The Runaway Heroine is Too Good at Escaping

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

What’s this? You’re friends but it’s so quiet. How awkward.

 

Since it seems like I’ll be spending quite some time with these people, it’s probably better to make the atmosphere more comfortable.

 

“You can call me by my first name instead of my last name! We’ll be seeing each other often….”

 

“Alright, Seraphina. You can call me by my first name too.”

 

“Okay, sir Raffaelo.”

 

“I meant you could speak informally.”

 

“Oh no, how could I dare speak informally to the great sir Raffaelo. Honestly, if I spoke informally to you, you seem like the type who’d get angry and think I’m rude….”

 

“Doesn’t it seem like she’s subtly picking on me?”

 

Raffaelo grumbled.

 

Arkhangelo smirked at Raffaelo and continued speaking.

 

“Hmph, I’ll allow you to call me by my name too.”

 

“Understood, sir Arkhangelo.”

 

“…Why are you talking like that?”

 

“Doesn’t it feel like that’s the way I should respond? sir Akhangelo seems just as stern as sir Raffaelo.”

 

Arkhangelo looked at me with a dumbfounded expression.

 

“It seems there’s a reason why you could face Aurora.”

 

And Ghieuspe…

 

“……….”

 

“What does that mean?”

 

“It means you can call him by his name.”

 

“Okay, sir Ghieuspe… But how did you understand that? Do you have some special ability? Can you understand animal languages too?”

 

“Isn’t she implying Ghieuspe is an animal?”

 

No way. I was genuinely impressed by Simone’s ability.

 

Then Simone asked again.

 

“Can I call you Lady Seraphina then?”

 

“Yes, of course.”

 

“Great, then please call me Simone.”

 

As we exchanged names, the awkward atmosphere seemed to ease a bit.

 

At that moment, the steam train arrived at the station.

 

“Wow….”

 

I marveled at the train. Seeing such a train for the first time, it felt quite fascinating.

 

Smoke was billowing from the red and black painted train. The front, emitting black smoke, looked like a monster.

 

It reminded me of a train from the cartoons I watched as a child, and at the same time, it had a terrifying atmosphere as if it could devour people.

 

It was a moment where I felt the advanced magical engineering of this world once again.

 

“Let’s board.”

 

Raffaelo led the way, and we followed him. As expected of high-ranking nobles, we naturally took first-class seats.

 

First-class had separate compartments with spacious seats facing each other.

 

I awkwardly sat next to Simone.

 

“Seraphina, is this your first time on a train?”

 

Seeing me looking around the train with interest, Raffaelo asked.

 

I waved my hand to appear as natural as possible.

 

“Oh, it’s not that, it’s just been a long time….”

 

Since Seraphina’s diary didn’t mention riding a train, it must have been a long time since she last rode one.

 

But there was a more important topic right now.

 

I decided to ask them about the subject that was filling my mind.

 

“By the way, I have something I’m curious about. Do you know anything about Princess Eva?”

 

I needed to gather any information I could about this crazy person. Though I wasn’t even sure if she was human.

 

“Princess Eva? Why do you ask?”

 

Raffaelo asked in a puzzled tone.

 

“Who would know more about Princess Eva here than you? Aurora said you’ve been following her around.”

 

“Haha….”

 

“That’s right, Lady Seraphina. We probably don’t have any more information than you. Is there something specific you’re curious about?”

 

“No, it’s just that despite following her around, it feels like I don’t know much about Princess Eva.”

 

When I lied and answered that way, Simone seemed to be deep in thought for a moment before continuing.

 

“Do you know how incredible Princess Eva is as an inventor?”

 

“Oh, yes, I know.”

 

“Although she is known as a water mage, she is much more renowned as an inventor.”

 

In the original story, Princess Eva was briefly described as a mage engineer. She was a talented inventor and a pioneer in magical engineering.

 

In the past, it was considered lowly for noble ladies to invent things, but thanks to Princess Eva, that perception changed. Seraphina admired Eva as a progressive woman.

 

“Recently, there was news that she invented a more powerful tank and replaced all the sailing ships with ones she made.”

 

“That’s right….”

 

I pretended to know, but I was quite surprised. How can one person invent both tanks and sailing ships? It wasn’t described in the original story; she’s truly a genius.

 

“In fact, there are rumors that Princess Eva has created even more amazing inventions that haven’t been revealed to the world yet. Just the automatons and airships that are in use were made by her.”

 

“That’s right….”

 

Wait, Princess Eva even made airships? This is unbelievable!

 

“Is there any controversy surrounding Princess Eva?”

 

I asked cautiously, and Raffaelo looked puzzled.

 

“She’s a genius, a talent who will elevate this kingdom. Even the common people say so.”

 

“Hmph, even I think Princess Eva is quite amazing. Her magic is just so-so, but she creates excellent inventions with her genius mind. She even made the sound system for the opera.”

 

“I agree.”

 

Everyone seemed very favorable towards her. Hmm, this makes it harder for me to bring up the suspicious aspects of Princess Eva that I noticed.

 

At that moment, Simone looked at me with a cold gaze.

 

“Seraphina, have you noticed anything troubling while being close to the princess? I’m curious about the intent of your question.”

 

“…Nothing, haha!”

 

Oh no, I just felt a bad vibe. Simone was smiling as usual, but the atmosphere felt entirely different. I swallowed hard.

 

Now that I think about it, these people are all high-ranking nobles. Some might have close relationships with Princess Eva. I might have been too careless in bringing up this topic.

 

‘I should be more careful from now on.’

 

Just as I resolved not to talk about Princess Eva anymore, Rafael spoke up.

 

“Well, recently, she received a warning from the Bioethics Association.”

 

“What?”

 

“She tried to extract brains from dead bodies and transplant them into automatons.”

 

“…What?”

 

“She wanted to give them eternal life.”

 

“That’s…”

 

It’s clear why she received a warning; it’s a serious violation of bioethics.

 

“She supposedly stopped after one experiment, but still…”

 

“She’s a bit of a mad scientist.”

 

“Arkhangelo.”

 

Simone gave Arkhangelo a look to be quiet, and Ghieuspe covered Arkhangelo’s mouth as if it was a familiar action. Raffaelo continued providing new information.

 

“Oh, come to think of it, Aurora didn’t like Princess Eva very much.”

 

“Probably so…”

 

I often attacked Aurora, comparing her to the ‘perfect Princess Eva.’

 

“Maybe Aurora was jealous of you hanging out with someone else.”

 

“What? Jealous? Do you really think jealousy suits her?”

 

“Well, she considered you a friend in her own way.”

 

“…She ran away with my money, though.”

 

“…Let’s move on from this topic.”

 

An awkward silence fell among us.

 

Then Simone spoke as if she remembered something.

 

“Arkhangelo once tried to speak rudely in front of the princess.”

 

“Really?”

 

“It was almost a disaster. Please, don’t go against the princess, Arkhangelo.”

 

“Hmph, a great artist like me owes no loyalty to anyone.”

 

“And be careful not to say that in front of His Majesty the King.”

 

“……….”

 

“Ghieuspe is also telling you to tone it down.”

 

It seems Arkhangelo needs some supervision.

 

“I always feel that Arkhangelo is remarkable in many ways. It’s amazing he hasn’t made any enemies that would get him killed yet….”

 

“What nonsense are you talking about!”

 

At that moment, the train started with a loud whistle. The scenery outside the window began to change rapidly. I couldn’t take my eyes off the window.

 

In the swiftly passing world, there were wooden buildings, a giant clock tower, a gray cinema, and fast-moving steam carriages….

 

It was a dry, rough city, but its brilliant development was evident.

 

“This city has also developed rapidly recently. Isn’t magical engineering amazing?”

 

“Yes, it really is….”

 

Ah, this is the world I will live in from now on. I felt a strange sense of excitement and awe as I fell silent for a moment. Raffaelo continued talking.

 

“By the way, since you awakened as a spatial mage, are you good at math?”

 

“Well, I worked hard at it.”

 

“I actually gave up being a mage partly because math frustrated me. In the time it takes to calculate a spell, I could just shoot a gun and be done with it.”

 

“Honestly, you’re right. If you want to attack, fists are faster than magic.”