Yeonjung's POV

“Eonni, you’re not hiding something from me, are you?”

I said as I noticed that Dawon eonni was holding her left wrist tightly. Seems like eonni knew something that I didn't know all this time. As expected, eonni refused to admit the truth about the answer to my question. So I just grabbed her left wrist and detach her right hand from blocking my view.

How surprised I am to see something that she is trying to hide since this morning. It's a rash-like indentation of something that I have seen before.

Let me remember where I saw this before?

The moment I realised that it's the key, I found out that I'm not the keyholder. My hopes to survive shattered, but I still can't be selfish. I looked into Dawon eonni's eyes, owing some explanations from her.

"I'm sorry, Yeonjung. I actually noticed that I'm the keyholder this morning. Frankly speaking, I really don't want this to happen, I even tried to eliminate myself during the previous mission, but I was set in a tube with a very strong tempered glass as the floorings so I can't even pierce my body into the acid vat."

Dawon eonni confessed what had burdened her today, which I didn't really mind. I do understand that she didn't want me to lose hope, but I really think that it's not her fault since we were set in a highly dangerous situation and death is inevitable. I felt relieved that now we have figured out who the keyholder is.

I then took the key from my pocket, and placed the head on the rash-like indentation on her left wrist.

It matches perfectly.

"Eonni, thank you for your honesty. Please keep this and escape. Don't worry about me, you are the one that should survive. Even if I survive, I still can't escape without you." I said as we walked closer to the next mission site.

The mission that will most probably take my life away.

Of course, no one can accept this reality. I bet Dawon eonni will never be willing to accept this as well. We promised that we would escape as thirteen, and as for now I thought that it's something to be grateful if even one of us managed to escape.

Soon our surroundings are getting dark with colorful neon lights blasting at the corners of the passage, informing us that we are approaching the next mission site.

We walked towards the mission site. I saw the mission card. I took a look at Dawon eonni for a while, and picked it up. I picked up my courage to read it when I noticed that Dawon eonni will definitely refuse to read it.

"Hello survivors, is the keyholder still here? We hope so, because you're left with one mission after this one to officially escape the Cosmic Tower. Again, we will keep the rules for this mission as simple as possible. This mission will be a Head to Head Table Hockey Game. Both of you will play against each other. The first one to score will proceed to the last mission, and her opponent will be eliminated. Good luck!"

As I read the mission card, I can tell that Dawon eonni is trying to not weep beside me, yet she kind of failing, I noticed how unwilling she is to let me go. However, we have no power to stop this.

"Eonni, look. I know things won't go the way eonni wanted, but this is inevitable. Let's get up there, and finish it sooner, so that eonni can escape this place sooner too."

Dawon eonni agreed and we stepped up to our designated platforms.

-o-

Right now the two survivors are facing each other, preparing to play their last game together. They hold on to their own pushers as the barbed wires are placed around the arena so that they won't be going anywhere and soon the puck is placed in the center.

"Yeonjung, I'm sorry if eonni has offended you in any way. You have to keep in mind that eonni will always love you, and everyone else here. Thank you for standing by eonni's side for this whole time."

Dawon said her last words, holding on the puck tight and not  pushing the puck even by an inch. At this moment, Yeonjung moves her pusher to the side of the table, leaving her goal unblocked.

"Eonni, please! Just do it, please escape for me." Yeonjung said, but it seems like it's even harder for Dawon to push the puck as she promised to protect Yeonjung from whatever happens.

Time is ticking, the puck isn't moving at all. Yeonjung turns impatient and lets go of her pusher.

"Well, if eonni don't want to do it, I'll do it by myself."

Yeonjung grabbed Dawon's hand that holds the pusher and moved the pusher into her goal to make her score the only point achievable in this game. Feeling satisfied with her sacrifice, Yeonjung casts a smile and looked at Dawon in the eyes.

"Goodbye, eonni. Take care, and please come out of this tower alive and well~"

This is what Yeonjung said right before the platform under her opened and she fell into an abyss of darkness, losing her life.

-o-

Dawon's POV

I was shocked at what just happened. It's true that I'm the last survivor, but somehow I'm not even close to being happy about this. The rule maker clearly has no mercy.

Before I