without fuss.
“Looks like no one else noticed who chased off the bandits.”
The guard smoking outside must not have bragged.
If the guard had abandoned his post and left the passengers to fend for themselves, he’d be fired for sure.
Better to keep quiet.
“Quite laid back…”
After a while, the girl spoke hesitantly,
“Um… If we arrive at the capital, may I buy you lunch?”
Suddenly?