She is not an investigator.

A faint smell of blood began to permeate the carriage, accompanied by indistinct whispers, and the quiet carriage began to become noisy.

The intermittent calls echoed in Igris's ears, making it difficult for her to tell whether someone was actually calling her or if her auditory hallucinations had worsened.

But she didn't try to respond or investigate; she simply took another step and walked forward again.

The sword in her hand flew again, and the black head rolled to the ground, stopping at her feet.

Blood gushed out again, splashing onto her face.

She couldn't help but touch the blood on her cheek, smear it on her fingertips, and gently sniff it.

The stench of blood had vanished, replaced by a sweet, dewy aroma.

Her mouth began to water, and along with an uncontrollable hunger pang in her stomach, a terrifying desire crept into her heart.

“Look, there are so many people sitting here, doing nothing and knowing how to do nothing.”

Strange sounds began to ring in Igris' ears; she could understand them, even though she tried to ignore them.

"There will be no one else here. This is just a dream, a train dream, a dream that no one knows about."

The voice sounded somewhat familiar; Iglesias seemed to have heard it somewhere before, but she had forgotten, or rather, she no longer had the energy to think about such questions.

"Why do you suppress your desires? Why don't you follow your body's instincts? Why... don't you try it?"

Inducement, deception, or trickery.

Like a call that lures one into the abyss, it constantly guides Igris.

She ignored him and stepped forward again, the blade in her hand once more severing the head of another figure.

Blood gushed out and landed on her forehead, sliding down her cheeks.

It's itchy and annoying.

"You're going to kill them anyway, aren't you? Does it matter whether you use the sword in your hand or something else...?"

"..."

“You know, you’ve always known, what you crave isn’t blood at all; that level simply can’t satisfy you.”

"Shut up…"

"Yes, yes! Isn't this a perfect opportunity to devour their flesh and chew their bones? That's what you truly crave!"

"Shut up!"

silence.

There was no sound in the carriage except for her own muttering and occasional shouts.

She took another step and walked towards the next figure sitting in a chair.

Clang—

But the weapon in her hand had already been thrown to the ground.

The Gods' Fool - The Northern Train: Chapter Thirty-Five, She May Be Deeply Trapped

She's always like this, she's always been like this.

They faced countless choices and countless persecutions.

The monsters in the abyss wanted to drag her down, and beings from beyond space and time wanted to tear her body apart.

Time and time again, again and again.

Mutterings and curses swirled in Igris's ears, uttering meaningless words.

Countless beings lurked in the darkness, watching Igris's bewilderment and confusion with mockery, ridiculing her overestimation of her abilities.

Humans are still humans, even if they possess non-human foundations, they are still just humans and can never reach that level.

You can never truly grasp the power and reality of pure things.

Phobias, anxiety, depression, or blood addiction.

Ultimately, it stems from the inherent flaws of humankind and the inherent defects of the human race itself.

That is reason.

That was humanity's only line of defense against madness, but it was incredibly weak and utterly meaningless.

Only by embracing madness can one become truly powerful. If you want to prove that you are not someone's plaything, then you must be prepared to abandon reason and embrace madness.

There is an endless supply of knowledge; as long as you are willing to pay something, you can use it at will.

Choose, Igris.

You need to make a choice once again.

Choose the path you truly want to walk, or ascend to the throne at the summit.

"..."

You are hesitating, you are confused, you don't know which is your true feeling, because there is always another you living in your heart, that powerful, greedy, and bloodthirsty being.

That's the real you, that's everything you truly need. You need nothing but knowledge and power!

"Do not……"

……

"What you said... is wrong."

confused?

"You think you're doing this for my own good..."

Puzzled?

"Do you think I would willingly listen to your seduction?"

She never does.

She just needs time to rest, time to get those things out of her mind.

She never strayed from her path, nor did she ever forget her past.

She is not only Igris, she is also Aaron, the purest human being who carries the hopes of countless people.

Yes… she never doubted her identity.

Even if she possesses superhuman healing abilities, even if she can perform many incredible miracles, even if she can come back to life, even if…

She is a living flame.

"I am not your pawn..."

boom--!

Flames rose up, like her ever-unwavering determination, igniting all the figures in the carriage and dispelling the surrounding darkness.

She took a deep breath, slowly bent down, and picked up the straight sword that had fallen to the ground.

"No matter who you are, no matter what your purpose is."

brush--!

The blade was raised, and with the flames burning, Igris took another step, slowly advancing again and again.

Just as she has done countless times, she treads on flames, burning and destroying evil.

Crimson flames trailed behind her, scorching everything in her path.

Countless charred remains lay on the seats, igniting the entire carriage.

But Igris didn't turn her head; she just kept moving forward resolutely toward the corridor in front of her, toward the last carriage.

Finally, she stopped, looked at the darkness illuminated by the firelight, and raised the sword in her hand.

"...Evil shall be punished by execution."

Oh……

Sure enough, even after so much time has passed.

She still couldn't forget that knight.

"hiss--!"

Clang!

A sharp claw pierced towards Igris's burning body with terrifying speed.

But just before she was hit, her figure vanished into thin air.

That's a mirror image.

That was a bond that belonged only to her, a bond she had once formed with the Mirror Demon.

It is also the most important thing that she can never and will never give up.

Everything that is human.

clang--!

Igris's straight sword struck the hard, iron-like claws with great force, and the strong shockwave made Igris's arm tremble slightly.

Then, a piercing scream rang out again, and the being that had been hiding outside the train instantly tore open the carriage without hesitation.

The enormous body came into view of Igris's heterochromatic blue and yellow eyes. Accompanied by extremely piercing screams and hisses, as well as the sound of metal scraping, its true appearance was finally fully revealed to Igris.

That was a spider.

A gigantic, cast-iron-steel, natural predator.

Its body is formed by the head of a steam train, and the headlights, which seem to symbolize eyes, also emit a deep red light.

The light fell upon Igris, engulfed and chewed by the remaining flames on her body, which in turn gave the flames an unprecedented red hue.

But facing the colossal creature so close at hand, Igris still raised her sword without flinching, and gave a somewhat maniacal smile.

How long has it been since she felt this way?

My body was trembling, and my blood was boiling.

She was craving blood, not the satisfaction of blood flowing down her esophagus.