"How did I get here suddenly? What is this place?"
"Why is there such thick fog around? I can't see anything clearly."
"Have we been chosen?"
"What's chosen?"
"Forbidden Game..."
As soon as these four words were spoken, the surroundings suddenly became quiet. After about a minute, someone couldn't hold it in any longer and burst into tears.
They were currently at bus stop 1044.
It was an abandoned bus stop in the wilderness, swallowed by thick fog. A single weak light flickered above the stop, barely enough to illuminate the small patch of the world they were trapped in.
The people at the bus stop glanced at one another, fear and helplessness mirrored in every set of eyes.
"Ugh… I want to go home. I don't want to die…"
"Why are you crying? You're so annoying." The man leaning against the post suddenly snapped, his eyes sharp and fierce. "If you cry again, I'll kill you myself."
The girl, already terrified from being suddenly pulled into this place, turned even paler. Her lips trembled as she tried to hold back her sobs, but the sound of her muffled crying still escaped.
The man threatening her was huge and burly, wearing a black vest stretched across his chest. His presence was like a wall of muscle and menace. When his gaze swept over the crowd, the others instinctively avoided it, edging away to create distance.
"Pathetic," he muttered.
He shoved a hand into his pocket as though searching for something but, finding nothing, let out a heavy snort and turned away.
For a moment, silence claimed the bus stop.
Finally, a pale young man broke the stillness with a trembling voice: "Why… why me?"
Another boy nearby responded flatly, as though resigned to fate: "Why else? Just unlucky. We were chosen."
At those words, several people stiffened as though struck by lightning. Their faces drained of color.
They all knew what that meant. They had been chosen for the Forbidden Game.
The game of life and death.
Five years ago, the Forbidden Game had appeared in cities all over the world.
Those unlucky enough to be chosen would enter and be forced to participate in dungeon-like trials. The only rule was simple: survive.
Every dungeon was different, but the theme never changed—life or death. Only those who endured could escape, though many found themselves drawn back again and again, unable to escape its grip.
The only restriction was age: no one under ten or over sixty-five would ever be chosen. Beyond that, no one was safe.
At first, humanity had panicked. But over time, they learned to live with the ever-present shadow of the Game. Most people clung to hope that they would never be among the chosen.
But now, here they were—the unlucky ones.
Hell itself had come to claim them.
"Can we survive this?" A girl in a short skirt, clutching a teddy bear bag, grabbed her boyfriend's arm with terror in her eyes.
"Don't be afraid, Ji-hye. I'll protect you," the boy whispered firmly.
Reassured by his words, Han Ji-hye clung to her boyfriend's hand, desperate for security.
But before she could steady herself, a sound cut through the fog—
A laugh.
Light, strange at first. Then louder. Then louder still.
"Hahahaha… hahaha… hahahaha…"
In the oppressive fog, the neurotic laughter made everyone's skin crawl.
Ji-hye's throat tightened. She wanted to scream but could not force a sound out. Her boyfriend, Jang Min-ho, wasn't faring much better. Both of them froze in place, their necks stiff as they slowly turned toward the sound.
The laughter echoed from near the bus stop billboard. The advertisement was smeared with grime and plastered over with crooked posters.
A shadow twitched on the ground beneath it. It swayed in rhythm with the laughter.
Everyone saw it.
Someone broke, shouting in panic: "No… there's supposed to be a protection period for new players! How can there already be a monster?!"
A middle-aged man in a neat suit spoke in a calm but steady voice: "We haven't entered the dungeon yet. Monsters shouldn't appear here."
"…Then if it's not a monster… it's another player?"
But why would a player laugh like that? Were they trying to frighten the others?
The burly man snorted and strode forward, circling the billboard.
There she was.
A girl.
A strikingly beautiful girl, dressed in a long black trench coat. The strange smile faded from her lips as his shadow fell across her. Slowly, she raised her head, dark eyes glimmering faintly under the weak light. Her skin was pale, her expression unreadable, carrying a chilling sense of gloom.
The burly man sneered. "What a joke. Just a girl trying to act creepy."
The middle-aged man stepped closer. "You're… a player?"
The girl tilted her head. Her pale lips curved as she repeated softly: "Player?" She paused, as though thinking carefully, before whispering: "Maybe."
Everyone exchanged uneasy looks.
Was she insane? Or something worse?
"Why were you hiding there?" the middle-aged man asked cautiously.
"Hiding?" Her voice rose slightly, casual but unsettling. "I've been here all along. You just didn't notice me."
Her words left them silent.
The girl stepped out from behind the billboard. Both the burly man and the middle-aged man instinctively kept their distance.
Everyone's eyes followed her.
Finally, she smiled faintly. "Hello, everyone. Nice to meet you."
And for the first time, Yoon Seo-rin truly meant it.