The owner of the Silver Heart.
A good person possessing a badge-shaped item capable of swaying others. This individual is a critical figure in the Tamra Express Disaster, though they only receive significant attention in the final part of the short story. So the fact that I can't recall their seat number or exact name… Maybe it's only natural.
'I read the wiki focusing on how to break the creepypastas!' After I fell into this world, the wikis that became my lifeline and that I repeatedly studied were mostly about creepypasta entries and exploration records.
In short, I prioritized reading the wikis that provided information on clearing the ghost stories.
'I put all the supplementary content aside.'
Anything long and emotional, like short story-style spin-off prose on the wiki? Those ranked low on my priority list.
The personal details about the Silver Heart owner were mentioned maybe once or twice within that kind of content.
Remembering those exact letters and numbers several months after I first read them?
Yeah… that was unreasonable.
'I'm screwed…'
No!
I swallowed hard.
'I can still make educated guesses.'
And even if I don't get ahold of that person right away, I will find a way to deal with this.
'I do remember other wiki entries about the Tamra Express Disaster.' For example, urgent notices and official reports from the Supernatural Disaster Management Bureau.
I know the flow of this event by its loops, which means I can do this. I can do this…
...
'Alright.'
I determined the direction I needed to take.
'It's a bit extreme, but there's no other choice.'
Of course, all this thinking occurred within the span of a few seconds in my head. Meanwhile, the elite team members next to me were having a completely calm conversation.
"Wow, a time loop! I've read a lot of short sci-fi anthologies like this."
"It basically means we get unlimited retries until we meet the conditions, right? Annoying, but convenient."
"..."
What an absurd conversation.
Fortunately, nobody paid any attention to us speaking calmly. The entire train was filled with screams, panic, and crying. "Huuuuk, huuk!"
"This is a dream, just a dream… it has to be."
But as always, there's bound to be someone who can't just sit and watch. "Everyone! Please, calm down! Calm down!"
…There it was.
Second Loop:
In every car of the high-speed train, someone began stepping up to calm the passengers and bring order.
– Ah, doesn't someone always say that a crisis is an opportunity? In chaotic situations, there's always someone eager to rise as a leader!
Exactly.
And in our car, that someone was the man with glasses—the office worker. The one who, in the first loop, had argued about closing the window until the other man lunged and fell outside.
"At least we're all still alive, right? That's what's important. Let's take a moment to calm down and figure out what's going on."
"A…Ah."
"D-Do you have any ideas?"
People began paying attention, now that someone was willing to take the lead.
"I believe… time is repeating itself."
The man with glasses began organizing the situation and calming the passengers.
"We're definitely caught in some strange phenomenon, but I believe we've been given this chance for a reason. Maybe it's to figure out the right way to escape."
"Ah…"
"So, let's trust in that and try to figure it out. Stay calm, everyone." He probably thought things were heading in a good direction. At least until he glanced at the seat where I was sitting.
"Look, there are people already staying calm."
"…!"
"Let's try to analyze the situation with that kind of composure."
Damn it.
The three of us—employees of Daydream Inc.—had just been singled out. 'Were we being too quiet…?'
…No, this was actually good.
It was time to establish a position early.
This was only the second loop, and I needed to step up now. "N-No. It's not that we're calm… We're just confused."
I quickly shook my head, forcing a nervous smile.
"We're just… just trying to process things. We were dozing off since we were on a work trip."
There was no way they'd suspect me. I didn't even have to try too hard— my face was already pale.
When I spoke up first, Assistant Manager Jin Nasol raised an eyebrow slightly but let it slide. I took the opportunity to press on.
"But then suddenly, the view outside changed to the ocean, and there was all this talk about sacrifices… Are you saying all of that was real?"
"Um, yes. That seems to be the case."
I swallowed, pretending to be tense.
"Then… the person who fell out of the window earlier…"
"..."
Everyone's eyes slowly turned toward the man sitting next to the window where the 'sacrifice' was made.
The middle-aged man who had been arguing before tumbling out during the first loop.
His seat, which had been empty before…
Now, it had someone sitting in it.
"…!!"
I saw the silhouette of a passenger sitting there, motionless. It was the man who had fallen out of the window.
"He's alive?"
"Oh, thank goodness…"
That's when it happened.
The passenger suddenly shot up and lunged at the man with glasses. "…!!"
"You bastard! You son of a—because of you, because of YOOOUUUU!!"
"L-Let me go!"
Chaos erupted.
The middle-aged man, dressed like a nouveau riche, spat as he shouted, his eyes filled with madness.
"Die, die! I fell because of you… I-It hurt! It hurt so much…!!" His eyes gleamed with crazed intensity.
"Falling down there is awful! It's painful! It's straaaange— aaak! Ugh, uuueegh!"
"Hiieek!"
The man staggered and trembled before vomiting a strange, dark red mass onto the floor.
"Ugh!! UUUUGH!"
The man with glasses stumbled backward, his face frozen in shock. 'Hah.'
Those who became 'sacrifices' and fell out of the window exhibited symptoms resembling madness and supernatural afflictions during the next loop.
After falling, they reported experiencing burning pain and endless torment from non-human whispers.
Seeing it in person, the instability of his condition was overwhelmingly apparent.
The man with glasses, seemingly overwhelmed, slowly backed away on shaky legs.
– Ah, voluntary surrender! A brief yet noteworthy display of leadership. But now, the leader's seat is vacant.
– Perhaps my friend could step in and lead these people with flair… Hmm, no? That's fine! This Braun will observe the situation together with you. 'Yeah.'
I intentionally took a step back.
And at that moment—
To reach Tamra, offer a sacrifice.
The onboard display changed again.
"Th-The text is back!"
"Wait, wasn't it last time when…?"
When someone fell out of the window, the train had safely exited the tunnel and kept moving forward.
"..."
"..."
For now, people avoided openly acknowledging the truth, mumbling instead.
"…What do they mean by sacrifice?"
"Well, wouldn't it have to be something alive? I mean, based on those horror YouTube videos…"
I interrupted.
"No, it could be an object. Even food offerings in traditional rites count as sacrifices."
"Ohhh…!"
"That's right! Let's stay calm and try throwing a few things out."
But fear, excitement, and anxiety still flickered in their eyes. "..."
"Does anyone have any food with them?"
Before long, the passengers holding snacks began to gather whatever could be thrown out.
Fruits, eggs, meat, bread, and so on.
Right on the edge of time, the scenery outside the window changed.
First Altar Entrance
This time, the passengers remained relatively composed.
"Let's throw them out."
"Yes…!"
Plop, plop.
In silence, the food disappeared through the window.
Remaining distance : 4
The display didn't react; only the countdown continued.
"It's not working! It's not stopping!!"
Screams filled the train car.
Even when sacrifices were accepted, the countdown had always continued to the end—but I intentionally chose not to point that out.
I had known from the start that food wasn't the answer.
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—
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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?"
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.
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