Our Hotel Is Open for Business as Usual Chapter 32

It was Lee Yeonwoo, a man who had played this game for twenty-six years. Even for someone like him, it was rare to see a human guest who remained so active after being kidnapped to the 23rd floor.

 

And it wasn’t an NPC, but a film director specializing in horror thrillers who had achieved this. 

 

“Usually, people try two of them at most.” 

 

“You’re saying there are people who actually tried two?” 

 

“There have been quite a few.”

 

It was inevitable, as they were NPCs with fixed behavioral patterns. 

 

From a developer’s perspective, it would be quite a shame if no one ever used a feature they had painstakingly created. The developer of this game had meticulously crafted every single route to match every possible variable. 

 

‘I guess that’s why I’m the only player left in this game.’  

 

People only stick around when the difficulty is reasonable. No matter how much the subject matter suits one’s taste, what use is it if you’re barred at the entrance? For Lee Yeonwoo, who had endured the long years alone, it was a bitter thought.

 

“What is certain is that your range of activity was remarkably wide, Director. Do you happen to remember the place where you first woke up? Of course, you don’t have to tell me if it makes you uncomfortable.” 

 

“It’s not that… Ah, some swimming pool? I woke up halfway draped over a pool with colorful structures, like a water park or a playground. The pool water here was shimmering; it was actually quite fascinating.” 

 

“The swimming pool.”

 

This was another point worthy of admiration.

 

“Did you happen to see an eye or something of the sort?” 

 

“Snow? Does it snow here too?” (t/n : 눈 can both means snow and eye. Depends on the context.) 

 

“No, I mean the visual organ of a living creature.”

 

When Lee Yeonwoo tapped the area around his own eye, only then did the Director nod as if recalling something.

 

“Oh, I saw it. A terrifyingly large eye. It was way down at the bottom.”

 

…She looked straight at that and still survived safely?

 

“….” 

 

“…Did I do something wrong?” 

 

“No. I was simply admiring your resilient mental strength, Director.” 

 

“Do you die if you look at it?” 

 

“You don’t die, but usually, one’s sanity cannot hold out.” 

 

“What about you, Yeonwoo-ssi…?” 

 

“If I didn’t have that level of resistance, I wouldn’t have been able to work as the manager of this hotel.” 

 

“I’m not so sure if that’s a good thing.” 

 

“That is a pity.” 

 

It seemed Director Lee Seonhae had been judged as a guest with incredibly strong mental fortitude. If she were a guest with low sanity stats, there would have been a high probability of her mind collapsing the moment she saw it.

 

‘Either she’s extremely lucky, or she has innate mental strength.’

 

Perhaps it was both.

 

‘Since there’s no interface, there’s no way to check a guest’s stats. This is truly inconvenient….’ 

 

Regardless, it was a miracle she was alive. If Lee Yeonwoo’s arrival had been even three minutes later, she would have lost her life.

 

“…First, let me briefly explain the current situation. You were kidnapped around 2 a.m. and brought here to the 23rd floor aqua park, Director.” 

 

It was certain, considering she was on the verge of death when discovered. The moment the two of them fell asleep, the kidnapping was carried out right at 2 o’clock. They truly were a reckless bunch of monster guests. 

 

“Since Writer Hong Gyeongyeon, who was with you, was quite panicked, the hotel took some measures. Currently, the Writer believes you were called away for an urgent matter and left for Seoul first.” 

 

“…?”

 

Director Lee Seonhae wore a suspicious expression.

 

“Brainwashing?” 

 

“It’s closer to hypnosis.” 

 

“Illegal?”

 

Lee Yeonwoo could not deny it. It wasn’t his major, but even a rough estimation made it clear it was illegal.

 

‘Article 155 of the Criminal Act for Destruction of Evidence, Article 136 for Obstruction of Performance of Official Duties, Article 324 for Coercion, Article 283 for Intimidation, Forced Hypnosis… Personal Information Protection Act… Mental Health Act….’

 

Accumulated criminal liabilities for the perpetrator—by any standard, this was a serious crime. At this level, a single lawyer wouldn’t suffice; even an entire law firm would find it a headache.

 

What more was there to say? Lee Yeonwoo admitted it readily without further thought.

 

“I have nothing to say for myself.” 

 

“Uh… No, I suppose it’s a hundred times better than him killing off his brain cells worrying about his pathetic senior.” 

 

“As I have said repeatedly, I am truly ashamed. Our hotel has caused a great trouble to your companion.” 

 

“No, that guy and I are the ones… We’re just unremarkable people….” 

 

“Then let us apologize to each other and move past it.” 

 

He spoke this way, but ultimately, it was something that happened within the system he managed. Now that such a mess had occurred, there was no point in arguing over ‘who is the perpetrator.’

 

Thus, his words of apology were sincere.

 

“….” 

 

“Are you alright?” 

 

“Ah, yes. I just feel like the conversation is clicking in a strange way….” 

 

“I see.” 

 

“Yes, well… I suppose so.”

 

The Director’s expression grew even more peculiar. Though he didn’t show it, Lee Yeonwoo felt similarly. It felt like being the owner of a dog that had caused trouble. Though, this was closer to a criminal incident than mere trouble.

 

‘To end up as a criminal like this, when it wasn’t even in my stars.’

 

If he were to be dragged away like this, he couldn’t even fathom how long his prison sentence would be. 

 

‘I’ll have to get new business cards made. My colleagues at the company would absolutely faint if they saw this.’

 

It seemed he would have much to talk about at the next company dinner….

 

“….” 

 

“….” 

 

“…So, I’m thinking it’s about time we head out.” 

 

“Ah, yes.” 

 

“Before we move, I will explain the upcoming situation to you in advance.” 

 

“I’m listening.”

 

There are several rescue methods. One is the Management Route, and the other is the Contract Route. Both are possible, but the most moderate way was the Management Route.

 

‘All the conditions are met. If the tutorial bug I attempted through Writer Hong has been successfully applied, the Management Route alone should be enough to resolve this.’

 

The problem was… there was a chance it wouldn’t work.

 

“….” 

 

“Yeonwoo-ssi?” 

 

“…My apologies, I had something to think about for a moment.” 

 

“Um… are your eyes and ears still like that?” 

 

“No, they’re fine now.” 

 

“I know that kind of thing doesn’t heal that quickly.” 

 

“There’s a method unique to this hotel, so it’s truly fine. Thanks to your waiting, I’ve finished organizing my thoughts. I’ll ask you a question then.” 

 

“Ah, yes.” 

 

“Would you be alright staying here alone?” 

 

“Ugh.”

 

Director Lee Seonhae looked revolted. Her face clearly showed she hated the idea.

 

“Usually, in horror movies, the person left alone like this is the one who dies.” 

 

“It’s slightly different. It would be better to think of it as a game rather than a movie. As long as you don’t break the rules or utilize them well, you won’t die.” 

 

“Do you have any intention of changing jobs? This hotel really doesn’t seem like a place for a human to live.” 

 

“That is not something that goes according to my will. But you don’t need to worry, the guest from Room 703 whom you verified will target me as a priority.” 

 

Wasn’t that why he had endured all those countless events until now? Lee Yeonwoo even felt a strange sense of accomplishment.

 

And then, he was refuted. 

 

“That makes me even more worried, though?” 

 

“That is a pity.” 

 

But what else could be done? This was the only method available right now.

 

“I cannot explain everything to you. The more confused you are, Director, the greater the hotel’s threat becomes. So, to tell you the precautions for the future even if only in fragments….” 

 

“….” 

 

“I would appreciate it if you didn’t get too startled even if I am suddenly stabbed with a knife or fall into the pool.” 

 

“….”

 

He could read the look in Director Lee Seonhae’s eyes. A face that said, ‘Is that supposed to make sense?’ Frankly, Lee Yeonwoo related to that. 

 

“That is a perfectly normal reaction. You are so healthy it’s almost embarrassing that I worried about your physical and mental state. Congratulations.” 

 

“…You’re talking as if… you’re the one who isn’t normal….” 

 

“I am not such an unreasonable person to make such a forced claim.”

 

He understood. If he were in Director Lee Seonhae’s shoes, he would have assumed there was a mental problem. In a way, he was asking her to condone murder.

 

‘But what can I do?’

 

Since I’ve decided to do it.

 

“….” 

 

“Will you grant me your understanding?”

 

It was a request, but at the same time, a notification.

 

Lee Yeonwoo had always been this way. If there was something he judged must be done, it must be done. He offered explanations and sought understanding if necessary. But there was nothing beyond that.

 

Because if he judged it to be right, and there was no issue with it, then it was something that had to be done.

 

“….” 

 

“…The explanation….” 

 

“Yes.” 

 

“The explanation, just a bit more… so I can at least… pretend to be convinced by something….” 

 

“Yes, I understand your request, Director.” 

 

“Did you really?” 

 

“Of course.”

 

* * *

 

【WET ENTITY RESCUE ROUTES】

 

■ Rescue Method 1

: Return Home Route 

 

* Condition 1: Maintain a continuous selection of ‘Return Home Measures’ until checkout 

* Condition 2: Control the target guest so their path does not overlap with the hotel’s ‘Wet Man.’

 

■ Rescue Method 2

: Proceed via Management Route

 

* Condition 1: Enter the 23rd floor within 11 hours after kidnapping.

* Condition 2: Secure the rescue target within the aqua park (※Location verification required) 

* Condition 3: Statement directed at ‘The Wet Man’: “You are not my guest.” (※ Consumes 1 Nightmare resource).

* Condition 4: Tutorial completion required (※ Verified that bug application is possible).

* Condition 5: ‘The Wet Man’ in a non-agitated state.

 

■ Rescue Method 3

: Proceed via Contract Route

 

※ This is a rescue contract, not a general contract, and requires additional conditions. 

※ Exceptionally, a Water-Bound Monster contract is possible.

 

* Condition 1: Perform self-harm events 2 or more times.

* Condition 2: Select structural utterances 2 or more times.

* Condition 3: Enter the 23rd floor aqua park within 12 hours 

* Condition 4: Death in the main pool (※ Regardless of cause, must be submerged in water).

* Condition 5: ‘The Wet Man’ in a non-agitated state.

 

* * *

 

“….”

 

This guy is a truly dangerous kid. 

 

‘In so many different ways.’

 

After hearing the rough explanation, Lee Seonhae’s mind went blank.

 

“…So.”

 

The Director struggled to pull herself together. It was true she wanted to get out of this hotel quickly, but there was something she had to check first.

 

“For now, Yeonwoo-ssi is going to step forward and try to persuade the guest from Room 703 with a few materials.” 

 

“Yes.” 

 

“And if that doesn’t work, you’re saying you’ll die halfway because you need to appease his mood? Like giving travel money to a water ghost? By using yourself?” 

 

“Yes, that is the most effective method. Since he is a water ghost.”

 

Lee Yeonwoo’s voice was nonchalant. He was polite and kind, but showed no emotional fluctuation. It was a dry and precise tone, like an announcer delivering tomorrow’s weather forecast.

 

“‘The Wet Man’ desires that. He is a very lonely guest.” 

 

“That’s not what I was asking, no. Have you lost your mind?” 

 

“I cannot assert that I am perfectly sane, but I pride myself on this being the most rational judgment I can make in the current situation.” 

 

“If it’s rational, how can you say such a….” 

 

“….”

 

Lee Yeonwoo tilted his head. Then, he added quietly and smoothly.

 

“I appreciate your concern for me, but you don’t need to agonize so deeply.” 

 

“This isn’t something that just goes away because you say that.” 

 

“My death and pain do not possess as much value as yours, Director Lee Seonhae.”

 

Ah, wait a minute.

 

“….”

 

What is he saying right now?

 

“…What did you say?” 

 

“The weights are different.”

 

It didn’t even take a second to realize how strange those words were. But what was more absurd than that bizarre statement was his attitude, and the complexion with which he uttered those words.

 

How should she put it? Right, a face as neat as a wax doll.

 

‘What? He wasn’t like this.’

 

He was definitely the Yeonwoo-ssi she knew?

 

But looking at that face, she lost her confidence. The concern, fatigue, and worry he had shown until he rescued her all felt like lies.

 

Was even that human concern for her a meaningless performance? She threw out a question.

 

“…Do you weigh lives?” 

 

“Do you believe the weight of a murderer and a volunteer are the same?” 

 

“Are you perhaps a murderer?” 

 

“My apologies. That was an inappropriate analogy.”

 

However, he was still being considerate of Lee Seonhae. She felt it in his eyes as they hesitated, if only briefly. His attitude, worried about offending her, was proof.

 

And yet, he went ahead and said it.

 

“Do you believe the lives of a human and a machine are the same?” 

 

“….”

 

Only then did Lee Seonhae realize.

 

‘This person right now….’

 

Lee Yeonwoo did not consider himself a ‘living being.’

 

A sense of déjà vu pricked her brain. The parts she had just brushed past came to mind. Perhaps Lee Yeonwoo thought of himself as an expendable item. Like a toy block where it was only natural for a hole to be made when a flower was inserted. 

 

A chilling sense of incongruity crawled up her spine.

 

‘No way.’

 

You?

 

‘You, who showed me that marvelous sight?’

 

She realized. That abnormal, nonsensical stubbornness and rudeness were all directed at Lee Yeonwoo himself. It was an indifference stemming from not defining himself as a living creature.

 

It was even absurd that he was struggling to avoid saying it rudely.

 

“…What on earth does that….” 

 

Lee Seonhae had to refute it. 

 

She didn’t know why she thought that, but she just… just felt she had to. And so she recalled it. That moment when the blood was restored into a person.

 

“No, listen. Yeonwoo-ssi.”

 

There was no way that wasn’t painful.

 

“You’re a person.” 

 

“That is correct.” 

 

“It hurts, right?”

 

Lee Seonhae was flustered herself. She couldn’t understand why she was speaking so pressingly in such an urgent situation. Wasn’t this a situation where they shouldn’t be having this kind of debate?

 

‘Anyway, he said he’d save me.’

 

But she couldn’t help it.

 

“So….”

 

The muscles around her mouth were stiff, unable to even force a smile.

 

‘Is there a reason for me to be this confused?’

 

Lee Yeonwoo is a special being. Unique to this hotel, perhaps to the world. Not only is he a person of character, but he might be something more than a human. Lee Seonhae was already overwhelmed by that fact.

 

‘He’s someone I haven’t even known for that long. Failing to rescue a kid caught in danger is definitely something to blame oneself for, but still… was it something to be this flustered about?’

 

But she found it hard to just let it go.

 

“Then why.”

 

 “Director.”

 

She tried to say something, but Lee Yeonwoo’s words were faster.

 

“I am restored whenever the conditions are met. As you’ve seen for yourself, the wearing down of my body is merely a temporary phenomenon.” 

 

“…Are you really saying that as an excuse?” 

 

“On the other hand, aren’t you a ‘human’ who is vulnerable to pain, Director?”

 

“Wow, are you bragging right now that such a thing is nothing to you?” 

 

“Of course not. But it is clear that if you die or are injured, Director, a restoration through a method as unfriendly as mine would be difficult.” 

 

“And so?”

 

Lee Yeonwoo smiled neatly.

 

“That is why you are precious.” 

 

“….” 

 

“If it’s a checkmate where one of the two must be harmed, isn’t it rational for the side with less value to step forward? That is common sense.” 

 

“…Just who made that common sense?” 

 

“Isn’t it a simple calculation that even a child could do?”

 

Lee Yeonwoo said so and laughed. Listening to what he said, it was as if Lee Yeonwoo were a being who understood the world only through figures and functions.

 

While he didn’t treat Lee Seonhae that way.

 

Precisely, only himself. 

 

“Since you seem to be so concerned, I will only die halfway.” 

 

“….” 

 

“Would this serve as a compromise?” 

 

“…No.”

 

…Did I just hear a suicide notice or something. 

 

She didn’t even have the energy to answer. It felt like the thought circuits in her head had stopped entirely. Surely, in his own way, it was a comfort offered to reassure her.

 

But she felt an irrational fear at that sense of alienness.

 

‘Why is he so nonchalant?’

 

How can he talk about himself dying like that as if it were nothing?

 

‘How old is he even? To say this kind of… nonsense… in front of an adult….’

 

She couldn’t understand it.

 

“….”

 

Her strength left her.

 

“…What is ‘dying halfway’? You die even if you’re shot gently.” 

 

“That is an interesting expression.” 

 

“….” 

 

“As expected of Director Lee Seonhae.” 

 

“Ah….”

 

Lee Seonhae finally hung her head.

 

Usually, humans converse on the premise that their words will be understood. But now, this person says he will use death as a tool of conversation. It was an abnormal way of thinking.

 

“…Seriously….”

 

She wanted to faint, sincerely.

 

* * *

 

“…Seriously….” 

 

“….”

 

A negative reaction, even at a glance.

 

“….”

 

Hmm.

 

‘What could have been the problem?’ 

 

Though he didn’t realize it himself, Lee Yeonwoo, whose social intuition had been eroded by successive overwork, was lost in his own thoughts.

 

‘She seems to be in a bad mood, but which part of my explanation was offensive?’ 

 

Could the analogy have been too direct? 

 

‘Since it’s my first time responding to a human guest in an event situation, it seems my service was lacking.’

 

If he had taken a proper rest, Lee Yeonwoo would have realized his mistake. He had that much social awareness. But in his current state, he was too tired to even think that far.

 

He never imagined that his words would sound like ‘I’ll die instead of you’ until the very end.

 

‘Once I return her home safely, her mood will probably improve a bit.’ 

 

Thus, he came to stand before ‘The Wet Man.’