Casey wakes up at 11:00 in the middle of the night (it's supposed to be night, but no one can tell the difference between day and night except by the rain that only falls at night). She starts going down the stairs quietly to grab a cup of water and catches a glimpse of Liner carving a small piece of wood about the size of his palm.
Casey: "Lai—"
Suddenly Maria grabs her quickly.
Maria (in a low voice): "What are you doing? Do you want him to bury you?"
Casey (whispering): "Why?"
Maria: "That's the one thing you should never talk to Liner about."
Casey (whispering): "Why not?"
Maria: "Come with me. I'll tell you."
They enter Maria's room, and Casey follows.
Casey: "Why can't I talk to Liner about that?"
Maria (sitting on her chair): "Because it's about his sister—the one who died ten years ago."
Casey: "Liner had a sister?"
Maria: "He did. But one day, she was kidnapped right in front of him… and burned alive, also right before his eyes. That's all I know. But Casper and William know more, because they're the ones who saved him."
Casey: "Alright… thank you."
Maria: "And remember—don't bring this up with anyone, not even me, for a while."
Casey leaves Maria's room, grabs a bottle of water, and heads back to her room to sleep.
Casey wakes up and gets ready to go to work. She goes down the stairs with excitement and finds the café crowded with people.
Casey: "Good morning, Maria."
Maria: "Morning."
Casey: "Hi, Casper."
Casper: "Morning."
Casey: "Hey, Lawrence."
Lawrence: "Get out of my face."
Casey: "Alright then… hey, Nila."
Nila: "Hello, little spoiled princess."
Casey: "You'll never change… Oh, right, where's Liner?"
Maria: "He went out to get some supplies for the café."
Casey: "Oh."
Casey takes a cup of coffee and heads out.
She goes to the police station, arranges her desk—puts the pens in place, sets the coffee to the side—and starts reading reports. Suddenly, the chief walks up to her.
Chief: "Casey Folden, I have a job for you."
Casey: "A job? What is it?"
Chief: "There's an abandoned station in the city. We got some reports saying some reckless people hang out there. We want you to investigate."
Casey: "Understood."
She stands up and heads to the location.
After two hours of walking:
Casey: "So this is the place… must be full of delinquents, like the ruins in Everlona, haha. Alright, let's get started."
She climbs over the fence surrounding the area and is stunned by the sight.
Half the train station is submerged under water, and the other half is an old, crumbling building barely holding together.
Casey: "This is a dangerous place for people to hide."
She starts hopping over debris to reach the station surrounded by water on all sides.
Casey: "Harder than I thought…"
After a short while, she enters the station and begins exploring, finding suspicious cargo piled up.
Casey: "This place is more of a swamp than a train station after all these years."
Suddenly, she hears a faint trickling sound nearby and starts following it.
Casey: "Hey! Show yourself! There's nowhere to hide here!"
A hyena suddenly lunges at Casey, knocking her to the ground. Terrified, she scrambles backward on her hands and knees, panic taking over her body. She spots a door nearby and crawls toward it as fast as she can, slamming it shut right as the hyena crashes into it.
The beast keeps clawing and biting at the door.
Casey's body trembles; her fear drains her strength, making her unable to use magic. When her energy fades completely, the hyena bursts through and leaps at her—
But suddenly, Liner appears, shoving Casey out of the way and taking the bite on his right arm. He immediately drives his blade through the hyena's head.
Liner (angrily): "You almost got yourself killed, idiot! Can't you focus for even one damn second? You're unbelievable!"
He throws the hyena's corpse aside.
Liner: "Follow me—now."
Casey rushes after him.
Liner opens a rusted door leading to an underground passage and climbs down. Casey follows, and they descend until they reach the city's sewers. Liner gathers scattered wooden pieces and builds a small boat, stepping inside.
Liner: "Get in. I'm not waiting."
Casey sits down, guilt written all over her face, while Liner starts rowing.
Liner: "Heh… alright, sorry for yelling. You're still new—mistakes happen. Just don't drop your guard again, no matter what."
Casey: "I'm sorry."
Liner: "Apologize when you actually mean it, not now."
Casey: "Does your wound hurt?"
Liner: "I've had worse."
(Casey remembers what Maria told her.)
Casey: "I see…"
Suddenly, both hear voices above—the sound of people talking inside the station.
Liner stops rowing, gets out, and climbs up a side ladder. He opens a maintenance hatch and peers out.
Casey: "What's there…?"
Liner: "Shh."
Casey (whispering): "What do you see?"
Liner: "A bunch of idiots."
Four gang members are moving crates inside the station.
Thug 1: "Did you send that detective to expose us?"
Thug 2: "Heh, don't worry. She's a rookie. Once she sees the hyena, she'll panic and get torn apart. That way, we get rid of the inspection request from the neighboring kingdom and can move our goods freely."
Thug 1: "You're a genius."
Thug 2 (arrogantly): "Of course I am."
Then Liner notices one of the crates contains sedated children. His expression changes instantly—rage consuming him.
He bursts out of the hatch.
Thug 3: "Who the hell is that?!"
Thug 4: "Doesn't matter—kill him!"
Liner appears before the first man, cutting him to pieces. In the blink of an eye, he grabs the second's hand, snaps it, and kicks him in the gut so hard he dies from the impact.
A third thug tries to attack from behind, but Liner catches him by the throat and squeezes until he stops moving.
Casey watches in shock and horror.
Minutes later, all the gang members are dead.
Liner walks to the cage, freeing the children.
Liner: "Help me get them home."
Casey: "Right."
They carry the sleeping, drugged children to the small boat and leave the flooded station.
Casey: "Why is the station surrounded by water? Shouldn't rainwater drain out normally?"
Liner: "The station's in a low area. Water collected here over the years. The gangs built a dam to use the place for themselves."
Casey: "I should report this."
Liner: "Don't. Even the police are involved."
After a while of rowing—
Liner: "Finally done."
Casey notices Liner's wound has completely healed but doesn't ask, afraid of his reaction.
They go to a restaurant where William is eating. Liner hands him the two children beside Casey and asks about their families. William writes down the addresses and gives him a note.
Liner splits the paper in half—giving one part to Casey and keeping the other. They return all the children safely to their homes.
Later, Casey and Liner meet again in front of the café. Liner enters first.
Liner: "Hey, Casper, I've got a request."
Casper (making coffee): "What is it?"
Liner places his hand on Casey's head.
Liner: "Train this idiot."
Casey: "What?!"
Casper: "If that's your first request, fine."
Casper (serious): "Are you ready, rookie?"