- Slayer Nominees Selection -

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Inside the Hell Train.

Conductor's Office.

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Hwaryun who found the regulars joined with them.

In the Train City, because of Emily creating the new paths that she wasn't able to see, she was defeated by Angel and became a hostage in Rachel's Team. If there was no Emily around, then it wouldn't be hard for her to escape. But the strange item from Workshop was blocking her ability which made her harmless.

Hwaryun followed Rachel and the others to save Hoaqin. When she saw Hoaqin at first, she was surprised at his height that resembled a child. But even though he was small like a child, his cruelness never changed that when Wangnan was about to attack him with the shinsu ball, he nearly cut his whole arm and nearly devoured his soul. If it wasn't for the fact that the two of them were the friends of the two slayer candidates, then there will be no chance for them to survive as they were taken as hostages as well.

Wangnan and Yeon were thrown inside by Khun with the White Heavenly Mirror to save Hwaryun. But now, the three of them were separated. Wangnan and Yeon must be in somewhere else inside the train while she herself met with her slayer candidates again.

But her slayer candidates were too focused with the stranger that they didn't notice her.

"Nice to see you kids" said the man who sat on his chair high above. "Welcome to the Hell Train."

If Charlotte had a flashlight right now, then she would point it to the man high above. She can't see him clearly since the light wasn't enough. But she knew that by his voice that he might be a middle-aged man. She knew that he had red eyes and a mustache.

'Ah....' She began to remember who this man was.

"You've been making quite a fuss outside. You may be the slayer nominees, but it's still too much, don't you agree?"

Since he knew that both Charlotte and Bam were slayer candidates, Khun assumed that he must be someone from FUG.

"You are.....Pedro right?" Charlotte asked and pointed her fan to the conductor. "Ranker Pedro... the follower of Slayer Karaka. It's you right?"

".......That's right" The conductor, Pedro, agreed. His unique red eyes were looking at Charlotte who guessed his identity.

Khun now remembered that Karaka was the one who tried to hurt both Charlotte and Bam in the Workshop Battle.

When Bam glanced to a direction, his golden eyes noticed his friend, "Miss....Hwaryun?"

Hearing the word Hwaryun made Charlotte turned her head around.

"Yo" she responded. 'Now you've just noticed me?'

"Hoaqin, I see....." Pedro was looking at the white haired slayer candidate. "You're smaller than I thought."

"Don't say that I'm small! I will grow soon! And how old are you?"

Charlotte knew that the child form that Hoaqin had now wasn't the real him. His real form would be taller and more attractive. But the problem was that the smaller his body was, his mental would also be more childish and impulsive.

But no matter whether he was small or tall, he wasn't someone who she could look down upon.

'At least....not now....' she thought.

"Anyways, I would like to welcome the three of you to the Hell Train. Seeing three guys who are qualified to be the slayers....this is quite unusual" Pedro said. "Well, although one or two of you will drop out soon. Because only one or the two of you could be the slayer nominees.

Since the situation has become like this....should we begin the game?"

Hoaqin was curious, "What....game?"

"A game that will determine which one between the three of you will be the slayer candidates" Pedro answered.

"You're gonna select one of the three of us as the slayer candidate?! What are you talking about in all sudden?! This is not what you promised!" Hoaqin protested. "You surely said that your purpose was to resurrect me, and that's why this Hell Train is...!"

"Promise? Well.....we never made such a promise. I'm just a fan of the idol singer Yura Ha" Pedro denied Hoaqin's words. "And I'm just using the power as the conductor of the train to help her to perform her final concert. This is all just a crazy act of one ranker. That's all."

"Man....being an idol could give you such an advantage?" Estrella asked while putting both of her hands behind her head. "If I know that things could be that convenient, then I should have be one of them as well."

"You will be kicked out even before audition" Raisin said.

Charlotte personally agreed with Estrella. Turned out, being an idol singer wasn't that bad. Yura Ha earned lots of love from her fans and it made things convenient for her.

"There was no any official plan of anything like resurrecting you or whatsoever" Pedro added again. "So whatever happens in here has nothing to do with me."

"What the....? Don't you have the respect for a senior?" Hoaqin asked.

If something like respect to the senior does exist in this tower, then perhaps things would be convenient for the seniors to trample the juniors using that thing. But if Charlotte wasn't wrong about it, Hoaqin's position used to be same with Karaka. The "respect of the senior" that he meant might be different.

"Hoaqin, we did rule over the train and took off in order to help you resurrect. However, not every FUG member in favor with your resurrection. Elders and slayers on the other side are already giving us pressure. Get it?

So even if we would like to help you out, now is the time where we need a fair process under the name of 'game'. In another words, for us, helping you is one of two options. Along with seeing you in 'split condition', it could be even more beneficial for us to help the slayer candidate with the thorn."

".....Sorry to interrupt, but I and my sister resigned as the nominee and I do not intend to return to the FUG" Bam said to Pedro. "So there's no reason for me to participate in this game."

"....I'd knew that you'll say that but...as long as you are in the possession of the thorn...you hold all of FUG's hope upon your back. If you don't want to be the slayer nominee, then I guess you and your sister could go back to the furnace and melt yourselves down along with the thorn... but I don't think you would have want that, would you?

And keep it in mind that we've captured some guys who wondered around in the train."

Above them, inside the prison or more like cages, they could see their comrades trapped inside there. Even though they couldn't see it, they still could hear their voices.

"If you give up or lose in this game, they will all die" Pedro said again. "Are you now interested in participating?"

Bam glared at him. With his friends taken away as hostages, there was no other choice for him to agree with the game.

"Wait!" Charlotte said and lifted her right hand that was holding her fan. "I need to confirm something."

"What is it, Nox?"

"Earlier, you said that from the three of us, there will only be one slayer candidate right?" Charlotte asked him. "If you are planning to make me fight against my own brother, then you can give up that thought. We are twins, we won't be fighting with each other."

"Then what do you want?" Pedro asked.

"Put the two of us in the same team" Charlotte answered. "It will make the better choice right?"

"....Alright" Pedro agreed. "But with one condition. "

"What is it?" Charlotte curiously asked.

"If you shall lose in this game, then you'll have to swear your loyalty to Hoaqin" Pedro solemnly answered.

His condition made the rest of them surprised.

Being a protective brother, Bam of course refused it. He can't let his sister swore her loyalty over her enemy! It was even worse than having Charlotte calling someone else as "brother"!

Khun didn't understand what on earth FUG was thinking. He knew that FUG had long disliked them and desired to get rid of them as soon as possible. But why would he make this kind of condition? The flame of anger that was raging inside him was no less than Altaira or Bam. He can't accept this.

But the person whom they were worried for was smiling. Though she didn't understand why FUG will make this kind of decision, she knew the outcome of this selection. She wasn't really worried that she will fall on the hands of the Hoaqin and confidently and bravely, she accepted the challenge.

"Alright then!" She said with her friendly smile. "I accept that condition!"

Her answer made the rest of the others shocked.

"What?! Are you losing your mind?" Estelle asked her, while tapping her shoulder. "Why would you accept that challenge?"

"Then what do you expect me to do?" Charlotte tilted her head and turned a bit to look at Estelle. She opened her fan to fan herself and continued, "Do you want me to fight with my own brother? Sorry, but if that's really happen, then I would rather hit myself to wall and end it all for once."

"But you don't have to accept that kind of condition! He just wants to torment you before you die!" Estelle added again.

Her words were the words that the rest wanted to say to her. None of them except her agreed with her decision. But Charlotte held her hand with an assuring smile.

"Rest assured! I know what I'm doing!" Charlotte said. "Just consider this as granting the last wish of a dying man!"

Estelle found it hard to believe that this girl actually knew what she was doing. Charlotte's smile was just like always, appeared to be the smile of an innocent child. Considering that she was a playful person, Estelle thought that she was agreeing with it since she thought that it was fun. In Estelle's eyes, Charlotte didn't seem to know that this fun might cause her death.

She has never seen someone even bolder and daring than her own twin sister. At this moment she was pondering whether it was a good decision to trust her twin sister to Charlotte or not.

When Charlotte said her two last words, her big golden eyes glanced at Pedro coldly. The wish of dying man was none other than the condition that Pedro wanted her to agree on.

Charlotte assumed that there must be a reason for Pedro to make that kind of decision. It might be because he wanted to scare Charlotte and to make her deny his condition, so that she will still ending up fighting against Bam later. It might also because he wanted to toy her before she died. He wanted to humiliate her. But whichever the reason was, Charlotte found it unimportant since the result of this game was clear.

'A dying man?' Khun looked back at Pedro whose expression clearly darkened.

But of course he can't see it clearly. The room was dark enough to hide Pedro's dissatisfaction.

"Very well then. Now.... shall we start the unprecedented slayer nominee selection game?

You have one month of preparation. When the train arrives at the next station, the game will start. The winner will be the slayer nominee.....the losers will all die."

For them to participate in this game, there were three tests that they should do. They were the stages on each floor, monsters that showed up at night and the guardians placed in each rooms.

The fourth stage was the test that they should take for the thirty ninth floor and if they didn't reach that place in one month, then they will be considered giving up and automatically lost the game.

"Alright, I understand" Charlotte said with a smile. "Since I'm looking forward for the game that you will prepare for us, please make it fair and square, alright?"

"......of course" Pedro answered. "May the luck be with you, slayer candidates."