In the terrifying silence that blanketed the madness, the Jester stood grinning wildly and horrifically as he stood over Gehrman's face and spoke toward Ophelia in a mocking tone:
"If you take one more step, I'll turn you into one of those statues."
Gehrman shoved his right hand into the dirt, trembling like a madman, and swung his sword at the Jester's leg. But the Jester leapt high and evaded the strike. He landed some distance away, laughing.
"You bastard, do you want me to rip your cursed head off?" Gehrman growled furiously.
The Jester laughed loudly, twirling his scepter, then spoke in a dark, mocking tone:
"Oh, dear Lundy—oops, I meant dear Gehrman. No need to get so angry. But there's something I must tell you. You have half an hour to solve the riddle and escape from here, or I'll turn you and your sweetheart into statues! Hahahahahaha!"
Gehrman gripped his sword tightly, his eyes glowing with a golden hue. Then he muttered to himself:
'That bastard… he tried to use my real name. Seems he knows a lot about me, and apparently, he knows I'm from the Kingdom of Stoktzom too.'
He then spoke toward the Jester with a sharp tone:
"And what's your damn riddle, clown? Speak, or I'll shove bullets down your throat."
"Oh, calm down, hunter Gehrman. The riddle is right in front of you—'the door.' Try to find the color that isn't poisoned, and you'll escape. You can use anything around you to figure it out. But don't think of destroying the place, or you'll wake up the Train Keeper," the Jester said as he sat on one of the statues and laughed.
"So, you want us to solve your riddle within this time limit, but what happens if we fail?" Ophelia asked the Jester sharply.
"Oh, it seems we have someone who likes to analyze things quietly in the background. Nothing will happen to you… except you'll face the Train Keeper," the Jester said, standing bizarrely atop the pillars, shaking his head like a lunatic in a mocking tone.
Gehrman took one step forward and appeared like lightning beside Ophelia, speaking to her in a low voice:
"Seems like you heard him. We better solve the riddle… We don't know who this Train Keeper is."
Ophelia looked at him and said uneasily:
"That filthy clown… he's hiding something great behind that disgusting laugh. But I agree with you—solving the riddle is our best option."
"Hey, monkey boy." Gehrman shouted toward the Jester.
The Jester looked at him from the column, smiling as he replied with a mocking tone:
"I know what I want to say. Try heading to the door… The half hour starts now. Hahahahahaa!"
They both walked toward the door, and Gehrman stood with his right hand near the colors. The visible colors were: bloody red, deep black, and forbidden violet.
"There's something strange about these colors. It's like they're moving—or have a heartbeat of their own. It feels like they're watching me."
Ophelia looked toward the fountain that held the colors. She placed her index finger and thumb on her chin, speaking quietly while thinking:
"It seems the colors are connected to the fountain… So, we probably need to taste the colors to find which one is safe and which two are poisoned. A silly riddle, but with high risk. Who knows, maybe all the colors are toxic."
"I agree with you. I wouldn't expect anything but filth and deceit from that bastard."
While they were still planning how to solve the riddle, the Jester grinned madly as he stared at Gehrman. What made this Jester terrifying was that his inner thoughts were unclear—or rather, the human mind couldn't comprehend what was going on in that clownish brain.
No one knew what truly moved inside the mind of this insane jester. He simply smiled, blood dripping from his shark-like teeth.
"It seems the time is up, dear hunters! Hahahaa!" the Jester spoke in a mocking, nasty tone—his mouth not even moving.
Both of them looked at him in shock. They had no idea what was happening. Gehrman spoke in a furious tone:
"You son of a bitch! It hasn't even been five minutes!"
"Is this just one of your filthy tricks, or what? We just started, you bastard!" Ophelia shouted, clenching her fists in anger.
"Time here doesn't work like time outside. Half an hour here is about four minutes—or less," the mad Jester replied, shaking his head wildly.
"So, which time do you follow? Here or out there?" Gehrman asked sharply.
The Jester raised both hands and then said indifferently:
"Honestly? I don't care. Hahahahahaha!"
"This clown, the filthy son of a whore, he's forcing us into facing the Train Keeper," Gehrman said to Ophelia cautiously, filled with concern.
"Looks like he planned it from the start… What a manipulative bastard," Ophelia replied, seething with rage.
As they were talking, the Jester pointed toward the black train door and spoke in a ridiculous tone:
"And now, dear audience, you'll witness a beautiful fight between two elite hunters and the foolish Train Keeper!"
They both looked at the door, preparing themselves. The air around them shifted—it became visible from how fast it moved. The air turned black. Rain began to fall in shades of red and black from nowhere.
Even the columns began pulling themselves into the ceiling, and the fountain vanished from the space. Two statues appeared, one to the left and one to the right.
The left statue gestured to the right to stay silent, or he'd cut his head off. The right statue gazed at the door, sword planted firmly on the ground with an aura of power and confidence.
They both stared at this strange, terrifying architectural design—especially the statues, which held a mysterious wisdom.
"Are we in another world?" Gehrman asked with a questioning tone as he looked around.
'How the hell is rain falling like that, without a single hole in the ceiling—or even clouds?' Ophelia extended her hand, letting the rain touch her palm.
As the train door opened, a black fog emerged, swirling and twisting into the form of a monstrous figure laughing with madness. A foot appeared through the dark mist and planted itself firmly on the ground.
The terrifying Train Warden had arrived.
He had no head. Blood poured endlessly from the open stump of his neck, drenching his muscular torso. His six-pack abs were clearly visible—he wore no shirt. Two swords were embedded in his body, one lodged in his chest, the other in his stomach, symmetrically aligned. He wore crimson pants that emitted searing flames, and strapped to his back was an abnormally long sword with a skull on the hilt, laughing maniacally.
"What the hell is this maniac? Who is this damned heretic?" Gehrman said, completely shocked by the terrifying figure standing before him—something that didn't belong in this nightmare to begin with.
His very presence crafted a new nightmare, one that seemed to have come to life.
Ophelia, though clearly afraid, didn't show it. She kept her composure and spoke inwardly:
"I don't even know who this is, but his mere presence is making my sword tremble."
The headless figure calmly placed his hand on his shoulder and spoke in a deep, thunderous voice that seemed to come from nowhere:
"Sleep. Hunger. Terror… I now gaze upon them."
Then he continued in the same mysterious tone:
"Jester, do you want me to kill your guests?"
The Jester laughed maniacally while twirling his scepter, then said:
"Do whatever you want, Secret. They're yours. But try to be gentle with them."
"I shall—"
He didn't finish his sentence before Gehrman lunged at him, aiming to stab him in the stomach. But Secret blocked the sword with his bare hand. Both Gehrman and Ophelia were stunned by his swift, unexpected move.
Without warning, Secret placed his palm on Gehrman's chest and pushed him back with immense force, slamming him against the wall. The whole area shook from the impact.
"Gehrman!! You bastard!" Ophelia yelled as she turned her gaze to Secret.
She leapt from above, firing a barrage of bullets at him. But he deflected them all with only his right hand.
He caught the bullets mid-air, crushed them in his palm, and let the metal shards fall like dust. Shocked by the speed of his hand, Ophelia disappeared and reappeared behind him, trying to slice him in half. But Secret caught her sword mid-swing and swept her legs, causing her to fall. Before she even hit the ground, he struck her with a karate blow that sent her flying into the side of the train with brutal force.
Gehrman rose to his feet, clutching his stomach in pain. He spoke to himself in a calm tone:
"This bastard… he reminds me of Abraham. He's clearly mastered multiple martial arts."
Then he added:
'Even Ophelia couldn't scratch him. What a terrifying warrior. But we must survive—no matter what.'
He jumped into the air and launched his sword like a missile toward Secret. Secret caught it mid-air with horrifying ease and confidence. Suddenly, Gehrman appeared behind him, aiming to pierce his back with his bare hand. But Secret moved in a horrifying, unnatural way—he reappeared behind Gehrman.
"What?! How did he end up behind me?" Gehrman exclaimed, stunned by the nightmarish move.
Secret stabbed Gehrman with his sword, then coldly and grandly spoke:
"That move you just tried… I invented it."
Ophelia reappeared, blood covering her face, fury burning in her eyes. She slashed at him with her sword, determined to cut him in two. But he moved at an extreme speed, appearing above her. He struck her in the back with his foot, sending her crashing into Gehrman.
Both of them hit the ground with a violent impact.
"You use techniques that I created. How do you intend to defeat the creator?"