Remaining distance : 3
The passengers finally began to accept it.
The truth.
“So, it really has to be a person?”
“Ah…”
“No way, how can we…”
“If we don’t, we’ll all die! The train will sink!”
“But who…?”
Remaining distance : 2
“……”
Their gazes shifted.
What they meant was clear.
‘He’s already not in his right mind, so why not just throw him out again?’
A suppressed, unspoken instinct that surfaced in emergencies.
The ‘first-loop sacrifice’ began to panic.
“Spare me! Please, spare meeee! I don’t want to die! I don’t want to! I don’t want to!!”
“Calm down, it’ll be okay…”
Remaining distance : 1
“No! Noooo!”
“Just step away from the window—huh? Huhhhh??”
Whoosh.
SPLASH—
0
The tunnel ended.
The train interior brightened as the view of the blue sea returned.
The ominous purple text filled the onboard display: ‘A sacrifice has arrived’ ‘Open the sea path’.
Near the window lay a pair of broken glasses on the floor.
“……”
“……”
And the man who had been the first sacrifice.
“The bastard who pushed me is dead! I didn’t die! I didn’t die! I-I’M ALIIIIVE!!”
Foaming at the mouth, the middle-aged man staggered down the aisle, collapsed in a corner, and began sobbing uncontrollably.
The train car was steeped in a chilling, suffocating silence.
The atmosphere felt maddening.
– The former leader became the sacrifice! A cliché development, albeit a bit quick this time.
Then—
“There’s another one coming, isn’t there?”
A cheerful voice that didn’t suit the situation echoed through the train.
Supervisor Dolphin.
“W-What did you say?”
“The second altar will appear soon, right? We should prepare for that.”
“Shut up already!!”
“Ack!”
The passengers’ stress-fueled reactions burst out, but Supervisor Dolphin seemed completely unbothered.
“This time, let’s do it properly. Find the worst person and throw them out!”
She pointed ahead with her finger.
“Let’s include everyone from the other cars too!”
“…!!”
“And hey… it’s not like there’s any guarantee they’ll die, right? The last guy came back alive, didn’t he? So, wouldn’t it be better to throw out someone awful and let them suffer?” ř𝘈N𝘰ΒÊŝ
It was madness.
But in an incomprehensible disaster, sometimes madness that sounds appealing is exactly what works.
A little distorted, of course.
“Yeah! So far, only people from our car have been thrown out! The other cars should have to do it too!”
“That’s right!”
Why should our car be the only one to suffer and debate this agony?
Consumed by resentment and strange fury, the passengers of Car 7 surged forward en masse.
Myself and the members of the elite team followed, with Supervisor Dolphin practically leading the charge.
“Excuse me! There’s an open window here too, right? When the train fell last time, it seemed like nobody fell out from here, so…”
Predictably, as we moved forward, most of the passengers in the other cars had no idea what was happening.
“W-What kind of nonsense is this?”
“Who are these people?”
“Hey, if you don’t want trouble, move along. Or else.”
“Ooong.”
“…For now, let’s keep moving and see.”
As Supervisor Dolphin spoke, she eyed the last speaker like they were a prime candidate for her twisted logic.
She quickly moved to the next car.
But the moment we entered Car 3—
Second Altar Entrance
It began again.
“Aaahh!”
“Someone, throw someone out now!”
“The train’s going to sink! Waaahhh!”
“Throw someone out! We have to throw someone out the window!”
The shouts of panic came from the people in our car, Car 7, and echoed alongside the confused cries of the passengers in the other cars who had yet to grasp the situation.
Remaining distance : 5
“Who are these people?! Where did they come from??”
“These fuckers are crazy!”
“If you don’t want to die, volunteer! We need a volunteer!”
“Well, why don’t you jump out, then?!”
“We’ve already lost someone from our car! Find someone from another car!!”
“Fine! Then who’s going to volunteer—”
Remaining distance : 4
Amid the chaos, a clear, authoritative voice cut through.
“There’s no volunteer, huh?”
Assistant Manager Jin Nasol extended her hand.
‘…No!’
She was about to single out the most uncooperative person and throw them out.
‘And if the loop restarts, she’ll just keep using the same people as sacrifices!’
It was efficient, but I couldn’t allow it.
Jin Nasol was undoubtedly competent, but she clearly had no understanding of how to manage public sentiment.
I raised my hand immediately.
Remaining distance : 3
“I volunteer!”
“……”
Jin Nasol turned to look at me.
“What?”
I repeated firmly.
“I’ll be the one to fall.”
“…!!”
“Why…”
Remaining distance : 2
“It’s not like it’ll be a real death, right? I’ll hold out and see.”
Then, I quickly leaned in and whispered to Jin Nasol.
“We need to find out what’s actually happening down there.”
“Is that necessary?”
“We can’t rely on civilian testimonies. I’ve prepared mental defense measures too.”
“Hmm…”
Remaining distance : 1
“Do as you like.”
“…! Thank you.”
I finished the brief exchange and turned to the crowd.
“There’s not much time left! Clear the way—I’m heading to the window!”
“U-Uhhh…”
The crowd, both from our car and the others, hesitated but stepped aside.
‘Good.’
Even though I spoke calmly, my hands were trembling.
But I had no choice.
‘According to the plan, this step is absolutely necessary.’
Since Plan A—immediately identifying and securing the person with the Silver Heart—had failed…
‘I have to go with a more extreme approach.’
“Everyone, stay back!”
I clung to the window and pulled out a painkiller from my pocket.
It might not work, but—
‘Better than nothing…!’
I jabbed the ‘Happy Maker’ syringe into my arm.
Then, without hesitation, I threw myself out the window.
Into the crimson tunnel.
0