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Chapter: 30
Juliet blinked as she stared at the enormous wolf before her—something she had never seen in her life.
Grrrr.
Thankfully—truly thankfully—the massive wolf inside the iron cage was completely bound in heavy chains.
She had never seen a silver-gray wolf before. No, she hadn’t even known that wolves this large existed.
They say the eastern lands are full of rare ancient magical beasts. Could this be one of them?
If so, it was undoubtedly something exceedingly rare.
Its beautiful silver-gray fur was so lustrous that, under different circumstances, she would have wanted to reach out and stroke it up close.
“Split up and search!”
“Lord Roy! Where are you?!”
…Judging by the commotion outside, it seemed the people were looking for this wolf.
She never would have imagined that “Lord Roy” wasn’t a person—but a wolf.
Juliet frowned.
“How did you end up getting kidnapped, huh? Woof.”
Grrrrrr.
A menacing rumble rolled from the wolf’s throat.
Apparently, it didn’t like being called that.
Well, even if it was a spiritual beast, it couldn’t possibly understand human speech… right?
After a brief moment of hesitation, Juliet decided to stick to her original plan.
“Good boy, woof.”
She examined how the wolf was restrained, then carefully reached her hand toward the dark iron bars.
“I’ll let you go now, so… just don’t eat me, okay?”
Even as she tried to extract a promise, Juliet made sure to check her escape route—ready to bolt at a moment’s notice.
Moving cautiously closer, she studied the structure of the bindings.
Not only was the cage reinforced with thick iron bars, but heavy chains wrapped tightly around the wolf’s entire body, secured with a large padlock.
“…Huh?”
What caught her attention most was a strange, massive cylinder embedded in the back of the wolf’s neck.
Inside the thick glass tube sloshed a suspicious-looking crimson liquid.
What was it? A tranquilizer for magical beasts?
The cylinder looked exactly like an oversized syringe jammed straight into the wolf’s neck. It looked painful enough to make Juliet frown unconsciously.
Everything else aside… that definitely needs to come out by hand.
After hesitating briefly, she stepped closer.
Grrr.
Sensing something amiss, the wolf shifted threateningly.
Ironically, because it was bound so tightly in chains, it couldn’t move an inch.
“Just a moment… stay still. Be good, okay?”
Steel-steeling herself, Juliet barely managed to slip her arm through the narrow gap between the bars. She gripped the cylinder firmly and pulled with all her strength.
Yelp!
The wolf let out a sharp cry and thrashed violently.
The entire train car jolted for a moment.
Still, Juliet didn’t let go. She yanked the cylinder free in one swift motion. What came out of the wolf’s neck was disturbingly similar to a thick hypodermic needle.
“I’m sorry—this won’t hurt anymore—”
Cold sweat streamed down her back. I need to finish this quickly.
The chains binding the wolf weren’t ordinary restraints. They looked impossible to remove without a special key.
But Juliet wasn’t particularly worried.
From the darkness, three or four small butterflies appeared, glowing faintly blue—like fireflies drifting through the cargo car.
Startled by the strange lights, the wolf bristled, but Juliet ignored it and issued a command.
“Help him.”
<……>
Though the butterflies clearly didn’t like the idea, they fluttered over to the lock mechanisms one by one.
True to their nature as gluttonous monsters that devoured anything in their path, parts of the locking mechanisms melted away before her eyes.
Click.
As the restraints suddenly fell away, the wolf blinked in surprise.
A pair of golden eyes stared straight at Juliet, sharp and probing.
You’re not going to be an ungrateful beast, are you…?
Juliet pressed herself against the wall, tense, but instead of lunging at her, the wolf merely sniffed the air as if examining her scent.
After that, there was nothing more for her to do.
The moment the massive wolf gave itself a single shake, the remaining chains shattered all at once. The flimsy-looking iron cage collapsed in four directions with a loud crash.
Grrr.
Stretching leisurely, the wolf then bolted through the open door into the front car.
After the wolf escaped, Juliet closed the cargo door instead and waited.
With chaos raging outside, paradoxically, this was the safest place on the train.
She slowly counted to one hundred before opening the door again.
That should be enough time.
Passing through the dining car where terrified passengers were hiding, she cracked open the door leading to the passenger cars and peered inside.
The front of the train was still in utter chaos.
The sturdy men who had come to rescue “Lord Roy”—no, the wolf—had joined forces with the crew and were subduing the remaining men under Count Hilben. The count’s subordinates, driven into a corner, were wildly swinging their swords in desperation.
Whoosh—crash!
A chair came flying toward the door. Juliet narrowly dodged it.
“Aaargh! Let go of me, you bastards! Do you know who I am?!”
She heard Count Hilben screaming as he was restrained.
A few of his men were still struggling with drawn blades, but it was obvious the fight would soon be over.
I should just go back to my cabin, lock the door, and not come out until we arrive.
Decision made, Juliet quietly closed the door and turned away—
That was when it happened.
…Huh?
Juliet’s blue eyes widened. For a moment, she doubted her own vision.
Wait. Just now—
What had caught her attention was someone’s hand, flashing briefly amid the tangled struggle.
More precisely, the back of a hand with a half-removed glove.
“—!!”
It had been only a fleeting glimpse among the chaos, so she couldn’t be sure she’d seen it correctly.
But as if possessed, Juliet flung the door open again and scanned the scene frantically.
Where did it go?
She was certain she’d seen it—a red, tattoo-like mark on the back of a man’s hand as he raised his sword.
A vividly familiar and ominous image: a crimson spider tattoo.
Juliet had seen that tattoo before.
Seven years ago.
Thump.
Her heart began to pound in a way she knew all too well.
“Juliet!”
Seven years earlier, on a nightmare summer night when a carriage overturned under pouring rain.
The same red tattoo had been branded on the back of the hand of the man who had brutally murdered her parents.
How could she ever forget it?
It was the same vivid crimson spider that appeared in her nightmares, over and over again.
Did I really see it?
With people fighting everywhere, she couldn’t be sure.
Where is he? I definitely saw it—didn’t I?!
At that moment, there was only one thought in Juliet’s mind: she had to confirm it with her own eyes.
Even if it was a mistake—even then—she needed to be sure.
She pushed her way through the fighting crowd, eyes wild, searching frantically.
Half-dazed, she didn’t realize she was walking straight through flying weapons—or that she was unconsciously summoning countless butterflies.
“W-What is that?”
“Butterflies? Where did they come from?!”
The people fighting recoiled in surprise as more than a dozen butterflies suddenly appeared.
Not just inside the train.
Outside, beyond the windows, glowing butterflies flapped wildly against the dim sky.
It was at the exact moment everyone froze in shock.
“Watch out!”
“…!!”
Crash.
Someone shoved Juliet hard.
She didn’t even have time to scream before she was thrown into the corner of the train car, her head slamming into it.
Collapsing onto the floor, she felt a dull pain as the world spun.
Ugh…
I’m going to throw up.
The moment her concentration broke, the butterflies she had summoned in excess were forcibly recalled all at once—the backlash tearing through her body.
“A-Are you okay?”
The man who had shoved her looked utterly panicked as he examined her pale face.
“I’m sorry! A sword flew toward you—I had no choice—!”
Dizzy, Juliet barely managed to lift her head and glare at him.
An unwelcome stranger was sprawled over her, looking down with concern.
Fidgeting nervously, he had ash-gray hair and a gentle, boyish face.
But to Juliet right now, he was just a stranger.
“I said… move.”
“Pardon?”
“Get. Off. Me.”
“…!!”
The young man flushed bright red and scrambled to his feet.
He stood there helplessly, like a scolded puppy.
“I’m sorry—no, I truly apologize, miss.”
But Juliet wasn’t listening. She had already shoved him aside and was frantically scanning the area again.
Her veil and the hairpin that had held her hair in place had been knocked away when she fell.
Because of you, I lost him!
More than anything, she had lost sight of the man with the red tattoo.
She wanted to grab him by the collar—but pain blurred her vision, tears welling until she could barely recognize the face in front of her.
Where are you?
There were plenty of men wearing gloves, but she couldn’t possibly grab each one and check their hands.
…No. It’s fine. This is still a train.
Forcing herself to calm down, Juliet steadied her breathing.
Thanks to the butterflies she’d summoned, the remaining followers of Count Hilben—momentarily stunned—were easily subdued.
If she’d truly seen it, then she would have time to search for the man with the tattoo before the train stopped.
“Hngh…”
As the tension faded, the pain rushed in.
She felt like she might vomit blood if she opened her mouth.
“My lady, are you all right?”
A hand approached, offering her veil and hairpin.
With no strength left to answer, Juliet leaned against the wall, focusing on breathing.
The man knelt in front of her to meet her gaze and spoke apologetically.
“I don’t even know how to apologize… I’m truly sorry. Were you badly frightened?”
Only then did his face come into focus.
Tall and broad-shouldered, with ash-gray hair and radiant golden eyes. His features were striking—clean, handsome, and vivid.
For some reason…
He reminded her of a wolf.
