Chapter 232
The history of railways is long.
Surprisingly long.
Like a train that stretches on without end.
The history of railways goes back far further than most people realize.
‘It’s true. If you trace the most primitive origins of railways, it goes all the way back to around 600 BC.’
Around 600 BC, there was a cart road on the isthmus of Corinth in Greece.
But this road had something different from ordinary roads.
Along the path, two long grooves had been carved into the ground.
And the distance between those grooves matched the distance between a cart’s wheels.
In other words, the cart wheels could move efficiently along the grooves—an extremely early feature of what would later become railways.
‘And it’s not just that. There are more examples.’
Around 400 AD, the Eastern Roman Empire had similar cases.
And on the far eastern side of the Eurasian continent, ancient China also had cart roads carved with grooves based on a similar principle.
‘It was during the Warring States period. Even while they bickered and fought wars every day, they used those roads to move large quantities of supplies. And they say each state had different standards for the wheel-groove spacing. To prevent an enemy state that seized their territory from using their cart roads.’
Thus, from the earliest days of history, humanity understood the primitive principle behind railways.
And when that principle met the wave of industrialization,
modern railways finally changed human life forever.
‘The spearhead of industrialization. The engine of economic growth built on mass manufacturing. The foundation of total war. Railways are a necessary element in every one of those concepts.’
It was true.
Of all the transportation methods humanity had—
cars, ships, airplanes, and so on—
you could say without exaggeration that nothing was as efficient as railways.
Cars?
You can get the answer just by looking at Seoul.
When you want to travel across the city,
or go from one end of Seoul to the other,
if someone asks, “Bus only, or subway?”
most people would choose the subway.
And if you’ve ever taken the KTX from Seoul to Busan even once,
you feel the convenience of trains in your bones.
Then what about ships?
‘They can carry huge amounts at once. They’re definitely good. But they’re limited. If there’s no water, you can’t float them.’
That was why ships couldn’t ever take up a large share of transportation within a country’s territory.
‘Planes are the same.’
First, they’re expensive.
Far too expensive.
And because aircraft are extremely sensitive to weight due to takeoff and landing, it’s hard to carry large quantities of cargo at once.
They’re also vulnerable to typhoons and all sorts of bad weather.
Like that, every transportation method had its own strengths and weaknesses.
But railways?
‘If you only care about efficiency, they’re almost a complete package.’
That was how Lloyd saw it.
Like ships, they can move huge quantities at once.
Like cars, you don’t have to worry about traffic jams.
Unlike planes, operations don’t get halted by bad weather.
Cheap, accurate, mass transport.
Railways had that tremendous advantage.
“Provided you can bear the initial cost of building railways, and the cost of the infrastructure that comes with them.”
“The cost of building what you’ve described, this ‘railway’?”
“Yes.”
Lloyd nodded.
He smiled with confidence.
“But Hell Castle won’t be struggling with that kind of cost, will it?”
“Well, no, that’s true, but…”
The King of Hell frowned slightly as he asked,
“Railways. Efficient transport. I get it. But how do you plan to lay it here?”
“Are you concerned about the lava flowing everywhere?”
“Yes.”
The King of Hell’s frown deepened.
“By your explanation, that railway is something you lay by smelting steel. But even if you lay tracks on Hell’s land, where lava is everywhere, it’ll melt in no time.”
“Yes, it certainly will.”
“Then you’re saying you have an alternative.”
“Of course.”
“Can you tell me?”
“That’s a trade secret.”
“You’re not just hiding it because you lack confidence, are you?”
“If you don’t have the confidence to trust me, then don’t hire me.”
“……”
The King of Hell, Hellkaros, looked down at Lloyd in silence.
What kind of bastard was this?
‘Kim Suho.’
The King of Hell was one who could see through the essence of souls.
That was why he knew, to some extent, who Lloyd really was.
That Lloyd—no, Kim Suho—was not a person of this world.
That he was a soul that had crossed dimensions and slipped into this world for some reason.
So it was ridiculous, infuriating, and interesting.
It was ridiculous to see a soul that had slipped in acting so bold.
It was infuriating to see him dare negotiate so brazenly in front of him.
And yet, the concept he explained—this thing called railways—was interesting.
No, it made his mouth water.
‘If what he says is true… hmm. It really could solve the problem here.’
The King of Hell thought.
The principle of railways he’d just heard.
Their strengths and weaknesses.
And among them, how those strengths could solve Hell’s problem.
‘It’s possible. If his words are true.’
All he had to do was modify hundreds of carts and link them in a line.
That would become a train.
And what would power the train?
He could connect pulleys and levers to the wheels.
Load dozens of satans onto it and have them push and pull the levers in shifts.
Like rowing with levers.
The train would move by satanic strength.
‘If we do that, we can escort souls with far fewer satans. Maybe eight thousand? With just that many, we could escort a similar amount of souls as we do now, where eight hundred thousand satans each carry souls in their own carts.’
The King of Hell’s calculations whirred.
Carry many souls with far less manpower.
And the surplus satans left behind?
They could be put to work maintaining the tracks.
No, even then there would still be plenty of surplus satans.
‘We can make them assist with my work.’
Hell Castle had countless miscellaneous tasks.
Assisting with the King of Hell’s judgments.
Organizing records of souls’ achievements and evils.
Assigning the order of souls waiting to be judged.
Even sorting souls after judgment—those bound for Hell, for Heaven, and for reincarnation.
‘We dump all of that on them. And my workload will drop as well. With stable railways, I won’t need to constantly assign new transport routes to those idiots. And if that happens…’
He could be freed from all the drudgery.
All he’d have to do was judge souls.
Only the most basic work would remain.
Which meant…
‘Clocking out.’
Thump!
The King of Hell’s heart pounded out a shy, 32-bit whirlwind beat.
He could clock out.
After 670,000 years.
Free from the endless overtime.
He could finally use the front-door lock on the house whose protective film he hadn’t even peeled off yet.
Open the door and step inside.
At last take off his shoes.
Soak in a warm lava bath.
And spend the entire evening watching fun programs through the magic spirit orb.
HellTube, Hellflix, HellCha, and even the Helliver series.
‘I’ve never lived like that. Not even once.’
Gulp.
Just imagining it made his heart race.
Just thinking about it felt fresh and dizzying.
And he could finally escape the fear that had gripped him.
The predecessor who, after 3.8 billion years of exploitation, fell into depression and committed suicide.
The deep fear of not wanting to become like him.
And the despair of believing he’d never escape that fate.
That was what the King of Hell had lived with until now.
But now?
It was different.
He could feel the storm-cloud anxiety and bleakness he’d carried for so long slowly clearing from his chest.
Maybe that was why.
The King of Hell looked down at Lloyd with a different gaze than before.
And answered with a pleased smile.
“Good.”
“Yes, that means…”
“It means I will trust you, Kim Suho, and entrust the railway construction to you.”
“Thank you!”
Lloyd bowed deeply.
Customers were always welcome.
So next was…
“Then should we draft a construction order contract?”
“Oh, I’d be grateful if you would.”
Lloyd smiled and rubbed his palms together.
As expected of the King of Hell.
They said he was an icon of fair judgment and fair trade.
Even without being told, he brought up writing the contract himself.
‘This is the easiest kind of customer.’
Satisfied, Lloyd said,
“Ah, and there’s one thing I’d like to ask.”
“A request? Of me?”
“Yes. It’s necessary for this construction.”
“What is it?”
“It’s simple. Please spread the news across all of Hell that Lloyd Frontera will be singing at the far edge of Hell.”
“Hmm. That’s not difficult. But is it really necessary?”
“Yes. For smooth progress on the construction, your cooperation is essential.”
“Then I should do it. Fine. I’ll send an official notice throughout Hell.”
“Thank you.”
After that, everything moved swiftly.
Lloyd drafted the construction order contract as he always did.
His side: lay railway tracks where the King of Hell demanded.
The King of Hell’s side: release the soul of the ancient dragon Enticus after the railway construction was complete.
Those were the conditions written into the contract.
Because the terms were simple, there was nothing to negotiate.
They confirmed the contents, signed, and split the copies, and the contract was concluded.
The King of Hell smiled in satisfaction.
“Good. At least we have results in the form of a contract. I wasted about twenty minutes listening to your explanation and signing it, after all.”
“If you say you wasted twenty minutes…”
“That means the soul escort was delayed by that much time. And that much microbial division and reproduction across the world is being delayed.”
“……”
“You could say the probability of a mass extinction due to microbial ecosystem collapse has increased by about one percent.”
“Gah!”
“Why are you so shocked. Now that we’ve made the contract, I’ll send you to the construction site immediately.”
“To the construction site?”
“Yes. If you travel directly, that wastes time. So I’ll send you right away.”
The King of Hell gestured.
Following that gesture, a red ripple formed. It spread. It seeped in, wrapping around both Lloyd and Javier from head to toe.
“You’ll arrive at the far edge of Hell. From there, build the railway and come to this place. Then we will meet again on the day the railway is completed.”
With those words—
Flash!
“……!”
The red ripple around them shone.
It flared like an explosion.
In an instant, everything went black.
It felt like his whole body was lifted into empty space.
His stomach lurched for a moment—
and then his feet landed on unfamiliar ground.
Thud!
“Huh.”
Lloyd blinked.
In one brief flash-and-whoosh-and-thud, the scenery around him had completely changed.
Hell Castle?
That was gone now.
The King of Hell who had been in front of them was gone as well.
More precisely…
“This must be the far edge of Hell the King of Hell mentioned.”
“Yeah. Agreed.”
Javier’s voice came from beside him.
Lloyd felt a bit relieved.
‘He probably sent us here with something like teleportation. Hell is the King of Hell’s territory, after all.’
He looked around.
On the ash-filled plain, there wasn’t a single blade of grass.
Between the cracks, smoke thick with the stench of sulfur rose in lazy plumes.
Here and there, he could see pools of lava that hadn’t fully cooled.
Desolate. Ruined.
A typical Hell landscape.
But behind them, it was a little different.
“So this is the end of Hell.”
“It seems so.”
Lloyd looked at the sight of Hell’s edge.
It was a cliff with no railing, a drop so deep the bottom couldn’t be seen.
Beyond it was darkness itself—absolute void.
‘If you fall in there, I can’t even imagine what happens.’
Let’s never fall in there, no matter what.
Shuddering, Lloyd stepped a full thirty paces back from the cliff.
And then—
Javier asked.
“Sir Lloyd. I have a question.”
“A question?”
“Yes.”
“What is it?”
“Who is Kim Suho?”
“…Cough! Hack—cough!”
“Are you alright?”
“Ah—yeah. I just choked for a second. The air here is really bad.”
“……”
Lloyd tried to play it off.
Javier didn’t laugh.
“No matter how I think about it, something is strange. Earlier, the King of Hell kept calling you by the strange name ‘Kim Suho.’”
“Ah, that?”
“Yes.”
“Yeah, even I think that’s weird. Right?”
“That’s right. You clearly have the name Lloyd Frontera. So you truly don’t know what this ‘Kim Suho’ is?”
“Of course I don’t. You think I’d know? Well, it’s probably just some title they use in Hell.”
“Is that so.”
“Yeah. That’s it.”
“I see.”
“Probably.”
Lloyd smiled.
Careful not to let his lips twitch awkwardly.
Careful not to let the pounding of his heart leak out.
He did his best to keep his expression under control and play dumb.
And he didn’t forget to curse the King of Hell in his head.
‘Damn it. That nearly gave me a heart attack. Is Hellkaros an actual psycho? Why would he go around calling out a man’s real name like that?’
Next time he met Hellkaros, he’d have to keep Javier elsewhere.
That was the vow Lloyd made to himself.
Fortunately, Javier had already moved on to another topic.
“But there’s one more thing I’m curious about.”
“What now.”
“How exactly do you plan to build a railway here?”
Javier gestured at Hell’s vast land.
Ground piled high with volcanic ash.
Ground where lava pooled everywhere.
Land blazing with tremendous heat.
“I heard your explanation to the King of Hell about railways. So I understand a little now. You said the core is laying long tracks matched to the standard of the train wheels.”
“Yeah, that’s right.”
“But looking at this place, I’m not sure the tracks can survive.”
“Yeah, that’s also right. Good question. Keep going.”
“Yes. If we lay tracks made of metal here, I think the heat will melt them. They’ll soften, deform, and then the train won’t be able to move properly, will it?”
“Yeah. Also, the ground here is probably unstable. There’s lava under everything.”
“Then how do you plan to carry out the construction?”
“I’ve got a plan.”
“Does that mean… you scammed the King of Hell?”
“Whoa. Scamming the King of Hell?”
“Yes.”
“What kind of trash do you think I am to even imagine that?”
Lloyd asked, spinning his finger.
Javier answered with a serious face.
“A mean and petty man. A stingy human with no sense of decency. Personally, I think you’re a pathetic scoundrel who does nothing but scheme to the point where I sometimes wonder if you’re even human.”
“……”
“Am I wrong?”
“…You could’ve just broken my bones instead.”
“I can’t do that. Breaking your bones would be insubordination and violence.”
“There’s such a thing as verbal abuse too, you know?”
“That seems to be your specialty, Sir Lloyd.”
“Hey. Saying that to someone as pure and fresh as me—what blasphemy.”
“I don’t know about pure or fresh, but I do know you have unbelievable luck with women.”
“My luck with women? Me?”
“Yes.”
“What does that even—”
“It all burst and disappeared.”
“……”
“Anyway, you’re saying you’ve already thought of a way to build the railway.”
“…After beating me up, don’t just change the subject.”
“I want to change it.”
“Oh my god.”
“Am I not allowed?”
“Fine. Let’s change it. Haa.”
Lloyd let out a hollow laugh.
This bastard was enjoying himself.
He’d gotten so used to serving Lloyd that he’d reached the stage where he actually took pleasure in it.
‘God. I can’t even get rid of him either. Seriously.’
Someday, he would pay this wound(?) back a hundredfold.
Lloyd made that solid vow in his heart.
Then he focused on the problem in front of him.
“So you’re curious about how we’ll build the railway here?”
“Yes.”
“Well, it’s simple.”
Lloyd smiled.
He stated the first method for carrying out the Hell Railway 666 construction project he’d already mapped out in his head.
“First, we gather tens of thousands of those shut-in unemployed satans scattered all around Hell.”