### Chapter 437 – Room 206, The Room of Curses – ‘The Demon King who Revives after 100 Days’ Re (2)
—
— Yu Songee
—
“This duck confit is delicious today.”
“Well, the chef seems to be getting better and better.”
—
It’s just small talk.
I couldn’t afford to care whether this was duck confit, sous vide, or grilled.
Every time I took a bite of meat, a mouthful of salad, or a sip of water, I was checking Leon’s complexion.
Finally, Leon offered an awkward smile.
—
“Songyi, my face may be quite handsome, but it’s a bit much when you’re staring at me like that.”
—
It’d probably be better to just ask directly.
I mean, we’re father and daughter after all.
—
“The results of the check-up came back, right? I saw the secretary hand over the envelope earlier.”
“Ha ha ha! Were you that worried?”
“Was there nothing wrong?”
“Come on! Just a few days ago, I told you I was healthy! Just focus on your meal.”
“… Yes.”
—
What does this all mean?
Did Yumi fail?
Since we can’t use the conversation tab in Paradise, I hadn’t heard anything from my teammates.
Or is he hiding it from me because he’s afraid I’d worry, due to ‘love?’
Thinking that way made my appetite suddenly vanish, as an indescribable guilt washed over me.
—
The mayor, Leon Kadirov, loves me.
Although it’s nothing more than an illusion created by my blessing.
—
What about me?
—
I can’t even say I love Leon like a real dad.
If that were the case, I wouldn’t have devised a plan to make the mayor short-lived along with my teammates.
—
“Are you okay?”
“Of course. I’m happy to hear you’re healthy, Dad.”
“Ha ha! Songyi, you sometimes make me feel bashful with your frankness.”
“… I enjoyed the meal.”
—
Feeling a whirlwind of emotions, I returned to my room.
—
*
“Miss.”
“…”
“Miss!”
“Ah.”
—
Late at night, the household staff who had served the family for years approached me.
“Leon is looking for you.”
“I’ll go soon.”
—
I hurriedly changed into casual clothes and headed to Leon’s bedroom.
He was leaning back on the sofa with a complicated expression, and there was a half-empty wine bottle on the table.
—
“Dad?”
—
Leon is a person who rarely drinks, believing that it muddles the mind.
—
“…”
“Dad?”
“Songyi, there are things I need to discuss urgently, so everyone out, please.”
“Understood.”
—
After sending the staff away, Leon beckoned me closer, and his first words after a long silence were an apology.
“I’m sorry.”
“…”
“I should have discussed this at dinner.”
“…”
“I wanted to deny reality then…”
“… Dad.”
“I thought there was a problem with the check-up results. So, I checked the hospital multiple times.”
—
Instead of offering various explanations, Leon handed me the paper detailing the check-up results.
—
“…”
—
My teammates didn’t fail.
It’s just that the mayor needed time to accept reality.
—
As I realized this, a rush of complicated feelings hit me.
Yoo Songee was glad that things were going according to plan.
Yet, Songyi Kadirov felt a faint sympathy for the mental pain her fake father was experiencing.
—
“I’m sorry. I didn’t want to show you this weak side of me… I thought I would be fine for at least ten more years.”
“…”
“If that were the case, you would have been able to train under me, fulfilling your duties in the Kadirov clan.”
—
After that, Leon shared various fatherly musings with me, just like a caring dad would.
… Listening to this had to come with some heavy aftereffects.
—
“Back when you were little, I—huh? Didn’t that bracelet just flash a light?”
“Must’ve been a trick of the light.”
—
A long time ago, my teacher in Room 103 taught me this.
Sensation is merely an illusion created by the brain, yet humans are weak creatures easily shaken by it.
—
With various perspectives shifting my perception “little by little,” Leon’s voice soon started sounding like a bizarre machine, and his appearance morphed into a cold middle-aged man I’d never seen before.
—
Just that much change made my instincts reject seeing this man as ‘Leon’ anymore.
Suddenly, the unnecessary empathy I’d felt just froze.
—
A flash of various perspectives darting about is the extent of the temporary weight on my heart.
—
I am Yoo Songee, a rising star of the hotel.
—
“Back when your mother was alive, I—”
“Father.”
“Huh?”
“Please, if you really don’t have much time left, let’s talk about something necessary instead of this.”
“…”
—
Dad, your health is serious, isn’t it?
The hospital said there were multiple cardiovascular diseases.
They said you wouldn’t be crossing the rainbow bridge any time soon, right?
—
So, you should start preparing for your ‘succession’ soon.
—
“Hmm… Songyi, you’re better than me. Alright, come over here. I have something to show you.”
—
The Kadirov family is the ruling clan of Paradise.
There are more members other than me and Dad, and they’re all first-class citizens.
—
However, only the one who inherits the special item can succeed in the mayoral position.
Leon’s One More Chance and my various perspectives serve as examples.
Thus, if Leon Kadirov dies, I’d be the next mayor.
—
— BEEP! BEEP!
—
Before long, the man who would soon turn into the ‘former mayor’ began fiddling with a hidden device under the table, and a circular hologram appeared.
—
“Songyi, do you recognize what this is?”
“…”
—
I recognized it all too well; it caught me off guard.
A planet—specifically, Earth.
Continents like Asia and America were clearly visible.
—
“This is the planet we live on. Well, since it’s part of the curriculum for second-class citizens, you must have seen it?”
“…”
—
Having accumulated various experiences at the hotel, we no longer view the scenario inside Room 206 as merely a story fabricated by the hotel.
The Room of Curses is indeed a retelling of actual events that occurred somewhere in the universe.
—
Then, could Room 206 be one of the many possibilities for Earth?
A parallel world where Paradise was destroyed by the ‘Demon King?’
—
I suppressed the thoughts trying to burst forth in many directions.
For now, I need to concentrate on what’s right in front of me.
—
“Where is Paradise?”
“Right here.”
—
The setting of Room 206, Paradise, was roughly in the Canada region of North America on Earth.
To be more precise, I don’t have much knowledge about world geography.
—
At that moment, as Leon tapped the device, red dots began to appear all over the hologram.
—
“Do you know what these dots mean?”
“…”
—
I think I might.
—
“This indicates the locations of human survival enclaves.”
—
‘Enclaves.’
The term held significant weight.
Leon pressed the button again.
—
This time, blue dots began to appear all over the globe.
—
*
[User: Han Kain (Wisdom)
Date: Day 384
Current Location: Room 206, The Room of Curses – ‘The Demon King who Revives after 100 Days’
Sage’s Advice: 3]
— Han Kain
—
— Ding! Ding!
—
“Ugh…. Is it morning already?”
“It felt like I just fell asleep a moment ago.”
“Dammit! Even the sleep time is painfully short!”
—
— Fourth-class citizen Paulo, profanity detected.
—
“Oh, oh? That was just a slip of the tongue—”
— “Your lunch has been revoked.”
—
As always, a shitty day in Paradise began.
Some may take offense to the crude term ‘shitty,’ but if reality is horrific, the words to express it tend to be far from refined.
—
That said, today feels semi-new.
It’s the third day since arriving in Room 206.
—
My plans begin now.
—
“…”
—
Rising from the shabby bed and recalling what I must do made me smile involuntarily.
Never thought I’d be doing something this absurd in my life.
—
“Hey!”
“…”
“Hey! Han Kain, you idiot!”
—
It was Peterson, our team leader.
—
“What are you doing just lying in bed? Get up and get going!”
—
“…”
—
“Do I need to smack you around before you listen?”
—
As the giant approached, grabbing my collar, worried looks from the surrounding miners were affixed on me.
—
“… Peterson, sir.”
“You! Speak up quickly; we’re short on time!”
“Last night, I heard the voice of the great one.”
“What? What?”
—
Everyone around, even Peterson, fell into a daze at my abrupt declaration.
—
In this moment, whether it be good or bad, many eyes were turned towards me in curiosity.
I prepared to speak the first line that would usher in the beginning of a myth.
—
“Rejoice! The Lord has delivered glorious news—the great one has risen!”
—
*
The following events didn’t change much.
—
No one fell to their knees in prayer after hearing my words.
It was merely the reaction of a tired youth who seemed to have lost their marbles from the exhaustion of mining labor, and Peterson just punched me in disbelief.
—
Today too, I had to work up a sweat in the mines with the other miners in Zone 13.
—
At a brief moment of respite, an older miner approached me.
“Hey, young one, you doing alright?”
“Roy, of course.”
“Ha ha… You really surprised me this morning. Did you have some weird dreams last night or something?”
—
Roy’s words echoed laughter from the surrounding miners.
—
In a life filled with suffering labor and dreadful meals, taking a moment to laugh like this felt extremely precious.
—
“This kid! Looks like a weakling, huh? So young yet already seeing things!”
“Ha ha! Can’t even carry his weight yet, huh?”
“Just a youngster playing weak!”
“…”
—
Everyone was making fun of me.
Some might blush and feel ashamed, or even get angry at the teasing.
In that case, how should the one who truly embraced the will of the gods react?
—
There’s no need to feel ashamed.
No need to throw a fit like a child.
I am the chosen one, the one who received the gospel.
—
The chosen one is a mysterious being.
Mysterious simply translates to something incomprehensible.
—
So starting now, I must become an unfathomable human.
—
“Listen up, everyone. You must heed my words.”
—
As I acted like I didn’t even hear the surrounding miners’ jabs, I felt their confusion build.
—
“If you’re still dazed—”
“Remember, the Lord said that only those worthy of moving forward may see tomorrow’s sun.”
“What?”
“Hey! What the hell’s going on?”
“You’ve lost it, haven’t you?”
—
“Today, only twenty will survive here!”
—
At that moment, everyone’s eyes turned toward me.
—
— Rumble!
—
With a loud vibration, the feeble lighting in the mine flickered off, plunging us into darkness.
—
“What’s happening!”
“Ah! Did the power go out?”
“Peterson—”
—
Amid the chaos, silence fell.
It was pitch black, but I was confident everyone was listening to my voice.
—
“Congratulations.”
“Uh? W-What the—”
—
— Rumble!
—
Again, with a loud vibration, screams began echoing around us.
—
“Today, only twenty will survive here!”
—
Feeling their bewildered gazes, I spoke boldly.
—
“You will survive with me. For that is what the Lord has decreed!”
—
Han Kain, a newcomer to K University, a participant in the hotel.
—
Starting today, I am the first day of the cult leader.
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