Escaping the Mystery Hotel - Chapter 198
Only Krnovel
Episode 198 – Party Time – Growth, preparation for the next room (2)
– Han Ga-in
After summoning the grimoire, Ari slowly began to explain.
“This book is the source of your supernatural powers. Right?”
“About half. “The source of the other half would be blessings or tattoos.”
“Of course it is. Anyway, many beings who wield supernatural powers borrow the power of special objects. Without further ado, we, the hotel participants, are those people. But what effect do these items have on users? Have you ever thought about that?”
“…”
“Actually, it’s not just about ‘supernatural stuff.’ This applies to all supernatural experiences. This also applies to situations such as a dog raised at home that turns out to be a dog from hell.”
Songi muttered, a little surprised.
“Perodo?”
“There is one organization that is very interested in the effects of paranormal experiences on humans. “It’s an organization you know well.”
“Administrative Bureau.”
“okay. The Bureau is also the organization that holds the most supernatural items. The Bureau has been observing the effects these items have on users for a long time. And we found some notable changes.”
As I was quietly listening to the content, I realized that it was not just about me. Song, the owner of the bracelet, and Jincheol, the owner of the star, also approached Ari with an expression of interest.
“Even if users of supernatural objects were ordinary people at first, they gradually begin to change as time passes. How that change occurs is literally case by case. “Some people suddenly grow horns, some people start seeing things they couldn’t see, and some people start suffering from mental illness.”
“Sometimes change is good and sometimes it is bad?”
“You could say that. “The management bureau sums up such changes and expresses it as ‘the level of the soul has risen.’”
“The expression itself doesn’t quite make sense. Why did ‘soul’ suddenly appear?”
“Good point. The reason the expression doesn’t make sense is because we didn’t create the expression itself. It is knowledge received from beings close to the unreal world, demons and monsters that can communicate. “When they saw people who had experienced ‘change,’ they said, ‘Their spirits have risen in rank.’”
Songi asked as if she couldn’t bear it anymore.
“What does ‘soul’ mean? “What exactly does it mean that your rank has risen?”
The answer was somewhat empty.
“I don’t know.”
“to?”
“I really don’t know. As I’ve said many times, most of the members of the Bureau are just ordinary humans born and raised on Earth. Of course, people with smarter and stronger minds than ordinary people gather in the Bureau, but they are still humans after all, right? The devils don’t even understand what the human soul means. “You can’t see it in the first place, and you can’t catch it.”
Grandpa chimed in slightly.
“I don’t know the real meaning of the phrase ‘the level of the soul rises.’ But I vaguely know what changes will occur when such a phenomenon occurs. For example, the most representative phenomenon is the so-called ‘inspiration.’”
“Inspiration?”
“These are the phenomena Ari mentioned earlier. Aren’t these things like suddenly seeing something you couldn’t see or hearing something you couldn’t hear?”
Jincheol, who had been listening quietly for a while, asked.
“What changes have you two experienced? grandfather?”
The grandfather’s expression hardened for a moment. Ari answered instead.
“The silent change was surgically removed.”
“Cough! God, you’ve gone through a physical change. “What about Ari?”
Ari suddenly became worried and answered in an ambiguous tone.
“I don’t think I know. “It’s clear that a change has occurred, but I can’t pinpoint exactly what the change is.”
Jincheol reacted in confusion.
“What on earth are you talking about?”
I felt like I vaguely understood what Ari was saying.
“Is it because your body has become one with ‘old blood’?”
“that’s right. Have you ever looked at my strength and thought about that? What kind of legacy does he have to use all his various powers? “Same thing.”
As soon as those words came out, all my colleagues’ heads, including mine, nodded at the same time!
I’ve thought about it dozens of times. Old blood is, in a way, so different from the heritage of all of us. How many superpowers does Ari have as a result of his legacy? Strengthening muscles is basic for hypnosis, flight, and there have been cases of blood containing the power of recovery or one’s own memories.
To exaggerate a bit, the legacy of boasting all-round performance to the extent that it would not be surprising no matter what ability was displayed was old blood. None of the treasures we have gained so far can generate as many phenomena as incalculable as old blood.
I understood part of the secret through our conversation so far.
“For quite a long time, I gained all kinds of amazing experiences and used old blood. I’ve heard dozens of stories about your soul being raised by demons and monsters. and… .”
“and?”
“As time goes by, my ability to do things has increased. One day I was suddenly able to fly, and one day I was suddenly able to crush stones with my bare hands. The problem is that I cannot tell how much of this ability is due to changes in my soul and how much of it is a newly developed power as I became more adept at using old blood.”
It’s a simple story. For Ari, who had been one with Yusan since birth, old blood was already something indistinguishable from herself. This means that it is impossible to distinguish between the power created as the level of the soul increases and the power newly developed as one becomes skilled in the use of heritage.
While everyone was asking Ari various questions, I started to refocus on myself.
Did I start to have special powers too?
Maybe so. At Christmas, several unusual experiences I had in the hell of a maze flashed through my mind. However, at least the owl’s instructions to me were not about finding new superpowers.
Study again. Studying means looking at books, so in the end, open the grimoire again!
While stroking the grimoire, I decided to look again at the ‘Power of Avatar’ section in the second half of the grimoire when I was alone this evening.
After the morning conversation, we naturally left room 105 and headed to the elevator. What changes have occurred on the second floor?
*
“wow! “It’s so fancy!”
“The snow just disappeared. There was also a ceiling.”
“Is that a chandelier? “Is this a Christmas tree?”
The repaired second floor was truly the splendor of a five-star hotel. Everywhere was filled with sparkling decorations and beautiful paintings, and all spaces that had only walls were transformed into independent rooms. In particular, the Christmas tree in the middle of the huge hall in the center was a spectacular sight. It was so hard for everyone to move in front of him!
After looking around for a while, we discovered some mysterious features and new changes on the second floor.
First, many unnumbered rooms emerged. The empty rooms on the first floor were all numbered from 101 to 107, and had roles such as curse, rest, mission, and gateway rooms. On the other hand, many of the rooms on the second floor did not have numbers. Of course, rooms named 201 through 207 also appeared. Because of these new rooms and the huge central hall, the area of the second floor seemed to be more than twice that of the first floor.
Second, a formal entrance door to the outside of the second floor was created. Of course, since you can no longer go out to the outside world outside the snow globe, this is the door that allows you to go out to the snowy field outside the second floor. Now you don’t have to break the wall every time you go out into the snow.
Third, the ‘mysterious craftsman’ and unidentified ‘parcel’ found in the outside world were placed on the second floor.
Also, it is difficult to say that it is a feature of the second floor, but Ari’s blessing ‘secret’ has been activated again.
“Everyone, come here! As soon as I got to the second floor, my blessing started working again!”
“oh! secret?”
“huh. I will tell you the information that has just appeared. “There are two hidden NPCs on the second floor and two hidden rooms.”
“Have you already found one NPC and one room?”
“that’s right. Mysterious craftsman, I found the room of resurrection. “The name of ‘Room of Mirrors’ has also been found out, so the name is appearing on the blessing list.”
With those words, Ari wrote them down on the right corner of the whiteboard installed in the center of the second floor.
Hidden NPC
1. Mysterious Artisan: Awakening.
2. ???
hidden room
1. Room of Resurrection(!)
2. Hall of Mirrors(?)
“You’re waking up? And next to the room? “What is the sign again?”
“I just wrote down what I saw. Maybe that Lego will wake up in a few days and talk to us? ! If you focus on the sign, a description of the Resurrection Room will appear. This is a story everyone already knows. ? means we haven’t found the room yet.”
“You said your blessing was for finding out the secrets of the hotel, right? “Can you feel where you are?”
“It’s not like you automatically know the location if you just stand still, but if you walk around, you vaguely know the location. By the way, the door to the Resurrection Room appears to the left of the Christmas tree.”
“It looks like we’ll have to explore to find the Hall of Mirrors and another NPC.”
My older sister joined in slightly.
“Let’s do that exploration later. As you can see, everyone is in disarray.”
“yes. I’m just saying we’ll do it someday. “Our rest day ends tomorrow anyway, so let’s stop exploring.”
We were exhausted after looking around the outside world, and those of us who had sucked energy from the scented candle of rest still felt emaciated. Now, in just two days, you have to enter the cursed room. It is a time to recover your physical strength rather than trying something new.
While we were talking, a notification suddenly appeared in front of everyone.
[shipping]
“Eh! what?”
“Oh, I’m sorry everyone. “As I was about to open this package, a notification suddenly popped up.”
The third achievement I discovered in the outside world. Even now that I think about it, the object hidden under the snow globe, which was in a ridiculous location, was none other than a package. Of course, its true identity can’t be the parcel; it must be something inside.
By the way, does it make sense to say [delivering]? Elena, who had the same thought as me, spoke.
“Isn’t it absurd? No, if it’s being delivered, it’s normal for the parcel itself not to arrive. The parcel is already there, but you leave it unopened and it says ‘delivering’. What does this mean? “It’s so insincere, really!”
Ari sighed.
“Isn’t this the hotel’s own joke? “I thought it was kind of funny.”
It seems that the sense of humor of old beings has something in common. I didn’t really point it out.
“Wouldn’t it be open at the end of the rest day? Anyway, let’s wait some more. “In the past, it took quite a while for even golden eggs to awaken.”
…
After my last words, silence fell in the hotel. There are many things we can do individually, such as me studying the grimoire again and Elena practicing more ominous imaginations that she is not yet skilled at, but the work we need to do together is almost done.
Usually, the most important things to do during party time are deciding which room to go to next and exploring, but this time, neither of those things are necessary. I decided to stop exploring because it was difficult, and I had already decided on room 104 as the next room to go.
Now there is only one thing left to decide at the meeting.
‘resurrection’
Should I use the ticket this time? If I do write it, who should I write it to?
Naturally, we dispersed here and there to spend time on our own, and went out to the snowy field on the second floor with the intention of studying the grimoire alone until lunch time.
— Boom!
“ah! Miro, you really can’t be Miro again. “Eunsol sister?”
“sorry! I’m so far away that I can’t hear you even if I call you. By the way, did the maze in hell throw snow at you?”
“ha ha ha! “It was like that.”
When I recalled the memory of having a snowball fight with Miro, I started laughing without realizing it. Isn’t this one of the most fun times I’ve ever had in a hideous hotel? I don’t know if it’s me or the hotel that thinks the most fun time was spent in ‘hell’ rather than any other place.
“Hmm… .”
My older sister approached me with a somewhat meaningful expression.
“So, how was the maze?”
“… Did you ask anyone else?”
“I didn’t ask and I don’t plan on asking. Would it make sense to ask her daughter and her coworkers? Of course, let’s make one thing clear. I have no intention of saving someone who is not in his right mind. However, if there is a way to bring Miro back to his senses in the future, I am asking him if he is someone worth resurrecting. “If more time passes, you will forget, so let’s talk about it before then.”
As I walked through the snowy field, I reflected on my experience in the hell of a maze.
See next episode