Debut or Die - Chapter 491

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

A Fatal Illness if I Don’t Debut – Episode 491
Right after the Security Official and Kim Rae-bin declared they would target Park Moon-dae.
Zing!
“Whoa!”
“What, what is this?!”
A brilliant flash erupted from the casket like a camera flash.
The light spun in circles around the members like a flashlight or spotlight, building tension.
Whirrrr—
Then, like a roulette wheel, it finally stopped on one person.
-The Security Official targets participant Park Moon-dae!
Park Moon-dae.
The very person he had just declared as his target!
“….”
Kim Rae-bin swallowed hard.
Park Moon-dae stared expressionlessly at the light shooting out from the casket.
A suffocating silence filled the room.
And then.
[Bang!]
“Gasp!”
A harsh gunshot rang out, and several members flinched.
Then the speaker crackled to life.
The mechanical voice pronounced judgment.
[Correct.]
[The criminal is the mortician.]
“…!!”
“Ahhhhh!!”
The light targeting Park Moon-dae turned red.
[The Security Official has shot the criminal.]
I forgot to breathe.
It was a success…!
‘So that means….’
Park Moon-dae really was the criminal!
“Huff.”
Kim Rae-bin’s legs nearly gave out beneath him.
“Kim Rae-bin!”
“Rae-bin, what did you just do? Is that the Security Official’s ability?”
“Yes….”
“That’s, that’s incredible…!”
The atmosphere instantly brightened with excitement.
“If we had this from the start, we could’ve just shot one person at a time when the game began!”
‘If we fail, two people die….’
Just as Kim Rae-bin was about to explain this to the flushed Bae Sae-jin, it happened.
Park Moon-dae laughed softly first, shrugging his shoulders.
“Yeah. I lost. Rae-bin, you’re impressive.”
“…!!”
“Any of us could pull off that trick with just two cards and go to the entrance alone. But I was the one who asked Chung-woo to do it. Your deduction is spot on.”
“Whoa!”
“He’s probably a scholar too.”
“Wow, that’s crazy!”
Good grief.
Kim Rae-bin turned to look at Ryu Chung-woo. Ryu Chung-woo was smiling faintly.
‘When on earth did that happen?’
Then it came.
Park Moon-dae raised his hand and gently patted the back of Kim Rae-bin’s head.
“You figured it out without any evidence. Well done.”
“Th-thank you….”
“Right, this was important because there was no evidence—Rae-bin’s role was crucial~ That’s insane.”
Several members reviewed what had happened and clicked their tongues in amazement.
In other words, Park Moon-dae had created an unprovable trick using only his intellect, without relying on any profession ability whatsoever.
The fact that Sun Ah-hyun had caught it precisely was equally astounding.
“Ah-hyun did well with the detective role.”
“Ah, no….”
Sun Ah-hyun’s face brightened for a moment at the praise, but it quickly fell.
“Hey, Moon-dae. I’m sorry… I handed over the victim’s token to you.”
“You didn’t know either, so what’s the problem.”
“But still. There was a reason….”
“…?”
Sun Ah-hyun hesitated for a moment before answering.
“The detective… when you exchange cards, you can learn the other person’s profession.”
“…!”
“So before revealing my profession to you, I wanted to check what profession you had first….”
‘Ah!’
That’s it! Ah-hyun had conducted a preliminary check because he wanted to form an alliance with Moon-dae.
Kim Rae-bin nodded in realization.
And Park Moon-dae, the person in question, also nodded.
“But then a mortician suddenly showed up.”
“….”
“…uh.”
That’s when things went haywire.
Park Moon-dae made a brief comment.
“I would’ve suspected myself first too.”
“Hahahaha!”
The members burst out laughing.
The atmosphere grew considerably lighter. As if the game had ended, conversation flowed back and forth naturally.
“You were amazing, hyung!”
“But you two… when exactly did you exchange?”
“You’ll have to check that on the broadcast.”
“Haha.”
Ryu Chung-woo laughed sheepishly. Bae Sae-jin’s face flushed red.
“No, and why did you exchange with Park Moon-dae in the first place! You asked me to do it secretly—anyone could tell that request was suspicious!”
“I’ll explain that on the broadcast too.”
“Ugh.”
“We’ll also find out on the broadcast whether you or Lee Sae-jin is the real lawyer, hyung.”
“No, what are you waiting for… it’s me!”
“Wow~ hyung, you’re holding out till the very end?”
“Hey!”
Bae Sae-jin huffed indignantly, though he didn’t seem genuinely upset. After all, he let out a hollow laugh.
“Yeah, anyway… we pulled it off!”
“Yes.”
I wasn’t sure if it was appropriate to say such things in front of the culprit we’d caught.
Still, the atmosphere grew even softer, and the tension began to ease.
Suddenly, the room’s lights went out.
“…!”
Then candles flickered back to life one by one.
A dark crimson glow.
And they began flashing relentlessly.
“What is this now?!”
“Ah, the atmosphere really!”
An eerie voice began pouring from the speakers.
[Culprit, burn the black sheep mortician as a burnt offering.]
“…!”
As the dark crimson LED candles cast an unsettling glow, low-quality string instrument sounds began flowing from the speakers.
An orchestral theme like something from an amusement park.
[Culprit, burn the black sheep mortician as a burnt offering.]
[Culprit, burn the black sheep mortician as a burnt offering.]
[100 seconds remaining.]
Kim Rae-bin’s heart sank.

* * *
Man, the atmosphere here is absolutely killer.
‘The art team really outdid themselves.’
I could taste the capital at work.
I looked around at how properly the horror atmosphere had been constructed. Everyone’s expressions were pretty grim.
‘I’m clocking out.’
Everyone’s done great work.
“Well then, I’ll be heading out. Everyone, try to survive until the very end.”
“W-wait….”
Ryu Chung-woo raised his hand.
“Oh, so me too?”
“N-no, that’s not it!”
“…?”
Why not?
“The reason I targeted Moon-dae hyung was also to save the sacrifice!”
Kim Rae-bin began earnestly explaining that if the Security Official guesses the culprit correctly, the sacrifice will survive.
‘In other words, we’re throwing the culprit into this fake altar instead of the sacrifice.’
The Security Official—truly a job with insane cost-effectiveness.
I thought the balance was broken, but listening to the full explanation, Kim Rae-bin would’ve exploded if he’d identified the wrong person.
Well, it was fortunate that didn’t happen in terms of conscience….
‘It would’ve been fun if the deduction failed and we shot someone else too.’
No, that’s from an entertainment perspective.
If we suddenly discovered both of them dead at the beginning of the game without understanding why, there would’ve been no better comedy than that.
Of course, then the whole deduction and everything would’ve turned into complete chaos—a total mess of a show, but that kind of content has its audience too.
‘They could’ve given someone more aggressive.’
I clicked my tongue at the Production Team for not manipulating things so the Security Official would go to Bae Sae-jin.
Well, thanks to that, things turned out this way anyway.
‘Hmm.’
I tapped the casket a few times with my hand, its red light flowing ominously.
Knock, knock!
“So how exactly do I become the sacrifice?”
“Ugh, how creepy.”
And as if matching that interjection… the casket opened automatically.
Creeeeak.
“Agh!”
Inside was….
“Mother.”
“No… you’re telling me to put a person in here?”
Wood in a pitiful state, as if blood had dried and caked upon it.
[60 seconds remaining.]
The BGM grew even more eerie with that sound.
Originally, two of us were supposed to enter, so it wouldn’t have been particularly frightening with all the joking around, but things turned out this way and I ended up going in alone.
Perhaps because of that, the atmosphere around me shifted slightly.
“Ah… this is way more realistic than I expected?”
“Mm, Moon-dae, you might find this scary….”
“It’s fine. What’s the big deal?”
It’s not like there’s an actual corpse in here—what’s everyone making such a fuss about?
‘I’m going to get food coloring all over my body.’
“I’ll go in now.”
I stepped into the casket. It wasn’t as sticky as I’d expected.
‘I can even see the infrared camera over there.’
Well, at this level, it’s nothing.
“This is about to close… Moon-dae, Moon-dae, are you really okay?”
“Yeah.”
Why do people keep treating me like a coward?
Nothing’s going to jump out in this cramped space. I could keep my eyes open and just sit here.
I nodded with my fists clenched, and soon the casket lid closed.
Thud—thump.
The surroundings darkened with a heavy sound.
But I could hear the outside clearly.
‘Actually, the lack of soundproofing is better.’
I kept my eyes closed in place while monitoring the situation outside.
First, there was that strange mechanical voice coming from the speaker.
[Place candles upon the Altar.]
“What??”
“I think we’re supposed to take these candles! Oh!”
With sounds of confusion and commotion, the casket trembled slightly. It seemed the members were placing those strange, blood-red LED candles on top of the casket lid.
‘They really know how to make things complicated.’
I crossed my arms.
“So we just place them?”
“Ah, these circular patterns here match the shape of the candle holders perfectly!”
“Okay, then let’s place them there.”
“Got it! We need 7 candles!”
Soon I heard vibrations, rustling sounds, and footsteps outside the casket.
“Is this the right way to do it?”
And after a brief silence.
[Burnt offering!]
“Ugh.”
Suddenly, a gloomy cry as if multiple people were speaking together came from the speaker, and wind sounds began to howl.
And the commotion around me intensified.
“Ugh!”
“Oh my…! What the!”
‘Did a Bathroom ghost escape or something?’
Being inside this casket was actually preferable. I was about to nod in agreement.
Whirrrr—
“…?”
A faint sound accompanied by vibration emanated from nearby.
It resembled the whir of an engine or mechanical device activating.
…directly above my head.
“….”
What is this?
I turned my head. But in the pitch darkness, I could see nothing.
‘Then again.’
I reached out my hand toward the source of the sound.
My fingertips brushed against the sticky texture of pigment and wood grain, and as I slowly moved sideways—
Click.
“…!!”
Wait.
‘I think I just pressed something like a button….’
That was the moment.
“Aaaaaahhh!”
“What is this!?”
Violent reactions erupted from outside again. I clenched my teeth.
‘These insane Production Team members!’
The casket was shaking!
‘What?’
And two seconds later.
The floor of the casket I was lying in began descending like an Elevator.
“…?!”
Where am I going?

* * *
Testa’s Death Survival Game.
-It’s insane
The moment the teaser dropped, fans went wild.
Unfiltered deduction survival entertainment!
The eerie atmosphere was so palpable that it only fueled people’s imaginations even more.
-What’s the plot about? Feels like some cult thing
-Yeah yeah the weather’s still hot, this is perfect timing for something scary lol
-Do we only see the voting results in the actual broadcast? How am I supposed to wait 2 weeks…
And as if responding to that reaction, a new video dropped before even half a day had passed.
-New teaser’s out (link)
It was a teaser featuring the members’ shocked expressions and flustered reactions, with all sorts of wild effects flashing through short cuts.
The concept was sharp, thrilling, and captivating!
[The first offering token you received was determined by our sponsors’ votes.]
[Bae Sae-jin: Sponsors…?]
[Based on the voting results from fans who love you,]
And what’s more, the very content they’d voted on just half a day ago was already appearing in the teaser!
-Oh my god
-So the person we voted for actually dies? Oh no…
The captivated audience found themselves sweating, and the hastily produced short teaser ended with a massive caption.
[Coming soon]
With that caption announcing the broadcast time, fans screamed again.
[Full-scale Death Survival]
[How many of the Testa members will actually survive!]
-Ahhh
-Wow look at the scale
-The members’ expressions look genuinely immersed already, this is gonna be so fun
Fans who loved this sort of thing, overwhelmed by dopamine, flooded the comments section.
And a week later.
-Park Moon-dae’s early preview is out!!
The teasers that had been releasing one member at a time from Testa had finally reached Park Moon-dae’s turn.
-Oh I’m gonna memorize this BGM
-My heart’s racing
-I’ve been wanting to see Park Moon-dae with headphones on, oh this is so good
Since the teasers so far had showcased a strategically crafted image of a tension-filled genre entertainment show, Park Moon-dae’s fans clicked on the video expecting the same….
But 3 seconds in, the grand video BGM suddenly vanished and the screen switched abruptly.
-??
Accompanied by a somewhat clumsy, amateurish but soulful solo recorder BGM, a figure appeared.
It was Park Moon-dae, lying in bed and opening his profile.
A narration began.
[Park Moon-dae: Being a doctor is a respectable profession.]
[Park Moon-dae: I think I’ll be able to save the members.]
-Oh, so Moon-dae’s a doctor
-Wait, isn’t Eugene a doctor too?
└?? What? For real?
The viewers were bewildered!
But as Park Moon-dae studied the profile with a serious expression, he froze the moment he turned to the next-next page.
[?]
After glancing at the back page, he suddenly flipped all the way back to the front, frantically checking the document back and forth.
Then he let out a hollow laugh.
[Hah….]
Above Park Moon-dae, an enormous exclamation mark appeared, then the profile was displayed.
The front page.
[Your profession is: Doctor.]
And the back page.
[Now please add one modifier in front.]
[Mortician]
-???
[You are a mortician.]
It was a sudden punchline.
Park Moon-dae on screen pressed his forehead.
Hahahahahaha
-Why is Park Moon-dae the only one with such confident variety show energy
Lol no, not Tibet again haha
-Not a scam, Testa’s a star too so a mortician is still a doctor, makes sense
That crazy bastard lol
[Park Moon-dae: That’s when I realized.]
[Park Moon-dae: I believed them, but I got fooled again like this.]
An interview cut was inserted.
Behind Park Moon-dae gazing into the distance, semi-transparent images of him being deceived in Testa’s own variety show content flickered past….
hahahahahaha
It was even funnier because he was the intelligent character type.
A mournful recorder melody tugged at the heartstrings.
And then.
[Park Moon-dae: To get baited like this again.]
[Park Moon-dae: I can’t let this slide.]
[Park Moon-dae: I need to bait someone too.]
Park Moon-dae chose to make his move immediately.
-…???
-What is this
And then came the scene of the first introduction.
Park Moon-dae spoke with absolute confidence.
[I am a doctor.]
[Park Moon-dae: That’s how it became.]
-???Kkkkkkkkkkkkkkkkk
-You crazy bastard
And so Park Moon-dae’s chaotic doctor troll began.
At least, that’s how it appeared to everyone.
With Park Moon-dae having positioned himself as a character of unwavering comedic confidence, there remained exactly one week until he would be revealed as the culprit in the final act, sending viewers into screams of betrayal.

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