In my previous life, I’d taken the subway before, but I’d never used it “for free.”

How exactly do free riders get past the turnstiles? It had been over ten years since I last took the subway, so I couldn’t remember.

‘Do we just go through…?’

I looked around for clues, but there were no other free riders in sight. Sofia just stood there, lips sealed, seemingly waiting for us to figure it out ourselves.

“Wangya, this thing is blocking our way!” 

“Yeah.”

How were we supposed to get past this? As I was thinking it over, Levinas approached the turnstile.

“Open, sesame.”

“Sesame?”

“Yep. It’s a magic spell for opening doors! I read it in a fairy tale!”

Despite Levinas’s “spell,” the turnstile didn’t budge. Undeterred, she began observing the people nearby.

Beep beep— A person held a card to the scanner, and the bar moved aside with a soft beep. Watching intently, Levinas imitated the sound.

“Beep beep.”

The cute sound didn’t open the turnstile. Instead, Levinas got down on all fours and began crawling under the bar, inching forward like a turtle.

“Levinas, you can’t do that.”

To stop her, I crouched down to grab her ankle. Just then, someone blocked our way.

“What are you kids doing?”

“Huh?”

Levinas and I looked up from our crawling position to see a woman who looked like a station attendant, giving us a stern look.

“You’re not supposed to crawl on the floor.”

“S-Sorry…”

She had said “you kids,” lumping me in with Levinas. I was just trying to stop her, but it must’ve looked like I was an accomplice. Feeling embarrassed, I hung my head.

“Don’t play around here. There’s a play area over there—want to go there instead?”

I thought we’d get fined for fare evasion, but it seemed she mistook us for kids playing around. I guess Levinas’s actions were forgiven since she was so young.

“Um, actually, we weren’t playing…”

“Oh? Then what?”

“We were told the subway was free, but we don’t know how to use it…”

“Oh… in that case, there’s a gate over there.”

She pointed to a metal gate nearby that could be opened easily. I couldn’t believe we’d been struggling right next to an open gate.

“So we can go through there?”

“Yes, you can. But since you’ve made it this far, why not just go through here?”

“Oh… okay…”

Since we’d already come halfway, I figured we might as well finish crawling through. I kept going, with Levinas following close behind.

“Alright then. And your friends…”

Before she could finish, Saebyeok had already started pushing her head under the turnstile bar. The attendant glanced at Saebyeok crawling on the floor with an exasperated look.

“…There’s a door right there.”

She glanced over at Sofia, who was still on the other side of the gate. Sofia sighed and moved toward the gate.

“Miss Underground Attendant! Where do we catch the subway?”

“The subway platform is one level further down.”

“What…? We have to go even deeper underground?!”

Levinas dashed down the stairs. I thanked the attendant and followed Levinas down to the platform.

When we finally arrived, Levinas pressed her face against the screen doors, peering down at the tracks.

“It’s a railway!”

“It sure is.”

It was my first time seeing tracks in almost ten years. Like Levinas, I found myself pressed up against the screen doors.

‘I never thought I’d be taking a train again.’

Was I finally becoming more like a normal person? My tail wagged from side to side in excitement.

“Attention passengers, the train is arriving. Please step back from the safety line.”

The announcement echoed from speakers overhead. Just as we moved behind the safety line, a loud rumbling filled the air as the train roared past.

For us beastfolk, the noise was overwhelming, causing my ears and tail to stand on end.

“…!”

Levinas and I both covered our ears, and in doing so, lost our balance and fell backward.

“Careful now.”

“Y-Yes…”

Sofia caught me just before I hit the ground. Looking to my side, I saw that Saebyeok had also caught Levinas as she fell.

‘What’s this?’

It was almost as if Levinas and I were acting in perfect sync. Maybe it was a beastfolk instinct kicking in.

“Wangya, that really startled me.”

“Yeah, me too.”

I remained frozen in place, unable to stand up, leaning against Sofia.

‘This is incredible.’

Who knew a simple train ride could be so thrilling? This subway adventure with everyone was far more enjoyable than I’d imagined. It felt like being a kid again, and I didn’t mind it.

—

When I regained my senses, I found myself in a ruined city. Corpses dangled from railings, and black smoke rose from overturned cars.

I’d just been on the subway, so where was this? Bewildered, I began to walk down the street.

‘That…’

At the end of the road, someone was standing there. Relieved to see another person, I started toward him, only to freeze in place.

“Grrrr…”

His rotting skin and bloodshot eyes made it clear he wasn’t human.

“Ah.”

This was dangerous. As I began to back away, trying to escape, I stepped on an empty can with a loud crunch.

“Grrrk!”

Hearing the noise, the figure charged toward me with an inhuman speed.

“Hnng…”

I had to run. But why wasn’t my body moving? Desperately, I bit my lip until it bled, but my body wouldn’t budge.

“Gak!”

The creature loomed over me, opening its mouth wide. Just as its fangs were about to sink into my neck, someone shook my shoulders.

“Ahhhh!”

“…?”

Blinking, I looked around. It took a few seconds to realize I’d been dreaming.

‘Phew.’

Maybe I’d watched too many zombie movies. Of all things, a zombie nightmare… I rubbed my eyes, only to feel something soft pressing against my cheek.

“Wangya, are you awake…?”

The “soft thing” turned out to be Levinas’s cheek. I realized she was carrying me, which was why our cheeks were pressed together.

“Where are we?”

“G-Go… going to the park… Wangya fell asleep on the subway, so I’m carrying you…”

Levinas’s arms shook as she struggled to hold me, her steps faltering as though she might collapse any second.

“If it’s too much, hand him over to me.”

Sofia reached out toward me. Levinas wobbled but turned her back to Sofia.

“N-No way. Wangya is Levinas’s responsibility.”

“You stubborn thing.”

Though her tone was slightly annoyed, Sofia didn’t seem too displeased.

What exactly happened while I was asleep? I looked over at Saebyeok for answers, but as always, she remained silent.

“Levinas, I can walk on my own now.”

“R-Really…?!”

“Yes, you can put me down.”

“O-Okay…!”

Levinas carefully lowered me to the ground, her arms trembling. I could hardly believe she’d carried me all the way here.

“Thank you for carrying me.”

“You’re welcome!”

Was she thrilled by my gratitude? Levinas giggled with delight. I was grateful she’d put in so much effort for me.

—

After sending Levinas and Saebyeok home, Sofia sat with Gyeoul on a bench. She was troubled by the whimpers Gyeoul had let out while sleeping.

“Gyeoul, did you have a scary dream?”

“A dream?”

“Yes. You seemed to be groaning a lot in your sleep.”

“Oh… yeah, I did have a pretty scary dream.”

“A scary dream?”

Just how frightening was it to make her break out in a cold sweat? Sofia looked at Gyeoul with concern.

“It was a dream about being eaten by a monster in a ruined world.”

“…I see.”

“Yes, I got bitten by a zombie.”

Relieved that it was just a dream, Gyeoul felt a wave of comfort. But Sofia began to ponder something more deeply.

‘A zombie…’

Sofia recalled a drawing Gyeoul had made in the past, one where she’d depicted herself quietly hiding from blood-covered people.

‘Could it be…’

What if it wasn’t just a metaphor? What if Gyeoul really came from such a world? Sofia, who understood the concept of “transmigrators,” couldn’t brush this off so easily.

“Gyeoul, have you ever seen a zombie in real life?”

“No, I haven’t seen one in real life.”

“Really?”

If she hadn’t seen one, that was a relief. Sofia let out a sigh of relief.

“But… it felt kind of familiar.”

“Familiar…?”

“Yes. It was like… something I might have actually seen.”

“What do you mean…”

Sofia’s face turned pale. Gyeoul’s words carried an unsettling implication.

“Maybe it’s because the dream felt so real.”

“…I understand. Go inside and rest now.”

“Aren’t you coming, Sofia?”

“I’ll stay out here and get some fresh air for a bit.”

“Okay. I’ll go in first then.”

After Gyeoul entered the guild building, Sofia was left alone, lost in thought.

Maybe Gyeoul really did…

Source: Webnovel.com, updated by NovelKeep