Chiba Prefecture, Nishi-Funabashi Station.
Located in Nishi-Funabashi Fourth District, Funabashi City, this station was jointly operated by East Japan Railway, Tokyo Metro, and the Toyo Rapid Railway. Five different rail lines stopped here, making it one of the most important transportation hubs in western Chiba Prefecture and even the eastern outskirts of the Tokyo metropolitan area. It was also the largest and busiest station in Chiba Prefecture.
Just as dawn was beginning to break, the station had already started operating, though its main entrances hadn't fully opened yet.
Under such circumstances, Leo and his group appeared here.
"Haaah—"
As soon as they arrived, the servants from the Eligos House all yawned in unison, looking like they'd barely woken up and were still half-asleep.
"Do we really need to leave this early?" Utaha complained while yawning, dragging a large suitcase behind her. She was dressed in an academy-style outfit, looking every bit like a beautiful young artist heading out to gather inspiration.
"It's not even light out yet."
Yukino rubbed her eyes as well. Like Utaha, she was pulling a huge suitcase, but she wore a floral one-piece dress and high-heeled sandals, making her look as though she was about to head off on a seaside vacation.
"Looks like everyone's exhausted."
"We really should've had some tea first."
Asuna and Mahiru seemed slightly better off than Yukino and Utaha, but they still looked like they'd just rolled out of bed, smiling wryly.
Naturally, they were also dragging suitcases. One was dressed in a more sharp, practical style suitable for movement, while the other was dressed conservatively, showing only her ankles. Even so, both were undeniably eye-catching beauties.
Leo, on the other hand, was yawning too—but he looked energetic and alert.
"What's wrong?" Leo asked in confusion. "Did none of you sleep last night?"
At that, the girls all shot him resentful looks.
"How could we sleep?" Yukino said bluntly. "You suddenly told us to take leave for special training, didn't explain anything clearly, and then just left. I spent the whole night tossing and turning, thinking about it."
Utaha, Asuna, and Mahiru all nodded in agreement.
Because of what Leo said the day before, all four of them had requested long-term leave from school and even suspended their devil-related work. Yet none of them could fall asleep, left alone with their thoughts all night.
It was all Leo's fault—for dropping a single line and walking away without explaining where they were going or how the training would work.
"That's not really my fault, is it?" Leo said, spreading his hands. "For this training, I needed to communicate with the Underworld first and confirm the schedule before deciding on anything."
"So it's not that I didn't want to tell you. At the time, nothing was even settled yet. I planned to explain everything after confirming the itinerary."
Hearing that, the girls' resentment eased quite a bit.
"Then you can tell us now, right?" Utaha said, looking toward Nishi-Funabashi Station. "You rushed us to pack and dragged us all the way to the station. Are we heading to some remote mountain village or forest?"
"That sounds like a school trip," Asuna said, tilting her head. "Or maybe some small island overseas?"
"We didn't have time to prepare properly at all," Mahiru said worriedly. "It would've been better if we'd planned this in advance."
The girls talked over one another, breaking the quiet air with constant chatter.
It was obvious they were curious and uneasy at the same time—excited, yet confused—which made them more restless than usual.
"Alright, stop guessing," Leo cut in. "We're not going to some mountain wilderness, and we're not heading to an uninhabited island overseas either."
"We're going to the Underworld."
The moment he said that, the girls froze.
"The Underworld?" Yukino, Asuna, and Utaha all looked surprised.
"The… Underworld?" Mahiru, the only one who hadn't been there before, looked downright shocked.
"That's right," Leo said, resting one hand on his hip as he stood before them. "I'd rather not hide away in the Underworld, but given the current situation, if we want to train properly without being disturbed, leaving the human world and going there is the best option."
"You haven't been to the Eligos Territory yet, have you?"
"This time, I'll take you back and show you what our family's territory really looks like."
The girls exchanged glances.
"If we're going to the Underworld, why not teleport there with a magic circle like last time?" Yukino asked calmly.
"I already explained that back in the Familiar Forest, didn't I?" Leo glanced at her. "New servant devils like you aren't allowed to jump directly to the Underworld using a magic circle. Otherwise, you'd be treated as illegal intruders."
"Last time was only possible because I made a special request and got an exception."
"If you want to use magic circle teleportation to the Underworld, you first need to enter through the official human-world channel and complete the entry procedures. Otherwise, you'll be treated as illegal immigrants."
"This time, I'm taking you through the official route from the human world."
At his words, all three girls except Mahiru recalled their previous trip to the Familiar Forest.
"So how do we use the official route?" Utaha pointed toward Nishi-Funabashi Station. "Don't tell me we're taking a train."
The others also looked at the station, their expressions subtle.
Taking a train to the Underworld from a station?
That sounded completely unreliable.
"It is a train," Leo said casually, ignoring their looks. "Relax. I already bought the tickets. We'll just head to the platform and wait."
With that, Leo took the lead and walked toward Nishi-Funabashi Station.
The four girls looked at one another before following him.
As they walked, they noticed that Leo didn't enter through the main entrance. Instead, he led them to a hidden corner.
There was a passageway there that led directly into the station, but it was sealed off with notices and secured by a rusty lock, clearly unused for a long time.
Leo stepped forward, took out a card, and lightly swiped it.
Click—
The lock sprang open, the seals peeled away on their own, and the door slowly swung open.
"Come on. Follow me."
Leo led the girls through the passage and into the station, but instead of heading to the main waiting hall, they stopped in front of an elevator.
It didn't look like one that was used often, and it was fairly small. With five people and their large suitcases squeezed inside, it quickly became cramped, to the point where Asuna and Mahiru were almost pressed against Leo.
"Why did you bring so much luggage?" Leo said helplessly. "Didn't I say just bring a few changes of clothes?"
The girls all rolled their eyes at him.
"We're going on a long trip and taking extended leave. How could we only bring a few outfits?"
"Girls already have a hard time just going out, let alone traveling."
"I still have lots of things I didn't bring."
"Same here. If this suitcase weren't big enough, I'd want to bring another one."
They all complained at once, including Asuna and Mahiru, who had been shy about being so close to Leo just moments ago.
"Alright, alright," Leo said quickly, sensing he'd angered everyone.
He changed the subject, took out the card again, and swiped it across the electronic panel next to the elevator buttons.
Beep!
With a soft electronic sound, the elevator began to move—not upward, but downward.
It kept descending for several full minutes, giving the unsettling feeling of sinking deep underground.
When the elevator finally stopped and they stepped out, the girls were stunned.
Before them was an enormous artificial space.
Its structure resembled a station platform, but the design was clearly different from the human world. It was far larger than Nishi-Funabashi Station's waiting hall—several times larger, in fact—so vast that the ceiling felt impossibly distant.
Despite its size, the place was completely empty. The lighting was dim, with only eerie demonic power glowing from the walls, illuminating the space.
"W-What is this place?" Utaha said in disbelief.
"There's something this big under Nishi-Funabashi Station?"
Even Yukino, a local elite, was shocked by the existence of such a space.
"I can feel demonic power fluctuations," Asuna said, looking at the walls.
"A… devil station?" Mahiru murmured.
And somehow, she was right.
"This is a secret station that only local devils know about," Leo explained, raising the card in his hand. "It's a Devil Train route. Ordinary humans can't enter, even with a pass."
"From here, we can take a train coming from the Underworld straight into it. Judging by the time, it should be arriving soon."
No sooner had Leo finished speaking than a train emerged from the depths of the tracks.
Its appearance was ferocious, covered in sharp angles, with demonic patterns carved across its body—like something straight out of hell.
"Come on. I'll take you to handle the entry procedures first."
Leo led the stunned girls toward the Devil Train.
-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-
You can read up to chapter 172 on patreon.com/NiaXD.