Chapter 192: With Much Anticipation, Lin Sanjiu has Died
Translator: Pluto Editor: Vermillion
This was indeed the train 'familiar' to her, but it wasn't exactly the same as the previous time. When Lin Sanjiu looked down and saw a squished newspaper between the crevice of a green seat, she felt a little perplexed. Even without reaching for it, she knew what was written on it. The handwriting on the surface of the newspaper matched her memory exactly. The only thing that was different was that the paper had a lot more wrinkles which were caused by Lin Sanjiu. After almost a day, Lin Sanjiu found herself on the same train she took when she came.
Noting this point, Lin Sanjiu was still very confused because that would mean that after she alighted, someone must have boarded the train, picked up the crumpled newspaper she randomly threw on the floor and stuffed it back in the crevice of the seat.
It almost seemed as if it boarding the same train wasn't just a mere coincidence. She was mystified and thought about it for some time, but finally gave up. After all, her current priority was to protect herself and not solve mysteries.
This time, Lin Sanjiu decided to do something different. Since the train had protected her from those spooky things twice, she was quite certain that being in the train was safer than being out there. That was probably the reason why the woman wrote the words, "don't alight". As for the large words that gave a different warning, there could be many reasons for it. Perhaps, it wasn't even written by the same person, so Lin Sanjiu decided not to think about it for now.
Suppressing the inexplicable uneasiness she felt, Lin Sanjiu stepped on a green seat. She stretched her arms and stuck her Teru Teru Bozu up on the train ceiling. The Teru Teru Bozu was attached to the ceiling immediately. It gently swayed with the movement of the train. Lin Sanjiu scrutinized it for a few minutes before she sat down on the seat in front of it, contentedly.
Regardless, this time she wasn't going to alight from this train.
When she looked at the train route map, she saw that the stop after Bamboo Grove Mountains Station was Kitty Provincial Hospital. Even though the word 'kitty' made the name of the station a lot cuter, there was no way in hell anyone would alight, since hospitals are the known to be a hotbed for all sorts of ghost stories.
Furthermore, Lin Sanjiu had already decided that when the train doors opened at the next station, rather than waiting fearfully, she was going to check the driver's cabin...
"Huh?"
Lin Sanjiu straightened her back. Through the train windows, she could only see darkness. She didn't know if the train was in a tunnel or it was just nightfall. Although the fluorescent lights in the train weren't that stable, it was still bright in the train. Lin Sanjiu could see her reflection on the train window very clearly.
Naturally, she certainly noticed when there was another reflection beside her own. A large white Teru Teru Bozu was hanging from the train ceiling. It was directly behind Lin Sanjiu. It turned its head around to the face the train window; it flashed a black-marker-drawn smile at Lin Sanjiu through its reflection.
Lin Sanjiu's down jacket was useless against the cold breeze on the back of her neck. Lin Sanjiu leaped out of her seat and turned her body at the same time. She looked behind with a pale face, but the train carriage was as empty as before. There saw nothing behind her, and her Teru Teru Bozu was still hanging from the train ceiling. It was still its normal size.
Unfortunately, the air in the train grew colder and colder.
"Am I too paranoid?" she steadied her heavy breathing but did not dare to let down her guard. She switched off the vibration of her vibroblade before using it to jab the Teru Teru Bozu.
The doll spun twice after she jabbed it with the tip of her knife. There wasn't anything wrong with its black-marker-drawn eyes and smile; it was the same as before. Lin Sanjiu looked at it and the train seat. Once again, she felt a strong "I don't want to sit there" feeling.
"That's weird. Why?"
It wasn't just that particular seat. In fact, whenever she approached any of the seats on the train, she would feel some aversion, as if sitting there was something repulsive to her.
"Forget it. Alright, I won't sit." She comforted herself, "Considering that this is a world of urban legends consumed by dark matter, there would always be something off... Maybe, I should look at the driver's cabin first."
"It's not like I have anything else to do. I can even prepare myself for any weird occurrences when the train stops." Actually, she wanted to leave her Teru Teru Bozu for the meantime so that she could calm herself. The train wasn't that long. After she walked through a dozen or so carriages, she reached the end of the train where the driver's cabin was. It was still locked.
Lin Sanjiu raised her hand and hesitated for a moment before knocking on the door lightly. She didn't know which situation was worse for her: if the door opened with a click, and she saw no one... or if she suddenly saw a train conductor smiling at her.
Luckily, she witnessed neither of these scenarios, the driver's cabin was quiet and there was no sign of any movement. Lin Sanjiu gritted her teeth and activated her [Mosaic Censorship], pressing both her hands on the lock. The lock was instantly blasted to bits, which flew everywhere. The door swung open slowly.
Cautiously, Lin Sanjiu used the tip of her knife and pushed the door to open it further. Following which, she sighed in relief. She wouldn't say she was disappointed that there was no one in the room. There were only rows and rows of indicators with blinking lights. The train seemed to have been programmed for auto-driving. This also explained why the train was still operational in this world even after the apocalypse.
Lin Sanjiu stored her vibroblade and suddenly felt very exhausted. She didn't know if it was because the down jacket wasn't warm enough and she had to just endure the cold. She also didn't wish to remember all the spooky events she had experienced since she arrived in this Kisaragi Station world. In the end, she dragged her feet and returned to the train carriage with her Teru Teru Bozu, sitting down.
Then, her throat suddenly tightened
That wasn't just her imagination. It wasn't just a feeling! Lin Sanjiu's face quickly turned purple. Whatever grabbed her slowly squeezed out the air in her lungs. She heard a constant knocking sound in her mind as if her blood was attacking something. She tried her best to move her pupils to the corner of her eyes. From the reflection in the train window, she could see a white shroud around her neck.
"I need to get, get my vibroblade... "
That thought struggled to the surface of her mind. However, just as she felt her card appearing in her hand, a cold air enveloped her hand, and she could no longer move.
In a contradictory manner, her life slowly and rapidly left her body. After five minutes, Lin Sanjiu's body became flaccid, and she stopped struggling.
The second before she died, she saw everything. All the seats on the train were filled. Everyone on the train had a gray emotionless face. The old lady sitting on the seat she was on stretched out a dry claw-like hand and held her arms. So, she had been sitting on that old lady.
And, this was why the girl scribbled for others to get down.