A Dangerous Path

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A week had passed since the call.

Gi-hun hadn't eaten. Hadn't slept. The words still echoed in his skull:

"It's not over."

He had buried In-ho with his own hands. Felt his body grow cold in his arms. Watched the light fade from his eyes. And yet...

Here he was, standing in front of an unmarked building in Seoul's shadowed underbelly. The message had led him here-a location pinged from a burner phone, now smashed to pieces.

Everything told him to turn back. But In-ho was alive. And that meant everything else was a lie.

He stepped inside.

The door slammed behind him with a hiss, locking automatically. The room went dark-then lights flickered on overhead. Screens buzzed to life across the wall. And there, staring back at him on grainy CCTV footage-In-ho. Alive. Breathing. Walking.

Gi-hun stumbled forward. "No... no, it can't be."

The man on the screen moved like him-sharp, calculating-but there was something different. Harder. Colder. Like he was no longer human.

A voice rang out behind him.

"You weren't supposed to see that."

Gi-hun spun, fists clenched. A tall man in a silver mask stood in the shadows. Another VIP.

"You should've taken your money and run," the masked man continued. "But no... you had to dig."

Gi-hun stepped forward, furious. "Where is he? Where's In-ho?"

The man tilted his head. "Ah. So it's not the money that keeps you up at night. It's him."

Gi-hun's heart pounded. He'd come prepared for lies, for manipulation-but not this. Not the idea that they knew everything.

"I don't know what you're talking about," he lied.

The man chuckled. "You kissed him in front of our cameras. And you think we don't know?"

Gi-hun's blood ran cold.

The man leaned closer. "Tell me something, Player 456... was it just survival? Or did he break you?"

Gi-hun snapped. He lunged, grabbed the masked man by the collar, slamming him against the wall. "Tell me where he is!"

The man didn't resist. He only laughed. "You want to see him again? Then you'll play by our rules."

---

That night, Gi-hun entered a world darker than he had ever imagined.

An exclusive club, hidden beneath a luxury skyscraper. Not the old Squid Game arenas-but something worse. A place where the rich paid not for games, but people. For control. For suffering.

Gi-hun walked in wearing a custom black mask, given to him by the VIPs. They thought he was one of them now. A fallen winner, turned curious investor.

He let them believe it.

The inside was decadent-crystal chandeliers, walls lined with gold, servants in red uniforms carrying wine and bodies alike. Screens hung from every corner, showing footage from secret games in progress.

And then he saw him.

In-ho.

Maskless, standing beside the head VIP, his posture stiff, his expression cold. Like he wasn't even human anymore.

Gi-hun froze. In-ho scanned the room... and for a moment, their eyes met.

Gi-hun's breath hitched.

Was that recognition? Or just an empty stare?

He moved toward him, weaving through bodies, whispers, and perfume-heavy air.

"In-ho," he said softly when they were finally face to face.

In-ho blinked, slow and calculated. "You shouldn't have come."

Gi-hun grabbed his arm, low and tight. "You're alive. That's all that matters."

But In-ho didn't smile. "No, Gi-hun. I'm not alive. Not really."

His eyes flicked toward a camera overhead. "They're watching. Always watching. I don't belong to myself anymore."

Gi-hun's grip tightened. "Then let's take that back. Together."

In-ho shook his head. "They'll kill you if they know you're not one of them."

Gi-hun leaned in, whispering like a prayer, "Let them try."

Just then, alarms blared. The lights dimmed. Overhead, a voice barked:

"Unauthorized guest detected. Lock all exits."

Gi-hun's heart sank. Someone had recognized him.

In-ho pushed him toward a side door. "Go. Now. I'll find you later."

Gi-hun hesitated. "I'm not leaving without you-"

"Damn it, GO!" In-ho shouted.

Guards closed in. Gi-hun had no choice. He ran.

---

Outside, rain poured like blood from the sky.

Gi-hun leaned against a wall in the alley, soaked and shaking.

He had seen him. Touched him. He was real.

And he was still under their control.

But now, Gi-hun had something else.

Proof. Leverage. A reason to burn this system to the ground.

He pulled out a stolen flash drive, tucked deep in his jacket.

Security footage. Audio. In-ho's voice. The twisted heart of the VIP empire.

And as he looked up into the night, a small, broken smile curled on his lips.

"I'm coming for you."

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Author's Note:

Okay... things just got intense, right? Gi-hun saw In-ho-alive! But nothing is simple anymore.

Our boy's in deep now, and the real game has changed.

I hope your heart's racing-because mine definitely is while writing this!

Buckle up, besties. Chapter 12 is gonna hit harder.

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