Although Velite had been startled, Stelle and Jiang Yu had no time to pay him any attention.
The commotion had drawn both their attention, too.
When they found Pom-Pom, the adorable Conductor was huddled nervously in a corner. "Th-there was a strange noise-scary, scary, pom! Did you hear it?
"As familiar as I am with the Express... that absolutely, absolutely wasn't a sound the Express made, pom!"
Himeko remained calm, immediately trying to find a scientific explanation. "Could the earlier tremors have damaged some part of the Express... allowing something unexpected to slip aboard?"
Dan Heng also asked, "Have you found the source of the sound?"
"It seemed to come from the passenger car... but it also seemed to come from the Conductor's room, pom!" Pom-Pom said uncertainly.
"...Those are completely different directions! How about... we each go back and check our own rooms?" March 7th suggested.
"I think that works..." Stelle nodded. "Remember to check under the bed."
"You're still thinking about playing pranks at a time like this?" March 7th glared at Stelle and complained, "Read the room, would you!"
It wasn't hard to tell from her tone that she might be the only person present who had been affected by the prank.
With that, March 7th sighed. "Oh, come on, actions speak louder than words. I'll go check my room first... I'll report back to everyone if I actually find anything."
Pom-Pom nodded. "Passenger March 7th has a point. Then Pom-Pom will go check the Conductor's room first."
And so everyone split up.
When March 7th returned to her room, she froze.
She blinked, shook her head, and took another careful look. The sight before her hadn't changed, making her realize that she really hadn't been mistaken.
Her expression turned puzzled and astonished...
"This is..."
Before her,