The hours start ticking for the White Gestalt's return.
This chapter contains examples of:
- Adaptational Early Appearance: Larkspur appears as the receptionist in the Elephant Teapot Car's hotel. In Blossoming Trail, she doesn't appear until the car after that, the Cyan Desert Car, at the rest-stop since she's participating in the story festival.
- Adaptation Expansion: The Elephant Teapot Car in this story has a bit more stuff to it: the heroes taking a car that drops them at the front of the hotel, which lets one purchase swimsuits and includes a spa dedicated to using tea products for relaxation.
- Both Sides Have a Point: Ryoken doesn't want Specter on the Train because of how little is known about it, the fact that it turned Specter into a Nervous Wreck, and that Leo Akaba was supposedly on it and got killed. Everyone else retorts that Specter will have company on his trip and that this might be the only thing that can help him work through his traumas.
- Breather Episode: This is what the chapter's supposed to be in theory. In practice, however, the many revelations in here makes it pretty intense regardless.
- Cassandra Truth: A young Mallow tried to explain her adventures on the Train to Ulu, but Ulu takes the story into Pokémon terms and treats it as a story she made up to cope with the death of her mother and not as the actual truth. This caused Mallow to believe that no one would ever believe that she got whisked onto a magical Train and explains why she never fully explained the story to anyone else.
- Does This Remind You of Anything?:
- Amelia states that Aoi Zaisen is the same Blue Angel whom Specter acted like a creepy fanboy towards and placed his seed into, horrifying Asher and Yuri. Through that description alone, she makes Specter sound like he raped Blue Angel (which he technically did).Explanation
- Yuri points out how Ryoken trapped Specter inside a fancy castle like he was a princess, something both Kyoko and Dr. Genome take note of.
- Going with Knight of the Orange Lily having Specter go through steps on finding out his sexuality — the following arc even confirming he's gay — it's really easy to see him leaving Ryoken behind to go back to London (his friend). In fact, Specter joyfully shouting "I AM!" in regards to going back to seeing London again really makes it sounds like he was accepting engagement from the wrestler which everyone takes notice of. London and Specter's talk can be portrayed as two lovers who had to separate coming back once more.
- Ryoken's distates for Specter's "friendship" with London and spittting out that Easter (who is non-binary) with an "it" makes him come off as someone who is not into anyone non-LGBT.
- Failed a Spot Check:
- Mallow's excuse for why she never told her friends about the Train was because Trains don't exist in Alola...only for Yuri and Sophocles to point out that there are trains in Alola.
- London has been taking tabs on Yusaku and it took him until now to realize that the android with Yusaku is Ai once Larkspur notes that Ai has a number on his hand. In London's defense, he only knows Ai in his Ignis from through Specter's memories as Specter got on the Train before Ai got his SOLtis body.
- Fairytale Motif: Yuri states that what Ryoken did to Specter is trap the poor boy in a tower/castle like a princess. Kyoko and Dr. Genome bring their own two cents with the former comparing it to Beauty and the Beast and the latter as Rapunzel.
- For Want Of A Nail:
- Mallow feels so embarrassed for not knowing (somehow) that there are Trains in Alola so her excuse would have fallen flat. She bemoans how the others would've believed her if she knew that tidbit of Alola geography.
- London points out that the Train could've come any time for the other Lost Incident children, or even Aoi, if it chose to. Aoi herself is unsure what to feel about how her favorite book saved her from vanishing onto the therapy train.
- Get a Room!: Jin Kusanagi shouts "Just kiss already!" when he hears London and Specter's talk.
- History Repeats: London notes how the Knights of Hanoi followed a Kougami, sitting back to watch as six children got tortured and did nothing to stop it. Ten years later, they're repeating this same shit again but now they're letting one of their own be trapped without any hope on his end.
- Ignorance Is Bliss: Mallow wishes she got the amnesia treatment like Gladion because the stress of holding this secret for so long and no one to believe it crushed her.Mallow: I wish I did have amnesia like Gladion! Then there would’ve been a valid reason to not be worried about the Train and just let Lillie give away those lilies without giving her a warning about ‘sending your loved one into a bad place’ and not feeling worried for Gladion outside a potential crush on him or something!
- Informed Obscenity: Lexi goes on a big swearing rant towards Specter that is so horrible that Emma has to cover Aoi's eyes and Chloe's red from shock.
- Innocently Insensitive: Ulu assumed that his little sister's story about the Train was a coping mechanism when she got lost in the jungle to help her move on from their mother's death. Unfortunately the Train was real and this assumption made Mallow assume that no one would ever believe the truth.
- In Spite of a Nail: Asher points that even if Mallow tried to tell Lillie about the Train, it all depended on Lillie's decision to accept it as fact since it was ultimately her choice to give the orange lilies that kickstarted Gladion's trip.
- Irony:
- Professor Cerise chose not to give his daughter therapy, and is now given a faux therapy session from his wife about his problems.
- Easter had beef with Lexi for imitating their partner. When they finally meet, not only has Lexi shed off the "Specter" guise, but he has legitimate beef with Specter upon learning how Specter tore a book apart and set it aflame (albeit in VRAINS) to break Aoi's spirit.
- It's All My Fault: Larkspur glumly admits that if she never told Gladion about the Apex, none of the events that happened on his train trip wouldn't have happened.
- A Mind Is a Terrible Thing to Read: Larkspur states that one shouldn't read the mind of a kore, not that it doesn't stop Chloe from attempting it.
- Mood Whiplash: The conference with the Knights of Hanoi, Emma and Aoi go from light-hearted, dramatic, empowering and hilarious in one go. Then, just as everything calms down, Kisaragi calls London to reveal that Queen is dead.
- Mythology Gag: The Red Lotus Uprising are the ones solving the puzzle in the Giant Crossword Car that Tulip was in back in "The Beach Car".
- Necessary Drawback: Yuri ponders that Chloe's cloak has to have one of these, given how overpowered it is otherwise. Unless one counts the potential consequence of somebody reliving their past memories (like Gladion), then we have yet to see such a drawback. So far, it's shown that that Chloe can only enter someone's soul once and that someone is warning her not to be reckless with it.
- Noodle Incident: Chloe starts talking rapidly and hyper to the Den City group to which Atticus remarks that he shouldn't have made her drink a particular tea.
- Pass the Popcorn: Both Kusanagi brothers are testing out their new popcorn machine and begin eating it while watching the drama with Specter, Ryoken and London unfold.
- Schmuck Bait: Larkspur states it's ill-advised to read into a kore's mind. Chloe nearly tries to test it out but everyone else tells her to leave before we learn what would happen if Chloe used the cloak's ability.
- Shown Their Work: That pickled tea leaf salad advertised with garlic and fried beans? It's a Burmese specialty called laphet thoke (which makes sense as the co-author is currently staying in Myanmar and Food Porn is part of her Author Appeal).
- Small Role, Big Impact: Ulu not believing his sister's story as the truth made it so that Mallow could never tell anyone about the Train, meaning that Mallow would never be able to warn anyone, especially Lillie, of the dangers that awaited Gladion.
- Spit Take: Asher does this (through Augustine's body) when he learns that Mallow's partner while on the Train is Tuba...who is currently with Hazel.
- Story-Breaker Power: Chloe's cloak ends up being one of these. The fact that she can easily enter one's soul (even one who's not even on the Train) and figure out their problems would easily kill the drama, so Amelia and Yuri insist that she not use it until they get more answers about it and have everyone not taking part in the conference to drag her to the hot springs.
- Tempting Fate: London hopes that Queen arrives in one piece instead of a body bag. The chapter ends when he gets a call from Kisaragi stating that there's a corpse who matches Queen's description in the Black Market Car...
- This Is Gonna Suck: Easter realizes just what is making Lexi so mad at Specter — hearing that Specter tore apart a copy of a Blue Angel book and let it burn while breaking Blue Angel's Spirit — and hates what's going to happen should Sycamore learn this.
- Wham Line: Just as things are getting ready for Specter to get on the Train, London gets a phone call:London: Hey, rabbit. Something’s up on your protection mission?
Kisaragi: Kinda. Tuba’s fine and Hazel...listen, London, whatever you do, do NOT, leave the 400 Rabbits Car under any circumstances.
London: Why? I’m just going to leave the car for a while to help Gladion and the others get used to the Train again. Your council can take care of everything until I return.
Kisaragi: I-It’s not just that. Some Denizens who reported on the Infinigram found a corpse of a blue-haired woman with green accents in the Black Market Car. It’s been there for weeks and her soul is long gone…
London: (drops his phone, his telekinesis picks it up as he stares at Specter)....What?!
