Chapter 92

The eerie gaze frightened the latter so much that he trembled in the corner...

Just then...

The locked, specially designed explosion-proof door was opened.

Loken entered and spoke in a gentle tone.

"Narcissa, today's experiment is about to begin. Come on, child."

When she saw Loken, she felt a sense of relief.

"Good..."

However, before she could finish speaking, she saw the "person" stand up and walk up to Loken.

"Good, it seems you've gotten used to it. Let's go, don't worry, it'll be over soon."

Loken smiled and led the shadowy figure out of the room.

"Let's go, Narcissa."

However, from beginning to end, his gaze never fell on Narcissa, who was trembling in the corner.

It was as if... in his eyes, there was only that dark figure, "Narcissa," in the room.

(Don't worry, everyone. We've already used the same storyline before, like the one where you fight a part of yourself. We won't be repeating the same thing.)

(Well, I won't spoil any more.)

Chapter 49, Any middleman will eventually--

"Phew... I got the tickets."

The Doctor glanced at the green train ticket in his hand and sighed.

She turned her head and glanced at the Victoria- style New Year decorations in the station.

It's Chinese New Year... I wonder if these kinds of holidays actually lead to a surge in foot traffic?

Looking down at the green ticket in my hand, with standard Victoria lettering on it.

Third-class ticket, carriage 11, seat number: 1a

Then she realized that there were different classes of cabins and ticket prices in places like this.

The cheapest ticket she could buy right now was the third-class ticket she had in her hand. The second-class ticket had doubled in price, and she didn't even dare to look at the first-class ticket.

Given her current situation and attire, she could only afford a third-class ticket, and only the price of a third-class ticket was befitting of her status and demeanor as a country girl...

Okay, actually, she just thought the tickets for the Victoria steam train were ridiculously expensive, even third class tickets were...

It already felt a bit too outrageous to her.

As for the second-class tickets, considering the unpredictable expenses that might arise in the future, all she could do was to save as much as possible.

"Phew... I have to survive all alone... No, I need to pull myself together. Even alone, I can do it...?"

Just as she stood there encouraging herself, a dazzling white figure flashed past from the corner of her vision amidst the bustling crowd.

Laurentina?!

The Doctor was taken aback, then subconsciously tightened his grip on the red rhomboid pendant hanging around his neck.

And... the Zuo Jian...

No, no, no, no, that's not right! I can't get close to them... Besides, what are the chances of that happening... How could it be...?

The Doctor shook his head, then peeked out from behind the crowd and carefully observed the situation with narrowed eyes.

The other person was a stylish and beautiful white-haired girl with a serene expression on her delicate face.

She looked as if she was waiting for someone.

However, for the Doctor, the important point was—she didn't recognize that face.

... It's not Laurentina...

Even she herself didn't realize that she felt a little down.

"No, no, no, I knew it was too much of a coincidence! It's more normal!"

The Doctor patted his face to rouse himself, then stopped observing the unfamiliar white-haired girl and headed towards the waiting room.

On the other side of the crowd, the somewhat bewildered Miss Orca was unaware that someone had just experienced a huge emotional fluctuation because of her. She simply stood there, waiting for the Shark to return.

Shark said she went to buy tickets first.

"Sigh... In the end, I still have to go to Londinium. I wonder if the cost of living there will be too high for me to afford..."

Aiden Wilton walked toward the ticket booth, sighing as he did so.

"I'll call back to ask my dad for it... No, that's out of the question. I've already graduated, I'm an adult now... I'll see if I can find a job in Londinium later."

As he pondered this, he walked toward the ticket counter for the second-class carriage.

However, just as he was pondering what kind of temporary job he could find to support himself, a girl's voice suddenly came from behind him.

Suddenly, strands of white hair entered his field of vision, like waves crashing past him.

"Excuse me, could you please make way?"

"Oh..."

Aiden instinctively stepped aside, then looked at the other person's face... it seemed somewhat familiar.

Have I seen this person somewhere before?

Looking at the large and small bags she was carrying, and the long rectangular box on her back...

I feel like I've seen her before, but... it doesn't quite match my memory.

"This is the nearest ticket office... Excuse me, two tickets."

Zuo Jian leaned against the counter in front of the ticket seller, as if he had breathed a sigh of relief.

Luckily, I made it in time.

"Okay, here's your ticket. It shows your carriage and seat. Please keep it safe."

After swiping the ticket, which Zuo Jian feeling uncomfortable, the ticket seller handed him two blue tickets.

"Okay, thank you."

I breathed a sigh of relief after Zuo Jian.

It seems Laurentina is on her way; I need to go and meet her.

He picked up the large box that was on the ground, and while carrying other items on his back, walked towards the direction he had sensed.

He didn't notice that a young man beside him, head bowed, was deep in thought.

Aiden lowered his head, touching his chin, his brows furrowed tightly.

He was still thinking about the woman from earlier.

It wasn't because the other person's appearance was particularly attractive to him; it was simply because... he had developed a tendency to overthink things.

His teacher once told him that this kind of personality was a good thing, but not entirely a good thing.

For example...

"Wait a minute, I'm sure I've seen this before. Why doesn't it match my memory? It doesn't make sense. It feels like the same person, so why doesn't it match up...? This feeling is so strange... Is it the aura... or...?"

"No, no, no, that kind of thing is too vague and ethereal, it's impossible. My memory is absolutely correct; I must have missed something—"

"Ladies and gentlemen, the train bound for the capital, Londinium, is about to arrive. Please take your tickets and prepare to board. This will be the last train to travel between the two cities this year. Thank you for your support of the Steam Train Group over the past year..."

The broadcast interrupted Aiden's thoughts and brought him back to reality.

Wait a minute?!

He looks like he's here to buy tickets?!

Damn it.

There was no time to think about anything else, Aiden quickly ran to the counter and shouted to the ticket seller.

"Excuse me, one ticket, thank you."

"I'm sorry, sir, the lady just bought the last two second-class tickets. We're very sorry."

"Wh... what..."

Aiden's eyes widened, and sure enough...

The teacher said that my sometimes overly inquisitive personality would harm him.

"Why don't you try buying tickets for other seats?"

"However, the train is about to arrive at the station, please hurry."

The ticket seller pointed out the ticket counters for other seats to Aiden.

"Thank you for reminding me, sorry to bother you!"

He sighed deeply, then headed straight for the third-class ticket window.

That said, when I traveled on steam trains, I almost always rode in the second-class carriage, because I had heard that there were frequent reports of thefts in the third-class carriages.

Damn it, there's no other choice right now.

However, just as he was about to run to buy a third-class ticket, a somewhat thin, elderly Victoria man suddenly stopped him.

"Sir, I'm sorry, I have an urgent matter to attend to, please help me--"

However, the next moment, the old man suddenly took out a stack of blue train tickets from his pocket and squinted at Aiden.

"Hey buddy, need some money?"

"?! You have a second-class ticket?"

Aiden's eyes lit up, and then he asked with a look of surprise.

"Hehe, so, want to buy it?"

Seeing Aiden's expression, the old man then revealed a sly smile.

"Yes, yes, old man, name your price."

He said this, and then reached for his wallet.

"Not much, 200 Victorian currency."

The old man spoke slowly, his voice seemingly freezing time, stopping Aiden in his tracks as he reached for his money.

"How much... how little?"

"A flat price of 140 Victorian currency, Lungmen Coins payment accepted, or 1400 Lungmen Coins. Cash or credit card payments are both accepted."

As the old man spoke, he pulled a dirty card reader from his waist.

"No way... 1400 Lungmen Coins?! Are you kidding me?! That's enough to buy a first-class ticket?!"

Aiden stared at the old man in disbelief. He was prepared for the old man to raise the price on the spot, which was understandable.

However... his sudden doubling of the price to almost the same as first class instantly made Aiden, a recent college graduate, realize the treacherous nature of this society.

Damn it, we've run into a middleman.

"Tsk--" The old man glanced at Aiden impatiently, then spoke.

"Look, where can you find second-class tickets now? These are all tickets I got by staying up all night to buy. You think they're too expensive, and I think they're too expensive too."

"?"

Aiden stood there, stunned. For a moment, something wanted to burst out, but his good manners made him take a deep breath and then smile.

"I'm sorry... my family is poor, I'll just buy a third-class ticket."

After saying that, he turned around and headed straight for the third-class ticket sales area.

"Tsk, dressed all high and mighty, can't even afford a ticket..."