Chapter 25: What Else Do I Need to Worry About When They’re With Me?
After gathering at the school gate, Ruansui and Miss Shirley said goodbye to the maids and returned to our side.
I wished she would just go home, but this time she seemed determined to follow.
Li Nai put her hands on her hips and declared proudly.
“Then, this time, I, Li Nai, the class monitor of Class 2, Year 2, will lead my classmates to visit the most mysterious attraction in this city~”
Immediately, Li Nai, like a tour guide, led the six of us forward, only lacking a small flag in her hand.
However, only I cared about the gazes of those around me. The others were still chatting and laughing as if they were going on a picnic.
But this wasn’t the most troublesome thing for me. What bothered me most was that they were all talking to me!
Several people talking to me at once made my head a mess, and I had no idea what they were saying.
I don’t have the ability to listen to ten people talk at once without misunderstanding, nor can I have conversations with many people simultaneously.
Even with enhancements, I didn’t gain the ability to multitask or focus on multiple things. However, my memory improved, and my concentration became very strong, allowing me to clearly sense what was happening around me.
From what I observed, although everything appeared peaceful on the surface, there was already a palpable tension in the air.
For example, Ruansui held my hand very tightly, indicating her alertness towards everyone around her. Yu Hui was the same; staying at the back, she kept everyone in her sight.
Lanhua was more focused on Ruansui’s movements, standing slightly behind, with her hands on Xue Qing’s shoulders. Sometimes she would lean forward to talk to me.
Xue Qing seemed indifferent, obediently holding my other hand, but in reality, she used my body to create distance between herself and Ruansui.
Everyone, except for that brainless zombie Li Nai, was rejecting Ruansui.
Wouldn’t Ruansui be disappointed by this?
Well, she didn’t seem to care at all. Instead, she forcefully linked arms with me, declaring her claim on me.
She was like a mother cow protecting her calf…
I felt like I no longer belonged to myself but had become an object of contention for others…
Did they ever intend to consider my opinion from the very beginning?
I wonder if Aoi Aosuke felt this way…
Fortunately, this uncomfortable atmosphere didn’t last long.
My dear ‘atmosphere disruptor’, classmate Li Nai, seemed completely oblivious to the mood and changed the situation with a single sentence.
“Alright! We’ve arrived at our starting point now~”
“Starting point—are we taking the subway?”
Lanhua hugged Xue Qing’s head and, with Xue Qing, swayed their bodies like penguins.
“That’s right! We’ll be taking either Line 4 or Line 13 of the subway. Generally, Line 4 runs from noon to midnight, and Line 13 runs from midnight to noon the next day. These two lines alternate!”
“What ominous numbers, four and thirteen.”
“It’s precisely because they’re ominous that we choose these two routes. Although not all, some people, like Lanhua-chan, believe that if it’s ominous, they should take other lines. Therefore, fewer people ride these two subway lines compared to others. This also helps reduce the number of people who accidentally enter the Underworld.”
“So that’s how it is…”
Intentionally choosing less crowded routes?
“Now, everyone, listen carefully! If you don’t follow my instructions in order, there’s a high chance of danger! But if you follow my instructions step-by-step, there will be absolutely no danger~ I’ll start the super simple guide to entering the city that even a monkey can understand!”
Seeing her enthusiasm, it felt a bit awkward not to respond, so I raised my hand and gave a symbolic “Oh!”
Only I made a sound, which was awkward…
But Li Nai remained her usual self, unfazed, and continued her explanation.
“First, it’s buying tickets! We’re taking the Line 4 subway today, so we need to buy tickets for Line 4, and remember to buy tickets to the final stop~ Ah, since I’m treating everyone today, I’ll buy the tickets myself~”
After speaking, Li Nai dashed to the ticket window, bought six tickets, and immediately ran back, moving like a gust of wind.
This guy is probably having a blast even by herself.
“Okay, now for the important part! Within one minute before arriving at the final stop, tear your subway ticket! After tearing it, stack the two halves together, and then tear them again! Finally, throw them away like confetti~” This might be the ‘key’ to entering the Underworld. It goes without saying that that place is definitely another world, but this other world is underground in our city.
“At this time, a ‘phenomenon’ will occur, which is that the surroundings will suddenly turn dark, so dark that you can’t see anything. After waiting for one or two minutes, it will light up again, and everyone in the carriage will disappear!”
“Everyone… disappear?”
“That’s right! This includes us. Even if we’re traveling together, everyone around us will disappear. But don’t worry, this is a normal phenomenon. We’re just separated upon entry, and this is also to facilitate sending back those who enter by mistake.”
They’ve set such complicated conditions, and there are still people who enter by mistake… How unlucky must they be?
However, someone who knows nothing about this would surely be scared to death.
Everyone in the car suddenly disappearing is practically a standard plot point in horror stories.
“One more thing to note is that you must not, absolutely must not, get off the train early! In the ‘inner city’ area of the Underworld, I can guarantee your safety, but in the ‘outer wilderness’ area…”
Li Nai suddenly put on an extremely serious expression, narrowed her eyes, and raised her index finger to warn us. However, her serious expression lasted less than three seconds before it broke, and she returned to her usual goofy demeanor, saying:
“Well~ Actually, I don’t even need to say this~ Hahaha, anyway, just stay seated until the final stop after the final stop.”
“Alright, Nana’s little class is over~ Let’s go, everyone!”
By the time we boarded the subway, it was nearly six o’clock. The journey from this subway station near the school to the final stop on Line 4 wasn’t long, taking about twenty minutes.
Looking at the time, if everything goes smoothly, we should be back before 8 PM.
Honestly, I don’t want to stay in a place like that too late.
If something happens… it shouldn’t be a big deal, right?
I looked at the girls around me and suddenly felt my worries were superfluous.
As we were nearing the final stop, only a few of us were left in the carriage. Line 4 was already sparsely populated, and near the final stop, hardly anyone remained.
“It’s almost time, everyone, let’s do it together~”
“Mhm.” “Understood.” “Got it.”
In a moment… SF Light Novel
I nodded to Ruansui and took out my ticket, tearing it twice.
Tearing the ticket as a key action is quite an unpleasant trick, with a sense of danger pervading it from beginning to end.
Boom! Rumble!
The carriage suddenly shook violently, followed by a few aftershocks, and then all the lights on the carriage went out.
The entire carriage plunged into darkness, the kind where you can’t see your hand in front of your face. All light vanished. If I hadn’t been mentally prepared, I would have panicked.
After a few seconds, the lights in the carriage finally came back on, but outside the windows, it had become pitch black.
A sound like “Ooh~ Ooh~ Ooh~” could be heard—a strange sound that was neither like the wind nor like a howl.
At the same time, there was the clanging sound of an old-fashioned train bell.
The electronic display showing the next station had turned into garbled text, and the advertisements on the subway had all turned pure white.
Was this designed specifically to scare people? How boring…
The subway stopped a few times, and outside the doors were empty subway stations.
With each stop, the subway stations outside became more dilapidated. I could vaguely see some “things” outside, but none of them entered the carriage, and I didn’t get off.
Good heavens, this place is much more terrifying than I imagined…
Swallowing hard, I no longer dared to look out the window, for fear of making eye contact with those bizarre things.
Then, about ten minutes later, the subway stopped again, but this time it didn’t move.
Previously, each stop lasted at most thirty seconds, but this time it had been several minutes without moving.
Had we reached the final stop?
I stood up from my seat and walked to the open subway door to observe the situation outside.
However, as soon as I got near the door, before I could get a good look, I heard a stranger’s voice from behind.
“You, get off here.” “Huh?”
Then I felt a strong push on my back, causing me to lunge forward. Pushed out of the carriage, I quickly got up and turned to see a man in a conductor’s uniform.
I hurriedly ran over, wanting to get back into the subway carriage, but the door closed at a much faster speed than usual. By the time I ran over, the door had completely closed, leaving no gap.
I banged frantically on the subway door’s window and shouted indignantly.
“What are you doing! I haven’t decided to get off here!”
Who knows if this is the final stop!
He pulled down his cap brim and turned to leave, as if he intended to walk away directly. But upon hearing my words, he stopped and looked back at me.
I saw… a skull!
[Skeleton Conductor (Awakened)]
This guy was actually a skeleton!
“…She’s waiting for you.”
“Huh? Who’s waiting for me? What are you talking about!”
I continued to press for answers, but the skull didn’t respond to my thoughts and simply walked away. Then the subway started moving again, and I had no choice but to retreat.
“Wait, wait!”
The subway didn’t stop at my shouts and soon disappeared into the distance, leaving me standing alone like an idiot in the deserted area.
“Where… where is this…”
Besides this dilapidated subway station, there was nothing else nearby.
And this subway… no, this couldn’t even be called a subway station anymore. At best, it was a terminal.
The reason for this is that the place I’m currently in is no longer “underground.”
It was a plain stretching out in all directions. The grass grew unevenly and was dark green.
It was only six-thirty, but the night had already fallen heavily here. The atmosphere was quiet and gloomy.
The air was filled with the smell of decay.
The wind howled coldly, and from time to time, you could hear…
They say that enclosed spaces can make people uneasy and fearful, but now it seems… spacious places aren’t very reassuring either.
