Chapter 751 – First Escape, Meeting (3)
—
– Han Kain
After sharing the information, we began discussing the details for the next round.
The meeting had already dragged on for over three hours.
Though we took breaks in between, I could see my teammates gradually wearing down.
But it couldn’t be helped.
This was about escape, not a mere solution.
Since we had to face the Curse Room again tomorrow, we needed to sketch out a rough plan today.
As always, the one standing in front of the whiteboard was Eunsol.
“I believe the conditions for resolving Room 302 are relatively clear.”
Some Curse Rooms have conclusively baffling conditions.
Room 201, for instance, ended with the conclusion that one must satisfy a demon forever. That caused a lot of head-scratching back then.
And what about Room 206, where the Demon King resurrects after 100 days? The solution was to fly endlessly with the Demon King into the depths of the universe? Even now, I think that’s a pretty peculiar resolution.
On the other hand, some Curse Rooms have straightforward solutions.
Using Room 101 as an example, the instant we took down Kim Sangmin, the origin of all troubles, the resolution was recognized immediately.
Our analysis classifies Room 302 as one of those rooms where the conditions for resolution are clear-cut.
“We need to prevent the Son of Dawn from descending.”
Now that was the key to solving Room 302.
“The Administration Bureau is trying to awaken the Son of Dawn through two main plans.”
Plan A and Plan B.
“Plan A involves pulling Sanghyun into their scheme to complete the flawed magic ritual.”
They managed to thwart Plan A during the first attempt, but alas, that failed to lead to a resolution, thanks to Plan B lurking around.
“Plan B is the collapse of the Brave New World.”
Seungyub helped Soyeon bring the Brave New World crashing down, causing quite the shake-up.
At face value, one might consider Seungyub the root cause of the failure, but it wasn’t that simple.
“Plan A and B are not ‘and’ but ‘or.’ We don’t need both to succeed; just one is enough for the Son of Dawn to descend. From our perspective of stopping the descent, that means we need to block both. Everyone get that?”
Ahri raised her hand.
“I have a question. I grasped the causality for Plan A easily. The existence of the prisoner summoning ritual ties directly to Sanghyun thwarting that ritual in the past. If the ritual is completed again, the Son of Dawn descends. Makes sense. But what’s the connection with Plan B?”
“What’s the relation between the collapse of the Brave New World and the Son of Dawn’s descent?”
“Exactly.”
Everyone had that same lingering question.
“I don’t know. Does anyone else?”
Everyone went silent momentarily.
“Kain? Do you know by any chance?”
“I don’t know.”
What on earth is the connection between the collapse of the Brave New World and the Son of Dawn’s descent?
Nobody had an answer to that.
They just thought, “Well, the Son of Dawn descended right after the Brave New World collapsed, so maybe there’s a link?”
“Let’s leave that for the next round. Any other questions?”
This time, Sanghyun raised his hand and walked to the whiteboard.
“I have one too.”
Soon, the names of six people were written down.
Astaire, Brian, David, James, Serilda.
Kim Sanghyun.
“These six are the components of the Son of Dawn’s summoning ritual. The first five are all agents, right?”
An old man interjected softly.
“Wasn’t there also a guy named Yujin?”
A mysterious figure emerging from Sanghyun’s memories—Yujin.
Every word he spoke carried an ominous weight.
“At this moment, even the Son of Dawn cannot interfere.”
“The process so far can be seen as a buildup for an alien god to manipulate humanity to its own will.”
“I know a bit more than the Administration Bureau. The Son of Dawn isn’t inherently evil. If you differentiate between good and evil, he’s on the good side; he indeed harbors goodwill toward humanity.”
“What kind of love does the Son of Dawn bestow upon humanity?”
“Seeing is believing. Experience it directly.”
“Johnny, let’s meet again in the next life.”
Each statement is filled with significance.
Even the prisoner cannot meddle in this narrative.
Analysis of the prisoner’s disposition is something that even the Administration Bureau doesn’t comprehend.
His speech feels as if he’s looking down on everything.
And then there’s the evidence that he toyed with the Bureau while joining the expedition.
Sanghyun from back then could not comprehend what Yujin truly was, but we’re different now.
We’re almost 99% sure.
“Yujin wasn’t an agent, and he didn’t participate in the summoning ritual. He was…”
Sanghyun hesitated before honestly revealing the hypothesis that everyone harbored in their minds.
“He was likely an ascendant. He probably came to test me in accordance with the hotel’s will.”
“Yeah, I agree with the good doctor there.”
“Let me continue my story. The remaining components of the summoning ritual, aside from me, are Astaire, Brian, David, James, and Serilda.”
“Got it.”
“However, in the post-apocalyptic world you all met, only the three six-winged angels—Brian, James, and Serilda—are present.”
The Angel of Lightning, the Angel of Super Strength, the Angel of Magic.
Ahri chimed in to correct a note.
“Astaire must have been there. The angels knew each other’s names, right? You probably knocked the last flash of glory into him, preventing him from fighting.”
“Well, thankfully my legacy seems to be worth something before I kick the bucket. Assuming Astaire is accounted for, where did David go?”
“…”
Once again, everyone fell silent.
Here again, Eunsol’s conclusion remained the same.
“I don’t know. Anyone else?”
“…”
“Where is David? Why couldn’t he become one of the six-winged angels? Perhaps we can uncover that in the next round. Any additional questions?”
No one had anything more.
“Then let’s move on to the next round.”
Discussion on the upcoming round began, scribbled on the whiteboard.
This wasn’t just a plan set by Eunsol on her own; it was decided together at the end of the meeting.
“Our ultimate goal is to prevent the descent of the Son of Dawn. To achieve this, we need to ensure Plan A and B are thoroughly thwarted.”
It’s not about a temporary halt; ‘thoroughly thwarted’ is key.
We need to uproot these plans entirely, ensuring they can’t restart.
“The Administration Bureau spearheads Plan A, so we’ll need to topple the Bureau itself.”
A crudely simple conclusion.
It was a resolution everyone agreed upon.
“Do we really have to eradicate the Bureau? It’s not necessary. The Bureau isn’t merely a one-voiced organization.”
Within the Bureau, there exists a group skeptical of venerating the Son of Dawn.
They’ve created what they refer to as the “Pure Humanity Preservation Zone,” which is essentially the Brave New World.
In short, we need to let the skeptics seize control of the Bureau.
“If possible, let’s reach out to the anti-Son of Dawn faction within the Bureau. If we can swap the factions in charge of the Bureau, Plan A will simply unravel. There should certainly be a method to suppress the prisoner’s influence. Everyone understand?”
A nodding agreement spread through the group.
Up to this point, things seemed straightforward, but the next part was the tricky bit.
“The issue lies with Plan B, regarding the Brave New World…”
How do we block Plan B?
This part remained exceedingly ambiguous, with everyone voicing uncertainty.
Ahri cautiously muttered.
“Well, that girl, Soyeon, is an Apostle of the prisoner, right? Seungyub helped her destroy the Brave New World.”
“That’s true.”
“If we don’t help her next round, wouldn’t that solve it? What if we just killed her instead?”
“…”
Since Seungyub’s assistance made Plan B possible, wouldn’t it make sense to hinder or eliminate Soyeon?
At a glance, that sounded logical but felt intuitively off.
I was the first to speak up.
“If we proceed that way, Seungyub will never realize his first wish.”
“…”
“There’s no way the pre-hotel Seungyub would ever kill Soyeon. He was just a middle schooler.”
“If killing sounds too harsh, what about merely hindering her…”
Miro chuckled softly.
“Hinder? Ahri, you seriously think he could? Soyeon might as well finger-tap him, and he’d be like, ‘Yes, My Lady Soyeon, I’ll do whatever you say.’”
“Wow! You’re just downright insufferable, aren’t you?! No way that’s true!”
“That’s just how it is—”
While Seungyub and Miro twisted each other’s words, Ahri all of a sudden brought up something more somber.
“Seungyub genuinely did try his best. He put in a great effort, but the poor guy probably just lacked the necessary skills to follow through with Soyeon’s plan. It might just be a pure issue of capability.”
“Oh? That could hold water!”
“Uh, hey, I’m right here. I’m not invisible or anything.”
Eunsol smirked slightly.
“Well, this is just my thought: Ahri, your plan seems a little… unethical? Like, it doesn’t sound like a happy ending or anything.”
“Not a happy ending? By killing Soyeon? She’s about to ruin the world!”
“It’s not just about Soyeon. I’m referring to preserving the Brave New World itself.”
Eunsol’s opinion.
The mere existence of the Brave New World veers far from a happy ending.
“You just said it yourself; the Brave New World is an incredibly evil chaotic phenomenon, right?”
What Ahri vaguely confirmed as the essence of the Brave New World is simply a movie theater.
Even the Son of Dawn feels burdened by the chaotic devils that take the form of an audience, while the Brave New World is the world within the film they watch.
“That’s correct.”
“Is preserving something like that really a happy ending?”
“Hmm…”
“And think about what happens after the fall. If the Brave New World remains, Seungyub will continually be a resident of that film world.”
“Ah… I hadn’t considered the post-fall situation.”
The aftermath experience? I hadn’t thought of that.
Certainly, having had one experience of the fall, my mental horizons had widened.
Regardless, as Eunsol talked further, Ahri soon relented.
Maybe she felt, on an instinctual level, that something was off.
“Alright. Eunsol, I think you’re right.”
A logically sound solution in a situation that feels intuitively bizarre.
My thoughts on this were simple.
It all boils down to a lack of information.
Not knowing enough about the Brave New World leads to confusing the erroneous logic with the correct one.
“So, should Seungyub try the same method as the first round again? Focusing on awakening his first wish?”
“I think that’s the way to go…”
Miro interjected.
“I was summoned in the room by Kain. Back then, Kain also mentioned understanding the script and said we must recognize the first wish.”
“Then let’s have Seungyub do it just like before. Seungyub, go screw up the world once more.”
With that command to ruin the world again, Seungyub’s expression turned complicated.
“… What if I fail again?”
“Then we’ll analyze why you failed and improve that aspect.”
“How do we do that?”
The reason Seungyub couldn’t realize his first wish during the first attempt?
In his self-analysis, he figured the reactions from those around him had altered.
“No matter how I behaved like before, it just didn’t work. Everyone’s reactions changed…”
That point was easily understood by everyone.
The Seungyub from before entering the hotel was really different from the Seungyub now.
Songyi articulated this distinction succinctly in one sentence.
“Right, it’s the difference between the Bangbae Middle School bread delivery guy and the top student of Bangbae Middle School…”
“Yikes! No way! I’ve never delivered bread, you know?”
“Regardless, you weren’t the top, were you?”
“… This time, let’s have Songyi join the resolution team too.”
“Eh?”
“Maybe I’ll even start with you in the Brave New World. Then your dream of becoming an idol at Empire High will come true—”
“AHHH! W-Why is that story even coming up?!”
“That’s wrong! It’s not Empire High; I mean Bangbae Middle’s idol—”
I feel that if the past Seungyub were watching, he wouldn’t have dared respond playfully like this.
Seeing that growth in him made me feel amused yet pleased, but still, I couldn’t help but think how this could make realizing the first wish a challenge.
Afterward, profound discussions ensued regarding how Seungyub should proceed.
“Just act like a loser again, right? It’s practically the same as now.”
“This is the blood of the world champion’s blood technique!”
“AHHH! Ahri, that guy hit me!”
“Seriously, both of you just shut it…”
—
As a day passed, the meeting finally concluded.
—
User: Han Kain
Date: Day 41
Current Location: First Floor, Lobby
Sage’s Advice: 3
—
Everyone succumbed to the weariness of the prolonged meeting and took time to relax.
Alone at the snack table, I sipped on a zero-calorie cola while deep in thought.
What exactly should Seungyub do?
The reason I was still holding out by myself at this hour was nothing special.
Sage’s Advice: 3
I was simply waiting for the advice to regenerate as the date changed.
“…”
Since the date has flipped, it’s time to head into the Curse Room ‘today.’
Thus, using the advice now could pose a risk, depending on how one views it.
However, leaving Seungyub without a clear plan felt even more unsettling.
So I posed the question.
“I can’t figure out how to proceed with the lucky participant among the two main roles in Room 302. I’d like a hint.”
—
Sage’s Advice: 3 -> 0
—
In an instant, all three stocks vanished.
Interpreting it positively, that signifies the importance of the question and the need for an answer.
True to form, the length and detail of the answer were more substantial than usual.
“Usually, the outcome follows after the process has occurred.
However, you are in a situation where you know the result already and have to guess the process.
If the process is hard to guess, look at the result.
Consider what process would be needed to achieve such a result.”
“…”
All participants entered with wishes for the first wish when they came to the hotel.
If they can overcome the hotel’s trials, they will gain compensation equivalent to their first wish.
The first wish is the process.
We are the outcome, including our blessings and legacies.
Therefore, the Owl states:
If you don’t understand what the first wish is, look at the outcome and guess the process.
Reflect on what wish might have elicited such a result.
Seungyub, what outcome has he reached?
A blessing of luck.
Legacies, the Soul’s Vessel.
The martial arts learned from Lee Jisung in Room 205.
…
The easiest to grasp would be the martial arts.
Before he came to this hotel, he was often bullied by low-grade kids.
Surely he must have longed to pay those bullies back.
What about luck?
If we think of it as a joke, perhaps he lamented not having team luck in games.
Such a ridiculous thought, but then again, Seungyub is a ridiculous person.
When trying to interpret a strange person, we should consider strange possibilities too.
Alternatively, he might have faced crises that normally can’t be overcome.
Without miraculous luck, there may have been problems he couldn’t solve.
…
What might the Soul’s Vessel represent?
While it doesn’t reveal itself due to the user’s proficiency, the Soul’s Vessel possibly conceals various abilities like immortality, possession, etc.
However, those are ultimately secondary abilities.
The primary ability is bringing NPCs into the hotel.
Initially, it’s the legacy of allowing intelligent beings trapped in the Curse Room to transcend a grim fate and enter the real world.
A legacy that grants qualifications to those deemed unworthy.
“…”
Who exactly did Seungyub wish to grant such qualifications?
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