Sword Master In The Strange World

Chapter 9: I’ll go to Crepuscolo

Jonas closed his eyes, his consciousness diving deep into his subconscious. Initially, it was just a blurry black expanse, but soon, the dark scene in front of him was torn apart like a black curtain, revealing a brilliant light. After a while, the light was controlled, and what appeared before him was the system control panel. Following that, a creature resembling a human but smaller, with wings on its back, appeared – that was Alice.

“Welcome back to the Sword Master upgrade system. How can I assist you today?” The small fairy’s voice sounded like a child’s, yet it had a somewhat computerized, professional quality, as if it were coming from a computerized sound system.

“I want to see the map of this world,” Jonas spoke, and Alice’s eyes blinked rapidly.

“You shall have it right here.” Alice’s voice contained a hint of amusement, and the world map appeared on the panel behind her.

“Alice, I want to find a city to continue my journey. Do you have any recommendations?” Jonas inquired. He wanted to explore a new city since the previous town was too small, and he needed to understand more about the world outside. He also did not know of the black-clothed figure he had encountered. Furthermore, the people in the town had realized his strength, so he couldn’t stay there any longer.

“Of course, that’s a brilliant idea. Here are some suggestions for you to consider.” After these words, the world map quickly transformed into a list of five city names.

Jonas carefully examined the information, and his gaze stopped at the name Crepuscolo.

“Crepuscolo?” Jonas gazed at Alice.

“Yes, it is a large city quite a distance from here. It is peaceful and has many interesting aspects.”

“Alright, I’ll go to Crepuscolo,” Jonas replied with a tone of nonchalance. This city appeared to meet most of his criteria and seemed like a suitable place to hide and continue his training.

“How can I get there?” Jonas asked next.

“You can take a train,” Alice answered with a somewhat subdued voice.

“Very well.”

“Have a great experience!” With that, Alice vanished.

Jonas didn’t hesitate either; he stood up, grabbed his walking stick, and headed to the train station. It was time to bid farewell to this town.

With his speed, Jonas arrived at the train station in no time. He walked with determination to the ticket counter and joined the line.

Unsurprisingly, the surrounding people did not differ from those in the previous town. Upon seeing Jonas waiting in line, they displayed disdain on their faces.

“Look, another beggar buying a train ticket.”

“He probably couldn’t get anything where he was before, so now he wants to move somewhere new.”

“Ticket vendor, be cautious. This poor wretch may not even have two coins to buy one.”

After these remarks, they burst into laughter. In this world, reveling in the oppression of the weak was a pastime for many. By doing so, they aimed to assert their own superiority, confirming their elevated status.

Jonas paid no heed to the taunts and insults. He stood there, motionless, as if he hadn’t heard a thing.

“The next one!” The ticket vendor’s words sounded snarky. He looked at Jonas with an extremely condescending expression.

“One ticket for two coins.”

Jonas reached into his pocket, took out two coins, handed them to the ticket vendor, and received his train ticket. After securing the ticket, he swiftly left.

“Heh, a blind man is trying to act like he’s going outside.” The ticket vendor followed Jonas with a scornful look.

Jonas boarded the train and took his seat. Although he was blind, his other senses were exceptionally sharp. He could feel the number twenty-six printed on his ticket.

About ten minutes later, all the empty seats were occupied, and the train began its journey. Jonas reclined in his seat, wanting to close his eyes for a moment. He hadn’t slept all night.

The train continued to run, and the scenery gradually changed. The farther Jonas went from the town, the more the snow accumulated. In this desolate landscape, he no longer heard crickets nor felt the prickly hedges.

Jonas slowly drifted into sleep.

In the hush, a sudden voice, along with many footsteps, echoed,

“Everyone, stay put for me!” The speaker fired a shot into the train ceiling. Jonas was at the end of the carriage, but he could distinctly smell the gunpowder. He suspected this was a military-grade firearm.

“Search everyone for me!” A man in military attire gave the order.

People on the train panicked; they didn’t understand what was happening. Suddenly, a group of people began firing guns and demanded a search of the passengers. This was like an act of aggression! Even though they were just ordinary civilians, they would not accept this violation.

“Who are you? Why do you want to search for us?” A middle-aged man around forty to fifty years old spoke up.

“That’s right, don’t think you can do whatever you want just because you’re wearing military uniforms!”

“Do you know how dangerous it is to fire a gun like that? We won’t allow a search.”

The leader, angered by the resistance, said little. Instead, he dragged the middle-aged man from earlier and began assaulting him.

“Resist, will you! Do you know who we are? Search them!” he yelled.

This only intensified the people’s fury, and they resisted even more fiercely. The leader, seeing the situation getting worse, didn’t know how to proceed. Just then, a middle-aged man suddenly appeared behind him. Without many words, he handed the leader two silver bracelets.

“Wretched fool, who gives you the right to act like this!” the man bellowed with intense anger.

People around also noticed the man’s actions, and the armed men from before scattered and returned to their original places.

Now they noticed the rank on the chest of the middle-aged man, who was wearing the rank of a major general. It seemed like he was their superior.

“Wouldn’t it be better if you apologize now?” He yelled angrily and kicked the man he had beaten earlier in the stomach.

“I’m sorry. I apologize to everyone.” The other guy quickly knelt down in front of everyone, continuously bowing and apologizing, looking extremely frightened. He appeared humble and weak now, in stark contrast to his earlier arrogance.

The major general glanced at the people on the train and then spoke in a more conciliatory tone.

“I sincerely apologize, everyone. It was my subordinate who behaved inappropriately.”

The major general paused for a moment and then continued speaking.

“Here’s the situation: the Armstrong noble family is currently on this train, and just recently, they received an anonymous threatening letter. This is extremely dangerous.”

The major general paused for a while before speaking again.

“As you all know, the Armstrong family wields a significant influence over the city’s economy and politics. If they were to encounter any trouble, it could cause turmoil in our city. Moreover, I believe none of you want to sit next to a terrorist.”

The train passengers became quiet. What the officer said made sense. They didn’t want to cross the Armstrong family or be considered suspects. Besides, having a terrorist on board would be disastrous. With the military present, they didn’t want to deal with such matters.

“So, I request permission to conduct a search. Thank you for your cooperation.” The major general gave the order to his soldiers to search for everyone. The passengers below complied.

Facing the scene in front of him, Jonas reacted little. Even though the soldiers searched everyone, Jonas stayed quiet and didn’t get involved. After all, he had nothing to worry about. He hadn’t sent the threatening letter and had no reason to be concerned. This matter didn’t concern him, so he saw no need to speak up. Jonas always believed that the fewer complications, the better, and he didn’t need to pay attention to such matters.

After searching Jonas and not finding anything, the soldiers quickly moved on to others. Jonas calmly returned to his seat. The soldiers continued their search, finding nothing incriminating on anyone.

About thirty minutes later, the soldiers reported back to the major general.

“We found nothing, sir!”

The major general didn’t look pleased as he looked at his subordinates. He turned to apologize to the passengers and quickly left. With no leads, he didn’t know how to explain the situation to the Armstrong family.

That night, Jonas placed his cane next to him and leaned back. He intended to sleep until the train stopped. Just as he closed his eyes, he sensed that something was off. Although everyone around him appeared to be asleep, Jonas clearly heard footsteps and many strange noises. As Jonas turned around, he felt a shadow swiftly pass by.