On the Rails (2)
There was only one way. Having decided to wait it out for now, Go Cheon-su said to Jang Seo-yeon,
"Jang Seo-yeon, keep driving."
At the same time, he removed his hand from her mouth. Then, to signal that they still needed to stay quiet, he pressed his index finger to his lips once more.
Jang Seo-yeon wore a bewildered expression. It was the look of someone wondering if they could really just sit there piloting the locomotive in a situation like this.
"Drive."
Go Cheon-su pointed at the controls. Jang Seo-yeon glanced nervously at the engine room door, her face full of hesitation, but she sat back down at the controls and scanned ahead.
"Hyung, I—"
As Yang Min-cheol started to step forward, Go Cheon-su waved him off.
"Stay put."
The engine room was cramped enough as it was. They couldn't fight monsters together like they could in open space.
The viewers were split on the matter. Go Cheon-su let out a groan as he stared intently at the engine room door's window.
Whatever the case, Go Cheon-su didn't have many options. 'Drag it all the way to the destination like this, or deal with it here.'
Dragging it along might keep things safe for now. But the question was whether that could last. If Daejeon had defenses against external threats entering the city, this thing clinging on could be seen as a risk—they might get attacked at a checkpoint before even arriving.
'Ah, fuck.'
His mind was tangled up for the first time in a while. Go Cheon-su just kept staring at the engine room door. It wasn't like some brilliant idea would pop into his head just from that, but there wasn't anything else he could do either.
"Ah."
But they said if you wished hard enough, it would come true. The Silent Girl suddenly stirred. She reached out a hand, realized her path was blocked, and turned around. She didn't stop there—she even took a few steps away from the door.
In the midst of it all, a viewer couldn't stay quiet.
New Owner's Mission - Kill the Silent Girl within 5 minutes.
🎁 Reward: Steal the vision of a touched target for 10 minutes (1 use. Activation timing free).
'This guy again.'
The viewer named New Owner was the type who liked pushing the player hard. The reward was tempting, sure. But it wasn't something he needed right now. New Owner had clearly skipped Zen costs by picking a reward that didn't fit the moment perfectly. He'd thrown 20 Zen at a mission once by accident, but that was probably just frustration when Go Cheon-su didn't play along.
In the end, Go Cheon-su decided to pass on this one.
"Hyung-nim, 5 minutes is kinda tight. I could die if it goes wrong."
She wasn't anyone's to steal in the first place. Go Cheon-su sighed.
That was when it happened.
Han Do-choe's Mission - Kill the Silent Girl within 1 hour.
🎁 Reward: 7x voice volume increase for 1 minute (1 use. Activation timing free).
Han Do-choe, who had vanished, returned with her own mission.
"Oh, hyung-nim. You're back?"
Han Do-choe ignored Go Cheon-su and went straight for New Owner. She seemed annoyed at being constantly compared.
Then, the one who was obviously New Owner fired back.
New Owner sounded utterly baffled.
Han Do-choe was getting worked up.
Their exchange was heating up fast. Go Cheon-su glanced awkwardly at the chat.
'What the hell.'
His head already hurt, and now this. Of course, it wasn't unfamiliar—he'd seen it plenty when watching other streamers. Fans clashing over trying to mold the streamer their way. When big payers acted like this, it put the streamer in a tough spot. Hard to pick sides.
'Obviously I'd side with Han Do-choe, but...'
New Owner had helped even with unreasonable demands. He was a whale viewer, after all.
'What to do.'
The answer was already set. Even with sparks flying between them, their missions were the same.
Clunk...
Go Cheon-su carefully cracked open the engine room door and stepped out. The chat went dead silent for a moment, and Jang Seo-yeon and Yang Min-cheol whipped around in shock.
Ignoring them, Go Cheon-su looked ahead.
'As expected.'
The faint creak of the door was easily drowned out by the rumble of the train on the rails. The Silent Girl tilted her head slightly, sensing something, but she didn't clock Go Cheon-su.
So, what now? Go Cheon-su boldly stepped toward the Silent Girl.
Go Cheon-su nearly burst out laughing. He got the sentiment, but he had no intention of stopping.
The chat exploded—from "You're insane!" to "Real man, falling for you."
Go Cheon-su stood right in front of the Silent Girl.
'Whew.'
His heart was pounding like mad. But there was a way to take her out. Getting this close meant half the battle was won.
Go Cheon-su stared at the Silent Girl. Up close, she was terrifying—her face a mangled mess.
'Please, just say goodbye.'
With that, he opened his skill window. There was a skill that deafened a touched target for a total of 1 minute.
Deafness - Target loses hearing for 1 minute upon contact.
He hit [Use], then placed his hand on the Silent Girl's shoulder—the one facing the railing.
Tap.
The moment she flinched and reacted, Go Cheon-su stumbled back in a clatter.
Thud crash!
Sensing human touch, the Silent Girl whipped around, arm raised high. Deaf now, she missed Go Cheon-su's noisy retreat entirely. It was comical, but the outcome wasn't funny.
Clunk!
Her lunge hit the railing. Judging an enemy beside her, she flailed wildly and vaulted over in an instant.
"Whoa."
Go Cheon-su sighed just as the Silent Girl plummeted outside.
"Be more careful."
Peering over the rail, his eyes widened. A few fingers gripped the locomotive ladder.
"Uwaaaah!"
Go Cheon-su bolted back into the engine room and flung open the storage compartment.
"Hey! What the hell!"
Jang Seo-yeon tried to stop him, but he yelled,
"Just a sec! Not trying to kill you, Jang Seo-yeon, so hang on!"
Grabbing a dagger, he rushed to the railing where she'd fallen. Even shredded against the undercarriage, the Silent Girl was clawing her way up the ladder.
"Don't come up!"
Go Cheon-su slashed wildly at her reaching arm.
"I said don't come up!"
She sensed the attacks and climbed faster, but no chance. Go Cheon-su unleashed kicks, slashes—everything he had.
"Uwaaaaa!"
He nearly got grabbed by the wrist or ankle a few times, but retreat wasn't an option now. He'd taunted her plenty. Letting her live meant chaos once she topped out.
Slash! Slash!
Luckily, the world favored the one above in a fight. After hacking at fingers, wrist, and face, Go Cheon-su got his result.
Slip.
The Silent Girl lost her grip on the ladder. She tumbled to the cold rail bed, rolling violently several times. Momentum from sharing the locomotive faded quick, and she shrank into the distance.
Still clutching the dagger, Go Cheon-su exhaled shakily.
"Uwaaaaa! Fuck!"
No—it was a sigh turning into a scream as he collapsed in the corner by the rail.
"Hah... hah..."
Too wiped to reply. As Go Cheon-su caught his breath, a notification popped up.
Reward granted.
Check skill window for details.
The Silent Girl's breathing had definitely stopped.
Reward granted.
Check skill window for details.
The same alert repeated, leaving Go Cheon-su staring blankly at the chat as he said,
"Happy now, hyung-nims? Knocked her out in under 5 minutes—both missions done."
Whatever their beef, he'd taken out the Silent Girl quick and clean. No one left disappointed. Whether awed or stunned, Han Do-choe and New Owner stayed quiet.
"Aigoo, wiped."
Go Cheon-su stood and headed back inside. Yang Min-cheol was first to ask,
"Hyung, you okay?"
"What about me."
"You were screaming and swinging that thing around."
Yang Min-cheol pointed at the dagger. Go Cheon-su glanced down, then handed it over.
"Yeah, you put it away good last time—do it again."
"Hyung, you sure got her for good?"
Yang Min-cheol asked worriedly. Go Cheon-su just nodded. With a relieved sigh, Yang Min-cheol stowed the dagger.
"You..."
Jang Seo-yeon turned to Go Cheon-su, mumbling,
"You're more impressive than I thought."
"What do you mean 'more' impressive."
"Didn't expect you to just go up and hack away. Screaming aside."
Go Cheon-su shut the door and slumped in the corner.
"If it weren't for driving the loco, I'd have had you do it."
"Me?"
"Honestly, you'd handle it better than me."
Even with buffs, Go Cheon-su wasn't at full strength yet. He'd already been overpowered by martial-arts-experienced Jang Seo-yeon.
"As if I'd be better."
Jang Seo-yeon sighed.
"Haven't properly fought those things yet anyway."
"Really."
"Yeah."
It was just experience. That'd come soon enough.
"Stick with me, and I'll teach you right."
"Super reliable."
Her deadpan reply shifted as she dropped key info.
"But you know? Got a radio call while you were out—perfect timing."
"Radio?"
Go Cheon-su tilted his head, and she let out a hollow laugh.
"You screaming your head off—they asked if everything was okay."
"What'd you say? Was it the 7.5 Division?"
"Yeah."
Jang Seo-yeon pointed ahead through the windshield.
"Said they've set up a checkpoint at a small station up ahead. We get off there for inspection—no issues, right?"
"Small station...?"
Suddenly, Go Cheon-su felt deeply uneasy.
"Didn't ask about the mayor?"
"At first they said bring the mayor safe to Daejeon Station. But..."
"But?"
"When I said no mayor, they figured we got attacked—told us to check status at the small station. Hand the loco to a mechanic too."
Go Cheon-su ran a hand through his hair.
"Ha."
"What? Something wrong?"
Looking at innocently asking Jang Seo-yeon, Go Cheon-su sighed.
"Very."