The Returnee Wants to Live Comfortably

Please Take Off the Mask and Reveal Your Identity!!

With the appearance of the 7th singer, the atmosphere in the concert hall turned restless.

Just as the show usually went, a singer wearing a mask appeared on stage.

The problem was, that "mask" was a pair of men's boxers.

Even from this, you could tell there was an issue with the broadcast regulations, and what's more, the person didn't even seem like a singer.

It was just a bewildered student who rushed the stage with underwear stuffed onto their head.

- What is this? Who is that?

- Wasn't the next singer supposed to be the Mango Mask?

- Why isn't it the Mango Mask and what's with that thing?

- Did they lose their mask backstage?

- Even if they did, how do you come out here wearing that as a mask?

As expected, the audience burst out with a barrage of questions.

Instead of the highly anticipated Mango Mask, some weird Underwear Mask had popped up.

Anyone would be suspicious of this scene, so everyone's face went serious.

Most of them seemed convinced that someone had shoved the real singer aside and barged in.

- The body shape is way different from Mango Mask.

- Look at the size from last week's show.

- This just looks like a student. Maybe middle-school age?

- Did something urgent come up so they threw in a substitute?

- And they made the substitute do it... in underwear?

- What the hell, so who is that kid anyway?

A mishap on Masked Singer, a program that had run for a full decade.

For such a show with a venerable tradition, this was quite the incident.

MC Kim Seonghun, who was overseeing things on stage, couldn't help but be dumbfounded.

"Um... excuse me, but who might you be...?"

Kim Seonghun cautiously asked the singer.

He'd hosted the show for ten years, so he'd seen many live mishaps.

Singers coughed mid-performance, dropped their microphones, even failed to arrive on time, delaying the show.

But this... how should he put it?

Someone had just burst in with a pair of men's underwear pulled over their head for a mask—this was a first.

"Are you the stand-in, perhaps?"

Still, Kim Seonghun was a seasoned MC.

No matter what happened during a broadcast, he'd learned to stay calm.

It was basic to keep his cool and politely ask, no matter who he was dealing with.

"Ah, hello."

"If you don't mind... what happened to Mango Mask...?"

As the girl opened her mouth for the first time, Kim Seonghun pressed further.

Judging by the voice and frame, she looked like a middle schooler.

Normally, the masks provided by Masked Singer had voice modulators.

Since that wasn't the case now, it was clear she'd just grabbed whatever was around to use as a mask.

But why?

"Ah, I'm... I'm..."

Sang-ah hesitated, her lips trembling in fear.

The audience of hundreds was staring straight at her from their seats.

She could hear their murmurs on stage.

Having never experienced a scene like this before, Sang-ah's body was shaking uncontrollably.

Even so, for some reason, she felt oddly comfortable.

Despite the daunting atmosphere, she could breathe easily, her chest almost dancing with joy.

The reason was the very item she wore upside down on her head instead of a mask.

So, for some reason, she was brimming with confidence today.

"I'm... Underwear Mask!"

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At that moment, every voice in the world vanished.

No sound escaped the audience, or from MC Kim Seonghun's mouth.

It was like they'd all been whacked on the back of the head at once.

"Host! Host!"

Just then, someone shouted for Kim Seonghun from below the stage.

It was Cha Eunju's manager and security, the people responsible for Mango Mask's scheduled appearance.

Kim Seonghun hurried down to ask what was going on.

It was only after a rushed explanation that he could finally understand why things had turned out like this.

However...

"No matter what, how could you just drag in a random student off the street and put her on stage?"

Maybe if she'd been a replacement singer, it would make sense.

But even with the explanation, Kim Seonghun was speechless.

And even more outrageous... was the mask the girl had chosen.

A female student with men's underwear pulled over her head.

The longer you looked, the more your head spun.

[2 - 6]

[M·S·J]

Those were the letters printed on the boxers.

Whoever the original owner was, you could only pity them.

****

Currently, the Masked Singer show was being broadcast live.

Needless to say, viewers at home were stunned by what they were seeing.

Real-time comments and the viewer board were in uproar.

But there was someone who found it all even more absurd than them.

"Excuse me... Demon King?"

On the rooftop of the Hand's central tower.

Vern, standing in the magic array's center, suddenly tensed up.

He'd been serving the Demon King since the very start of the Demon King's army.

That's why, just by looking at the Demon King's expression, he could guess his mood.

"Haha... hahaha..."

"..."

Seongjin, watching the broadcast on his phone, burst out laughing.

Then a voice rang out from the TV:

[I'm... Underwear Mask!]

"Uahahahahahahahahaha!!!"

The moment he heard that, Seongjin's laughter turned downright manic.

Seeing this, Vern grew even more nervous.

He'd seen the Demon King get furious many times before, but this time, the feeling was different.

"Vern."

"Yes!"

"Is it ready?"

"It's all done now. In a few minutes, it'll start to rain."

"Good... well done."

At least, the Demon King's command had been carried out successfully.

Still, his anger was far from appeased.

An indescribable darkness seemed to dominate the air.

"I was wondering where the last one went... turns out it was somewhere like that."

"Pardon?"

Seongjin was filled with regret.

At first he'd suspected Yunhee of hiding it as a joke.

But the real culprit wasn't Yunhee.

"What on earth is this?"

Vern stepped out of the array and looked at the screen.

The spell was already cast, so no more chanting was needed.

On the screen was a girl with underwear pulled down over her head.

Vern couldn't make heads or tails of it, either.

"This isn't just a minor broadcast accident."

"...."

"2-6. M·S·J? What even...."

As Vern read the letters written on the boxers, Seongjin said,

"That's mine."

"I see, Demon King's pan— What?"

"Shi—, that's mine!!!"

"Eek!"

Finally, Seongjin's pent-up feelings exploded.

With bloodshot eyes, he screamed in rage, scaring Vern out of his wits.

"That crazy brat—does she even know what she's doing?! Underwear Mask? Does she have any idea that's MY underwear?!"

"D-demon King, please calm down..."

"How am I supposed to calm down?! That brat... using my precious shield!! KIEEEEEEEEK!!"

There was a reason he called them his shield.

It was just... hard to explain.

While Seongjin howled and threatened Sang-ah, music began to pour from the TV.

In that moment, both the flustered Vern and the enraged Seongjin froze in place.

The song that rang out was beautiful enough to instantly calm any fury.

But...

"Why...."

"...."

"Why is the singing so damn good anyway!!!"

A new wave of discomfort, rising without warning, carved out a fresh anger in him.

To make matters worse, she sounded even better now than when she sang at home during vacation.

****

Beautiful melodies filled the entire concert hall.

Kim Seonghun, who had looked so troubled a second ago, was mesmerized the moment he heard them.

The same went for the security and the manager.

Even the rowdy, shouting audience fell totally silent.

No words came out; only myriad thoughts swirled.

- What am I even listening to right now?

- Have I ascended to heaven?

- Just hearing the song feels like it's untangling all my complicated emotions.

Could that voice really come from the mouth of the person wearing nothing but underwear on their head?

Her vocal talent was beyond human limits.

Drip. Drip. Drip—

Just then, raindrops began to fall from the sky.

Slowly, the shower grew heavier, then drenched everyone in a downpour.

Swwwoooooosh—!

Rain soaked the entire Hand city.

The forecast had called for sunshine, so no one had brought an umbrella.

Even as their bodies were helplessly soaked, nobody moved.

Enthralled by the music, escaping the rain was the last thing on their minds.

"That's...."

Meanwhile, inside a car, Ai Hoon was spared from the rain.

But even she was just as entranced by the song.

"That's incredible."

"To think such a voice actually exists in the world."

Even Ji Ryong-seong, sitting in the driver's seat, and Jin Rain, in the front passenger seat, were in awe.

These were people who normally carried out their missions with cold efficiency, no blood or tears, but even they were captivated.

"Don't make me laugh."

Then Ai Hoon spoke quietly.

While everyone else was overtaken by the performance, she alone wore a sullen expression.

"Don't make me laugh. I said, don't make me laugh!!"

Eventually her shouts startled Ji Ryong-seong and Jin Rain.

Ai Hoon just couldn't accept it.

She'd set the highest score on Masked Singer so far.

But if a singer like that appeared, her record wouldn't just be beaten—it would be utterly destroyed.

There had never been a case in Masked Singer history where the entire audience was so spellbound.

"This makes no sense!!"

The more she thought about it, the angrier Ai Hoon grew.

She had made sure Cha Eunju, who would have worn the Mango Mask, was taken out of the running.

She'd felt certain she'd get all the attention now.

But then—

'What the hell is with that underwear brat?!'

All her effort getting rid of Cha Eunju had been for nothing.

Along with her sense of loss came a wave of envy at the singer's vocal power.

'How does such a pervert have a voice that good?!'

She simply couldn't recognize it—she couldn't forgive it.

Someone was overtaking her.

It felt as if her hard-earned tower was being toppled.

And what's more, they were standing on the ruins, mocking her.

Ai Hoon always interpreted unfavorable situations that way.

As a result, she burned with hatred for the girl on stage.

"A thing like that shouldn't exist."

The public's attention was stolen away.

How could this be reality?

She simply couldn't accept it.

"Well then, miss. It's time to get ready."

"Okay."

From the driver's seat, Ji Ryong-seong sent a message on his phone.

Soon, a reply came from an officer named 'Lu Huikang'.

Soon, this whole area would become hell.

But Ai Hoon, eyes blazing, watched the girl on the stage.

As if she was staring at her mortal enemy.

****

At some point, the rain stopped abruptly.

After just a few minutes, you had to wonder why it even fell at all.

At the same time, Sang-ah's performance on stage also ended.

The moment she finished singing, Sang-ah exhaled deeply.

'That should be enough, right?'

Now the song was over, the nerves hit her with full force.

So she tried to get off the stage immediately.

Waaaaaah—!

Cheering erupted throughout the audience.

Hearing the uproar, Sang-ah stopped in her tracks.

She'd expected to be booed, but instead, the crowd was wild with joy.

At the very least, she could tell everyone was pleased.

– Kwon Sang-ah! Kwon Sang-ah!

Just then, she heard the voice of another girl calling her.

It was Ah-rin, shouting her name.

– Hurry and get down here!

Now that she thought of it, she couldn't afford to be standing here any longer.

The Sura guild could pull off something strange at any moment.

'Luckily, there wasn't anything suspicious on the stage.'

She could feel it while singing just now.

She'd done all she could, so all that was left was to leave the stage.

But...

"100 points! It's a perfect 100!!"

Suddenly, fireworks exploded at the front of the stage.

It was a special ceremony awarded to the first masked singer to receive a perfect 100 from the judges.

"That was truly a fantastic performance."

"Um... Thank you."

Now, MC Kim Seonghun's face was full of emotion, so different from moments ago.

All those suspicious earlier looks had instantly transformed into expressions of joy.

But Sang-ah couldn't care less about any of that.

"Well then, I'll just...."

"Underwear Mask, please remove your mask and... reveal your identity!!"

What?