Chapter 156: Memories Are Fake, But Love Is Real
Under normal circumstances, once someone was bitten, mutation was almost inevitable.
But Shen Yu’s helmet was absurdly durable.
Not only that, he had managed to catch both of Sandy’s hands.
The scene looked almost absurd.
One living.
One dead.
The two moved together like unwilling dance partners, slowly making their way toward the station exit.
"Haha..."
The growls of zombies echoed through the blood-red mist.
Shen Yu held Sandy tightly as they advanced.
"Damn it."
"This stupid thing really dares to follow me outside."
Behind them, Bill watched from the rear carriage.
His expression was grim.
His eyes suddenly shifted toward the front carriage.
If I can trick Menloa into leaving...
Then only Malin and I will be left here.
His gaze moved toward Malin.
Food... women...
He almost smiled.
But before the thought could develop—
A woman’s voice suddenly reached his ears.
Bill froze.
He immediately looked around.
"Who?"
"Who is it?"
His breathing became heavier.
But there was no answer.
Meanwhile, inside the blood mist, Shen Yu continued dragging Sandy forward.
Several times, Sandy attacked him.
Her teeth snapped against his helmet.
Her hands clawed at his chest.
But none of it could break through his protective gear.
Eventually, Sandy opened her mouth as wide as possible and practically pressed her entire face against his visor.
Shen Yu frowned.
Persistent.
He continued forward.
Soon, the two reached the waiting hall.
Shen Yu was just about to pull Sandy inside when—
"Shen Yu!"
A woman’s voice suddenly came from the fog.
"Shen Yu!"
"Thank goodness you’re here!"
A figure emerged.
A woman wearing a nurse’s uniform staggered toward them.
Her entire uniform was stained with blood.
Her face was filled with panic.
She repeatedly glanced behind herself.
"Come on!"
"Hurry back!"
"There are so many zombies here!"
"The Self-Defense Force is already coming this way!"
"Go back and hide!"
"As long as we survive today, everything will be fine!"
The nurse grabbed Shen Yu’s arm.
Then she noticed Sandy.
Her expression changed instantly.
She stumbled backward.
Her lips trembled.
"You..."
"You weren’t bitten, were you?"
Shen Yu stared at her.
The moment he saw her face, strange memories surfaced.
Yang Jin.
His ex-girlfriend.
Before he had gone abroad to study.
Yang Jin...
How are you here?
He didn’t have time to process the memory.
Yang Jin gathered her courage and reached toward Sandy.
She seemed determined to pull the zombie away from Shen Yu.
But the moment she touched Sandy—
Whoosh!
A burst of scorching air erupted.
Sandy suddenly lunged.
"Ah!"
She slammed into Yang Jin.
Her mouth opened wide.
Her teeth sank toward Yang Jin’s neck.
Blood splattered across the ground.
"Shen Yu!"
"Shen Yu, hurry back!"
"Just one more day!"
"After one day, the Self-Defense Force will arrive!"
Her voice became weaker.
"After one day..."
"The Self-Defense Force..."
Blood continued spreading across the floor.
Shen Yu’s pupils contracted.
The blood vessels in his eyes became visible.
Something inside him snapped.
He rushed forward.
His fist slammed directly into Sandy’s head.
At the same time—
Inside the once-peaceful Twilight Express, the electronic announcement sounded again.
[The next stop is Dusk Station.]
[Due to special circumstances, the departure time has been changed from one hour to three hours.]
"What did you do to her?"
"What did you do?!"
Shen Yu’s fists rained down.
Bang!
Bang!
Bang!
Bang!
Yang Jin’s body had collapsed nearby.
Her face was barely recognizable.
Her nurse uniform fluttered in the cold wind.
One trembling finger pointed toward the waiting hall.
She was telling Shen Yu to leave.
But Shen Yu was human.
And at that moment, rage had completely overwhelmed reason.
He continued striking Sandy.
Bang!
Bang!
Bang!
With one final blow, Sandy’s head was driven into the ground.
Yet even then—
A strange smile remained at the corner of her mouth.
Then—
Ding!
[Goddess Sandy’s Favorability +1.]
[Goddess Sandy’s Favorability +1.]
[Goddess Sandy’s Favorability +1.]
[Current Favorability: 74.]
Shen Yu’s eyes widened.
"Damn you!"
"You bastard!"
"Give Yang Jin back!"
BOOM!
He grabbed Sandy’s head with both hands.
Then slammed it against the ground again.
And again.
Until the zombie finally stopped moving.
Sandy’s body trembled.
Her fingers slowly fell still.
She was dead.
But even in her final moments, her finger remained pointed toward the waiting hall.
As though she were desperately trying to tell him something.
Then her body collapsed.
The cold wind swept through the blood mist.
Shen Yu fell to the ground.
He stared blankly at the bodies of the two women.
His breathing gradually slowed.
His rage began to fade.
And once reason returned—
Something felt wrong.
He loved Yang Jin.
That much was certain.
The moment he had seen her attacked, his anger had completely overwhelmed him.
But...
How had she gotten from another country to this station?
How had she known exactly where he was?
How had she found him in the middle of the disaster?
Had she really traveled through the chaos like a special-forces soldier just to see him one final time?
Could it be...
That she really loved him that much?
Shen Yu took a deep breath.
Then he looked at Sandy’s body.
That woman was strange.
She had been relatively calm before Yang Jin appeared.
But the moment Yang Jin tried to pull her away—
Sandy had immediately attacked.
And when Sandy died...
She had pointed toward the waiting hall.
Shen Yu stared at the entrance.
A hesitation formed in his heart.
One woman had appeared and told him the station was dangerous.
She had begged him to stay inside for one more day.
The other had pointed toward the station and told him to leave.
Both of them seemed to care about him.
Both claimed to love him.
But one of them had to be lying.
Which one?
Shen Yu looked toward the swirling red mist.
He slowly stood.
Then—
The growls became louder.
More intense.
In the distance, he even heard gunfire.
It sounded as though the Self-Defense Force had finally arrived.
Shen Yu’s expression tightened.
Suddenly—
A male zombie wearing a train crew uniform burst out of the mist.
It lunged directly at him.
Its mouth was covered in blood and flesh.
Its claws reached toward Shen Yu.
Behind it came countless zombie growls.
Shen Yu instinctively stepped backward.
For a moment, he believed Yang Jin again.
The station really is full of zombies.
He turned slightly.
Then—
Thud!
Yang Jin’s corpse suddenly moved.
Her body trembled.
She straightened.
Then grabbed the zombie by the thigh.
The two zombies crashed together.
Yang Jin desperately held on.
Her body twisted violently.
But she refused to release her grip.
Her featureless face produced a faint sobbing sound.
"Shen Yu..."
"Run."
"Run away."
"Don’t..."
"Don’t..."
The zombie tore into her.
Her neck was bitten apart.
Her body collapsed.
Black veins spread rapidly across her skin.
It looked as though she herself was beginning to transform into a zombie.
Shen Yu stood frozen.
"Damn..."
The zombie howls continued getting louder.
Yang Jin’s final words echoed in his mind.
His rational side screamed at him to run.
Go back to the Twilight Express.
You’ll be safe there.
You can’t die.
You can’t waste her kindness.
But Shen Yu suddenly clenched his fists.
"Enough."
"I won’t analyze this anymore."
His eyes became cold.
"Today, I’ll just kill you."
His memories could be fake.
The people around him could be fake.
Everything could be fabricated.
But love...
Love was different.
Even if Yang Jin was merely a person constructed from his altered memories—
She had loved him.
That emotion had existed.
It had affected him.
And because it had affected him, it was real.
Shen Yu slowly removed his helmet.
He stared at the zombie attacking Yang Jin’s body.
"Memories may be fake."
"But love is real."
He gripped the helmet tightly.
"No matter how many zombies are in that waiting hall..."
"I’ll kill them one by one."
"I’m done playing."
His emotions had completely defeated his reason.
Shen Yu raised the helmet.
BOOM!
The helmet slammed into the zombie’s head.
Blood sprayed through the mist.
Shen Yu stood at the entrance of the waiting hall.
His expression was resolute.
Then he stepped forward.
And entered the blood-red fog.
The zombie growls became denser as he advanced.
But then—
Shen Yu’s angry expression slowly changed.
Confusion appeared.
Then shock.
"Zombies?"
"Where are the zombies?"
The waiting hall was completely empty.
No army.
No zombie tide.
No apocalypse.
Nothing.
Only several suspended television screens.
Every screen was playing the same zombie promotional film.
The images showed grotesque creatures attacking cities.
Their roars echoed through the empty hall.
One after another.
That was where the terrifying sounds had come from.
There had never been a zombie army.
There had never been millions of monsters surrounding the station.
There was no apocalyptic crisis.
It had all been an illusion designed to create a sense of impending doom.
Shen Yu stood motionless.
"So fake."
"Everything is fake."
The four years of memories.
Fake.
The zombies.
Fake.
The broadcasts.
Fake.
Even the apocalypse itself.
Fake.
He looked around.
"Then..."
"Is Yang Jin fake too?"
"Was she created from our memories just to keep us trapped inside that train?"
"What exactly is the purpose?"
His gaze eventually landed on the ticket machine.
And then—
A familiar figure appeared beside it.
Sandy.
She stood there perfectly intact.
Smiling brightly.
"Oh, my sweetheart."
"I thought you would keep analyzing forever."
"I didn’t expect emotions to influence you too."
Shen Yu stared at her.
Sandy’s smile widened.
"But precisely because of that anger..."
"You finally escaped the trap of reason."
"Love is real."
"Does that mean everything is real?"
"For Yang Jin’s love..."
"Even if she was only created from a false memory..."
"Wasn’t it still worth it?"
Her voice carried a teasing undertone.
"Interesting."
"Very interesting."
"Even after I emerged from your memories and became a zombie..."
"I still love you."
"And she still pointed out a way for you to survive."
"Very interesting."
Shen Yu stared at Sandy.
His expression was complicated.
He finally understood.
The dungeon wasn’t simply creating fake memories.
It was using those memories to manipulate their emotions.
The memories might be false.
But the feelings produced by them were genuine.
And that distinction was the key.
Shen Yu slowly walked toward the ticket machine.
He reached out.
Pressed the ticket retrieval button.
Click.
The machine responded.
And for the first time since arriving at Fiction Station—
Shen Yu knew that he had found the real way forward.