The Deadly Trap of a False Lead

Aunt Yue's strength was no match for him; after a fierce struggle, her bundle was forcibly taken away. Clutching her arm, a gash ran deep, blood streaming incessantly.

"Give it back to me!"

The male player unfolded the sheet, and upon seeing the severed head, realization dawned upon him instantly. "So that's what it means! This is a fragment of the treasure. How could I have been so foolish and failed to grasp it?" His courage and skills had allowed him to survive the supernatural dungeon; naturally, he possessed his own strengths.

Bold and physically robust, but most importantly fearless of ghosts, he had escaped death multiple times in this eerie realm. This time was no different. Earlier, in a moment of frustration, he had carelessly exhaled smoke rings that startled a passing NPC, summoning a deadly white light. Yet, through his prowess, he evaded it. Only minutes ago, he had faced another similar ordeal and had survived unscathed.

He knew his weakness lay in his carelessness and one-track mind—he could never match the intricate cunning of other players.

But that was no matter; he could always snatch clues from other players.

Elated, he sheathed the fruit knife in his hand—an item he had stealthily pilfered from the dining car.

"Thanks," he said triumphantly, hoisting the head and striding away. Aunt Yue nearly ground her teeth to bits, cursing him a thousandfold in her heart. Helpless, she glanced back at the corpse in the restroom—only a headless body remained. Originally, the severed head was the easiest to carry…

No other choice, Aunt Yue hoisted the heavy, lifeless body onto her shoulders. Her luck was truly abysmal—just as she emerged, she encountered a conductor who was also carrying a corpse back.

"Fare evader!" the conductor roared furiously. No wonder a head was missing—surely there was more than one fare dodger!

Aunt Yue hastened away with the corpse, chased by two conductors carrying another corpse. Witnessing this bizarre spectacle, passengers gawked in disbelief. When warm blood from the severed body splattered their faces, terrified screams pierced the air.

"Ah!"

Approaching the dining car, Eric took a deep breath and opened the door. Sure enough, the old gentleman NPC sat quietly in the corner.

Every time she entered the dining car, this figure was always there. Frail and diminutive, dressed in an old-fashioned robe, his graying hair tied into a slender braid secured by a white string. By his side rested a lidded wicker basket that trembled occasionally, as though concealing a playful kitten or puppy eager to escape.

The old gentleman leaned by the window, eyes fixed outside.

Only when Eric approached directly did he divert his gaze toward her.

"Little girl, have you found what you lost?"

"Yes, and I've also found the treasure you dropped. See if this is it."

Only two NPCs dined inside. With time pressing, Eric wasted no words and placed the severed head, retrieved from the supermarket, upon the table.

At once, the old man's expression transformed. All kindness and warmth vanished; a sinister gleam flickered in his eyes. His whole demeanor shifted in an instant—from 'human' to 'ghost.'

Denial was useless—Eric's every hair stood on end!

All the gruesome beheadings aboard the train had been perpetrated by this seemingly feeble, harmless old gentleman!

"It is the treasure I lost," the NPC said, gently caressing the head, then grasping the hair to lift the skull. With his other hand, he flung open the wicker basket. Before Eric could peer inside, the head was seized by several threads and dragged into the basket.

*Snap!*

The lid snapped shut.

From within came the chew of gnashing teeth, like a large dog devouring bones.

"To thank you, here is your ticket." The old NPC produced a train ticket from his pocket. Eric took it. Indeed, her name was printed upon it, and the destination was the very next station.

At last, the matter settled. Eric pocketed the ticket and rose to leave.

Four hours and forty-eight minutes remained before the train's arrival. To avoid clashes among players, she resolved to find a restroom to hide within.

The dining car door swung open, and Eric spotted the male player from before.

He glanced at her without a word, having mistaken Eric for an NPC. He quickened his pace, crossing the dining car to the conductor's office adjacent to it.

The conductor's office was situated adjacent to the dining car—a fact Eric had known from the outset. Yet, she had deliberately excluded the conductor's office from suspicion and never entertained the notion that the murderous "ghost" could be the conductor himself.

Logically, passengers seeking to purchase or amend their tickets aboard the train would turn to the conductor's office. But if that were truly the case, the hint should read: [It might be willing to issue you a new ticket], rather than [It might be willing to return your ticket].

Moreover, as outsiders to this world, players naturally lacked official identification. How then could they present such credentials when attempting to secure a ticket from the conductor?

The players' "tickets" ought to be akin to a "passage credential" granted by the dungeon itself. Since the murderous entity had stolen this proof, players were compelled by the hint to exchange their treasures in order to reclaim their rightful documentation.

The earlier announcement had called out fare evaders; thus, should a player approach the conductor's office to rectify their ticket, wouldn't that be akin to stepping into the lion's den?

This final point had just been substantiated. The corpse was undeniably a "treasure fragment." If the killer were indeed the conductor, there would be no need for players to intervene—the attendants would simply carry the corpses away processionally along the train.

Unless this supernatural dungeon was designed as a confrontation between the spectral conductor and the spectral attendants, but such a design would be baffling. How could the conductor possess the power to slay yet lack the means to remove bodies? It would be far more convenient to dispatch only those passengers near the conductor's office, simplifying corpse retrieval.

Having already secured her ticket and no longer competing with the player bearing the severed head, Eric intended to alert him accordingly. Yet, just as she was about to speak, she spotted Aunt Yue storming in from outside, two attendants hot on her heels.

In a fleeting moment of distraction, she was unable to restrain the male player. Witnessing Aunt Yue also advancing toward the conductor's office, Eric hastily barred her path.

"It's you!" Aunt Yue fixed her with a wary glare.

"I have the ticket now," Eric said, revealing hers to dispel suspicion. "Come with me; let's exchange tickets here." As she assisted with placing the corpse down, she gripped Aunt Yue's hand and led her toward the old NPC's table.

"I—" Aunt Yue remained guarded but visibly eased upon seeing the ticket in Eric's grasp. Eric set down the corpse firmly; Aunt Yue's confusion surfaced once more: "Exchange here?"

An attendant flung open the door.

Defying all reason, the corpse was gradually swallowed inch by inch by the wicker basket.

The attendant quickened his pace, exclaiming, "The fare evader has been caught!"

The old NPC produced a ticket and handed it swiftly to Aunt Yue.

"Caught!"

"We have tickets; we are not evaders!" Eric shouted, thrusting her own ticket forward, then clasped Aunt Yue's hand, extending it—

The attendants abruptly halted, their faces frozen in grimacing disbelief.

Their eyes darted back and forth between the two tickets before they turned and lifted the corpse they had tossed on the floor. One attendant, unable to locate the severed head anywhere, followed the blood trail to the old NPC's table.

"You've taken our head."

The wicker basket trembled; the sound of chewing persisted. The old NPC fixed them with a malevolent glare. "Did you truly see? With which eye did you see it?!"

His fingers twitched; a faint thread shimmered at their tips before vanishing into the basket. The taut line sparked, and Eric perceived an indescribable menace emanating from within the wicker enclosure.

The attendants retreated step by step, their faces pale with unease.

"You…" one swallowed hard, abandoning any further pursuit of the missing head. Together with another attendant, they hoisted the two headless corpses.

Eric witnessed their instantaneous vanishing, the bloodstains on the floor vanishing without a trace, finally allowing her a breath of relief.

Aunt Yue exhaled sharply, the peril they had just endured weighing heavily upon her.

A few meters away, in the conductor's office, the male player leaned against the desk, impatience etched on his face. "Is your machine this outdated? It's been nearly ten minutes to issue a ticket. Are you done yet?" Glancing at the time, with the ticket inspection imminent, he urged once more, "Hurry up."

Unexpectedly, the conductor lifted his head; the warm, welcoming smile vanished, replaced by a grim, wrathful scowl.

A chill tightened Eric's senses as he straightened abruptly.

The conductor's visage twisted into a terrifying snarl: "You're a fare evader! No mercy for fare evaders!"

The male player warily purchased a healing pack first, toes poised to flee. "I'm not! I lost my ticket, I'm buying a new one! Didn't I give you the treasure? Don't swallow the treasure and then deny it!"

"Your ID number is forged. You do not belong here, stowaway," the conductor licked his lips, eyes gleaming with malice. "Fare evaders will not go unpunished."

The player bolted, but the conductor's tongue lengthened and thickened at lightning speed, whipping out to ensnare him in an instant.

"Ah!"

A piercing scream rent the air, causing Aunt Yue to shudder.

"That sound…"

Eric hurried toward the conductor's office and bore witness to the male player's body being devoured by the conductor, who stood with his back to her.

Her pupils dilated as she staggered backward, swiftly retreating. Aunt Yue, seeing this, hurriedly followed suit.

The conductor let out a satisfied belch and leisurely reclined in his chair, eyes greedily fixed on the screen before him.

The display showed the ticketing interface, dominated by a glaring red error message:

[This ID number does not exist]

"What on earth is going on!"

Huddled within the restroom, Aunt Yue was bewildered. Eric offered a succinct analysis, leaving Aunt Yue aghast: "I didn't realize at all! It's terrifying. No wonder I so effortlessly gathered clues from the attendants—it was a ruse, a false lead! We walked into a trap, unwittingly doomed ourselves! The announcement about ticket inspections was yet another layer of deception, forcing us treasure holders to make critical errors within the tense ten-minute countdown, chasing the wrong target—not just the wrong person, but the wrong ghost!"

"That must be it."

"You must let me thank you—dinner's on me when we get out."

Eric shook her head. "No need, it was nothing but a small favor."

"It's a must." Aunt Yue grasped her hand firmly.

The specter of death still loomed overhead. Though they possessed the tickets, that elderly NPC was clearly no ordinary figure—the sporadic cries from outside revealed his murderous intent remained unabated.

Better to speak little and stay vigilant.

As the ten-minute mark struck, attendants began methodically inspecting each car.

During the process, Eric caught the sound of running footsteps—likely another player.

Soon after, a knock sounded at the restroom door. Steeling her nerves, Eric opened it and presented her ticket.

The attendants expressed no objection to their sharing the confined space, inspected the tickets, then allowed them passage.

The door clicked shut once more.

Thus, Eric and Aunt Yue remained concealed in the restroom until the train pulled into the station.

Stepping onto the platform, Eric spotted the glowing portal not far off. Aunt Yue exited first; Eric lingered behind, watching passengers disembark with laughter and chatter, as though the horrors aboard the train were already forgotten.

After a brief wait, Eric saw the old NPC emerge, carrying the wicker basket upon his back and leaning on his cane as he slowly disembarked. She observed his figure vanish into the fog enshrouding the gate.

Just before the mist swallowed him whole, the lid of the wicker basket was jostled open—a puppet doll sprang forth, flipping upright to sit upon the cover. Its agile eyes seemed locked with Eric's.

"Hee hee." It patted its freshly crafted form, beaming joyfully at her.

A chill surged from the soles of Eric's feet to her brow. Blinking, she found both the old NPC and the puppet had vanished.

Pressing her lips into a thin line, Eric stepped into the luminous portal.

[Player Eric has completed the supernatural dungeon: Train of Carnage, earning 44 points.]