Where Have They Gone To?

Five people, four pipes and… Kang Jin-Ho glanced at the thick book that was held by Han Si-Woo and his face was expressionless.

"... This guy, for real?" he murmured.

Han Si-Woo didn't shy away and shrugged at his response. "Math books are terrifying."

Kang Jin-Ho raised an eyebrow and asked, "Why would I join you? As you can see, I can handle it on my own. I don't see the need to join a weak group. if I join, you will just drag me down and become extra baggage."

Chun Dong-Sun frowned, he knew the guy in front of him was strong, strong enough to kill—something he didn't think he would be able to do the same. However Chun Dong-Sun didn't like the way Kang Jin-Ho interpreted them, it pissed him off.

"Hey, if you don't want to join, then just say you won't. No need to unnecessarily put us down like that. So fucking rude," he said.

"Oh, I don't think I've said anything wrong. Or what, are you saying you're not weak then?" Kang Jin-Ho provoked.

Chun Dong-Sun gnashed his teeth at his remark but he couldn't open his mouth to refute. Han Si-Woo looked at them helplessly and interrupted them before things would go awry.

"That's enough, okay?" he said and continued, "Kang Jin-Ho ssi, it's true that you're strong and we need someone like you. Why? Of course, with you, we will be safer and have a higher chance to survive."

Kang Jin-Ho looked at Han Si-Woo unamused. "Yes, and? Why would I join you if you are just going to use me to survive? That doesn't sound beneficial for me."

Han Si-Woo said, "It does sound non-beneficial for you since we aren't as strong as you but… what if there is a reason for you to join us?"

"... What do you mean by that?" Kang Jin-Ho narrowed his eyes, trying to figure out what the person in front of him was thinking.

Han Si-Woo smiled and began to elaborate, "There are two tips that were given to us at the beginning. The first one is that there are a hundred of us. A hundred people who fell victim to this so-called real-life game and are forced to participate in it. The last one is to form a group and find as many of us as possible to have a higher chance of survival."

"I'm listening…"

"We don't know who is behind this game or what their purpose is, and why they gave us tips to help us. But, that means whoever is behind it doesn't plan to get us all killed. If you think about it, joining us will raise your chance to survive because we are more than one person which means things will be easier for you. We want you to join because you're strong and you can use us in return. If we run into a life-threatening situation, you can always use us as your shield."

At his last sentence, the people behind him gasped in disbelief, thinking that they might have heard him wrong.

"Hey, Han Si-Woo! You bastard, what the fuck are you saying?!"

"Si-Woo oppa, you… Why?"

"I, I don't want this…."

Chun Dong-Min wore an inscrutable face as he looked at Han Si-Woo smiling at Kang Jin-Ho.

Kang Jin-Ho was startled, he didn't expect that Han Si-Woo would say something like that. What he said wasn't too bad, it would indeed make it less difficult for him. However, what drew him in was the fact that the person before him was full of confidence. Was he confident that he wouldn't abandon them? What made him think that?

He didn't doubt he would get to the White Gateway on his own but it would be problematic if he came across a group of killers, and if he joined them he could always use them as bait and directly escape. He didn't believe that they had the strength to outdo him, anyways.

Kang Jin-Ho pondered and let out an intrigued smile.

"To think so highly of a stranger like me… Sure, why not? I'll join."

Han Si-Woo nodded in satisfaction. "Thank you, Kang Jin-Ho ssi."

Chun Dong-Sun clicked his tongue sulkily, he didn't like Kang Jin-Ho, that conceited bastard. There was really nothing he could do about it, that annoyed him. Park Hae detected his mood and smiled helplessly at him. She didn't oppose the idea of letting Kang Jin-Ho join as Han Si-Woo seemed to know what he was doing. The next moment, she noticed that Chun Dong-Min was staring at something, his gaze was fixed and she felt that something was off with him.

"Dong-Min ah?" Park Hae tugged on his sleeve.

Chun Dong-Min didn't glance at her and only opened his mouth to speak, "Body. Gone."

His words caught everyone's attention and they immediately looked at the spot where the corpse of the man Kang Jin-Ho had finished off laid, but there was no trace of it. The corpse had disappeared at some point, leaving only the blood and weapon. But how and when? Where did it go then? Chun Dong-Sun, Park Hae, and Na Byeol paled at the discovery, their blood ran cold.

'What the hell?' Han Si-Woo felt his back was covered with cold sweat.

"Don't tell me… he's still alive?" Park Hae asked fearfully.

Han Si-Woo squinted his eyes and shook his head. "No, not possible. It's impossible for him to be alive after receiving so many attacks on his back. Furthermore, if he did survive, with his huge body, we would have instantly noticed him move… What's going on?"

He bit his lips, feeling frustrated. He couldn't figure out how the corpse had disappeared without a trace. None of them had noticed anything. How was that possible? Could the corpse have actually disappeared into thin air?

'Is this magic, then? Magic… really exists in this game?' He gulped at the thought. He didn't believe in something like magic, it was unscientific. However, he did witness a virtual cat getting out of his mobile screen… No, he couldn't be certain. It was possible that he had just imagined it as his mind wasn't in the right state back then.

"Well… that would explain it," Kang Jin-Ho spoke.

"Kang Jin-Ho ssi?" Han Si-Woo turned to look at him confused.

"Oh, you guys haven't noticed yet?" he casually asked before he added, "Don't you think it's strange that you haven't seen a single corpse on your way here?"

"What are you talking about? We did see one, it's just right over—" Upon realisation, Han Si-Woo immediately turned around and rushed to the place where his group had first seen a corpse. When he arrived, the body they had witnessed before wasn't there anymore.

"This…"

Kang Jin-Ho walked from behind and spoke, "Oh, so that one disappeared too."

"What's going on here?" Na Byeol asked even though she knew none of them didn't know the answer.

"I have never seen a corpse of our people before. Isn't that just strange? It can't be that there are still a hundred of us, can it? We can't be the only ones in this building… So where have they gone to?" Kang Jin-Ho questioned.

He was right, just where were they? Han Si-Woo once again bit his lips as he mulled over it. They had probably disappeared the same way as the perpetrators did, but why? For what reason?

"M, maybe they want us to have our guards down? If we don't see our people dead, we won't panic as much and be vigilant, that would make it easier for them to attack us," Na Byeol evaluated.

Kang Jin-Ho commented, "Not bad."

However, there was something that bugged Han Si-Woo about it. If it was really what Na Byeol had said, wouldn't it make more sense if they made them fear even more? Why would they go through such a hassle just to trick them like that? Wouldn't it be more interesting to them if they made them more petrified? Unless they didn't think like that and there wasn't anything more to it.

Han Si-Woo frowned, his eyebrows knitted. There just wasn't enough information and clues for him to find the answers.

Kang Jin-Ho observed Han Si-Woo and a trace of doubt flickered across his eyes.

'This guy…seems sharp. Am I able to leave them behind unharmed if the time comes?'

"Hey, Han Si-Woo," he called him out before he tossed the dagger he had taken earlier.

Han Si-Woo widened his eyes and clumsily dropped his math book to catch the dagger thrown at him. "Woah, hey, that was dangerous! What if I got hurt?"

Kang Jin-Ho shrugged and said, "I don't really care, to be honest. Use it, instead of that book, it's more useful. I don't want you to drag me down."

Han Si-Woo sighed and muttered, "So mean, he's definitely got some problems… He's a goddamn asshole..."

Fortunately, nobody had heard him. He looked at the dagger coated in blood he was holding and felt the compulsion to let it go. He opened his bag to take out the tissues and wiped off the blood on his hands and the dagger before he grabbed his math book and placed it inside the bag. He couldn't discard the book yet, it might be handy in the future.

The other five people watched his actions silently, not knowing what to say. This Han Si-Woo really had the time to care about something trivial like this...