Chapter Text
The PA, interrupting Gihun’s train of thought, announces, “Cross the finish line without getting caught in five minutes. If you do, you pass.”
Gihun realizes he’ll have to create a new plan, one without the help from others, but one that involves trust. This will be tricky.
Gihun runs and shoves people out of his path, praying that they will follow him. He’s not the religious type, but he’s really hoping someone is up there; this might be the only way to save them.
“EVERYONE! EVERYONE, LISTEN UP! PAY ATTENTION!” Gihun yells.
The arena quickly falls silent.
“THIS IS NOT JUST A GAME! IF YOU LOSE THE GAME, YOU DIE!”
Jungbae scoffs. ‘He must be joking, right?’ Jungbae thinks to himself.
The arena is quick to respond, doubting Gihun’s words. Some players start to get anxious, while others are in disbelief.
Guem-Ja chuckles at his words. “What is he saying?” Geumja says to Yongsik.
“Hey! What are you talking about? We’re going to die playing Red Light, Green Light?” Eunju retorts.
“IF THEY CATCH YOU MOVING, THEY WILL KILL YOU! THEY WILL SHOOT YOU FROM SOMWHERE!” Gihun yells. ‘Are these people going to believe me or not!’ Gihun thinks to himself.
“That guy must be drunk,” Mina whispers to Thanos, who’s already doubting whether to listen to this man or not.
“STAY ON YOUR FEET!” Gihun commands.
“He says they’ll shoot us if we lose,” Mina says.
Thanos was actually scared of dying; he couldn’t accept that risk. But instead of showing that he is scared, he bottles it up. Like always.
“He sounds like my old man when he gets home drunk and starts talking crazy. Says there’s a freaking bug in his head,” Thanos chuckles.
“IF YOU GET CAUGHT, YOU DIE! THAT DOLL’S EYES ARE MOTION DETECTORS!. ” Gihun yells hoarsely. At this point, if he continues to yell, he’ll lose his voice. Which means, he won’t be able to help these people.
“See? Talking about devices, "Thanos says to Mina. ‘Maybe she’ll like me even more if I seem fearless and if I continue to talk with her,’ Thanos says in his mind.
“STAY LIGHT ON YOUR FEET,” Gihun commands, once again knowing that people think he’s crazy. But he’ll make sure to keep these people safe; they just have to listen to him..
“We might get to join Dad today.” Yong-Sik jokes.
‘Ay Gihun, what am I going to do with you?’ Jungbae says in his mind.
“What the hell are you talking about? I think 456 is trying to scare us so he can win the prize money.” Player 066 accuses.
The majority of the players sided with 066’s remark, while others were watching everything unfold.
“Don’t pull any tricks, asshole!” Namdu adds on to his ally’s statement.
“YOU HAVE TO BELIEVE ME—PLEASE, JUST LISTEN!” Gihun pleads. But it was already too late. The game was starting.
The doll’s body slowly turns around, facing the same tree that has witnessed multiple people’s deaths. The tree that has heard the cries, the weeps of people's final moments, begging not to kill them.
They were always watching. All of these players were just some toy, something worthless to manipulate and break. That’s peak entertainment for the people controlling these games. They liked seeing humans getting destroyed, broken to the point they lose their morals.
And Gihun, Gihun wouldn't let them strip their humanity away.
“DO NOT BE ALARMED OR PANIC! NO MATTER WHAT HAPPENS, I REPEAT, DO NOT PANIC AND START RUNNING!” Gihun shouts.
The PA announces, “Let the games begin.”
5:00 minutes on the clock—5 minutes to save them.
“Green light… red light,” the doll sings innocently.
“FREEZE!” Gihun commands.
Despite the vast majority of players still thinking Gihun is crazy, they don’t have the guts to refuse his plan.
Gihun would signal when the players freeze, when the doll says red light, or continue, when the doll says green light, using his arms to guide the players to success.
Using its embedded cameras in its eyes, the doll quickly scans the room, ensuring no players are moving.
The players freeze under Gihun’s command, afraid of the consequences if they don't follow instructions. The doll's gaze made people’s spines shiver in fear.
“WELL DONE! YOU NEED TO STAY CALM LIKE THIS. WE JUST HAVE TO MOVE AND STOP AT THE RIGHT TIME!” Gihun yells.
4:48 minutes left.
“What’s with him?” Jungbae says.
“Do you know him?” Yeongsam asks Jungbae.
Junbae would have said he knew him before, but during these circumstances, he lies and says, “No, I don’t.”
Gihun interrupts their conversation by yelling, “THEN WE CAN ALL WIN! WE CAN SURVIVE TOGETHER!”
“Green light…red light,” the doll sings once more.
“FREEZE!” Gihun commands once again. ‘Maybe I shouldn’t have chosen to help these people out. My throat is going to hate me so bad if I continue,’ Gihun thought to himself.
Jungbae flinched at the sound of his best friend’s voice. ‘At this rate, he’ll have voice problems, and I’ll have hearing problems,’ Jungbae thought to himself.
The doll’s eyes scan the arena once more. The room now smells heavily of sweat from all the people huddled together.
“DON’T MOVE AND STAY STILL, PEOPLE!” Gihun commanded.
“Cut it out. It’s you that’s scaring me!” Junbae mutters
“Speak with your mouth covered. It’s dangerous.” Gihun commands.
3:50 minutes left.
“Green light….red light,” the doll sang with an even faster pace.
Everyone else moved ahead except Gihun.. He stood in place, not even moving his body except for his arms.
Junbae was confused, ‘Why wasn’t he moving?!’ Jungbae thought. “Why aren’t you moving, Gihun?!” Junbae shouted.
“FREEZE!” Gihun shouts. Ignoring his friend's question.
“Green light….red light,” the doll sang.
This time, Gihun finally moved his stiff body and faced his best friend, covering his mouth, shouting, “FREEZE!”
“Are you crazy?!” Junbae whispered loudly.
“I said COVER YOUR MOUTH!” Gihun firmly yelled
“Green light…red light,” the doll’s voice was becoming unbearable.
“Follow me!” Gihun said in a hushed tone to his best friend. Urging him to listen. His best friend listened without any hesitation.
“Green light…red light,” the doll sang.
“FREeZE!” Gihun’s voice cracked. His voice was killing him.
People stood so still that their bodies were like statues.
“Green light…red light,”
“Freeze! Nobody move!” Gihun yelled; his voice couldn’t take it anymore.
“Is he high or what?” Mina asked Thanos.
“Nope. No one is like that when they’re high.” Thanos assured her.
“You’ve been high?” Mina asks.
A bee is flying by, slowly approaching Mina.
“You interested?” Thanos jokes.
The bees’ buzzing continues to get louder and louder. Approaching Mina even faster, flying around her. Thanos is just glancing at Mina’s neck, quietly staring at her complexion.
“What’s that noise?” Mina whispers.
“He knows you’re a flower. There’s a bee on you.” Thanos whispers back.
“A bee..? A BEE?!” Mina yells. She starts screaming and shrieking. All the players' eyes land on her. Mina then realizes that she was moving during a red light.
“Crap. I just moved.” Mina says sarcastically.
A bullet is then lodged in her forehead. Everyone could hear the bullet cracking her skull and going inside her brain. Blood sprays everywhere. It especially splatters on Thanos’s face. Her body falls to the ground, making a loud thud when it finally hits the ground.
Thanos is left in shock. He couldn’t even take her on a proper date. He couldn’t even properly show his love for her. All he could do now was just stare at her lifeless body.
Gihun saw how the people reacted when Mina was just shot. He had to act quickly or else there would be more deaths.
“NOBODY MOVE, YOU MUST NOT MOVE!” Gihun yelled.
‘The people couldn’t act like they were frightened. That’s what the game developers wanted. They wanted people to go insane and lose their sanity by enforcing more deaths,’ Gihun thought to himself.
The PA announced, “Player 196 is eliminated.”
The doll’s eyes continued to search for more people moving, hoping to find its next kill.
“Jungbae, no matter what happens, don’t move,” Gihun says sternly.
Thanos looks at Mina’s body one last time while still being in shock at what just happened. Her eyes were still open but lifeless. Blood is spilling out of her forehead. The bee… The bee is just walking all around her face!?’ Thanos thinks to himself.
“Do not move!” Gihun shouts.
The bee is still buzzing around all the players who were near 196’s body. The bees’ buzzing grew louder and louder, distracting those trying to stay focused on the game.
Little did they know that paying attention to the buzzing noise would actually kill them.
Player 283 screamed at the sight of the bee, and a bullet was shot right in the middle of her chest. She died because of a bee.
Her scream startled the other players, making them realize the severity of these games if not taken seriously. This prompted them to start running and clawing, trying to escape the mess they had ended up in.
One by one, players were shot. Blood started taking over the arena. This reminded Gihun of the last time he played Red Light, Green Light. He had been so clueless back then; he didn't understand how severely these games could change a person. He understood it after witnessing people killing out of greed. People had killed his friends out of greed. Now that he knows what these games can do to a person, he must save his friend from this place.
“No! DON’T MOVE! STAY STILL!” Gihun shouted.
But they let fear control them. More and more people were getting shot by the second. No matter how hard Gihun begged for them to listen..It was already too late.
All remaining players could hear bullets being shot and blood-curdling screams from other players who didn’t follow Gihun.
“YOU WILL DIE IF YOU MOVE! DON’T MOVE! KEEP YOURSELVES STILL! DON’T MOVE, PLEASE!!” Gihun begged. This only made people more frightened. Players were dropping drastically.
“DON’T MOVE, PLEASE!!” Gihun screamed. Players were clawing at the door, hoping that the door would open. But the door never did.
“FREEZE!” Gihun shouted once more. One player finally listened after panicking. He thought he was safe until a bullet was lodged in the back of his head. His eyes rolled all the way around, blood gushing out of his eyes.
3:15 minutes left.
The PA announced, “Let me repeat. You can move forward while the tagger shouts, “Green light, red light”. If your movement is detected afterward, you will be eliminated.”
“Green light….red light,” the doll sang cheerfully as if it didn’t kill hundreds of people.
Thanos couldn’t take this anymore. He opened the hidden compartment from his cross necklace and popped one colorful pill right into his mouth.
2:47 minutes left.
People were so stunned at how many people had died in one single game that they couldn’t even move.
“You will also die if you don’t make it there in time! That doll is a motion detector, but it can’t detect motion that’s not visible to it!” Gihun yelled.
Gihun then puts one arm behind his back and opens and closes his hand to show how the doll can’t detect movement, it can’t see.
“Get behind someone bigger than you! Like you’re doing ‘Follow the Leader’!” Gihun ordered. The players hurried to follow Gihun’s instructions.
2:18 minutes left..
“We’re running out of time! WE'VE GOT TO MOVE!” Gihun shouts.
“Green light…red light,”
“Get behind me,” Yongsik says to his mom, forcing her to go behind him so she can survive.
“Gihun, *huffs* I’ll stay close to you now,” Junbae says.
Unfortunately, player 188’s hand couldn’t stop shaking from fear. That meant she was moving during a red light. BAM, a bullet was shot straight at her, right between her eyebrows.
“Green light….red light,”
“Green light….red light,”
Player 222 grabbed her stomach tightly. Her stomach was killing her. She was moving, but since everyone is in lines starting from smallest to biggest, she was safe. ‘Why is my baby acting up in the worst moment possible?!’ Juhhee thought to herself.
“Are you okay? Get close to me.” Geumja whispers to Junhee.
“Do not move! Freeze!” Gihun shouts.
Thanos, on the other hand, was in his own world. Those drugs finally kicked in, and he was seeing stars now. Mina’s death was pushed aside, and now he only cares about winning.
Driven by impulse, Thanos pushed the remaining players in his line straight to the floor. One by one, all of those players were shot.
Now, all of this was just a game for Thanos. Thanos was having a great deal of fun. He didn’t care about the deaths of others; he was alive.
More players died, each one by one, bullets being shot either in their head or body.
Luckily, Gihun and Jungbae made it out. Players were almost there. Right there near the finish line. Time was quickly running out; there were still some people who were way too far away from the finish line. Gihun had to act quickly.
“He-lp..me..” Namdu begged. His leg was extremely injured from getting shot in the leg. Gihun had two options: one, to save him. Or two, leave him there to die. Gihun had to go with option one. Save him.
But there were fewer than 30 seconds on the clock. ‘How can I save this man with less than 30 seconds on the clock!?. Think Gihun, think!’ Gihun thought to himself.
Gihun decided to risk his own life to save someone else’s life.
“Green light…red light,”
“HEY! WHERE ARE YOU GOING?!” Jungbae yelled, hoping Gihun could hear him over all his thoughts.
Gihun ran and ended up right in front of Namdu just in time.
“I’ll help you. Get up on this turn.” Gihun whispered to Namdu. Namdu could only nod in agreement.
“Green light…red light,”
Gihun quickly dragged Namdu up and helped him get back on his feet until..
Gihun’s foot almost slips, but player 124 was quick in response and grabbed both of them. Saving them from getting shot.
This makes Gihun remember the last time he almost fell, until someone was there to save him: Ali Abdul. Player 124 was just like him, except in another body. Ali saved Gihun by holding him with just 2 fingers!. Now that he was in Ali’s situation, he realized how hard it is to actually grab someone in general, let alone in a life-or-death situation.
5 seconds remaining…
“Green..”
4
'“Light..”
3
“Red..”
2
Gihun and Hyunju throw themselves just in time. They made it. They’re not dead!.
1
"Light,"
0
Gihun breaks the heavy silence by asking, “Are you guys okay? *huff*”
“Thank you..Thank you!” Namdu cried. Little did they know that 2 seconds later, a bullet would shoot right through his head..
“Player 444 is eliminated.” The PA announces.
Gihun is confused. ‘He crossed the finish line.. Why did they shoot him!?’ Gihun thought to himself. Hyunju thought the same thing.
Gihun realizes that the walls are closing in. They had a real sky, but a fake environment. Everything was becoming dark once the ceiling finally absorbed all the light from the arena.
They survived. Most didn’t. The room was dead silent; nobody wanted to speak of what happened to those players. Gihun felt a mix of relief and guilt, knowing they had escaped while others perished. Everyone was exhausted, even from that game.
On the other hand, Thanos was in his own world while playing. Namgyu, who was sort of worried, asked, “You’re not feeling well?”
“Don’t worry,” Thanos responded.
“What?” Namgyu asked, seeking clarification because he didn't understand him.
“I’m okay,” Thanos assured him, knowing that he mentally wasn’t okay. He was still trying to process everything, but the drugs were blocking out how he truly felt.
“Gihun. What the hell is that creepy doll? It shoots people with its eyes?” Jungbae asks.
“It’s not the doll. There are shooters,” Gihun responds exhaustedly.
“How do you know so much? Have you really been here before?” Jungbae asks for reassurance. Seeking the truth from his best friend.
The alarm buzzed, interrupting their conversation before Gihun could respond.
Players were murmuring in fear once the pink guards walked in. Not knowing what they were going to do.
“Congratulations for making it through the first game. Here are the results of the first game.” The masked officer said in a monotone voice.
A huge screen directly above the masked officer showed the initial total of 456 people, which had dropped drastically to 365.
“Out of 456 players, 91 players have been eliminated. Three hundred sixty-five players have completed the first game. Congratulations again for making it through the first game.” The square officer continued.
“Sir! Please don’t kill us!” Geumja pleaded while grabbing on tightly to her son, Yonsik.
“Please don’t kill us. I beg you! As for my son’s debt, I will do whatever it takes to pay you back! PLEASE FORGIVE US!” Geumja begged while kneeling and bowing before them.
“Don’t just stand there. Beg for forgiveness!” Geumja cried to her son. Yonsik quickly joined his mom, dropping to his knees and begging for forgiveness.
“There seems to be a misunderstanding,” the masked officer says.
Soon after players witnessed two players begging for forgiveness, others would start to beg too. More and more people begged for forgiveness, hoping that something would happen.
“We are trying not to harm you. We are presenting you with an opportunity,” the masked officer reassures the players.
“Clause three of the consent form. “The games may be terminated upon a majority vote.” Correct?” Gihun states. Gihun sounded just like Sangwoo when he was in the games. Sangwoo was his idol, after all. But when he died, grief hit him hard, especially following his mother’s death. However, he couldn’t grieve right now; he had to focus on getting the players out of here first.
“That is correct,” the masked officer acknowledged.
“Then let us take a vote right now.” Gihun counters.
“Of course. We respect your right to freedom of choice,” the masked officer says.
The players sigh in relief, this might be their chance to go home!.
“But first, let me announce the prize amount that’s been accumulated.”
In one click of a button, an empty piggy bank comes down from the ceiling. Hundreds of cash stacks are being dropped right into the piggy bank. It shone like the sun on a sunny day.
“The number of players eliminated in the first game is 91. Therefore, a total of 9.1 billion won has been accumulated. If you quit the games now, the 365 of you can equally divide the 9.1 billion won and leave with your share.”
“How much is that?” Jeongdae asks the masked officer.
“Each person’s share would be 24,931,500 won,” the masked officer responds.
“Fuck. We almost died, and they’re giving us 24 million? That’s fucking bullshit,” Namgyu says to Thanos, clearly stressed out about the amount. ‘This will barely let me pay my debts!’ Namgyu thinks to himself. He’s so fucked if the people stopped the games now.
“20 million won? You said 45.6 billion!” Thanos argues.
“The rule is that a hundred million won will be accumulated for each eliminated player. If you choose to play the next game and more players get eliminated, the prize amount will increase accordingly,” the masked officer replies.
“How much will it be if you survive until the end?” Player 100 asks.
“As I already told you, the total amount of prize money for all 456 players is 45.6 billion won. Those who make it through all six games will equally divide the 45.6 billion won,” the masked officer repeats.
“So if you’re the only one to survive, you get 45.6 billion?” one player asks.
“That’s correct,” the masked officer confirms.
The players were stunned at hearing this news. But yet again, if there is only one player left in the games, that one person gets all the money.
“So we can take a vote again and decide to leave after the next game?” Player 198 asks.
“As promised in the consent form, you can take a vote after each game and decide to leave with the prize money accumulated up to that point. We always prioritize your voluntary participation. Now, let’s begin the voting,” the masked officer announces.
“If you wish to continue the games, press the O button. If you wish to end them, press the X button. The vote will be held in reverse order of your player numbers. Player 456, please come up and cast your vote,” the masked officer adds on.
As Gihun walks up to the front, he is the first person to cast a vote. Blue and red lights shine right on his face. Leaving him two options: One, to continue. Or two, end the games.
“It’s all pointless! You didn’t decide when to come into this world, and you can’t decide when you leave it either. When and where you die were already decided by the gods the moment you were born. No matter how hard you try, you can never escape it.” Seonnyeo delivers.
The same lady who stopped Gihun and knew about how he played these games before. That was eerie, but Gihun can’t just let her win. So, he’ll try to ignore whatever she says and try to focus on the games.
A red light casts over Gihun’s face as he chooses to stop playing. He’s hoping to stop these games early, so not so many people have to die.
“Once you finish voting, put the patch you are given on the right side of your chest and stand on the side you have chosen,” the masked officer clarifies.
X(1):(0)O
‘Hopefully, everyone gets to go home early,’ Gihun thought to himself.
As more people cast their votes, more patches are distributed. The numbers are gradually increasing on both sides.
X(51):(47)O
So far, it seems like people who want to end the games are winning!. Until they look at the screen 6 minutes later.
X(87):(93)O
If O wins, there will be more deaths for cash. Greed will take over the players if they continue.
As it seems the O side is winning, Gihun announces something in a last attempt to try and save them.
“Wait a minute, everyone! You can’t do this. Come to your senses! Don’t you see? These aren’t just any games. We will all die if we keep playing! We have to get out of here now. With a majority vote, we can! We must stop here!” Gihun comments.
“Who do you think you are? Why do you keep egging people on like that? You scared us by saying they’d shoot us before the game began!” Player 100 yelled.
Gihun couldn’t just tell them he played these games before. That would’ve been a death wish. But given these circumstances, the truth would have to be told.
“That’s right! He was going on about how we’d die, and I almost died because I got so nervous!” Player 234 adds on to Player 100’s claim.
“How did you know they were going to shoot us? Are you one of them?” Yeongsam asks Gihun.
“Are you conning us all by pretending to be a player? Who is this guy? Did you plant him to mess with our heads?!” Player 100 accuses.
“That’s uncalled for. We wouldn’t have won the game AND survived if it weren’t for him! And you! I saw how scared you were. Your legs were shaking. You should thank him, not treat him like a fraud!” Jungbae snaps back in defence.
“Who the hell are you? Are you conspiring with him?” Player 226 counters.
“Rude. How old are you?” Jungbae asks.
“Older than you. What are you going to do? WHAT?” Player 226 snaps.
“Come on now. Please don’t do this. Listen! None of us would be alive if it weren’t for this gentleman. So enough with the greed. Let’s put our lives first and get out of this place! Okay?” Geumja cried.
“That’s right!” Jungbae agreed.
“Let’s all get out of here!” one man cried.
After Geumja’s speech, everyone was moved. Everyone wanted to get out of here. But yet again, not everyone wanted to leave.
“No, we have to keep playing!” Jeongdae argues.
Everyone was bickering over staying or leaving. The pressure was overwhelming. Stressful even!. The pressure was too much for Gihun; he had to reveal his secret.
“I’VE PLAYED THESE GAMES BEFORE! I have done this before! I knew about the first game because I had played it before! I played the games here three years ago! And everyone who was with me…DIED HERE!” Gihun cried.
Everyone was shocked. If they died..that means they will die too. Players couldn’t believe it.
“Hold on. If they all died, how did you survive alone? Wait, are you saying you were the sole winner?” Yeongsam asks.
Gihun struggled to answer that but said, “That’s right, I was the final winner.” Gihun continued, “If we continue the games, every single person here, just like the people back then, will die in the end.”
“Bullshit. If you were the sole winner, it means you won 45.6 billion won. If you really did, why would you come back here?” Player 100 argued.
“That’s right! He’s lying! Cut the crap!” one player added.
Everyone was now attacking Gihun, calling him selfish and a liar. When in reality, he wanted to help these people survive.
Thanos eventually stepped in and announced, “If you really won, it actually works better for us. You can actually give us some tips on how to beat these games.”
This helped de-escalate the argument with Gihun.
“That’s right! We have a previous winner with us, so what do we have to worry about? Come on, let’s do this!” Jeongdae cheers.
Everyone who was arguing with Gihun has now changed their minds and realized Gihun could actually benefit them.
“Let’s make some money!” Yeongsam cheered.
The whole O side cheered for Gihun. But Gihun wasn’t happy.
“Please, I’m begging you. We have to get out now!” Gihun begged.
“If we keep playing, more people will die. That could be you. We have to stop this now and get out of here. Everyone–” A gun was right on his back. Stopping Gihun from spreading his message.
“From here on, we will not tolerate actions that disrupt the voting process. Now, let’s resume the vote,” the masked officer said.
The numbers continued to increase after every vote. Every vote put the players on edge, especially Gihun. The numbers were finally tallied up.
X(182):(182)O
One player breaks the tie. 001. The first player. The person who decides the player's fate of leaving or staying. He picks a side.
X(182):(183)O
The games continue.
The O side cheers while the X side accepts their fate. Gihun couldn’t believe it, ‘Why would he continue?!’ Gihun thinks to himself. Red and blue lights mix, blending with one another. 001 stares directly at Gihun, who’s so upset and confused that he can’t even look directly back at him. 001 smirks at Gihun’s defeat. Gihun is confused; he wasn’t there during Red Light, Green Light. If he had been there, Gihun would have recognized his face. Why does he look so familiar? Why would he continue these games?