Hell's Actor-Chapter 101: Marching Exit

From four different directions, from roads connecting like tributaries, seven princes of Hell had found themselves in the same place.

Even as the crowd surrounded them, they continued undaunted to the center of the square, maintaining character.

Their earpieces buzzed.

"Don’t mess this up. Thousands of people are watching."

"How could we possibly mess this up?" Averie scoffed.

As if his words had caused them to be jinxed, a whirring sound overhead enveloped the area.

Three helicopters were circling over the square.

"If the production had this much money to burn," Averie said with resentment, "you could have paid me a hefty bonus."

"Only one of them is ours," the coordinator replied.

"Sorry?"

"One of them is a police helicopter, and the other belongs to a news channel." The coordinator laughed. "Give them your best smile, boys; millions are watching."

Meanwhile, the live footage was being shown on the TVs throughout the country.

"We are currently at the site of the commotion, and it appears the rumors of a stampede were false," the reporter reported from the chopper. "It seems to be a publicity stunt by none other than the cast of Binsfeld’s Seven Princes of Hell!"

"You sound excited there," the anchor commented.

"Who won’t be excited in my shoes? This is the best seat you can have for something like this."

"Alright, you can return now," the anchor said with a fake smile. "Stop burning our fuel."

"The police are moving! The police are moving!"

Squads of police officers rushed in at the site, carrying riot gear. They created a barrier around the center of the crossing, isolating the seven Binsfeld brothers in the middle of the square.

From the glass panes of shopping malls, cameras were focused only on the seven. The whole of Shibuya ward had become their stage.

Surrounded, there was seemingly no escape.

Hyerin, who was watching the news on her phone, looked worried.

The word about the stunt spread quickly across the internet. As seconds passed, more people gathered, hoping to catch a glimpse of them.

Within a few minutes, the area was swamped with clattering feet and restless eyes. freewebnøvel_com

"We will have to end it quickly," the coordinator said.

The seven made their way towards the white round table in the middle of the square.

It had a hot teapot, arranged teacups, piled desserts, and an assortment of chocolates.

Around the table were chairs for each of the seven.

When any of it was arranged was a mystery to the gawkers.

Asmodeus took off his coat, hung it on the backrest, and took a seat.

He glanced around the table.

To his left was Leviathan, and to his right was Mammon.

"Go ahead," came the voice from the earpiece.

The Binsfeld brothers picked up their cups, took a sip, and simultaneously turned towards the balcony of the largest building in the square.

"Perfect," whispered the coordinator. "We have captured everything we need. It’s a good shot. Let’s not botch the exit."

As if on cue, several men dressed in black weaved their way through the gathered crowd. The police allowed them in. Soon, the center was swarmed with them.

They surrounded the white table and collected the items.

Some of them unhesitatingly swallowed the tea. That was far safer than scalding themselves while moving the stuff around.

They tied the ends of the tablecloth and threw it in a black trash bag.

"What about the news chopper?" Averie asked, glaring at the shadow of the large hovering machine. "We can’t hide anything from the top. They are still watching us."

"We are prepared."

The hundreds of gathered actors took out folding umbrellas that were stored in their coats.

"Bravo," Averie muttered.

From above, the action of opening hundreds of umbrellas at once gave the illusion of a giant pufferfish.

"As you can see, the group has deployed umbrellas. We can’t see anything!" fervently reported the lady reporter from her helicopter.

"Stop wasting our money, please. Return to the headquarters."

Averie and the others opened their umbrellas and blended in with the crowd of actors.

The large group shifted and stirred as if they were children at a carnival. No one could tell where the cast was in the chaos.

"Move," the coordinator instructed. "Make your exit."

The hundreds of men in black marched in four different directions, making their way through the clogged roads. Their steps were strangely synchronized, distracting the gaze.

Cameras tried to capture them, but it was difficult to distinguish who was who as everyone was dressed exactly the same.

In the wake of the procession, nothing was left behind.

The seven were gone, and even the table had disappeared.

It was like watching a magician’s grand trick.

The helicopters kept circling around for a while before dispersing.

Hyerin, still sitting at the café, breathed a sigh of relief.

***

Once away, Averie and the others were separated once again.

"Everyone got out?" Su-Jin James asked over the call.

He was currently waiting in a bar restaurant reserved exclusively for him.

"Yep," replied John Strom, lying in the backseat of an SUV.

"This is bad for my health," said Do-Yun Park, hiding in a toilet stall. "Is this what it means to be an A-lister?"

In-Su Kim laughed. "I wouldn’t say it has anything to do with that. This isn’t common for us either."

He was waiting for his food in the VIP room of a Korean restaurant.

"Why do I have to be the one out in the open?" Raymond Lee complained, shaking hands with children in a mascot costume in front of a shopping mall.

"It would have been funny if we were filming even this," joked Averie, strolling through the back alleys and forgotten roads.

"This is funny to you?" Peter Kang yelled, holding his breath as he walked through the underground sewer. "I am suffering, and this is funny to you?"

"Hey man, you lost the bet," Averie laughed. "That’s not my fault."

"You could have asked for anything else, and you asked for this? If I had known you were that good at poker, I wouldn’t have risked it!"

’That’s why I kept it a secret, you moron.’

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