Chapter 19 :Message Through the Chaos

— Bang!

The iron flail hurled by the Great Oni in the neighboring car, number 17, grazed my ear and slammed into the wall.

Crack-crack-crack!

The train wall instantly dented and shattered, scattering dust-like debris everywhere.

[Great Oni (大鬼) has been defeated!]
[Car 17 cleared.]

That was close.
Who would’ve thought it would throw the flail even as it was dying.

‘At least we got one more.’

As I let out a sigh of relief, the Great Oni—its left arm and left leg severed and its balance lost—collapsed backward.

Thud-!

Carefully, I stepped over the spilled dark red blood and unidentifiable substances.
Just as I reached the door, about to exit—

A tiny something clung to the protruding hem of my shirt.

“Y-You… how did you get here…?”

It was Yul, left all alone after being separated from Abi.
Her black patent leather shoes and white socks were stained with the blood leaking from the Great Oni.

“I was hiding…”
“You were hiding?”

Is that even possible?
Even if she’s small, this train car is cramped.
Hiding in a corner wouldn’t work, so it struck me as strange—but there was no time to dwell on it.

“Let’s get out of here first.”

I hid Yul in the corridor between cars 17 and 16, then took down the Great Oni in car 16.

‘There’s no time.’

Think, think, think.
How to clear the entire train within ten minutes.

“What are you doing there?”
“Uh, I just have to get back before time runs out, right…?”
“So you’re just staying outside the train? Not fighting?”

…Correction needed.
How to clear the entire train alone within ten minutes.

Sigh.

Seeing that foul-mouthed guy hiding in front of the bathroom because he’s scared of fighting the Great Oni made me sigh again.

“You’re really scared, huh?”
“Well, it’s just…”

He didn’t even notice his hat, which looked like a tattoo, fall and roll on the floor.

“Just buy any weapon from the shop. You’re not going to save points to bring it to your grave, right? Also…”

The foul-mouthed guy looked confused, probably not fully understanding the rapid-fire instructions.

“Clear the third round as quickly as possible and help with car 14, too. I’m going first.”
“I almost died without killing a single one—what do you want me to do…?”
“Accelerate.”
“Accceeeeleraaaate?”

— Creak!

Frantically thinking, I opened the door.
Beyond the glass, I saw the Great Oni in car 14 swinging its flail fiercely.

And beside it...
a small figure with long hair, wearing a tight business skirt suit.

‘That’s Lee Yeji from accounting.’

Judging by the dark blue sword lodged in the Oni’s abdomen, she had at least gathered some courage.
Though the attack had no effect, it was encouraging that she tried instead of cowering in fear.
But still—

‘Why are her eyes closed?’

Yeji was gripping the sword tightly but kept her eyes shut out of fear.
This will get her killed. She will die.

— Poke!

I rushed forward, pulling out the shallowly embedded sword from her and stabbed it into the Oni’s heart.
The blue sword was a bit stiff compared to mine, but it went in cleanly.

And shortly after—

Tick-tock!

“—Aaaahhh! I’m deaaarrr—!”

[Great Oni (大鬼) has been defeated!]
[Car 14 cleared.]

Time passed, Yeji let out her last scream, and the notification sounded.

“Hrrgggh!”

With her face scrunched up so tightly her eyes, nose, and mouth almost merged, Yeji made some strange noise through her clenched lips.
Thinking about how those wrinkles would deepen, I quickly spoke.

“You can open your eyes now.”
“...Huh?!”

Yeji opened her eyes halfway and met mine.

“Eunho Lee? Where did you suddenly come from…!”
“You have to stab the heart to kill it. Next time, open your eyes properly and stab.”
“Tha-thank you!”

「06:35」

Just over six minutes remained.
From car 18 to car 14, five sections cleared in about forty seconds each.
At this pace...
I’d make it only as far as car 4, at best.

‘The third round is the decisive one. For the second round, just spread the word to as many as possible.’

But there were only five uses left of the electric discharge (電擊放出) skill, which could speed things up.

What to do?

My forehead burned as I wracked my brain, about to leave car 14—

Yeji urgently spoke into the back of my head.

“Eunho Lee! Did I succeed in the mission?”

Her voice trembled with desperation.
I wanted to tell her yes, that we would all survive, but—

“No, you didn’t.”
“Why? We killed the monster! Well, you did, but still…”
“This mission seems to require clearing every train car.”
“That can’t be...”

Thud.
Yeji sank down in despair.
I felt sorry but had no time to console her, so I silently turned away.
Then—

‘Huh? Wait.’

An idea struck me, and I stopped.
If it’s a round we’re going to abandon anyway...

“Um, Yeji?”
“Yes?”
“Aren’t you grateful? You’d be dead if it weren’t for me.”
“Th-Thank you… of course.”
“Well then...”

Let’s save that precious skill.

“Mind lending me your sword?”

Due to the high-voltage electric current, I couldn’t use the razor-edged blade sword without the petrification skill.
And it would be a waste to use the skill we needed for the third round now.

Of course, I couldn’t just snatch her weapon, so I politely asked for her cooperation.
Just like Jieun did.

“Huh? Then what am I supposed to do...?”
“You’ll lend it, right? You helped me up when I fell, and you just saved me again.”
“W-Well…”
“It’s for all of us to survive. Right?”

So, really politely.

“...Here you go.”

— Poke!

I took Yeji’s sword instead of the carefully stored razor-edged blade sword.
The deep blue blade was lodged in the crown of the Great Oni’s head.

— Kyaaaak! Kyaaaak!

[Great Oni (大鬼) has been defeated!]
[Car 13 cleared.]

“Cleared...”

Yun Sora muttered as she collapsed onto the floor of car 13.
She glowed blue on her bloodied leg, probably grazed by the flail.

“This mission isn’t... a success.”

I froze.

The bluish light covering Yun Sora’s leg suddenly faded.
It reminded me of a humidifier losing water.

“To succeed, probably…”

“You have to clear the whole train.”

“!!”

Yun Sora’s face flushed with despair as she panted.
The expression that said, It’s over.
Maybe because she was young, her feelings were easy to read.

“Is there any way to contact others? Like your friends?”
“Phone, text, social media... I tried everything, but no luck.”

I asked just in case, but she shook her head.
Frustrated, she bit her lower lip.

“It’d be great if someone could clear even the front cars.”
“Then the mission would be possible?”
“Yeah. By calculations, if only the cars up to number 4 are cleared, it’s doable.”

The front cars, meaning Jieun in car 1, maybe.
But—

“The problem is there’s no way to tell them.”
“No way to tell them…”

Yun Sora furrowed her brow, thinking deeply.

“I’d want to tell people to pass the message forward, like a relay.”
“Like a baton?”
“Right. Since every car has to be cleared, finish yours quickly and help the neighbors.”
“That’s a way, but…”

Yun Sora hesitated, lowering her gaze.

“Most people probably can’t kill the monster alone. If it weren’t for that guy, I’d probably be dead by now…”

It’d be a boring, repetitive fight.
Running, getting hurt, healing, running again, getting hurt again.

“Terrible things would happen.”

Yun Sora shuddered just imagining it.
Recalling the third round approaching, she even tugged at her long hair.

It was heartbreaking to see a child suffer on the brink of life and death, and as I tried to comfort her—

— Ding!

A clear bell chimed through the space.

[Congratulations!]
[Subject ‘Eunho Lee’s’ eyes have been upgraded to Level 2.]

Along with the mysterious congratulatory message.

“Eyes?”

Swish-swish-swish!
The giant eyeball that filled the ceiling was suddenly covered by my eyelids.
At the same time, all the lights in the train dimmed—

“!!”
“Sir! I can’t see anything!”

[Upgrade complete.]
[Limited communication with observers enabled.]
[Subject ‘Eunho Lee’s’ synchronization rate dramatically increased.]

Flash!
The interior lit up again.

The giant eyeball reopened as if nothing happened, and a palm-sized eyeball appeared.

— Pong!

A round eyeball floated up beside my head.
A translucent white sphere with a pitch-black pupil at its center.

‘Did the eye just spawn a baby?’

Or maybe it shrank to follow me wherever I go.

“What was that?! A blackout?”
“Huh? Can’t you see this?”
“What is that?”

I pointed at the eyeball floating in the air with my finger, but Yun Sora looked completely puzzled.
Was it only visible to me?
Am I crazy? I wondered.

【An anonymous observer is curious about how this situation will be resolved.】

A strange voice echoed inside my head.
Along with unfamiliar text appearing at the edge of my vision.

“W-What is this now?”

【An anonymous observer greets you with pleasure at the meeting.】
【‘Prince of the Investigation Bureau’ crosses his arms, saying this time won’t be easy.】
【‘Crow of the Management Bureau’ laments that this precious gem may end here.】

“Crazy.”

‘Is this some kind of internet stream?’

Investigation Bureau, Management Bureau—what a ridiculous turn of events.
I snorted, and Yun Sora frowned.

“Are you hurt anywhere on your head…?”
“It’s nothing. There’s no time anyway…”

「01:45」

To summarize again—

“What we need now is a contact point that can reach everyone.”

Especially someone in the front car, like Jieun.

Hearing this, Yun Sora fiddled with her long hair from the roots and muttered.

“That’s true. We can’t send notes hidden in nutrition bars like in the movies…”
“Nutrition bars… notes… hmm?”
“Yeah?”

‘Ah!’

I remembered.
That might work…!

— Bang!

The flail narrowly missed Jieun’s ear.
The Great Oni, hitting the floor instead of her head, grunted while pulling its weapon free.
Jieun dashed to the other side without hesitation.

The burning sensation came instantly.

‘Ouch…!’

Her ear was probably torn, warm blood seeping into the ear canal.
The throbbing heat made her want to run away, but—
This was nothing.

‘Can’t afford to feel pain. Eunho fought through burns and kept going.’

Jieun bit her lip, reminding herself of the resolution she’d made many times over the past two days.
Get a grip, Kim Jieun.
Defeat this monster and clear the mission.

‘But… how do I clear it?’

Earlier, she had clearly defeated the Oni.
Thanks to the lucky throw that lodged the dagger slowly into the Oni’s heart.
But the mission was still marked as failed.

‘Eunho must have figured out the rules…’

Eunho always found the best answers in any situation.
He must know what to do now.
Jieun believed this without a doubt.
The only problem was not hearing that answer from Eunho, far away.

Thud. Thud. Thud.

Without any better ideas, the Oni who pulled out its flail staggered toward her.

‘What would Eunho do now?’

Always giving his best and moving forward.
That person would—

“Worrying can come later. First, clear the mission.”

He would have dealt with this monster first.
Naturally.

— Kyaaaak! Kyaaaak!

At that moment, Jieun’s eyes changed.
Straight and unwavering.

For that brief moment, like a whole night passed, she observed the enemy’s movement and drew her dagger.
And then—

— Slash!

The dagger sliced through the air, piercing the Oni’s chest.
Calculating the staggered position of the right and left torso calmly.
A second miracle after the first round.

— Kyaaaak!

“Hah… got it…”

Jieun exhaled deeply, sitting on a nearby seat.
She was scared and trembling, but she caught it.
Still—

[Mission failed.]
[Penalty applied due to mission failure.]

The unwanted announcement came through the speakers again.

“Please…!”

At this rate, the third round would be the same.
That monster would evolve again, and even if they barely caught it, failure was inevitable.

I felt like I was sinking deep into the earth right where I sat.
No answers.
Even if there were, I wouldn’t find them.

‘Eunho… what should I do?’

I never thought I’d long for someone I only thought of as a diligent teammate for the past two years so desperately.

Caught between surprise and desperation, calling out a colleague’s name instead of a god’s, praying a prayer that wasn’t a prayer—

[A gift has arrived!]
[Would you like to check it?]

“!!”

A response descended from the sky—or rather, from Eunho.

────  ────
· Recipient: Kim Jieun
· Sender: Lee Eunho
· You may exit the safe zone during the mission. You must clear the entire train, so assist others. Reply with collected items as gifts.
────  ────

‘What is this…’

Along with moldy bread.