Chapter 56.1

Chapter 56.1

“Have you ever thought that you might be one of those losers too?”

At Seoryeong’s calm words, Seong Wookchan’s already glaring eyes widened further.

Her thin body was shaking uncontrollably, and she was out of breath, but her face didn’t show any sign of distortion.

“A week is longer than you think.”

“What?”

“There will definitely be those who quit on their own this time, too. So, if I were you, Seong Wookchan—”

“…!”

At the sound of his name being called precisely, Seong Wookchan’s eyebrows twitched.

“I’d use that nasty temper of yours to try and be a little useful,” Seoryeong said despite chattering teeth.

“What are you talking about now…”

“Put that sneaky and mean nature of yours to good use for once.” Her unrelenting gaze only aimed for the goal, was fixed on Seong Wookchan. “I don’t know how we could work together, but I might know how to get rid of the rest.”

They lost track of how long they had been in the cold water. They shouted commands until their throats were raw and rowed until their shoulders were dislocated.

By the time they circled the sea, the sun was rising. They received their meals on the paddle and ate with their hands. On the first day, everyone ate while crying.

During the day, they still carried the boat up the mountain, and at night, they were unfailingly on the move again at sea.

Seoryeong gritted her teeth against the pain that felt like her tendons would snap and support the rubber boat. Every step felt like a burden under the weight pressing down on her body.

Just when it seemed she might collapse with even the slightest misstep, Lee Wooshin climbed onto the boat and blew an accordion, turning the people inside out.

He directed them to hold onto the oar, to march, and to engage in UDT exercises consisting of sixty movements in the morning and afternoon, pushing them relentlessly without a moment’s rest.

With no permission for bathroom breaks, they had to relieve themselves in their pants. Seoryeong ate sparingly to avoid needing to defecate.

During the warm chicken porridge offered for dinner, she was too cold to eat and instead busied herself spreading it all over her body.

The pallor of her face was now tainted with a grim shade once again. Now, they ran with the sun in their eyes.

For three days, Seoryeong repeated this routine without sleep. Her mind, usually filled with thoughts of Kim Hyun, was now eerily empty.

On the fourth morning, they worked on tidal flats. Constantly struggling against the venomous mud that made their skin swell and redden, turning their faces black except for their stark white teeth.

After three days without sleep, bodies covered in filth, the members began to reach their limits.

“If anyone falls asleep, the instructors will personally dunk your face in water.”

Startled by this, Seoryeong grimaced fiercely. Lee Wooshin purposely played classical music, ready to stomp loudly on anyone who dozed off.

Is he insane…? She bit her tongue, resisting the urge to push away the surging nausea.

Throughout hell week, Lee Wooshin acted as if he didn’t know Seoryeong, but his occasional glances were inscrutable. Each time they locked eyes, it felt like he was looking at her not as a person but as mere prey.

His scrutinizing gaze, like reading documents, bothered her even amidst her physical exhaustion.

Despite enduring a hell week together, she couldn’t shake off the feeling that she stood on a different pedestal alone.

“Dong Jiwoo, Han Seoryeong, stand up.”

Damn it… seems like I’ve dozed off after all. Being out of it, thoughts ran rampant.

From Thursday onwards, memories faded.

Walking, they’d fall asleep, and from then on, they’d just sleep no matter what they did. The line between dream and reality vanished, and members moved solely on instinct. It was from this point on that members who saw things that weren’t there began to emerge in earnest.

“Hey, hey, why is that whale opening its mouth?! Everyone, run…!” A trainee shouted in the silence.

Pulling those with blurry, angry eyes and frightening them; some on land even panicked, thinking ghosts were chasing them.

Watching the chaos, Seoryeong secretly chuckled. Finally, her chance had come.

“Seong Wookchan.” Calling him softly, the stern expression softened slightly in response.

“Ah, are you serious…?”

As the members’ movements faltered due to lack of sleep, Seoryeong’s gaze became sharper.

“I told you, this is all I know.”

Attacking when the opponent is weakest is a basic tactic. Seoryeong had been waiting patiently for this moment since the first day of Hell Week. She knew they would be turned against each other in the most brutal ways.

“I don’t know how to survive with them, so I’m just trying to mess with them.”

She exploited emotional weaknesses, made her peers sensitive, stirred up confusion, and amplified anxiety. It was all part of her strategy, her way to survive Hell Week.