Lee Jung-Hyuk and the other three sat together. Jung-Hyuk asked, "Are you all okay?"
Yun-Ho said, "I… I need to go to the bathroom."
Jung-Hyuk said, "I'll go with you."
Then he turned to Il-hoon and Player 369, "You two stay here and be careful."
Il-hoon replied, "Alright."
At the bathroom, Yun-Ho said to Jung-Hyuk, "Can you come in with me? I'm scared."
Jung-Hyuk reluctantly agreed.
Inside a stall, Yun-Ho suddenly hugged Jung-Hyuk and started crying, "I'm really scared."
Jung-Hyuk patted his shoulder, "It's okay, it's okay."
When Yun-Ho had calmed down, he asked, "Have you ever done it?"
Jung-Hyuk looked confused, "Done what?"
Yun-Ho said, "With a girl… or a boy."
Realizing what he meant, Jung-Hyuk smiled, "No."
Hearing this, Yun-Ho sat on Jung-Hyuk's lap. "Would you give your first time to me?"
The two gazed deeply into each other's eyes.
Before long, the two returned looking exhausted.
Player 94, seeing them return, said to Wu Ji-Xian, "Look at those two. I wonder if they're gay."
Ji-Xian glanced at them, then at the number on the screen. "Only 38 people dead so far. What kind of dog-luck is that, you don't even have to compete."
Elsewhere, Il-hoon saw the two looking so drained and asked, "Did you fight in the bathroom? Why do you look so weak?"
Jung-Hyuk said, "Grown-up business. Kids shouldn't ask too much."
That night, the four sat together, none of them sleeping well.
Meanwhile, outside, Il-hoon's mother, blaming herself for not taking good care of her child and overwhelmed with guilt and stress, chose to hang herself.
Before long, the lights came on and the familiar music played again.
Then, an announcement sounded:
"Shortly, the third game will begin. Contestants who were selected in red yesterday, please follow the staff's instructions. Repeating, the third game will soon begin. Contestants selected in red yesterday, please follow the staff's instructions."
Jung-Hyuk and Player 369 walked over.
Il-hoon said to them, "Good luck. I believe you can do it."
Yun-Ho went up and gave Jung-Hyuk a big hug. "You must come back alive."
Jung-Hyuk gave them one last look before walking away reluctantly.
Soon, they arrived at a huge game arena.
The announcement said: "Welcome to the third game. This game is musical chairs. Repeating, this game is musical chairs. All contestants, please stand outside the red circle line. When the music plays, move around. When it stops, you have 20 seconds to sit in a chair and fasten your seatbelt to succeed. In each round, there will be 5 fewer chairs."
Jung-Hyuk turned to Player 369. "This game doesn't favor you. You're not as strong as those guys, especially Player 123. Be careful."
Player 369 nodded nervously.
The screen showed 46 players.
"Now, the game begins."
As soon as the announcement ended, the children's song The Radish Song played.
An eerie atmosphere filled the air.
Everyone focused intently on the music.
The music stopped. Lights flashed. A 20-second countdown began. Everyone charged forward like mad.
Jung-Hyuk rushed to a chair, quickly pulled Player 369 down into it, and fastened her seatbelt. After helping her, he went to sit in another chair, but a strong man shoved him to the ground.
Seeing time almost up, Player 369 pointed, "There's still a seat over there! Go!"
"5… 4… 3… 2—"
At the last second, Jung-Hyuk sat down and fastened his seatbelt.
The masked men fired their guns, killing several who failed to get a chair.
The announcement listed eliminated players: "Player 50, Player 311, Player 258…"
Then came:
"Important notice: While the field is being cleared, please wait patiently."
The screen showed 40 players.
Soon, the second round began. The same children's song played.
The music stopped. Jung-Hyuk pulled Player 369 along, and they sat down together just in time, fastening their seatbelts.
Seeing time running out, Ji-Xian kicked away the player next to him and took the seat.
Gunshots rang out again. More players were eliminated.
The screen showed 31 players.
The third round began.
Even before the music stopped, Ji-Xian shoved over the player beside him. People toppled like domino blocks.
The music stopped. Jung-Hyuk quickly pulled Player 369 to run. On the way, she was knocked down. Jung-Hyuk turned back to pull her up. "Hurry! We're out of time!"
He helped her secure a chair, then sat down himself. The person next to him kept shoving him, but thankfully his seatbelt held him in place.
Elsewhere, Player 300 found a seat but was suddenly shoved to the ground by Ji-Xian, who took it for himself.
Lying on the ground, Player 300 said, "You bastard. Even if I die, I won't forgive you."
Time ran out. Player 300 died.
The screen showed 24 players.
Once the seatbelts were released, Jung-Hyuk asked Player 369, "Are you okay?"
"I… I'm fine," she replied.
Jung-Hyuk smiled, "What's your name, anyway? I still don't know."
"I'm Kim So-Yeon," she said.
Jung-Hyuk smiled at her.
The fourth round began.
Listening to the eerie music, Jung-Hyuk felt growing unease.
When the music stopped, everyone rushed forward. Jung-Hyuk and So-Yeon were knocked down. Ignoring the pain of being trampled, Jung-Hyuk pulled So-Yeon toward a chair. She quickly found one and sat.
Jung-Hyuk lunged toward another empty chair. Just as Player 223 was about to sit, Jung-Hyuk slammed into him, knocking him aside. Sitting down, he closed his eyes and whispered:
"Sorry… I just want to live too."
The screen showed 19 players.
The final round began. Everyone was tense to the extreme.
The music stopped. Chaos erupted. Some were pushed to the ground and mercilessly trampled.
Jung-Hyuk and So-Yeon found seats and fastened their belts.
Just as So-Yeon was about to fasten hers, Ji-Xian ran over and yanked her to the ground.
Jung-Hyuk was about to get up to help, but So-Yeon was suddenly carried off by another man, disappearing from his view.
As time ended, Jung-Hyuk listened to the gunshots around him, his body trembling uncontrollably.
Unfastening his belt, Jung-Hyuk shouted at Ji-Xian, "You piece of trash!"
Then he punched him hard.
The masked men stepped in to stop him. Just as his rage overwhelmed him, Jung-Hyuk saw So-Yeon in the distance.
"She's alive," he thought.
Only then did he calm down.
By the end of the game, only 9 people remained.
Back in the dorm, Il-hoon and Yun-Ho were worried about Jung-Hyuk and So-Yeon.
The small door opened. Il-hoon and Yun-Ho stood at the front. They saw Jung-Hyuk and So-Yeon return. Il-hoon rushed to hug Jung-Hyuk, who looked at Yun-Ho with a helpless expression.
Back at their bunks, Il-hoon said, "I knew you two wouldn't die that easily."
They shared an awkward smile.
Yun-Ho looked at Player 40. "And who's this?"
So-Yeon introduced him. "Oh, this is the man who saved me just now."
Jung-Hyuk said, "Yeah, in the last moment he scooped up Player 369. It even startled me."
Il-hoon asked, "So you picked her up and ran her to a chair?"
Player 40 replied, "That's right."
Soon after, the masked men distributed food.
Ji-Xian looked at the screen showing "25 players" and the prize money "43.1 billion won."
He said to Player 94, "Only this few eliminated? How about we do something tonight?"
Player 94 replied, "No way. How can you be sure you won't be killed? You almost died yesterday. Did you forget? I was the one who saved you."
Hearing that, Ji-Xian continued eating.
Elsewhere, Jung-Hyuk said to Il-hoon, "In that game just now, Player 123—your dad's friend—pulled Player 369 off her chair. If it weren't for Player 40, we might not be seeing her now."
"That idiot," Il-hoon said.
Then, the announcement sounded:"Lights will go out in 30 minutes. Please prepare to sleep."
Jung-Hyuk said, "When the lights go out, who knows if they'll do the same as last night. Everyone needs to be careful."
Yun-Ho said to Jung-Hyuk, "You need to watch yourself. See that Player 223? He's been staring at you since we got here."
Jung-Hyuk glanced at Player 223 and felt a trace of unease.
That night, Il-hoon sat on his bed, unable to sleep.
Jung-Hyuk came over. "You okay?"
Il-hoon looked at him. "I… I'm fine."
"Why did you come here? You're still so young, and you're not short of money," Jung-Hyuk asked.
Il-hoon replied, "I've had enough of that home. I can't stand another minute there. Since I was little, my parents only cared about my grades, never about me. Here, I felt a bit of love. If I die here, I have no regrets."
Jung-Hyuk gently patted his back. "Get some sleep."
Il-hoon nodded.
When Jung-Hyuk returned to his bed, he found Player 223 standing there with a glass bottle.
Jung-Hyuk asked, "W-What are you doing?"
Player 223 didn't answer, just stared at him.
Suddenly, he swung the bottle at Jung-Hyuk. "You selfish bastard!"
Then Player 223 pinned Jung-Hyuk to the ground. "Go to hell, you son of a—"
Before he could finish, there was a sharp crack—and blood gushed from Player 223's neck.