“Um, Supervisor, I’ll head out now. I’m okay on my own.”
Supervisor Dolphin readily volunteered to jump off at the first Altar.
Since someone had to go alone at the first Altar, someone needed to step up, but I had to stay until the very end because someone needed to organize and check on the passengers until the last moment.
However, Supervisor Dolphin didn't end up falling alone.
“Th-then I’ll go first, too…! I’ll go.”
“Since we have to do it anyway, the sooner the better.”
Because there were so many volunteers, several people decided to jump together even at the first Altar.
And just before the start.
Distance Remaining: 4
“There is still a chance to stop now.”
Even at the final crossroads, not a single person quit.
“Let’s go!”
“Aaaah!!”
People exited through the windows.
Led by Supervisor Dolphin, more than seven people swarmed down at the first Altar.
Open the waterway
The Train quickly exited the Altar, and the surroundings became bright again.
“Uh….”
People blinked at the sight that had repeated fourteen times, a landscape that had become an almost learned, everyday routine.
“Th-they went.”
Naturally, it probably didn't look much different from jumping off before.
‘The lack of painkillers only takes effect after you go down.’
Then, a strange Symptom occurred.
‘Wait, was it actually not that big of a deal?’
Perhaps thinking that, people started saying they would jump off late, too.
Like this person, for example.
“Hey! I’ll go too.”
As for this passenger, he was the one Supervisor Dolphin had caught acting out and had marked as a candidate for a Living Sacrifice….
He had conveniently deleted from his memory how he had raised his fists at people in the early rounds and said things like, ‘Just go before I hit you,’ and spoke to me as if nothing had happened.
Well, it didn't matter.
“Then, you’ll jump at the 2nd….”
“No, I’ll go with you, I mean, with The Precursor. I definitely want to go together. At the end.”
“…Hmm. All right.”
If you say so.
—He’s quite a rude fellow.
It was just as he said.
And from behind, I heard that passenger chatting with his group.
“Hey, what are you doing? Why are you suddenly talking shit about jumping off?”
“Shh, can’t you tell from the atmosphere? If you jump off with faith, they definitely give you some Special power or something. Fuck, it’s obvious at a glance. You have to jump on the trend at times like this.”
Hmm.
‘Poor thing….’
There’s no such thing.
“I’m telling you, there’s a high chance that the part about it being painful is just a lie to filter people out.”
It’s not.
‘It’s really going to hurt.’
Well, delusions are a matter of personal freedom.
I decided not to talk him out of it. Instead, to add him to the list of people going to the Altar, I checked his face one more time….
Wait a minute.
Come to think of it, that man’s face….
‘…He has a large mole on his cheek.’
It was a feature I hadn't noticed because I had passed him hurriedly, fearing Supervisor Dolphin might throw a preemptive punch to his face.
‘And he was a person from Car 6, right?’
Someone with exactly matching characteristics came to mind.
Hmm.
‘It seems that person was the passenger who originally became the Pseudo religion leader….’
—Oh dear! Did he lose his role to Mr. Roe Deer?
Well, I don't want to admit it… but it seems so.
‘Since all 14 rounds flowed so smoothly, I guess cases like that appear.’
Well, it’s much better than him leading passengers with fear and madness, extracting their organs to offer as a Living Sacrifice, and then throwing only their husks out the window….
At any rate, the important point was that the majority of the volunteering passengers were descending to the Altar together without any problems, with a calm and firm attitude.
“I’m off.”
“Let’s see each other after we’ve all become better people!”
“We can do it!”
The atmosphere strangely got better and better. Some people even wiped away tears while waiting.
“Actually, this is the first time I’ve ever challenged something like this….”
“You’re cool!”
While people were encouraging each other and sharing sincere stories, I looked back at one person who stood apart.
At Baek Saheon, who was watching this whole scene with a reluctant expression.
“…I don’t know why you’re looking at me. I’m not going down.”
“Suit yourself.”
I didn't expect him to.
“However.”
Baek Saheon said in a somewhat suggestive voice.
“Well, if you need me, I might go down if you give me one painkiller.”
“Ah, are you going to use it now?”
“No, after this is all over and we’re out.”
“Oh….”
I smiled broadly.
“No thanks.”
“…….”
Just take a free ride comfortably.
‘Where do you think you’re going to get an Item for free?’
“Ah, it’s the fifth Altar, Precursor!”
“Yes. I’m coming.”
Leaving Baek Saheon behind, I mingled among the passengers, offering advice and applause to the volunteers.
It meant I did what I could as a Silver Heart Possessor.
And…….
After about three hours had passed.
Entering the Ninth Altar
“…….”
The final moment had finally come.
“Let’s go.”
“Yes.”
I stood with all the remaining volunteers.
…The number of people who said they would go out the window this time easily exceeded twenty.
‘It’s an unbelievable number.’
To be honest, it’s scary.
If these people really start resenting me while writhing in pain, can my mental state hold up?
“I’m going!”
“Ya- hup!”
Two or three people followed one after another, holding hands and jumping out the window without hesitation.
After confirming that the very last of the volunteering passengers had jumped through the window, I immediately stood before it.
“Are, are you going?”
Actually, even if I backed out now, it wouldn't hinder the clear.
But…….
—Ah, are you going to use that excellent painkiller again, Friend?
…….
‘No.’
I tucked the painkiller back into my pocket.
And I threw my body toward the window.
Splat.
My body, fallen from the high-speed Train, tumbled into the dark red Altar passage.
And the moment my five senses grasped the surrounding landscape….
…….
‘Fuck.’
It was a primal hell.
I couldn't believe I hadn't felt disgusted by this sight before.
Even though it was something I had done twice, the difference between when I injected Happy Maker into my arm and when I didn't was stark.
Countless pieces of rotting flesh, of unknown origin, squirmed on the floor, creating waves like earthworms—a hell filled with rotten blood and filth.Thefleshismoving!
Is, is this also causing hallucinations? No, I’m wearing the silver ring, so I’m fi— no, let’s stop, let’s stop thinking.
I caught my breath to let the silver ring’s resistance take effect.
Still, the sound that used to strike my head wasn't heard like before.
‘Gather your wits….’
Just then.
A pain as if my entire body were on fire struck me.
“…!!”
I almost fell.
Burning Pain.
Burning Pain!!
B
U
R
N
I
N
G
P
A
I
N
B
U
R
N
I
N
G
P
A
I
N
B
U
R
N
I
N
G
P
A
I
N
Every single letter felt like searing my entire body with candle wax.
Just because I couldn't hear that weird sound ringing in my head didn't mean it was okay!
In fact, the people who could hear that sound….
“Crazy! Crazy!”
“Aaaaargh!”
“What, what are you saying, what… Gu, guilt?”
Cries, screams, and symptoms of delirium echoed through the Altar.
My head was spinning.
Thud.
A person near me fell completely and was stuck between the pieces of flesh. Suppressing a scream, I grabbed and pulled that person up.
“Gr-gr-gr-gr….”
‘Pa, painkiller.’
The thought of pulling them up and injecting Happy Maker dominated my mind.
So, the moment I supported the other person and slung them over my shoulder.
“…!”
Suddenly.
The Burning Pain subsided sharply.
‘……No!’
It hadn't subsided; it was just that the Burning Pain wasn't felt in my back and shoulder areas where I was in contact with this person, making it feel relatively easier to endure…….
“…Ah!!”
I realized it.
In the areas where we touched each other, the Burning Pain was not felt.
Because those parts weren't exposed to the environment of the Altar!
“Everyone! Stick together! It gets better if you stick together!”
As I said that, I pressed my body against a nearby person as if putting my arm around their shoulder.
The word spread.
“Don’t show any bare skin! That’s where the sound comes from!”
“Hold hands!”
Soon, the groups of two or three that had been scattered here and there gathered, and those people clung to each other front and back.
“Get lost, fuck! Aaaah!”
Of course, in the midst of that, I also saw someone who couldn't keep their senses and was pushed into the flesh while pushing others away.
“I’m not going to leave you alone, you fucker!! You deceived me! Deceived ■■■”
Even the passenger who had joined at the last minute, shouting about getting ‘Special powers,’ glared at me as if to kill me and pointed a finger before being buried in the flesh and left behind.
However, more than twenty people, the vast majority, began to huddle together like penguins.
“It, it worked….”
“It’s bearable. It’s bearable…!”
“Le- let’s move!”
And they began to run toward the light, sticking as close to each other as possible, locking arms, and huddling together.
The pain is minimized.
Hands that couldn't bite with teeth or scratch with nails tightly gripped the people standing on either side, and the rotting flesh beneath their feet scattered with every running step.
Screams and shouts rang out, but at the same time, encouragement and shouts of spirit rang out as well.
A shared sensation.
“We’re almost there!!”
The light draws near.
Slowly but surely.
A little more.
A little more….
And finally!
“Ah…….”
People threw themselves into the light, cheering desperately.
“Wooooo!!”
I, too, was swept up in the light, and my consciousness began to soar far away.
The voices that had already disappeared were no longer heard, but….
…….
Suddenly, I had a thought.
Perhaps the test this ghost story gives had never been ‘properly’ solved until now.
And at this moment, I felt like I had caught a glimpse of the direction of the answer.
‘Maybe Tamra is.’
A mysterious world that could be reached if all the passengers of the train jumped together and went through this process.
I opened my eyes.
“Gasp!”
“Ugh….”
“Ah… what, what is this.”
The sounds of people catching their breath and small groans could be heard from here and there.
The characteristic flailing of people who were startled awake from a light sleep was visible as chairs shook everywhere.
I immediately raised my head to look at the train's video monitor first.
And the letters flowing on the screen.
Bound for Mokpo
Changed.
Departure
Beep!
With a cheerful sound, the high-speed train began to pull out of the station…….
“Oh, you’re back safely.”
“……Yes.”
Escape, success.
‘Phew….’
The tension left me completely, and I leaned back in my seat, sprawling out.
But the moment I saw the person in front of me, I became alert again.
‘…Assistant manager Jin Nasol!’
Jin Nasol was looking at the train's ceiling with her arms crossed, without a word or an expression.
Of course, everything that happened was now in a dream, and since Assistant manager Jin Nasol didn't jump at the end, she probably didn't have much lingering anger, but….
‘Still, let’s do what needs to be done!’
I hurriedly rummaged through my pocket and pulled out an item to give energy to my efficiency-driven, tired boss.
It was something all three of us sitting here had. That is….
“…Assistant manager.”
“…….”
“The Dream Collector is full.”
A clear golden liquid sloshed inside the Collector.
Yes.
Since we were on a business trip, we naturally had Dream Collectors, and since we cleared the ghost story, the liquid was collected.
‘Probably, if we had cleared it during the previous trip to Iksan, it would have been a Grade F or D….’
But now, after it manifested as an Anomaly, an extended route was added, it restarted double-digit times, and numerous people fell to the Altar together….
“It’s Grade C.”
It was the same grade as the Darkness in Mokpo that we were planning to enter.
And since the Dream Collector was already full, there was no point in entering a new Darkness now.
Expression finally returned to Jin Nasol’s face.
“Then we don’t have to go to Mokpo, right? Return at the next station.”
“Yes, yes, sir!”
I breathed a sigh of relief and stroked my chest.
‘Thank goodness.’
As expected, is finishing work early the best gift for an office worker….
That was when it happened.
I heard whispering from the seat behind me.
“Hey… I had a strange dream… like, a train was running on water?”
“Whoa, what’s that? Just a weird dream.”
“No, but it was interesting. It was chaos, but like, a saint-like person appeared… Did they call him ‘The Precursor’? Anyway, that person was right in the seat in front of us?”
“Oh, really?”
“…!”
Wa- wait a minute.
It seemed that my act of playing the Pseudo religion leader was quite intense and remained vividly in people’s memories.
‘Le- let’s leave this spot for now.’
After asking my superiors for understanding, I headed to the restroom to avoid being noticed.
Click.
“Phew.”
Hmm. Let’s stay here for a few minutes until the details evaporate from the passengers' memories….
—You’re like a star avoiding obsessive fans….
It was somehow embarrassing that it was so similar….
Still, it wasn't a bad situation.
‘No, it’s a very good ending.’
A faint sense of pride spread through my chest.
……A peace that the passengers at the time of the original Tamra-bound High-speed Train Incident couldn't enjoy.
‘That was… because the ending was much more horrific.’
It was so shockingly despairing that I remember it vividly even without the Wiki.
A certain point in time when the loops had progressed hundreds or thousands of times, and the passengers' mental states were completely shattered, moving beyond collective madness to being almost non-human.
The train cars, which had already become a hell due to the shattered mental states of all passengers, were a swamp of pain where the very judgment to jump out the window according to the number of people was impossible.
‘But if you repeat the process, the ‘correct answer’ can sometimes come out by chance….’
After countless restarts and endless time, they finally match the numbers and jump into the 9th Altar.
In that dramatic way, they escape from this Anomaly, but….
‘In a sense, they don't escape.’
Even a person who wakes up after experiencing one sacrifice is affected for more than dozens of minutes, thinking it was a nightmare.
So what about the mental state of a human who repeated that hundreds or thousands of times?
‘…They simply couldn't escape the nightmare.’
It was estimated that the passengers failed to perceive that the Anomaly had ended and they had returned to reality.
They mistook that they were still trapped in the loop….
Rather, as they returned to reality and their mental strength recovered slightly, they despaired more and began to actively commit mad acts.
In that way, hell arrives in reality as well.
The majority of the passengers killed and were killed by each other, tore, and dismantled each other in their seats, in the aisles, and at the windows.
After that massive riot and frenzy, the train derailed….
And exploded.
That was the horrific end of the ‘Tamra-bound High-speed Train Incident’….
Survivors: 7
Deceased: 404
……I was glad it didn't become reality.
I breathed a sigh of relief.
Hmm, and now that it’s all over, I finally have the leisure to have doubts.
Assistant Manager ■■■
I mean the only person from Daydream Inc. among the survivors of this incident.
The employee who would have bought this silver ring I bought from Death Road by trading it for three civilians.
Where was this person?
‘No, is it even certain they were there?’
I don't know.
The only company employee we could identify on the train earlier was Baek Saheon.
I didn't want to engage in conspicuous behavior like tracking down employees, which wouldn't even help with the clear.
‘Anyway, it’s a relief.’
If they were there, it ended successfully, so they must have survived too.
The important thing was that the tragedy that happened on that train did not occur.
Thump, thump, thump!
Ah,
‘I should get out now.’
The next person was knocking on the restroom door, unable to wait any longer.
Holding onto the memories of the past 14 rounds that were starting to fly away from my memory, I recorded a few words in my Smartphone’s notepad, finished washing my face with cold water, and came out of the restroom.
Click.
The person who had been waiting burst into the restroom.
‘Was it that urgent?’
Quickly passing by to return to my seat….
Swish.
“You son of a bitch.”
I lowered my head.
A cutter blade.
The knife was narrowly missing my chest as it passed by….
“…!!”
Fuck!
I stepped back and at the same time grabbed the other person’s forearm with one arm and twisted it.
Clatter!
The cutter blade fell to the floor, making a sharp sound. I immediately subdued the opponent and pinned them to the floor.
In the process, I saw their face.
“You son of a bitch, uh, uh-uh!”
Holy shit.
I pinned the opponent down while breaking out in a cold sweat.
‘The Pseudo religion leader…!’
“Fuck! It hurts so much, huff, it hurt! Uh!”
It was the person who had fallen to the last 9th Altar and been left behind!
‘This crazy bastard….’
“You deceived people?!? Then you should die, you son of a bitch, you piece of sh—”
Holding the opponent who continued to hurl curses, I slammed them against the floor once more.
With a short thudding sound….
He passed out.
“Huff.”
My palms were soaked with cold sweat.
‘…Did he lose his mind because he was left behind?’
Moreover, since his character was originally bad, he might have suffered longer because he had more sins to offer….
Even so, it must have been at the level of a nightmare; he must have a personality that really can't control his anger.
‘It must be because he’s this kind of human.’
“Phew….”
I wiped away the sweat.
At least I’m lucky that my chest, which was slashed by the knife, is perfectly fine and feels no pain.
Why?
‘…It’s a good thing I wrapped the wrapping paper around my body beforehand.’
I never imagined I’d be dragged into another ghost story while on a business trip for a ghost story, but I’d been layering the defensive wrapping paper Item over my bare skin since I left, just in case there wouldn’t be a chance later.
I’m talking about ‘Wrapping Paper 12B357Na’ that they sell at the Alien Shop.
Since I’d even received a death warning, it was only natural to be prepared.
‘Even so, I never dreamed I’d almost be killed by a knife-wielding assailant rather than a ghost story….’
Could this be the death warning I received, and did I just block it?
‘What do you think, Braun.’
…….
…….
There is no answer.
“……Braun.”
A strange premonition chills my spine.
So… my chest was just slashed.
I wasn’t hurt, but that was referring to my bare skin protected by the wrapping paper.
But outside of that, in the pocket near the left chest of my suit, what was inside was….
“…Braun?”
Still,
there was no answer.
I hurriedly thrust my hand into my inner suit pocket.
My trembling hand pulled out the fluffy Plush doll inside….
Spatter.
Cotton falls to the ground.
The tattered pink fabric, sliced through, fluttered down.
“…….”
I froze, holding the Plush doll keychain that had been cut in two.
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