[Bronze Level Hidden Badge "Connected Party" activated, you received a support resource from within the organization. The resource can be obtained once the provider's conditions are met.]
Hearing the notification by his ear, Leon, holding a broom and shopping bag, and waiting for the carriage at the city district intersection to visit the Ryan Family, couldn't help but pause slightly.
*Wow, this Hidden Badge really lived up to its name. How long has it been since I got it? And it's already scored me a resource support.*
Although some conditions still needed to be met to obtain the resource support, since the resource was from the Purification Bureau, it most likely related to materials for an Anomalous Object, or maybe even an Anomalous Object itself.
According to Senior Emma, the bureau averaged three missions and spent three to four months to acquire one Anomalous Object, and even then, there was no guarantee it could be useful.
Compared with that, if the resource obtained was truly an Anomalous Object and the conditions weren't too harsh, this exchange was quite a bargain!
Just as Leon hesitated whether to go back and ask about the so-called resource support, to see exactly what it was, he heard a slightly piercing whistle, as four robust horses slowly pulled a large carriage toward the platform.
Forget it, the carriage is here... And I don't know how long it will take to fulfill that condition, plus, the investigation of the Ryan Family has been delayed long enough, I'll deal with the resource issue after the investigation.
After making up his mind, Leon moved forward as the steam carriage's door stabilized in the boarding area, then bent low to squeeze into the carriage with about twenty positions and sat down in a rear seat.
Compared to the front rows near the carriage door, the rear position was closer to the boiler at the back of the carriage and was very noisy, a torment during the summer.
But with just a few days before winter, for Leon, whose coat was very old and not warm enough, it was undoubtedly the most comfortable position.
However, as Leon sat back on the chair with a pleased expression, feeling the comforting warmth on his back, he heard hurried footsteps outside the carriage and a rather familiar anxious shout.
"Wait a minute! We're getting on too!"
*Oh damn, could I be so unlucky?*
Recognizing whose voice it was, Leon, who didn't want to meet her, turned dark and instinctively shrunk down, hesitating whether to get off the carriage now.
But within that brief moment, the owner of the voice had already run from the back to the carriage door, leaping skillfully with a long stride, jumping into the carriage. It was the female detective from the Secret Investigation Bureau.
"What are you doing? Do you want to die?"
At this point, the carriage had slightly moved from the platform. Although one could still get on in one step, it was still somewhat dangerous. Facing the risky maneuver from the woman not in uniform, the ticket lady shouted angrily,
"If you don't want to live, find another carriage! Don't bring disaster to mine!"
"Ah! I apologize, I'm sorry!"
Finally getting on the carriage, the female detective sighed in relief, then hurriedly apologized repeatedly, explaining,
"We have an urgent matter, and this carriage comes only once every hour. I was afraid you wouldn't wait for us and leave directly, so I chased up a bit hastily. I promise it won't happen again... Could you move the carriage back a bit? There are others behind..."
"Hmph, the young ones today, all rushed and reckless... Move back a bit!"
Muttering a few unyielding words, the ticket lady, seeing the female detective continuously apologizing, didn't make things difficult for her but rather signaled the driver to stop again, allowing the other two people to get on.
However, as the two women and one man entered the carriage and prepared to walk to the back, the ticket lady stopped them with one arm, saying sourly,
"Only two seats are left, one of you has to get off!"
Hearing her words, the three of them were stunned, and the female detective hesitated before speaking up,
"Then they can sit. I can stand in the aisle..."
"Are you making trouble?"
Interrupting her, while patting the sign on the carriage wall, the ticket lady said with glaring eyes,
"This is a fast long-carriage drawn by four horses! No standing passengers!"
"But what? Pretty as you are, why are you talking nonsense?"
The ticket lady, with an impatient face, continued to hustle,
"Once more, this is a fast carriage, and it doesn't have handles for standing passengers!
If something happens requiring a sudden stop, standing in the middle of the aisle, you'll fly from the last row to the front! Your face will be scraped off!
So hurry up! One of you three has to get off! This trip is already quite late, if we don't depart now, we'll be off-schedule!"
*Truly no options... What to do?*
Hearing the ticket lady's words, the man among the other two immediately glanced at the female detective with an inquisitive look.
*Should we wait for the next trip? Or wait for one of the bureau's official vehicles to return?*
The female detective immediately understood her colleague's meaning and shook her head firmly.
The next carriage wouldn't come for over an hour, and being in the city district area, scattered carriages rarely came by. Missing the scheduled visit time with the Ryan Family would make it difficult to arrange another meeting.
"You should get off."
Signaling to her colleague, the female detective placed a hand on the third person's shoulder, speaking earnestly,
"It's fine, though it isn't ideal having one fewer person, I'm here."
Remembering her "glorious history," the male detective felt confident she could handle the escort of a frail female prisoner alone. With only slight hesitation, he nodded in agreement.
After handing something over to her, the male detective got off the carriage, and the female detective "kindly" draped an arm around the pale-faced woman's shoulders and half-pushed her towards the back of the carriage.
However, as the ticket lady had said, the four-horse long-carriage was fully packed, with only two empty spots in the noisy last row near the boiler.
Among the five seats in the last row, on the right was a whispering young couple, and on the left was a young man with his head covered by an old coat, sleeping soundly against the wall.
*Perhaps... ask to swap seats?*
Looking at the detained female prisoner, the female detective hesitated. She didn't mind the noise of the last row but worried whether the restrained prisoner might harm someone and hoped to move her to a seat beside the wall.
Though the prisoner had been compliant since her capture, with one less escorting officer, if she decided to escape... although confident in immediately subduing her, injuries would be problematic.
"You two women at the back, what are you doing?"
After waiting a long while and seeing them not seated, preventing departure, the ticket lady shouted impatiently, scolding,
"If you're sitting, then sit quickly! If not, get off quickly! What nonsense are you spouting on my carriage?"
The female detective shrank her neck at the scolding and hurriedly sat with the prisoner before the lady tackled the expulsion.
With the piercing whistle and horse's neigh, the steam carriage left the platform and gradually picked up speed. As the boiler and water tank at the back started emitting sharp noises, the female detective patted the person covered by the coat on the shoulder, inquiring politely and softly,
"Excuse me, sir, could you please help by swapping seats with my friend?"