Chapter 67
Chapter 67
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Translator: penny
Chapter: 67
Chapter Title: Ping-Pong Wuxia and Relay Race
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"It's a miracle the ping-pong table didn't break."
That was what the people watching our rally had to say.
When I checked our movements on a regular camera, it looked like we were filming a wuxia drama with ping-pong paddles.
Only the high-speed camera could capture our motions properly.
"If the rally breaks and hits anyone, they're done for, right?"
"...We'll try to film from as far away as possible when you two are playing ping-pong."
"Y-Yeah... please do."
Even Yeon-hwa unnie was speechless after seeing the footage.
The visuals were gorgeous, sure.
But they were way too intense for regular folks to watch comfortably.
Yeon-hwa unnie had claimed she was bad at ping-pong—it was all lies.
If she were really that bad, we couldn't have even rallied like that.
In fact, the rally kept going right up until we both stopped on purpose. I wondered if there'd ever even be a winner.
...Yeon-hwa unnie's physical abilities were seriously top-tier.
Must be because she's a superior mutant.
If she had even a slightly more active hobby, she might've ended up famous without realizing it.
Anyway, after watching our little wuxia ping-pong epic for a good while, the car team finally showed up.
But something was off—they all looked way too refreshed. Why?
The rules gave the losing team in rock-paper-scissors pocket change at best, so they should've been starving.
Even PD Lee Myung-ho eyed them suspiciously.
No way they had access to food, so how?
"You guys hiding something from me right now?"
"Come on, hiding what? We've got nothing to hide!"
"What'd you eat? From what I've seen of Kang Woo-hyuk over the years, he'd be whining about being hungry by now... and the rest of you too."
The suspicion didn't let up easily.
He knew from years of experience.
Just how feral Woo-hyuk got when he skipped lunch.
But here they were, perfectly fine—not a hint of distress, even smiling?
Something smelled fishy.
For a split second, his eyes met Ha-rin's, and she quickly looked away.
...Something was definitely up. Why'd Ha-rin dodge his gaze?
It wasn't hard to figure out.
Ha-rin could manifest nightmares. So what if she'd pulled some food out of one?
That would explain everything.
"Ha-rin, right?"
"Y-Yes?"
"You can manifest things from nightmares. Doesn't that mean you can bring stuff from dreams into reality?"
"......"
"Called it."
PD Lee Myung-ho let out a sigh.
"No way, how'd you guess?"
"You think I haven't been around you guys long enough? You should've been complaining about hunger by now, but nothing. With the pocket money we gave you, maybe a snack or two at best—and everyone knows that wouldn't satisfy Woo-hyuk."
"Hey, it's your fault, hyung. Why can't you act for shit?"
Jeong-ho, who'd been watching, snapped at Woo-hyuk instead.
Woo-hyuk fired right back, not even pretending anymore.
"Yeah! We ate, so what? You never said we couldn't!"
"Ah, no. Still, that's just... too much of a cheat."
"You're the cheats! Inviting guests and giving them pocket change!"
Woo-hyuk bellowed, with Jeong-ho and Soo-chan chiming in.
"Hyung's not wrong. Inviting guests and starving them? How's that fair? Treating good people like this?"
"Exactly!"
The train team just stared like, *What the hell are these guys on about?* while the car team passionately defended their innocence.
They hadn't broken any mission rules—they'd just used their self-sufficiency skills.
With no prior restrictions from PD Lee Myung-ho, he sighed and let it slide.
And so, we all hustled from Chuncheon to Hwacheon.
On the way, I asked Ha-rin what she'd chatted about with the guys.
She said they'd just talked about what she did before mutating and what she mostly did after.
"It was kinda comfy, but I kept noticing the cameras."
"Oh, we felt that too. Yeon-hwa unnie even said she wanted to suck my blood."
"What!? Why blood all of a sudden?"
"She was super aware of the cameras and already stressed out mentally."
"...You okay, unnie?"
"Y-Yeah. I'm good now. Seo-hyun gave me some blood..."
"But when did you two drop the formal speech?"
"On the train earlier."
"Finally, huh? Yeon-hwa unnie's wish come true."
"Hey, don't spill it like that!"
I felt like I'd just heard something fun.
"Talking casually with me was your wish?"
Yeon-hwa unnie fidgeted, pressing her index fingers together.
"Uh-huh..."
Whoa, wasn't she just the cutest? She looked like a total femme fatale, but her actions were pure kid stuff.
A woman who could pass for a blood-sucking smirker being this innocent? Gap moe for the win.
In moments like that, actions speak louder.
"Come here."
"H-Huh?"
I pulled her into a light hug and squished her cheeks. So soft.
Lately, I'd gotten addicted to squishing people's faces.
Pretty and cute was the best. Being a girl had its perks here.
If I were still a guy, something would've broken—or I'd be spurting blood and dead.
"Eeeek..."
"Seo-hyun unnie, cut it out. What are you doing with everyone watching?"
"Th-The camera!"
Oh, right. Cameras were rolling.
I snapped to and glanced around—everyone was giving us warm, fuzzy looks.
Like adults watching affectionate sisters.
* * *
A few hours later, the exhausted cast arrived at a remote mountain village in Hwacheon County and mustered the energy for opening remarks again.
Starting with *I'll Be Fine As Long As It's Not Me!*
Woo-hyuk hyung forced the energy up to pretend they weren't wiped.
Though the fatigue was plain on his face.
"It's not super late, but dinner time's already here."
We clocked it instantly at PD's words. *Here we go.*
"So, what's today's mission?"
"We had tons prepared, but the Management Bureau agents have such wild abilities, we scrapped most of 'em. So..."
"So?"
"The train team suggested something earlier? Full-on sports showdown. We think that's better, so we're reshuffling teams for matchups. But first."
"First?"
"What's the core of our show? Rock-paper-scissors! But settling just dinner on that feels lame."
The cast grumbled at the PD's words.
"Not lame at all."
"You're saying that, but you miss it."
"No, it's not lame, you jerk!"
"Anyway, assuming you're bummed, let's form teams. Bureau agents pre-divided: Ha-rin and Yeon-hwa together, Seo-hyun solo. That works."
"Any reason for that split?"
"Seo-hyun said it balances things."
"Really?"
"No clue on the sports yet... but it'll make it viable."
"Just so you know, no abilities allowed."
"Obviously. Even pure physicals, I'm kinda overwhelming..."
Ha-rin and Yeon-hwa nodded at my words.
"That team setup sounds good."
For teams, we spun roulettes with cast names.
And so...
My team: me, Woo-hyuk hyung, Seung-ho hyung, Jeong-ho hyung.
Their team: Ha-rin, Yeon-hwa unnie, Ho-jun hyung, Soo-chan hyung, Jun-hyuk hyung.
Team names from leaders: Seo-hyun Team, Yeon-hwa Team.
Pure athletics favored us, but fewer numbers... relay race evened it out.
First mission: dinner ingredients, via relay race.
Race seemed unfair, but per-person distance caps nerfed my speed.
Total 400m run. Max 100m per person.
Since it's *max*, their team with Ha-rin and Yeon-hwa able to go 200m each had an edge maybe.
Though Jun-hyuk hyung was a sports disaster, so balanced... or they could just minimize him.
Thus, first match: relay race.
My team's anchor: me. Yeon-hwa Team's: Yeon-hwa unnie.
Our lead-off: Woo-hyuk hyung. Theirs: Ha-rin.
Ha-rin wasn't as fast as me or Yeon-hwa unnie.
Her grounded speed was just a bit above average adult male.
Not a physical specialist mutant, so no huge buffs.
The race was tight.
Records flipped back and forth, anchors left.
I figured we'd crush, but Jun-hyuk hyung ate Ha-rin's lead.
It tilted slightly our way...
"Uwak!"
Right before my turn, Jeong-ho hyung tripped.
He bounced up quick, passing the baton.
That instant, Yeon-hwa unnie took hers a step ahead and kicked off.
Kwaaaang!
Her foot cratered the ground like a shell, launching her forward.
I matched it, stomping down.
Same explosion, same boom.
My speed edged hers... enough to catch up.
Landscapes blurred by as I brushed past her.
Won.
Stopping, I saw the massive crater on the track and our teammates gaping.