“Let’s play a game…”
A ghostly voice suddenly rang out from the train’s speakers, triggering an instant commotion among the crowd.
“What’s going on? Who’s talking?”
“Where’s the conductor? What’s happening?”
“Did a monster sneak on board…? No, please… I haven’t even had a girlfriend yet…”
…
Panicked voices clashed in chaos.
Clearly, everyone on the train could hear the broadcast, further unsettling an already anxious crowd.
Lin Mo, sitting in front of the electronic screens, frowned and immediately realized this was a premeditated attack.
He acted without hesitation, issuing a command to the AI steward:
“Deploy Metal Storm immediately. Have Engineer head to the scene as well.”
“Order received. Analyzing subway trajectory… Please wait. Metal Storm has been activated and is executing launch procedures.”
The base’s dome slowly opened.
The rocket thrusters on the back of the silver heavy robot ignited instantly, launching the unit into the sky, leaving a white trail across the skyline.
“Unit has deployed. Estimated arrival at the target location within ten minutes.”
“Not enough.”
Lin Mo shook his head, dissatisfied with the projection.
Su Yu’s situation was critical now.
Every second could bring an accident.
He needed Metal Storm to stabilize the situation as fast as possible.
“Remove low-priority weapons and experimental equipment. Divert all energy to the power unit. Ignore mechanical wear.”
“Order received. Increasing thruster output efficiency… Recalculating ETA. Arrival within approximately five minutes.”
“Five minutes.”
Lin Mo sighed.
The distance to the runaway train was tens of miles.
The unit he designed wasn’t built for that speed, and this was the limit he could squeeze out.
‘I hope it’s in time.’
After issuing the command, he rubbed his temples and refocused on the screen.
“Su Yu, can you hear me?”
The only thing he could control now was that reconnaissance drone with pitiful firepower.
Stabilizing the situation with it was impossible, so he had to rely on Su Yu to do something.
“I hear you. What’s your situation?”
The girl’s voice came through clearly.
Lin Mo gave a brief explanation.
“It’s not good. I think a monster boarded. All the train staff are gone, the braking system is destroyed, and the train is still accelerating.”
“I’ve sent Metal Storm to back us up, but it’ll take time. I need your help.”
On the other end of the train, Su Yu tensed up but didn’t waste words.
She asked calmly:
“What do you need me to do?”
She held her earpiece, scanning the surroundings.
The crowd had fallen into chaos—cries and shouts mixed together, and some people had already started leaving final words.
“Here’s the plan…”
Lin Mo laid out his idea:
“I just checked. This is an old model train. The main brake system in the front is broken, but there’s still a manual mechanical brake at the rear that hasn’t been removed. It might still work.”
“Time is short. Go check it out now.”
“Okay. On it.”
Without further words, Su Yu turned and sprinted in the opposite direction of the train’s movement.
She pushed through crowded carriages, leaving a white streak against the flow, flashing past desperate faces.
…
“I believe you’re ready now, Mr. Train Captain.”
The broadcast sounded again shortly after their conversation ended.
“Are you ready to start the game?”
“Train Captain?”
Lin Mo mulled over the term, feeling the hidden monster meant something specific.
But before he could figure it out, a pool of black water seeped from the floor of the train control room, coalescing into a humanoid shape in an instant.
“It seems you haven’t seen the essence of it all yet, Mr. Metal Storm.”
“I really hope you’ll participate wholeheartedly in this game.”
Hearing the monster call his name, Lin Mo couldn’t stay calm.
He slammed a button on the console, and the system began immediately comparing the monster’s image from the video.
“No match found. Please try input again.”
“Damn it…”
Seeing the AI’s search return nothing, Lin Mo had no choice but to focus on the screen again.
“Who are you? What’s the purpose of hijacking the train?”
Direct questioning like that might seem foolish, but for a monster this premeditated, it might be happy to answer.
“As you can see, I just want to play a game with you, Metal Storm. Like we did five years ago…”
“Five years?”
Lin Mu deliberately said that on speaker, a hint of doubt in his voice, testing the monster’s reaction.
“You heroes sure have short memories. But I suppose it’s no surprise—an S-Class Hero wouldn’t care about a nobody’s anger.”
The shadow monster’s tone was calm, but a twisted outline formed on its face of viscous matter.
Lin Mo silently noted the information, theorizing this was someone with a grudge targeting him specifically.
But no matter how hard he tried, he couldn’t remember ever crossing paths with this “nobody.”
“So, after all that talk… you’re just here to show off your petty prank?”
Lin Mo continued, his tone provocative, hoping to goad the monster into revealing more.
It worked.
The monster burst into triumphant laughter.
“Prank? No, no, you’ve got it all wrong. This will be a spectacular performance. Nothing else… I just wanted to see what an S-Class Hero like you would choose when faced with the same problem.”
Lin Mo realized something but kept his composure, replying coolly:
“So, what are you going to do?”
“Simple!”
The monster grew more excited, unable to stop itself from gesturing wildly.
“I’ve planted bombs on the train. If they go off, everyone on board will die! But you have a chance to stop it.”
“See that red button? Press it, and the bombs will stop working. The only cost is the sacrifice of the last two carriages.”
“How about that? Not a hard choice, right? Save the many by sacrificing the few—a great deal, isn’t it?”
“But there’s another option. Press the green button to detach the last two carriages, saving the people in them.”
“…”
Lin Mo pretended to ponder, seemingly contemplating, but in reality, he was buying time.
Once Metal Storm arrived, he had every confidence to tear that monster into shreds.
Until then, he had to stall.
“That’s indeed a difficult philosophical question. But I happen to have a different perspective.”
Lin Mo tried verbal negotiation, hoping to seize the initiative.
This time, though, his plan failed.
“You’re more cunning than I thought, Mr. Metal Storm. Someone else might have fallen into your trap.”
The slime monster writhed, its tone growing excited:
“But today, I’ve given everything for this. How could I be distracted by such a common trick?”
“You have three minutes to decide—starting now. Of course… to show my sincerity, I won’t indiscriminately slaughter everyone before you make your choice. We’ll start from the last carriage.”
Lin Mo’s eyes turned cold.
Faced with the monster’s threat, he wouldn’t choose either, but he needed time.
“If you’re trying to get revenge on me, you’ve got it wrong… Even a monster should know I don’t make mistakes in matters like this. Never.”
“Is that so?”
The monster sneered, speaking lightly:
“What if the people you care about are in those last two carriages? What would you choose then?”
Lin Mo finally realized he’d fallen into the monster’s trap.
So this was its real goal!
‘Damn it, you despicable bastard! When I catch you, I’ll tear you apart!’
The drone transmitted his voice, full of fury, making it clear the person on the other end was completely enraged.
“Hahahahahaha! I’m waiting! I can’t wait to see your face when you break down!”
The monster laughed wildly, then shrank and melted into the floor, leaving the drone hovering in the air.
It seemed the monster had won the game, successfully breaking the S-Class Hero…
Or had it?
Once the monster left, Lin Mo’s furious expression faded, instantly replaced by a different face, a slight curve at the corner of his mouth.
He already had a plan in his head.
That performance was just to make the monster more complacent and lower its guard.
“Time to put an end to this farce.”