Chapter 152: Passengers |
While Levi and Anthony were chatting, more passengers arrived in the carriage.
"I thought this train was supposed to be luxurious, but it doesn't look like much after all."
The lady leading the way spoke up in a sharp, piercing voice the moment she stepped inside, quickly drawing the attention of the other guests.
"Mother..."
Following closely behind her was a young woman who appeared to be her daughter. She had a fine figure and wore a white silk gown, her eyes bright and expressive, though she was clearly uncomfortable with her mother making her the center of attention. However, the older woman didn't seem to care about her daughter's feelings.
Holding her head high like a goose inspecting its territory, she scanned the Salon Car. Then, her eyes lit up as she spotted Levi.
"I'm doomed. I'm getting out of here, Boss," Anthony whispered before rising from his seat and slipping away.
Just then, the lady walked over. She gave Anthony a casual nod, as if taking his yielded seat was only natural, and looked directly at Levi.
"May we sit here?"
Levi didn't mind. The Salon Car was designed precisely for long-distance passengers to get to know one another. If one had no intention of socializing, there was no reason to come here at all.
"I am Joanna Bedrick, and this is my daughter, Lisa. Forgive my presumption, but you must be the world-famous detective, Mr. Levi."
"You flatter me. I am indeed Levi."
Levi gave them a polite nod and a slight smile. The young lady sitting beside her mother instantly flushed crimson and lowered her head, while Madam Bedrick stared at Levi with gleaming eyes.
"I read the newspaper reports about you in Merisia. Well done, young man! Those Merisian savages needed to be taught a proper lesson so they would learn how to respect the Empire and Her Majesty!"
Madam Bedrick's voice was loud and shrill, as if she were desperate to attract everyone's attention. Her daughter, by contrast, buried her face as low as possible, wishing she could vanish entirely.
How tragic. Levi silently offered the young woman his sympathy. He could completely understand the agonizing embarrassment of having a parent show off in broad daylight, leaving their child wishing the ground would swallow them whole.
"But I am still quite curious," Madam Bedrick continued, seemingly oblivious to the concept of politeness. She stared at Levi and asked bluntly, "The papers said that during the Continental Congress, you walked right in and arrested the rebel leader in front of everyone... Weren't you worried that the others would fight back?"
At this point, Levi noticed that the other passengers were also shifting their attention toward them, clearly intrigued by the topic. Of the couple who had entered earlier, the wife seemed keenly interested and made a move to change to a seat closer to Levi, but her husband grabbed her arm. After a brief argument, the wife sat back down, thoroughly displeased.
"Oh, in truth, I wasn't particularly worried, Madam," Levi replied, taking a sip of his tea. Unlike Madam Bedrick's sky-piercing screech, Levi's voice was calm, elegant, and perfectly clear.
"As you said, those Merisians might be savages, but they are not ordinary ruffians. They possess status, position, and wealth. It is precisely because of these things that they gathered to expose their foolish and ignorant ambitions. Conversely, they would certainly be unwilling to let everything they spent half their lives accumulating be destroyed in an instant by a single bullet."
At this point, Levi looked intently at Madam Bedrick and smiled faintly.
"In fact, someone was foolish enough to prove that point for me."
"Ah, I know! Claiborne! That murderer who presumed his presence in a wild territory would allow him to escape imperial justice!" Madam Bedrick expressed immense indignation. "Personally, I wish he had been hanged rather than simply having his life taken by a bullet. But it is still a fitting end, proving that justice is never absent."
Madam Bedrick's reaction caught Levi somewhat by surprise. He had initially assumed she was merely looking for a topic to make conversation, but her response when discussing Claiborne was incredibly intense, far exceeding her previous posturing. However, she quickly provided the explanation.
"To be completely honest, Mr. Levi, my younger brother was one of Claiborne's victims. He foolishly believed the nonsense about panning for gold in Merisia and left his hometown against our advice. He once told us he would return home covered in glory and wealth, but in the end, all we received was a box of ashes. I heard his body was discovered on that demon Claiborne's estate. I truly wish I could have strangled that monster myself!"
"You have my deepest sympathies for your brother's passing."
Levi now understood why Madam Bedrick had gone out of her way to speak to him. But that was only the beginning.
Next, Madam Bedrick launched into an impassioned chronicle of her brother's life, from the things he did growing up, to his ill-timed adventurous spirit, and even a few embarrassing incidents from his school days. She spared no details, recounting how he was caught by their father and beaten half to death for peeping at the maid bathing, and how he once tried to play the knight by secretly releasing horses from the stable to practice riding, only to end up half-dead from the fall...
Well, it was a good thing the brother was already dead. Otherwise, after Madam Bedrick's thorough recounting to the entire carriage, he would have wished he were—at least in the social sense.
By the time Madam Bedrick finally stopped to catch her breath, her throat parched, everyone in the carriage likely knew more about the deceased brother than he had known about himself, though it was entirely useless information.
Having finished her speech, Madam Bedrick departed with her daughter, thoroughly satisfied. The latter walked with such hurried steps that it would not be an exaggeration to say she fled in disgrace.
Yes, for the young lady, this was truly a stroke of terrible luck.
Levi glanced around. Anthony had picked up another glass of wine and was now chatting up a lady. Levi hadn't noticed when she entered, likely while his attention was occupied by Madam Bedrick. Judging by her attire, she appeared to be an older spinster, but... personal preferences were not Levi's concern. Perhaps some men simply preferred older women.
Just then, Olivia arrived in the Salon Car accompanied by her maid and naturally took a seat near Levi. The young lady was now quite composed and serene. It appeared that, regardless of her earlier state, she had completely calmed down.
"If only you had arrived a bit earlier, Miss Olivia," Levi said, raising his teacup to her with a chuckle. "Then you would have heard the life and times of Mr. Burgst Doras."
"Who is that?"
"Madam Bedrick's younger brother, though it doesn't matter."
In truth, it really didn't matter.
Following this, everyone enjoyed a rather sumptuous dinner before retiring to their respective rooms to rest. Levi was no exception; he returned to his quarters, picked up the day's newspaper, and gave it a cursory scan. The papers distributed on the railway contained no strange news, making it a peaceful day.
After reading the paper, Levi turned off the lamp and lay down to rest. At least for this night, he enjoyed a sound sleep.
The next day of the journey passed quietly. Levi spent his time reading in his room and occasionally chatting with Olivia and the other passengers. Naturally, Madam Bedrick remained the most active among them. For her, talking to people seemed to be an innate source of joy, though how the passengers caught in her conversational trap felt about it was another matter entirely.
Fortunately, everyone managed to get along reasonably well, with the sole exception of the man who looked entirely out of place in the first-class carriage. After visiting the Salon Car on the first day, he had likely realized he was incompatible with high-society networking and had remained confined to his room ever since.
Aside from him, the couple did not return to the salon either. Levi spotted them a few times going to the dining car, and it was clear the atmosphere between them was rather strained. In their stead, an Ibyan gentleman wearing a checkered coat became a regular in the Salon Car. He was quite enthusiastic and boisterous, greeting everyone warmly. Word was he was a very famous merchant, and he certainly proved adept at handling social interactions.
With just one more day, they would practically arrive at their destination.
Unfortunately, this was not destined to be a smooth journey.
When Levi awoke on the third morning, he realized the train was neither swaying nor moving. The entire train was dead silent, save for the pattering sound of raindrops striking the windows.
"What's going on?" Levi muttered as he sat up and looked out the window.
Peering through the dense curtain of rain obscuring the view, he discovered the train was not stopped at a platform, but rather somewhere in the middle of the tracks, seemingly caught halfway between stations. The surroundings consisted entirely of a dense forest beneath a gloomy sky.
Levi changed his clothes and stepped out of his room, only to see the conductor running past in a hurry.
"Conductor? Did something happen?"
"Oh, Mr. Levi." Hearing Levi's call, the rushing conductor stopped and let out a helpless sigh. "My apologies. Did I disturb your rest?"
"No, I slept quite well. But what is the situation right now? Why has the train stopped?"
"Please rest assured, sir. The situation is not as severe as you might think."
"Go on."
"We just received word from the station ahead. It seems there has been a minor incident. You know, rocks, mud, fallen trees... blocking the tracks. They have to wait for the rain to stop before they can begin clearing it..."
"What!?"
This nearly sky-piercing shriek did not come from Levi, but from Madam Bedrick. Poking her head out of her room while wearing a dressing gown of highly questionable taste, she stared at the conductor with wide eyes.
"Are you telling me we have to stay here for several days?"
"I am terribly sorry, Madam..." The conductor wiped away beads of sweat as he spoke. "We cannot turn the train around at the moment. We can only wait for the tracks ahead to be cleared... Believe me, it won't be difficult. I must ask for everyone's patience, and everything will be fine."
"Is that all?"
"What do you mean, sir?" Hearing Levi's question, the conductor looked at him in confusion.
"I mean, nothing else has happened on the train, correct?"
"Please do not worry, everything is completely normal at present."
"Good. That is fine then." Levi felt relieved and paid no further attention to these tedious matters. "I am heading to the dining car... I assume breakfast is available now?"
"Of course, sir."