If You're Going to Sell Yourself, Sell It to Me - Side Story 8

At the foot of the rocky mountain, even the sound of wind echoed low like a distant rumble.

“I’ve been observing for several days, and that spot seems most suitable.”

Joshua, keeping his voice as low as possible, pointed to the railway laid between the rock walls. The surrounding area was all high cliffs, so unless one came close, it was hard to tell there was a railway there at all.

They had seen guards occasionally circling nearby, but had confirmed that this particular spot was rarely patrolled.

Moreover, since the train was coming from the Northwest, it wouldn’t notice the damaged track until after turning the corner around the mountain, making it the perfect location to ensure their plan’s success.

Satisfied with his men’s resourcefulness, Huxler ordered the barrel of explosives to be set down nearby.

“There’s no change to the schedule, right?”

“Yes. It’s a bit behind, but the train is definitely scheduled to pass through here tonight.”

“Then this is a good time.”

“Yes. The guards were just patrolling here earlier, so they won’t be back before tomorrow.”

“Good. Let’s begin right away.”

His men began pouring a reasonable amount of gunpowder onto the railway.

Too much would create a blast loud enough to be heard from far away, but too little might cause the explosion to fail—so they had to get the amount just right.

Once half the barrel was emptied, Huxler nodded. “Start it.”

One of the men lit the fuse. With a crackling hiss, the flame traveled swiftly.

Everyone crouched behind the rocks, eyes fixed nervously on the burning fuse.

The last inch of fuse vanished in an instant, leaving only a charred trace.

Boom—!

With a deafening blast, the track exploded.

The shockwave made the surrounding rocks tremble, and their ears rang with a dull echo.

Huxler and his men belatedly covered their ringing ears with their palms.

Fortunately, the explosion was a success.

The rails where the gunpowder had been poured were mostly blown apart. Debris from shattered rocks had also buried the broken tracks in heaps.

It was clear that clearing the site would take at least an entire day.

Only after the cloud of dust settled did Huxler and his men rise from behind the rocks.

“Good work.”

After patting his men on the back, he had them fill their stomachs with stolen food while waiting for the train.

If they were going to sit and wait for an unknown amount of time, they needed to be full.

They hid behind the rocky mountains for half a day, and as night fell, they felt a faint tremor.

“Boss, the ground is shaking.”

At the subordinate’s words, Huxler nodded. “It’s definitely not soldiers on horseback—must be the train.”

Soon after, they spotted a faint light approaching in the distance.

Feeling the sweat gather in his palm, Huxler gripped his gun tightly.

Joshua whispered beside him in a low voice, “Should we attack the moment the train stops?”

“No. If they have any sense, they’ll send out armed guards first. If we launch a full assault then, our losses will be heavy too. We’ll wait and watch a little longer before we move.”

“As expected, you’re a cut above the rest, boss!”

Joshua looked on in admiration, and Huxler raised his chin proudly.

The tension mounted as time passed.

The heavy rumble of something approaching grew clearer and clearer.

As the enormous black machine emerged around the mountain bend, Huxler’s heart pounded furiously.

Seeing the train up close, it was far larger than anything he’d seen in the papers.

Its overwhelming size shook his confidence—he began to doubt whether twenty men could overcome hundreds of people aboard.

But it was too late to change the plan now.

The tracks had already been destroyed, and there wasn’t even half the gunpowder left.

Whatever happened, they had to at least try.

“They’ll be here soon. Everyone, stay low.”

As expected, the approaching train turned the corner and immediately spotted the broken tracks, reducing speed rapidly.

The massive machine came to a screeching halt with a grinding metallic sound.

Smoke still rose from the chimney at the front of the coal-fueled train.

Just as Huxler had predicted, the first to disembark were armed guards.

They surveyed the damaged tracks and kept a sharp lookout around the train.

Seeing that there were only about ten of them, Huxler thought they might be manageable.

After watching their movements for a while and seeing no sign of reinforcements, he decided it was time to strike.

“Let’s go!”

At Huxler’s shout, all his men sprang out from behind the rocks.

Those armed with guns split into two groups—half to deal with the front guards, the other half to scatter around the train and break into the passenger cars.

As Huxler headed toward the front with a few of the better marksmen, he came to a halt when he spotted armed men emerging from the train who looked different from the guards.

“Who the hell are you?”

The group that had noticed Huxler and his masked men shouted at them.

At that moment, Huxler’s mind raced.

He hadn’t expected there to be another armed group besides the guards.

There was no way to know who they were or why they were on the train.

‘Could it be someone important is on board?’

The newspaper hadn’t included detailed information about the passengers.

But now that they were facing each other, a fight seemed inevitable.

“I asked who you are!”

A brown-haired man who appeared last shouted. His short-cropped, military-style hair looked vaguely familiar.

Ignoring the growing sense of déjà vu, Huxler placed his finger on the trigger and shouted, “You don’t need to know who we are. Step aside quietly and no one gets hurt.”

“Step aside? That’s not going to happen. In fact, it’s you who should back off.”

The man’s hardened expression tensed as he issued a command to his comrades.

The men around him moved as if to surround Huxler and his gang.

The situation was getting more complicated, and the plan was beginning to unravel. Negotiation was no longer an option.

But they couldn’t just retreat now.

As long as they kept the group here occupied, Joshua and the others would have time to board the train and steal whatever valuables they could.

They needed to buy time.

Without hesitation, Huxler pulled the trigger.

At his signal, his men began firing all at once.

Bang—!

The gunfire rang out and echoed through the rocky hills.

The others fired back immediately.

The battle had begun in earnest.

***

At the sudden burst of gunfire, Locke pulled Georgiana into his arms and lowered their posture.

“Locke, what’s happening?”

Hearing gunshots in the middle of a rocky mountain range with not even a single house in sight, Georgiana turned pale.

“It seems a gang has shown up.”

Locke frowned as he cautiously peeked out the window.

“A gang?”

Georgiana’s eyes widened.

She had heard that Western gunslingers had formed several gangs, but most were so busy with turf wars among themselves that they rarely attacked ordinary people.

Besides, bandits targeting carriages were one thing—but she had never imagined they would attack a train carrying hundreds of people.

“It’s likely those bastards also blew up the tracks.”

“Then what should we do?”

Most of the passengers aboard were unarmed civilians. Gunfire had already likely thrown them into panic.

“Judging from the gunshots, negotiations must’ve already failed. We need to prepare for combat. Henry will do his part to hold them off, but we need to be ready as well.”

Locke opened a drawer hidden beneath the bed and pulled out a black leather bag.

Inside were weapons that belonged more on a battlefield than on a train.

From the collection, he took out two handguns that looked relatively light and handed them to her.

“When did you prepare these?” Georgiana, startled, accepted the guns from him.

“For our expert sharpshooter, of course. I always keep firearms close. You haven’t forgotten how to shoot, right?”

At his teasing grin, Georgiana’s mind flashed back to the past.

The day they had been chased by rioters—Locke risking his life for her still felt vivid, as if it had happened yesterday.

If not for that day, she might never have had the chance to be here with him now. Or perhaps it would’ve taken far longer to reach this point.

Thinking back on how she had nearly let precious time slip away due to misunderstanding and resentment made her dizzy.

“I was so shocked that day when you pulled a gun from under your skirt.”

Locke laughed as he checked over the rest of the weapons. He was clearly remembering that day too.