Escaping the Mystery Hotel - Chapter 393
Only Krnovel
EP.393 Episode 393 – A Midsummer Night’s Dream (9)
Episode 393 – A Midsummer Night’s Dream (9)
[4th letter: Hanga (Ji)
〿자 : 2〿〿day 〿
Current location: —
Current situation: 〿]
– Han Ga-in
After falling back to reality, I wondered how I could get back.
What should I do after I find my real body?
The first floor of the hotel would be in the sky?
When I thought about it this way, the situation became simpler.
Because now that I haven’t gotten my wing boots, the only way for my real body to fly is by descent.
I was a little apprehensive about whether I could use the 3rd descent, but the hotel informed me through a weather leak that ‘it was okay to use it’.
and….
A vague, yet unshakable certainty.
It doesn’t matter if you use ‘now’.
‘Now’ there is no need to think about the future.
This confidence helped me make my decision.
[Descent: 1 -> 0]
*
A wave of light descended from the sky.
Even though this is already the third moment of descent, the pain felt as the shell breaks remains the same.
What you couldn’t see, what you couldn’t hear.
This is because a flood of information beyond human perception has poured into the brain like a tidal wave.
An endless surge of strength surged through my entire body.
It felt like I had turned into a living volcano.
The suffering was not eternal, as the blessing of this infinite power extended to my entire body and soul.
When I opened my eyes, the surroundings were already in chaos, engulfed in a torrent of surging power.
Not only Ichthus, but also the believers who followed him nearby were either blown away or spread out on the ground.
Maybe some of them are already dead.
And there before me stood Apollyon, the arrogant one who dared to call himself a god.
What the hell are you?
There was something I really wanted to say to Apollyon over the past few days.
I think I can do it now.
“I never thought I would say something like that.”
What do you mean?
“Hey, let me get this straight. What kind of god are you?”
Apollyon’s eyes turned menacing.
Even so, I have to say what I have to say.
“These days, what kind of dog or cow is a god?”
Soon, an unprecedented force surged from the crimson demon’s body, and the entire surrounding land began to shake.
Suddenly, I remembered the moment I first met Apollyon a few days ago under Ichthus’ guidance.
What was I thinking at that time?
I was just purely curious.
How much power would a chaotic entity that claims to be a god in reality have?
It was disappointing.
This is because I felt almost no sense of intimidation even though I faced the pure body of Pero without the protection of the status window.
I already saw at the hotel what it takes to call yourself a ‘god’ in this universe.
The prisoners were like a living sun.
With a flick of the chin, you can toy with the laws of the universe, and with a wave of the hand, you can create new life.
An entity where the destruction of all things and the rebirth of all things are condensed into a single point!
It is difficult for lowly beings to even stand still in front of them.
Not because they have any ill intentions, but because they are just so huge.
Just as a person turns to ashes when he goes near the sun, it is not because the sun is malicious.
Shouldn’t this be considered divine?
Compared to that, Apollyon is like the moon if you ‘hit it well’?
Although the moon may appear incredibly large to humans, the difference in mass between the sun and the moon is more than 26 million times.
At that moment, the devil rushed at me with a black aura like tar covering his entire body.
Apollyon attacked once.
He pulled out the red devil’s right horn, ripped off the twitching skin on its left shoulder, and lightly kicked it.
The opponent shuddered, then this time he emitted a flash of light from his horn.
After dodging by slightly bending his movements, he then punched a large hole in Apollyon’s stomach.
After just two rounds of attack and defense, the winner was clearly determined.
What kind of god were we discussing at this level in the first place?
“Do you see now how ridiculous it was for you to call yourself a god?”
Why on earth are you attacking me? I have only helped you recover, I have never harmed you.
“You helped me recover? That’s true. Since you helped me, we can be considered friends. Right?”
Yes, we are friends. I will treat you as my older brother, so –
“There’s a saying. Between friends, there’s no such thing as yours or mine.”
what?
“Since it’s a natural relationship to help each other, there’s no need for me to repay you for helping me.”
This crazy kid is talking nonsense –
Before Apollyon could finish speaking, a wave of light extended from my hand and struck his body.
— Gulp!
The red devil’s giant body crashed into the ground, sending out a massive shockwave in all directions.
Most of the believers who remained nearby would have died at this point.
Suddenly, I didn’t care about the death of a devil worshipper.
“You know there’s no debt between friends? And put your hand on your heart – there’s no hand. Put your tentacles on it and think. What kind of god are you? Do you think god is something that Nike sells?”
— Graaaat!
Apollyon let out a strange cry, and this time, instead of rushing towards me, he started flying in the opposite direction.
Running away and killing time?
It was a pretty good tactic considering there was a time limit on the descent, but there was one problem.
He’s too weak and slow to execute that tactic.
The moment I kicked the ground and jumped up, a loud noise like a bomb exploding erupted from the ground.
At the same time, the atmosphere that filled the Earth impeded my movements like a viscous liquid.
What an inconvenient planet.
Suddenly Apollyon stopped running and turned towards me, and when I saw his position, I could tell his intentions.
He looked at me with his back turned to Incheon, a large city with a population of 3 million.
Apollyon is too weak to be a god, but he is clearly outside the mortal mold.
Any attack that could destroy him would certainly cause significant damage to the city.
“Is this your plan?”
I want to negotiate. I have no intention of disturbing you, nor of remaining on this planet. I will leave quietly –
“No, that’s okay. You seem to think I’m a real angel.”
It made me laugh.
Of course, anyone who sees me now can tell that I look like an angel sent from God.
So, that devil probably thought that the angel wouldn’t harm civilians.
“I will send you off with 100,000 people so that you won’t be lonely on your way. Goodbye, ‘friend.’”
The heavenly waves touched my fingertips.
This power is an attack that even the ‘unborn’, who were the fluid of the gods, could not handle lightly.
A self-proclaimed god who can climb up onto that Nike stand can’t handle it.
A gloom settled over Apollyon’s face as he realized his inevitable doom.
And at that moment, when my hand is about to pass a severe judgment on 100,000 humans and 1 demon –
I felt the crack for the first time.
You shouldn’t do this.
In episode 102, they even blew up a city?
That place is not reality, but here is reality.
No. I regard this place as nothing less than a room of curses.
It may not be my reality, but it is my colleagues’ reality.
What logic is there in that meaningless distinction?
A strange question and answer.
I ask myself, and I answer myself.
Who asks and who answers?
Is this a question and answer session, or a dialogue between a split self?
It was confusing.
But I found that there definitely were questions and answers.
and….
Another logic emerged.
The military of the management came nearby.
You told me not to send troops for three days, did you break your promise?
No. When I made the exact terms of the promise, I told Apollyon not to interfere with my search for my body.
Well then, it’s not a breach of promise since you didn’t intervene until I got my body back.
There are troops from the Administration nearby. If you massacre Incheon citizens in front of them, you will have to fight the Administration as well.
Since we’ve already used quite a bit of force on Apollyon, it wouldn’t be wise to increase our enemy too hastily.
Remember that our father was also wary of the Administration.
Therefore, to look down on the administration is not confidence, but foolishness.
This logic was able to convince both of us.
The moment I realized the existence of the crack, I knew that ‘I’ had awakened.
I am me. Then wasn’t I me just a moment ago?
What the heck is this –
Can I leave?
Apollyon’s voice stopped the chaos in my mind.
The thoughts up to now have lasted less than a second.
It’s a short time for humans, but it’s quite a long time for me and the demon realm.
When I remained silent and did not attack, Apollyon seemed to take it as a sign that he would spare his life.
“…”
Apollyon quickly began to run away as if he was relieved.
and….
A celestial wave aimed with the utmost precision struck the demon.
Apollyon was ruined.
*
The moment the Red Devil’s form crumbled, the aftereffects of its power spread towards Incheon.
If things continue as they are, it may not be as bad as the 100,000 casualties we had earlier, but thousands of casualties are unavoidable.
Fortunately, that didn’t happen as I predicted.
This is because an opaque barrier made up of several hexagonal panels covered the sky over Incheon as the management forces manipulated an unidentified device.
As we experienced in Rooms 201 and 202, the Bureau’s technology was truly magical.
Perhaps the line between magic and technology is truly meaningless to those of higher rank.
A helicopter flew in from the management office.
Judging by the lack of missiles or machine guns, it seemed that they had no intention of attacking.
… Maybe Manager Park, whom I met a while ago, is inside there.
He was quite cunning and a gifted talker, and it seemed easy to fall into traps while talking to him.
Since all the work on the ground was done, I didn’t want to deal with any hassle.
So I ignored it and flew up into the sky.
Now it’s time to go back to the hotel.
…
I thought about the crack I first noticed.
I remember the moment when I was talking to myself.
I felt a presence that was clearly distinct, although it was clearly not someone else.
He and I were like two trees that grew from the same root but split in two.
He was a revelation.
As my thoughts reached this point, I felt eyes watching me.
I saw a revelation.
Revelation saw me.
Should I fight?
Should I subdue that being now and regain the purity of my mind?
At that moment, Revelation raised his hand and stopped me.
Now is not the time.
The moment I heard those words, I knew that I was now caught up in the hotel’s strange prank.
Or maybe it was like I knew it from the beginning.
Dreams and reality were strangely mixed.
I’m not saying that everything I’ve experienced so far has been an illusion.
What happened today will surely be recorded forever in the history of the stars.
But one thing is certain.
When the hotel event ends, everything that happened to me is reset.
There’s no point in deciding the outcome now.
Be patient. The time will come soon anyway.
I will reclaim my purity from you.
What a truly pitiful thought. Take good care of your body.
… it was an unpleasant conversation.
*
The sky over Incheon has once again regained its peace.
But the chaos on the ground still did not go away.
“Sir, I can’t observe him anymore!”
According to reports received by Park Hyun-min, the ‘angel’ that flew into the sky suddenly disappeared.
Even sophisticated satellites that can distinguish human facial expressions missed the angel’s traces.
It’s a given.
Because the hotel is a place that cannot be accessed or observed by unauthorized persons.
If this were possible, the management would have crammed 1,000 people into the hotel.
“I told them to stop chasing me. It’s a waste of time.”
“All right.”
The strength of the participants was beyond imagination.
I don’t know what he thinks, but to Park Hyun-min, saying that such a being is human is similar to saying that a chicken and a T-Rex are the same dinosaur.
They were no different from the crazy gods of Olympus from Greek mythology.
“I’m worried.”
“Manager?”
I thought back to my conversation with him again.
‘This is not my world.’
This statement implies the belief that there is a ‘world of one’s own’ somewhere.
As far as the administration knows, there is no such thing.
The mad god of Olympus did not realize the truth of the world until the very end.
It’s not that he lacked ability.
There is a time to recognize the truth, and now is not that time.
Thanks to that, he went back to the hotel without any hesitation to find his hometown that didn’t even exist.
…what will the author do when he finds out the truth one day?
This worry made Park Hyun-min afraid.
“Sir, the temporary file has just been uploaded!”
“‘Starlight Angel’
Serial Number: C-003
Risk Rating: Not Measurable
An unidentified entity that appeared in the sky over Incheon.
It has the form of an angel and destroyed the Class A entity Apollyon.
Management Procedure: Contain
Since it is unclear whether it is hostile to humans, it is necessary to observe it rather than approach it rashly.
+ Keep in mind that this is a temporary file, so there is a lot of uncertain information!」
“…”
“Since we haven’t found out much, the information is lacking.”
“Go back.”