Escaping the Mystery Hotel - Chapter 175
Only Krnovel
Episode 175 – Party Time – Night Special Meeting, Sanctuary of Blessing (2)
[User: Han Ga-in (Jihye)
Date: Day 89
Current location: Tier 1, hallway
Sage Advice: 3]
– Han Ga-in
“From now on, we are holding the first special night meeting of the hotel party!”
“…”
“…”
There is silence in the hall. It’s 3 am now. This is not usually the time when we are awake.
“A round of applause for Grandpa Kim Muk-seong who worked hard to bring everyone together… . “It’s not time to do it, but thank you for your hard work.”
“What kind of meeting is this that brings everyone together at this time? “They even made a fuss about not using the entire chat window, so it was difficult to call each person into a private chat window.”
Ari gave the answer.
“I couldn’t help it. I needed to make sure Elena didn’t hear some of the content. “Elena is fast asleep now.”
Besides Elena, two others were not visible. Seungyeop and Jincheol were so deeply asleep that they did not respond to their grandfather’s private chat window. Due to the nature of room 105, there is no way to call it unless it is awakened through the chat window.
“Some people may be guessing, but this is a meeting to ensure that everyone responds appropriately to Elena’s newly acquired ability, ‘Ominous Imagination.’ “Actually, I thought about doing it during the day, but it was difficult to have a meeting at a hotel during the day without Elena knowing.”
“Hmm. It seems like you and Ari are coping in your own way? “Isn’t this a story about not provoking anxiety?”
Indeed, it seemed like the grandfather had already figured out the purpose of Ari and my unusual behavior.
Of course, only after hearing those words did Songi see her eyes widen.
“you’re right. Until Elena becomes proficient in her abilities, it is prohibited to scream or run away in fright upon seeing strange phenomena around her. “There is a risk of stimulating Elena’s negative psychology.”
“Yes… . “I will definitely be careful.”
Seeing that Songi responded right away, it seems like she has already done something like that once.
“great. Actually, I didn’t call everyone up at dawn just to talk about this. “I searched through the chief researcher’s memories for several hours.”
Grandpa opened his eyes wide.
“oh! Come to think of it, he raised Beatrix, right? “Is there any good way?”
“I vaguely remember trying literally every method. It’s not a very clear memory, but broadly speaking, it can be classified into three categories. the problem is… . “It seems like it would be difficult for us to just use it as it is a very ‘chief-like’ method, so I would like to ask other people’s opinions.”
Grandpa tilted his head.
“This is about how to use your abilities. Can we do it without Elena? “Well, I guess there was a good reason why I called it out.”
“you’re right. The first way is to ‘build self-esteem.’”
“what?”
“It’s no big deal. Due to the mechanism of the ability, strange things happen when you feel anxious or afraid. “This phenomenon gets worse the weaker the person’s ego is.”
“So, by instilling the belief that ‘I am a very strong being’, I prevent myself from feeling anxious?”
“It’s similar.”
“What did the senior do?”
“It varies. “Forcing everyone to use an honorific title for Beatrix, or making some well-built soldiers act fearful and retreat whenever they see Beatrix.”
“… Isn’t that the method that would have worked when educating the really young 10-year-old Beatrix? “I don’t think it’s a method we would use on our grown children.”
Grandfather also pointed out other problems.
“I think this method only works if the intelligence of the target is low in the first place. A child under the age of 10 would feel euphoric as if he or she was the emperor’s child just by experiencing something like that, but Elena would wonder what the hell this is all about.”
“A more active way is to create an overwhelmingly powerful alter ego and transfer your consciousness there. “If you can regenerate by smashing a wall or crushing your head with a single wave of your hand, there will be almost no need to feel fear.”
“Is that okay?”
“The problem is that it took Beatrix, the original owner of the power, over 15 years to reach the stage where she could transfer her consciousness to the monster she created.”
“…”
“The second method is similar to the method Ari and I already use. So to speak, it’s like ‘changing fear into laughter.’”
“Even though we are seeing monsters, we all laugh it off as if it is no big deal and make Elena take this lightly?”
“Yes. In fact, think about what you heard Beatrix say when you first met her. Come play with me! Was it like this? “Beatrix’s cruel yet mischievous personality was formed through this educational process.”
Ari was the first among us to start using this method.
Ari sighed first and answered.
“After trying it for a day or two, I think there is a limit. To be honest, I was a bit surprised when black tea was poisoned. If you laugh while going through something like this, it feels even more unnatural. Of course, there is no need for everyone to spread fear to Elena through appropriate acting, but it is not a fundamental solution.”
“that’s right. Actually, my conclusion is that there is no such thing as an easy solution. If danger can be easily erased in the first place, then ‘ominous imagination’ is an absurd ability. The gorilla that crushed Jincheol with a single punch, and Beatrix’s own body that made the gorilla tremble. It’s all the result of a sinister imagination. Anyway, the chief also found a third way.”
Everyone became silent and began to listen to me.
“The methods mentioned so far are just solutions for walking around with a bucket full of water and hoping not to spill a single drop. The huge jar of ominous imagination is full of ‘water’ that can create strange anomalies at any time, and Elena is holding this. “No matter how careful Elena is, every time she takes a step, the jar will vibrate and the water will inevitably leak a little.”
“The strange monsters that leaky water usually creates?”
“okay. If the first two methods are about ‘how to use my abilities,’ the third method is the opposite. “You’re just using up all your abilities.”
The grandfather, who was tilting his head, answered.
“Are you saying we’re going to cover the entire hotel with monsters and kill them one by one?”
“I’m not talking about creating that many monsters. And there’s no point if we’re going to kill them all. ‘Ominous imagination’ is not a curse, but a reward given to Elena, and we need to find a way to use it well.”
“Then what do you mean?”
“Rather than creating dozens or hundreds of trivial and insignificant monsters like now, we are creating one very powerful being. “With all the power of sinister imagination.”
Ari looked very anxious at those words.
“Could it be that the ‘gorilla’ seen inside the cube was created through that process?”
“that’s right. “The secret to why the gorilla was so incredibly strong compared to other monsters is because Beatrix put so much effort into making the jar that it was empty.”
“Suppose you created it, how on earth do you control such a monster? Songi’s friendliness? “Looking back from the past, Songi-friendliness doesn’t seem to work for kids who go crazy beyond a certain point.”
“On the contrary, there is a high probability that a being that can be controlled will emerge only if it is a powerful monster. “Miscellaneous guys have only cruelty and ferocity without any proper intelligence, but truly powerful guys can even have a high level of intelligence.”
“So, let’s create a highly intelligent demon and persuade him well? The name of the ability is ‘sinister’ imagination, and will the monster created using the extremes of that sinister imagination work as you say?”
“The chief solved that problem very easily.”
“how?”
“If I couldn’t convince you, I killed you. “I did it 100 times, 1,000 times, endlessly, until I found someone I could control.”
“…”
“It’s the perfect use of sinister imagination if you can. Since the jar is empty, the leakage of abilities in everyday life disappears, and unlike hundreds of imbecile monsters that have no way of communicating, it is one enormous monster that can communicate, so it is good to use it tactically.”
“Now that I think about it, I couldn’t use the chief, but there are ways that only we can do.”
Ari pointed at me with those words.
“that’s right. Unlike hundreds of imbecilic monsters, one powerful monster… . “If the situation arises, I can possess you and control you directly!”
For this very reason, I found this method to be the best.
Just because it’s a monster created by Elena, does it really need to be controlled by Elena? If possible, that would be best, but if it’s difficult, I can control it.
The surroundings became quiet for a moment.
In the first place, when it came to controlling such supernatural abilities, both my older sister and Song-i, who were ignorant, kept silent, and even Grandfather Mukseong kept silent.
Ari, the biggest expert in this field among us, opened his mouth.
“In the end, to roughly summarize, the three methods are like this. First, develop self-esteem. It would be even better if you could transfer your consciousness into the monster’s body. Second, don’t make a fuss to those around you and try to laugh it off and avoid irritating yourself. Third, create a powerful monster and control it well. If control is difficult, Cain will possess you.”
“yes.”
“It all seems plausible in theory. We also saw actual success stories inside room 201. In the end, it’s a matter of what you can do. It’s all like that, right? To put it in the way you like to apply for college entrance exams, even if a tutor from Seoul National University perfectly explains his study method, it is meaningless if the student cannot follow along.”
“I think I should tell you what I said today that I can tell Elena. Ultimately, it will be a question of what method she can do.”
In the end, since it is Elena’s ability, it is up to her to choose.
Eunsol, who had been quiet throughout the meeting due to the topic of controlling supernatural powers, asked a question.
“Gain, did you give me advice again?”
“yes.”
“What are you going to use it for? I think I’ll have to write a little tighter this time… .”
“Actually, I originally wanted to ask you some questions about Room 104. “I usually have to give advice on solving the cursed room, so now that it’s party time, it seems like the right time.”
“Hotel? Hmm. “I said that each question related to room 104 requires three questions, right?”
“yes. “I wonder why that is.”
“Writing advice is ultimately your choice, but I think it would be difficult to write too much on page 104.”
“I think so too. Wanting to ask a lot of questions about room 104 is something I’ve had in the past… . Right now, it looks like the hotel is intent on freezing us to death, so I guess I’ll have to get some information on that first. I think I’ll just use one for room 104. “The drawback is that even though it is only one question, it is an expensive question worth three questions.”
“Good idea. In fact, it feels subtly cold even now. “Let’s start today and tomorrow to gather information about the second floor and talk about what to do.”
It’s not just my sister’s feeling. A few hours ago, I felt that the average temperature in the hotel had dropped even though it was on the first floor.
*
The next morning, the atmosphere of the colleagues who started moving toward the sanctuary of blessing was extremely cold.
Jincheol opened his mouth in an anxious mood.
“I’m feeling a bit anxious.”
“Man, are you anxious now?”
“No matter what, the stir-fried pork is a bit cold… .”
“That’s what happens to me because I eat things like stir-fried pork in the morning.”
“No, old man. “What on earth does it have to do with the meat I ordered for breakfast and the food being cold?”
As always, my brother and grandfather bickered, but the content was unusual.
The beef stew I ate was at the same temperature as it came out of the refrigerator.
The temperature of the atmosphere has also clearly fallen further. Originally, the temperature at the hotel was like a cool spring day, but now it is fall with the cold wind blowing in.
In the meantime, the blanket Elena had wrapped herself in to protect herself from the cold suddenly moved on its own, causing her to be crushed, and she was escaping with Ari’s help.
What on earth are we supposed to do on the second floor? Everyone’s worries deepened.
See next episode