(For old readers: Read "Stranded" again if you have time, I have changed a bit of stuff in that)
After dealing with Kranz, June left the carriage immediately.
From what he could infer, the train seemed to have been taken over by some hostile force named Kreej - a mercenary group from the Wild West.
Either way, staying still would just be asking for more trouble to come since he took down a Commander for their force, which they would notice soon enough when Kranz didn't come back.
Due to that, he decided it was better to go around the train and see how bad the situation was.
Of course, he didn't have any plan to solve the problem himself.
It's just too troublesome.
'Empty too...'
As he passed through carriages, one after another, he found traces of struggle and battle littered all over the place.
From wrecked furniture to traces of magic spells to even blood and other kinds of fluid, it was all a mess.
'The trails...Let me check that.'
Ether trails usually persist after a spell is cast, and their lifespans depend on however powerful the spells are.
These trails usually let one trace back the caster, but only to a certain degree. One can even discern distinctive attributes, but that is only reserved for experts.
He leaned down to get a better reading of leftover Ether trails, which proved futile. The trails had soon decayed with time.
"I guess not."
It appears there's no way for him to know which way to avoid trouble.
Clack!
A door was slid open. Right then, he could hear heavy thuds following one another chaotically.
While not knowing whose they belonged to, he knew they were definitely hostile.
"There's another one here!"
"Get 'im!"
Heaving a sigh, June turned to face them.
'I should just run after this. This is so unbecoming of a first-year, is it not?'
It was only a second before he plunged toward them that he sensed a slight shift in the wind.
'Behind?'
WOOSH! WOOSH! WOOSH! WOOSH!
As Jun shifted his body to the right, daggers covered in wind aura flew past him and reaped several heads in an instant. The battle ended before it even started.
"Tch! I missed one?"
Turning to his left, June saw what could be described as a stray hound in human form.
While adorning the same uniform, his was in far worse condition than June's with rips covering the entire thing. His glistening, maddening red eyes filled with bloodlust only serve to push the impression further.
"Um...Hello?" June tilted his head awkwardly.
"Well, it's only one. No matter Kiki."
"Hm?"
Showing a crazed smile, the mysterious human hound rushed at him with no hesitation, holding a short blade in hand. For whatever reason, he wasn't even friendly to his peers either, causing Jun to sigh again.
Out of all possibilities, Jun didn't think he'd have to fight a peer, especially when he hadn't even reached the academy yet.
"Just...go to SLEEP."
Flick!----BAM!
In an instant, the human hound was on the ground, unconscious as June stared down with his lifeless eyes.
'This should be the end of it, right?'
"Jack!"
Swift, light footsteps approached from the same direction the human hound came from, causing Jun to frown.
'Again?'
"You! Who are you?"
The voice grew cautious as it got nearer and nearer, seemingly intimidated by the presence that took down his friend.
"Fine. Make it quick."
Lifting his head, Jun was surprised to see someone looking a bit more proper than he expected.
Holding a spear with two hands, the ruffled blond-haired boy wore a nervous expression, his ocean-blue eyes scanning June. There was a certain elegance in his movements, as well as rationale hidden behind those scrutinizing sights - the complete opposite of the one he just put to sleep.
"You." June pointed at the blond. "You can see my uniform right?"
"H-Huh? Yes?" Hit by the sudden question, the blond answered confusedly.
"I'm not an enemy. I'm also a student at Astrea Academy. This thing should tell you enough,...right?" Patting his barely intact logo, June stressed his voice.
"...."
"...."
After a little while of awkward silence, the blonde raised his voice.
"I apologize, but I still can't trust you."
The blonde shook his head as his eyes moved to the human hound, much to Jun's disappointment.
"I see. Will this be enough proof then?"
Grabbing the human hound's uniform collar, June threw him at the feet of the blonde, who proceeded to check on him.
"As you can see, he's fine and dandy, only asleep..." June said with an assuring tone. "Just for the context, I barely made it with a sleep spell when your friend ran at me."
"I...see." The blonde nodded as he stood up and approached June. "I sincerely apologize for my friend's reckless action."
"Huh.....OK?"
The instant switch in attitude was something, but June was relieved that he didn't have to force his hand on another. As such, he didn't feel the need to ask anything more.
Meanwhile, the blonde showed an apologetic expression as he took out a red card and handed it to June.
"You see, Jack can be a bit wild sometimes, but he doesn't mean harm most of the time. In any case, please also accept this."
June was also promptly handed a small glass bottle filled with glimmering cyan liquid.
"This is...Jillian's Brew? Then you must be..."
"Yes, indeed. Apologies for not introducing myself earlier, but my name is Rodrick Von Jillian. I'm surprised you realized it."
"Then, what about this card?"
"It is a favor card, used to ask for a favor from us. I usually hand them out to people who got unreasonably "jumped" by Jack."
From what Jillian said, it appeared that precedents had happened. Not that it bothered him too much, but...for whatever reason, he couldn't help but feel slightly uncomfortable imagining others getting jumped by such a wild thing.
"So...Can I go now? I want to find a place to settle down. I'm tired."
"Even if everything's in such a mess???"
"Yes." June firmly said as he walked by Rodrick.
It was then he recalled a name: Harry Lambert. A boy who willingly helped him despite his suspicious getup.
Since the train he was on contained his peers as well, that meant Harry must naturally also be on it.
Hoping to see Harry again as he somewhat owed the boy's goodwill, he stopped in place and raised his question.
"Do you know somebody who goes by...Harry Lambert?"
"I don't. Sorry."
This bummed June out, but he knew it couldn't be helped, given the current situation.
"I see... It's fine. By the way..."
There was one last thing he wanted to ask. He wanted to know if there was any place even remotely intact left.
RUMBLE!
Right before his words left his mouth, the train was forcibly stopped, followed by a violent shake.