Welcome to Dungeon Hotel Chapter 286

280. [Spirit Shop (NEW!)]

 

“Instead, I pay with Market Gold.”

 

I said with a light laugh.

 

Ah, right. Thinking that far made me feel a bit puzzled.

 

“If only the newly contracted spirits are getting paid, what about the ones who were already here? Are these coins even really going to the spirits in the first place?”

 

“Mhm, that’s right. But spirits probably don’t really want to spend coins. What they love is the hotel itself.”

 

Merlin answered with his lips still pouting as if he was upset.

 

Merlin was wrong.

 

Of course, the spirits like hotels and their guests ‘the most’, but they also like other things.

 

Geumdong is proof of that.

 

Geumdong loved sweet, soft treats like sweet potatoes, and absolutely adored steak grilled with a generous amount of mayonnaise.

 

Thanks to that, he had a hard time losing weight all winter, but he looked quite cute as a happy pig puppy.

 

So—

 

“Please open the spirit shop.”

 

“Mhm?”

 

“I’m planning to start paying a salary to every spirit in this hotel, so please open a spirit shop where they can actually spend it.”

 

“Why are you saying that while looking at me…?”

 

Alex, who heard me, pointed at himself with a puzzled face.

 

That’s right. I had made the request to Alex, who was sitting proudly near Merlin, playing with the Samsaek cat.

 

The reason is simple.

 

As I grow stronger, the power of the hotel grows stronger, and as the hotel’s power grows, my own strength increases as well.

 

Since I’ve become the owner of a 5-star hotel, if I grant some of this powerful strength to Alex like last time, opening a spirit shop will be a piece of cake for him.

 

‘Besides, if Alex decides to do it, Merlin will help him too…’

 

Really. 

 

It feels like I have a useful developer and UI designer under my wing.

 

I walked closer to the scared Alex and smiled softly.

 

“Alex, with the recent upgrade to our hotel, two executive rooms have been added just below the penthouse.”

 

“Executive rooms…?”

 

Alex’s eyes widened.

 

“The view of the sea is amazing, the beds will be top-quality, and I plan to provide the best room service as well.”

 

“T, to me?”

 

I shook my head slightly.

 

“For guests staying in the executive room.”

 

Alex’s eyes suddenly filled with disappointment.

 

“That’s going to be incredibly hard to reserve, right?”

 

“That’s right. If we open the reservations, they’ll be booked immediately.”

 

“So, what about me…?!”

 

“Alex… uhm… since you’ve helped me before—”

 

Alex’s eyes sparkled as he looked up at me.

 

This is Alex’s weakness.

 

He likes Yeongchun Hotel.

 

I said with a grin.

 

“If you help me once more, I’ll let you stay once a month for free.”

 

“…Okay!”

 

Scales began to sprout along the back of Alex’s neck.

 

Those scales seemed to appear whether he was too happy, uneasy, or even sad.

 

Even when Merlin Grey walked into the Yeongchun Hotel and reunited with the two, scales appeared on both of their bodies.

 

And now, even as Merlin Grey sighed and slapped his forehead, scales appeared on his skin.

 

“Oh my, daughter…”

 

“Dad! Do this for me!”

 

“Didn’t you go on a trip because you didn’t want to stay at a hotel?”

 

“Why are you saying that here? Just do it!”

 

Spirit Shop (NEW!)

 

Soon after, Alex completely gave in to my proposal and opened the Spirit Shop in front of all the spirits.

 

“You really don’t have to go this far for us. Just becoming stronger together through the hotel is more than enough for us.”

 

Toto waved her hand in embarrassment.

 

But I shook my head.

 

“No, it’s because of our staff that the hotel has grown this much. I believe they deserve fair wages. I’ve converted the amount each of you has worked for into coins and deposited it into your shop accounts. Make sure to use it well.”

 

“But…!”

 

“If you don’t want to spend it on personal items, you can use it to buy things that make your work easier—like scrubbers or aprons.”

 

I said firmly to prevent myself from being rejected any longer.

 

Yeah. It’s fortunate that I spoke so firmly—

 

* * *

 

‘If not, I would have been in big trouble.’

 

Junghyo thought so as she gazed at the fluffy stuffed animals placed in front of the concierge desk.

 

The fluffy stuffed animal was a drowsy-looking rabbit, located at the end of the spirit shop. It seemed that she had discovered it and spent all her coins to purchase it.

 

“I don’t need a stuffed animal, but I’ll give it to the child guests when they come!”

 

Toto said, awkwardly pushing up her glasses.

 

After the spirit shop opened, the spirits each bought what they wanted.

 

Merlin said he didn’t know the spirits had this much materialism.

 

First, Geumdong secretly stuffed a bunch of sweet winter snacks into the storage room and began eating them. The burly, muscular rabbit housekeeper bought an apron adorned with lots of flowers, and Samsaek purchased a soft shawl.

 

And—

 

He doesn’t wear them.

 

I couldn’t understand why they bought those things, but since they used their own salary to purchase them, there was nothing I could say about it.

 

“What’s the problem with the cat spirit? Merlin doesn’t really explain the reason…”

 

Junghyo sat in the café at Yeongchun Hotel, tilting her head as she watched Samsaek, who had climbed up onto an old-fashioned streetlamp in the café garden on the first floor.

 

Then, Han Woohyun, who was sitting across from her, spoke up.

 

“It’s more like a personality than a problem.”

 

Han Woohyun said that, then quietly placed the cat treats in his hand and reached his hand down.

 

Before long, the Samsaek cat, who had come closer, quickly ate the treats and then rubbed its cheek against Han Woohyun’s hand.

 

Junghyo was dumbfounded.

 

Why was he being more affectionate to Han Woohyun than to me, the CEO?

 

But seeing as complaining would be useless, I stayed quiet.

 

‘…Is she in a bad mood?’

 

As he looked at Junghyo’s sulking face, Han Woohyun rested his chin on the table and quietly observed her.

 

Before Junghyo and Hunter Lee Semyung returned to Yeongchun Hotel from Gyeongseong Hotel. 

 

Han Woohyun saw Junghyo in the world 20 years ago.

 

She was strong and beautiful even there. While there was nothing lacking, and her heart always seemed a little empty, in that place, she appeared fulfilled.

 

‘It seems like the Demon King is testing the owner of Yeongchun Hotel, asking her to stay in that world forever.’

 

Alex said that it was all the Demon King’s scheme.

 

But—

 

‘Even so, is it bad to fall for that scheme?’

 

Han Woohyun thought so.

 

Junghyo looked happy, and then, as time passed, she seemed to regret it. She appeared free.

 

At the hotel, Junghyo voluntarily took on the role of a guardian, calm and kind, as if she existed solely to protect the guests.

 

But there, Junghyo could only enjoy the things she truly wanted.

 

So if you were happy there—

 

‘I actually don’t care if the world including me is destroyed.’

 

It was something that no one else present, including Kim Junsoo, Hwang Misoon, Han Minhyuk, Moon Heeyoung, and Alex, could say.

 

So he decided to just follow Han Minhyuk’s suggestion.

 

‘It seems better not to ask about what happened there until Junghyo speaks about it first. After all, she left behind the person she loves most in that world—give her some time.’

 

Everyone agreed.

 

So Han Woohyun decided to dismiss all his memories from there as dreams.

 

‘Thank you for being born.’

 

He tried his best not to remember how sweet that memory was.

 

That memory might not have been that sweet to Junghyo.

 

As Han Woohyun was looking at Junghyo with a relaxed posture, she suddenly reached out and patted his bangs.

 

“…It would be nice if Samseok could stay still like you.”

 

Han Woohyun’s jaw tightened.

 

As he froze, staring at her like a predator before the hunt, Junghyo quickly withdrew her hand in surprise.

 

“Ah, did I upset you? I didn’t mean that you’re the same as the cat…”

 

Although it felt similar.

 

“No.”

 

Han Woohyun grabbed Junghyo’s hand that was moving away.

 

He then pulled her towards him and placed her hand on his cheek.

 

Han Woohyun’s breath tickled Junghyo’s palm.

 

“I’m just saying that because I like it.”

 

“….!”

 

“I told you that you can touch me whenever you want, didn’t I?”

 

What?

 

When did you say that?

 

Junghyo thought she had blurted out that question.

 

As Han Woohyun rubbed his cheek against her palm, the image of young Han Woohyun overlapped, and though his lips never parted, the words were left unspoken.

 

For the first time, she thought it was fortunate that Han Woohyun didn’t remember that time.

 

If he had remembered that time—

 

‘I’ll remember how much I adored you.’

 

“Ahem.”

 

That was then.

 

Merlin, who brought the dessert, placed the cake between Junghyo and Han Woohyun with a dumbfounded expression on his face.

 

“Is it okay for the president to date at her hotel?”

 

“It’s a holiday.”

 

Today was the day Han Woohyun was supposed to take Junghyo to Seoul.

 

They were going to go on a date and also get a re-examination from the association. 

 

Name: Lee Junghyo

 

Title: Heart Sniper, 5-Star Hotel Owner (NEW!), Savior of Another World

 

Class: Hotel Manager (Hidden) (Lv. 100)

 

Skills: Housekeeping (B), Front Desk (A), Hotelier’s Eye (S), Memory Communication (A)

 

Stats: Stamina 99, Strength 99, Agility 99, Intelligence 99, Luck 28

 

Junghyo’s worries were this.

 

‘My status window is about to burst—’

 

Is this okay?