C H A M P I O N     O F     D E A T H

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ONCE MORE SHE WAS MET WITH A BRIGHT ATMOSPHERE IN ANOTHER UNFAMILIAR ENVIRONMENT, THAT HAD MANY DIFFERENT STAIRCASES LEADING ALL AROUND. Sae-bom had no idea where she was going, obviously, and she followed along behind Gi-hun with their group, as the guards lead them.

It was very easy to get lost in the maze of stairs, and she would hate to be alone when trying to figure out where to go. That's probably why they had guards located on each platform also, to watch their every move in case a player did try to flee.

She tucked her hands into her pockets, fiddling with the lose material inside of it and glanced behind her. Over her shoulder, she spotted Sae-byeok walking close, but not to close, accompanied by a unfamiliar male.

   Her brows raised watching the interaction. She didn't expect her sister to even be near another player, other then her now. But by the looks of it, Sae-byeok was more annoyed then anything and still dealt with his presences.

From where she was walking in line, the male looked to be much taller then Sae-byeok, but only a few inches taller then herself. He also had messy hair that framed his pale face perfectly, and a evenly cut fringe that sat all over the place over his forehead. The tracksuit did wonders for his muscular figure also.

He's handsome, she thought interested, continuing to stare at the male with her sister and quickly looked away before he could spot her eyes on him.

They seemed to be getting closer to the destation, by how the guards were increasing the more they walked up the stairs and through hallways. Sae-bom had no idea what to expect, but she would handle it regardless.

Her eyes drift towards Sang-woo, who was talking a bit to aggressively for her liking to her sister. What is that snake up to, she thought gritting her teeth, and glared at the spot he was taking up instead of the other unfamiliar male.

The unnamed male, however, pushed Sang-woo aside and got close to his face, saying some words to him that Sae-bom couldn't hear. All she could do is watch the male protect her sister, and it made her the side of her lips perk up.

At least he's watching out for her, she thought and wondered when she could place a name on the male whom she thinks she will like, as he pushed Sang-woo away like that with no care in the world.

There was no time to ponder on it, as the sound of doors opening brought her attention away from the three behind her. The guards also lead the players into the new, and unfamiliar room, and they followed without question.

Sae-bom stuck next to Gi-hun when they entered the room, and she gaped in surprised at what she was seeing. The room's walls were a sky blue, with clouds painted on it, and a colour fence shaped around the room, stuck to the walls.

It quite literally looked like a playground, hence the slide, the swings and climbing objects placed around the room. What really caught her attention was the weird shapes on the wall directly in front of them. Four.

"Why the hell is this playground so huge?" Gi-hun muttered his question, which what they all were thinking and wondering the same thing, "What's the game here?"

   Sae-bom reminded quiet, stuck in her thoughts and scanned the crowd for her sister once more. Her eyes instantly met a matching pair, and Sae-byeok motioned for her to come to her.

She furrowed her brows concerned, going to make a step to where her sister was, but the woman on the PA paused her movements, and made her turn back to look at the speaker hanging on the wall.

"Players, welcome to the second game. We will begin shortly."

Indistinct chatter automatically followed after the announcement. Gi-hun turned to the four around him, while scanning over any clues in the room, "Hey, what do we think? Huh? Maybe that roundabout there. Jungle gym without falling?"

Sae-bom noticed how Sang-woo was eerily quiet, almost like he was debating on telling them something. She moved without thinking, and pressed her shoulder into his, "If you have anything that could help the others, you best spill, Woo."

Her voice was a whisper, but her tone came out in a threat and Sang-woo straightened his posture hearing it. His dark eyes glanced down at her briefly, staring far longer than normal at her face, before looking ahead at the shapes on the wall.

"I don't know much," His voice also dropped into a whisper, making it sound deeper and he pressed his shoulder more into hers, not looking away from the front, "but I will say, pick one of the easier shapes, Sae-bom. Don't ask, just listen to me."

She made a confused noise, snapping her head up to look at the side of his face, and opened her mouth to say more, but once more the PA cut her off. Again, seriously? she thought grumbling.

"Players, before the second game begins, choose one of the four available shapes you see on the wall. Once you've chosen your shape, please stand in the front of it."

Ali, who lifted his hand to point with a finger at the shapes on the wall, was the first one to speak after the announcement, "Does she mean those?"

Sae-bom didn't understand what was happening, but she stepped away from Sang-woo feeling a few guards's watchful gazes on their interaction. She crossed her arms over her chest, and heard Gi-hun's voice near her ear.

"So our options are circle, triangle, star, umbrella." He listed as his eyes went on to each one, not noticing the pale look on Sang-woo's face.

Player 001 hummed in thought, "I don't know. They seem very familiar." He commented wisely, which sent Sang-woo into a memory from his younger days with his two friend, and it caused him to gasp once he figured it out.

"Sang-woo? Got anything?"

Upon hearing Gi-hun's soft voice, he snapped out of his daze and blinked rapidly for a second. He knew what he was about to say would make Sae-bom hate him even more, but so be bit. He had to make sure she passed this round, as he made a promise.

And so, like the snake he was, the male lied through his teeth like it was nothing to him, "Not yet." He rasped, breathing heavily and looked at Gi-hun who only smiled in understanding.

Sae-bom gave the male a disapproving glare, and pulled her bottom lip between her teeth, wondering why he didn't share the same thing he told her with them. Either he was being selfish or had other motives, probably both, she thought.

"Choose a shape and stand in front of it immediately." The woman on the PA was back, and her announcement caused some movement, while the voices got louder in the crowd.

The Kang woman watched the players start to move up to where the shapes were, and heard her team discuss what shape to pick. She didn't voice her opinion, in fear of being the cause of someone's death.

She did want to know why Sang-woo was choosing not to tell the others what he knew, and wondered why he only picked her to know. They never really liked each other, but deep down she knew that wasn't true from the... accident that had together when they were younger.

Suddenly, a hand was wrapping around her forearm and yanked her figure back away from the group, ended up in the crowd of players swarming each line.

Automatically, Sae-bom went to jab her elbow back into the person's noise, but paused mid movement hearing the voice of her sister, the one who grabbed her.

"Why must you always hit first then ask questions late?" Sae-byeok deadpanned up at the elder one, the palm of her hand deflecting the elbow and dropped her hold, "It's just me, try to calm down Unnie."

Sae-boom gave her sister an incredulously stare, and clicked her tongue, "Oh, sorry. Someone grabs me all of a sudden, what else am I supposed to do?" She half scolded in a harsh whisper, "You know I have to be on guard with the jobs I take."

"I know that, and I'm sorry." The younger girl muttered sheeplishy, casting her gaze down at their feet and back up to the chaos happening around them, "We aren't out there, though. We're in here now, remember that."

"Yeah, and that just means I have to be more on guard with all these idiots around." Sae-bom motioned to the players pushing and shoving in the lines, and rolled her eyes at their behaviour, "I don't trust anyone but you and Gi-hun, kid."

Sae-byeok grumbled at the old nickname she called her, and raised an eyebrow at the familiar name, but didn't comment on it, "I pulled you aside because I wanted to speak to you. Pick either triangle or circle."

Sang-woo said something similar.... Sae-bom thought with furrowed brows, and nodded her head anyway, "So, the easier shapes?" She questioned tightly, and heard her sister hum in answer, "How'd you figure this out?"

"The vents, remember?" She reminder her older sister with a knowing glint in her eyes, and motioned her head to the crowds getting larger, "Go and pick one, I'll be fine. I'll come find you when this game is over, okay?"

Sae-bom didn't have time to grab the back of her sister's jacket, as the girl had walked away faster. She cursed to herself, watching Sae-byeok trail back over to that unfamiliar male, an lined up with him.

Her heart clenched a bit painfully, realising her sister was growing up and didn't really need her to protect her anymore. It's not that she didn't want Sae-byeok to grow up, she just got use to caring for her all the time as their parents weren't around.

   Nor were her real ones. She had to remember those who abandoned her.

Footsteps were heard coming towards her, their boots kicking up the dust on the ground, and she spotted a pink outfit from the corner of her eye. With a heavy sigh, she glanced up.

A pink triangle guard was stood there in front, holding his gun to his chest and she could feel his eyes were trained on her. She arched a brow up at him, and the guard only turned, like he was gesturing for her to line up in the triangle shape.

Interesting... she thought tilting her head. It was almost like he was helping her, but not making it obvious by turning in the direction where all the other players were.

She could be overlooking it, but from the recent events, it seemed about right.

And Sae-bom was lucky she trailed up behind someone in the line, as the woman over the PA system was back and talking to them.

"The time to select your shape has ended. I will now explain the rules of the next game."

Three pink soldiers were lined up in between the lines of players, and the rest were around them guarding the area, holding their guns. A sudden door thudding open had Sae-bom twisting her head to see what made the noise.

"All players, please take one case each from the table at the front of your line."

The PA kept repeating that, as the players listened and were moving slowly up the line to collect the said case from the guard posted behind the table.

Sae-bom noticed her group was spread out across the different shapes, and she dearly hoped they all passed this game. She was nervous as all hell, but tried to mask it by hiding her hands in her pockets where they were trembling.

She saw the back of her sister's head with the male from before, both in the same line as she was, which eased her nerves a lot. She trusted her sister with everything, and vise versa.

More and more players got their case of whatever was inside, up until it was her turn. She was about half way in the line, with a bunch of others waiting behind and around her.

The pink guard held out the case for her to take, and she gently grabbed it from him with a small smile. Her fingers brushed the gloved hands holding it, and turned around once she felt the cool metal under her fingertips.

Her wavy black hair flipped over her shoulder as she moved, and her eyes scanned the room for a place to sit as everyone else was doing the same thing.

There was a spot near Sae-byeok, and she went towards it, but made sure to stay a few meters away in case. Her gaze met her sister's, and flashed her a reassure smile, that the younger one briefly returned.

"Please take a moment to open the case and check the contents."

Upon listening to the PA's voice, Sae-bom leant on her knees on the floor, not caring how she would get dirt on her clothes, and used her hand to twist the top of the lid off the case.

A hum got caught in the back of her throat, and finally figured out what the game was upon seeing the cookie inside with a metal stick and the outline of a triangle. Dalgona.

And she was right when the PA announced it over the speaker for everyone to hear. Some were lucky, while others... weren't so much with their choice.

"The second game is Dalgona. The shape you have chosen is the shape you must remove from the honeycomb."

Sae-bom snapped her head up, and quickly scanned the crowd to see where Gi-hun was. She had a feeling Sang-woo did him dirty, and had him choosing a shape that might make things harder to pass the game.

Her face dropped noticing his slumped shoulders, and defeated look expressioned. That only meant bad news. She wanted to stand up and go over to him, but the guard blocking her way from moving gave her no way to do that.

With a scowl thrown up at the guard through her messy fringe, and only prayed that her friend passed the next round. She knew he could, she just needs to focus on the task she had to do.

"The time limit is ten minutes. You will pass if you trim out the shape without breaking or cracking within the time limit. With that, let the game begin."

A clock beeping was heard next, followed by it ticking as the timer starts. Sae-bom saw the massive digital clock on the wall, where it felt more intimidating then comforting since it basically counted the seconds till someone's death.

Everyone got to work along with her. She kicked her legs out to sit more comfortable on the floor, and felt the watchful gazes of the guards walking through the maze of people.

She started to gently scrap the cookie along the line of the triangle, and blew off the lose crumbs so she could see the shape better. Her hair was tucked behind her ears, giving people a view of her small scar below her jaw.

Steady hands, steady hands... the girl thought to herself repetitively, as her tongue pokes out a little in concentration, trying not to break or crack a piece that mattered to pass.

All of a sudden, a gunshot rings out through the room. All the players yell out in alarm, as a body thuds and slid down the slide, leaving a trail of blood in his wake. Silence followed not long after, everyone taking in the sight of the dead player.

Sae-bom didn't even flinch, but her eyes were wide upon seeing the once living and breathing male, now lifeless on a kids's slide of all places. She was lucky she placed the metal stick down, other wise she feared she would of made a crack in the cookie at the gunshot bang.

Just like the domino affect, players started dropping like flies, one after the other. And Sae-bom counted each one in her head, something that she did on her old jobs prior to being stuck inside these games.

The gun shots weren't the worst part, it was the bodies and the smell of blood that invaded her nose and senses. It was difficult to work under these circumstances, but she has been under worse before.

"Player 67, pass. Player 50, pass."

Sae-bom glanced up from her almost finished cookie, hearing her sister's player name, and sighed in relief seeing Sae-byeok had passed with the handsome male at the same time.

She met her eyes's tired eyes, and mouthed the words 'go' to her. Sae-byeok pursed her lips nervously, not wanting to leave the room without her sibling, but the guard gave her no choice and sent one last glance at her sister before she was gone from view.

More of her team mates pass, those including Ali which she was happy and Sang-woo.. not so much, but was glad anyway. The old man and Gi-hun were left, plus her to finish the game.

And Sae-bom did when she traced the last of the piece on the tringale, fingers a bit wobbly as she picks up the cookie and throws the rest into her mouth, eating away happily.

She walked up to a guard, and patted his shoulder to grab his attention. She flashed a crooked grin and showed him the unbroken tringale, which made the PA speaker announce her number next.

"Player 450, pass."

Outside it looked like she was cheerful, but on the inside she was freaking out how close the timer was to finishing, and how she could of easily broken the cookie many times with her fingers.

As she walked towards the exit where all the other passed players went, she felt an intense stare on the back of her head and span around to find who it belonged to.

Of course it was a guard, one across the room whom seem to not want to look away. She shivered a bit, shoulders moving up and down, and turned back around, but was met with a solid chest in her way.

"Yah! What was that for--" Her annoyed tone died faster then usual, a gulp sounding from her as a square guard was stopping her from moving any further.

Neither of them said anything for a few seconds, only the sound of players whimpering and gun shots were heard, until the guard decided to speak, "Wait here until the game is over."

She frowned confused at the weird request, her rather be away from all the chaos and smell of blood, "What? Shouldn't I be going with the other players--?" She questioned a bit forcefully, hands tucked into her pockets.

"This is an order, not a request." His distorted voice didn't answer her curiosity, he only made them bigger as he grabbed her by the arm and lead her towards the few guards posted near the shapes on the walls.

She scoffed annoyed, but didn't snap back like she usual would and smacked the hand off of her when they stopped walking, "Jeez, I understand." She muttered rolling her eyes, "I don't know why I'm still here if I passed though."

No response came from the guard, as per usual. He only just nodded at the other guards, who came up on either side of her but kept their space, as the other one walked away to watch the players.

Sae-bom blinked confused at two things. One, the guards around her acting like actual body guards, and two, how most players in the room now were licking the back of the cookie. She figured it was to melt it so it was easier to cut.

There was only a second left, and Gi-hun just managed to pass. Her shoulders slumped in relief, and gripped her necklace, hoping that Sae-byeok didn't think she was dead since she hasn't left the room yet.

"Your time to remove your shape is now up. All successful players, please leave the playground immediately."

I'm one of those... why aren't I allow to leave? Sae-bom grumbled in her thoughts, watching those who passed walk through the doors, and the guards around her get tenser if anything as this happened.

A sudden commotion caused her attention to come back to reality, and gasped at how a player had stabbed one of the masked man in the face with the pin. The player had missed the gun shot and injured the guard instead, causing pained screams to leave him.

Sae-bom didn't move from her spot near the corner, not could she with the three guard covering each side of her from the now armed player. Her instincts screamed at her to help, but she remained frozen in fear watching the scene play out.

Player 119 shot another masked guard, getting his arm as blood flew out from the hit, and he managed to grab the injured guard, holding the gun up to his head in a hostage situation.

Oh shit... she thought, swallowing the lump in her throat as her hands trembled beside her figure, having a bad feeling that neither of those involved were walking out of the room alive.

"You see this, assholes, huh?!" Player 119 screamed his curse, more guards marching towards him with their guards aimed directly at him, "Goddammit! What kind of sick game was that? Why do some people get easy shapes while we all get shitty umbrellas, huh?!"

Fear was very present in Sae-bom's eyes, the young woman located near the back of the guards as she gripped onto her necklace. She couldn't blame the male for feeling the way he was, his fear of death got the best of him, like it would anyone.

"Hey, you assholes, step back right now!" Player 119 yelled when they tried to move forward, his wild, feral eyes landing on the only female in the room and scowled angrily, "You move any closer, and I'll shoot her too! One less player to worry about, right?!"

The guards instantly straightened up at the threat placed upon her, knowing who this would call out from up stairs watching from the control room. No one moved, but the protective wall around Sae-bom got bigger.

She tensed hearing Player 119's words, face going pale and nervously bit her bottom lip. She tried to keep her fear under control, and instead looked at the crazy male with a calm expression, trying not to provoke him anymore.

"I'll shot! Shoot them both right here! Goddammit!" Player 119 continued his frantic threats, not seeing clearly as his eyes were clouded by fear and the tears wanting to spill out.

The guards at the back in a line, all turned around in sync making the left over players all exclaim in fright. Not even a second late, their guns were released and they killed every player that stood there, until blood painted every wall in the once peaceful room.

Sae-bom felt sick to her stomach. Yes, she was use to blood, and yes she was use to seeing dead bodies, but... not this much in one sitting. Her palm comes up to cover her mouth, and gagged at the foul stench of blood overpowering her nostrils.

It was a death playground now. They turned something meant for kids, into a sick and twisted version of it.

Her breathing got heavy beneath her palm, standing in between the lines now facing where Player 119 still had a guard hostage. Her heart beat echoed in her ears, making it hard for the girl to focus on anything around her.

Player 119 had the masked guard turned around, and aimed his gun at the back of his head, "T-take off your mask." He halfly stuttered, and repeated himself more forcefully as the guard didn't move, "Don't make me shoot!"

Slowly, but surely, the guard lifted his gloved hand to pull down the hoodie covering his head and slipped off the mask next, revealing what the male looked like underneath.

It felt like a kick to her stomach at how young he looked, and it made her wonder how old all the guards were if this one looked like a damn kid.

"Don't look." One of the guards next to her muttered in warning, just as she glanced at him wide eyed, and another gun shot went off in the room, causing her to flinch this time.

She felt a cry get caught up in her throat, as she saw the dead body of Player 119, and figured he had used the gun on himself instead of dying by the guard's hand. This was all to much, and she felt like her head was spinning.

It got even worse when more footsteps were heading to where they were, and all the guards parted away for someone, whom she didn't get to see yet. She kept her head down, shoulders trembling as the last gunshot echoed through the room.

"Remember." A different male's voice talked this time, it sounded distorted also, but it reminder her of someone she talked to recently, "Once they found out who you are, you die."

Sae-bom only looked up when she saw a pair of black boots in her vision, and swallowed the lump in her throat. She tried seem unscared as she did so, but the way her fingers were trembling said otherwise.

Her face morphed into a calm expression, but her eyes widen upon seeing the masked figure in front of her, all dressed in back instead. She craned her neck up a bit, as he was taller by a few inches in the boots he wore.

The eerier silence made her even more uncomfortable under the stare of the male. She couldn't see his eyes, but she could tell he was looking at her intensely. It made her cheeks heat up, and stomach to twist uneasy.

His gloved fingers twitched by his side, almost like he wanted to reach out and touch her upon seeing the splat of blood on her cheek. But, he restrained himself, and instead scrunched his knuckles up tightly.

The more he stood there just watching her, the more she felt like squirming in her spot and want to run away and hide from his piercing gaze. It was covered by the mask, but it didn't make things better, if anything it made it worse.

Her fingers brushed along her sister's necklace, which caught his attention and his eyes followed the movement. His head turned back around to his guards waiting command, while the others got to work with picking up the dead bodies.

"Take her back to the other players," This was his first command, his eyes landing on the glaring Sae-bom before moving towards the door, next words coming out more deeper, more serious then before, like there would be consequences if not done, "and make sure no one touches her."

The pink guards surrounding her only nodded their heads, as Sae-bom's wide eyes followed the unfamiliar male's figure until he was out of sight. And if feeling her curious gaze, he meet her eyes for a split second before turning around the corner, and disappeared.

For the first time in a while, Sae-bom was actually fearful for her own life.

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❪ ✏️ ❫ 𝚆𝙾𝚁𝙳𝚂 : 4708
─►☆ AUTHOR'S NOTE :
this is my fav chapter yet tbh and it's not because i was giggling over how in-ho automatically came down from the camera's room as the frontman seeing sae-bom getting threatened, that's only part of the reason but me introducing another oc that you guys will hopefully come to love anddd the bond between the sisters, i love them so bad 

hopefully you guys see this update because wp
is glitching so badly recently and it's pissing me off bruh but it won't stop me from updating
even if half of the people who read this don't see
the update 😔🙏🏻

anywaysss you all know the drill, vote,
comment, ect (if you want) mwah <33