Debut or Die-Chapter 434

A few hours earlier.

Kwa kwa kwa gwang!

“Uaaah!”

As the stage equipment collapsed and screams filled the air.

‘Quick, qu– quick...!’

Keun Dal tried to access the status window to talk with TeSTAR’s Park Mundae, that is, Ryu Geon woo, to check if he was okay.

But it was impossible.

‘...Huh?’

Instead, he saw a glaring red warning popup: ‘Status Ailment Failure.’

“...!!”

I swear, the moment Keun Dal came back to reality, he didn’t let his guard down. Park Mundae had even handed him an extra hostage, after all.

–“Don’t you feel the system resonating again, like it’s going to absorb you?”

He’d meticulously checked for any trace of the system, worried it might still be active. But there was none.

–“No, I feel nothing like that anymore!”

–“Good. That’s a relief.”

Suddenly, “Status Ailment Failure.”

Then... then wouldn’t it mean dying?

Geon woo.

‘What should I do?’

He still sensed the system’s powerful presence. But it was too late.

Even as his mind went blank, Keun Dal racked his brain desperately.

And then, miraculously, it struck him—the “Clear Celebration” title he’d given Park Mundae.

“...!”

“Status Ailments Permanently Disabled”—and yet here was “Status Ailment Failure”—a logical contradiction!

‘How can I exploit this...?’

From past experience he knew such logical flaws could trip up the system. Besides, he’d essentially been the status window itself.

‘Maybe it’s possible!’

He grit his teeth and began feverishly hacking at the status window.

“So, you mean you tried to downgrade the disaster to a ‘Mission Failure’ instead of a status ailment, but in the process you lost consciousness, dumping all your focus into the status window?”

“Yes, yes...”

On a bench in front of the sunset-lit broadcast station building.

With no one else around, it almost felt peaceful as we listened to his story in a circle.

Except there wasn’t a single ant in sight.

I sat and watched Keun Dal gratefully accept the water Kim Rae bin handed him.

We were still alone in the station’s empty forecourt.

And confirming my guess about him waking up was... reassuring, but honestly I still had no idea what was going on.

‘What’s with this reward window?’

I glanced again at the popup that had appeared as he regained consciousness.

[Mission Failed Scenario Complete]

Victory: Player Park Mundae (Ryu Geon woo)

Reward: Fragment of ■■■ 1 (1/4)

I had a million questions about the scenario, the victory, the fragment—but I couldn’t ask.

“...Hmm.”

There were eight of them staring blankly at us.

And one had even tentatively raised a hand to interrupt.

Keun Sejin.

“Um, sorry for prying into something so personal, but since we all went through this together, I have to ask.”

“Yes, yes!”

“So that means Park Mundae knew this was targeted at him and that he might die... is that right?”

“.......”

The mood went ice–cold. I averted my eyes.

‘If I’d stayed quiet, I’d have escaped, damn it.’

It felt unfair.

Luckily, someone defended me.

“You did great, Mundae. I get you, hyung—you wanted everyone safe.”

Cha Yoo jin said the most mature thing I’d ever heard from him.

“But understanding and accepting aren’t the same. Your actions were too cruel!”

“.......”

So this was the build-up.

“The situation was so urgent there was no time to debate. I couldn’t ask anyone either, so I stayed silent.”

I calmly explained.

“I was moving for my own survival, not sacrificing myself for others.”

“.......”

The tension eased. Keun Sejin wiped her face, then nodded in reluctant agreement.

“Okay. You did well.”

“...!”

Good.

Before more objections could surface, I turned to Keun Dal—just in time for the next questioner to step forward.

“I have a question too.”

It was Joo Dan.

He was the most entertained by all this.

“So is this place, like last time, a mental alternate world you created?”

Of all things to wonder about.

Keun Dal answered readily.

“No, it’s still reality—except because you escaped successfully, the building-collapse penalty never applied. This reality will disappear soon!”

“...!”

Here’s the explanation.

Originally, I’d had to ⊛ Nоvеlιght ⊛ (Read the full story) endure the final collapse for “Mission Failure Penalty” to complete.

‘But I avoided that.’

So the penalty was erased—and retroactively, the fact that the building collapsed was wiped from existence.

‘It sounds insane to me who knows the details; the others must think it’s total nonsense.’

“Maybe the system uses the same power when it rewinds time—erasing reality and restarting from the past....”

“...!”

And only one other person here could follow that: Cheongryeo. He listened impassively.

Keun Dal continued.

He guessed that because we all exited together, the system left us here instead of sending us back.

“...Anyway, you’ll soon return to before the collapse happened—just like everyone else!”

“Ooh.”

“That’s a relief.”

Apparently they liked that conclusion: the ragged survivors nodded with calm faces.

Joo Dan even marvelled.

“So it’s like choosing one parallel world and abandoning the rest.”

“...! You get it?”

“In theory, yes. I could recommend some reading if you like.”

I ignored Cha Yoo jin mouthing “Nerd” at Kim Rae bin.

Ryu Cheong woo asked gently.

“When will we go back?”

“Uh... right now!”

“...!”

And at that moment—

[---]

The others sitting on the bench vanished like a puff of smoke.

But I stayed.

Instead, I saw Keun Dal take a deep breath and look at me.

“I have something I should tell you in person. So I sent you back a bit early!”

Quite considerate.

But the problem was not everyone had disappeared.

“Hmm, I see a countdown.”

“Gasp.”

“It seems GM privileges remain.” 𝒻𝘳ℯℯ𝑤ℯ𝒷𝘯ℴ𝓋ℯ𝘭.𝑐ℴ𝑚

Cheongryeo was still seated on another bench.

I checked the countdown he mentioned.

[100 seconds until scenario deletion]

So we had 100 seconds left. No time to waste.

“Whatever, just tell me quickly. If the countdown’s about to start, we’re tight on time.”

“Yes, yes.”

I’d answer questions about the system later—first, I needed to hear what he had to say.

Keun Dal tried to look calm as he spoke.

“Hyung.”

Yes?

“If you return like this, the collapse won’t have happened yet... but everything before it did.”

“...?”

‘Everything before it?’

Then I realized.

“The first thing I interfered with was after you got a ‘Status Ailment Failure’ and faced death.”

The first failure alert.

Keun Dal swallowed and spoke quietly.

“When you return, it’ll be at the moment the stage rigging falls on you.”

“.......”

“You got hit then, right? You avoided it, but it was still dangerous—so I had to tell you so you could dodge it again.”

I understood then.

‘He thinks I only barely avoided the first hit.’

He didn’t know I’d dodged it completely.

“Got it. I’ll watch out more carefully.”

“...Yes.”

I looked at Cheongryeo to signal “be quiet,” but then realized it was his turn to worry.

“Maybe you should plan how to deal with falling stage gear too.”

This was a charity concert by VTIC—if an accident and an event mix, it’d be a nightmare.

Cheongryeo didn’t smile. He spoke expressionlessly.

“Maybe you should worry about yourself.”

“.......”

Even if he cared, damn it... Oh well. I had enough on my plate.

“Prioritize protecting your head.”

“Yeah. I know.”

I took a deep breath and reviewed my plan. Luckily, time was almost up.

“The countdown’s nearly over.”

“Yes....”

I counted down.

“Park Mundae...!”

I was sprinting back onto the stage.

Instead of the choking dust from cracks, I smelled dry ice and felt the warmth of stage lights heating the cool air.

‘I’m back.’

Then the rig fell.

Wuuuud-dr-dr‐dr-eek!!

But this time my mind was crystal clear—I knew exactly what to do.

I knew how far it would fall.

‘Faster...!’

Instead of just running, I accelerated into a slide.

My thigh stung from the friction.

Ku-ku-ku-ku-kung!

Amid the roar.

Behind me, I heard a chill as debris crashed down. There were screams.

“Uaaah!”

“Argh!”

And when my slide stopped, I took stock of my position.

I was completely off the stage, in the backstage area.

“.......”

I looked back.

The smashed rig lay behind, but this time... it was at least my height away.

A perfect avoidance.

‘I did it.’

No pain in my back or ribs like last time.

I waited a moment longer.

My thigh burned, but that was it.

It was over.

“You!”

My stunned members appeared from backstage, rushing up in relief.

And the building neither collapsed further nor shook.

“Phew.”

I threw myself backward, lying down.

There were still lingering questions, but I couldn’t stop smiling.

“Laugh?”

‘We made it.’

No one died or was hurt—we escaped.

What happened next unfolded strangely.

Naturally, the audience members, after getting their phones and evacuating, flooded SNS with posts and news articles.

[SBC Broadcast Station Stage Collapse (Breaking News)]

[‘Unprecedented Stage Collapse’ No Casualties... Everyone Safe]

The headlines were sensational, but since no one was hurt, the public uproar wouldn’t last long.

Even though the stage had collapsed, with everyone’s phones confiscated, there were no photos of the wreckage.

And no fatalities? That guaranteed a short shelf-life of the story.

I half-expected a re-scheduled pre-recording elsewhere, but then—

[By a Hair’s Breadth, TeSTAR’s Park Mundae Avoids Stage Accident... “Planning Rest”]

Who wrote that?

–He must feel the steel threatening him every time he reads the article

–Is Park Mundae trying to absorb bad luck?

–He ran onto the stage on purpose? Terrifying like he wanted to get hit... Who sent him, the stage manager?

└People almost died and some jerk leaves comments like that

└Why gamble your rich, handsome idol life on stuff like this? Fantasizing losers rofl

Somehow those comments leaked and slowed our schedule. Thanks a lot.

And since then, blame for the collapse shifted around—and I still haven’t seen how VTIC responded.

Because...

I look like this right now.

“I should... contact the company...”

“Hmm~ just lie there. Get lots of rest.”

“...??”

“W-want an apple, Mundae...?”

That’s right.

...I’ve been hospitalized for a week now.

For the record, apart from a minor thigh abrasion, I had no injuries.

It healed in two days, even.

‘Why on earth....’

“I want to be discharged....”

“Ah, the doctor says not yet~”

“Y-yeah.”

“.......”

They all rehearsed that lie together, it seems.

‘This is driving me nuts.’

And so began my forced rest.