The Tunnel of Lost Souls
It feels like lying on a cloud.
Well, I’ve never actually lain on a cloud, so I wouldn’t know. But this bed is incredibly soft.
“Is this what a successful life feels like…?”
It’s a bed of a scale I couldn’t have imagined back when I was sleeping on a thin mat in the corner of my sister’s room. A laugh escaped me involuntarily. Even the pillows smelled expensive.
I’m currently in a hotel suite provided by the broadcasting station.
“Success is definitely the way to go.”
The days of sleeping on the streets for ten years in another world, and then curling up in a cramped room after returning to Earth, flashed before my eyes like a revolving lantern.
“You made it, Kang Jinwoo!”
I rolled around on the bed, savoring the luxury. To think they’d put me up in a place like this just because they were providing lodging near the filming site. As expected of a major broadcasting company; their scale of spending was on another level.
Of course, all this luxury was just a fair reward for the performance I showed during the last shoot. I had originally intended to just blend in, but looking at the situation, the framing was lackluster. So, I made a bit of a scene, but who knew the treatment would change this much?
“Mm-hmm, this is the life.”
Overwhelmed with emotion, I buried my face in the pillow before picking up my phone while lying on my stomach.
1. War of the Gods Fan Man
2. Kang Jinwoo
3. Tracksuit Shaman
4. Siwoo (▼3)
“Whoa, still number one.”
It’s been three days since the second episode aired, and my name is still stuck at the top of the real-time search rankings. I smiled contentedly and checked the reactions on various communities.
He's an internet streamer who used to visit haunted houses? Apparently, he was a middle-school dropout and a shut-in, then suddenly got possessed?
└ Are you crazy lol, is the dropout part real?
└ But did you see him dancing? It's strangely addictive lol
└ Isn't the wind CGI?
└ The production team confirmed it's not staged.
└ You believe that? It's definitely staged.
└ Or maybe they just got lucky with the timing.
Public opinion about me is split down the middle. No, most people are dismissive, assuming it’s all staged. But what does that matter? The important thing is that I’ve succeeded. Number one on the internet search rankings for several days? I can’t pass this up.
“Ah, I’m intoxicated.”
High on my own success, I read through the posts one by one. But they say jealousy and envy are the fate of the popular, and it seems that’s true.
He's just getting too much praise for getting lucky.
A malicious post appeared as soon as I scrolled down a bit. But I’m a man with a broad heart, so things like that don’t even register. Tap, tap, tap, tap. With a merciful heart, I left a comment for the guy who was jealous of me.
As soon as I hit the register button, my comment was neatly attached under the post. “Perfect.” I stood up from the bed with a satisfied smile. It’s almost time for the shoot, so I should get ready.
“Hmm.”
My reflection in the mirror is just a plain tracksuit, but… “I look handsome, don’t I?” I feel like I can even sense the aura of a number-one search ranking. Since I shouldn’t interfere with the shoot, I took out the sunglasses that had been shoved into the corner of my bag and put them on. A star, after all, must be conscious of the public’s gaze.
“With this, no one will recognize me.”
But perhaps I was too good at disguising myself? What if they ask for a photo? I’m busy right now. I was nervous and kept checking my surroundings even when I left the room and got into the elevator. If someone recognized this body, they might scream and rush at me.
However.
“……”
Even though the elevator was crowded, no one looked at me. “Honey, did you see the Fan Man?” “The guy DCN is pushing?” Even the couple next to me was talking about the Fan Man without noticing me at all.
What is this? Are these sunglasses too effective? The situation was similar even after I stepped out of the hotel.
“Excuse me, could you move a bit?”
“Do you not know who I am?”
“Who are you? Don’t block the way and move.”
People passed by without recognizing me even when I took off my sunglasses. “Is the search ranking rigged?”
Just then, familiar white smoke appeared beside me.
[Have you arrived, Boss?]
It was Driver Choi.
“Oh, you’re here?”
I pretended to look around and put my sunglasses back on. Driver Choi stared at me and spoke in a very polite, calm voice.
[Boss, even if you take them off, no one will recognize you.]
“……”
The path of a popular star seems long and arduous. “Driver Choi, you’ve been getting a lot more comfortable with your boss lately, haven’t you? Want to try being exorcised?”
[Haha, I’m joking. Jinwoo, this way.]
Anyway, I walked toward the parking lot where the production team was waiting with the chuckling Driver Choi. Soon, I reached the place where several black vans were lined up.
“Oh? He’s here! Kang Jinwoo is here!”
As one of the staff members who spotted me shouted, the eyes of the staff loading the luggage all turned toward me at once.
“Oh my, Mr. Kang! Did you sleep well!”
“Did you eat? Would you like some coffee?”
Even the main PD, Choi Seonghun, stopped what he was doing and ran over to grab my hand.
“You saw the second episode, right? The reaction is very hot! It’s all thanks to you, Mr. Jinwoo.”
“Ah, yes. Well.”
“Come on, what are you all doing! The chair! Why haven’t you brought the chair!”
At PD Choi’s shout, the assistant director who had ignored me before came running over, panting, with a fishing chair.
“Mr. Kang, please wait here for a moment. I’ll check the vehicle dispatch and bring it to you right away. You must be tired, so please sit down.”
“……Here?”
A fishing chair set up in the middle of the hotel parking lot. It was clearly a nuisance, but the staff didn’t care and treated me like a master.
“Is this what you call treatment?”
“Y-yes? Is there something you’re unhappy with?”
I pushed the fishing chair away with my foot and snapped at him.
“No, is sitting in the middle of a parking lot what you call treatment?”
It’s a good thing I’m wearing sunglasses. “Just open the door. I’m too embarrassed to stand here.”
“Ah! Yes! Please, get in quickly!”
As I got into the car following the assistant director’s guidance, PD Lee Ayeong welcomed me.
“Mr. Jinwoo! Did you sleep well?”
“Is there no other car? I think I got in the wrong one.”
“Gallery Master, please, I was wrong.”
Tsk, can’t be helped. “I slept well. The hotel was nice.”
“That’s a relief! The general manager told us to pay special attention to you. Oh, and this.”
As I sat down, PD Lee Ayeong handed me a tablet PC.
“This is the briefing material for today’s filming location. Take a look while we’re moving.”
“Where is it?”
As I asked, taking the tablet, PD Lee Ayeong’s expression stiffened slightly.
“……Jangryeong Tunnel.”
“Jangryeong Tunnel?”
It was a name I’d never heard before. In the first place, there’s no way I, who doesn’t even have a driver’s license, would know the names of tunnels.
“Yes. It’s an abandoned tunnel that doesn’t even appear on maps, but it’s known through word of mouth. It’s a place where even shamans don’t dare to go because the energy is so strong.”
But as we were talking, a question suddenly occurred to me.
“But didn’t you say you spent 2 billion won on the set for the last shoot? Was that disposable? What about that expensive set?”
At my question, PD Lee Ayeong smiled meaningfully.
“We boldly gave it up after seeing the Gallery Master’s ability.”
“2 billion won?”
“The general manager said this: ‘If a real tiger appears in front of you, are you going to hang up a picture of a cat and do business?’”
PD Lee Ayeong continued as she started the car.
“They judged that the potential you showed was worth more than 2 billion won. So we’re going for real this time.”
“……”
Broadcasting station bastards. They were crazier than I thought. To throw away a 2-billion-won set and go all-in on me.
“What if the show flops because of that?”
“If it flops, well, we just become unemployed.”
A light tone, as if choosing a lunch menu, despite 2 billion won being on the line. As I quietly leaned my body toward the window, PD Lee Ayeong waved her hands and laughed.
“Oh, don’t feel burdened. If it flops, it’s because we lack the ability. It won’t be because of you, Gallery Master.”
“……Is that so?”
“Of course! No matter how good the raw stone is, if the craftsman is clumsy, it’ll flop, right? We just have to do well.”
It made me feel much better that she at least said that. If it goes well, it’s thanks to me; if it flops, it’s their fault. It was simple.
“Let’s go see this amazing tunnel.”
“Don’t you need to check the tablet?”
“Well, is there anything to check?”
I said that, but my hand was already pressing the power button on the tablet PC. It was boring on the way there anyway, and they had gone to the trouble of preparing it.
As the screen turned on, the briefing material came into view.
[Jangryeong Tunnel]
● Location: Deep in the mountains of Jeongseon-gun, Gangwon-do.
● History: Closed in the late 1990s due to a series of collapse accidents during road expansion construction.
● Casualties: 8 workers died.
● Reports: Multiple sightings of a woman in white at the tunnel entrance at night. Drivers who gave her a ride all testified that they forgot their destination.
“Ho-ho.”
Finding the content more interesting than I thought, I stroked my chin and looked at PD Lee Ayeong, who was holding the steering wheel.
“So, how was the preliminary survey? Did a woman appear when the production team went?”
“No. When we went, there wasn’t anything like ghosts appearing. Just that it was a bit eerie?”
“Then there’s nothing much.”
“Instead, the electronic devices were a bit strange.”
“Electronic devices?”
“Yes. As we approached the tunnel, the navigation system that was working fine suddenly stopped working. The GPS signal was completely cut off, so we wandered around for a long time.”
PD Lee Ayeong, who was speaking, shivered slightly.
“To say it was because it was deep in the mountains and there was no signal—the compass apps on the staff’s phones were spinning around in circles.”
“That alone is a bit weak to give up a 2-billion-won set. Aren’t the reports just lies made up by people who want attention?”
“Hey, Gallery Master. Even though I’m like this, I’m a broadcasting station employee. Of course, we filtered out all the stories made up by attention seekers. Our writers met with each informant, interviewed them, and even did pressure interviews to finish cross-verifying.”
Cross-verification, huh… It sounds plausible, but well.
“Human memory is originally self-serving. If you think it’s scary, even the sound of the wind sounds like a scream. Isn’t it just like collective hysteria?”
At my skeptical reaction, PD Lee Ayeong tapped the steering wheel as if frustrated.
“We didn’t believe it at first either. But do you know what gives you goosebumps?”
“Of course I don’t.”
“……The three informants are all strangers who have never met each other. A truck driver, a college student couple, and a designated driver. Their ages and where they live are all different.”
“So?”
“But their descriptions of the woman’s appearance were identical, down to the last detail. A white dress and long, straight hair. That’s common, right? That’s not all. All three people left the same words after the interview.”
PD Lee Ayeong gulped.
“They said the woman waved her hand to hitchhike… and she only had four fingers.”
“Fingers?”
“Yes. And they said when they gave her a ride, she didn’t say a destination, but just kept counting numbers. One, two, three… like that.”
A ghost without fingers. It certainly didn’t seem like a made-up story.
“With that level of detail, it’s hard for writers to make it up. That’s why we confidently gave up the 2-billion-won set.”
Actually, PD Lee Ayeong also pointed that out. A ghost without fingers, counting numbers, in Gangwon-do…
“Pyeong Gyeong-jang?”
“Yes?”
“Didn’t she lose her fingers while gambling? Isn’t there a Kangwon Land in Gangwon-do?”
“……”
At my reasonable deduction, PD Lee Ayeong closed her mouth as if she had nothing to say. Just then, Driver Choi, who had been listening quietly in the back seat, spoke up.
[Boss, I don’t think that’s it.]
When I turned my head to the back seat at those words, Driver Choi continued.
[Usually, gambling addicts have bloodshot eyes or shaky hands. But the vengeful spirit in the tunnel doesn’t have those characteristics, does it?]
“Hmm.”
[And decisively, the distance between the tunnel and Kangwon Land is quite far. Of course, it’s a guess, but wouldn’t it have nothing to do with Kangwon Land?]
Now that I think about it, that’s true.
“G-Gallery Master. Is there someone behind you?”
“It’s a secret.”
While we were chatting like that, the car jolted and slowed down.
“We’ve arrived.”
It was the entrance to Jangryeong Tunnel. As soon as I got out of the car, humid and cold air hit me. But I didn’t even have time to feel that chill.
“Oh! He’s here, he’s here!”
“Fan Man is here!”
Because the staff who spotted me stopped what they were doing and ran over. Everyone’s eyes were completely different from the last shoot.
“Oh my, Mr. Kang! Have you arrived!”
Even the national MC, Kim Sanghoon, ran over in one step, grabbed my hand with both of his, and made a fuss.
“Did you see the second episode? It’s a riot, a riot! The viewership rating hit 10%! The peak viewership rating soared to 15%!”
“You said it was a big hit, so I thought it would be at least 40%, isn’t that a bit low?”
“Oh! What a disappointing thing to say! Even though it was simultaneously aired on N-Flix and the viewers were dispersed, this is truly amazing. Plus, it’s number one on the N-Flix rankings! It’s the number one integrated content in South Korea.”
It certainly seemed like a big hit. “I understand. Well, I have to earn my keep.” I replied nonchalantly and turned my gaze behind Kim Sanghoon. Then, Siwoo waved his hand with a bright smile, and Lee Junhyuk nodded as if glad to see me.
And behind them, three people gathered in a corner. Yeonhwa, Cheongwang Dosa, and Jaewoon. As soon as the three saw me, they flinched and slowly avoided my gaze. It seems the events of the last shoot were still vivid in their minds.
Cute bastards.
I chuckled and looked away. A moment later, the scene began to move busily with PD Choi Seonghun’s shout.
“Come on! Standby! We have to finish the rehearsal before the sun goes down!”
The lighting team was busy installing lights at the tunnel entrance, and the camera team was frantic about attaching mounts to the vehicles.
“But how are we filming? We won’t all be walking in together, right?”
At my question, the assistant director who happened to be passing by pointed to a car and explained.
“This mission is a drive-thru. The tunnel is quite long, so we’ll enter by car.”
“By car?”
“Yes. However, for safety reasons and to capture realistic reactions, we’ll move in pairs. One performer and one panelist will pair up and board one car.”
“That’s not bad. Then who is the person going with me? Do we draw lots or something?”
That was when.
“Me! It’s me!”
Someone popped out, waving their hand vigorously. “I… no, I will go with Mr. Kang!”
The identity of the guy who ran over in a hurry was Siwoo. He stuck to my side with sparkling eyes.
“Why you?”
“I strongly appealed to the PD. I asked them to make sure I ride with Mr. Kang!”
His intentions are obvious.
This body, currently number one in buzz, and Siwoo, a top idol with a solid fixed fandom. We were the combination that was the so-called viewership rating cheat code.
“Alright. Let’s do well.”
“I’m amazing at driving. I’ll take you comfortably!”
I gently blocked Siwoo as he tried to open the driver’s seat door.
“Wait a minute.”
“Yes?”
According to the briefing, the vengeful spirit here hitchhikes. If so, wouldn’t it be fitting for the vengeful spirit to drive as well? If the guest is a ghost, it’s not polite for the driver to be a human. Besides, since the broadcasting station is serving me with such sincerity, it’s only right for me to show them a show worthy of it.
“Someone else will be driving.”
Let’s see if they call this staged too.