Welcome to Dungeon Hotel Chapter 254

248. I’ll be back

 

“Then…” 

 

As we headed up to the lounge, Han Woohyun cautiously opened his mouth. 

 

I turned around immediately and looked up at him. 

 

“That’s right.” 

 

Seeing the expression on his face as if to say, “I haven’t said anything yet,” I bit my lip tightly. 

 

“That’s right. We’re getting back together.” 

 

“….” 

 

Seeing his earlobes turn red at my words, I couldn’t help but feel dumbfounded.

 

This was the fifth time he asked if we were dating again, but how could his reaction be the same to the same answer?

 

He’s really something else. 

 

I placed my hand on Han Woohyun’s chest and spoke softly. 

 

“So calm down now.”
 

“….” 

 

“Calm down.” 

 

As if calming a wild horse. 

 

If we went back into the banquet hall in this state, it was obvious that the baby Junghyo fans would catch on immediately. 

 

Of course, I have to say we’re getting back together, but I can’t predict how they’ll react.

 

Recently, Uncle Minhyuk has been unusually favorable toward Han Woohyun, but for some reason, Aunt Misoon seems to be more cautious of him. 

 

If Aunt Misoon, who is even more emotional than Uncle Minhyuk, were to explode at the banquet hall, it would only be a matter of time before not just the hotel guests, but the entire Korean Peninsula would be buzzing with our scandal.  

 

‘It’s dangerous.’

 

Lost in those thoughts, I completely forgot that my hand was still resting on Han Woohyun’s chest. 

 

Until his breathing started to grow a little heavier. 

 

“…I can’t calm down if you keep doing this.”

 

“….!” 

 

I flinched and pulled my hand away when I saw the mind communication window appearing above Han Woohyun’s head. 

 

‘VIP guest’ is… 

 

I couldn’t bring myself to look at Han Woohyun’s face properly, so I lowered my gaze. 

 

“I should’ve turned off the mind communication window, but I couldn’t since we’re inside the hotel.” 

 

“It doesn’t matter to me.”

 

“It doesn’t matter to you.”

 

I glared at Han Woohyun, filled with anger. 

 

Han Woohyun laughed out loud and grabbed my hand. 

 

“This is my workplace.” 

 

“That’s why. That’s why I’m here.” 

 

If it weren’t for work, what would you have wanted to do? 

 

People really… 

 

‘You’re making me think bad thoughts.’

 

I thought that as I locked hands with Han Woohyun. I felt the ring on his finger. 

 

Memories of the evening.

 

‘There are no memories stored in this yet.’

 

‘….’

 

‘Let’s make them together from now on.’

 

‘….’

 

‘Memories I want to cherish forever.’ 

 

I laughed while chewing on Han Woohyun’s words. Han Woohyun laughed reflexively when he saw me laughing.

 

His smile was powerful enough to make my heart flutter, but— 

 

“Still, we can’t meet separately at night, guest.” 

 

“….”

 

Some things just aren’t allowed. 

 

* * *

 

Lee Semyung was wandering around the lounge looking for his daughter who had suddenly disappeared 

 

“…I never said anything about meeting separately at night.” 

 

“I have skills.” 

 

And that’s where he ended up seeing something he shouldn’t have.  

 

The moment his steps abruptly halted, he quickly hid his body under the nearby concierge desk, as the two people had started walking in his direction. 

 

‘Why am I hiding…?’

 

He didn’t know why, but his body had already hidden, and he only looked at Junghyo’s profile, who was smiling with her head sticking out. 

 

The moment he saw that face, a strange feeling stirred in his heart. 

 

‘Someone said they saw me walking with you. That person told me so.’

 

It reminded him of something he’d heard a long time ago.

 

‘They said my face looked really nice.’

 

The person from his memories, whose eyes resemble Junghyo’s, and who had been like a gift to him.  

 

‘You are that kind of person to me. The one who makes me shine when we’re together.’

 

Back then, he didn’t understand what those words meant, but now, seeing Junghyo’s face, he felt like he understood what they truly meant.

 

That’s why he felt proud, and a little pain in his heart. 

 

Surely, the Junghyo in his memories was just a young child from the photo that Junsoo had brought today. 

 

It should have been heartbreaking for her, not having her father by her side because he had become a hunter, yet she was a young child who simply liked that her father was doing something so cool. 

 

A precious child who considered him her hero.

 

‘I’ll definitely come back.’

 

Was the problem that he had kept the promise he made to that child far too late? 

 

Lee Semyung felt a deep sense of pride welling up in his heart while feeling an unresolved regret.

 

Watching the countless people in the banquet hall feel happiness, joy, and comfort because of Junghyo, he realized. 

 

What kind of hunter could save this world without having to catch monsters?

 

Junghyo was accomplishing something he could never have imagined. 

 

That’s why, that’s why it was even more so. 

 

‘I’m glad that you, too, can find comfort in someone.’

 

That’s all.

 

Lee Semyung lifted his head after confirming that Han Woohyun and Junghyo, who had been in the lounge, had returned to the banquet hall.    

 

He stood in the empty lounge, listening to the sound of carols drifting up from the floor below. 

 

It seemed that the last song was still playing.

 

He clenched his fists for a moment and then unclenched them.

 

‘Let’s go back.’

 

Back to the place where Junghyo and his friends were. 

 

His vacation ended today, and from tomorrow, he will work hard again as a doorman at the hotel.

 

With Junghyo.

 

The moment he pressed the elevator button with that thought in mind. 

 

He flinched and turned around.

 

“….?”

 

He heard the sound of the revolving door, which had been still, starting to turn. 

 

Woong— woong—.

 

He frowned as he watched the revolving door spinning faster than usual. 

 

Who could it be on this Christmas… 

 

Could it be a Hunter guest who got lost in a dungeon? 

 

When he turned his body completely, the revolving door stopped.

 

“….!”

 

And the one who came in was a familiar face.

 

—It’s been a while. My slave.

 

Clink, clink—.

 

The hotel’s chandelier flickered along with the familiar voice of the queen. 

 

* * * 

 

“Spending White Christmas alone—” 

 

Clink, clink—.

 

The lights in the banquet hall flickered simultaneously. 

 

The voices of the other members of M5 who had been singing also briefly cut off and returned.

 

The members of M5, with their extensive stage experience, skillfully handled the sound malfunction and smiled lightly. 

 

The members of M5, who had a lot of stage experience, smiled, skillfully dealing with the sound problem. 

 

In the situation where everyone found that scene cute and it caused a commotion, only Junghyo was the one who was flustered. 

 

System

 

W, was it you just now?

 

Junghyo, having read Alex’s message, simply stared into the air, her eyes as calm and unaffected as always.  

 

Final Stage 3.

 

—Final Quest: ‘Let’s Prevent the Corruption of the Human World’

 

—The corrupted human king has kidnapped the heroes of the human world and is using them to corrupt the human world again. Let’s rescue the heroes of the human world and prevent its corruption. 

 

—Completion Reward: The Power to Protect the World x9 

 

Demon King

 

It seemed like the Christmas part just ended.

 

‘Damn it…’

 

The ‘heroes of the human world’ mentioned in the quest refers to her Dad. 

 

As soon as Junghyo received the quest, she searched with her eyes for the spot where her Dad had been. 

 

Only the seat where Dad had been sitting was empty at the table. 

 

The baby Junghyo fan club members said that as soon as Junghyo left, her Dad immediately followed her out.  

 

“Didn’t you see him?”

 

Junghyo simply smiled at Hwang Misoon’s flustered face.

 

The Corrupted Human King

 

Thank you.

 

What is it that you are thankful for? 

 

Suddenly, as if urging me to enjoy Christmas Eve, everything that had been still began to move again. 

 

The Demon King, and even the corrupted human king, were making noises that no one could understand, but her Dad was nowhere to be found.  

 

When she arrived at the lounge, she saw the slowly turning revolving door and Toto standing right in front of the concierge desk next to it. 

 

Toto’s usually white face was even whiter.

 

What Toto was holding was Dad’s tie pin.

 

“The hotel was a bit strange just now. I thought a guest had appeared, so I came up right away, but to find this at the door desk… I’ll go notify the general manager immediately—” 

 

There was blood on the tie pin.

 

It was only then that it hit her.

 

‘Dad… was really kidnapped.’

 

Junghyo glared at the message window with the Demon King. 

 

* * *

 

Demon King

 

Wouldn’t it be better to go quickly?

 

That would increase Lee Semyung’s chances of survival.

 

The Demon King’s threat actually cleared my mind. 

 

I barely managed to hold on to my senses that were about to go out.

 

Judging from the fact that Merlin Grey didn’t say anything, it seemed like the Demon King had taken action. 

 

It was only natural, considering they dared to let an uninvited guest into my hotel. 

 

But they didn’t kill or harm Dad.

 

Since the quest says to save the hero. 

 

If he could have killed my dad, destroyed the hotel, and killed me right away, he would have done it. 

 

In this situation, the only question that remains is—

 

Demon King

 

Why?

 

Is my heart a little soft because it’s Christmas?

 

Not me.

 

Why on earth did this brat suddenly turn dark? 

 

Demon King

 

It became clearer when I saw humans crying and screaming because they were touched.

 

The true nature of humans only appears in times of crisis.

 

Hotel Owner

 

Another sophistry. 

 

Demon King

 

What?

 

I…don’t care about your reasons. 

 

Hotel Owner 

 

Okay. Let’s do it.

 

Any quest—

 

It’s worth a try.

 

I also have one insurance policy in place. 

 

I opened a completely new type of message window, different from both the original reservation window and the one where I had been talking to these reptilian creatures.

 

That was—

 

A message window with the System was formed.

 

It was a message window in the same 2D arcade game style as the system window that Alex had created and used inside our hotel.

 

After realizing that Alex could communicate with me through the system, I had made a request to her. 

 

‘Would it be possible for employees to log in as an administrator to make suggestions to the System?’

 

‘…Oh, maybe that’ll work out?’ 

 

It was to create a message window function between the ‘Admin’ and the ‘System’ as it is now.

 

And I discovered one amazing benefit of that message window function, which was— 

 

Admin

 

Demon King, shithead, idiot, moron.

 

System 

 

What are you doing?

 

Admin

 

It seems the Demon King has no response? 

 

System

 

?

 

Admin

 

If we do this, it seems like the Demon King can’t see us.

 

System

 

!

 

Admin

 

As expected.

 

It was something the Demon King could never invade. 

 

I had thought that it might be possible to some extent. 

 

Since I already knew that the one-on-one chat window with Merlin Grey was not subject to the Demon King’s interference, I had taken a hint from there. 

 

I hypothesized that the systems created by each dragon might not interfere with each other, and I conducted an experiment to test it. 

 

And I succeeded in proving my hypothesis.  

 

But there was one more issue. For the conversation window with Alex to function meaningfully, it needed to remain operational even while I was performing the quest.

 

To be exact— 

 

Admin

 

Then let’s try ‘that’ now.

 

System

 

What are you going to do?

 

Admin

 

An experiment. Can this chat window work in other worlds? 

 

System

 

Ugh, already?

 

 

It needed to run in other worlds as well. 

 

I placed the tie clip into my pocket and stared at the slowly rotating revolving door. 

 

I can’t know what kind of trap the Demon King has prepared out there, but as the Demon King said, there’s no time right now.

 

I smiled at Toto.

 

And then I said it.

 

“I’ll be back.”

 

I’ll be back.

 

Those words Dad said to me.

 

Words definitely have power.

 

And those words Dad said were kept in the end.

 

I put my body into the revolving door before Toto could ask anything.

 

When I got out of the revolving door, a world with thick fog waiting for me where I couldn’t see even an inch ahead of me was waiting.

 

“….?”

 

As I stood frozen for a moment in confusion, I saw a stone wall with tiled roofs in the air filled with a stifling, smoky scent. 

 

‘I thought it was England again because it was the world of the corrupted human king, but is it a place like a goblin village?’ 

 

As I was thinking that, something clattering in the mist caught my eye. 

 

I approached carefully and saw something like this attached to the end of a broken stick. 

 

[30m from Deoksugung Ticket Office] 

 

…Is this Seoul? 

 

The confusion didn’t last long.

 

“Kkaaaaaaah!”

 

A terrible scream rang in my ears as something began to move in the fog.