Chapter 165: Time Reversal
Menloa stumbled out of the rear compartment, his face pale.
He was about to say something when Matsumoto Kika’s expression immediately darkened.
"Enough. Don’t say anything."
She pointed toward the station.
"Get off the train and find the transfer card."
The situation was almost identical to the previous timeline.
But this time—
Shen Yu had no intention of repeating the same mistake.
"Shall we go?"
Menloa greeted Shen Yu as he prepared to leave.
But Shen Yu suddenly reached out and grabbed his shoulder.
"Wait."
Menloa paused.
"Wait for Meilin."
"Huh?"
Menloa looked confused.
"Is that really necessary?"
"Just wait."
Shen Yu returned to his seat.
Menloa shrugged indifferently and sat down nearby.
The two large men remained there, silently waiting outside the bathroom.
Matsumoto Kika, who had been preparing to leave, stared at them in disbelief.
"You two don’t have to wait, do you?"
"You’re just wasting time."
"Why don’t we go find the transfer card?"
"If you’re in such a hurry, you can go."
Shen Yu completely ignored her.
He walked toward the pink carriage.
In the previous timeline, unless something unexpected happened, Meilin would soon ask him for his shirt.
He already knew what was coming.
But this time, there was a butterfly effect.
Shen Yu and Menloa had not immediately left the carriage.
And Matsumoto Kika hadn’t left either.
Would changing that small detail alter what happened next?
Inside the bathroom, Meilin finished washing her hands.
She slowly opened the door and poked her head outside.
She was about to speak to Shen Yu—
Then froze.
Three pairs of eyes were staring directly at her.
Meilin bit her lip.
She said nothing.
Instead, she turned the faucet back on.
Cold water flowed over her hands.
She scooped some up and drank several mouthfuls, desperately trying to suppress the heat still burning inside her body.
After a few moments, she finally stepped outside.
Her face remained flushed.
Her breathing was uneven.
"Shen Yu..."
She hesitated.
"Should we get off and look for the transfer card?"
She instinctively moved closer to him.
Then seemed to remember something.
Her legs immediately closed together.
She stopped.
Shen Yu calmly sat down.
"No need."
"Let’s wait a little longer."
Meilin stared at him.
"But the Twilight Train will depart in ten minutes."
The station announcement echoed through the carriage.
[Passengers requiring a transfer card, please obtain your transfer card before departure and continue riding toward the True Station.]
Matsumoto Kika became increasingly anxious.
"I’m telling you, this is impossible!"
"Ten minutes!"
"We’re running out of time!"
She looked toward Shen Yu.
"But..."
She clenched her fists.
She didn’t dare get off alone.
What exactly was waiting outside the train?
If there was danger, could she handle it without Shen Yu and Menloa?
And if the transfer card was hidden somewhere outside—
Could she really find it in time?
She couldn’t take that risk.
"Shen Yu, aren’t you getting off?"
Menloa looked at him in confusion.
Shen Yu said nothing.
He simply patted the empty seat beside him.
"If you trust me, sit down."
"Wait with me."
Menloa hesitated.
Then—
Meilin quickly walked over and sat opposite Shen Yu.
She loosened her jacket slightly.
"I..."
Her face became even redder.
"I’ll stay with you."
Menloa looked at her.
Then at Shen Yu.
Finally, he sighed.
"Then I’ll stay too."
He sat beside Shen Yu.
Matsumoto Kika stared at the three of them.
Her expression slowly became furious.
"You three..."
"Damn it!"
"Are you idiots?!"
"There are only ten minutes!"
"Why aren’t you getting off and looking for clues?"
"Are you three trying to die?"
The three completely ignored her.
Matsumoto Kika exploded.
"Didn’t you say you’re all companions?!"
"What the hell are you doing?!"
"The less time we have, the more we should hurry!"
"Are you crazy?"
"Or has your memory gone bad again?"
"Get off!"
"Come on!"
"Let’s go!"
Her shouting continued.
But the three people sitting in the carriage remained completely unmoved.
The livestream comments immediately exploded.
Dragon Kingdom Viewer: What the hell is Shen Yu doing?
Snake Catcher Susen: Could it be that he knows ten minutes isn’t enough to find the ticket?
Undead Nightingale Kaien: Maybe he’s accepted his fate.
Dragon Kingdom Viewer: Shen Yu, cheer up!
French Gambling God Pierre Kassen: Hey! Hey! Hey! There’s no way the team’s leader is actually the first one to lie down!
Sakura: This little beast is going to drag Meilin down with him!
Bear Market Drinks Seller: I used to like Shen Yu. I didn’t expect him to become so demoralized!
The barrage became increasingly chaotic.
But inside the State Poolool City Defense Office, several people were beginning to notice something strange.
Yening stared at the screen.
"Doesn’t this scene look familiar?"
Someone beside her frowned.
"Familiar?"
"Now that you mention it..."
Another person shook their head.
"But I think Shen Yu’s choice has some hidden purpose."
Luen immediately disagreed.
"You’re kidding, right?"
"Shen Yu is the kind of person who rushes headfirst into dangerous situations."
"Would someone like him really just lie down and wait?"
Ho Yong suddenly spoke.
"Could it be that the ten-minute limit is actually a trap?"
Everyone looked at him.
He continued.
"They’re deliberately creating a sense of urgency."
"They want the players to rush off the train."
"But what if that’s exactly what the dungeon wants?"
"Perhaps the transfer card can only be obtained by staying on the train."
The room suddenly became silent.
Then several people looked at one another.
That possibility couldn’t be ruled out.
"Right."
"If ten minutes isn’t enough to explore the station, then leaving the train might be the fake path."
"But why is Shen Yu so certain?"
Yening still looked doubtful.
"What if the ticket machine really is on the platform?"
Luen rubbed her chin.
"I know."
Everyone turned toward her.
"Look at Shen Yu."
"His expression."
"He isn’t panicking."
"He looks completely calm."
She narrowed her eyes.
"As if he already knows something."
A strange thought suddenly crossed her mind.
"Does this guy have some kind of future-prediction ability?"
Clank.
The doors of the Twilight Express suddenly closed.
The entire carriage trembled.
The speaker crackled.
[Next stop: True Station.]
[Estimated travel time: forty minutes.]
[All passengers, please prepare.]
Matsumoto Kika’s face instantly turned pale.
"It’s over."
"It’s over!"
"Shen Yu, this is all because of you!"
"You didn’t get off the train!"
"Now we don’t have the transfer cards!"
"Who knows what will happen without them?!"
She completely lost her composure.
"Shen Yu!"
"You’re the worst leader!"
"I completely overestimated you!"
"You’re even worse than Bronzeville!"
"Success is because of you!"
"Failure is also because of you!"
But before she could continue—
Something strange happened.
Shen Yu’s pocket trembled.
At the same time—
Menloa’s pocket trembled.
Meilin’s pocket trembled.
Matsumoto Kika’s pocket trembled.
All four instinctively reached inside.
Their hands touched something cold.
They pulled it out.
Transfer cards.
Four identical cards.
Twilight Station → True Station
Silence.
Menloa stared at the card in his hand.
"When did we get this?"
Meilin was equally confused.
"What...?"
Matsumoto Kika’s eyes widened.
She slowly reached into her kimono and pulled out her own card.
Her mouth fell open.
She looked at Shen Yu.
"You..."
"Did you know this would happen?"
Shen Yu shrugged.
"I told you."
"I’m just reasoning."
"Do you believe me now?"
Matsumoto Kika stared at him.
Shen Yu calmly explained.
"Think about it."
"We had ten minutes."
"Even if we went to the platform immediately, we’d need several minutes just to get there."
"Then we’d have to search."
"Then find the card."
"And then return before the train departed."
"That’s impossible."
"The dungeon wouldn’t create a genuine dead end."
"So I assumed the transfer card couldn’t require us to leave the train."
Matsumoto Kika remained silent.
Shen Yu continued.
"Twilight Station."
"Twilight Train."
"If the station itself is the train..."
His eyes narrowed.
"Then by staying on the train, we’re already inside the station."
"And if the transfer card is supposed to be obtained inside the station..."
"We don’t need to get off."
Everyone stared at him.
The realization hit them at the same time.
The train itself—
Was Twilight Station.
The carriage fell silent.
Then the livestream erupted.
"THAT’S IT!"
"What an insane interpretation!"
"So Shen Yu wasn’t lying down!"
"He deliberately chose not to act!"
"He knew there couldn’t be a dead end!"
"The train itself is the station!"
"How did I not think of that?!"
"Brothers, I was wrong!"
"I take back everything I said about Shen Yu!"
"Shen Yu is the best leader!"
"From now on, anyone who insults him has to answer to me!"
The direction of the entire barrage changed instantly.
Only moments ago, thousands of viewers had been cursing Shen Yu.
Now—
They were praising him.
The same man they had called a coward was suddenly being treated like a genius.
Shen Yu leaned back in his seat.
He said nothing.
He simply watched the Twilight Train disappear into the darkness.
Because he knew something the others didn’t.
This wasn’t the end.
It was only the beginning of the sixth station.