Grab the Regressor by the Collar and Debut - Chapter 552

—————

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

—————

552. In the Chaos (5)
“Ah, you’re here, senior?”
“Yeah, yeah, sit down, sit down. How are things progressing?”
Kwon Myung-eun returned to the monitor station after stepping away briefly, settling into her seat as she asked the junior staff member who had been holding down the fort for an update on the situation.
Since most of the PDs with considerable experience were stationed in their respective areas, while she was away, it was Yoon Hyun-gyu—the most senior among the Studio A assistant directors—who had taken over the preview duties alongside the Main Writer.
Because he had gotten along well with Ha-jin back when Ha-jin was here, and he frequently heard that his work style most closely resembled Ha-jin’s, he tapped his pen lightly against his notepad as he delivered his report.
“Son Je-u and Kim Young-min are currently making contact with Void in the Basement Warehouse. Yoon Esther, Yu Jung-sun, and Bin—those three have already acquired the tablet at the Restaurant.”
“Why did Kim Sa-bin stick with the older guys’ group instead of the older girls’ group? And what about Ji Ye? She got separated earlier, didn’t she?”
“She’s still wandering around alone, but surprisingly, she’s making quick progress. She’s already met Void and confirmed the game rules.”
“Really? She’s been putting in quite a bit of work here and there, hasn’t she?”
【In the Chaos】.
An immersive survival program where participants face a blank slate—given none of the basic program information of ‘who, when, where, what, how, and why.’
The participants had to figure out everything on their own within 12 hours: why they were here in the first place, what they needed to do, and how to achieve victory.
‘And if we naturally get some good shots of betrayal and cooperation, ambition and distrust along the way, that would be even better….’
Nothing could be certain, and no one could be trusted.
The greatest point of this shoot was to see how these people, left in absolute chaos itself, would manage to seize their own victory.
Kwon Myung-eun, now seated again, reviewed the thin shooting composition document and gazed at the monitors.
“What about the eliminated group?”
“Ah, they solved the final puzzle and are about to find the hidden passage to enter the interior. All three of them still share the same ‘opinion’ so far.”
“…Really?”
At Hyun-gyu PD’s cryptic remark, Kwon Myung-eun nodded with a meaningful smile.
As she considered the editing structure alongside the memo that Go Writer had left behind, she suddenly noticed that the status of several cast members hadn’t been reported.
“What about them?”
Despite the vague expression of ‘them,’ Hyun-gyu understood her meaning perfectly and spoke up.
“Ha Tae-jin came back from his patrol, and now they’re all working on the devices in the 2nd Floor Office.”
“How far along are they? That’s the most difficult section, isn’t it?”
Myung-eun casually asked while searching through the numerous preview monitors for the screen showing Ha-jin’s group.
The place where Ha-jin’s group had hidden to avoid the security robot was simultaneously the area with the most puzzles and devices within the set, and also the place where one could gather the most information about the game’s internal and external workings if they used their heads well.
Originally, this space wasn’t supposed to be accessible so early in the game, but just before recording began, Myung-eun had hastily changed it after consulting with Go Se-hwa so that they could enter from the beginning.
‘But of all places, they went in there? I can’t tell if this is good luck or bad luck….’
The reason she had originally planned to reveal the office midway through was not only because it contained such crucial information, but also because there were so many things to solve that there was a risk of the early progression dragging on excessively.
Given that early engagement was critical for broadcast purposes, from the production team’s perspective, having the cast stuck in one location for too long wasn’t ideal.
“Well….”
Hyun-gyu, who had been tapping his pen against his notepad, trailed off. Then, as if there was nothing more to see, he tucked the pen into his notepad, lowered his arm, removed his earpiece, and muttered flatly.
“You know how he is, senior.”
“…Still the same?”
“Still the same.”
Ha-jin had only worked at Studio A for a year.
However, thanks to his participation in many short-term projects with relatively brief shooting periods during that time, the Studio A staff had been able to observe many different sides of Ha-jin.
Whenever he had to go on provincial business trips for shoots, he would always make personal time to visit the escape room cafes in those regions,
He was such a devoted fan of mystery novels and manga that he collected complete series, a true enthusiast.
With his natural intellect and quick mental processing, he was a dopamine addict who relieved stress during every break by solving all manner of puzzle games.
In fact, among the puzzles used in preparing this program, quite a few were applications of ones that Ha-jin had created in his previous works!
Hyun-gyu PD shrugged his shoulders and spoke as if there was nothing to be done about it.
“Now that we just need to crack the computer password, we’re at the stage where we’ll obtain everything available from the office. The identity of the research facility, the secrets of the experiment, the purpose of the program… even the identity of Void.”
“….”
“…Should I have some of that information removed? I can just delete it from the cloud.”
Concerned that information which could be considered the program’s greatest pillar was being revealed too quickly, Hyun-gyu PD scratched the back of his neck and made the suggestion.
However, after pondering briefly, Myung-eun shook her head.
“No, leave it. It’s not that big of a secret anyway. If it comes to it, we’ll just push through with editing.”
“Yes.”
“The dropouts are entering the interior soon? We’ll have eliminations faster than expected. Tell the kids to start preparing.”
“Yes, I’ll go deliver that right away.”
“Oh, Hyun-gyu.”
“Yes?”
Hyun-gyu PD, who had been about to move according to Myung-eun’s instructions, stopped at her call. Her gaze remained fixed on her own filming composition notes.
【VOID VS AVOID】
Myung-eun, who had been staring down at the memo scrawled like graffiti above it, let out a small laugh and asked Hyun-gyu PD.
“What do you think Ha-jin will do? In your opinion.”
“…Which one do you think he’ll choose?”
“Yeah.”
At Myung-eun’s question, Yoon Hyun-gyu exhaled deeply and pondered.
“That guy, well….”
As he thought about the ‘choice’ that would essentially become the main story of this program, he recalled Ha-jin, who was both his superior and his role model, and answered dryly.
“He’ll pick whichever option gets better ratings.”
“Right? Ah, what a scary guy.”
At the answer that matched her expectations, Myung-eun clicked her tongue and shuddered. At her reaction, a small laugh finally broke through on Hyun-gyu PD’s previously haggard face.
Pushing his black-framed glasses up, he watched his former superior’s small image appearing on the monitor and added one more comment.
“Well, at least it’ll be fun making the preview thanks to him.”
Shrugging his shoulders, Hyun-gyu PD checked his watch.
Eight hours remaining until the end of filming.
It was a grueling schedule, but more than that, it was a day where he was eager to see what would actually unfold within this.
* * *
“Done!”
Inside the office, still dark with the lights off.
Ha-jin’s exclamation echoed through that vast space, relying only on the monitor screen and the light filtering in from outside the window.
“You did? You cracked it?”
“What? How did you crack it?”
“I combined all the clues we’ve gathered so far and applied them to the password code here. Wow, this is insane busywork.”
“Wow, you worked hard. Good job.”
After struggling with the computer password for quite some time without success, Nam Sa-ra and Ha Tae-jin, who had been working on another safe behind us, quickly approached me.
As their hands massaged my shoulders and patted my back in appreciation, I nodded arrogantly and even made a show of flexing, as if urging them to try harder.
“Did you two finish everything?”
“Yeah. We’ve obtained the research facility security card and walkie-talkies so far, and we’re working on opening that safe over there because it looks like there might be something useful inside.”
“Let’s check the PC first. There’s probably a lot of important information here.”
The three of us had already confirmed that this place was a Secret Research Facility managed at the national level, and that it had been shut down due to problems with some sort of “project” that had been conducted here. We had also farmed quite a variety of items in the process.
Now, all that remained in this place was this PC right in front of us and the safe behind us.
“Should I check it then?”
I moved the mouse and examined the files inside the PC.
Perhaps because the PC access security itself was so difficult, accessing the files wasn’t hard once I’d unlocked it.
“Ah, this is it. Here’s the blueprint.”
“Then we can figure out the location of the Hidden Room from this!”
“Um… but the location names aren’t written here, so we can’t tell which place is which?”
The first file the three of us checked was a blueprint detailing all the facilities and equipment of the research facility.
It was a perfect opportunity to confirm the location of the Hidden Room containing the 【Emergency Escape System】 that would be everyone’s final destination, but since the blueprint didn’t have specific location names marked, it was difficult to pinpoint the exact location.
“….”
As I stared at the blueprint and pondered for a moment, I silently tapped the keyboard a few times. Soon, the printer next to me sprang to life, and the blueprint from the monitor was printed out.
“Should we print it and take it with us?”
“It’s good to have a map just in case. And….”
“…?”
“Since it’s called a Hidden Room, the space itself is obviously going to be concealed. Let’s walk around, compare this blueprint with the actual locations, and search for any other areas that might exist?”
“Ah? Yeah, yeah. That could be a way to find it.”
“Then should we quickly clear out this place and head out? We still have plenty of time.”
Among the items the three of us found was a smart watch that could check the time limit.
Nam Sa-ra, who had taken possession of the smart watch because she was considered the most meticulous and rational of the three, checked the time, and Tae-jin nodded while putting the printout into his bag. This bag was also something we’d taken from this office.
“Brother, you said you didn’t see any other people around, right?”
“Yeah, there’s a Restricted Area back there, but there were so many security robots that we couldn’t go in.”
“If we’re going to escape together, we’ll need to start gathering people soon, right?”
“…well, I guess we’ll see about that.”
“…?”
While Nam Sa-ra displayed a question mark at my cryptic remark, my hands continued their relentless exploration of the computer drive.
My eyes suddenly caught on something as I busily searched through the system, determined to uncover every hidden file.
“‘Project V’ experiment log…?”
Faced with an opportunity to uncover the truth that came faster than expected, I clicked on the file without hesitation.

—————

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

—————