Debut or Die - Chapter 230

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This chapter was translated by Lunox Novels. To support us and help keep this series going, visit our website: LunoxScans.com

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A Fatal Illness if I Don’t Debut – Episode 230
There were several reasons why I concluded this situation was a coma following a traffic accident.
The first was the extent of my injuries.
‘The shrapnel penetrated at least five centimeters into my chest.’
I’d witnessed it directly with my own eyes moments before, and I’d replayed the memory several times to ensure I wasn’t exaggerating—but it was unmistakable.
It had to be a fatal wound.
From what I remember… the bleeding was severe.
The shrapnel hadn’t even been removed yet; at the moment of impact, the prognosis didn’t seem promising.
But it wouldn’t have been instant death.
‘It didn’t pierce straight through my heart, after all.’
Though it was late at night, it was the heart of Seoul.
Since Bae Sae-jin had called it in, if the police had confirmed it, an ambulance would have arrived… which meant I would have been on death’s door at minimum.
‘There’s no way I died immediately and restarted.’
…That couldn’t be it.
The second reason was my face, confirmed in the mirror.
“…I’m not 29 years old.”
Shocked at seeing Ryu Gun-woo’s face, I hadn’t grasped it immediately, but looking again slowly, it became clear.
I looked far too young.
‘This is… at least well before college graduation.’
Yet this was the motel where I’d first awakened as Park Moon-dae, and the calendar date matched what I’d checked back then.
[202× December]
In other words, the timeline didn’t align.
To be sure, I checked the wallet on the vanity.
It was Ryu Gun-woo’s ID number—only the last digit of the resident registration number had changed to 3.
My spine went cold.
[Ryu Gun-woo 0X1208 – 3XXXXXX]
Twenty-year-old Ryu Gun-woo.
“What is this….”
Yet there were no poison pills or suicide notes on the bed.
…As if someone had taken only Park Moon-dae’s circumstances and awkwardly adapted them to fit Ryu Gun-woo.
‘The inconsistencies aren’t just minor….’
Nothing fit cleanly together.
At this point, I found myself reconsidering the text that had appeared on the status window.
[Name: Ryu Gun-woo (Park Moon-dae)]
-Enjoy your daydream :)-
‘Daydream’ meant a waking fantasy.
And the fact that it wasn’t just ‘Ryu Gun-woo’ but ‘Park Moon-dae’ in parentheses beside it… led me to consider this possibility.
‘What if I’m still in Park Moon-dae’s body?’
The suspicion connected to whether I was in a coma, dreaming some absurd dream.
‘And moreover, the system here has intervened.’
…That coin.
If what I glimpsed in my subconscious—the coin I received after clearing the previous abnormal state—is indeed the cause of this situation, then everything happening now stems from it.
Until now, I’d assumed it was meant for the shop, considering the clichés, but now a different theory emerges.
‘…Could it be like an arcade game? An extra life?’
That would fit the game system too. I laughed at myself bitterly, finding the notion absurd.
“Ha.”
Anyway, synthesizing all of this together….
I clenched both fists.
“…There has to be a way back.”
If this situation was given as a means to awaken from the coma, then I simply need to wake up.
And typically, the best way to wake from a dream is….
“Should I jump?”
This motel isn’t particularly high, so falling from here probably wouldn’t kill me, though I’m not sure if that would be enough.
Besides, Park Moon-dae’s actual body could die, so I’ll discard that option for now.
Next would be… getting startled out of my mind, but honestly, I doubt anything could shock me sufficiently at this point.
I’ve already accumulated too much.
‘What else could there be?’
I tapped my knee with my fingers.
The most orthodox method still remained.
‘…Waiting for my body to recover.’
External recovery.
But I have no idea how long it will take. Whether recovery is even possible remains unknown.
“….”
I combined the given circumstances and prioritized the most moderate approach.
‘First, I’ll search for hints.’
If this is the system’s intervention, hints to awakening might surface while I’m deciphering this dream.
‘The status window might even respond.’
I staggered up from beneath the bed. Grabbing my wallet, I left the motel room.
First, I need to confirm what situation Ryu Gun-woo is in within this coma.

* * *
“….”
I clenched my teeth as I pulled out the newly activated phone.
‘It’s identical.’
My financial situation at twenty was exactly the same. The only difference was that I hadn’t enrolled in university like Park Moon-dae.
However, I had no contact with relatives.
‘It’s been constructed with meticulous convenience….’
So that no contradictions would emerge.
Moreover, I’d grasped something decisive.
‘I sing well.’
This body possessed all the abilities of the real Park Moon-dae intact.
Just as when I first awakened as Park Moon-dae, I’d discovered this fact after visiting a Noraebang and singing a single song.
Every sensation from every stage I’d experienced in Park Moon-dae’s body remained perfectly preserved in this one.
‘Is it encouraging me?’
To follow the exact path that Park Moon-dae had taken in reality.
So that I could absorb all of it as if it truly belonged to Ryu Gun-woo….
“….”
I cast aside the pointless thoughts and decided to proceed with the dream instead.
‘The next thing I did was… participating in Ajusa.’
Waiting around a nearby Noraebang to be recruited by Writer Ryu Seo-rin.
‘It’s not a difficult task.’
If I actually ended up participating, what I’d do then was… a headache-inducing problem, but the attempt itself wasn’t difficult.
‘My face isn’t particularly ugly anyway.’
Since my singing was S-rank, the odds weren’t bad.
With no other options coming to mind, I decided to attempt this again and immediately headed to the Noraebang.
However, I failed.
“….”
Whether the dates were misaligned or the dream had created some difference, Writer Ryu Seo-rin never visited the Noraebang over several days.
‘Damn it.’
And I knew.
‘The audition is already over by this point.’
There was no other way.
There was no realistic method for me to wedge my way through that gap.
“…sigh.”
I’d hit a dead end again, without a single clue.
‘What am I supposed to do?’
Should I act insane and climb onto some rooftop?
However, my assessment that it was too reckless a risk—especially when my body was already far from normal—remained unchanged.
‘Then, what I can do is….’
A method for me to debut….
there is.
“…!”
I knew one certain method.
But it was dangerous.
‘…If I mess this up, I could die in here too.’
Still, if there’s nothing else I can do anyway, there’s no harm in trying.
‘I was even thinking of jumping off the Rooftop on impulse—this is nothing compared to that.’
I pulled out my phone and dialed a contact number I’d grown familiar with from seeing it only in messages.
There were a few digits I might mix up, but I’d just send them all anyway.
[You keep changing dog breeds every time, but this time you’re not raising one. Is it because you got ruined by the schizophrenia rumor last time?]
Only one person would react to this message.
Only the person in question wouldn’t be able to dismiss it as spam.
There’s no point in talking about futures or pasts or fresh starts. He wouldn’t be the type to get shaken by such clichéd words and reach out.
It had to be this specific to rattle him.
“….”
After sending the messages, I spent some time waiting for the read receipt to appear.
And shortly after.
Brrring.
-Who are you
The call came immediately.
At his blunt, emotionless words, I answered calmly.
-Someone like you
That should make it clear.
And after a brief, tense call, I found myself face to face with him in a Conference Room inside LeTi Entertainment.
“….”
“You came.”
It seemed he was on break—he’d somehow made time to meet despite it not being late night or dawn.
Well, even in the first week of activity, he’d definitely have grasped the situation and looked into my background immediately.
He’d reached out to get a lead just now, but he’d surely had someone run a background check on my number.
I nodded at him sitting there in a cap.
“As I mentioned… I’m in the middle of a restart.”
“….”
He stared at me expressionlessly, then threw out a question.
“How many times.”
“Third time.”
The atmosphere shifted instantly.
“Didn’t last long, did it.”
Chung-ryeo replied gently, then unfolded his arms and placed them on the table.
‘…He’s done his calculations.’
The thought that since he hadn’t done this many times yet, he could be taken advantage of.
And seeing that even on the third iteration I don’t know who this bastard is… the thought that we can’t return to the past together.
‘I’ll let him misunderstand.’
There’s no need to spout useless nonsense about comas or anything else, and I shouldn’t either.
Whether this bastard is reconstructed from the knowledge in my head or the system intervened to make him identical to the real one, at this point he’s a lunatic with Reset Syndrome.
I broached the subject as calmly as possible.
“First, I apologize for being rude in my messages. You said to do that much since I wouldn’t react to most things.”
“Oh, you said things like that to me?”
“Yes. It just happened that way.”
Of course, that’s a lie, you bastard.
“Hmm… how many years in the future did you come from?”
“Three years from now.”
“Ah, three years… how am I living?”
“You’re doing well. The general consensus was that VTIC would win the award this year too.”
“I see.”
It won’t be as much as the period I’ve gone through, but three years is a pretty usable figure. Enough to make your eyes spin.
‘…don’t mention the solo.’
That’s not a hand this bastard needs to consider right now.
If he starts wondering about it, there’s no end to it.
Chung-ryeo smiled brightly.
“It seems we got along pretty well.”
“Even after you realized that restarting wouldn’t bring you back, we managed somehow.”
“That sounds plausible.”
Chung-ryeo nodded.
And without any agitation, he asked while smiling.
“So why did you contact me?”
“I came to make a proposal.”
I spoke as naturally as if I’d done this before.
“I want to debut here. As quickly as possible.”
“Ah, so that’s the mission.”
“…”
Chung-ryeo responded with that same smiling expression.
“And you… should I call you Junior Member?”
“Yes.”
“I see. So Junior Member is saying you’ll provide me with information about the future.”
“That’s correct.”
I knew he wouldn’t say something like ‘how can I trust you’ right away.
A situation where someone he’d want to keep close and monitor comes to him willingly—isn’t that fortunate?
But immediate agreement didn’t come either.
“But… how exactly would I debut?”
“…!”
“LeTi doesn’t support solo activities. And right now, the trainees… there’s no one ready to debut.”
“….”
“Ah, you must already know. Since you came back from the future.”
You seem to be blocking both solo activities and rookie debuts.
The former out of concern they’d neglect group activities, the latter out of fear they’d interfere with them.
Instead of saying that, I presented the plan I’d been considering.
“…I have members in mind. We debuted together before.”
“Ah. Which ones?”
“There’s an Audition Program starting soon, and they’re appearing on it.”
I thought for a moment about the people coming to mind.
“…During the program, there’s an opportunity for official recruitment by other agencies… I’d like to bring them over.”
A casting call, that is.
…Whether here or anywhere else, as long as I debut with those guys… isn’t that all that matters?
I swallowed hard.
“So that’s why you need my help.”
And this bastard in front of me will eventually try to stab me in the back to nip any threat in the bud, so I need to wake up before that happens.

* * *
“….”
The first thing Ryu Chung-woo heard was the notification sound from a device.
And when he opened his eyes, what greeted him was the hospital ceiling.
“…!”
He immediately tried to sit up.
Then he felt hands around him, supporting and trying to lay him back down.
“…consciousness has returned!”
“You mustn’t move. Please lie down.”
His long years as an athlete had made it a habit to trust the medical staff’s words, so he reflexively relaxed his body.
And lying there, he assessed his condition.
His foot was immobilized. It didn’t seem to be cracked or broken.
‘…Not my arm, thank goodness….’
No, he no longer needed to prioritize only his arm above all else.
Still, he should be grateful the injuries weren’t severe.
“…Sigh.”
Ryu Chung-woo exhaled deeply, trying to regain his composure.
The surroundings were chaotic and loud. He pieced the situation together.
‘…There was an accident.’
The Manager from before.
It seemed all the passengers had been safely transported to the Emergency Room.
Being a celebrity, they’d apparently shown some consideration for privacy, but he could still hear the commotion.
“…I’m fine….”
“Guardian, right here…”
Everyone must have been shocked. At least that was fortunate.
‘…Since I was at the very back, everyone else should be fine.’
They seemed to have regained consciousness before my parents arrived. Probably everyone…
That was the moment.
The events that had unfolded before losing consciousness flashed across my vision like a strobe light.
The shoulder that had shoved me, and the massive fragment piercing into the flesh beneath it…
“…Doctor!”
“Yes?”
“Park Moon-dae…is Park Moon-dae okay?”
“…”
“Park Moon-dae. You know who I mean, right?”
“…I’ll need to verify that part as well. For now, please rest and recover, patient.”
Ryu Chung-woo understood.
…It was a lie.
Click. The door closed.
Ryu Chung-woo was engulfed in an indescribable emotion.

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This chapter was translated by Lunox Novels. To support us and help keep this series going, visit our website: LunoxScans.com

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