Aerion and I gingerly made our way down residential neighborhood streets, using the sloped rooftops of the one-and-two-story homes whenever possible.

  As we’d seen earlier that morning, while the daytime zombies didn’t pursue us like the ones at night did, that only applied if we moved slowly. The moment we did something sudden or moved too fast, they seemed to latch on and give chase.

  Still, their speed and strength were nowhere close to their nighttime counterparts.

  “Why do you think that is?” Aerion asked. “These are the same zombies we fought during the night, are they not?”

  I nodded, carrying her as I bounded from one rooftop to another. “Guessing so. It’s the simplest explanation.”

  The zombies thankfully didn’t seem to like heights, so the rooftops were mostly free of enemies. Not all of them were close enough to jump, though, forcing us down to street level more than once to cross or find another stretch of buildings we could use.

  “And I don’t think it’s their aggression that’s changed,” I said, “but rather their physical traits. I think the only reason they only attack when we get close is because they can’t actually sense us. I’m guessing whatever boosted their speed and toughness also increased their senses. Like a vampire or something.”

  “Vampire?” Aerion asked.

  “Fictional blood-sucking evil people from my world.”

  “How curious,” she said with a smile.

  “Yeah, well, at least they don’t seem to be any smarter at night.”

  “Or if they were, I couldn’t tell.”

  Thankfully, it wasn’t long before we found what I was looking for.

  “There. See that?” I said, pointing at an open stairwell between two buildings where a set of stairs led underground.

  “This is the ‘subway’ you mentioned?” Aerion asked.

  I nodded. “Time to see if luck’s on our side.”

  We jumped down to ground level and rushed in before the nearby zombies noticed us.

  I set Aerion down and we both drew our weapons. She with her Mythril shortsword, me with my three flying swords and my tower shield.

  I kept Galia stored for now. As much as I wanted her by my side, she was still something of a liability, though that would change soon enough once she could fly. It wouldn’t be long now, especially if we kept feeding her crystals at the current rate.

  I was really looking forward to that moment. I’d take flying any day over crawling through deep, dark underground tunnels that I assumed would be pitch black and possibly full of zombies.

  Still, I didn’t want to rush her growth. We were already feeding her far more than usual, and Galia had even started spitting out crystal shards after gorging herself—something I honestly thought I’d never see.

  The little phoenix would grow in time, and ensuring that she matured properly mattered more than any short-term advantage we might get by forcing her advancement.

  Together, we walked down the steps, half expecting a horde to rush us from a dark abyss at any moment.

  What we got instead was an empty, well-lit, and immaculately clean Tokyo subway station.

  “These stations,” Aerion said, glancing suspiciously at our surroundings. “Tell me more about them.”

  “Well, this one’s pretty small, but trust me, that is not always the case,” I said as we passed the turnstiles and entered the station proper, thankfully finding it as empty as the entrance. “You see those tracks there?” I pointed to one of the two sets of train tracks in front of us. “That’s where the trains run. Like carriages, I guess, but much longer and linked together. They run on electricity provided by those rails down there. In this country, they can get up to some pretty ludicrous speeds. More importantly, they ran every three to five minutes like clockwork. They were practically never late.”

  “Marvelous,” Aerion murmured. “And I assume there is a driver? Someone in control of these vehicles?”

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  “It depends? There’s usually an operator sitting at the front or back, but they’re not always actively piloting. A lot of the time, the trains run automatically. The operator’s mainly there to handle emergencies and make sure doors don’t close on people trying to board and such.”

  “I admit,” Aerion said, her eyes practically gleaming. “I am more than a little excited to see one of these trains in action.”

  “Yeah, well, we’ll know soon enough,” I said, as we approached the gates. This was one of those stations with automatic doors that opened only when the train arrived as a safety measure to stop people from falling onto the tracks. “I’m just glad the lights are still on and that we seem to be alone.”

  Aerion nodded. “Quite the fortuitous development. I had feared we would be in for a fight.”

  “Well, if we were, we wouldn’t be down here,” I said. “It’s far safer to travel topside if this place was infested. But seeing how it isn’t… we might just have a chance.”

  “And you say these stations can become quite large? How large, exactly?” she asked.

  I laughed. “‘Large’ doesn’t even begin to describe it,” I said. “You can think of some of these stations as underground cities unto themselves. If we manage to get far enough, you’ll see it firsthand. We only took one flight of stairs down, but imagine multiplying that by ten or more. Some of these stations go deep underground. Like an upside-down skyscraper, kinda.”

  Aerion frowned. “The scale and size you speak of… how can your people dig so deeply underground and in such vast quantities? I cannot fathom the amount of earth that must be moved to create such a place, to say nothing of the staggering complexity. And you say these trains have platforms on every floor?”

  “Pretty much,” I said. “Some floors are full of shopping malls, dining areas, and all sorts of other stuff. But yeah, most of them are for trains. Stations can have upwards of forty tracks across various levels. It’s kinda insane, even for me.”

  Aerion shook her head again and let out a small laugh. “Yet again, I marvel at your world’s grandeur. When you revealed to me that you were a Champion from another world, you cannot know how excited I was to show you Axius and all its wonders. To think you came from such an impressive place… all I feel now is embarrassment.”

  “Hey,” I said, putting an arm around her waist. “Don’t say that. Sure, this world’s different and lacks a lot of the comforts I was used to, but it’s got plenty of wonders Earth didn’t have.”

  “Living gods,” Aerion said. “And magic.”

  “Sure, that’s the most obvious one. But magic doesn’t live in isolation. It affects everything—daily life, how people fight, how they live and make decisions. It’s fascinating, exploring a world so reliant on it.”

  “I see,” Aerion said with a nod. “I must admit I find your world so strange. I cannot begin to imagine how your people solve all these problems without magic.”

  “It works both ways,” I said, glancing down the tracks. The timetables posted on the walls said a train was supposed to run every ten to twelve minutes, but it had been over twenty since Aerion and I arrived. Not a single train had come by. Not even other lines passing through the station.

  “Well,” I said finally, “seems like the trains really are down.”

  Which was a bit strange. Everything in this city seemed perfectly reconstructed—everything except the people. Why would the trains be missing? Even the cars were still parked topside. Not that I had any idea how to hotwire one, not to mention how nearly impossible that was with modern vehicles.

  “What do you suggest we do?” Aerion asked, though her grim expression suggested she already knew the answer.

  “We’ll jump down onto the tracks. We need to make sure they’re not live, but if they aren’t, it should be safe to travel through the tunnels.”

  “But what if a train does eventually come? Will it not collide with us?”

  “That’s always a concern,” I admitted. “But I’ll be in my Grace armor. I figure we could probably give it a run for its money. And if not, well, I’ll figure something out if it comes to that.”

  “I see,” Aerion said in a voice that told me just how skeptical of its safety she truly was. “It does seem better than continuously avoiding those monsters, however. Especially if it can get us close.”

  I nodded. “If these tunnels really are devoid of zombies, we’ll make incredible time. And if I read the station maps right, we might even be able to exit at a station right next to Tokyo Tower, right in the heart of the city.”

  “That would be pleasant news indeed,” Aerion said, her eyes lighting up.

  As much as the outskirts had impressed her, the stories I’d told her about central Tokyo—Shibuya’s infamous crossing, Shinjuku, and the jungle of highrises—had her practically bouncing with excitement.

  “All right, then. Let’s do this,” I said, hopping over the barrier and holding out my hand. Aerion joined me a second later.

  “Make sure you don’t touch that,” I said, pointing to the main rail line. I pulled out one of my steel darts, tossed it between the rails, and watched it clatter harmlessly against the metal. No sparks of any kind.

  I followed that up with a piece of steel I’d slashed loose from a nearby bench support, throwing it to bridge the two metal lines.

  When it clanged without lighting up or melting, I knew we were good.

  After switching into my Vigor armor, I gingerly tapped one of the rails with my boot, then bridged the gap myself.

  “Well, that would explain why the trains aren’t running,” I said. “Power’s out.”

  “I see,” Aerion said, eyeing the raised metal track suspiciously. “Still, so much metal. And you say there are hundreds of miles of this?”

  “Probably thousands, if not more,” I said. “Our society used metal, glass, concrete, and wood on a scale you wouldn’t even believe.”

  “No doubt,” she said softly. Aerion was sharp. She could probably run the calculations in her head better than I ever could.

  “Well,” I said, switching back into my Grace armor, “the coast seems to be clear. The Dungeon probably wants us to fight hordes of monsters, but… how do you feel about cheating and bypassing that load of bullshit altogether?”

  Aerion grinned devilishly. “I think I would enjoy that very much.”