Intervallo IV: Murder on the WARP Express/Story Episodes

6.5-16: First Class

Speaker		Dialogue
All right, how did this happen?
First, we boarded the WARP train to get to our next destination, P Corp...
Got into our fancy first class flash-freeze hibernation capsules, and…
… we were supposed to arrive at P Corp. after a quick blink of an eye, but…
Location: ???

	Sinner #2 FAUST	Dante, please respond. There's—
The first thing I saw when my vision returned was the perplexed look on Faust, who had entered hibernation at the same time as I did…
… then I realized that we woke up mid-transit on the WARP train…
… which could only mean that we're now stranded in some lost, unknown dimension…?
	Sinner #2 FAUST	Dante, I understand your considerable degree of disorientation, but—
What…
	Manager DANTE	<… What the hell happened?>
First things first…
… let's rewind and return to the very start of this highly unfavorable situation we find ourselves in.
A few days ago…
Location: Aboard Mephistopheles
	Guide Vergilius	Our next destination… is to a WARP train, Dante.
	Manager DANTE	<… What?>
Yep. That's where it all started.
There I was, still perplexed by the incidents at T Corp., with my awful idea of clearing the air by asking Vergilius for our next destination. Not knowing the storm that my innocent question would bring.
	Sinner #3 DON QUIXOTE	V-v-v-v-v-verily, I must have misheard!?
	Guide Vergilius	I'm quite certain you didn't, Don Quixote.
	Guide Vergilius	We are now en route to the T Corp. WARP train station.
	Sinner #3 DON QUIXOTE	That whuh-WARP train station must have some conundrum that must be resolved there, indeed? A-a quest that must be swiftly addressed at the station, yes?
	Sinner #13 GREGOR	Did a Distortion pop up at one of the WARP platforms or something?
	Guide Vergilius	I see that you are now significantly less disinclined to take on some side jobs. But no.
	Guide Vergilius	We are boarding the WARP train to get to P Corp., end of story. There's nothing between the lines, so don't try reading into it.
	LCB Sinners	…….
It was only natural that the Sinners immediately fell into a state of collective dumbfounded shock.
None of the Sinners have any history of working at W Corp., but…
	Manager DANTE	<We're… actually taking that train?>
… through what vague information we could gather from the Identities, we all had some fragmentary knowledge about the terrible secrets of the WARP trains' operations.
I initially considered hiding this information from the rest of the Sinners, but since sharing things with everyone and letting them get their two cents in usually ended up being pretty helpful, I've been sharing more of these as of late.
	Sinner #1 YI SANG	Though I have very dim, if present at all, recollections from the time during which I wear the Identities…
	Sinner #5 MEURSAULT	Mm. It can be determined from the conversational records between the Manager and the Identities that the mechanisms behind WARP trains' operations can be deemed as somewhat bizarre and inefficient.
	Sinner #6 HONG LU	Ohh~ Yeah! It's that 10-second trip that actually takes a long, long time~ Right? And when the train reaches the destination, they just wipe the passengers' memories?
	Sinner #11 SINCLAIR	I-I also heard that the passengers get so weary of boredom that they start literally ripping and tearing into one another…
	Sinner #4 RYŌSHŪ	Sounds like I might finally have a chance to see a masterpiece with my own eyes.
	Manager DANTE	<…….>
Even when the Sinners wear the Identities through my Identity Cards, the Identities' memories or beliefs don't bleed into them once it's over and done with.
I remember when Faust explained that, due to the risks associated with embracing such influences, there was a filtering process to intentionally block them from reaching the Sinners.
That's why the Sinners could use the Identities of some of our worst enemies without getting infected by their philosophies and whatnot…
… but it also meant that they couldn't retain any new information that each Identity had to offer. That's why I keep a record of some things that sound particularly important and sometimes share it with the rest of the Sinners.
	Manager DANTE	<My "voice" doesn't really carry well past the window, so most of our communications are one-sided. But…>
… I had an abundance of W Corp. Identities, so it wasn't difficult to piece together the truth behind the trains.
But… Um…
	Guide Vergilius	…….
Maybe ignorance really is bliss…
	Sinner #2 FAUST	Your collective agitation and possible incompliance have already been anticipated.
	Sinner #3 DON QUIXOTE	Lady Faust?! Then thou hast known this all along?! Wherefore hast thou not deigned to tell me of this?!
	Sinner #2 FAUST	Faust has indeed known this all along, as no knowledge is out of Faust's reach. Naturally, a solution to your dilemma has already been prepared.
	Sinner #8 ISHMAEL	I seriously doubt your solution involves not getting on the train, so what is it?
	Sinner #11 SINCLAIR	The bus… oh, what about this bus? There's no way this thing fits inside a train car!
	Bus Driver Charon	Charon vetoes, too. No one to feed Mephi when Charon's gone.
	Guide Vergilius	… Miss Faust.
	Sinner #2 FAUST	The rearmost tail cars of WARP trains are all freight cars. That is where Mephistopheles will be safely fastened and transported.
	Sinner #2 FAUST	And the LCB will…
	Sinner #2 FAUST	… have the benefit of boarding as first class passengers.
The bus begins to swell with noise again, though in a slightly different air to the alarmed response from earlier.
	Sinner #7 HEATHCLIFF	First class passengers…? What, the seats for those pompous toffs?
	Sinner #7 HEATHCLIFF	Even on normal trains, you've got those sods whose proudest accomplishment in life is planting their arses in first class seats, while others are cramming themselves into freight cars because they haven't the cash for even an economy ticket…
	Sinner #11 SINCLAIR	W-why are you glaring at me like that...? I've never been in one of those first class seats before either...
	Sinner #9 RODION	Isn't the ticket for a single first class seat like, as expensive as three or four months' salary of a first-year Wing employee? Can our budget really handle getting a ticket for us each?
	Sinner #2 FAUST	The company's budget is not a subject that warrants your concern.
	Sinner #13 GREGOR	I heard first class passengers get some cool bonus stuff like… personalized private capsules or something, don't they?
	Sinner #2 FAUST	That is the promotional language, yes. They are flash-freeze hibernation capsules, to be precise.
	Sinner #2 FAUST	They have been designed to easily withstand the "true" amount of time it takes for the WARP train to travel from point A to point B. Passengers will feel as though the trip is over in the blink of an eye.
	Sinner #1 YI SANG	The company's regard for our well-being is unfamiliar yet welcome. To be provided such extravagance merely for our comfort… such occurrence is quite seldom.
	Sinner #9 RODION	Right? I honestly thought they were going to slip just the guide and Charon into the first class seats and ship the rest of us in the economy cars.
	Sinner #12 OUTIS	Hmph, this seems like an unnecessary luxury. They should have saved their budget and given only the Executive Manager and their loyal advisor access to those seats.
	Sinner #8 ISHMAEL	Let's not get ahead of ourselves. We're taking the train to get to our next mission, alright? We have to think about the unique nature of WARP trains and prepare ourselves accordingly.
	Sinner #11 SINCLAIR	Right…?! I know it's first class and all, but WARP trains are just plain creepy. I knew you'd also be worried about—
	Sinner #8 ISHMAEL	For example, economy passengers are going to have a hard time getting into a first class car. If they can even attempt to open it, I mean. I'm pretty sure the door separating the cars is ironclad.
Ishmael, who'd been holding that first class promotional pamphlet in her hands for a while, was chattering on with fire in her eyes.
	Sinner #8 ISHMAEL	We won't even have to lift a finger. We just have to board the train, get into our capsules, shut our eyes, and snooze through the entire ride until all that mess in the other cars blows over. I heard they used to give out commemorative merch back when their finances weren't in the gutter, and—
	Sinner #11 SINCLAIR	Oh…
	Sinner #3 DON QUIXOTE	A true adventure is not without its hardships… Yet… even the most exalted of heroes cannot venture without respite…! And, in very rare occasions, the hero may even deign to select a first class seat to rest in, in place of a quaint inn… Indeed, indeed…
Seems like everyone was at least somewhat interested in the fabled first class seats of WARP trains.
I could sense that there was a growing consensus among the Sinners that even a WARP train trip might be acceptable if it meant that they could ride in the first class seats.
	Sinner #5 MEURSAULT	I will board the train if I must.
	Sinner #4 RYŌSHŪ	Is first class seating mandatory? I prefer the scenic route. Don't want to miss out on all the fun.
Vergilius pretended to not hear Ryōshū's question.
	Guide Vergilius	Very well. Then I assume that we are all in agreement. Let's go.
	Sinner #3 DON QUIXOTE	Uh…
	Sinner #3 DON QUIXOTE	I've a matter of great import to discuss with thee…
	Sinner #7 HEATHCLIFF	What is it? Out with it, lass. Beatin' around the bush ain't like you.
Don Quixote carefully began, almost whispering in a low voice.
	Sinner #3 DON QUIXOTE	That is… in the first class seats…
	Sinner #3 DON QUIXOTE	I have heard tell that we must board with our feet freed from our boots. Doth that claim hold water?
	Sinner #9 RODION	… Oh, come on, now. Where did this nonsense gossip come from this time…?
	Sinner #3 DON QUIXOTE	'Tis no gossip! Forsooth, I have overheard aught from those we have walked past ere today, and…
	Sinner #3 DON QUIXOTE	… When one of them inquired, "You know that you gotta go barefoot in first class, right?" the other responded with: "Of course, man. What am I, stupid?"…
	Sinner #3 DON QUIXOTE	Doth the traveler speak true, Ishmael?
	Sinner #8 ISHMAEL	D-don't ask me, I've never been on one of these either.
	Sinner #8 ISHMAEL	I don't remember seeing… anything… like that on the pamphlet. Gimme a sec…
	Sinner #3 DON QUIXOTE	I mustn't be separated from Rocinante, not even for a twinkle…! I shan't toss Rocinante to the side next to such vulgarities like the ugly shoes of Sir Heathcliff…!
	Sinner #7 HEATHCLIFF	Oi, you little…!
	Sinner #3 DON QUIXOTE	I implore thee, O Illustrious Red Gaze…! Prithee, grant me thy permission and allow me to board with Rocinanteeeehhhhhh…?
	Guide Vergilius	…….
I expected Vergilius to answer with his usual exasperated rebuff. Contrary to my expectations, however, he responded in a somewhat serious tone, if tainted by that familiar annoyance.
	Guide Vergilius	Fine. Keep your… shoes on.

6.5-17: The Northern Fixer

Speaker		Dialogue
Location: T Corp. WARP Train Platform
	Manager DANTE	<This place is huge…>
That was my first impression of the WARP train station.
	Sinner #3 DON QUIXOTE	Ooho! So this is…!!!
Don Quixote shouted vibrantly, immediately recovered from her previous apprehension of the sheer possibility that she might be separated from Rocinante.
	Manager DANTE	<So each Nest has one of these… massive structures in them?>
	Sinner #7 HEATHCLIFF	I've got nothin'. Oi, know anything about what they're asking?
Heathcliff asked, gesturing toward Meursault with his chin.
	Sinner #5 MEURSAULT	…….
	Sinner #5 MEURSAULT	Every WARP train station has been built with a general design philosophy that draws from its respective Nest's architectural idiosyncrasies. It can also be said that many critics in relevant fields praise the WARP train stations as one of the many cultural cornerstones of the City.
… I have no idea when it happened, but Heathcliff's started treating Meursault like a walking encyclopedia from time to time.
	Sinner #3 DON QUIXOTE	Meursault, young Meursault…!
	Sinner #3 DON QUIXOTE	Lo! Is that passenger over yonder one from the west?
	Sinner #5 MEURSAULT	Mm…
	Sinner #5 MEURSAULT	Incorrect. Leather-based clothing and metal armor are predominant fashion trends often visible in the outfits of the western population. While that individual's cloth-based style is something ubiquitously observed throughout the population of north and south, they are largely considered to be an eastern fashion trend, rarely seen among western—
	Sinner #3 DON QUIXOTE	Prithee, slow thyself! For I must make a record of thy lecture…!
	Sinner #3 DON QUIXOTE	What wisdom dost thou have to impart regarding the fashion of the northern region? I have once espied in a magazine that they are garbed in puffy, loose-fitting outfits. Understandably so, given the colder climate of the region!
	Sinner #5 MEURSAULT	An opportunity for a firsthand observation stands before you.
	Sinner #3 DON QUIXOTE	Hm?
	Sinner #3 DON QUIXOTE	UOOOOOOH!!!!!
	??? ???	AAAAAAAH!!!!!
Three seconds of screaming duet; one of utter fascination, the other of unmitigated frustration.
	??? Fixer from the North	What the shit?! You nearly blew out my eardrums!
	Sinner #7 HEATHCLIFF	You're the one to talk…
	??? Fixer from the North	Dude, I've got an audible frequency range expansion implant in my eardrums!!! Holy shit, man…
	??? Fixer from the North	Now, get the hell outta my way! You're blocking the walkway like a ragtag band of hicks who's never even seen a WARP train before.
	??? Fixer from the North	Dammit, I take the train all the way here for an expedition, only to lose my target, and now these assholes are trying to blow out my eardrums. Great, just great. I love this.
	Sinner #9 RODION	G-guys, is it that obvious that we've never been on a WARP train before?
	??? Fixer from the North	And the round trip ticket fee came straight out of my damn pocket!
	Sinner #13 GREGOR	Woah… Watch out, big fella… Someone might get seriously hurt if you keep swinging those four arms around. Each holding a weapon, to boot…
	Sinner #3 DON QUIXOTE	P-prithee, wilt thou stand still for but a moment to satisfy a few inquiries of mine regarding thy outfit? Ooh, yes, yes!! Stand in absolute stillness for five minutes, and I—
	??? Fixer from the North	Seriously?!!!
The Fixer, with a particularly impressive set of prosthetic arms, spent a few minutes venting several of his numerous grievances at us before storming off to a different platform.
	Sinner #3 DON QUIXOTE	Ah, indeed… 'tis grand, this City of sundry odd personalities…
	Sinner #8 ISHMAEL	I'm pretty sure he was thinking the same thing…
	Sinner #11 SINCLAIR	I guess there really are a lot of people in the City with full body prosthetics…
That's when Vergilius slowly walked up to our group.
	Guide Vergilius	Well, then. We'll rendezvous at the destination.
	Sinner #3 DON QUIXOTE	Huh?! Wilt the illustrious Red Gaze not ride alongside us?
	Guide Vergilius	W Corp. policy demands that Fixers bestowed with a Color title must board a train specially prepared for them instead.
	Sinner #9 RODION	Ooh, are you like, riding the "First Class Plus" or something?
	Sinner #8 ISHMAEL	That's a Color Fixer for you, I guess. Special treatment from the Wings no matter where he goes.
	Bus Driver Charon	Charon wants to go back to Mephi. Mephi'll be lonely.
	Guide Vergilius	I’ve told you before, Charon—three separate times, actually, each time I bought you one of those candies—that people aren’t allowed aboard the freight cars.
	Guide Vergilius	Well then, Miss Faust.
	Sinner #2 FAUST	… Yes.
Vergilius, after exchanging a knowing look and a nod with Faust, escorted the particularly peeved Charon away.
	Sinner #2 FAUST	Dante, let us proceed this way.
We followed Faust's guidance to the entrance of our train car.
Location: WARP Train First Class Cabin
	Sinner #13 GREGOR	Damn…
	Sinner #9 RODION	Woah… hey, our colors are starting to come back!
	Sinner #3 DON QUIXOTE	Ooh… oooooh…
	Sinner #9 RODION	Hey~ These must be the fabled complimentary food & drink of the first class seats…! Heck yeah, of course! Quality stuff like these gotta be included with that insane pricing…
The general response to this room was a surprise at the rows upon rows of expensive-looking, sizable capsules.
Flash-freeze hibernation, huh… I guess it literally freezes our bodies in a flash?
	Manager DANTE	<Faust, are these flash-freeze hibernation devices… safe?>
	Sinner #2 FAUST	Please elaborate on your exact definition of "safe".
	Manager DANTE	<These things are supposed to freeze us solid, right…? Can we really come back from something like that?>
	Sinner #2 FAUST	A flash-freeze hibernation device will put you in a temporary state of death caused by a rapid cellular cryopreservation process. However, the rapidity of the process prevents damage to your cells during the phase change. Therefore, in most normal cases, this will not cause any issues.
	Sinner #2 FAUST	Faust is aware that this model has fully resolved cell membrane-breaching issues caused by cryogenic density change or by the formation of sharp ice crystals from frozen water molecules.
	Manager DANTE	<… I missed about half of what you said, but your point is that it's safe, right?>
	Sinner #2 FAUST	Yes, as far as Faust is aware. Even if an issue were to arise during the journey, everyone will be reverted to their original state at the start of the train trip upon arrival. The outcome will be no different from there having been no issue in the first place.
	Sinner #7 HEATHCLIFF	You've got some real talent in dragging out something so simple as "yeah, it's safe" to so many words. Seriously.
	Sinner #2 FAUST	Indeed, as Faust's talents are not limited to a singular field.
	Manager DANTE	<…….>
Okay, but… that still leaves a lot to be worried about… Just as I was wondering, however, I realized that there was something odd about the way she phrased that answer.
	Manager DANTE	<As far as Faust is aware…? Are you saying that it could be wrong?>
	Sinner #2 FAUST	As a general rule, Faust does not err. However, Faust is also not a divine being.
	Sinner #2 FAUST	There still exists in the world information to which Faust is yet to have access. Therefore, while Faust may speak the facts, what is said may not always align with the truth.
	Manager DANTE	<Okay…>
	Sinner #13 GREGOR	They don't call first class "first class" for nothing, I guess… P Corp.'s way up there in the northernmost corner of the City, but this thing'll take us there in the blink of an eye, huh? That's one helluva timesaver.
	Sinner #3 DON QUIXOTE	Hoo-hah! Hoo-hah! Hoo-hah! Prepare thyself, Rocinante!! Thus begins the long jaunt…
	Sinner #9 RODION	Oh, I've been meaning to ask, Don Quixote…
	Sinner #9 RODION	… Do ya ever… y'know… wash those shoes?
	Manager DANTE	<Where'd that come from, Rodya?>
	Sinner #9 RODION	No, I mean, like, think back to when we were inside that Whale.
	Sinner #9 RODION	When that Whale blew up, we got all kinds of its gross, slimy bits on us. They were on our clothes, our shoes, everything!
	Sinner #8 ISHMAEL	… Yeah.
	Sinner #9 RODION	And do you remember how much we had to scrub to get that bloody, fishy, fleshy, gunk out of our clothes…?
	Sinner #8 ISHMAEL	This really isn't something I want to revisit, but… yeah.
	Sinner #9 RODION	Right? And do you also remember how Don Quixote never took her shoes off once during that whole ordeal?!
	Sinner #8 ISHMAEL	… Okay, I guess they do look a bit filthy…
	Sinner #3 DON QUIXOTE	I ask thee, dear compatriots. Hast thou ever witnessed an errant knight who leaves the side of their beloved steed?
	Sinner #13 GREGOR	Can't say I've ever witnessed a "knight" before, though…?
	Sinner #3 DON QUIXOTE	Then thou shalt know… starting now! Behold it, hearken to it, and remember it well!
	Sinner #12 OUTIS	Hmph, they don't spare us even a moment of quiet, do they?
	Sinner #6 HONG LU	Wowzer~ Have you been on one of these before, Outis~?
	Sinner #12 OUTIS	I have been treated to premium, VIP seats of similar grandiosity back when. This is nothing to fuss over.
Outis, who was sitting there and shaking her legs, suddenly asked Faust a question.
	Sinner #12 OUTIS	… Hey. You're confident that no accident's ever occurred on one of these first class cars, yes?
	Sinner #2 FAUST	In order to prevent cases of unnecessary anxiety and misgivings among the Sinners, the history of accidents that has occurred aboard WARP trains will not be shared.
	Sinner #12 OUTIS	… Wait, what do you mea—
BEEP—
	Sinner #8 ISHMAEL	Oh, looks like the train's about to depart.
	W Corp. Train Announcer	This is for WARP train PW-612 bound for P Corp. Boarding period is ending soon.
The Sinners, who were either leisurely enjoying their complimentary snacks or taking a look around the first class car, suddenly became a lot busier.
	Sinner #2 FAUST	Then, let us hurry and enter our capsules before it is too late.
	Manager DANTE	<O-oh no, why isn't this—>
The other Sinners made it into their capsules no problem, but…
… I felt like I was the only one who was fumbling.
	Sinner #2 FAUST	Are you nervous, Dante?
	Manager DANTE	<I think so…>
	W Corp. Train Announcer	Initiating warp in ten minutes.
	Sinner #2 FAUST	Allow me to assist you. Stand as though you are leaning back, and…

Faust expertly guided me into the capsule as though she'd done something like this before, then pressed the button inside the capsule that closed the hatch.
	Sinner #2 FAUST	Do not worry too much.
	Sinner #2 FAUST	… We will meet again in but a moment, Dante.
I thought I heard a brief sigh, but the hatch shut tightly before I could ask her anything…
	W Corp. Train Announcer	Initiating warp. Please confirm that your seatbelts are firmly fastened.
The last thing I saw before my capsule began to fill with gas was Faust climbing into her own capsule opposite of mine.
... Little did I know back then...
... what she really meant by "We will meet again in but a moment."
	Manager DANTE	<…?>

	Sinner #2 FAUST	Dante, you must wake up. Dante—
But one thing I knew for sure was…
	Sinner #2 FAUST	… An unexpected situation has occurred.
… that something had seriously, seriously gone wrong.

6.5-18: Disappearing Passengers

Speaker		Dialogue
Location: WARP Train First Class Cabin
	Manager DANTE	<We're here already…?>
	Manager DANTE	<Wow, I guess that wasn't an exaggeration at all… It all really happened in the blink of an eye.>
As always, Faust was giving me her usual look, which was a complete lack of any emotive expression.
Which, I suppose, is why it didn't immediately register that something had gone awry.
	Sinner #2 FAUST	No, we have not yet arrived at our destination.
	Manager DANTE	<Huh?>
But once I finally came to and had some time to digest that odd reply, I looked up at her face once again...
… and realized that her expression was more antsy than usual by a microscopically minuscule degree.
	Manager DANTE	<So… this train is still "running"?>
	Sinner #2 FAUST	Yes.
	Manager DANTE	<Then… where are we?>
	Sinner #2 FAUST	… I believe we are currently stranded in an unidentified dimension. Coordinates: unknown.
I took a reflexive, deep breath from the sheer horror of the numerous implications stuffed into that dryly delivered sentence.
When that passed, the first thing that struck my mind was that we were about to suffer the very thing that we were so worried about.
	Manager DANTE	<… I see.>
But I soon found myself calming down.
Yeah, this had to be a part of Faust's plan. She probably saw this coming from a mile away.
I'm sure she's about to proudly tell me every little detail of her plan that will help us out of this situation.
	Manager DANTE	<But this is all just a part of the plan, right? Faust?>
	Sinner #2 FAUST	………….
… That was an unusually long silence from Faust.
	Sinner #2 FAUST	You are half correct, yet half incorrect.
With that, Faust left me to flounder in the chaotic stream of vaguely terrifying information as she began stopping by each capsule to wake the Sinners.
	Sinner #13 GREGOR	Ooh, we're here already? Man, it really happened in the blink of an—
	Sinner #2 FAUST	No.
	Sinner #9 RODION	Ooh, what's this? We're here already, for real? It really happened in the blink of an—
	Sinner #2 FAUST	No.
	Sinner #11 SINCLAIR	Whoa, w-we're here already? I guess I really was worrying over nothi—
	Sinner #2 FAUST	No.
	Sinner #1 YI SANG	O—
	Sinner #2 FAUST	No.
	Sinner #1 YI SANG	I have not uttered a single word yet…
There was a brief cheer, a little hurrah about regaining our colors, followed by a flat-toned explanation of our current predicament, which was then followed by a long, loaded silence… … which was a sequence of events I had the pleasure of watching play out on about ten consecutive occasions…
	Sinner #2 FAUST	Dante. I understand your confusion, however… perhaps an elaboration of our present circumstance is necessary.
… And that brings us to the present.
	Sinner #8 ISHMAEL	Let me get this right…
	Sinner #8 ISHMAEL	This train's still running…
	Sinner #7 HEATHCLIFF	And we're drifting through some unknown dimension…?
	Sinner #3 DON QUIXOTE	Ooo… aught about that striketh me as quite dramatic.
	Sinner #13 GREGOR	Most importantly… Are you saying that you already knew that this would happen, Faust?
	Sinner #2 FAUST	… Yes.
	Sinner #8 ISHMAEL	Haaaaah…
	Sinner #13 GREGOR	What… what the hell is wrong with you? Huh?
The Sinners each begin to voice their anger.
Of course, this wasn't the first time Faust and Vergilius intentionally and knowingly omitted certain details about what's to come.
	Sinner #13 GREGOR	Are you actually serious? It's not like we can just retreat or jump out that door when stuff hits the fan!
	Sinner #5 MEURSAULT	Opening the door will result in near-immediate destruction of the physical body.
	Sinner #9 RODION	Hey, Fau... at least tell us you know what to do like you always do. You've got a plan, right?
	Sinner #2 FAUST	…….
	Sinner #9 RODION	… Right?
Faust, whom I had rarely ever seen at a loss for words… was unusually slow to respond.
	Sinner #7 HEATHCLIFF	Uh. What's up with her? Lass looks totally out of it today.
She gives me a sideways glance.
… There must be something she can't discuss in front of the Sinners.
	Manager DANTE	<… Guys, let's pause for a bit.>
She said that something unexpected's happened…
The other Sinners' anger was completely understandable. It also makes sense that this continued lack of communication was harming our trust in Faust.
	Manager DANTE	<Alright. We're going to go over the situation from the start, okay?>
But just letting things play out might really turn everyone against Faust, and for good.
Besides…
	Sinner #2 FAUST	…….
… I doubt Faust woke us up in the middle of the trip just to spite us.
First things first, I gotta get the Sinners to calm down. Then I'll ask Faust to tell us what happened. If there's a problem, we'll figure it out and deal with it as we move along.
	Manager DANTE	<Tell us what's going on, Faust. All of it. And in a way that we can all understand.>
	Manager DANTE	<Let's hear her out first. Is that okay with you guys?>
	Sinner #8 ISHMAEL	… If you say so. I'll go along with it.
	Sinner #7 HEATHCLIFF	… Fine. I suppose losin' my rag rarely ever did anything.
	Sinner #2 FAUST	Thank you. Then…
After some time…
The gist of Faust's explanation was as follows.
The cause of this issue, as always, involved a certain contract and a unilateral decision from the higher-ups of Limbus Company.
W Corp., having caught wind of Limbus Company's recent Distortion contract management promotions...
... decided to contract us to deal with a mysterious, repeated series of incidents suspected to have been caused by a Distortion. After multiple failed attempts to resolve it on their own, of course.
	Sinner #2 FAUST	The Distortions themselves likely did not pose a problem for W Corp. Based on the available information, it can be determined that they would have all been neutralized as soon as the train arrived, and any transformed passengers would have been reverted to their human forms.
	Sinner #2 FAUST	But…
The real issue was that the passengers were disappearing.
	Sinner #3 DON QUIXOTE	Passengers… spirited away?! Alas, such is an impossibility aboard these trains, is it not?
	Sinner #2 FAUST	That is the problem whose precise cause and effect we must determine.
	Manager DANTE	<Did W Corp. share anything to get us started?>
	Sinner #2 FAUST	… That appears to be the most prominent cause of this misunderstanding.
She explained that W Corp. refused to share anything about the trains because they were concerned about disclosing the secrets of their Singularity.
That's probably why they sought out an upstart business like Limbus Company to deal with this, now that I think about it…
We wouldn't even know where to start if we didn't have access to the information that the Identity Cards had to offer.
Faust produced what appeared to be a keycard with the W Corp. logo on it before continuing with her explanations.
	Sinner #2 FAUST	However, we were given this master keycard that can open and close the hibernation capsules at any time.
	Sinner #2 FAUST	We may return to our respective capsules as soon as the contract is fulfilled and safely complete the rest of the journey as we had planned from the beginning.
	Sinner #7 HEATHCLIFF	These bloody Wings… every single one of 'em's been absolutely barmy.
	Sinner #6 HONG LU	Hmm~ I think it's a bit unkind of them to ask us to finish the puzzle without all the important pieces…
	Sinner #6 HONG LU	At least at T Corp., their Chief Executive Director tagged along as our assistant, not to mention kindly explaining so many new things to us.
	Sinner #11 SINCLAIR	I-it sounds like Miss Faust was stuck between a rock and a hard place herself…
Some Sinners grew more receptive after her explanations, albeit with a sigh.
	Sinner #13 GREGOR	… Haah. I would've appreciated it if you at least gave us a hint.
	Sinner #8 ISHMAEL	Yeah. I understand where you're coming from, but it's not like there's someone out there monitoring everything you say and do, right?
	Sinner #2 FAUST	That is…
	Sinner #8 ISHMAEL	Haaah…
… But not everyone was willing to let this go without saying their piece.
	Sinner #2 FAUST	… Next time, I will take your inputs into account.
	Manager DANTE	<…….>
… And that's just about all I can do for her. It's an undeniable fact that her actions have disappointed the Sinners.
This is Faust we're talking about, though. I'm sure she has backup plans of backup plans to get us out of this situation.
	Sinner #12 OUTIS	Hm. So what's next on our agenda?
	Sinner #9 RODION	Yeah~ What's done is done, right? Besides, it's not like we're gotta rot away for thousands of years inside this metal box.
	Sinner #2 FAUST	… That, is something I must first discuss with Dante.
Discuss?
But "discussing" things with other people is very unlike Faust.
	Manager DANTE	<… What are we discussing, Faust?>
	Sinner #2 FAUST	We must converse in a lower volume, Dante.
	Manager DANTE	<Wh… why are we whispering…?>
Her secretive attitude only exacerbated my already-battered sense of safety…
	Sinner #2 FAUST	… My connection to Gesellschaft… I mean, Faust, has been severed.
	Manager DANTE	<… I'm sorry, what?>
	Sinner #2 FAUST	I… cannot access Faust's knowledge at the moment.
And just like that, the ominous feeling I had turned out to be right.

6.5-19: Inaccessible

Pre-battle

Speaker		Dialogue
Location: WARP Train First Class Cabin
	Manager DANTE	<What do you mean you… can't…?>
	Sinner #2 FAUST	I mean it in the most literal sense. My access to Faust's input and information, which has always been readily available… is completely severed.
	Manager DANTE	<… Oh! What if everything about this situation is something you don't have access to yet, like you said last time…?>
	Sinner #2 FAUST	One cannot completely dismiss that possibility, but even that is… uncertain…
Faust's answers have always been perfectly accurate and methodical when sharing information.
I don't think she's ever said a sentence that was this full of speculation and doubt.
	Manager DANTE	<Then "Faust", right now you're...>
	Sinner #2 FAUST	Yes. At this moment, I am… limited to utilizing only the knowledge that is in my possession.
	Manager DANTE	<…!>
	Sinner #2 FAUST	I cannot discern the cause of this disconnection… More than enough precautions have likely been taken in case of interdimensional travel, but perhaps Faust did not take into account an occasion in which we may have to access an unidentified dimension such as this. Or, even if it was taken into account, this particular dimension may not have been subject to cross-observation yet.
	Sinner #2 FAUST	If that is not the case, then I-no, never mind.
	Sinner #2 FAUST	There was nothing that suggested that my connection to Faust would be lost, not even as we boarded the train. To be honest…
	Sinner #2 FAUST	… I find myself in a somewhat perplexed state.
	Manager DANTE	<… Alright, I get it for now.>
Now that changes everything.
I recalled the last thing I saw before the hatch on the capsule closed. When Faust told me not to worry too much.
	Manager DANTE	<Okay. This is just a minor setback. Nothing we can't beat, right? We got this.>
I began to mutter like I was trying to convince myself.
As the manager, my job is to calm everyone down and set their sights on the future. Just as Faust did for me immediately before the hatch closed.
	Manager DANTE	<If you're right about why you were disconnected, then that problem will solve itself once we're off the train…>
	Manager DANTE	<And if we do ever run out of options, I'll just turn the clock and see what happens.>
	Manager DANTE	<Don't stress yourself too much. We still have a lot to work with. Your knowledge, my, um… clock, the Sinners… and…>
I could feel my confidence taking a hit with every word that came out of my metaphorical mouth, but that seemed to be enough for Faust. She nodded.
	Sinner #2 FAUST	… Understood.
	Sinner #2 FAUST	And… to the Sinners…
	Sinner #2 FAUST	… the fact that we are currently confined to a WARP train in operation must be a source of enough stress. It would be best not to share Faust's current state with them and add an unnecessary source of tension.
	Manager DANTE	<Hm…>
	Sinner #7 HEATHCLIFF	What, so wrecking this door ain't gonna do anything? We're all going to bite it once it opens?
	Sinner #8 ISHMAEL	Ugh, how many times do I have to tell you that you're not even strong enough to break this door down!
	Sinner #11 SINCLAIR	A-a billion years in this box… ha… ha ha…
	Manager DANTE	<… Yeah. That might be best.>
	Sinner #13 GREGOR	So? What now? Do we take a searching sweep through each car… or something?
	Sinner #2 FAUST	In the grand scheme of things, yes.
Faust cleared the air with a cough before continuing.
	Sinner #2 FAUST	By A Corp.'s standard time scale, approximately three days have passed since our departure.
	Sinner #2 FAUST	As per the contract between Limbus Company and W Corp., I acquired the master keycard placed inside my capsule and adjusted the hatch settings to open automatically in three days.
	Sinner #13 GREGOR	Three days, huh…
	Sinner #11 SINCLAIR	I feel like I just blinked, and… I guess that's hibernation for you.
	Sinner #2 FAUST	As you were all informed prior to boarding, there is no way for the economy class passengers to enter the first class car; that is why this place has remained untouched.
	Sinner #2 FAUST	However, cross-referencing my own deductions and W Corp.'s rather fragmentary explanations, I can assume that "the situation" is currently under progress in the economy class cars.
	Sinner #7 HEATHCLIFF	The uh… the part where they thrash the shite out of one another, tearin' their limbs off, all that mess?
	Sinner #8 ISHMAEL	No, I doubt that… I don't think it gets that bad in just three days. Besides, that's supposed to be business as usual for W Corp., right? There must be something else that's out of the ordinary that they want us to deal with.
	Sinner #2 FAUST	Precisely. In my opinion, it is—
	Sinner #3 DON QUIXOTE	O-ooh, hold that thought for but a moment!
Just as Faust was about to continue, Don Quixote raised her index finger to her lips and signaled her to be quiet.
	Sinner #3 DON QUIXOTE	Dost… dost thou hear aught as I do?
	Sinner #3 DON QUIXOTE	Scratching… nay, rapping! Forsooth, past this gate must be… hm…
As Don Quixote kept listening with her ear to the door, an odd expression of half-curiosity and half-horror appeared on her face.
	Sinner #3 DON QUIXOTE	It is possible that there must be… hm? Lady Faust?
	Sinner #2 FAUST	…….
After that very distressful noise, everyone simultaneously turned their heads to look at Faust…
… who closed her eyes, briefly in thought.
	Sinner #2 FAUST	Please step aside for a moment, Don Quixote. It would be best if I observed it with my own eyes.
With that, she produced the master keycard from her pocket and approached the panel installed next to the door.
	Sinner #7 HEATHCLIFF	Whoa, hang on a minute. You're going to open the door?
	Sinner #2 FAUST	I intend to follow your usual flavor of suggestion, Heathcliff.
	Sinner #2 FAUST	That there are times in which a physical altercation is preferable to detached ruminations.
	Sinner #7 HEATHCLIFF	H-huh? My suggestion…? Um, well, I ain't going to disagree with you there, but… what's gotten into you, lass?
	Sinner #2 FAUST	After all… how could I deduce anything without seeing it myself?
Bleep—
After a brief, mechanical beep…
	??? ???	KAAAGGHHHH!!!
Hideous creatures suddenly crashed through the open door and charged wildly in our direction.

Post-battle

Speaker		Dialogue
Location: WARP Train Economy Class Cabin
	Sinner #3 DON QUIXOTE	Lady Faust, however similar in appearance they may have been to the passengers…
	Sinner #3 DON QUIXOTE	… Verily, 'tis as though they were in complete want of sense…
	Sinner #8 ISHMAEL	Like people pallidified by the Whale…
Don Quixote, who hesitated until the last second to raise her weapon against them, hung her head mournfully.
Normally…
Faust would have told her more information about those monsters before the fight began.
And she would not have been burdened by the sheer thought of bringing harm to the innocent.
	Sinner #2 FAUST	…….
Faust began searching the area, closely observing various bodies and the general area for information.
	Sinner #1 YI SANG	You appear particularly inquisitive today, Miss Faust.
	Sinner #8 ISHMAEL	Huh, yeah. Aren't you usually the one who has all the answers while we're wracking our brains trying to come up with something?
The Sinners were starting to realize that there was something off about Faust's behavior…
They might even soon realize that there's something wrong with Faust.
	Sinner #2 FAUST	… Don Quixote.
	Sinner #2 FAUST	They are not dead.
	Sinner #3 DON QUIXOTE	… Huhh?
	Sinner #2 FAUST	Observe closer. The parts are all tethered to one another by something, are they not?
	Sinner #3 DON QUIXOTE	Hm…
	Sinner #3 DON QUIXOTE	Ooho!
	Sinner #2 FAUST	It appears that the flow of time has ceased in this space. Therefore, it follows that the… connections, that tether bodies to life and away from death, remain intact.
To my relief…
… Faust managed to correctly figure out what's going on like her usual self, even if it took her slightly longer than it usually does.
	Manager DANTE	<Hey, what'd I say? We got this…!>
	Sinner #9 RODION	Huh? What was that about?
	Manager DANTE	<O-oh, nothing…>
But… I'd forgotten that not all Sinners were content with nodding along to whatever information Faust told us.
	Sinner #1 YI SANG	Hm…
	Sinner #1 YI SANG	The flow of time is ceased aboard a WARP train, is it…?
	Sinner #2 FAUST	…….
Yi Sang grew pensive. Seeing that, Faust's lips parted for a moment before closing shut.
I was starting to get a good read of her expressions. That was an unmistakable look of regret, however short-lived.
	Sinner #1 YI SANG	Howbeit, would it not be more accurate to muse that the flow of time has decelerated to the point where, to an extradimensional observer, it has slowed to a stop? What is your perspective regarding this suggestion?
	Sinner #2 FAUST	Yes. That is a most rational suggestion, Yi Sang.
	Sinner #11 SINCLAIR	Uh… Did Miss Faust just get something wrong?
	Manager DANTE	<W-wow, Yi Sang sure is the expert when it comes to time-related phenomena. Can you summarize it in easier language now that we're broaching the subject?>
	Sinner #1 YI SANG	Ah. Gladly, if you would allow me.
Yi Sang began to elaborate with gentle enthusiasm.
… That was close.
	Sinner #1 YI SANG	To speak in brevity, it can be said that death is not an element aboard this train.
	Sinner #9 RODION	And…? Can ya maybe speak in a little less brevity?
	Sinner #1 YI SANG	Ah, to elaborate…
	Sinner #3 DON QUIXOTE	… Ah, verily! This one's heart beats still!
Don Quixote lowered her head and listened closely to what appeared to be a dismembered torso... and shouts with relief.
	Sinner #1 YI SANG	Their state is akin to an unassembled jigsaw puzzle; merely immobilized and separated.
	Sinner #1 YI SANG	Though their corpus has been sundered, the concept of death is at a state of, for all intents and purposes, eternal delay aboard this train, existence in continuance of moratorium…
	Sinner #1 YI SANG	Forced, they are, to be tethered upon the thinnest yet tenacious thread of life.
	Sinner #3 DON QUIXOTE	Mm… I ill understand what hath been said here, yet they are not dead all the same, hm?
	Sinner #2 FAUST	If their severed parts are all connected… then it can be said that no matter how entangled their bodies become, it is not impossible to eventually gather their parts together to form a single passenger.
	Sinner #2 FAUST	Thus, naturally, we can determine how and why the profession "W Corp. Cleanup Agent" has come to be.
	Sinner #12 OUTIS	I see. Because someone will have to categorize and reconstruct these puzzles once the journey is over.
	Manager DANTE	<It's really baffling to me that a job like that even exists…>
	Sinner #13 GREGOR	Ever seen a Wing that wasn't baffling in every sense of the word?
	Manager DANTE	<Still… I guess that means that, as long as the train arrives at the station, the passengers will all be put back together like nothing happened.>
From what I learned through the W Corp. Identities, their main job was to gather chunks of flesh together to bring them back to their original shapes before they boarded the trains.
It's a lot more visceral when I have to look at it in person…
	Sinner #3 DON QUIXOTE	Phew… that is quite the auspicious news among ill tidings indeed.
It soon clicked in me what Faust was, though with some awkward effort, trying to do as I watched Don Quixote sigh with relief.
Maybe Faust was trying to cheer Don Quixote up in her own way.
Who she was a while ago would not find it even necessary to do something like that…
	Sinner #2 FAUST	Dante.
	Manager DANTE	<Huh? What's up?>
	Sinner #2 FAUST	…….
	Manager DANTE	<Oh. Time to whisper, right?>
	Sinner #2 FAUST	… Indeed. I intend to collect further intelligence.
	Manager DANTE	<Well, if there's anything I can tell you…>
Faust cast a dark gaze toward the chunks of flesh. Her gaze remained fixed upon them as she whispered.
	Sinner #2 FAUST	Are they Distortions, or… Abnormalities?
	Manager DANTE	<Oh… yeah. I actually wanted to ask you about that.>
They weren't humans, that was for sure. From them, I felt the same sensation I felt from monsters.
Something inexplicable. An unclear sensation or an aura.
I've felt this somewhere before, I'm sure of it. But… I couldn't quite pinpoint the source of this sensation.
One thing I do know for sure is that this sensation was not the same feeling I got from Abnormalities, Distortions, or even the Peccatula.
	Manager DANTE	<If I had to lean one way or the other, I'd say they're… closer to Distortions.>
	Manager DANTE	<I'm sorry, I don't think they're either of those.>
	Sinner #2 FAUST	Is it difficult to be certain at the moment?
	Manager DANTE	<Again, I'm not sure how I can explain this, but they're very, very similar to Distortions. But also… different.>
	Manager DANTE	<If you had to ask, then… I'm gonna guess Faust doesn't know?>
	Sinner #2 FAUST	Faust may know… but I, at this moment, have no way of knowing.
	Manager DANTE	<… I feel like I should apologize for that.>
	Sinner #2 FAUST	There is no need, Dante.
	Sinner #2 FAUST	Though the information you have provided me is rather ambiguous, it has helped me deduce something of worth.
	Sinner #2 FAUST	And…
	Sinner #2 FAUST	Collecting intelligence myself and creating deductions based on sparse information is quite…
She paused, holding a bloody, slimy chunk of flesh in her hands.
	Sinner #7 HEATHCLIFF	… Did she just smile to herself with gore in her hands?
	Sinner #4 RYŌSHŪ	Hooh. Finally, the awakening has begun.

6.5-20: MultiCrack Office

Speaker		Dialogue
Location: WARP Train Economy Class Cabin
After a round of intelligence gathering from Faust…
We opened the door to the next cabin, only to be greeted by a loud commotion.
	Sinner #6 HONG LU	It sounds like there are other survivors?
	Sinner #3 DON QUIXOTE	Ah, passengers in danger! Fret not, for I have arrived to— Euagh!

	??? ???	Whoa, whoa! Don't come any closer! Who the hell are you guys?
A four-armed woman suddenly jumped in our path.
	Sinner #2 FAUST	… She appeared without warning.
Faust stumbled a little, inadvertently slapped by the figure's swinging arms as she pushed us away.
	??? ???	Right, like you gave me any warning before you practically kicked that door open.
	Sinner #13 GREGOR	Uh, would you mind moving that huge sword out of our faces? It's a bit threatening.
	??? ???	Threatening? I'm just trying to protect the civilians in this car.
	??? ???	Also, is that a bio-prosthetic? Must be an old timer, huh? I thought those things went out of style forever ago.
	Sinner #13 GREGOR	… Oh, you wanna see what this old timer's got left in him?
	Sinner #3 DON QUIXOTE	Aha… thou art from the north, verily?! Thy garb is that of northerners, no?
	Sinner #7 HEATHCLIFF	This really ain't the time, lass!
	Sinner #7 HEATHCLIFF	Anyways, it looks like we're in the same mess here. Make way for us, yeah?
	??? ???	…….
She seemed to be sizing us up for a moment.
	??? ???	Nah. How do I trust you? Got any proof that you ain't bitten? I'm not gonna let all my effort protecting this place go to waste…
	Sinner #7 HEATHCLIFF	Bitten? The bloody hell are you on about?
	??? ???	Weird, ya look completely lost. If you were in one of the economy cars, I'm sure you've seen—
	??? ???	… Hold on.
	??? ???	Are y'all from the first class car?
	Sinner #8 ISHMAEL	Yeah. We just woke up from our capsules.
	??? ???	Hmm, but none of you look very… I mean, aren't first class seats supposed to be… Well, why didn't you say so from the get-go?
	MultiCrack Office Sasha	Name's Sasha. MultiCrack Office Rep.
With that, she lowered her weapons and allowed us to pass.
	Sinner #2 FAUST	Have you not left this car for the duration of the ride, Sasha?
	MultiCrack Office Sasha	Hm? Uh, no, I haven't…
	MultiCrack Office Sasha	We warped over to T Corp. after picking up one of their contracts, but... jeez, can ya believe that this train broke down? Shit, is it even "broken"?
	MultiCrack Office Sasha	I'm not feeling hungry or sleepy at all. It stinks of some shady bullshit, if ya ask me.
	Sinner #11 SINCLAIR	You can feel all that even in a prosthetic body…?
	MultiCrack Office Sasha	Man, how could I live without my favorite hobby, drifting into a sweet nap after a pleasant meal? So, I made sure to get high-quality parts for 'em so I can still feel 'em all.
	Sinner #2 FAUST	Hasn't something else of note also occurred?
	MultiCrack Office Sasha	You bet your ass did something else of note go down!
	Sinner #12 OUTIS	How distracting… Is it hard for you to speak without being so hyper?
	Sinner #8 ISHMAEL	Or at least stop swinging your arms around like that…
	MultiCrack Office Sasha	Can't do that, friend… I broke all my prosthetic arms in a fight, so I'm calibrating a new set. Gotta keep swinging 'em if I want 'em to sync up with the other parts ASAP.
	MultiCrack Office Sasha	Anyhoo, I dunno what the hell's going on, but people started turnin' into some weird monsters all of a sudden.
	MultiCrack Office Sasha	Haven't a goddamn clue as to who they are… don't seem like they can understand us, either.
	MultiCrack Office Sasha	Good thing my train car didn't have a lot of those monsters. I just chopped what monsters there were to pieces and hauled the civilians to this… vacant car.
	??? Rattled Passenger	Sob…
	??? Unhinged Passenger	3,201 red colors… 3,202 red colors…
	Sinner #2 FAUST	… You have decided to protect them, despite the potential risk that they may transform as well.
	Sinner #3 DON QUIXOTE	But of course! 'Tis an expected duty of any valorous Fixer to stand guard in the front lines against evil to protect the weak!
	MultiCrack Office Sasha	I've been keepin' a close eye on 'em for the last three days, and so far… zero transformations.
	MultiCrack Office Sasha	Go past this car, and you'll see what hell on earth really means. Those monsters are constantly trying to claw their way to the front of the train… so if ya ask me, I'd wager that some shit went down there at one of the train cars in the back, and it spread like wildfire 'till it reached here.
	Sinner #2 FAUST	… I see.
	MultiCrack Office Sasha	And that's all I can tell ya about the situation. So… what's your story? Why'd you rich, first class folks suddenly decide to grace us peasants with your presence?
	MultiCrack Office Sasha	Nothing that's happening here could've made it to your swanky first class cars, so what's your business down here?
	Sinner #2 FAUST	W Corp. has hired us to solve this case. We are…
	Sinner #2 FAUST	Um…
	Sinner #3 DON QUIXOTE	FIXERS!
	Sinner #2 FAUST	Indeed… Fixers.
Faust nodded reluctantly as she affirmed Don Quixote's boisterous declaration.
	MultiCrack Office Sasha	Huh. They got every single one of you a first class ticket? Your Office must be rollin' in the dough.
	MultiCrack Office Sasha	… Wait a goddamn second. So W Corp. already knew that this would happen?
	MultiCrack Office Sasha	But… hm. Are you really contracted to a Wing? Not sure if I trust ya…
	Sinner #2 FAUST	As you must be well aware yourself, contracts and contract fulfillment are of paramount importance for Fixers.
	Sinner #2 FAUST	With that in mind, please recall that W Corp. is one of the most secretive Wings of the City.
	MultiCrack Office Sasha	Ah, a non-disclosure agreement, huh? Makes sense. I wouldn't wanna deal with those Öufi boys either… Anyways, I'm still gonna have to ask for proof that you're actually contracted by W Corp.
	Sinner #2 FAUST	This is the master keycard given to us by W Corp. I believe that it can open most doors aboard this train.
Faust produced a master keycard from her pocket. I guess there isn't any other way for us to prove that we're actually contracted by W Corp….
	MultiCrack Office Sasha	A keycard? So you used this to open the path between the first class and the economy class car… Let's see… W Corp. logo… Woah, nice materials. Looks like you're telling the truth.
	MultiCrack Office Sasha	Alright, I won't pry. Not like there's any cash in it for me either.
	MultiCrack Office Sasha	So… I guess you gotta go all the way down there for your job, huh?
	Sinner #2 FAUST	Yes.
The Fixer finally got out of our way. Then, with one of her free hands, pointed toward the opposite door.
	MultiCrack Office Sasha	Well~ It's your funeral, ladies and gents. Or your victory lap, if you guys are really that good. Lotsa luck to y'all.
	Sinner #3 DON QUIXOTE	I thank thee for thy words of courage, Fixer Sasha!
	Sinner #3 DON QUIXOTE	I shall trust thee with protection of this fortress; prithee, protect the innocents in my stead!
	MultiCrack Office Sasha	…….
	??? Curious Child	Um… big sis, are you a Fixer? Are you going to save us from the monsters in the cars behind us?
	Sinner #3 DON QUIXOTE	Hoh?
Just as we were about to reach the other end of the car, a little passenger pulled on Don Quixote's coattails.
	Sinner #3 DON QUIXOTE	Mhm! Aye, forsooth!
	??? Curious Child	Whoa…! Are you a famous Fixer?
	Sinner #3 DON QUIXOTE	Forsooth once again! Thou mayest know me as a profoundly illustrious Fixer!
	??? Curious Child	Whoaaaa… I-I wanna be a Fixer, too! Just like y—
	??? Rattled Passenger	Don't pester the lady! I'm sorry, she's my daughter, and—
	Sinner #3 DON QUIXOTE	Muahaha, worry thyself not, 'tis no bother! No bother at all~! Thou must dream of becoming a Fixer thyself, little squire~?
	Sinner #2 FAUST	It is fortunate that someone like yourself is aboard the train. Your presence ensured that child's survival.
	MultiCrack Office Sasha	Whatcha talkin' about all of a sudden? C'mon, no need to keep up appearances between people in the same line of work.
	MultiCrack Office Sasha	I'm just here to collect some sweet, sweet emergency contract fees from each and every one of 'em. Are you two on something or what?
	Sinner #2 FAUST	… I see.
	Manager DANTE	<… I don't think Don Quixote needs to hear what she just said.>
	Sinner #8 ISHMAEL	… Didn't know you could be like that, Faust.
	Sinner #2 FAUST	Be like… what?
	Sinner #8 ISHMAEL	You knew there was no way the Fixer was actually there to protect them out of pure goodwill, but you decided to go along with Don Quixote's delusions anyway. Am I right?
	Sinner #2 FAUST	…….
	Sinner #8 ISHMAEL	Good move. I was getting worried about what might happen if she started acting out again.
	Sinner #8 ISHMAEL	You saw the twinkle in her eyes too, right…? Don Quixote's always been energetic, but she's been especially bouncy today.
	Sinner #2 FAUST	Eyes…
Faust strode toward Sasha with a question.
	Sinner #2 FAUST	I have one last thing to inquire.
	MultiCrack Office Sasha	It'll be 30k Ahn per inquiry.
	Sinner #2 FAUST	… That is quite an unsound decision to make for someone who claims to be "in the same line of work" as us.
	Sinner #2 FAUST	Have you considered the possibility that, once our contract is successfully completed, we could include references to a particularly cooperative Associate Office in our report to W Corp.?
	MultiCrack Office Sasha	W-woah… You serious?
	MultiCrack Office Sasha	Well then, let me hear it.
	Sinner #2 FAUST	Were the eyes of the monsters you faced red, by any chance?
Sasha paused her swinging arms for a moment upon hearing that question, appearing to either be in thought or trying to recall something… then answered.
	MultiCrack Office Sasha	… Umm, I dunno? Those monsters were red all over, but… is there something special about their eye color?
	MultiCrack Office Sasha	Well, for one, my prosthetic eye is red. That passenger over there's got red eyes, and… Oh, you there. That lady with a big sword's also got red eyes.
	MultiCrack Office Sasha	What, is someone out there paying cash for info on red eyes or something?
	Sinner #2 FAUST	No, well.
	Sinner #2 FAUST	It was a question of no significance.
Faust nodded lightly in her direction, then opened the door to the next car.
	??? ???	Guuuuhhhh…
	Sinner #4 RYŌSHŪ	Whistle

It was just as we had feared. The scene that appeared before us looked like it came straight out of a painting of hell.

6.5-22: Painting of Hell 2

Post-battle

Speaker		Dialogue
Location: WARP Train Economy Class Cabin
	Sinner #11 SINCLAIR	Whew… Battling in a narrow hallway really takes a lot out of you.
	Sinner #6 HONG LU	It can't be helped~ Fighting in narrow hallways like these is pretty exhausting for people who use long weapons like we do.
These enemies weren't much harder than the ones we'd fought earlier, but it was inevitable that their sheer number would eventually wear the Sinners down.
	Sinner #11 SINCLAIR	Who… what… are these things, Faust…?
	Sinner #2 FAUST	…….
	Sinner #9 RODION	Yeah, I've been wondering that too! Why are ya so tight-lipped all of a sudden?
	Sinner #2 FAUST	Those entities are…
	Sinner #13 GREGOR	Those entities are…?
	Sinner #2 FAUST	… What do you think those entities are?
	Sinner #11 SINCLAIR	Huh?
	Sinner #11 SINCLAIR	D-didn't I just ask you the same question?
	Sinner #11 SINCLAIR	Oh no… Are you…
	Sinner #11 SINCLAIR	… giving us a chance to come up with our own answers first?!
Of course, Faust did not confirm nor deny his question, but Sinclair was perfectly capable of making up his own interpretation of her silence.
	Sinner #11 SINCLAIR	Mm… There were some things I learned after fighting them. I think.
	Sinner #11 SINCLAIR	These monsters aren't… mad at us, nor do they want to attack us because we're an obstacle. That's not why they're attacking us.
	Sinner #3 DON QUIXOTE	Quite, quite! 'Tis apparent that they hunger for aught, charging at anyone and anything in a desperate quest of it!
	Sinner #8 ISHMAEL	Right… That's strange, though. I thought hunger or thirst wasn't a thing aboard these trains.
	Sinner #5 MEURSAULT	It could be determined from the entities' behavior that their attack patterns have no basis in rational thought. The source of this behavior can only be traced back to primal aggressiveness.
	Sinner #12 OUTIS	Hm…
	Sinner #2 FAUST	Yes, and? Was there anything else?
	Sinner #11 SINCLAIR	Anything else…? Uhm… Uh… Oh yeah, I think they all had red eyes…
	Sinner #1 YI SANG	Their bodies wreathed in blankets of red.
	Sinner #4 RYŌSHŪ	I smelled blood, so that's likely what they're made of.
	Sinner #1 YI SANG	Then it must be that the "red" was congealed… nay, crystallized blood.
	Sinner #2 FAUST	Thank you, all. Your insights has all been very helpful.
It was my turn to start whispering.
	Manager DANTE	<Wh… what did you learn from that?>
	Sinner #2 FAUST	We are in luck, Dante.
	Sinner #2 FAUST	I have read upon this subject as a tangent while perusing information regarding our next destination, moments before we boarded the train. And while that will be a useful element in resolving this situation…
	Sinner #2 FAUST	… the Sinners have also been a very good source of intelligence when it came to categorizing and identifying important evidence from the available sea of information. Your advice was correct, Dante.
	Manager DANTE	<You mean… you know what to do to blow this case wide open?!>
	Sinner #2 FAUST	Nothing can be said with absolute certainty at the moment. However, this will be a good place for us to start.
With that, Faust turned around and faced the rest of the Sinners.
	Sinner #2 FAUST	… I will now present before you a solution to this predicament.
	Sinner #9 RODION	Huh? Is there something else we gotta do other than beating the crap outta whatever's in our way?
	Sinner #2 FAUST	That will not change, no. However, what I am about to share will give you a better understanding of the purpose behind W Corp.'s contract, and provide us with the possible means of finding the method by which we may complete it.
	Sinner #2 FAUST	It is very likely that the entity behind the incidents on this train, and by extension, every incident of the same nature that has occurred in previous WARP train trips…
	Sinner #2 FAUST	… is a Bloodfiend.

6.5-23: Bloodfiends

Pre-battle

Speaker		Dialogue
Location: WARP Train Economy Class Cabin
	Manager DANTE	<Wait, a Bloodfiend…?>
What's… a Bloodfiend…?
	Sinner #3 DON QUIXOTE	A Bloodfiend…? What in the name of Wings is that?
	Sinner #13 GREGOR	Huh… You, of all people haven't heard of Bloodfiends? Thought you were our team expert on obscure lore.
	Sinner #3 DON QUIXOTE	Verily, I have neither read nor heard mention of these "Bloodfiends"! Perchance I have let a magazine article slip from my memory?
Don Quixote furrowed her brows, genuinely lost. It was as though the very word sounded alien to her.
	Sinner #11 SINCLAIR	I thought they were just monsters in stories to scare children at night… They're supposed to be afraid of garlic and sunlight, right…?
	Sinner #6 HONG LU	Ooh~ That sounds a bit different from what I've heard. I heard their fear of garlic and sunlight is just a rumor, and what they're really afraid of is water!
	Sinner #2 FAUST	…….
	Sinner #12 OUTIS	I have been briefed on the existence of Bloodfiends in the past, when I served as a commanding officer.
	Sinner #12 OUTIS	And I have seen the… "dregs" that they command.
	Sinner #12 OUTIS	… Though my memory isn't very clear, I am quite certain that these monsters here do not resemble what I've seen.
	Sinner #4 RYŌSHŪ	There was a "Bloodfiend" among the ranks of the Fingers, too. But the things that "Bloodfiend" commanded weren't rubber-glove looking like these.
	Sinner #4 RYŌSHŪ	There's something off about this one. That one didn't spawn these dregs with abandon like this.
	Sinner #4 RYŌSHŪ	But don't you know this already?
	Sinner #2 FAUST	… Yes. I see that some Sinners have encountered Bloodfiends in the past. A long-winded explanation seems unnecessary.
	Sinner #2 FAUST	As many of you have stated thus far, the entities we faced in this train do not appear to be "Bloodfiends".
	Sinner #2 FAUST	In a sense, they are dreg-like beings that have failed to become Kindreds… they are referred to as "Bloodbags" among relevant parties, according to information I am aware of.
	Sinner #4 RYŌSHŪ	Hmph, not a terrible name.
	Manager DANTE	<Why would anyone name someone "Bloodbag"…?>
	Sinner #2 FAUST	As it has been said prior, it is impossible for passengers to disappear aboard WARP trains under normal circumstances.
	Sinner #2 FAUST	Though our reserve of intelligence regarding WARP trains or W Corp. is vast, if incomplete, we could not find any possible exception to the above rule.
	Sinner #2 FAUST	Within that reserve of intelligence, however, I have discovered that inserting a previously unseen variable into the equation allows for the formulation of a new hypothesis.
	Sinner #8 ISHMAEL	Wait, you're saying that these Bloodfiends can completely erase people, or passengers, from existence?
	Sinner #2 FAUST	A more accurate descriptor would be to say that they are either dissolved or vaporized.
	Sinner #8 ISHMAEL	Dissolved…
	Sinner #2 FAUST	No matter the degree of violence the passengers may indulge in, no matter how severe their wounds may be, WARP trains can revert them to their initial states at the beginning of the journey.
	Sinner #2 FAUST	While the word "violence" is a rather large umbrella term, it likely involves activities such as cannibalization.
	Sinner #11 SINCLAIR	Eugh…
	Sinner #2 FAUST	However, as the passengers' collective time itself is in moratorium for the duration of the train's operation, digestion is not a biological process that should be active. In other words, even cannibalized passengers can be reconstructed.
	Sinner #12 OUTIS	Hm. If they are merely stuffed into the digestive tract, then I suppose they could gut the passengers to retrieve the chewed-up chunks and piece them back together via the vein-like things connecting each individual.
	Sinner #2 FAUST	However, such is not true for "Bloodbags". Bloodbags are, by their nature, obsessed with blood; their existence hinges on supplying themselves with the blood of their victims.
	Sinner #2 FAUST	And it is said that they must consume a minuscule amount of blood to maintain their forms.
	Sinner #13 GREGOR	Wait, what? Didn't you just say that digestion's not a thing here?
	Sinner #2 FAUST	If I were to continue my deductions… perhaps "consumption of blood", for Bloodfiends and Bloodbags, is a process fundamentally different from our "consumption of nutrients" for energy.
	Sinner #2 FAUST	To them, blood is a culmination, an entailment of something that forms the self, including but not limited to: emotions, ambitions, wealth, purposes of existence… Then, it must follow that they can spend their blood at will, which is a process isolated from other biological processes such as digestion.
	Sinner #7 HEATHCLIFF	Whu… uh. I ain't following even half of that.
	Sinner #1 YI SANG	… You exist in moratoria of time at the present moment, Heathcliff; yet your emotions still persist, do they not? Anger, sorrow, and joy… they continue to spark within you.
	Sinner #7 HEATHCLIFF	Huh? Well, I suppose they are.
	Sinner #1 YI SANG	Though we cannot tell whether they are in a state of alteration, or whether they remain ensnared in the wheel of creation and destruction, it can be said that emotions, once passed, exist not in continuation.
	Sinner #1 YI SANG	The passengers' will to live, the worth of this very existence in which they thrive—does it not all gently atrophy into nonexistence even amidst the "ceased" time? Miss Faust seeks to illustrate the similarity between how emotions are to ourselves and how blood is to Bloodfiends.
	Sinner #13 GREGOR	Gotcha… so that's why she said their blood is "vaporized", huh?
	Sinner #8 ISHMAEL	If that's the case, then the very blood that's supposed to bind these chunks of flesh together will also evaporate, which means that they can't be pieced back together.
	Sinner #5 MEURSAULT	There is no incongruence in that logic.
… Everyone fell silent for a moment.
That was way too much information to process at once. We didn't even know what to make of them, either.
	Sinner #1 YI SANG	I would like to ask a few questions, if you would permit me.
Yi Sang was the first to break the silence.
	Sinner #1 YI SANG	Could it be said that Bloodbags are direct creations of Bloodfiends? If such is the case, then by which method do they—
	Sinner #2 FAUST	… That information is inaccessible at the moment.
Faust replies, avoiding Yi Sang's gaze.
… There isn't anything I can do about this. The Sinners will only get more stressed if they find out what's going on with Faust, and that's something we both want to avoid.
	Sinner #1 YI SANG	Inaccessible… Ah, indeed. Now I recall what you have said in the past.
	Sinner #2 FAUST	This is only a speculation, however… I assume that a form of direct physical contact is needed to turn an individual into a Bloodbag. If such were not the case, then we, who are likely the greatest obstacles to this entity's goal at the moment, would have been the first ones to be turned.
	Sinner #1 YI SANG	Mm, indeed.
	Sinner #3 DON QUIXOTE	In that case! That villain of a Bloodfiend must be hiding out somewhere aboard this train!
	Sinner #2 FAUST	Indeed. If we are to believe the words of the Fixer from earlier, then there is a high likelihood that the horde is advancing in this direction from the back of the train…
	Sinner #2 FAUST	In other words, continuing down the train cars will lead us straight to the Bloodfiend.
	Sinner #3 DON QUIXOTE	Very well! I shan't forsake this opportunity to bring peace to the souls of the innocent passengers who have perished at the villain's hands!
	Sinner #2 FAUST	… Dante.
It seemed that Don Quixote was now invigorated, while the other Sinners also appeared rather satisfied now that we had a clearer sight of our goal. Faust, who stood amidst them, nodded in my direction.
	Manager DANTE	<… Well, then. Let's go.>
We're making the best of what's available to us at the moment.
Let's move forward… for now.

6.5-24: The Cleanup Agent

Post-battle

Speaker		Dialogue
Location: WARP Train Economy Class Cabin
	Sinner #3 DON QUIXOTE	M-Manager Esquire, halt! Behold this poor fellow, he lives still!
Don Quixote, her round eyes wide open, began sprinting somewhere.

	W Corp. Cleanup Agent	N-no, stay away from me, you monsters…!
	Sinner #13 GREGOR	H-hey, man. We're not those… monsters. You alright?
	W Corp. Cleanup Agent	… Huh?!
	W Corp. Cleanup Agent	That arm… Y-you're starting to mutate too, aren't you…? You must be turning into some bug-like monste— Agh.
	Sinner #13 GREGOR	What? No, this is…
Gregor stumbled for words, scoffed, then cast his gaze toward the floor in disbelief.
	Sinner #13 GREGOR	Yeah, well… no surprise there, I guess. I suppose there's no way to tell right away whether this arm's a monster, a prosthetic, or whatnot.
	Sinner #5 MEURSAULT	It is possible that you are mistaken due to his bio-prosthetic being of an older, outdated make that is now rarely seen in the City.
	W Corp. Cleanup Agent	Ah, a prosthetic…
	W Corp. Cleanup Agent	That's a relief. I thought those crazy bastards were trying to break in again. As you can see, my legs are messed up… I had no choice but to hide in here…
	Sinner #12 OUTIS	So what are the W Corp. employees doing aboard this train?
	Manager DANTE	<Huh, you're right… From what we found out about the WARP trains through the Identities, I can't imagine why any of them would ever willingly board this train…>
	W Corp. Cleanup Agent	You're the contract Fixers, right…? We were ordered to assist you with your contract.
	W Corp. Cleanup Agent	… I said "we," but… I'm the only one left. Every single one of my colleagues suddenly began losing their minds in that car over there, and…
	Sinner #3 DON QUIXOTE	This cannot be… Faust! Is there truly no way to cure the Bloodbags?
	Sinner #2 FAUST	My apologies. The access to that information is prohibited at this moment as well.
Though her voice and expression were both as serene as always, there was something gloomy about the way she said it.
	Sinner #2 FAUST	… I may have been too reliant on Faust. In too many places.
Faust muttered in a barely audible volume.
… I don't know what I can do to help the Sinners in a situation like this, either.
I'd also grown too used to Faust's omniscience because I could always trust it to be there for me. I was starting to realize that I don't have the means to dig myself out of a hole like this…
… No, maybe I was too reliant on the Sinners as a whole.
If… when the time comes for them to depend on me, when they can no longer stand on their own, can I really manage them? Lead them to the right choices?
Doubt, colored with fear, begins to rise like an ominous plume of smoke.
	W Corp. Cleanup Agent	Well… What can I do, right? Agh…

The agent struggled to some corner of the room with his wounded leg, and pulled on a lever…
	Sinner #4 RYŌSHŪ	They made good use of this space.
… and the wall behind what had initially appeared to be a folding chair for employees spun open.
	Sinner #3 DON QUIXOTE	Ooh, what in the name of Wings is this?! Perchance, hast thou hidden here a weapon most powerful, a weapon most afeared by the Bloodfiends…?!
	Sinner #12 OUTIS	That holds some resemblance to a capsule we saw on the first class car, but why would that thing be here…?
The Cleanup Agent slumped into the pod that appeared in the wall.
	W Corp. Cleanup Agent	Phew… finally.
	Sinner #3 DON QUIXOTE	Hm? What is it that thou seekest to do?
	W Corp. Cleanup Agent	W Corp. prepared a small hibernation pod for employees in case of these emergencies.
	Sinner #3 DON QUIXOTE	Verily! Then… huh?
	W Corp. Cleanup Agent	Good luck… with the rest of the mission…
With that, he settled into the capsule, and shut the hatch behind him.
When the door covering the pod closed, only the folding chair and a wall covered with viscera remained.
	Manager DANTE	<He's gone…>
	Sinner #9 RODION	There he goes…
	Sinner #2 FAUST	He has departed the scene.
We blankly stared at the wall the Agent disappeared into.
Well, then. I guess we gotta…
	Manager DANTE	<… Let's move on to the next car.>
… keep on keeping on.

6.5-27: Prosthetic Fixers

Post-battle

Speaker		Dialogue
Location: WARP Train Economy Class Cabin
Something caught my attention from the corner of my eye after another round of brutal combat.

	Sinner #13 GREGOR	Huhh…? What's this now?
We were on the final car adjacent to the freight car when we discovered that odd box with the T Corp. logo on it.
	Sinner #3 DON QUIXOTE	Ah, 'tis the emblem of T Corp.!
	Sinner #1 YI SANG	It appears that the wall covering it was broken in the fierceness of our battle.
	Sinner #9 RODION	Didn't that Chief Executive guy… Herbert, right? Didn't he offhandedly mention something about partnering with other Wings?
	Sinner #9 RODION	I guess they were in cahoots with W Corp. too…
	Sinner #1 YI SANG	Such collaborations are not limited to T Corp.; it is oft the case that a Wing may work with another.
	Sinner #1 YI SANG	It is only on rare occasions that they urgently request the assistance of less significant, lesser-known corporations such as our own Limbus Company… Their choice appears to be quite irregular.
	Sinner #9 RODION	Sounds like W Corp.'s heydays are long behind them.
	Sinner #9 RODION	Just like this wall that's falling apart, revealing what's behind…
	Sinner #9 RODION	… Oh! Speaking of falling apart, this room sure got messed up, huh?
It was difficult for me to ignore how Rodya hurriedly swerved to a different subject as though she'd made a mistake. Even the tone of her voice shifted like she was catching herself.
	Sinner #5 MEURSAULT	The various destroyed prosthetic parts covered in human remains indicate that this train car was boarded by several prosthetic-equipped Fixers.
… I can't think about that right now. Let's first deal with the task at hand.
	Sinner #8 ISHMAEL	Maybe these people are from the same Office as that guy we met at the platform. Remember? He said he'd warped over to T Corp. on an expedition.
	Sinner #8 ISHMAEL	Look, it's almost like they're all wearing standardized sets of prosthetics. Same make, same model, everything.
	Sinner #3 DON QUIXOTE	Mm… I believe I have read articles stating that certain Offices do exclusively hire Fixers with prosthetics.
	Sinner #11 SINCLAIR	Hm…? Wait, he's…
We were walking through the bloodied train car when we suddenly heard Sinclair's voice crack as though he saw something awful.

	Sinner #3 DON QUIXOTE	Fie…! He is the one we encountered at the platform…!
	Sinner #12 OUTIS	This is the Fixer who suddenly started venting at us.
	Sinner #13 GREGOR	Yeah, and he said something about going to T Corp. on an expedition and failing… They brought a whole train car full of Fixers for this contract? I guess he wasn't exaggerating when he called it an expedition.
	Sinner #3 DON QUIXOTE	There are over a dozen broken arms strewn about… they must have fought valiantly by replacing their broken arms with backup arms, perchance?
	Manager DANTE	<Makes sense… That would explain all those broken prosthetic arms and legs in this car.>
	Sinner #12 OUTIS	Executive Manager, This is likely an aftermath of a battle between Fixers and Bloodbags.
	Sinner #12 OUTIS	There were many similar cases during the war. Those using prosthetics would simply let their bodies be destroyed in battle because they considered them to be disposable as long as their wallets would permit.
	Sinner #12 OUTIS	Of course, the blatant lack of self-preservation often sent them to early graves.
	Manager DANTE	<Hm, maybe so…>
	Sinner #2 FAUST	I see. There are multiple possible interpretations depending on one's perspective, despite the fact that there is but a single scene. I will remember both of your inputs.
	Sinner #12 OUTIS	Mm, that's a good attitude. Employees with attitude like yours would often make it to the end of the war.
	Sinner #2 FAUST	Yes, well. Good for them.
Faust answered Outis in an uncharacteristically snappy manner. Signs of fatigue were creeping into her pensive expression.
	Manager DANTE	<You alright, Faust…?>
It was rare to see any actual expression from her… I was starting to get worried.
	Sinner #2 FAUST	I am physically unharmed, but… Hm. Yes, I am alright.
	Sinner #2 FAUST	However, I do not enjoy this circumstance which we find ourselves in. It is as though I am casting nets to nowhere, lost and isolated in a blind sea.
	Sinner #2 FAUST	… Normally, deductions such as these would have been completed within moments after establishing a few basic cross-references with the information I accessed.
Her voice was such a whisper for the second part of her sentence that even I could barely hear what she was saying.
	Sinner #8 ISHMAEL	Ah, I know what you mean.
	Sinner #8 ISHMAEL	Feeling like you're completely lost, obsessively casting net after net over the black, rippleless Lake in desperate hopes that one of them might pull in something we could eat.
	Sinner #8 ISHMAEL	No way to tell where we are, no way to tell if there's even anything to eat under that glassy water surface… Grasping at the straws, you know?
	Sinner #1 YI SANG	This sense I find myself mired in is not unlike your own; it is like lying my back over an unseen grave, for the reflection of radiance upon my eyes and the sanguine scent hanging from the tip of my olfactory sensors tells me naught of the forging path.
It seemed that Ishmael and Yi Sang picked up on the first part of her sentence, however, as they walked up to her and shared a few words of consolation.
	Sinner #8 ISHMAEL	By the way… I don't ever recall you talking like that, Faust.
	Sinner #8 ISHMAEL	I don't know what it is, but I feel like there's… something different about you today?
	Sinner #2 FAUST	That is…
	Sinner #8 ISHMAEL	Oh, I mean, I don't hate it. I'm actually glad to learn that you had a softer side.
	Sinner #1 YI SANG	This unseen side of yours… it is unfamiliar, yet quite fresh.
	Sinner #2 FAUST	… Is that so.
Faust's reply was curt. She closed her eyes.
	Sinner #5 MEURSAULT	As per the information provided by the pamphlet at the platform, it is likely that this train is composed of twelve passenger cars and one freight car.
	Sinner #5 MEURSAULT	Because we are on the eleventh car at the moment, that leaves a single car between us and the freight car in which Mephistopheles is secured.
	Manager DANTE	<Which means…>
	Sinner #5 MEURSAULT	Which means that there is a high likelihood that we will soon encounter the Bloodfiend responsible for the creation of the Bloodbags aboard this train.
Just beyond that door…
	Sinner #7 HEATHCLIFF	Well, how impressive could the leader of this sort of cannon fodder be?
	Sinner #5 MEURSAULT	A different, more accurate interpretation would be to say that a being capable of commanding a force as large as the Bloodbags we have defeated should be considered a high-risk entity.
	Sinner #2 FAUST	Although this is not common knowledge, there is a subcategory of Fixers called Bloodfiend Hunters who specialize in… yes, hunting Bloodfiends.
	Sinner #2 FAUST	Assuming that information is true, it can be inferred that Bloodfiends are difficult foes that require a certain expertise to defeat.
	Sinner #6 HONG LU	Now that I'm thinking about it… if Bloodbags are like mindless thralls to Bloodfiends, then they're kind of like an army, right?
	Sinner #12 OUTIS	A being of power who can create a force of their own without concern for lowered morale or desertion… Wartime or not, they will always make for formidable foes.
The Sinners each exchange various opinions with one another. Possible strategies, estimations of the Bloodfiend's strength…
And all of a sudden…
	Sinner #3 DON QUIXOTE	Fie on this indecisive idleness!! Our quest is to defeat the villain who hath brought such pain and misery upon this train, is it not?! It may be vaporizing the lifeblood of the innocent as we speak!
	Sinner #3 DON QUIXOTE	Mighty or feeble, I care not! I swear upon mine honor that I shall smite this foe and let my hand of justice be the judge of their fate! Let us hasten, now!
Don Quixote's sudden outburst immediately put a stop to the chatter.
	Manager DANTE	<… She's not wrong. Besides, dealing with the Bloodfiend is the key to completing our contract.>
With that, I opened the door leading to the last car of this train.

6.5-28: The One Who Lords

Pre-battle

Speaker		Dialogue
Location: WARP Train Economy Class Cabin
	Manager DANTE	<This room…>

	??? ???	What… is with that look on thy faces?
	??? ???	Thou standest in the audience of the Prince. Where are thy smiles?
	Sinner #2 FAUST	He… must be the Bloodfiend who caused this outbreak. He is our target.
	??? ???	Fall to thy knees and grovel before royalty!
	Sinner #13 GREGOR	… Who the hell are you to make those demands?
	??? ???	I shall impart this upon thee only once, so listen well.
	Bloodfiend Cassetti	Thou mayest address me as Prince Cassetti, Sixth Kindred in refuge from his Family, and the rightful prince who shall reign over thee!
	Sinner #3 DON QUIXOTE	Art thou the villain… who hath brought such destruction and massacre upon this vessel?
	Bloodfiend Cassetti	Thou art a chatty one, so rudely before your Prince. Yet, this welcome satiation has put me in quite the generous mood.
	Bloodfiend Cassetti	As thou must have seen on thy journey here… this place is a hall of banquet for a feast most majestic.
	Bloodfiend Cassetti	No matter how many Bloodbags I create, no matter how many of them I devour… humans just won't stop coming! I am only enjoying what cast themselves into my maw!
	Sinner #1 YI SANG	… He dons a mask for the purpose of merrymaking.
	Sinner #12 OUTIS	If we're really going to exchange pleasantries, why don't you take that mask off? Or are you unfamiliar with the basic etiquette?
	Bloodfiend Cassetti	Oh, this… this mask!
	Bloodfiend Cassetti	Won't come off. Can't take it off. Shouldn't take it off! There's no Prince without the mask!
	Bloodfiend Cassetti	We're so, so ugly behind the mask; so we all decided to hide how repulsive we've become. But once I've drunk your blood full, then it'll all go back to how it used to be. Only then can I unmask myself…
	Sinner #4 RYŌSHŪ	Who stitched that mask to your face? Not a half-bad job.
	Bloodfiend Cassetti	Of course it's excellent! Ha ha! Because this mask was crafted by none other than the great and the eminent Barber, whose name I dare not even speak! But… but it hurts so much…!
	Bloodfiend Cassetti	No, no! I'm smiling! Look, look how hard I'm smiling and laughing! HAHAHA! HA! HAAA… YES, I AM THE PRINCE, THAT'S WHAT I AM!
	Sinner #7 HEATHCLIFF	He's a bloody loon, innit?
	Sinner #7 HEATHCLIFF	All right, done with the giggles, then? Get ready for the beating of your life.
	Bloodfiend Cassetti	I… I enjoy things like you and your friends.
	Bloodfiend Cassetti	Don't cry, bawling and bowing and sniveling on the ground for your lives…
	Bloodfiend Cassetti	Lunge at me instead, hm?! The aggression, the boiling blood, oh, how I love the heat!
	Sinner #7 HEATHCLIFF	What are you, daft? Look around. There are thirteen of us and only one of you.
	Sinner #2 FAUST	Do not let your guard down, Heathcliff. This entity has managed to turn countless passengers of this train into his Bloodbags.
	Sinner #7 HEATHCLIFF	I ain't letting my guard down. But… we blasted through so many Bloodbags we couldn't even keep count, didn't we?
	Bloodfiend Cassetti	Couldn't even keep count…? Oh no, no… but the count is so important! I have to keep count of our visitors! Oh yes, of course! I do remember to keep count of our dearest visitors! Yessir, I do!
	Bloodfiend Cassetti	You have no idea how powerful I am. And I shall not relinquish the throne of this budding kingdom to thee!
	Bloodfiend Cassetti	All I have to do is sit here and do nothing, and the Bloodbags present themselves before me! There's no paradise like this out there… you have no idea what I did to create this place!
	Bloodfiend Cassetti	Ohh, how elated my forebears would be, were they to witness my creation! This cornucopia of abundance… this pleasure… oh, this freedom…!
	Bloodfiend Cassetti	But this kingdom is mine! I made it! I'm not giving it away, nope!
	Sinner #2 FAUST	This is rather curious.
	Sinner #2 FAUST	It appears that this Bloodfiend leaves this car only on rare occasions…
	Sinner #2 FAUST	… Yet we have seen signs of his insidious influence throughout every car we have visited so far.
	Sinner #6 HONG LU	Then what he meant by how "the Bloodbags present themselves" before him has to be…
	MultiCrack Office Sasha	HOLD ON A MINUTE!
	Bloodfiend Cassetti	GYAH!!!
Someone suddenly and frantically charged into this car.
It was Sasha, the Fixer we ran into in one of the earlier cars.
Cassetti shrinks into his throne at the sudden intrusion, terror apparent in his face.
	Sinner #3 DON QUIXOTE	Ah, it is thee! By the— Hast thou truly journeyed here to assist us in our quest?!
	Sinner #3 DON QUIXOTE	Lo! That villain is the Bloodfiend responsible for the tragedies that have transpired aboard this train!
	Sinner #3 DON QUIXOTE	Help us slay that cur and eventually lead the passengers thou hast protected thus far out of this train!
	Sinner #2 FAUST	Bloodfiends…
	Sinner #2 FAUST	… What if there was more than a single Bloodfiend on board, one still capable of rational thought…?
	MultiCrack Office Sasha	Damn, you actually made it all the way back here? I guess the Wings don't give out contracts to just anyone.
	MultiCrack Office Sasha	I… I used to fight to my damnedest, too. 'Till I was the last one standing…
	Sinner #9 RODION	What's she talking about?
	MultiCrack Office Sasha	But where did that leave me? Alone, three of my four arms ripped from my body.
	MultiCrack Office Sasha	Kinda funny how the perspective on life can just completely flip when you're really, really in the shit. I think my last thoughts were…
	MultiCrack Office Sasha	"Man… I… don't wanna die…"
	Manager DANTE	<…….>
	MultiCrack Office Sasha	So I fell on my knees and pleaded. I told him that…
	Sinner #2 FAUST	Don Quixote, watch out!
	MultiCrack Office Sasha	… I'd do anything to live!
Blood rapidly crystallized around Sasha like a suit of armor as she swung her greatsword at the Sinners, striking them even before Faust's hurried shout had fully died away.
	Sinner #7 HEATHCLIFF	… Agh!
	Bloodfiend Cassetti	Wha…
	Bloodfiend Cassetti	… What did I say?! I commanded you to give me a warning before jumping in like that!
	Bloodfiend Cassetti	Don't you know how loud your stupid arms are? I thought the Family had come for me!
	Bloodfiend Sasha	I'm sorry, Lord Cassetti.
	Bloodfiend Cassetti	Ah… allow me to introduce my Kindred to thee, first of mine since the escape, for the kingdom I intend to build.
	Bloodfiend Cassetti	My Kindred, my loyal squire… who shall be at my side as I build a dynasty of my own, my Family…
	Bloodfiend Sasha	Lord Cassetti, I had intended to select the more powerful of the bunch to send to this car as you have commanded me, but… the humans in my car were all weaklings. So I present before you this group from the first class car.
	Sinner #2 FAUST	Kindred…
	Sinner #2 FAUST	Are you even aware of the exact nature of a "Kindred?"
	Bloodfiend Sasha	Nah, but I can tell ya this.
	Bloodfiend Sasha	When I accepted my lord's blood into my veins… I felt as though I was reborn.
	Sinner #2 FAUST	I see. A Bloodfiend's Kindred is like a sub-entity of the Bloodfiend, similar in concept to sub-entities created by Distortions or Abnormalities.
	Sinner #2 FAUST	It must have been desperation that pushed you to accept that proposition despite the lack of information.
	Bloodfiend Sasha	Maybe. That's… probably what was going through my head before I became a Kindred.
	Sinner #3 DON QUIXOTE	Thou hast been in cohorts with this villain… all this time? As his lackey?
	Sinner #3 DON QUIXOTE	Even ere then, when we first laid our eyes upon thee…?
	Bloodfiend Sasha	Lady, you have no idea how much I freaked out when one of you asked me something about "red eyes." Not that it would've mattered if you did suspect me though, since mine are just prosthetic.
	Sinner #3 DON QUIXOTE	T-then… the passengers who were under thy protection…
	Bloodfiend Cassetti	Haven't I told you… that the count matters?
	Bloodfiend Cassetti	The longer the procession… the better.
	Bloodbags Bloodbag	Ksshhh…
Dozens of Bloodbags began shambling into the room from behind Sasha. … A smaller one among them stood out to me.
… My mind immediately snapped to the child who grabbed Don Quixote's coattails.
	Manager DANTE	<…….>
I knew that the passengers were dead the moment we realized Sasha was a Bloodfiend. But… I hoped that we'd be spared this sight.
	Sinner #3 DON QUIXOTE	…….
	Sinner #3 DON QUIXOTE	There was… a child…
	Bloodfiend Sasha	Yep. Little runt wanted to be a Fixer if she got to grow up.
	Bloodfiend Sasha	Good thing she won't, though. I can tell you on good authority that "living" as a Bloodbag is way better than the drudgery that is the life of a Fixer. Believe me, I know.
	Sinner #3 DON QUIXOTE	… Hold thy vile tongue.
	Bloodfiend Sasha	Dreaming of becoming a famous, respected Fixer? An enactor of justice? It's all just a stupid pipe dream that always ends in crushing disappointment. Or a really, really early grave.
	Sinner #3 DON QUIXOTE	Silence… SILENCE!
Don Quixote did not give Sasha time to finish her sentence; she was already charging full-speed at her with her lance drawn.

Mid-battle

Played after Wave 1 of 6.5-28 has been defeated.

Speaker		Dialogue
Location: WARP Train Economy Class Cabin
	Bloodfiend Sasha	Aagh…
	Bloodfiend Cassetti	Unbelievable… I make myself my first-ever Kindred, without authorization at that, and… it's this bumbling fool…?
	Bloodfiend Sasha	I pray for your forgiveness… Father…
	Bloodfiend Cassetti	… Begone from my sight. At least thou hast brought me Bloodbags for sustenance…
	Bloodfiend Cassetti	Yet, it must be the responsibility of a parent to clean up the mess of his child…
	Sinner #4 RYŌSHŪ	What a load of shit.
With that, Cassetti reached out toward the pile of Bloodbags on the ground, and…
[Cassetti absorbs several defeated Bloodbags into his body, forming a tattered cape and glaive of dark crystallized blood.]
	Bloodfiend Cassetti	Haah… Oh, abundance… what an unfamiliar sensation you'd become…
An armor of hardened blood materialized over the Bloodfiend's body; his sheer aggression and hatred was palpable enough to make our skin crawl.
	Sinner #2 FAUST	… It appears that he has empowered himself by reaping their blood.
	Bloodfiend Cassetti	Though my power is yet to fully return… This magnificent armor is quite befitting of this risen king's Parade… Wouldst thou agree? Yessir, yes you do! 'Course you do!
	Bloodfiend Cassetti	Challenge me now, O rebels! Challenge thy king!

Post-battle

Speaker		Dialogue
Location: WARP Train Economy Class Cabin
	Bloodfiend Cassetti	It hurts… it hurts… it hurts…!
	Bloodfiend Cassetti	Yes, I love it when humans let their blood boil… But this… this is too painful…!
	Sinner #13 GREGOR	This guy keeps regenerating… no matter how many times we tear him to pieces… Ngh…
	Sinner #11 SINCLAIR	Haah… this… I don't know if we can…
The mental fatigue finally got to Gregor and Sinclair, and they collapsed to the ground. The strange environment of WARP trains was proving to be a significant boost to the Bloodfiend's regenerative ability.
The battle trudged on without an end in sight. At this point, we've already been fighting for much longer than we had at the K Corp. border checkpoint or at the basement of Wuthering Heights. The Sinners had all grown much stronger since then, but even they were reaching a breaking point.
	Sinner #3 DON QUIXOTE	[Covered in blood.] …….
Don Quixote continues to wildly pummel the Bloodfiend with her lance, breaking, stabbing, and crushing him every time a body part regenerated.
	Bloodfiend Cassetti	I am… I am so very hungry…
	Sinner #3 DON QUIXOTE	Ridiculous! Thy hunger is no justification for this massacre thou hast wrought!
	Bloodfiend Cassetti	Shut up! Y-you, you, you don't understand.
	Bloodfiend Cassetti	You don't know how awful it is to— I survived for two hundred years on that disgusting… horrible— N-no, NO! I don't even want to think about it!
	Bloodfiend Cassetti	Shut up! Be quiet! No, I'm… I'm sorry, I'll be good… Please, please, please let me have just a sip… just the smallest sip… Please…
	Bloodfiend Cassetti	Nngh… it won't matter… how many times you stab me…
	Sinner #3 DON QUIXOTE	I shan't stop until all of thy flesh and bone and organs are crushed into a viscous, shapeless mush, never to become whole again!!!
But… the Bloodfiend's regeneration is so powerful that he's recovering as fast as Don Quixote is destroying him.
	Manager DANTE	<He's regenerating at an insane rate… We can't…>
	Bloodfiend Cassetti	Agh… My Kindred… my Child!!!
	Bloodfiend Cassetti	I have given thee new life, invited thee to this banquet…!
	Bloodfiend Cassetti	So do something! Your responsibilities! The blessings of your Father must be repaid, no?!
	Bloodfiend Sasha	Wh-what can I do…?
	Bloodfiend Cassetti	Find their weakness, break their anchor…! Make them kneel and grovel before me in desperation, just as you had…!
	Bloodfiend Sasha	…….
	Bloodfiend Sasha	W-wait, I think I've got an idea…
Sasha began looking around wildly, surprised by Cassetti's sudden command…
	Bloodfiend Sasha	It's that the way they fight… reminds me a lot of the way we prosthetic-using Fixers fight.
	Sinner #2 FAUST	[Covered in blood.] …?
	Bloodfiend Sasha	… Just as Prosthetic Fixers slowly lose their sense of self-preservation, their limbs becoming no more than tools to be replaced…
	Bloodfiend Sasha	… these idiots act with such abandon, as if they have multiple lives to burn through.
	Manager DANTE	<…!>
	Bloodfiend Sasha	With nothing to protect, they throw themselves wildly into battle like moths to a flame…
	Bloodfiend Sasha	And… heh heh… forget to look after what's really important. Like this little thing.
With one of her remaining arms, Sasha picked up from the ground…
… the master keycard Faust showed her in one of the previous cars.
	Sinner #2 FAUST	…!
	Sinner #2 FAUST	Don Quixote! Stop her, now!
	Bloodfiend Sasha	O my Father… I offer this gift to you…!
	Sinner #3 DON QUIXOTE	Gah…!
Don Quixote immediately leaped at the Fixer, but one of her arms struck her away with great force.
Ishmael and Meursault, who had been holding Cassetti down, were no match for his strength without Don Quixote's fury. The Bloodfiend threw them both to the side and grabbed the keycard.
	Bloodfiend Sasha	This is the key to the first class cars, my Lord… With this, grow your army of Bloodbags… For the kingdom's prosperity…
	Manager DANTE	<No…>
Cassetti examines the master keycard with clear interest.
Without that keycard… we'll be trapped inside this train for thousands of years until it reaches its destination.
	Sinner #2 FAUST	Dante…
	Sinner #2 FAUST	I believe that I have tried my utmost to overcome this adversity…
	Sinner #2 FAUST	… without access to Faust's knowledge and intelligence.
	Sinner #2 FAUST	However…
	Sinner #2 FAUST	With our loss of the master keycard… the uncertainty of this circumstance has been greatly exacerbated.
	Sinner #2 FAUST	At the origin of this plight…
Faust took a deep breath, as if she was about to take a deep dive into the source of all this trouble…
	Sinner #2 FAUST	… must be my overreliance on Faust.
	Manager DANTE	<…….>
From what I can tell, Faust has always been operating based on information she received from "Faust". So a situation like this, where she has to make decisions on her own, must be unfamiliar to her.
… But Faust is an exceptional Sinner with or without"'Faust."
	Manager DANTE	<I've been thinking the same thing about myself, actually. That I might've been relying too much on that… perfect Faust.>
	Manager DANTE	<But even without "Faust," you've still guided us masterfully after analyzing the information we brought you.>
	Sinner #2 FAUST	…….
	Manager DANTE	<Maybe… uncertainty itself doesn't always have to be a problem for us.>
	Manager DANTE	<Remember? "Thus the lack of plan itself becomes the plan". You said it yourself.>
	Sinner #2 FAUST	… I see.
	Sinner #2 FAUST	Indeed, among many, I am a Faust that believes in uncertainty.
	Sinner #2 FAUST	Our loss of the master keycard is but one of innumerable uncertain variables in the equation.
	Sinner #2 FAUST	The constant is, however…
	Sinner #2 FAUST	… that the Bloodfiend is just as desperate as we are.
	Sinner #2 FAUST	Thus the only option that remains at present is to… compromise.
	Bloodfiend Cassetti	You there… Looks like thou art the one who's been regenerating your friends…
	Bloodfiend Cassetti	Stop… stop doing that, alright? Don't heal a single one them.
	Bloodfiend Cassetti	Or I'll smash your precious key to pieces!
	Sinner #3 DON QUIXOTE	M-Manager Esquire…
	Sinner #3 DON QUIXOTE	Compromise…? To compromise with a villain as vile as that cur…!
I didn't have the time to regenerate Don Quixote's severe injuries just yet. And the rest of the Sinners were already unconscious…
The only Sinner who could still move and talk… was Faust, whom I just rewound the clock for.
	Manager DANTE	<… Yeah… Let's do that.>
	Sinner #2 FAUST	Very well. Then… Cassetti, why don't we move this conversation to a different location?
	Sinner #2 FAUST	I alone will accompany Dante to this negotiation. Let me make my intentions clear now: Dante and I will not attack you there.
There is no doubt in my mind that Cassetti must also be exhausted by the unending barrage of attacks from Don Quixote and the Sinners.
So, Faust's suggestion that we move this conversation to a different place without the Sinners must've sounded pretty sweet to him.
	Bloodfiend Cassetti	J-just you two, huh?
	Sinner #2 FAUST	Yes. As you are aware, the freight car is immediately adjacent to this one; that is where we will further discuss what we each have to offer to one another.
	Bloodfiend Cassetti	That… that clock must be thy monarch then, hm? And thou art one of the retainers.
	Sinner #2 FAUST	Correct.
	Bloodfiend Cassetti	Very well… this will be a royal debate, then! It is only right that a member of royalty talks to no one else but the one who is his equal!
	Sinner #3 DON QUIXOTE	Manager… Esquire…
	Manager DANTE	<We'll be back in a minute… Don Quixote.>
Thus we left the incapacitated Sinners and Don Quixote, who watched on with hollow, despondent eyes as we walked away. We carefully made our way into the freight car.
	Manager DANTE	<So Faust, why are we doing this in the freight car again…?>
	Sinner #2 FAUST	Dante… this will be my first attempt…
	Sinner #2 FAUST	… at a "gamble."
	Manager DANTE	<What!?>
With that, the door closed shut behind us.

6.5-29: The Negotiation

Speaker		Dialogue
Location: Aboard Mephistopheles
	Manager DANTE	<So this passageway leads straight into Mephistopheles…?>
	Bloodfiend Cassetti	This is where it all started… This… this stupid bus awoke me from my slumber!
	Bloodfiend Cassetti	If only this bus hadn't completely filled up the freight car… I wasn't planning on commencing the Parade so soon… or creating a Kindred at all…
	Sinner #2 FAUST	… Dante.
	Manager DANTE	<Hm?>
	Sinner #2 FAUST	The connection has been restored.
Connection…?
The suddenness of her statement briefly knocked me off my train of thought. I looked at her and cocked my head in confusion, and she replied with an even quieter whisper without looking away from the Bloodfiend.
	Sinner #2 FAUST	Boarding Mephistopheles has… reestablished my connection to Faust.
	Manager DANTE	<…!>
	Manager DANTE	<Did you know that this would work?>
	Sinner #2 FAUST	No. And as I have stated before, this was a pure, incalculable gamble based on my own uncertain hypothesis.
	Sinner #2 FAUST	This success helps me somewhat comprehend Miss Rodya's fascination with gambling.
A faint smile momentarily appears on Faust's lips as she jests, then fades away.
	Sinner #2 FAUST	Now that the connection has been reestablished, I would like to make a complaint against the Fausts in the Gesellschaft management regarding the fact that they neglected to list the information pertaining to the loss of connection within the interiors of the WARP trains, however…
	Sinner #2 FAUST	… finding a solution to this situation takes precedence. I have much reason to believe that their omission was done on purpose, but… I hope such is not the case.
Faust gently advanced toward the Bloodfiend.
	Sinner #2 FAUST	… Let us discuss the details of our compromise. What are you willing to accept in return for the master keycard?
	Bloodfiend Cassetti	If thou wert just anyone, I would have wished to turn thee all into Bloodbags and drink every last drop of thy blood… but thou art unlike a common person…
	Bloodfiend Cassetti	My wish is to maintain the secrecy of this kingdom of mine for as long as possible. And thine wish is to leave this place, is it not?
	Bloodfiend Cassetti	Once I relinquish to thee this keycard… and once thou returnest to your first class seats… we'll live here happily ever after like nothing happened!
	Bloodfiend Cassetti	And when the train gets there, you get off the train. Everything goes back to the way they're supposed to be. How's that for a deal?
	Sinner #2 FAUST	Like nothing happened…
	Manager DANTE	<… Faust, what about the job we were contracted to do in the first place…?>
	Sinner #2 FAUST	Upon arrival, our memories and any signs of battle will be entirely erased. We will have no way to relay the news, whether it be one of success or failure.
	Sinner #2 FAUST	If we had the means to defeat him, then at least W Corp. would inform us that our contract was successful after the fact. However…
	Sinner #2 FAUST	… this current scenario will leave us with nothing to show for, not even the smallest hint, and the contract will end in failure.
	Sinner #2 FAUST	However, what takes precedence over the contract is you and the Sinners' psychological stability.
	Manager DANTE	<…….>
It's not like we've always been successful, so that was something I could live with. But…
	Manager DANTE	<But… what about the other passengers of this train? And its future passengers?>
I remember the look on Don Quixote's face whenever we would come across these inevitable forms of injustice.
	Sinner #2 FAUST	…….
Faust does not reply.
Yet, the lack of reply was a reply all on its own.
	Manager DANTE	<… Are we going to have to let them… die?>
Innocent lives will be lost. But we cannot prioritize their lives over our safety.
That must be Faust's… and the company's policy.
And yet…
	Sinner #3 DON QUIXOTE	I… I shan't allow this…
	Manager DANTE	<D-Don Quixote…>
I thought her wounds were too severe for her to even crawl, let alone walk, but… with sheer will, she pushed herself through the pain to reach the freight car.
	Sinner #3 DON QUIXOTE	I… will not tolerate this… We cannot… let this vile wretch live… and turn a blind eye to… everything he's done…
	Bloodfiend Cassetti	I-it's her…! Again…!
	Bloodfiend Cassetti	W-what, you want to stay here for what is essentially an eternity within this train? I… I know what this is all about! Everything hinges on this key, doesn't it? As soon as I snap this in half, you'll have to spend eons inside this—
	Sinner #3 DON QUIXOTE	I… care not… I would welcome it… even should it mean exacting eons of penance upon thee… 'Tis much preferable to letting thy villainy go unanswered… Let this place be the site of thine eternal judgment…
Faust and I grabbed Don Quixote. She'd normally be strong enough to wriggle free of our grips, but she'd already pushed herself beyond her limits merely by walking here.
	Sinner #3 DON QUIXOTE	Faust… unhand me…! Thou mustn't let him live, Manager Esquire…!
	Manager DANTE	<Don Quixote… Letting him destroy that key means that you'll be condemning the Sinners to thousands of years of torment.>
	Sinner #3 DON QUIXOTE	Then I shall… fill the millennia with the tales most exciting… that I had once read in the magazines. No amount of time, however ineffable… shall be too great to overcome should we endeavor as one…
	Sinner #2 FAUST	Certainly, you are aware that your suggestion is no solution at all, Don Quixote.
	Sinner #3 DON QUIXOTE	Th-then there has to be another way…? No…?
	Sinner #3 DON QUIXOTE	Thou art both possessors of great wisdom… Faust, Manager Esquire… Is there truly no path in which we may bring justice to the villain, and the Sinners remain unharmed…?
	Sinner #2 FAUST	…….
Her struggle begins to wane. But this was no acceptance. This was dejection.
	Manager DANTE	<W-wait! Don Quixote, NO!>
In the commotion, we failed to notice that the Bloodfiend had been quietly advancing at us; we let Don Quixote go at the last second…
… a second too late.
	Bloodfiend Cassetti	Oh, Father… forgive my transgressions, for I am about to create another without thy sanction…

	Bloodfiend Cassetti	Thou shalt become my next Kindred…!
Cassetti screams incoherently as he leaps onto Don Quixote, piercing her neck with his fangs before we even had the chance to do anything.
	Manager DANTE	<…!>
	Sinner #2 FAUST	… Oh, I did not expect this to be the solution…
	Manager DANTE	<Faust…? What do you mean… "the solution"…?>
	Sinner #2 FAUST	… According to this information I had viewed in the past, and once again just now, it's…
	Sinner #2 FAUST	Mm. … Dante. Take cover behind me and remain absolutely still.
	Sinner #2 FAUST	And please, do note that the other Sinners must never hear a word of what is about to happ—
	Sinner #3 DON QUIXOTE	Oh.
Don Quixote levitates slightly into the air, the strings on her shoes unraveling as they slip off her feet on their own.
She looks on with bewilderment as her running shoes fall to the floor.
And…
	Sinner #3 DON QUIXOTE	AAAAAAAAGGGHHHHHHHH!
	Sinner #3 DON QUIXOTE	GAAAAAAAAAAHHHHHHHH! ROCINANTE!!!!!!!!!!
[Flashbacks.]
Location: Aboard Mephistopheles, Past
I've always had this question swirling at the unfocused backstage of my mind.
	Manager DANTE	<Why are you always so… protective of those running shoes, Don Quixote?>
	Sinner #3 DON QUIXOTE	Hm? Running shoes? Ah…
	Sinner #3 DON QUIXOTE	Dost thou speak of our dear Rocinante?
	Manager DANTE	<Uh… yeah, those.>
	Sinner #3 DON QUIXOTE	I! Have battled through thick and thin, feast and famine, with dear Rocinante. In sorrow, and in joy, no matter the brutality of trials that hath struck me, it hath been a loyal steed by my side for however long it hath been in existence.
She… doesn't know when she got them?
	Sinner #3 DON QUIXOTE	Ah, Manager Esquire! Wherefore hast thou not saluted Rocinante as well? This may be a rather auspicious occasion to do so!
	Manager DANTE	<Nope, I think I'm good…>
	Sinner #3 DON QUIXOTE	Aha, be not so bashful! Go on ahead!
	Bus Driver Charon	Looks stinky. Small girl is torturing tick-tock with stinky.
	Sinner #3 DON QUIXOTE	Stinky they are not! Scuffed as they might appear, Rocinante is in pristine condition…! Also, thou shalt not address me as a "small gir—
	Bus Driver Charon	Evacuate. Evacuate.
Location: Dante's Room, Past
	Manager DANTE	<Don Quixote, don't tell me you go to sleep wearing those running sh— I mean, Rocinante.>
	Sinner #3 DON QUIXOTE	Oho, I have always been quite certain that someone so esteemed as thee, Manager Esquire, would care to ask me how Rocinante fareth!
I didn't mention that this question was inspired by numerous eyewitness reports from other Sinners who saw her wandering the halls in her pajamas… and wearing Rocinante.
	Sinner #3 DON QUIXOTE	Verily, Rocinante and I remain bound together, even in slumber! There shall be no separating the two of us!
	Sinner #3 DON QUIXOTE	We are bound not by need nor want, we are simply bound together through plight and delight.
Now that I think about it, every single Identity of Don Quixote also wears that pair of running shoes, "Rocinante."
	Manager DANTE	<Have you ever taken them… off?>
	Sinner #3 DON QUIXOTE	Take them off? Fie, whatever dost thou mean? As in… detach Rocinante from my body? 'Tis a very odd insinuation thou makest!
She looks at me with puzzled eyes, as though taking those pair of running shoes off was somehow an inconceivable idea.
They were something much more than just her favorite pair of running shoes. Her attitude about it was totally detached from common sense, too, but she didn't notice anything strange about herself…
What does Rocinante mean to Don Quixote?
What even is that thing?
[Returning to the present…]
Location: Aboard Mephistopheles
	Manager DANTE	<Gnnngh…!>
An overwhelmingly powerful pressure suddenly explodes, radiating in all directions…
… as the metallic stench of blood suffocates the bus, filling every corner of it with its sickening horror.
… Then, darkness.

	Bloodfiend Cassetti	N-no… that's… impossible…
In all-absorbing darkness, voice is our only light.
	Bloodfiend Cassetti	You… you are… the Second Kindred… How did you… I should've felt your presence…!
I do think I saw a faint… shimmering.
It was red… and she wore a long fur adornment of sorts.
And through the shimmering, I saw… I think I saw… red eyes.
	??? Don Quixote?	You have committed the sin of filial impiety. Transgressor.
I know that voice. But I also don't. I've never heard it in such a low, imposing tone before.
It speaks toward the lesser being.
The Bloodfiend, shriveled and kneeling, trembling… pathetic.
	Bloodfiend Cassetti	Mercy, o venerated ancestor. I beg for the mercy of the Second Kindred, I beg for the mercy of the Second Kindred, I beg—
	??? Don Quixote?	Insolent worm.
	Bloodfiend Cassetti	Kahhh…
Crimson droplets of blood slowly rise around the Bloodfiend's mouth… before congealing and sealing his mouth shut.
	??? Don Quixote?	No language worming its way out of your maw shall be worth my ears.
	??? Don Quixote?	No…
	??? Don Quixote?	To commit the sin of filial impiety by attempting to travel against the bloodstream, to commit such abomination against your ancestor… I cannot well sanction your impudence of continued existence.
	Bloodfiend Cassetti	Mmh! Mmppfh! Mmmphhh!!!
	??? Don Quixote?	Coagulate… then melt away.
Cassetti's body begins liquefying into a slick stream of blood, his form curdling and crumbling, then dripping to the ground.
He melts rapidly yet ponderously like that ice cream Don Quixote loved so much—pudding on the floor heated under the searing sun.
	Manager DANTE	<…….>
	??? Don Quixote?	… Ah.
	??? Don Quixote?	You.
Don Quixote turned to look at me, who was still on the ground after being thrown by the shockwave.
And with a cryptic look of pity, she uttered something.
	??? Don Quixote?	Indeed… you must be the promised timepiece…
Something I couldn't quite understand.
	??? Don Quixote?	Rocinante, to me…
Rocinante…
	??? Don Quixote?	… I beseech you.
	Manager DANTE	<…….>
I carefully reached out, grabbed her shoes…
And slipped them onto her bare feet, one by one.
	??? Don Quixote?	Ah… one day…
She gasped, stumbled, and…
… slumped to the ground.

6.5-30: Uncertainty

Speaker		Dialogue
Location: Aboard Mephistopheles
Some time later…
	Sinner #8 ISHMAEL	… Can somebody explain what just happened? In a way that makes sense?
I knew that the Sinners would all be shocked and confused.
After all, when they, including Faust and Don Quixote, all came back to life after I rewound the clock…
… all that remained was the destroyed door to the freight car and the disgusting, obliterated remains of what was once Cassetti.
	Sinner #5 MEURSAULT	Most had lost their consciousness from the mental stress of the prolonged battle against the Bloodfiend.
	Sinner #5 MEURSAULT	Therefore, whatever measure it was that the Manager has taken, it was appropriate.
	Sinner #13 GREGOR	Tsk, I guess so…
	Manager DANTE	<Well… Good work, everyone…>
	Sinner #5 MEURSAULT	However.
	Sinner #5 MEURSAULT	The definition of "most" excludes three individuals. Thus, it would be appropriate to direct any questions to them.
	Manager DANTE	<Wait…>
	Sinner #12 OUTIS	Hm?!
	Sinner #9 RODION	Who are those three?
	Sinner #5 MEURSAULT	Faust.
	Sinner #2 FAUST	…….
	Sinner #5 MEURSAULT	The Manager.
	Manager DANTE	<Uh…>
	Sinner #5 MEURSAULT	And Don Quixote, who is still unconscious.
	Sinner #8 ISHMAEL	Huh, really? Them?
	Manager DANTE	<Wow, you were spot on… ha ha… When did you even have the time to notice that? Oh boy…>
	Sinner #5 MEURSAULT	I have identified the three conscious individuals by analyzing their walking cadence and voices, moments before my loss of consciousness.
	Sinner #7 HEATHCLIFF	Right, so what's goin' on with the lass? Why's she still out cold?
	Sinner #2 FAUST	She appears to be in a state of deep slumber. As she is not in any risk of death, she will be waking up soon.
… I remember everything, of course. Don Quixote's sudden… transformation. How she practically erased the Bloodfiend and his Kindred from the world without even moving a finger.
But I also remember Faust's last words.
Location: Aboard Mephistopheles, Past
	Sinner #2 FAUST	And please, do note that the other Sinners must never hear a word of what is about to happ—
Location: Aboard Mephistopheles
	Sinner #2 FAUST	…….
Don Quixote was unconscious, and Faust was answering every question with silence; it was only natural that everyone would turn to me for some answers.
	Manager DANTE	<That's… uh… Y'know…>
	Sinner #11 SINCLAIR	Wait, that reminds me…
	Sinner #11 SINCLAIR	Where's the… keycard?
	Manager DANTE	<Last I remember, it was in Cassetti's hands…>
	Sinner #4 RYŌSHŪ	… Who's in a far more presentable state than he was in before.
	Sinner #9 RODION	Wait, so what about the keycard he was holding, though…?
	Manager DANTE	<…….>
	Sinner #5 MEURSAULT	It has been half liquefied. The remains have melded with his finger bones; it appears to have become one with the middle phalanges.
Uh… wait… oh…
	Sinner #11 SINCLAIR	Oh no. Everyone, calm down. Calm down! I SAID CALM DOWN!!!
	Sinner #13 GREGOR	Haah… I… really should've packed more cigarettes, huh…
	Sinner #7 HEATHCLIFF	Uh… How 'bout we force one of these doors open?
	Sinner #2 FAUST	The master keycard is not an absolutely necessary element to resolving this situation.
	Sinner #7 HEATHCLIFF	Wha-h-how?
	Sinner #2 FAUST	It will require approximately 5 hours to formulate an explanation that will allow the Sinners to fully comprehend the exact "how" of this methodology. Therefore, it will be delivered to you in a digestible, summarized format.
	Sinner #7 HEATHCLIFF	… Well, that was short-lived. She's actin' all smug again.
	Sinner #2 FAUST	We can utilize the Backdoor of Mephistopheles.
The steely confidence in her declaration was more than enough to win us all over.
So we headed to the corridor past the Backdoor, Don Quixote slung over one of our shoulders…
… and arrived at our destination.

	Guide Vergilius	…….
	Guide Vergilius	I can't… not ask what happened after seeing the state you are all in.
	Bus Driver Charon	Sandy pitter sandy patter.
Grains of sand and seashell-like things fell with every step the Sinners took.
	Sinner #9 RODION	Ask… someone after me…
	Sinner #1 YI SANG	To explicate, it can— kugghhh… grains of sand roll about in my throat with every word… spoken…
Some time ago…
Location: Bus's Backdoor
Faust explained the gist of this plan as we made our way to the Backdoor.
	Sinner #2 FAUST	To put it simply, we will spend the time at a space disconnected from the train.
	Sinner #2 FAUST	The train should be arriving at its destination in approximately 10 seconds, going by the A Corp. time scale. All we must do is to remain somewhere in our original dimension for that duration.
And with that, Faust came to a sudden stop in the middle of one of the corridors.
	Sinner #9 RODION	Wait, wait… Are you seriously gonna just open that door? With this many doors in here… are ya sure that it's the right one?
	Sinner #2 FAUST	Yes. This is the correct door. Its safety is guaranteed.
	Sinner #7 HEATHCLIFF	Uh… lass, at least tell us what's past that door.
	Sinner #2 FAUST	I… did not bother verifying that particular information myself.
	Sinner #2 FAUST	It is necessary for future endeavors that I gain the experience… of encountering something completely unexpected.
	Sinner #7 HEATHCLIFF	What? Oi, wait—
Faust did not wait for Heathcliff to finish his sentence before jerking the door wide open.
	Sinner #2 FAUST	Now, please enter through this door.
Location: ???

With Faust's stern command, we quickly walked into a building that looked like a derelict, abandoned hospital of sorts…
	Sinner #8 ISHMAEL	I think we walked into the middle of a sandstorm…
	Sinner #9 RODION	H-huh? Aren't we indoors? How the heck is this even happening?
	Sinner #11 SINCLAIR	Aah! I-I can't open my eyes!
	Sinner #13 GREGOR	Ptooey, I got sand in my mou… Wait, no way. Is this a sandstorm? But aren't we inside a building?!
	Sinner #2 FAUST	5… 4… 3… 2… 1…
The Sinners blurted out a series of colorful complaints, trying to cover themselves in the blasting sandstorm…
But Faust continued to count in that same, indifferent rhythm before dragging us out of there just as urgently as she had ushered us in.
Location: Bus's Backdoor
So…
… We managed to return safe and sound to the interiors of the WARP train as it arrived at the P Corp. Platforms.
Location: WARP Train Economy Class Cabin
As the train was still getting cleaned up, that is…
… and with our bodies completely covered in sand.
	Sinner #11 SINCLAIR	Sob… I thought we'd never make it…
	W Corp. Cleanup Agent	W-woah, are you guys okay? How did these passengers…?
We were so happy to be done with this whole ordeal, that even the W Corp. Cleanup Agents in the middle of a cleanup mission looked downright hospitable.
	Sinner #2 FAUST	We are employees of Limbus Company who boarded the WARP train at the behest of your employer.
	W Corp. Cleanup Agent	Ohh… So you guys are the people that our Captain told us about. They really let you guys keep your memories, huh…?
	Sinner #6 HONG LU	Oh, that reminds me! One of the employees must be sleeping inside that hibernation pod over there~
	W Corp. Cleanup Agent	Oh, that… Huh, I've never seen it in action before. Thanks, lemme go check.
We walked over to the hidden compartment behind the chair that the Cleanup Agent crawled into.
Inside it was…
	W Corp. Cleanup Agent	Huh…? There isn't anyone in here.
	Sinner #9 RODION	Hm? Maybe we're looking at the wrong pod?
	Sinner #5 MEURSAULT	This is the correct spot. Then the disappearance of the individual who has entered this pod would indicate…
	W Corp. Cleanup Agent	I guess these folks aren't all there in the head either… Uh, maybe you guys are just mistaken?
	Manager DANTE	<I doubt that…>
	Sinner #2 FAUST	Yes, we must have suffered from a momentary, collective hallucination caused by fatigue. Very well, then. We will see ourselves out.
Faust cut the conversation short before the other Sinners began asking too many questions.
Now that I became intimately familiar with the meaning of that gesture, I followed her outside without another word.
Location: P Corp. WARP Train Platform
	Sinner #3 DON QUIXOTE	Mm…? Arriv… have we arrived?
	Sinner #7 HEATHCLIFF	Rise and shine, lass. Had a nice kip, did you?
	Guide Vergilius	… I see. I will hear the details of the incident on the bus once we're traveling again.
	Sinner #2 FAUST	Understood. Any and all relevant reports will be sent to W Corp. via LCCA, and…
Vergilius was already there when we arrived, discussing the events aboard the train with Faust. He looked oddly apprehensive.
	Guide Vergilius	… I will now leave with Charon to go watch as they unfasten Mephistopheles from the train.
	Guide Vergilius	The minute hand on the Manager's head seems to be desperately signaling me that they have a lot of burning questions to ask you. Allow me to give you two some space.
	Sinner #2 FAUST	…….
I was finally able to ask Faust once Vergilius left.
	Manager DANTE	<Why… did you do that?>
… Faust's body was, quite literally, blasted to pieces from the sheer explosive pressure that filled the room the moment Don Quixote's shoes came off.
It was as though she knew that it was going to happen.
	Sinner #2 FAUST	Because it was the preferable course of action to letting the same explosive demise occur to your body instead.
	Manager DANTE	<Haah…>
	Sinner #2 FAUST	I do find it regrettable that you were made to turn the clock despite my knowledge of the high likelihood of my death upon that occurrence.
	Manager DANTE	<No, I'm not… blaming you for that.>
	Manager DANTE	<I just want to know how long you've known. That…>
	Manager DANTE	<Don Quixote is…>
	Sinner #2 FAUST	… That is something I have been aware of since the LCB was first established. The same could be said of Vergilius.
	Manager DANTE	<… Of course.>
	Sinner #2 FAUST	However, it was by the will of the LCA's superiors that this knowledge remained withheld from the Manager until the appropriate moment.
	Manager DANTE	<And that appropriate moment was… back there?>
	Sinner #2 FAUST	… According to my private judgment, yes.
	Sinner #2 FAUST	Well, as my connection to all communications, including one to Faust, had been severed. I was not in a position to receive the headquarters' authorization for that action.
	Manager DANTE	<Right…>
	Sinner #1 YI SANG	…….
	Sinner #1 YI SANG	Though the full truth may remain obscured still…
	Sinner #1 YI SANG	… we are once again, returned.
Returned… That was a layered word.
We've "returned" to one of the WARP platforms in our own dimension. We've "returned" to our daily lives of speculating about what's next in our path. And…
The usual Faust, reconnected to "Faust," has returned.
	Sinner #2 FAUST	… Yes.
Faust quietly affirms Yi Sang's rather nebulous question.
	Sinner #1 YI SANG	Please, do not take this query with any greater import than a mere jest. However…
	Sinner #1 YI SANG	… Do you suppose I shall see her again?
	Sinner #2 FAUST	…….
She shot a puzzled look at Yi Sang.
	Sinner #1 YI SANG	In a way, it was quite the…
	Sinner #1 YI SANG	… pleasant encounter, was it not?
Yi Sang mused ambiguously before leaving us.
	Manager DANTE	<Phew…>
The incident at the WARP train was such a chaotic mess that it felt shorter than it really was, but it was also an opportunity to learn so much.
But…
It was too soon to start wracking our brains about what kind of nonsense trial we were about to face in P Corp., so I decided to enjoy this momentary peace.
	Sinner #3 DON QUIXOTE	How… cough… do we find ourselves at P Corp.? Cough… wherefore is my throat so parched?
	Sinner #8 ISHMAEL	Haah… I'm too tired… to explain…
	Sinner #9 RODION	Chiquita… ya missed out big time on one craaazy adventure.
	Sinner #3 DON QUIXOTE	HUHHHH?!
	Sinner #11 SINCLAIR	Ah, that vibrated the last few grains of the sand out of my ears.
The Sinners look at Don Quixote's bewildered awakening, grinning.
There's no way to know what we'll be facing here at District 16, where P Corp. was located, but…
We got this, right?
The same faith I saw in the Faust who believes in uncertainty rises within me, too.
I looked up to Faust, only to see that Faust was looking at me as well.
She nodded at me with her usual, barely noticeable smile, and I gave her a light nod back in return.
… Time to go find ourselves another Golden Bough.

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Intervallo IV: Murder on the WARP Express/Story Episodes

6.5-16: First Class

6.5-17: The Northern Fixer

6.5-18: Disappearing Passengers

6.5-19: Inaccessible

Pre-battle

Post-battle

6.5-20: MultiCrack Office

6.5-22: Painting of Hell 2

Post-battle

6.5-23: Bloodfiends

Pre-battle

6.5-24: The Cleanup Agent

Post-battle

6.5-27: Prosthetic Fixers

Post-battle

6.5-28: The One Who Lords

Pre-battle

Mid-battle

Post-battle

6.5-29: The Negotiation

6.5-30: Uncertainty