Nam Jisu stepped to one side of the finish and held her smartphone sideways.

The screen took in the whole advanced slope under the night lights.

The plan was to record Nam Yuri, Ha Tae-ung and Gu Changjin starting together from the top and crossing the finish line.

She was filming to head off any argument over how the bet came out.

But right before the start, the weather had turned without warning.

Whoooooo!

A strong wind came down the valley and whipped thick snowflakes in every direction.

Lit up by the night lights, the snow covered the slope like a white curtain.

Even with goggles, it was hard to make out anything more than a few dozen meters ahead.

The phone camera couldn't find anything to focus on; it hunted around in the empty air and kept shaking.

"Is this even going to come out right?"

She wiped the snow off the screen with her gloved hand.

The snow on the lens stuck again as fast as she could wipe it off.

Even on a normal day, the advanced run didn't see many skiers.

The slope was steep, and at night stretches of it iced over, so only skiers with real skill tried it.

When the blizzard suddenly kicked up, even the few skiers who'd been in sight gradually disappeared.

The people standing at the top of the run looked at the weather and moved to safer slopes. The handful who had already set off from the summit slowed down and dwindled into dots past the finish.

At the finish of the wide slope, only Nam Jisu was left.

The music from the resort's outdoor speakers was swallowed by the wind and could barely be heard.

Nam Jisu held up her phone and adjusted her stance.

Just before, she had put the three at the top on a group call to confirm they were ready to go.

Once her sister said they were about to start, she hung up and started recording.

The recording time kept ticking up.

But no one was coming through the blizzard.

Thump, thump.

As…