Debut or Die-Chapter 355

"Park Mundae!"

"You...."

"Are you all right?"

The moment Seon Ah-hyun and I stepped into the dorm, our housemates greeted us with a warm welcome.

You bastard, are you crazy? would’ve been the right thing to shout, but they were approaching cautiously, worried I might’ve lost it.

I feigned a dive and head-butted him.

"I’m sorry. I just went out to think, and I didn’t realize I left my phone behind."

"Ah...."

"I see."

My face must’ve looked intact enough, because a wave of relief swept the room.

Cha Yoo-jin, who’d been sipping cola, shouted heartily,

"OK~ Next time, just tell us!"

"What do you mean ‘OK’? We were all worried when you disappeared without warning!"

Thanks for taking the heat off me.

Bae Sejin’s cheeks flushed red as he glanced at Seon Ah-hyun.

"You too! You should’ve at least said what you were thinking... Ah-hyun?"

"......."

"Um...."

"Y-yes! I’m, I’m sorry. I, I shouldn’t have moved without saying anything.... I’m sorry."

"Oh, okay. Well... you’ve been through a lot."

Seon Ah-hyun entered the dorm living room with a dazed look and sat down on the couch. The shock must’ve been intense.

Right after I’d said, “I’ll explain everything properly,” look at his reaction again:

“Th-that is... I-I’m Mundae.”

“You said you’d listen to anything.”

“...Y-yeah.”

Though he agreed, his face said, This isn’t what I meant.

Of course, I did give him a carrot—

“And no matter the outcome this time, you have to go see a counselor.”

“...!”

“You can record this, by the way.”

“N-no...! Th-thank you.... Thank you, Mundae...!”

He’d cried out desperately, but once he got back to the dorm, he scrambled through every worry and assumption, completely bewildered.

I rubbed my neck.

This won’t take long.

I’d cleared the schedule and had time now; I couldn’t let our staff take more losses.

What’s the revenue loss if we skip three days of activities?

It was already an amount that would make them sweat when settling the profits. And to shut up anyone spreading rumors about our condition, a quick strike was essential.

Hmm.

Just then, someone I needed spoke up.

“Did you two talk it through?”

I nodded at Ryu Cheong-woo.

"Yes. I apologize; you must’ve been startled."

Ryu Cheong-woo smiled gently.

"You did the right thing."

"In the morning, my alarm went off, but the phone’s owner was gone. Everyone must’ve been three or four times more shocked than when Yoo-jin disappeared."

"Yes."

How humiliating.

I fell silent, recalling what I’d said when Cha Yoo-jin vanished. Ryu Cheong-woo patted my back.

"Good job."

"Yes."

He gives and takes medicine. I endured it, thinking of the mess I’d caused.

Next up...

Big Sejin. He was sitting beside Ryu Cheong-woo, typing something on his smartphone. He hadn’t said a word when I came in and still hadn’t looked up.

"...What are you doing?"

He muttered as he lowered his phone.

"...Uh, uploading."

Ah.

I checked our SNS. A new post was up on the TeSTAR account:

---------------------==

ㅠㅠ In this weather, I caught a cold flu... We’re really sorry. We’ll recover quickly and see you soon. Loveys, don’t worry—we’re taking medicine and fighting through it!

---------------------==

Fast response.

"Thanks."

"For what?"

He finally mustered a grin and tapped my shoulder.

"You feeling any better?"

"Yes."

What I really wanted to ask was how things went with Ah-hyun, what in the world I’d done when I slipped out at dawn. But I didn’t have the heart to ask.

At least I can say they offered help.

I took a breath and got to the point.

"But... I need your help."

"Huh?"

"Cheong-woo, too."

"Me?"

"Yes."

I’d start with numbers to overwhelm them.

Seon Ah-hyun took a deep breath.

Our roommate waved, "Take a good rest!" then grabbed electronics and headed to Bae Sejin and Cha Yoo-jin’s room.

But Ah-hyun’s mind couldn’t rest. Thoughts of resolution replayed endlessly.

This time, I’ll respond properly.

Maybe this was an opportunity—to soften the shock Mundae must’ve felt from Ah-hyun’s previous reaction.

"Phew."

First, I’ll thank him for talking to me seriously....

Ah-hyun rehearsed his response several times in his head and planned to visit Mundae’s room at the agreed time.

But he couldn’t.

Knock, knock.

"I’m coming in."

"...!"

Before the appointed time, Park Mundae had come early. And he immediately got to the point.

"I came early to set things up. Ravin, hand me your computer for a bit."

Computer?

"Let’s start. Oh, Kim Rae-bin asked me to give you this."

"Uh,"

"Here, drink this while you listen."

Mundae set a can of tea on the desk, then dropped a notebook and pen in front of him.

Notebook...?

Without missing a beat, he began delivering information.

"First, I want to start with witnesses."

"...Wi-witnesses...?"

Mundae paused, then said in a tense voice,

"I didn’t tell you before, thinking it’d confuse you more, but I’m not the only one who came back from the past."

"...??"

It was a statement beyond imagination.

Seon Ah-hyun froze, tea in hand.

But Mundae immediately pulled out the names of people he’d secured.

"First, I’m starting with witnesses."

"...Wi-witnesses...?"

He paused again, then in a ✧ NоvеIight ✧ (Original source) somewhat strained voice said,

"I didn’t tell you before, thinking it’d confuse you more, but I’m not the only one who came back from the past."

"...??"

He repeated himself exactly, and Ah-hyun, tea in hand, stiffened.

But Mundae went on without hesitation.

Almost as if he’d rehearsed this.

[Um.]

Cheongryeo of VTIC, the senior I’d just met, appeared on screen with a halfhearted smile.

[Wouldn’t it have been easier if we’d talked when we met earlier?]

"Yes. The situation’s changed."

[You’re quick.]

Cheongryeo bantered with Mundae for a moment—whether mocking or teasing wasn’t clear—but soon admitted the truth.

[That’s right. I knew the future before Mundae-ssi... and then it was Geon-woo next.]

"......."

Was this really happening?

[You know, since my junior’s older than me, it felt strange being spoken to informally. Didn’t you notice earlier?]

I thought they’d just grown close enough for casual speech. I even felt a twinge of envy.

[You said you wouldn’t record, but now you’re using honorifics. Fun.]

"Shut up."

[Ha-ha!]

Cheongryeo finished his cameo as if nothing had happened.

[I owe you more favors now, junior.]

"Next."

[Can’t deny it.]

Then Cheongryeo vanished from the screen.

"Phew."

Mundae took a deep breath, as if containing annoyance.

"He’s an annoying guy, but... I keep checking in on him for that reason."

"......."

While he resumed typing at the computer, he added with a hint of pride,

"No tampering. It’s not my computer, and you saw I didn’t touch the storage drive."

"......."

"If you want, we can go watch it again right now. Hmm, should we?"

"No, that’s fine."

Ah-hyun answered reflexively, though his mind swirled with exclamation and question marks.

"Then moving on, next I’ll bring out the next person who experienced this bizarre situation."

"Uh-huh...."

"Oh, if you have questions, write them in the notebook. Anything’s fine."

"......."

So that’s why he brought it.

Ah-hyun reached for the notebook, but his limbs felt broken, creaking.

And when another familiar face appeared on screen, he mentally screamed.

[Whoa, it’s been so long, hyung! How have you been?]

Kwon Hee-seung.

Mundae’s so-called “Gold 2” junior appeared.

[So I’m talking to you now, Ah-hyun hyung... Hi, hyung.]

"Ah, hey."

Ah-hyun pinched his thigh sharply, but it only hurt.

On screen, Kwon Hee-seung excitedly recounted his own experience—about saving someone, falling into the Han River, then waking up in the past—and even complained to Mundae.

[Hyung, aren’t you collecting colleagues too much? Are we like some secret organization now?]

"If you’re so upset, why don’t you talk?"

[Well... our group isn’t that close yet....]

Kwon Hee-seung grimaced, said something about trying to mention it to his parents only to get slapped back to reality, then ended the call with a sigh.

Ah-hyun hadn’t managed to write a single word in the notebook.

"Okay, so he’s the next person who went back."

"......."

"His stock returns since he came back are about fifteen times. He says he can show you proof if you want."

"...I see."

"By the way, I’m the only one whose body actually swapped. There’s a reason for that."

You said you’d take questions...!

Rarely, Ah-hyun internally objected, but Mundae barreled on like a runaway train.

"So I called in another case."

Wait a minute.

Another one?

Ah-hyun panted mentally.

And he asked himself:

Can you justify your own mental world by involving so many people, delving this deeply?

It seemed impossible....

No, no.

Someone as smart and amazing as Mundae could do it.

Even if I believe whatever I want... Mundae promised to see a counselor anyway.

Then... it’s okay, right?

No matter what Ah-hyun thinks.

As long as Mundae could meet a professional if he needed help.

Yeah... that’s it.

The terror of making the wrong choice slowly dissolved, and Ah-hyun took a small, steady breath.

Mundae’s fixed conclusion had worked as intended.

Moreover, none of this was in the direction Ah-hyun had predicted or prepared for.

I thought we’d have a deeper conversation.

Instead, it felt like gathering material at a songwriting camp!

"......."

The funny thing was, even amid panic and confusion, Ah-hyun’s reason began to assert itself.

With this smooth presentation of evidence.

This wasn’t counseling—it was a project.

[Hello, Ah-hyun...!]

"Okay, originally Park Mundae was Ryu Geon-woo; now we’ve swapped bodies."

"......."

"By the way, Cheong-woo hyung is actually my cousin on my father’s side."

But what came next was a supernatural demonstration even Ah-hyun hadn’t anticipated.

After arranging a brief greeting, Mundae suddenly asked Ah-hyun a sharp question.

"I figure you were most bothered by me saying I saw a hologram, right?"

"......."

"That’s hallucination territory. It’s the most serious."

Seeing Ah-hyun’s face darken, Mundae snorted.

"Before we get into the details, let’s prove this isn’t a hallucination."

"......."

"You wrote questions in the notebook."

"Uh, uh-huh."

"Show them to me. But first..."

Mundae stood up and swiveled the monitor away.

"Now ‘Ryu Geon-woo’ on the screen can’t see your notebook, right?"

"Y-yeah...."

"No, wait."

He powered off the monitor completely.

"...!"

"Now only the speakers are on. No tricks. It’s not even my computer."

"......."

Ah-hyun had no idea what Mundae was doing.

But Mundae didn’t stop.

"Now show me your notebook."

"...Okay."

Without resistance, Ah-hyun handed the notebook over with trembling hands. The handwriting was elegant:

Why did Mundae think he and Ryu Geon-woo swapped bodies?

Mundae must’ve known the real question was more like, Why do you think we swapped at all? but he let it slide.

It wasn’t a big deal.

[Because I got so much help from Geon-woo hyung... I wished for his happiness, and that backfired!]

"...!!"

Ah-hyun could hardly believe his ears.

The monitor was off. Only the speaker next to it.

[Of course, I think the result turned out fine. Watching hyung as an idol is amazing....]

It was a smooth, gentle male voice flowing from the speaker.

[Um, the subject here is ‘hyung,’ right? Not me? Either way, the answer wouldn’t change much...]

Thud.

The notebook fell to the floor.

Ah-hyun, feeling the blood drain from his face, looked down at the notebook, then up at Mundae.

Mundae nodded nonchalantly.

"It’s connected through a hologram window."

Goosebumps crawled all over.

"Write anything and show it to me. I’ll transmit it through this."

Ah-hyun gritted his teeth, picked up the notebook, and jotted down something random—something impossible to guess.

A foreign phrase:

-pas de deux

And the voice echoed:

[Sorry... I don’t know what that means. ‘Pas de des’?]

"......."

[Oh, oh~ it’s a ballet term. That’s right. Ah-hyun-nim used to do ballet!]

What... what was happening?

Ah-hyun gripped the desk. His vision spun.

His common sense... was being shattered.

This was his room. He knew there were no hidden devices, and Mundae had no opportunity to install anything.

And Mundae had the audacity to anticipate everything.

Wearing a white short-sleeve shirt and pajama pants with no pockets, he hopped up.

"I can’t hide a tiny camera on me right now... but anyway, lend me your camera detector."

"......."

He picked up the camera detector from the corner of Ah-hyun’s desk and circled it around his body and the desk.

Nothing reacted.

Ah.

Ah-hyun blinked.

Then... then....

But before he could draw a logical conclusion from his thoughts—

"But one’s never enough to trust."

"...??"

Ah-hyun looked up.

Mundae nodded seriously.

"Let’s bring in someone else, too. I’ll call Cheong-woo hyung and Bae Sejin now."

"......."

"And if you suspect anything else, tell me right away."

Mundae chuckled.

"We’ve got plenty of time until tomorrow."

What marked the start of Mundae’s plan to proceed with rigorous, empirical proof before unfolding the story.

And so Mundae’s demonstrations continued until sunset.