CHAPTER 205: [THE INFINITE TRAIN] – DEGENERATE’S PART (15)

"Clackety-clack, clackety-clack..."

The sound of the train moving rapidly and thunderously was the same as before. The only difference now was that she was in a completely different space—a different... train.

Aurora frowned at the ticket inspector who had brought her here. He led her into a carriage and pointed to an empty seat, silently indicating that it was hers, then promptly turned and left.

However, Aurora didn’t move. She stood because the scene before her sent a chill down her spine.

There were still many empty seats in the carriage, but the ones that were occupied... weren’t taken by "people."

Most of the seated figures were strange black shadows. Among them, a few had faces—faces of the people the inspector had taken away earlier that morning.

Was she... going to become just like them?

The thought suddenly sprang into her mind, sending a shiver.

But what was even more disturbing was the ground beneath her feet. When she looked down, what appeared before her was the familiar scene of the train carriage—Asta talking anxiously, and Lily curled up in a pitiful ball.

What the hell was going on?

Had anyone noticed? If they just looked down at the floor... or up at the ceiling, would they be able to see this world on the other side?

But even if they could see it—so what? How would they get here? Just now, the inspector opened a portal leading to this place. It seemed there was no other way to enter except through him.

Instead of sitting down immediately, Aurora turned and walked in the opposite direction—towards the restroom, where she and Lily had first seen that strange lump of flesh.

She felt that this inverted world might hold a completely different answer.

The black shadows slumped in their seats didn’t react to Aurora. Their bodies swayed continuously like restless spirits, and their vacant eyes stared blankly into the void.

Along the way, Aurora noticed that this dilapidated train seemed to have gone through a major fire. The raging flames must have devoured it completely, leaving no part untouched.

She couldn’t help but think of the ticket inspector’s appearance, and her expression grew more serious.

From the sudden appearance of those zombie-like figures on the train to their abrupt transportation here—was the tragedy going to repeat itself?

Watson Town? Were they going to reach Watson Town? Did Watson Town... even exist?

A thought flickered to life in Aurora’s mind like a flame kindling in the dark, and she couldn’t stop thinking about it.

"It’s you."

Just then, a male voice drew Aurora’s attention. She turned to look and saw the man who had been talking with Asta earlier—if she remembered correctly, his name was Ron. He didn’t seem to have a very friendly relationship with Asta.

Ron looked up at the tall girl before him and instinctively scratched his nose.

Captain Cocona was also quite tall, but Aurora was the tallest girl he had ever seen.

"You got dragged here too?" Ron asked, though the question sounded a bit pointless.

Aurora nodded. "I dropped my train ticket. What about you?"

Ron replied softly, "I just wanted to find out where the people who were taken... ended up."

As he spoke, he glanced at the ground beneath their feet, where everything below remained visible.

"Then you’re pretty brave," Aurora’s voice suddenly rang out, filled with admiration. "Willing to take risks just to chase a lead."

She was nearly twenty centimeters taller than Ron, so she had to tilt her head slightly to look down at him. Her face, beautiful and gentle, starkly contrasted with her towering figure. The sight of her alone was enough to make one’s heart flutter. And with the look of admiration on her face and her brilliant blue eyes sparkling, Ron’s heart... skipped a beat.

He gave an awkward smile, his face tilting slightly to the side, but his eyes still stole glances at Aurora—eyes stirred by her autumn-lake-like clarity.

His ears flushed red uncontrollably.

He clenched his fists and said softly, "No... this is our duty."

After a pause, he added quietly, "Just follow me. I’ll protect you."

A simple promise.

Aurora smiled and gently said, "You’re kind."

Ron pressed his lips together and said nothing, only taking the lead and walking forward.

He found this beautiful girl to be... indescribable.

She said Asta was kind—and now she said he was kind.

Thinking that, Ron turned his head to glance behind, to see if Aurora was keeping up.

Sensing his gaze, Aurora suddenly tilted her head, the corners of her lips gently lifting—like a rose petal under morning dew.

Ron jolted and quickly looked away.

Aurora continued to smile, carefully following behind him, as if she hadn’t noticed anything unusual.

[Ha ha ha, Asta would die crying if he saw this scene]

[Ron’s so easily flustered. If it were me, I’d tease Aurora right back!]

[Some people are only bold behind a keyboard]

[Isn’t Aurora a little too soft? Feels like anyone can be her "good guy."]

[And that includes me, ha ha. She’d better call me a good guy!]

[Asta, hurry back! My CP cannot fall apart!]

[I think Ron and Aurora are pretty cute together...]

[Shut up, you above!!]

[The Aurora × Lily stans tremble in silence]

[Someone take this chaos away!]

[If I ship Lily on top of Aurora, will I get devoured?]

Ron was about to enter the records room. But unlike the train below, where not a single staff member appeared besides the ticket inspector, this place had a whole crew.

All of them were drifting shadow figures with indistinct faces—yet their uniforms were eerily clear and intact.

Ron frowned, glanced at Aurora, and said quietly, "Stay back a little."

Aurora obediently nodded.

In that moment, Ron pushed the door open and stepped into the records room.

The two shadowy figures inside immediately stood up as he entered.

"Who are you? You can’t just walk in here. This area is off-limits to passengers."

Ron couldn’t even tell where the mouth of the shadow was, but the voice echoed from it.

He didn’t dwell on it. Without hesitation, he launched forward, a wind blade forming on each arm—twin spiraling gusts that easily sliced through the necks of the two shadowy monsters.

Even so, Ron stayed alert.

But contrary to what he expected, the creatures didn’t revive or retaliate. Instead, they crumpled to the floor and disintegrated into black smoke, swiftly dispersing into the air.

Aurora stepped inside, her eyes filled with admiration as she looked at Ron.

She didn’t say a word, but her gaze held a thousand unspoken praises—her awe was so apparent that it needed no hiding.

This...

She hadn’t said anything at all...

Ron felt like he might be getting a little... self-obsessed.

[No saving this man now.]

Ron quickly refocused and began searching through the room.

Like the rest of the train, the records room bore heavy traces of fire—scorched walls and ceilings. It looked as though it had endured a massive blaze.

Yet somehow, the documents remained miraculously intact.

While Ron was busy rummaging through the file cabinets, Aurora’s gaze drifted to the desk where the two shadow figures had sat. There was a newspaper lying there.

Aurora picked it up—and her eyes widened slightly.

"Ron." She called to him quickly.

Despite being busy, Ron turned around. And immediately, a bold headline jumped out at him:

[Train to Watson Town Catches Fire—Blaze Destroys Entire Train, All Passengers and Staff Dead!]

The train to Watson Town... not a single survivor.

The thought slammed into Ron’s mind, freezing him in place.

His expression grew darker—immeasurably grim.