[Thud, thud]
“Number 456…? Wake up.”
A slender voice gradually opened my eyes.
“Who…”
“It’s me, it’s me.”
“Ah…”
“Hehe… Surprised to see me?”
I realized it when I saw ‘164’ on the white patch.
I wished it was a dream.
But it wasn’t a dream.
“More importantly, I got mine cut off too.”
“Why do you seem so energetic?”
“Well, if things stay like this, I’ll be exempt from military service, right?”
“You… you’re an idiot.”
If I were released in this body…
My identity would be questioned…
Most of all, even my parents and friends wouldn’t recognize me.
At best, they’d think of me as OO’s girlfriend.
More than anything, even if it meant military exemption, I wouldn’t want my dick cut off.
“…More importantly, why did you wake me up?”
“Look over there.”
Number 164 pointed her finger.
When I turned my head towards that place, the masked figures were installing something.
“O… X…?”
“I think that’s probably a vote.”
“The result seems obvious anyway.”
If the vote proceeds like this, we’ll probably be released.
The only thing that bothers me is ‘will those masks really let us go?’…
Honestly, even though they’re an organization that kidnaps, imprisons, and forcibly castrates, they seem to follow the rules diligently.
It was quite systematic.
“By the way, don’t call me number 456.”
“My name is Seong Ji-yoon.”
“My name is Kim Yu-jin.”
“That’s a girly name.”
“You’re quite the same…!”
It was fun to tease her because she was cute.
The power of appearance is greater than I thought.
After a brief greeting with Yu-jin, I walked towards Seong-ho.
“Thank you for yesterday…”
“It was nothing.”
“You saved someone’s dick, I should be grateful…”
Honestly, if it weren’t for Seong-ho’s help, I would have had it cut off.
I wanted to protect my masculinity.
[Voting will begin soon]
[Participants, please gather in the center]
When I turned my head towards the center, there was a button placed there.
The masks had disappeared before I knew it.
…
Participants began to gather in the center.
It used to feel more crowded…
At that time, number 164… no, Yu-jin, walked next to me.
“By the way, what will happen to my gender if I’m released?”
“You’ll go back to normal.”
“Eh… really?”
“…You really don’t want to go back to being a man?”
“This appearance… is quite cute, isn’t it?”
“More importantly, Ji-yoon, you didn’t fall for me because of my appearance, did you?”
…Narcissism?
“Of course, you’re cute, but the contents are male.”
Honestly, unless you have a preference for TS people, there’s no way you’d fall for it.
No matter how cute you are, if you think about the original, it’s just so-so.
[Thoom-]
[Bang!]
Those masks appeared again this time.
Still, I didn’t feel too bad because I thought this was the last time.
“Now, we will begin the first yes-or-no vote.”
“First, we will have a brief explanation of the vote and a question-and-answer session.”
“When the vote begins, you can select either O or X on the button in front of you.”
“If you want to continue the game, press O.”
“If you want to stop the game, press X.”
At that time, someone was seen raising their hand in the distance.
Looking closely, it was that middle-aged man who was eliminated second.
He’s just a pretty girl now…
Looking at the white patch… it was number 63.
“If we go back, what will happen to my identity and gender?”
“In the case of gender and identity, we cannot answer due to security reasons.”
I shouldn’t have trusted these masks from the start.
The most important thing is no comment…
“Wh… what does that… mean…?”
Voices of protest began to be heard from around.
“That’s the most important thing!”
“I have a wife!”
“That doesn’t make sense…!”
Voices of protest echoed from all over.
However, the backlash subsided quickly, perhaps recalling what happened yesterday.
Some people were seen sobbing in the middle.
It doesn’t matter to me anyway since I didn’t get it cut off.
Most of all, the no votes will be overwhelmingly victorious if things continue like this.
But when I looked at Seong-ho next to me, his complexion had worsened.
I can understand the eliminated people, but why Seong-ho…?
I became a little uneasy, but I looked at the stage for now.
“First, we will reveal the prize money before the vote.”
The mask in the center took out a remote control and pressed it, and the surroundings darkened.
[Whirring-]
When the ceiling began to brighten, I looked up.
There was a glass piggy bank coming down.
It seemed to be about the size of a bathtub.
And from there…
[Patting-]
Countless 50,000 won bills began to fall.
“Wow… how much is that…”
After regaining my senses for a moment, I looked around…
People were staring blankly at the piggy bank.
At that time, the sound of the bills falling stopped.
“250 million won will be paid each time you pass the game…”
“Each of you who passed the first game will be paid 250 million won.”
At that time, Yu-jin, who was next to me, began to speak.
“Th… then how much will it be if you pass the last game?”
“If you pass all twelve games…”
“Regardless of the number of people, 3 billion won will be paid equally per person.”
“Wh… what…? 3 billion won per person?”
“Isn’t that crazy? If you pass everything, 3 billion won will come in for each person.”
“Wow…”
The surroundings began to murmur.
At that time, the mask began to speak again.
“The prize money will be given only if you pass all twelve games.”
The surroundings murmured once more.
But even so, having my dick cut off and getting 3 billion won…
My life wasn’t too bad, so it wasn’t that much.
Of course, there was a chance of winning without being eliminated even once…
In fact, it was impossible to say that you wouldn’t be eliminated even once in twelve games.
At that time, when I looked at Seong-ho next to me, I could see that his complexion had worsened even more.
“Why are you…”
“You’ll know if you look.”
I don’t know what he wants me to look at, but I looked at the stage for now.
…
[Now, we will begin the vote]
“Voting will proceed in order of number. Please come out from number 001.”
The screen on the monitor changed.
[0:0]
Number 1 was a fairly young-looking pretty girl.
Yu-jin looked young too, but she looked even younger than her.
Number 1 seemed quite excited and ran towards the button, jumping.
She seems excited at the thought of going home.
[Click-]
[0:1]
“No way…”
What she pressed was ‘O’.
“Next, please come out number 2.”
Number 2 was also a fairly beautiful woman.
Number 2 began to walk out slowly.
After that, she was seen contemplating for a while.
[Click-]
[0:2]
“What…”
This time too, it was O.
…
[52:87]
“Wa… wait a minute…!”
I couldn’t stand it and opened my mouth.
“Everyone…! We have to go home! What are you doing!?”
Seong-ho stopped me, but it was too hard to bear.
“Th… then what about you!?”
“You guys are lucky to have dicks, right?”
A woman said to me.
Looking at the white patch, it was number 63.
“You have to go home too!”
“You’re going back to this gender anyway!”
“You should at least get the prize money!?”
“Then what about you!? Do you believe those masked guys?”
“They’re deceiving us!”
As the argument between me and number 63 intensified…
Voices gradually began to come out from around.
“I don’t want to be harmed!”
“We should still go home!”
“I don’t have a home anyway!”
“I should at least get some money and go back!”
[Bang-!]
Everyone looked at the stage at that sound.
The mask in the center shot a gun at the ceiling.
It doesn’t seem to be live ammunition… but it was a different gun than last time.
At that time, the demeanor of some people was strange.
“O… one more round…”
“One more round…!”
“One more round!”
[One more round! One more round!]
Voices began to echo from all over.
“Everyone! Let’s get the prize money and go back!”
[One more round! One more round! One more round! One more round!]
[56:124]
[One more round! One more round! One more round! One more round! One more round! One more round! One more round! One more round!]
[62:228]
[One more round! One more round! One more round! One more round! One more round! One more round! One more round! One more round! One more round! One more round! One more round! One more round! One more round! One more round! One more round! One more round! One more round! One more round! One more round! One more round! One more round! One more round! One more round! One more round! One more round! One more round! One more round! One more round!]
…
“Finally, please come out number 456.”
[Click-]
[74:382]
“With 382 votes in favor and 74 votes against, the game will continue.”
[Waaaaaaah!!]
Cheers echoed around.
“The next game will be held tomorrow.”
“Then, I hope you enjoy it.”
[Thoom-]
[Bang!]
“Ha…”
[Thud-]
I quietly returned to my bed and lay down.
I didn’t want to think about anything anymore.
[Pitter-patter… Pitter-patter…]
“Ji-yoon… are you okay?”
“Yu-jin. Please go back now.”
“More importantly, you voted in favor too.”
“I was tempted by 3 billion won and… haha…”
Still, I understood.
If she goes back like this, she’ll be a woman as is…
Her identity is uncertain, and she won’t get the prize money.
“Haa… what do I do now…”
…
“Kyaa~!”
At that time, a slender scream was heard from afar.
“Haa… I’d rather use my dick a little than have it cut off like this.”
When I turned my head, a middle-aged man was harassing one of the participants.
[Rustle… Rustle…]
The middle-aged man was gradually taking off the participant’s clothes.
“So… someone…!”
No one was approaching around.
I didn’t really want to approach either.
At that time, I saw Yu-jin walking silently.
“Uh…? Yu-jin… where are you going…?”
[Pitter-patter… Pitter-patter…]
“You’re quite girly for having your gender changed, aren’t you?”
[Snap!]
Yu-jin grabbed the wrist of the middle-aged man who was trying to harass her.
“Mister… please stop now…”
“What is it? Why are you interfering!?”
[Thud]
“Heuk!?”
[Rustle… Rustle…]
“But you’re quite pretty too, aren’t you?”
“Even if you’re a man… it doesn’t matter, right.”
The middle-aged man laid Yu-jin on the bed and began to touch Yu-jin’s chest.
“St… stop… Haah!? Haa… Haa…”
In succession, he began to put his hand inside Yu-jin’s skirt.
“Th… there…!”
…
[Pitter-patter… Pitter-patter…]
Even so, I couldn’t stand the thought of Yu-jin being harassed for some reason.
[Thud]
“Who are you again?”
“Let’s stop there.”
“Yo… you know too, don’t you? We’re all going to have it cut off soon…”
“I know. That’s why I’m troubled too.”
As I approached little by little, he stepped back, perhaps flustered.
“Are you okay?”
“Haa… Heueu…”
“Shall I carry you on my back?”
When I carried her on my back, she quietly opened her mouth.
“As expected… you fell for me, didn’t you!?”
“…Shall I just throw you away?”
“Ah… no…”
Honestly, she’s pretty, cute, and good.
But first, I have to worry about my lower half.
I’m single, but…
At least I didn’t want to harass her like that old man.
···
“What do you think the next game will be?”
“Um… I’m not sure either…”
Me, Yujin, and Seongho gathered and started discussing the next game.
After pondering for a moment, Mr. Seongho slowly began to speak.
“This is just a personal guess, but…”
“‘Red Light, Green Light’ was a game we used to play, right?”
“Maybe they’ll bring in traditional Korean games…”
“Ah…”
“What’s wrong?”
“Well… I’m not good at using my hands or feet delicately…”
“Like marbles or jacks…”
“Yeah, there are those, and a lot of them involve using your body…”
“I don’t know why, but I’m not good at using my body anymore…”
“First of all, there are a lot of team games, so let’s try to cooperate if possible.”
“It’s better that the prize money doesn’t increase as participants are eliminated.”
I nodded at Mr. Seongho’s words.
If the prize money increased as participants were eliminated, as Mr. Seongho said…
Just imagining it is horrifying.
◈◈◈
Guessing Game
Tug-of-war, marbles, territory grabbing, jacks, stone skipping, Yut Nori, drop the handkerchief, human ladder, seesaw…
◈◈◈
There were so many kinds.
It was impossible to pinpoint it.
“Is there no way to know what the next game is?”
“The terrain for ‘Red Light, Green Light’ was the playground, so…”
“We should look at the terrain of the next game first.”
“Um… I understand.”
“Let’s sleep for now.”
“Yes… Jiyoon, be careful tomorrow.”
“You too, Seongho.”
“…Aren’t you worried about me…?”
After a light greeting, I went back to bed.
There are 11 games left, but…
I won’t give up until the end.
I don’t expect hope…
But at least I won’t abandon hope.
[It’s lights out]
[Participants, please return to your beds]
✦✦✦
The next day arrived.
The masked men appeared a moment ago and…
Gave us basic toiletries and left.
They were surprisingly generous.
[The second game will begin shortly]
[Participants, please move in order towards the door on the left side of the stage]
[Thud… Thud…]
I could still see the large, geometric structure.
Now that I see it, it feels like a playground.
Familiar classical music was playing from the building.
[Tap]
“Jiyoon Senior~!”
I turned my head and saw Yujin.
“More importantly, stop calling me Senior.”
“Is this much not okay~?”
I couldn’t tell if it was intentional or not.
“It’s nice to see Jiyoon and Yujin here.”
I turned around and saw Mr. Seongho.
···
“I saw my naked body for the first time yesterday when I was going to shower…”
“Are you talking about that again…?”
“But my body looked so sexy!”
“By the way, Yujin, did you try ‘that’ back then?”
“Ah… you don’t mean ‘that’…”
Yujin blushed at Mr. Seongho’s sudden words.
Mr. Seongho was a bit oblivious.
While Yujin was hesitating, we had arrived.
I think it used to be a bit tighter…
[Clang]
[Whirr-]
“Yakgwa… Sikhye… Hotteok…?”
Looking around the walls, there were pictures of traditional foods.
Especially a lot of light snacks.
Above all, there was a sweet smell around.
[Choose one of the shapes in the front and stand in front of it]
Looking ahead, there were four shapes.
“Circle… Triangle… Star… Half-moon…?”
“What could this be…”
Seongho pondered for a moment.
“Sugar… Snacks… Shapes…?”
“Could it be…”
Before long, he started speaking as if something had come to mind.
“This is just a guess, but…”
“Isn’t this… that…?”
“That thing where you melt sugar and use a needle…”
“‘Sugar Candy’?”
“Yes, yes! That!”
“It smells like sugar too.”
It was easier than I thought.
In the first place, sugar candy was a popular challenge at one time.
Even if you weren’t good with your hands, you would have practiced making sugar candy.
“First of all, let’s exclude the star just in case and split up.”
“You can do the triangle, half-circle, and circle, right?”
We both nodded at Mr. Seongho’s suggestion.
“Then… should I do the triangle…? I’m not very confident in Dalgona…”
“Ah… I understand, Yujin. What about you, Jiyoon?”
“Um… Seongho, are you good at making sugar candy?”
“Ah… I can do it okay.”
“I understand. I’ll trust you, Seongho, and do the half-moon.”
“I understand. Everyone, let’s meet after the game.”
[Thud… Thud…]
And so, the three of us began to scatter.
···
[The selection time is over]
[Participants, please take one of the cases in front of you]
Before long, it was my turn and I saw a small metal case.
It seems Seongho’s guess was correct.
I took a case and moved to the wall.
[Now open the case and check inside]
[Click]
“Huh…? What is this… cloth…?”
Looking closely, there was cloth inside.
[Rustle… Rustle…]
‘Could it be…’
Touching it carefully, I realized it was a misshapen shuttlecock.
[The second game is ‘Jegi Kicking’]
[You pass if you kick the shuttlecock in the specified shape ten times without dropping it]
[If you don’t succeed within the time limit, you will be eliminated]
[10:00]
[09:59]
[09:58]
···
“I’m screwed…”