Just as Irina moved to seat number 12 in carriage C, she was startled by the person in front of her.
Morse, someone she never expected to encounter on this train, was sitting in the seat opposite her.
"Hmm?" Irina voiced in surprise, her eyes locked onto him.
Morse maintained his usual calm expression, slowly raising his head to meet Irina's gaze. This instant eye contact immediately drew the attention of the surrounding passengers.
After all, Irina had attracted the attention of those around her as soon as she boarded the train. Her attire and demeanor indicated that her identity was extraordinary, and her beauty was an even greater source of attention.
"You..." Irina began, surprised by Morse's appearance.
Morse looked at the girl standing before him and said softly, "I should have known."
Irina's confusion deepened, along with some impatience, as she glared at Morse. "Known what?"
Morse didn't care about her glare and calmly replied, "I heard the explosion inside the train, I should have guessed it was you."
Irina widened her eyes in disbelief. "What..."
Morse pointed outside. "Look outside, the traces of burning are obvious. There aren't many people in this world who use 'transportation' like you, and you attracted a lot of attention even before you boarded the train."
Irina now realized that her actions to escape her mother's plans had attracted someone's attention, and a wave of embarrassment washed over her.
More so because the person who realized this was this annoying guy in front of her.
"Sigh..."
She sighed and sat in the seat opposite him. But as she sat down, she suddenly realized something.
'What is he doing here?'
What could this guy be doing here? She looked at him with curious eyes. His clothes were casual, and he looked the same as usual, but she felt like something about him had changed.
'Has something changed?'
Her curiosity grew stronger. This annoying guy had been occupying her thoughts lately, and most things about him she couldn't understand.
"Since you're here, you might as well tell me what you're doing on this train."
Morse still looked expressionlessly out the window. "I have my reasons, you could say it's business."
Irina raised her eyebrows, expressing doubt. "Business? What business? Doing business on a train to Arcadia?"
Morse replied coldly, "None of your concern."
"..."
Irina rolled her eyes and began to regret getting on this train.
'Annoying guy.'
His cold attitude and way of speaking always annoyed her.
"I don't care anyway."
"You don't care? Then why did you ask?"
"...None of your concern."
"None of my concern?"
"Yes."
"Do you think I believe that?"
"Believe whatever you want."
"I always believe what I believe, you don't need to say it."
"You..."
'So annoying.'
Every time she argued with this guy, things always ended up like this. He always acted proud and arrogant, always refuting every conversation.
It's like...
'He needs to have the last word.'
Moreover, she realized from their past conversations that she always felt like she lost every time the conversation ended.
'I can't stand it.'
"You know, your attitude really annoys me," Irina said, throwing an annoyed glance at Morse.
"Likewise," Morse replied calmly, his eyes still looking at the scenery rushing past the window.
Irina snorted and crossed her arms. "If I had known you were sitting here, I would have rather sat on the roof of the train than sit in the same carriage as you."
"You would have frozen to death up there, wouldn't you?"
"Even that's better than sitting with you."
"Then why aren't you going up there?"
Irina rolled her eyes. "That's because, annoyingly, I still want to return to the academy in one piece."
Morse turned his head from the window to look at Irina. His expression didn't change, but Irina swore she saw a hint of mockery in his eyes, but was also deeply attracted.
'So beautiful...'
For a moment, she was almost mesmerized by his eyes.
"You don't need to admit you want to be with me," he said lightly.
...But was quickly replaced by annoyance.
"Hah, wishful thinking. I only care about myself."
"Yeah, yeah, keep comforting yourself," Morse's tone remained calm, but Irina couldn't help but wonder if he was secretly enjoying their bickering.
'He seems to be in a good mood.'
At first, she wasn't sure, but as they continued to talk, she noticed that his words were a little different than usual.
Usually, he would interrupt others with a harsh tone, but this time, he was engaging in the conversation in a different way.
'Should I ask?'
Some questions had been swirling in her mind lately, and she really wanted to know the answers.
She had limited information and didn't want to wait for another investigation time. Since the opportunity was right in front of her, why not take advantage of it?
"By the way, Morse," Irina cautiously began, "Do you know someone named Trevor Phillips?"
Morse raised an eyebrow at this unexpected question, but his reaction didn't change much. "Trevor Phillips? I've heard the name, why are you asking about him?"
'Morse doesn't know him?'
Irina continued to observe Morse's reaction, certain that he had nothing to do with Trevor Phillips.
Irina hesitated, cautiously saying, "It's nothing."
However, this reaction aroused Morse's curiosity instead. He leaned back in his seat, his eyes sweeping over Irina. "It's nothing? You're not the type to mention someone's name for no reason. What about Trevor Phillips?"
Irina sighed inwardly, realizing that she had inadvertently aroused Morse's interest. However, she decided not to tell him the answer, still feeling annoyed by their argument just now.
"I'm not telling you," Irina looked at Morse provocatively.
Morse didn't care about her reaction and raised an eyebrow. "Really?"
"You're actually curious?" A sly glint flashed in Irina's eyes.
"Anyone would be curious," Morse replied expressionlessly.
"Yeah, yeah, yeah," Irina waved her hand dismissively, not caring about his comment.
"You really won't tell me?" Morse asked again.
"No," Irina crossed her arms, appearing extremely stubborn.
"Understood," Morse compromised, leaning back in his seat, seemingly not caring. Thus, the two fell into silence as the train continued on its way.
However, Irina's thoughts didn't stop. She couldn't help but start thinking about Trevor Phillips's purpose. She sensed a different aura from Morse than before, and he was still curious about this matter. But she knew that if she continued to ask, the answer she got would definitely annoy her even more.
Thump!
The train continued on, and the scenery outside the window and the silence of winter gradually made her feel the fatigue of the week wash over her. The time that should have been spent resting at home was instead spent busy fulfilling her mother's demands as the family heir.
Her eyelids grew heavier and heavier, and the frequency of blinking slowed down until her eyes closed. The hum of the train engine gradually turned into a distant lullaby, and the scenery outside the window blurred into a background.
Irina let the fatigue overwhelm her, rested her head on the soft seat, her breathing gradually became steady, and she gradually fell into a dream. The train carried her and the other passengers, taking them temporarily away from reality and into the realm of dreams.
......
'She actually fell asleep here.'
Looking at the sleeping red-haired girl in front of me, I was a little surprised.
'Irina and a train... a complete mismatch.'
I never thought the esteemed Lady Irina would take an ordinary train. She comes from a top aristocratic family and usually uses convenient means of transportation like portals.
Although portals are expensive, her family can definitely afford them, unlike me.
'But why did she mention Trevor Phillips?' I looked at her sleeping peacefully, but my mind kept replaying the name she had just mentioned.
Trevor Phillips.
He is a villain in the game who made a deal with demons and became one of the spies in the academy and human realm.
The Phillips family is a high-ranking family, the head of which is the vice president of the Hunter Association and also ranks tenth in the world's hunter rankings, belonging to the council member.
According to the information in the game, Irina has nothing to do with the Phillips family, and she has no interest in him.
'Then why did she mention him?'
Moreover, it is very unusual for Irina to ask me about someone. Most of our interactions can be said to be basically arguments.
'But the expression she showed was very serious.'
Her tone of voice and small movements revealed some unusual signals.
'This has something to do with me.'
Through our interactions in the maze and observation of her habits, I know that whenever she hides something, she presses her thumb on her middle finger.
In addition, the way she looked at me and said she wouldn't tell me, her expression was like she was making me suffer, which further proves that this matter has something to do with me.
'Then what exactly is it?'
I began to think, what is Trevor Phillips's relationship with me?
He is a senior student in the academy, a villain, and there is no reason for me to have any contact with him.
If Irina knew he was a villain, she shouldn't ask me.
'Maybe she would, but at least not now.'
Moreover, he is a senior student, he shouldn't be interested in me.
'Wait.'
Just as I continued to think, an idea suddenly emerged.
'If it's him...'
There is a reason that allows me to have contact with him.
'That thing can spread among senior students...'
As my thoughts gradually became clear, everything seemed to make sense.
'If it's him, he does have the ability to do that thing.'
But all of this is just my guess, I don't have any evidence.
'But why would he do this?'
His motives cannot be determined.
'Let me see if I guessed correctly.'
Looking at the sleeping Irina, I decided to ask her after she wakes up.
