The train car was in chaos. People screamed, pushing and shoving as the centipedes continued to pour in from the bridge. Someone tried to force the doors open, but they didn't budge. Another person laughed nervously, a sharp, high-pitched sound that made everyone flinch. "Is this some kind of prank?!" they shouted. "It's not funny!"
Phones were pulled out frantically, calls and messages attempted, but nothing went through. "No signal—what the hell?!" one voice cried. "It's the system! It's blocking it!"
Voices overlapped, panic spreading faster than the scuttling creatures outside. But through all the noise, one figure remained untouched by the chaos. Saigid's gaze was locked on the floating message in front of everyone:
[Survive until tomorrow]
[Reward: 1,000,000 coins]
It wasn't a game. The air around him felt too heavy, too real, too absolute. People were losing control, screaming, fumbling, trying to fight the invisible restrictions that bound them.
Then, cutting through the cacophony, a calm, flat voice rang out. "The same as last time."
It wasn't raised, wasn't panicked, wasn't demanding. It was almost bored. Saigid turned his head to see the source.
A man leaned casually against the wall, dark hair falling into his eyes. His posture was relaxed, as if waiting for a train that would never come. Nothing about him suggested tension or fear. It was as if this scene had already played out countless times before.
Saigid's eyes followed him. Something about the man's presence felt… off.
In front of him, a glowing panel flickered into existence:
[Yushai's level: Σ]
Nearby, a passenger noticed it and whispered in awe, "What… what is that?"
"A symbol? A level?"
"I don't see that on mine!"
Confusion rippled through the crowd, momentarily overtaking panic. Everyone stared at the figure, trying to understand what they were seeing.
Then another panel appeared, this one floating in front of Saigid himself:
[Saigid: Level F]
He narrowed his eyes. Level F. The ranking system was real. This wasn't a glitch. This wasn't a joke.
Exhaling slowly, he looked back at the man. Yushai—still calm, still composed, still unshaken by the chaos around them.
Saigid took a careful step forward. Not too fast, not too slow, keeping his movements deliberate. "You're not surprised," he said quietly.
Yushai glanced at him briefly, lips curling into the faintest hint of a smile. "You are?"
"…Not really," Saigid admitted, tilting his head slightly.
A pause fell over them, the screams and shouts fading into distant noise, like background static. Saigid studied him. There was no fear, no confusion, no hesitation—only certainty.
"You knew," Saigid whispered.
Yushai closed his eyes for a moment, calm as ever, as if waiting for something that hadn't happened yet.