Three men wearing black suits and black hats visit the residence of lord Mato. Mario welcomes them.
Grey: Little lord.
Mario: Hello, gentlemen.
Grey removes his hat.
Grey: We are deeply sorry for your loss.
Mario replies arrogantly, almost irritated by their presence.
Mario: Get to the point. Why are you here?
Grey puts his hat back on.
Grey: It is a fact that you are the youngest twin of the deceased lord Mato Cadel.
Mario: So?
Grey hands over a document to Mario.
Grey: Just read this.
Mario: What's this?
Mario flips through the document.
Grey: A document containing the rules governing House Daline. Your father must have told you about it.
Mario drops the document in shock.
Mario: (in a depressed tone) So that's how it is.
Grey: We were going to wait until you turned eighteen, but with your father's demise, it couldn't be helped. From now henceforth, you shall no longer be referred to as Mario Cadel of house Daline. You are neither a Daline nor a lord. You are Mario Cadel and nothing more. You are required to vacate the premises within the next three days. Apparently, house Daline has gone into extinction. I'll leave the document with you in case you have anything else you want to check out. We'll take our leave now. Do have a nice day.
Grey and the two other men rise and leave.
Mario:(narrates in a depressed tone) So, that's how it is. I'm the lesser twin. Someone born to serve his older brother. House Rule No. 37: If a set of twins is born to the lord of the house, the youngest twin automatically becomes the lesser twin. I was born to serve... Come to think of it, all I ever did was serve Lukas. I was trained to protect him. With Lukas dead, I've lost my purpose. I'm no longer a Daline or a lord. I'm a nobody. I've lost my identity. Identity? Pfff! All my life, I've been a shadow. Dad didn't even tell me about his plan to attempt a red crossing. He just dismissed the attendants, took Lukas, and left. How could you do this to me, father?
* * * * * * * * * * * * ***
Three days later, Mario packs his bag and heads to Iceberg Town, where his mother's best friend allegedly lives.
Mario boards a train. He takes his seat next to a little boy in the last passenger cart. They happen to be the only ones in the last cart. Mario opens his browser and streams videos reporting the recent series of mystery murders that have been happening at an alarming rate in Malvay. The boy begins to watch from Mario's phone.
Mario looks at him.
Mario: Hey, aren't you too young to be watching this?
Finn: Aren't you too old to care?
Mario: How rude. You're annoying.
Finn: No, I'm Finn.
Mario: Man, you're dumb.
Finn's childish curiosity forces him to abruptly change the subject.
Finn: What's a mystery murder, old man?
Mario: Old man? I'm just sixteen! Well, it's the name given to the increasing rate of unsolved murder cases in Malvay. Some say they saw monsters eating people alive.
Finn: Really?
Mario: Yeah. They used the term "demons", to be precise.
Finn: Woah.
Mario: Don't worry. Demons don't exist.
Finn: What's your name, old man?
Mario: Again, I'm only sixteen. The name's Mario. Mario Cadel of house...
Mario becomes sad. He takes a deep breath and finally lets out a reply.
Mario: ...Just Mario Cadel.
Finn: Okay. I'm Finn Clave of house Frogan. It's a pleasure meeting you.
Mario: Likewise.
They both hear distant screams as the train comes to a halt.
Mario: What happened?
Finn: Maybe it's a monster.
Finn smirks.
Mario: There's no such thing as...
Before Mario could finish his sentence, Finn's head was off his shoulders, with blood spewed all over. Mario becomes terrified and begins to stutter.
Mario:Is this some kind of j... joke? F...f...inn?
A humanoid creature with bright blue eyes approaches Mario with a human hand in its mouth. Mario begins to talk to himself in confusion.
Mario: What is that? Is that a monster?
The humanoid creature glares at Mario.
Purple: So, you're the last one. So young and fresh. The flesh of a teenager is always a delight to the tongue.
Purple munches on the hand before throwing off a large part of it.
Mario: What is this thing saying? Am I the only one left on this entire train? Why is this happening to me? Am I going to die here?
Purple: I'll tell you my name before I eat you, since you're the last one standing. My name is Purple, and I'm about to eat your brains.
Purple begins to walk towards Mario, acting like a zombie, causing him to scream.
Mario: Somebody help me!
The cart door opens almost immediately, and five fully armed soldiers enter the cart in formation.
Soldier 1: Step away from the kid. Show me your hands.
Purple: Okay.
Purple raises his hands slowly.
Soldier 2: Is that blood?
Purple rotates his head 360 degrees on his neck and looks at the soldiers before waving with a sadistic smile.
Purple: Hello.
He rips one soldier's gut open in an instant.
Soldier 1: Shit! Open fire! Open fire!
All four soldiers open fire on Purple until they run out of bullets.
Purple falls on the floor with bullet holes all over his body. Soldier 1 signals Soldier 3.
Soldier 3: Whatever it is, it's dead. I'm going to get the kid.
Soldier 1:.We'll eventually have to get this thing examined. I don't know what it is, but I'm sure someone on top is going to want to see this.
Purple begins to heal as the bullets begin to fall out of his body one by one, while the holes close up. Soldier 1 spots this first and yells.
Soldier 1: Shit! Calvin, get away from there!
Purple: Roo late.
Purple smiles sadistically as he beheads Soldier 3 with his bare hands.
Mario is frozen in fear. He becomes lost in thought.
Mario: What is this? Even bullets can't kill it? Is this really a monster? I have to get away from here!
Mario takes another exit and runs off, heading north. He continues to think hard.
Mario: How can a creature be so strong? I could barely see it move, and it healed so fast, too. Where am I? I need to call for help.
Mario reaches into his pocket and pulls out his phone as he continues running. He looks at his screen.
Mario: Rein? I'm at Rein? It's a ghost town. There are no people here. I have to make a call... No service? At a time like this?
Mario hears Purple's voice from a distance.
Purple: What a naughty boy. You want to play hide and seek? Have it your way, then. Ready or not, here I come!
Unfortunately for Mario, he reaches the end of a cliff. He turns around to change directions but bumps into Purple, who stares at him with absolute delight etched on his face.
Purple: Looks like I found you. Why don't we play another game?
Purple shows Mario a human eyeball and a human heart.
Purple: Guess which soldier owns the heart and which soldier owns the eyeball. If you guess correctly, I'll kill you quickly. If you fail, I'll rip your arms out and make you watch me eat them.
Mario bows his head and begins to beg while crying.
Mario: Please... Please spare me. I... I have nothing left. Please just spare my life.
Purple becomes annoyed. He gnashes his teeth in disgust.
Purple: Oh? You won't play? I'll make your death painful!
Purple grabs Mario's right arm and rips it off his body. Mario screams in excruciating pain. His eyes begin to shut slowly as he falls to the ground, going unconscious.
Before Mario completely loses consciousness, he hears a calm voice say, "Perish''.