She is not an investigator.

"I feel like there's something ambiguous between us."

Do you think I'm old and ugly, or do you hate my disabled body?

"...None of them."

"Then you don't need to reject me, do you?"

Cecilia reached out and pulled Igris's stiff body into her arms, forcing her to sit down.

Igris did not resist, or rather... she didn't know how to resist.

This was the first time she had encountered this type of... offensive.

At least in many situations, the women she encountered were more willing to give her some options and basic modesty.

But for Cecilia, the word "reserved"... is perhaps simply not a suitable way to describe her.

"Your body is so cold."

As she spoke, her cheek pressed against Igris's body.

If she wasn't trying to bite him, it was most likely that she was engaging in some rather impolite intimate contact with him.

Igris instinctively backed away and tried to push away Cecilia's leaning cheek, but Cecilia instead grabbed her hand and pressed it against her face.

Alright, now it's Igris's turn to be shy.

"...Is your so-called rest just making me do this kind of thing?"

Igris shifted uncomfortably, blushing inexplicably.

Her body was more sensitive than one might imagine, perhaps because her skin had been almost entirely shaved during the battle, making her, reborn from the flames, more delicate and tender.

"Yes, is that not allowed?"

Even as they continued their casual conversation, Cecilia's hand unconsciously reached towards Igris's waist.

Igris abruptly pressed down on her hand, shaking her head with her lips slightly pursed.

"I won't mind your rudeness since you're injured, but you—"

Before Igris could finish speaking, she suddenly lost her balance.

The malicious Cecilia knocked Igris down, forcing her to lie in the somewhat dilapidated driver's seat, pressing her body tightly against Cecilia's.

They were so close that Cecilia could hear Igris's heavy breathing and her erratic heartbeat.

She was shy, even more shy than she appeared.

"But what?"

"..."

Igris fell silent, trying her best to avoid Cecilia's white hair falling on her face, and also reassuring herself that she dared not do anything.

Is she really too scared?

Igris was still too young; after all, she was only nineteen.

She looks at least nineteen years old.

"I spent most of my life dealing with living people, but I dealt with the dead most of the time."

Cecilia pinched Igris's rosy, almost adorable cheeks, and slowly released her body amidst Igris's slightly annoyed gaze.

With her head bowed, she whispered in Igris's ear as if telling a story.

"Indeed, I'm not young anymore... I can't compare to you. Before long, I'll become one of those old women that everyone hates."

She touched her face, seemingly somewhat anxious about her appearance.

Even though there are no wrinkles on her face, only wounds and bloodstains.

“I’m thirty years old this year, and many times I’ve thought about whether I should stop and find a stable family to live a good life.”

She had indeed thought about it, more than once.

But she has never had anyone she liked, or even ever.

As she said, most of the people she had dealt with were dead.

Even if they were once alive, most of them are now dead.

"So I was thinking... am I destined to be alone for the rest of my life, unable to find anyone I like or can like?"

A not-so-good feeling suddenly rose in Igris's heart.

Sure enough, as soon as she finished speaking, Cecilia moved closer to Igris again and pressed her cheek against Igris's flat chest.

"But it seems I might be looking in the wrong direction? Perhaps I prefer women?"

"...That's really bad news."

At least for Igris at this moment, it was indeed bad news.

"No, this is good news."

She pinched Igris's chin, forcing her to raise her head slightly and look at her.

She was laughing, a smile tugging at the corners of her mouth, a smile full of conquering desire and...greed.

Perhaps she was hungry, and Igris wouldn't mind giving her a small bite, provided... she really only takes one bite.

"I have to go..."

“You can’t go anywhere, Igris.”

A sense of crisis crept into her body, accompanied by a slightly tingling, eerie sensation.

…No, that wasn't a sense of crisis, that was Cecilia's hand.

It climbed onto Igris's stomach and tried to lift her shirt.

But the bloodstains on it were all stuck together, preventing Cecilia from succeeding. She could only wander back and forth, searching for the possible entrance.

"...Stop..."

Igris had never imagined that such a sound could come from her own mouth. Her body went weak, and she couldn't even tell whether she was resisting or longing for it.

Perhaps both.

Reason told her she couldn't do this, but her body told her, "Who cares! After all, you want to do this, don't you?"

Cecilia noticed her change and saw her expression.

Difficulty, hesitation, shyness, worry.

Her body welcomed Cecilia, but her will resisted, feeling that they shouldn't do this.

Cecilia didn't know how to describe her current feelings.

Perhaps it was because a delicious dish was placed in front of her, exuding its irresistible aroma, and she happened to be someone who hadn't eaten for three days.

She might want to devour the entire dish immediately, or she might want to savor its deliciousness slowly.

People are always a little greedy, and Cecilia is a prime example of that.

What should she do at this moment?

She could simply press Igris down into the chair and vent all the frustration she had accumulated over the past thirty years.

The likely outcome is that she will forever lose the desire and ability to pursue this for the rest of her life.

She could also... slow down a bit.

Slowly approach her, and then…

"...Let's stop here."

"..."

As Igris's calm voice rang out, Cecilia's body was also pushed away abruptly. Having experienced all of this, Igris's face was even redder than the bloodstains remaining on her face.

"You should apologize to me..."

"sorry."

She did not hesitate, nor did she have any desire to defend herself.

That's meaningless.

Do you know?

Cecilia took a breath and tried her best to keep her expression and voice as normal as possible to hide her not-so-calm heart.

Even though it was indeed very difficult, she still managed to do it.

"...I have never longed for a peaceful, ordinary life as much as I do now."

"..."

"I know I was too hasty, and I never expected you to promise me anything or respond to me. Also... I'm sorry again."

Cecilia lowered her head and gave a somewhat forced smile.

In this respect, she was particularly clumsy, subconsciously wanting to get closer, but always having the opposite effect because she was too impatient.

"Just pretend nothing happened."

The Gods' Fool - The Northern Train: Chapter 42, Time to Sleep

The train finally started moving, bringing with it a train full of chaos and corpses, a giant spider blocking the carriage, and a torn-open ceiling overhead.

This was really difficult; it even felt like surviving a disaster.

But it was only now that Igris realized that it would take at least three days for the car to reach its destination.

And now, it's only the first night.

On the very first day, they lost their ceiling.

The future seems bleak...

Fortunately, when Igris came out, the open-air train was no longer overhead.

A huge canvas was placed over her head, covering her up.

Although it doesn't have much practical significance, at least... it makes this battered train carriage a little less wretched.