Chapter 519
Chapter 519
On the screen, 'Jung Yi-sol'—a medical student with an intellectual air and the face of Bae Se-jin—was calmly wiping blood from the back of his hand.
The protagonist, frozen stiff and pale, looked at the corpses of the comrades who had been alive just moments ago and asked:
[Why...?!]
The viewers watching from the living room felt exactly the same way.
A confused silence filled the room. Instead of Bae Se-jin, who was breaking out in a cold sweat, the medical student on the screen answered.
[Why what?]
[They're... they're dead... Why? Why did you kill them?!]
The convenience store was as quiet as a grave.
So was the dorm living room outside the screen.
Between the two worlds, a graceful classical accompaniment began to flow through the speakers.
It was a smooth, calm sound.
Then, the medical student’s composed voice rang out.
[Because there was no reason not to.]
"What kind of bullshit is that...?"
"Seriously, bro?"
Gasps and groans echoed through the living room, and Bae Se-jin covered his eyes.
However, the medical student on the screen, shown in a close-up of his upper body, maintained a flat expression despite having the exact same face.
Then he explained.
'Because they were injured.'
The protagonist screamed, sounding almost out of his mind.
[What... W-what are you talking about? Then why did you save us? Why did you help us...!]
[I had to check.]
He meant he had to see if they possessed abilities that could offset the penalty of being injured.
The medical student’s brief reply was calm and rational.
No, he used a tone that sounded rational, but it only heightened the eerie dissonance against the gruesome, blood-splattered background.
After neatly removing all the blood with a wet wipe, he pointed to a corner of the warehouse with that same hand.
It was a backpack filled with gathered supplies.
[Pack your things.]
[Aaaargh!]
The protagonist, completely losing it, lunged at him.
The medical student frowned slightly. With a small tilt of his head, he dodged the protagonist's punch and tripped him, sending him sprawling.
The protagonist fell on top of the corpses.
[Ugh, aaahhh!!!]
[Think.]
To the protagonist, who was struggling in a fit of rage and terror, the medical student gave advice as if teaching him how to breathe.
And the moment the protagonist looked up, panting reflexively—
[Let's go together.]
The medical student reached out his hand.
It was a proposal to travel together.
Unable to comprehend this crazy bastard's thought process, the protagonist momentarily forgot his anger and stared at the hand while still sprawled on the floor.
As the protagonist's vision blurred in slow motion and the world seemed to freeze—
[Ju-seong!!]
The silence was shattered by a loud shout.
The rest of the group, who had been following a step behind with the rescued middle schoolers, entered the convenience store.
The protagonist was barely rescued by them and dragged out of the store.
He spent several hours holed up in an officetel, crying and struggling, before finally managing to return to the convenience store.
[......]
The convenience store was already empty.
All that remained were the neatly arranged corpses.
[Heuuuugh...]
The protagonist collapsed in front of them.
After a slow, agonizing piece of music played, the protagonist, unable to bear the pain alone, discovered something still sitting in the corner of the warehouse.
A full backpack.
The medical student had left behind one of the backpacks he had packed with supplies.
Whether it was a decision made for mobility or for some other reason, no one knew.
[...Hic.]
The protagonist fumbled for the backpack and took it.
Then, gritting his teeth, he left the convenience store with dragging footsteps.
His steps grew heavier and more purposeful.
Leaving behind the corpses that lay limp like dolls.
<Doll Hunter>
The rugged title logo appeared over the protagonist's tear-stained face, bringing Episode 2 to a shocking conclusion.
"..."
"..."
Cha Yu-jin, who had been sitting with his mouth agape, having forgotten his popcorn, muttered.
"Se-jin hyung, you lied to me."
"...No."
"You said you were the protagonist's friend."
"Well, for a moment... I was a friend,"
It was a shameless statement.
"Wait, are you serious?!"
"That's not a friend, that's an enemy."
"That... that person is too much...!"
Bae Se-jin sank into his seat after even Seon A-hyun chimed in.
A slick response like 'But it was fun, wasn't it?' or 'I totally fooled you guys' was impossible for him...
Finally, with a bright red face, Bae Se-jin opened his mouth.
He had to explain the details now!
I was being considerate because you guys played psychopaths three times in a row, so I told you not to do it if it was a psychopath role! I felt awkward taking this role right after that!
"Right. He is a bit of a strange character, but actually..."
It was at that moment.
"Wait."
"...?"
Lee Se-jin stopped him, chewing on Cha Yu-jin's popcorn with a solemn expression.
"Hyung-nim, don't say it."
Why?
An unexpected answer came back.
"It's more fun if we don't hear it."
"?!"
"Wow, Se-jin hyung, your acting is seriously amazing. Right?"
"Yeah, that's true!"
"I-I'm looking forward to... seeing what you'll do next...!"
Crazy was crazy, but fun was fun!
"Ah, it's starting."
[Doll Hunter]
[3. The One Who Climbs Hell]
No spoilers allowed!
TeSTAR began to focus on the automatically playing Episode 3 with solemn postures and eyes full of excitement.
"..."
Bae Se-jin was left gaping with a dazed expression.
"So, what I mean is..."
"Shh, hyung, focus!"
"..."
Bae Se-jin was speechless!
However, one member remained outside this whirlwind of chaotic exchange.
I didn't expect him to play the medical student.
Park Moon-dae.
Having already finished the original webtoon months ago, he was nodding to himself, praising his own foresight for setting up the reaction cam.
This content is going to be killer.
He was truly the personification of efficiency.
And just as Park Moon-dae predicted, real-time social media was already filled with all sorts of screams.
Since Doll Hunter hadn't revealed the actors' roles in detail, casual fans who weren't die-hard fans of Bae Se-jin hadn't read the original webtoon.
Many people were just excited to watch a fun drama on Netplus that happened to feature Bae Se-jin.
They were impressed by Bae Se-jin's first appearance.
The appearance of a cool ally!
And they were impressed in a different sense during the killer's appearance.
Meaning, it was accompanied by screams.
People who saw these reactions started watching Doll Hunter wondering 'What is it? What happened?', only to end up screaming together an hour or two later in a chain reaction.
Meanwhile, Bae Se-jin's hardcore fans were watching this play out with delight, even as they screamed themselves.
It was the composure of those who had binged the original work the moment they heard news of Bae Se-jin's casting, realizing the truth from the medical student's very first appearance.
But even they couldn't help but be impressed.
His acting was so perfect it was hard to believe.
He portrayed the intense role of a psychopath without exaggeration, keeping it restrained and realistic while capturing the details, ensuring the shock and impact were clear.
Of course, in reality, Bae Se-jin's acting hiatus wasn't as long as they thought.
Not only had he frequently played psychopath roles in the system's virtual world, but his very last project had actually been the role of a medical student.
Thanks to that, even with a short preparation period, he was able to implement the specific habits and traits of a medical student down to the smallest detail.
It was the effect of being an 'experienced rookie.'
On top of that, the story of Bae Se-jin being cast in a hurry as a mid-production replacement spread through the grapevine, creating a synergistic effect.
Considering the production team had vowed this behind-the-scenes story wouldn't leak, Bae Se-jin's side might have been angry, but the result itself was excellent.
Praise poured in even from those who had read the original work.
The buzz was skyrocketing.
Furthermore, filming for this project had already been completed.
It didn't fall into the trap of forced screen time or becoming a 'Mary Sue' character just because of popularity or impact, which would have ruined the quality.
Instead, the drama's originality truly came alive after the 'medical student' twist.
Until then, Doll Hunter had been progressing like a standard mystery survival story.
A protagonist who was somewhat adventurous, compassionate, and clearly human, acting like a typical hero.
But from Episode 3 onwards, the protagonist began to warily watch everyone, trying to escape the bizarre building alone.
[There are too many monsters in this building.]
[But I will not become a monster.]
It was a complete awakening.
The protagonist's fragility, which was necessary in the beginning to immerse the audience in the world, was transformed into the strong and cold judgment that 21st-century audiences craved.
[Run!]
He risked danger to break through the monsters, overcoming situations in a thrilling and desperate manner.
The protagonist didn't waver for people who might be asking for help or trying to lure him into a trap. He powered through the officetel floors and finally entered the commercial area.
And from there, the medical student 'Jung Yi-sol' appeared in the story again.
[...!]
He didn't appear often, but every time he did, he created a symbolic thrill, like a horror event.
At the butcher shop, in a cult, in a barely found hideout.
The medical student's BGM made viewers freeze whenever it played, but the protagonist survived every time.
It was a tension regulator made possible by the impact of the first twist.
For the record, TeSTAR's reaction was as follows:
"He's out again."
"Oh my goodness."
The warm reactions from his first appearance were long gone.
"Hyung, you said you weren't going to play a psychopath."
"No... No, that's..."
The reaction of TeSTAR, filmed and released by Park Moon-dae, was so real that even fans who didn't know the exact circumstances burst into laughter.
But the true crowning glory came in Episode 5, the last of the episodes released all at once on October 31st, halfway through the season.
Near the end of Episode 5.
The moment the protagonist, who had escaped while the cult was being massacred by the monster they worshipped, encountered the medical student.
[An...]
Thud.
Without a word, Jung Yi-sol stabbed the protagonist.
[Why...]
[Supply shortage.]
Then he collected the supplies the protagonist had been carrying.
The very backpack he had left behind.
[Ah.]
That's right.
The medical student killed the protagonist too.
"..."
"..."
Of course, he comes back to life.
The protagonist regained consciousness in the room, just like the beginning of Episode 1.
[Gasp!]
"Aaaargh!"
"Phew, thank god!"
"Se-jin hyung, you lied to me again!"
"...?!"
I thought you said you weren't listening!
The sight of TeSTAR screaming that they should have listened to the spoilers and Bae Se-jin's indignant expression drew explosive laughter.
With the full support of Netplus officials, this chaotic reaction video of TeSTAR watching Episodes 1 and 2 was even uploaded to WeTube as official content.
It was a massive hit.
A few days later, people even started finding meta-humor by comparing it with Bae Se-jin's previous activities.
It was because the characters of Doll Hunter and the medical student were so intense.
Most of the jokes linked it to the previous collaboration game with the company Ruin Factory—now Ruin Industrial Complex—and fans even started drawing fan art connecting the two.
The interesting thing was that fans weren't the only ones intrigued by this.
The parties involved felt the same way.
[Hello! I'm contacting you to see how you're doing now that the weather has gotten much colder. Haha. Oh, by any chance, have you seen this?]
A text message containing a link.
After a long time, Park Moon-dae received a message from the game company, Ruin Industrial Complex.
Along with the proposal he had expected.
[By any chance, would the TeSTAR members really not be interested in making one more game?]