The silence inside the vehicle was visibly unsettling.
The simple words Evangeline had spoken carried implications heavy enough to make everyone shiver. Sneak glances were thrown toward Ragnar, but he was too deep in thought to notice.
Ragnar had pieced many things together from the discussion. In some strange way, he felt relieved because he finally understood that what had happened to him wasn't entirely random. Yet at the same time, there seemed to be a massive hole in his memories.
The suspicion had started the moment Evangeline mentioned the word "Adapted."
'The human body is always adapting...' 'That means my current state had long been on the way.'
His brows furrowed deeply.
'But if I haven't evolved yet, like she said, then there must be a wall between mundane humans and Adapteds.' 'So what exactly did I cross?'
He tried recalling the memories from before he left the shelter, but everything felt foggy. All he remembered was chaos. A crisis. And the overwhelming need to leave.
He couldn't even remember how he ended up in the shelter in the first place.
Meanwhile, the more Ragnar drifted into his thoughts, the more uneasy Evangeline became.
A faint blush could be seen spreading across her cheeks as she fidgeted in her seat. It was such an out-of-place sight amidst the tense atmosphere that the others couldn't help but feel their nerves ease slightly.
With a sigh, Ragnar slowly lifted his head.
He still couldn't piece everything together due to the lack of information, but one thing hadn't changed.
'Whatever happened to me... I still have to surviv—'
"Hmmph—!"
His thoughts were abruptly cut off.
Ragnar's eyes widened as his face was suddenly buried between two soft mounds pressing against his cheeks from both sides.
The entire vehicle froze.
Even Ailsa looked completely stunned. In fact, her shock seemed even greater than the others'.
The Evangeline she knew was practically cold-blooded beneath all the teasing smiles and casual jokes. Ailsa trusted her instincts and deductions more than anything else, yet right now she genuinely didn't know what to make of the situation before her.
Evangeline's face was filled with concern, regret and... care.
"I'm sorry, Ragnar."
Her voice came out extremely soft, almost like a whisper.
"Hmm—"
Ragnar was about to speak when the vehicle suddenly came to an abrupt halt.
Ailsa immediately stood and walked toward the front cabin. The moment she looked outside, her expression shifted from shock to deep confusion.
"How...?"
Evangeline had already returned to her seat while Ragnar finally pulled himself out of his disoriented state.
The others also stared toward the front curiously.
Ailsa walked back slowly. Her green eyes gleamed faintly within the dim cabin.
"We're back."
"Back where?" Ragnar asked with a frown.
No one replied.
The vehicle doors opened and everyone stepped outside.
Ahead of them stood a gigantic wall stretching endlessly into the fog-covered distance.
The gates remained wide open.
"That's Steins City," one of the maids said quietly.
"Huh? That's impossible."
Evangeline immediately turned toward the driver, her face flushing red with irritation.
She had already embarrassed herself enough in front of Ragnar, and now this happened.
The maid immediately lowered her head in panic.
"M-My lady, I'm sorry, but I truly don't know what happened. I followed the exact direction you gave me."
Evangeline stared at her silently for a few moments before taking a deep breath and turning back toward Ragnar, allowing the maid to sigh in relief.
Ragnar, however, was staring intensely at the city gates.
Something felt deeply wrong.
"This isn't right."
Evangeline looked at him curiously.
"What isn't right?"
Ragnar turned and stared directly at her.
For a few long moments, he said nothing. Then his gaze shifted toward Ailsa.
"What do you feel?" Ailsa asked immediately.
She already knew Ragnar's instincts were the sharpest among them when it came to danger.
Ragnar still didn't answer.
His eyes slowly swept across the group.
The four maids standing respectfully behind them. The nervous driver fidgeting anxiously. The girls leaning against the vehicle or sitting quietly on broken rubble nearby.
Then finally—
"Nothing."
His voice came out soft.
He lowered his gaze toward his palms again.
"I feel nothing."
This time it sounded less like he was speaking to them and more like he was trying to convince himself.
Ailsa and Evangeline's expressions changed almost instantly.
A ripple of golden light spread outward from Evangeline, enveloping the entire city before fading moments later.
Her face immediately turned awkward.
"There's really nothing wrong."
"That's the problem," Ailsa replied calmly.
Everyone's guard rose another level instantly.
The current world was a place where danger never truly disappeared. Even people with heightened senses eventually learned to live alongside constant warnings screaming within their minds.
You simply learned which signals to ignore and which to fear.
Ragnar possessed something similar.
His body often reacted faster than his thoughts. Instinct had kept him alive countless times already.
Yet now... His mind felt calm. His muscles, usually tense, actually wanted to relax.
At first, Ragnar thought something was wrong with his senses.
But seeing that even Evangeline felt nothing...
He finally realized the situation was far more terrifying than he initially thought.
"Let's head inside first," Evangeline said after a moment of silence. "I'm sure Albert knows something about this."