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The lights flickered back on.
Even so, the atmosphere inside the train car had changed.
The air felt heavier than before, as if something unseen had settled over everything.
Ren’s senses immediately caught the overwhelming Yin energy flooding the area.
Had another urban legend appeared??
He thought he would be going home empty-handed tonight.
Running into an evil spirit on his commute was an unexpected bonus.
For a moment, real interest showed in his eyes.
Then Ren noticed something else.
Yumiko Miura, who had been sitting several rows away, was now seated directly across from him.
As soon as their eyes met, Yumiko quickly looked away, clearly embarrassed.
No matter how tough she acted at school, she was still just a regular high school girl.
When the lights went out in an empty train car, it was only natural to get scared and look for someone nearby.
“I…
I just came over to say hello,” Yumiko said, refusing to admit she had been frightened.
Ren saw through the lie, but he had no reason to expose her.
“Good evening, Miura.”
“…” Was he not going to make fun of her?
Yumiko expected the strange, antisocial boy from class to tease her for being scared.
Instead, he just greeted her like nothing was out of the ordinary.
His calm reaction surprised her.
“G-Good evening.”
It was only then that Yumiko realized she didn’t really know anything about him.
Everything she thought she knew came from classroom gossip.
People called him gloomy and hard to talk to, but those were just rumors from people who had never actually spoken to him.
That thought left her feeling oddly mixed up.
‘This is so awkward.
I just want to get off this train.’
As if answering that thought, a chime sounded through the train car.
DING.
The train slowed and pulled into a station.
Yumiko glanced out the window and frowned.
She did not recognize the area at all.
This definitely was not her stop.
She remained seated—waiting for the train to move again.
But Ren was already looking outside.
The Yin energy beyond the doors felt even denser than it did inside the train.
One minute passed.
Then two.
Then three.
After ten full minutes, the train still had not moved.
Yumiko finally realized something was wrong. Find the original chapter at g.com.
“WHAT IS GOING ON?”
She checked her phone.
No signal.
A chill ran up her spine.
She stood up and walked to the open doors, peering out at the platform.
“Kisaragi Station?”
The weathered sign outside displayed those words in faded lettering.
Yumiko stared at it in confusion.
She rode this line often and knew all the stops, but she had never heard of Kisaragi Station…
“Looks like we got caught in a paranormal phenomenon,” Ren said with a faint smile.
“A paranormal phenomenon?” Yumiko looked at him as if he had lost his mind.
What kind of nonsense was that?
This was the real world.
Ghosts and paranormal phenomena were supposed to be made-up stories.
Ren had no interest in arguing.
He stood and stepped off the train.
“HEY!!”
Wouldn’t it be safer to stay inside the train?
Yumiko wanted to stop him, but he was already out on the platform.
She glanced back at the empty, silent train car.
The total silence made her skin crawl.
After a moment’s hesitation, she hurried after him.
“Wait.
Do you even know where we are?”
“There’s a sign right there.” Ren pointed at the station sign and gave her a look that seemed to ask if she could read.
Yumiko fell silent.
Of course she could read.
That wasn’t what she meant.
Dammit.
He really is an obnoxious jerk!
“It feels dangerous out here,” she said, rubbing her arm.
She couldn’t see any Yin energy, but the oppressive atmosphere made her stomach churn.
“We should get back on the train.”
“I doubt we can go back now.”
“Huh?” Before she could understand what he meant, Yumiko turned around.
The train was gone!!
It hadn’t made a sound.
It hadn’t pulled away.
It had just vanished from the tracks, as if it had never been there.
“How is that possible?” Things like that didn’t happen.
They couldn’t happen!
“Looks like we accidentally entered a pocket dimension.”
If Ren had to describe it, Kisaragi Station felt a lot like a Cursed Domain—a fabricated reality that exists next to the real world, close enough to touch but separate enough to trap people inside.
“What does that mean?” Yumiko asked, fear mounting with every word.
“Haven’t you heard of urban legends?”
“…” Yes, she’d heard of them.
Everyone had…
But they were supposed to be just stories, not something that could swallow trains and erase whole stations from reality.
She wanted to deny it, but the empty tracks behind them made it impossible to come up with a normal explanation.
“Let’s move,” Ren said.
He started walking down the tracks without waiting for her.
“Standing here is just waiting to die.
We need to find a way out.”
“But…”
Going deeper into a place like this seemed like a terrible idea.
Still, seeing Ren walk into the darkness so calmly left Yumiko with no real choice.
She gritted her teeth and followed him.
At school, she was the proud Fire Queen—always at the top and never showing weakness.
Here, she was just a frightened high school girl with no idea what to do.
Oddly, Ren’s calmness made her feel safer, even if she didn’t want to admit it…
They walked for a long time without finding anyone.
The rails seemed to stretch on forever.
The air felt damp and stale, making it hard to breathe.
On both sides of the tracks, dark woods pressed in, their shadows deep enough to hide anything.
Yumiko couldn’t endure the silence anymore and moved closer to Ren.
Soon, she was walking right next to him, her shoulder nearly touching his arm.
“Ren…” she said at last.
“Aren’t you scared?”
He didn’t look bothered in the slightest.
“I’m human.
Of course I get scared.” Ren wasn’t arrogant enough to call himself invincible.
Not yet.
“This just isn’t enough to scare me.”
“…” Yumiko stared at him.
“Calm down.” Ren could tell how scared she was.
The Fire Queen of Sobu High was now just a timid girl, clinging to the only steady thing she could find.
He waved a hand behind him without looking back.
“You’ll be fine.
If we run into danger, I’ll protect you.”
He wasn’t the type to call himself a hero, but he also wasn’t cruel enough to just stand by and watch a girl die.
“Eh?” Yumiko’s eyes widened.
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