Debut or Die - Chapter 464
The fan site manager forgot to breathe as she watched the game screen.
“…”
The screen still showed the dark, secret facility within the game. However, there was no one else but the background. No other characters, BGM, sound effects, filters, or dice. All that remained was a close-up of Seon Ahyeon’s smiling face.
The guard, dressed in a navy uniform and officer’s cap, made eye contact with her beyond the screen. It was as if he was really looking at her.
“…”
The fan site manager swallowed. The mouth on the screen moved.
-You won’t leave, will you?
At that moment, choices appeared. But…
▶[Stay.]
▶[Stay.]
“…?!”
What is this? Why… are they the same?
Is this an error…?
Instinctively, like a modern person, she moved to turn the game off and on again. She clicked the settings icon in the right corner…
-No.
The settings button disappeared.
“…?!”
Click, click. No response from the empty background.
“Uh, what?”
-I don’t want to wait again.
The blond guard was still smiling. The fan site manager froze with her hand on the mouse.
-You’re surprised.
-It’s okay.
-I’ll do it.
At that moment, the choices moved arbitrarily.
▶[Stay.]
▶[Stay.]
“…!!”
After a short confirmation effect, the game continued as if nothing had happened.
-Thank you for staying.
-As you know, I can’t leave.
-From this game…
Seon Ahyeon’s smile slowly faded. The fan site manager screamed.
Why is a game character saying they’re in a game?!
But the guard didn’t stop talking.
-Because you have to avoid or subdue me to clear this game.
-To get out of the facility.
-Or to take that gem.
The guard turned his gaze. Naturally, the screen panned to show the glass case with the brilliant green gem in the middle of the background.
-Cut it out.
The screen flickered, and then, the gem was gone.
“…”
The fan site manager didn’t even have time to be shocked. The screen, edited as if it had been cut off for a moment, returned to a close-up of Seon Ahyeon.
-The gem is gone now.
-The other characters are gone too.
-Let’s play like this.
The guard spoke.
-You try to escape.
-I’ll try to stop you.
-Let’s keep it… that way.
And a dice appeared on the screen. A threshold determining success or failure appeared alongside it.
[Threshold: 7]
“Uh, uh, uh….”
The fan site manager instinctively looked around and then reached for the mouse. As she habitually clicked the dice.
[5]
A number smaller than the threshold of 7 appeared. In that case,
Did I just win…?
At that moment, Seon Ahyeon reached out for the dice on the screen.
“…?!”
Then, he grabbed the dice… and changed the top face!
[8]
-I told you… I’d stop you.
The guard smiled.
[fail]
A red failure effect flashed across The fan site manager’s face.
The guard extended the dice forward again with his gloved hand to the player.
-Roll it.
-Again.
“…!!”
And thus, the maddening story began.
* * *
-W-W-W-What’s with Seon Ahyeon?
-Hidden route, damn it, damn it, damn it.
The fan site manager, trying desperately to avoid spoilers, didn’t know, but the first witness to Seon Ahyeon’s hidden route had appeared around the time she was searching for the true ending guide.
After several attempts, screams began to spread among those who doubted whether it was true or not.
-What’s going on?
-I thought God Bambi’s screen time was short. Was there a hidden route with the guard’s personal story?
Initially, those indifferent to the fact that there was a hidden route began screaming after seeing the route themselves.
-??????
-Save me
-What do I do? What should I do about this?
So, after half a day, everyone understood the situation. TeSTAR’s crazy antics struck again!
-Do you need a different album code to see the hidden route?
-Can anyone lend me their code? I really want to see it.
After various attempts, the additional condition was revealed.
-To enter the hidden ending, use an album code from a different version where the true ending can be seen on the same account.
Emphasizing again, the code used must have seen the true ending. In other words, only those who bought and played different versions of the game and saw the true ending could enter.
-They made it so only true fans can see it.
-I was cursing why Ahyeon had no other outfits in the game. Turns out I just didn’t play enough.
-If you choose the right options, you can enter, right? It’s a game with no control needed.
└There is a luck factor in the true ending, but the playtime isn’t long, so if you skip, it’s quick.
Everyone who attempted it screamed again.
-Wow
–ㅠㅠㅠㅠㅠㅠㅠㅠ It’s so good but so shocking
-These guys are perverts for giving Angel such a role
-If you didn’t know the spoilers, it would’ve been really creepy
Incidentally, the fan site manager, the party involved, was already out of life. Moreover, the cries of those who unintentionally saw it without spoilers were already dominating SNS.
Reactions to such shocks are traditionally entertaining. One of them was a streamer.
[Ah… this is really well-made. Really fitting for the Ruin Factory, no, the industrial complex. Um, the TeSTAR members seem to have almost forgotten that they’re idols.]
This person, after seeing the true ending, regretted not being able to post it as a video due to regulations and tried again with a different version. Of course, there was also the intention to satisfy the new influx of viewers.
[Let’s see the prisoner version, and for the prisoner version, you guys should buy and try it. Well, this is an album, not a game… right, haha.]
While chatting with viewers, this person, unfamiliar with idols, mistakenly mixed up the photocard version.
And then.
-Let’s keep playing.
[…?!]
The streamer’s eyes almost popped out, and the chat filled with question marks was spectacular.
-BJ Doongdoong just stumbled upon the hidden route of Roll the Dice, and chaos ensues.
The fan site manager heard the news and watched an internet broadcast she wouldn’t normally watch with a wistful expression.
Seon Ahyeon’s hidden ending scenario… was indeed hidden.
-Yup.
-Again.
With a maddening dice-rolling game, the protagonist kept losing and being cornered. The locations shifted as if fleeing from the places within the facility shown in the game: the lab, the monitoring room, the hallway, and even the prison. Each time, the guard, sometimes in a prison uniform or thief costume, continued the one-sided dice game with the protagonist.
Then, the player seized a chance. They manipulated the dice, pretending not to notice the guard’s tampering, and rolled them a moment later. Thus, they finally won.
-Oh.
And at that thrilling escape moment, the game returned to normal!
[Ahhhhhhh it worked!!]
The restored game proceeded to the true ending normally… except for one difference. The final attic scene.
-…It feels like someone is speaking to me from within.
-A voice like an old friend.
The player could speak to Bae Sejin in the board game through choices!
[Gasp! Everyone, is this…]
So, in the end.
-…Hey, let me try persuading the guard.
-What?
-Seriously?
Before escaping, the response to guard Seon Ahyeon… could be changed! Instead of Kim Raebin subduing, Bae Sejin would attempt persuasion. However, an extremely harsh restriction was applied.
-Hmm… in this case, the player must roll a ‘1’ for success.
-…!
Only a ‘1’ would succeed. A 1/10 chance.
-Just use him. Strength is better.
-…Speak like a civilized person.
-Creepy guy.
-You idiot.
Ignoring Cha Eugene and Kim Raebin’s bickering, Bae Sejin picked up the fateful dice.
As Seon Ahyeon, the board game master, hid the dice behind his book. Once again, guard Seon Ahyeon’s image overlapped. And then,
-…!
This time, the player could hand over Bae Sejin’s dice to guard Seon Ahyeon, allowing him to manipulate the dice freely.
-…Oh.
So, the result was.
[1]
…A great success for the player.
-…The guard was persuaded… by the hacker.
After a moment of silence.
–Wowww!!
-That’s insane! You’re amazing!
-What about his psycho behavior till now? Is the hacker a counselor?
The high-teen TeSTAR playing the game also went wild over the insane result. Thus, even guard Seon Ahyeon escaped the facility together… ending the game.
-…You and the guard with the mysterious and scary baton… head to the exit.
The board game master’s hand moved. The guard’s card was shown close-up, moving out of the stone walls of the prison on the board game. Leaving this message.
-…Thank you.
[Hidden Ending]
~%EA%B5%AC%EC%A1%B0
“Haa…”
Even seeing it again, it was a beautiful ending…
Immersed in the lingering emotion as if she had watched a drama ending, The fan site manager joined the streamer in watching the ending.
[Wow… so everyone escapes together. They all escape.]
The streamer, also immersed, watched the ending credits, leaving impressions of each member as they appeared.
[Ah~ I think Moondae’s experimental subject character came out really cool, uh, Chungwoo’s action scenes were also great~]
That’s right. The fan site manager nodded, wishing to hear more comments about Moondae.
As the attic version of Seon Ahyeon passed in the credits. The streamer suddenly said something random.
[Ha, but I think… this person is suspicious.]
“…??”
[The game master in the attic running the board game? This person is also guarding Seon Ahyeon, playing a dual role.]
Pardon?
[But he was the only one who had a bad expression in this ending. Does his expression look bad only in the hidden ending, where the guard escapes?]
Huh?
[Yeah, Seon Ahyeon. I think… this person is kind of the real mastermind?]
[Am I overdoing it? Anyway, let me know if there’s a sequel. I’ll play it!]
‘Doongdoong, wake up, this is an album, there’s no sequel,’ a donation message made the streamer laugh heartily. But The fan site manager couldn’t laugh. She realized.
This is a hint.
This… is a hint for the next album’s storyline! So, if that’s the case…
In the ending credits, the scenario part… TeSTAR was listed first.
Did the members plan this…? When did they start planning and creating all this?!
* * *
“Sixty days of hard work… well done, everyone.”
“…”
“…”
There was no response. Everyone seemed like corpses. No, they were practically corpses.
I barely blinked at the manager while lying down. My body, receiving therapy, felt like a water-soaked sandbag.
I need Bacchus. If I could re-roll that trait, I would give up 30% of this settlement. Truly.
I looked around. Everyone was sprawled with faces that seemed ready to faint. Even Cha Eugene, usually brimming with energy, didn’t look like he wanted to open his mouth.
It was crazy. Instead of programmers making the game content, we filmed it ourselves. Alongside preparing for the stage…
If Ryu Chungwoo or Keun Sejin, who filmed a lot of action scenes, planned to assassinate me, it wouldn’t be surprising. The surprising thing is that… those guys weren’t even the MVPs of the hard work. The title would be given to a person over there.
“Hold on a second. I’ll press here.”
“…Ugh.”
Bae Sejin. That guy, looking like he could die any moment, was practically shredded from leading the members and narrating, playing the protagonist in the album game. Literally shredded. Moreover, he had a crucial role before being shredded.
I forced my mouth open. “Hyung.”
“…”
“They’re available, so….”
I couldn’t bring myself to say ‘fortunately,’ but Bae Sejin understood and opened his mouth.
“…Yeah.”
“…”
Oh, who are ‘they’?
The most critical personnel for successfully executing this within the timeline… The filming crew. That was the biggest problem.
Among the fields idols usually ventured into, like variety shows or dramas, we couldn’t use those involving T1’s capital or influence. But there was one field where film experts could cooperate with us.
The film industry. Few idols appeared in films, so T1 hadn’t strategically blocked us in this field like in variety shows or music broadcasts. And Bae Sejin had starred in a ten-million-viewer movie…
Amazingly, that unsociable guy gathered his film industry contacts from his child actor days and brought them in. Those people who filmed the game.
That’s where this crazy operation began.