Chapter 210
Chapter 210: Resurrection from Death (2)
We couldn’t travel by plane because of Liam’s injuries. They hadn’t completely healed yet. Besides, there was no need to take unnecessary risks.
Fortunately, flying wasn’t the only way to travel between England and France. With good options like overnight buses and trains available, we quickly bought train tickets departing today. The train would use the Channel Tunnel, and it was so fast the arrival time was almost the same as flying. Getting through immigration at St. Pancras Station didn’t take long.
Liam slept the whole journey on painkillers, and given his injuries, he probably wouldn’t be able to bounce around like before. We would arrive at Paris Nord station in about two hours.
People were busy gathering their luggage. Saint-Germain and Jonathan from the front car joined us on the platform. After that, we just had to leave the station like any other travelers.
Paris’s Friday evening streets were quiet. Only tourists were moving to hotels by taxi or Uber. Usually, visiting France would bring expectations of seeing the Eiffel Tower or exhibits at the Louvre, but given our purpose here, we viewed all these scenes rather clinically and dryly.
Saint-Germain led us to a nearby parking lot. He’d arranged for a vehicle in advance. Given that his acquaintance had cheerfully said “it’s fine even if you wreck it,” it seemed like we’d be okay no matter what happened.
We all crowded cozily into a large passenger vehicle in the parking lot. There was a strange chemical smell from the new leather seats. Jonathan took the driver’s seat, Saint-Germain with his paper map rode shotgun, Liam and I sat in the middle, and Lucita and Ian took the back seats.
“Come to think of it, what about your butler?”
The butler who’d been following Lucita around like glue. Lucita, who’d left him behind in England, gazed out the window nonchalantly, seemingly unconcerned.
“He’ll follow somehow.”
Ian, sitting next to Lucita, kept fidgeting and watching his fellow passenger nervously—he seemed scared of her. Red eyes were rare among 21st century people. And these weren’t just red eyes, but brilliantly glowing ones, as if rubies had been set in place of eyes.
Lucita, lounging lazily against her seat, grinned.
“I like him.”
Ian jumped at those words and pressed himself into a corner of his seat.
“He’s fun to tease. Young people have their cute points. Don’t worry, I’ll take care of you even if things go wrong.”
I giggled. Lucita seemed to be joking in her own way, but Ian had no talent for taking jokes. He tapped the back of my seat repeatedly, sending distress signals.
“Aunt, c-can’t we switch seats? I’m scared.”
“What are you so afraid of? Lucita isn’t a bad person.”
“I know but I’m still scared…!”
Well, women who kick down church doors and blow off villains’ heads are rare, I suppose.
While we were having this conversation, Jonathan, having confirmed our route to the destination, started the engine. The vehicle vibrated lightly with a vrooming sound.
“Where are we going?”
The answer came not from Jonathan but from beside him. It was Saint-Germain, who’d been studying the map intently.
“We’ll head straight to Lille.”
“And after that?”
“After a brief stop, we’ll drive along the Hauts-de-France coast.”
Hauts-de-France—meaning “Upper France” in French. It seemed we’d be driving straight to the northernmost region from Paris.
I quickly searched online for how long it would take to reach Lille and found it would take up to two hours, depending on road conditions.
“Are they hiding by the coast?”
Saint-Germain answered.
“Yes. According to Lucita, the last trace of him was found in the Hauts-de-France area.”
Lucita, who had her legs stretched out with her feet propped on Ian’s armrest, spoke indifferently.
“There are three candidate locations. Places that match the scene Jane described, and where he might hide. Three abandoned châteaux. If we’re looking for places that might have a hall, châteaux are the most likely.”
Places near churches where bell sounds could be heard, and châteaux. Finding locations matching these criteria wouldn’t have been too difficult for Lucita.
Jonathan, gripping the steering wheel, said kindly:
“I’ll wake you when we reach the candidates, so get some sleep for now, sis.”
“…Okay. I’ll do that.”
Though the tension of pursuing the perpetrator of all these crimes made it difficult to just stretch out and sleep, I needed to replenish my energy. Besides, having just returned from witnessing the edge of madness, I desperately needed rest.
This car would be safe. Both Lucita and Saint-Germain were here. Those two could probably protect everyone here with power to spare.
I buried myself in the seat back with my eyes closed. Liam was already asleep with his jacket draped over him. I gazed at his slightly parted lips, closed eyelids, long eyelashes, and regularly rising and falling chest.
His bangs, grown long enough to cover his eyebrows, caught my attention. Liam had kept his hair down like that ever since escaping the funeral. Somehow it made him look younger. Like the Liam I first met in November 1870.
I adjusted my position, suppressing the urge to poke sleeping Liam’s cheeks. When Ian showed me how to extend the footrest, I got more comfortable. Except for the occasional vibrations from driving, it was perfect for sleeping.
Why was Liam so cute?
…Such love-struck thoughts were interrupted when Liam shifted slightly.
* * *
Tap tap. A sound of someone knocking on the window woke me up.
It was Saint-Germain who had roused me from sleep. I startled awake and looked around.
The car had already stopped. Looking outside, I saw everyone else had already gotten out. Saint-Germain, who had slid open the door, pointed outside with his thumb. Despite the late hour, there were cars lined up.
“We’ve stopped at a rest area. To deal with hunger too.”
“Ah.”
As I hastily combed my hair with my fingers and got out of the car, Liam, looking much more comfortable than before we left, hugged me from behind and rested his chin on top of my head. I was about to nag but instead just went toward the food court with Liam hanging off me.
Despite the late hour, there were still simple sandwiches and snacks available, so we gathered those up. Though I wasn’t sure how many would eat, it couldn’t hurt to have extra. While doing this, Liam chuckled.
“What is it, Liam Moore?”
“Nothing. Just reminded me of how… you used to be obsessed with meals before.”
“All Koreans are like that. We take every meal seriously. You should eat well too. National power comes from physical strength—you need to eat and sleep well to recover quickly and move around.”
“Sometimes you talk like an old person who’s seen it all…”
I responded matter-of-factly to that:
“I guess the 1870 experience left quite an impression.”
Liam burst out laughing then grabbed his side with a “Huk!” He tightened his other arm around me.
“Dear… if you keep making me laugh like this, your husband’s side is going to burst.”
“If we need emergency care in France… does insurance cover it?”
Liam was now crying from laughter. As I got jostled along, I spitefully jabbed at his arm repeatedly.
Just then, the employee who had packed all the food handed me a paper bag. We took it and headed back.
Lucita was leaning against the car smoking, while Jonathan stood guard beside it. Saint-Germain had already gotten back in the car and was slurping coffee.
Jonathan handed me a drink with a grin, then passed a paper cup to Liam too. Liam took a sip and froze. He quickly opened the lid to check the contents.
It was warm milk with soft foam. For some reason, there was a smiley face drawn on the cup’s exterior. Did they think it was a drink for kids?
Jonathan burst into unrestrained giggles.
I checked my drink just in case, but it was regular black coffee. Liam looked at Lucita. She shrugged and answered:
“Coffee.”
“…Why just me…”
A disgruntled voice escaped Liam’s lips. He was complaining about why he alone got milk when everyone else had coffee. Honestly, I found the situation amusing. I mean, since when had he been such a coffee lover?
