After all the filming ended and even while we were leaving the set, Kang Hyunjin didn't say a single word.
I watched Kang Hyunjin, who left the filming site first with a dark expression, but no matter how much the other trainees called out to him, he never once looked back.
'…Ha.'
Watching Kang Hyunjin's retreating back, I had to press down on my throbbing head. If this incident caused the recently cooperative Kang Hyunjin's attitude to change, it would cause problems in the upcoming performance stages.
'…I'm a bit worried about his mental state, too.'
In the follow-up short-form shooting, Kang Hyunjin, who had fallen back a row, did manage to match the beat with the staff. But, as expected, his signature expressiveness still hadn't returned.
The suggestion to switch him out came from the center of the short-form shoot this time, but if Kang Hyunjin's condition continued, even the main stage center position might have to be changed. And Kang Hyunjin would never accept that.
My head kept growing more complicated, but the hardships of the mid-evaluation day didn't end there.
Because at night, right after finishing the short-form filming, another mini-segment was prepared for the show's ice-breaking portion.
"Hello,
"Hello!"
Responding to the MC's cheerful greeting, the trainees who had finished their short-form shoots gathered again in the auditorium after changing back into their practice clothes.
In the auditorium, like a school classroom, thirty desks and chairs were arranged, and on each one lay a sheet of paper titled "My Life Graph."
Looking at the trainees holding pens, the MC explained.
"This mini corner is 'My Life Graph.' Since many Idol Makers are curious about the boys of
The MC said this, then looked over all the trainees once. And then—
"…No matter what happens, each of you must perfectly complete your graph. Be careful: any trainee who fails to finish will be given a punishment!"
—he said, and then immediately walked backstage alone.
'…A punishment for not being able to draw a life graph?'
Watching that, I couldn't help feeling uneasy. The segment was far too bland to make for a mini-corner, and I had no idea what kind of entertainment they expected to get out of this in the first place.
And honestly, was it even necessary to drag all thirty trainees to this huge auditorium? If they wanted some wholesome, cute footage, they could've just filmed everyone drawing in their own practice rooms.
'If so, then only one possibility remains.'
Staring blankly at the white sheet, I soon picked up my pen.
Barely a few minutes after the trainees, conscious of the cameras scattered around and chatting among themselves, started drawing their life graphs—
Pop—
"Huh?"
"Wh-what the—?"
"W-why is it dark? I can't see!"
The lights in the auditorium went completely out in an instant, leaving the trainees bewildered.
In the midst of everyone panicking in the confusion, I heard several people darting rapidly between the rows of desks, and I let out a small sigh.
And when the lights finally came back on—
"Oh, they're back— huh."
"What the?"
Half of the thirty desks were now empty, and standing before us were exactly that many people wearing bizarre masks, goggles, and other strange gear, motionless.
As the remaining trainees sitting at their desks stared blankly, unable to grasp the situation—
Bzzt—
[We will now begin tag.]
An eerie, noise-filled announcement began playing from the speakers, and chaos descended instantly.
[You have five minutes. Survive until the end from the ghosts.]
With that brief explanation and warning—
"Uaaargh!"
The fifteen people who had been standing there like ominous statues suddenly charged toward the seated trainees.
"W-what is this!!"
"Ahhh! D-don't come!!"
With everyone panic-stricken, desks and papers flew everywhere as trainees fled toward the far end of the auditorium.
Strange lighting flickered, and the fluorescent lights repeatedly clicked on and off so fast it was dizzying.
And in the middle of all that—
"...."
I just sat quietly in my seat.
'…Ghost tag? Seriously?'
Utterly childish.
With cheap masks and ominous sound effects played low, it was obvious to anyone that this was meant to be comedic, yet the trainees running and chasing seemed weirdly invested. Some were just playing along, but some actually looked genuinely scared.
Lacking the energy to match that enthusiasm, I simply held my pen and checked my paper whenever the flickering lights brightened, finishing the rest of my life graph.
Drawing a few lines like that, writing a few words, and about to mark the final point—
"Yuha!"
"What—!"
A sudden force grabbed my arm and yanked me up so hard that I had no choice but to crush the paper in my hand as I stood.
"What are you doing, let's run!!"
"Hey— wait…!"
The one who grabbed me was Aiden Lee. Uncharacteristically frantic, he sprinted quickly. But just when we got out of the rows of desks—
"Uwaaagh!"
A Scream-mask suddenly blocked our path, making Aiden Lee flail in shock. The moment the mask stopped us, a giggling laugh played through the speakers.
"BACK! BACK OFF!!"
With a yell louder than I'd ever heard from him, Aiden Lee shouted with all his might. The Scream mask paused for a moment, and Aiden didn't waste the chance—he grabbed me and ran even faster.
"Uaaah!!"
"Just once! Just once, please spare—gah!!"
"Ah, seriously, please!!"
Dodging trainees running left and right in the flickering light, we finally managed to reach the very front of the auditorium.
Since the cameras were mostly concentrated there, the other trainees didn't come close, so the ghosts didn't seem to be particularly watching this area. I figured we just needed to avoid any ghosts that wandered near—
Clunk!
"Yuha, get in!"
"What?"
Right under the platform, Aiden Lee had opened the small storage room used for supplies, already half inside and gesturing for me to hurry.
I checked inside—it was tiny, barely enough for one or two people—and shook my head.
"No, it's fine. I'll just stay out here—"
"Hurry!"
But Aiden Lee didn't listen; he grabbed me and pulled. Startled, I stumbled and ended up shoved inside the cramped storage room.
And the moment he closed the door and we were trapped in that suffocatingly small space, I exhaled a suppressed groan.
It was too cramped.
…Cramped enough to make me stop breathing for a moment.
"Whew, okay. We're fine now. We can just stay here until it ends."
In the darkness, Aiden Lee spoke, and I tried moving my body. The space was so tight that our arms and legs were pressed together, making it impossible to stretch out.
I closed my eyes, trying to adjust.
But when even outside was barely visible, in this tiny enclosed storage room with no light at all, it was impossible to make out anything around us.
My body stiffened instinctively.
Stay calm.
Frozen solid, I tried to force my unmoving body to respond. My mind raced. After a brief moment of thought, the conclusion I reached was extremely simple.
Shake Aiden Lee off and get out of here.
There was no need to stay trapped in a place like this. No need to struggle this hard just to avoid receiving some silly mini-corner penalty.
But—
"Yuha?"
"...."
I tried to steady my quickening breath. But I couldn't stop my body from trembling.
"Yu…ha? What's wrong?"
My head started to lock up, thoughts slowing down. The noise from outside the storage room grew distant, and before I knew it, a low humming vibration filled my ears.
—Stay still in here. Don't make a sound.
And just when that long-forgotten voice brushed past my ear—
Bang!
"...!"
A rush of air and a flood of light poured into the cramped storage room. I sucked in a deep breath. In front of me was a ghost in a clown mask, bent at the waist, peering into the storage room where we were hiding.
And when my eyes met the clown mask—
"...."
I didn't hesitate. I burst out of the storage room.
"Yuha!"
Aiden Lee shouted my name in shock from behind, but I didn't stop. Sprinting out of the storage room, I staggered in front of the clown mask, gasping for breath.
Had it been only thirty seconds? Maybe a minute? Even in that short time, my back was already drenched with sweat. My heart raced so wildly it was hard to calm down.
While I desperately tried to regain my composure, the clown mask simply stood there quietly, waiting for me.
"…Phew."
Thanks to that, I barely managed to steady myself. I lifted my head and finally looked at the clown mask properly. He just stood before me, silently watching, as if unsure what he was supposed to do.
"…Go ahead and catch me."
I quietly extended my arm. After all, the clown mask had found me and Aiden Lee, and I was the one who came out of the storage room first. That meant I was technically caught.
"...?"
But even when the ghost saw my outstretched arm, he made no move to grab it. As I blinked in confusion—
Beep!
[We will now end the game of tag.]
The eerie sound effect cut off, replaced by a light whistle. With that, the game officially ended—meaning the clown mask failed to catch me and lost.
***
"Did everyone have fun?"
"No!!"
"That was too much!!"
The MC reappeared in the auditorium—now completely wrecked compared to earlier—and laughed heartily at the trainees' resentful outcries.
Looking back and forth between the survivors, who were disheveled from running, and the trainees standing on the platform after being captured by ghosts, the MC spoke.
"Alright, great job everyone. A total of six trainees from the human team were captured in this tag game. So in terms of numbers… that's a win for the humans."
But this is an individual match, the MC added, before finally explaining today's rules after the fact.
The fifteen ghost-role trainees each had to catch exactly one trainee, while the trainees had to run away and avoid the ghosts.
If a ghost caught a trainee, the trainee would receive a punishment. If the ghost failed to catch anyone, the ghost would receive the punishment instead. In short, one lives and one dies—per pair.
And one more thing.
"Did you all finish your life graphs?"
"...!"
The nine surviving trainees frantically looked back toward the desks they had been sitting at. Their papers and pens had rolled across the floor long ago, forgotten the moment the tag game started.
"I told you before we started: 'No matter what happens,' you must complete your graph perfectly. Therefore, any trainee who did not finish drawing their life graph will also be considered dead."
"Aaaaugh…!"
"That's harsh…! I didn't know that was a hint…"
"But seriously, did anyone actually finish theirs?"
There were. Exactly three.
"Thus, the survivors are Won Yuha, Do Ji-hyuk, and Cheon Serim. Only these three."
With bleary eyes, I looked at Do Ji-hyuk and Cheon Serim, proudly standing on the stage. Each held a neatly completed life graph, smiling brightly.
…Well, either way, they would've won.
Even if they had been ghosts, each would've caught at least one person, no doubt. The result wasn't surprising.
After applauding the surviving human-team trainees, the MC turned to the ghost-role trainees, who still wore their masks.
"And the nine ghosts who failed to catch anyone—including everyone except the six who did—will also receive a punishment. Alright, please take off your masks."
With disappointed murmurs, the ghost-role trainees slowly removed their masks.
The first to remove his mask was the Scream mask who had blocked me and Aiden earlier. And when I saw the revealed face, I couldn't help letting out a soft sigh.
So it was you…
The one who sheepishly took off the mask was none other than Joo Dan-woo.
No wonder his movements seemed slow—he must've hesitated when he blocked us and ended up missing the timing, resulting in his loss.
The ghosts continued removing their masks one by one. After confirming that my teammates, Gyeong Ji-won and Park Won-hyo, were also ghost-role trainees, the final one—the clown mask who could've caught me but didn't—took off his mask, and I froze.
"Lastly, trainee Kang Hyunjin will also receive a punishment, making a total of nine ghosts!"
Because the ghost… was Kang Hyunjin.
READ MORE CHAPTERS HERE: https://shinchan1.podia.com/the-lucky-plan-of-an-idol-in-his-second-life-chapter-66-110