### Chapter 289 – Room 204, Mission Room – ‘Hotel Cinema’ (12)
—
– Theater
—
The moment Murthani’s head rolled off the screen, the theater was filled with silence. The audience, transfixed by the movie, barely dared to breathe.
Except for one annoying kid.
“Argh! Stop blocking my view! Seriously, what’s going on here!”
“Hey! Seungyub, are you gonna wet the bed after seeing that?”
“Mooksung, just get your hand out of the way. You think Seungyub can’t handle seeing a corpse?”
“Hah! This hotel is the worst place for kids to grow up. Why’s there so much corpse action everywhere? How can kids grow up normal like this? They’ll just end up as crazy psychos!”
“Mooksung, I was born here.”
“…”
“Ah! So that’s why Ahri’s a total nutcase—”
“Ugh!”
Ahri kicked Kain again. Eunsol was getting a little annoyed listening to their childish banter.
“Seriously, can you guys be quiet? This is awesome! It’s like a superhero movie. I had no idea Jinchul was this strong!”
Kain agreed.
“Right? Was he always this strong? He seems way tougher now than during our first night when he fought that monkey. If he fought that monkey now, he’d probably take it down in 10 seconds flat!”
Eunsol sighed as if she was disappointed.
“I guess the Blessing has grown. But why is my Blessing still stuck at this level? Ugh… the cooldown for the Hand of Greed is over, but it’s still hard to use.”
On the screen, an elderly general, the hero, appeared, praising Cha Jinchul’s exploits as he displayed his gallant halberd and armor. As the other generals around him sang Jinchul’s praises, Ahri couldn’t shake off a foreboding thought.
‘There’s nothing wrong with being strong, but the way he’s enjoying the fight on the battlefield gives me the creeps…’
*
– Cha Jinchul
—
By the time I took down Murthani, the tide of the war had clearly turned in our favor. The old Grand Commander and the other generals were going wild, claiming I was the main star of the victory and that the Emperor would reward me greatly.
But then, the worries crept in as I realized how much movie time was left.
I couldn’t quite tell how long it had been due to the chaos of the battlefield, but it was definitely over an hour left before the movie ended. What does that mean?
Is the army going to take over the plains and that’ll be it? That would be absurd. Surely, some unimaginable crap is waiting to ruin my day.
That ominous feeling became a reality as the envoy from the plains arrived at the camp.
“Listen up! To the heirs of the Emperor, the wrath of the Sky God has filled the plains—”
Among the envoy was a remarkably old woman, whose survival was a miracle in itself; she was said to be the chief shaman of the plains. As she rambled on with her nonsensical predictions, one of the generals exploded in anger.
“Hey! What kind of nonsense is this? Get that old hag’s head off right now!”
“Hey now! Even in wartime, we don’t kill envoys!”
“The Sky God shall drop a faithful hunting dog upon the earth… His wrath shall come down like lightning!”
In other words, if we don’t withdraw the troops immediately, the Sky God’s wrath will descend upon us. Thinking “rationally,” we could just ignore it, but thinking “cinematically,” the situation felt ominously accurate.
Isn’t this the ‘second crisis’?
Cold sweat trickled down my spine. Without realizing it, I gripped the ornate halberd tightly, causing the general beside me to raise an eyebrow.
“General Cha?”
“Something feels off.”
“What do you mean?”
“General Baek, are the shamans from the plains well-known? Any rumors about them summoning demons or something?”
“Haha! General Cha, you’re joking, right? The demon they summoned was Murthani; you just took him out!”
Ah, so Murthani was indeed a demon summoned by the shamans. Then, does that mean the next crisis is going to be of a similar kind?
Before long, the envoy from the plains turned to leave.
In our strategy meeting, it was decided that the troops would rest for two weeks before advancing again. Given that we had overcome the immense wall of Murthani, they discussed distributing drinks and meat to the soldiers.
That’s a sound decision. There should always be perks for the troops when the tide turns, right? The only downside? I wouldn’t get to taste even a morsel of that reward—even though I made it all possible.
After blinking, a whole two weeks had magically passed.
Honestly, it felt like a huge rip-off. Seriously, why is it so difficult to give me a piece of meat or a sip of that drink? Is it such a crime to ask for a little treat after a meeting for three minutes before we hit the battlefield again?
I’m not sure if I should be grateful, but the injuries I sustained during my fight with Murthani had completely healed. It turns out that while time flew in the movie, two weeks had indeed passed in reality.
Once again, I looked at the vast prairie in front of me, grumbling a bit, and suddenly realized I was back on a horse. Thankfully, it was a truly remarkable steed, as it matched the surroundings perfectly. I avoided the embarrassment of falling off like an idiot.
The vast assembly of thousands of troops advancing forward was a grand sight. And at the edge of that—
The God of Lightning descended upon the earth.
*
The God of Lightning was called Kurta. The nomads of the plains referred to it so, so it must be true. It certainly resembled a wolf, except bigger than an elephant and wielding lightning.
“Waaaaaaaah!”
“Block it!”
“Fall back, behind the walls! Retreat!”
“Sir, General!”
It had been about ten minutes since Kurta began rampaging. In that brief time, the imperial forces were running around like wild boars stomped by a tiger.
Kurta’s mere presence sent bolts of lightning crashing down, incinerating soldiers in the vicinity. With a light swipe of its front paw, two soldiers were crushed, and in a single leap, it closed over ten meters in an instant, demolishing a barrack.
I was too astounded to even be angry. That creature is not something that a normal human army—even one with thousands—could hope to beat. More numbers would just mean more charred meat on the ground.
Of course, you can hear me, right?
“Hey, guide! Are you really telling me to take that down?”
*
The moment the lightning-wielding wolf entered the scene, the theater erupted.
“Whoa! Are you kidding me? They want me to take that thing down? Why isn’t the guide showing up? Where the heck are you hiding?”
“This is too much! Murthani, sure, he’s a person, but what the hell is that monster!”
Mooksung and Songee shouted while Ahri stared blankly at the screen and turned to Kain.
“Kain….”
“…”
“You think you could win if you went in there? For the record, I absolutely cannot.”
“If the possession works, I’d land a hit.”
“What about the fact that it’s technically half a god? It’s gotta be on a totally different scale.”
“Then it’s a no-go. Using the Descent is a no-go as well.”
“Aren’t you being a bit too casual about this?”
“No, it’s not that I’m being casual… Look at it! That thing was clearly not sent to be defeated, right?”
Ahri sighed and nodded.
It wasn’t just Kain; she felt the same way. Having had several experiences in the hotel, it was clear that sometimes, the structure sent an enemy that was unbeatable or required tremendous sacrifices to defeat.
In such cases, the right answer is usually “Don’t fight it.”
“We’ll have to find a way to either prevent the summoning or disrupt the process so it appears in a far weaker state.”
Let’s think logically.
If they could summon such a creature without any cost, why would the forces of the plains wait until Murthani was wiped out and they were facing defeat?
Clearly, they must have sacrificed something significant.
The shamans could have committed mass suicide, or a member of the royal family might have made a sacrifice. They could have burned through some incredibly rare materials that they wouldn’t have for a second time, or they could’ve done all of that.
Naturally, such magical processes take quite some time. Eunsol looked at Ahri.
“Earlier, that envoy from the plains mentioned a two-week break dictated by the Grand Commander, right?”
“Yeah.”
“Was that a mistake? It feels like they summoned that wolf in the meantime.”
“That’s my thought.”
“The next person who enters must voice their opinions strongly in the strategy meeting right after the envoy leaves. We should push for an immediate advance, no questions asked.”
“That meeting would be right after the protagonist takes down Murthani, right? It’s a prime time for the protagonist’s voice to hold weight. If they suggest an immediate attack, the meeting will probably go in that direction.”
Watching their fellow companions seamlessly discuss the ‘next’ steps, Kain sighed. It seemed everyone had already concluded that they would fail the moment that overwhelming creature entered.
What would happen if the entire hotel party entered together?
If Songee could twist the wolf’s senses, and Elena supported with ominous thoughts while Jinchul stuffed stars in its mouth, maybe they could win. But right now, the only one in that movie was Cha Jinchul, with nothing but a blessing and no legacy.
Kain thought it was a definite failure. But since the next one to enter was likely himself, he could only sigh.
*
– Cha Jinchul
—
… I quickened my senses.
I could feel the weight of everyone’s gaze subtly shifting towards me. The soldiers, even the generals, trembled as they looked at me. Not even the Grand Commander with his grand title was an exception.
If there were to be someone to defeat such a colossal creature, it could only be me. It has to be me.
Someone who reaches heights unattainable by the common man.
Someone challenging a foe that humans cannot beat.
Someone who can reassure the trembling weak.
That is the essence of a hero, and the protagonist is, in fact, a hero. Therefore, I smiled and opened my mouth.
“General.”
“… General Cha.”
“Could you pour me a drink?”
The general looked puzzled, but he filled my cup as requested. I spoke words I had longed to say at such a moment.
“I shall return before that drink gets cold.”
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