### Chapter 304 – Room 204, Mission Room – ‘Hotel Cinema’ (26)
—
– The Theater
As the girl, having forgotten her memories as a gumiho, was rescued by the Vatican, the audience in the theater sighed in relief. Finally, Ari’s intended ending was coming together. The most dangerous part of her plan was the moment Han Yoori, now human, used the spell of oblivion to erase her own memories.
In the earlier part, Ari was able to take the lead through various colorful situations both in reality and in the hotel. However, in the latter part of the story, Ari’s own personality would sink below the surface, leading to many unpredictable variables.
“Looks like it’s all smoothing out. We’ll be moving on to the coffee shop scene soon, right?”
Songee nodded at Sanghyun’s words.
Afterward, there was a straight stretch of epilogue, during which Han Yoori had also prepared for what came next after becoming human. The centuries-old yokai who had yearned to become human had left almost no gaps in her preparations.
At that moment, Cha Jinchul showed a bit of regret.
“Was that really the only way? That Saerom girl? It’s a bit sad that that fox died in such a gruesome manner. It’s not a happy ending and there are just too many victims. And the ultimate victor being Han Yoori? Isn’t that a bit much? If we had to pick the most evil being in this short story, wouldn’t it have to be her?”
“More accurately, it’s Ari who manipulated Han Yoori.”
Cha Jinchul flinched at Sanghyun’s words. Songee reacted as if trying to understand the problem.
“Hyung, doesn’t everyone else have other ideas aside from that method? The storyline was pretty much pre-determined since the beginning. As Ari confirmed at the start, Han Yoori was a human. For the gumiho to become human, she had to consume people, so cannibalism was unavoidable.”
Kim Sanghyun nodded in agreement.
“Jinchul, I share the same thought. It was a predetermined ending, and Ari made a tough decision. Above all… don’t get too emotionally involved with Park Saerom. She’s a yokai that has devoured hundreds over the years. A miserable death seems fitting for her.”
Cha Jinchul nodded in understanding.
“Hmm… Sanghyun, it seems I was thinking too sentimentally. I was just wondering if there were no other options…”
At that moment, Kain, who had been quiet, spoke up.
“Thinking it over isn’t a bad idea. Ari reached a conclusion, but if Inho thinks this ending is odd, the next person would need to become a gumiho again.”
“Got any thoughts coming to mind?”
Kain sipped a drink and cleared her throat before launching into a fairly lengthy explanation.
“The prologue that starts in the coffee shop contains hints for advancing the short story later. Earlier, Songee made a good point that Han Yoori showing up at the coffee shop as a human locked the main key points of the scenario in place.”
“Since the gumiho turning into a person is confirmed, cannibalization must happen, right?”
“It’s confirmed that they must become human, but cannibalism isn’t a certainty. The leading expert in this field, Ari, mentioned before she went in, didn’t she?”
As Kain mentioned Ari’s words, everyone leaned in and recalled the details.
“There are ways for a gumiho to become human without cannibalism by tampering with the folklore. Since legends about gumiho are widespread, it makes more sense to manipulate rather than remove them.”
Elena, wearing a somewhat amused expression, responded.
“Like spreading movies or stories that talk about ways of becoming human without eating liver, right?”
“That’s probably the idea, right? The specifics would be known by the Management Bureau personnel.”
Kim Sanghyun, listening attentively, made a sharp observation.
“I get what you mean, but can Han Yoori actually implement that in the story? That’s a method used by the Management Bureau or the Vatican, organizations that can manipulate the entire world. It’s not something a gumiho living in fear of those organizations can just carry out.”
Kain nodded in agreement.
“Just as the teacher said, it can’t be implemented by an individual gumiho. It absolutely requires assistance from the Vatican.”
“Why would they help? Ari said it’d be much more efficient to just kill two foxes than to let such nonsense unfold.”
“But they knew such methods existed.”
“Really?”
“How would Ari even know to use a method like ‘to utilize folklore’? She couldn’t have just tried it on her own.”
“…The Management Bureau definitely tried it out.”
“Exactly. The Bureau invested time and effort to twist the folklore to clean the past of a yokai that had consumed humans. Why do you think they did that?”
“…”
“From here on out, it’s less about analyzing the movie and more about analyzing the Management Bureau or a similar organization. Since two members of the Bureau are here, bringing this up is a bit risky, but….”
As Kain chose her words carefully, Kim Sanghyun chimed in.
“Well, both of them aren’t present. If not now, when are we going to ponder about the Management Bureau among ourselves? Thankfully, the movie is nearing its end. Who knows how the author will decide?”
Elena nodded.
“After all, the Management Bureau often comes up in connection with hotels. It’s an issue relating to the hotel.”
Kain began to express her thoughts again.
“Seeing how Room 201 served humans to that evil entity, and Room 202 aimed to eliminate even internal members without hesitation to maintain confidentiality, it brings to mind. The Management Bureau is an organization that says they’re for humankind, yet it seems they don’t value individual lives that much.”
Kim Sanghyun nodded as if he grasped the point.
“It’s a utilitarian organization. To save one hundred people, they could kill one. To ultimately save hundreds of thousands, they could kill millions. It might be a rational stance for world preservation.”
“From that perspective, it easily leads to the scenario where the Vatican assists a cannibalistic yokai that has consumed over nine hundred humans.”
“Even if over nine hundred people died, isn’t it possible to save more than that?”
“That’s exactly it. The Management Bureau would seem likely to help a yokai that has devoured ten thousand, if it could assimilate it to save one hundred thousand.”
After a long listening session, Cha Jinchul summarized the lengthy discussion.
“So, the way to get through that short story without cannibalism is for Han Yoori to prove to the Vatican that she possesses the ability to save hundreds or thousands of humans?”
“Exactly. As long as she can prove that, the question of how to manipulate the folklore is no longer in her hands. The Vatican will take care of it.”
“How would she do that?”
“I have no clue since I’ve never been inside. Honestly, I’d probably just gobble people up like Ari if I had.”
After hearing Kain’s words, Cha Jinchul grimaced slightly as he stared at her. Kain simply laughed lightly as if it’s no big deal.
Then, Seungyub, who had been quiet, spoke up loudly.
“Everyone, look at the screen! It’s over!”
All eyes turned to the screen to confirm the author’s decision. At that instant, a thought flickered in Kain’s mind.
‘Maybe one of us will add another member from the Management Bureau. If the reward from Hotel Cinema is a half ticket… what should we do after we complete one ticket?’
The young man lost in thought quickly shook his head. For now, the immediate problem was Hotel Cinema.
*
– Kim Ari
…
…
…
Cough!
When I came to my senses, I found myself out of the play and into the coffee shop. Having manipulated my memories with the spell of oblivion, there was a significant gap in my middle memories. Did it go well until the end?
“That day, that moment, I’ll never forget for the rest of my life. A gigantic, truly car-sized monster toppled me. I still don’t know how I survived that day. I guess I just got lucky?”
The screenwriter, Inho, who intently listened to Han Yoori’s story, tilted his head slightly.
“I’ll summarize Yoori’s story. After being overwhelmed by excessive confessions and stalker-like behavior from male students, she decided to leave them all at once and went back to school in the evening. However, when she returned, the school was engulfed in flames and filled with corpses.”
“That’s right!”
“Then a car-sized fox spirit overwhelmed Yoori, who fled in a daze and survived thanks to the help of the Vatican, right?”
“Yes.”
“An interesting yet sad story. Many must have died that day. How about we all observe a moment of silence for just ten seconds?”
“Sounds good.”
“Let’s do that.”
After ten seconds of silence, the writer spoke again.
“Yoori, this might sound strange, but after collecting this type of story, I’ve developed an intuition that can’t be put into words.”
“Intuition…?”
“I have a feeling that there’s some ‘blank space’ in Yoori’s story. There might be a heartbreaking tale hidden there, don’t you think?”
“Well, a lot of students died.”
“No, I think there’s a story hidden that’s separate from the students’ deaths. Doesn’t anything come to mind when you hear what I say?”
What’s that?
No way. Is the author somehow forcing involvement to awaken Han Yoori’s memories?
“… I’m not sure what you’re talking about.”
“Shall I be more specific? I have a feeling it’s something related to the yokai side—”
What the hell! This is ridiculous! What does he mean by gut feeling?
Does this author actually know everything that’s happening? No way, even if that’s the case, don’t pull this nonsense! Han Yoori was just beginning to doubt her memories, getting lost in thought!
— Slap!
“Excuse me!”
“… Ari?”
“I thought you said we shouldn’t nitpick about the stories we share? Yoori is getting flustered now.”
I moved immediately to sit next to Han Yoori, grabbing her hand tightly and gazing directly into her eyes.
“Eh? A-Ari? I’m okay!”
Having someone she just met doing weird things to her made Yoori visibly flustered, her poise slipping. Of course, this temporarily buried the seed of doubt forming in Yoori’s heart.
“Haha! Seems I might have intruded. You sure have quick wits, Ari.”
“Is it just the writer who can do that?”
“Haha! Is that so? Very well! Yoori’s story was also mystical and frightening. I’ll ‘confirm’ it here.”
… Phew. I narrowly managed to defuse a situation that was about to blow up. Truly, this hotel never fails to manufacture absurd crises, leaving no room for complacency.
A moment later, the third storyteller, Cha Eunpyo, who had been quietly sitting, began to share his story.
“After listening to the impressive tales shared, I’m amazed at how extraordinary they are. My story isn’t that grand, though.”
“Eunpyo, in stories like this, there’s nothing grand or otherwise. Just tell it as it is.”
“Okay. This story takes place when I was a kid. I think I was around twelve. Back then, my parents and I lived in a really big house in America. It was a time when their business was booming. That year-end, we were meant to go on a family trip for New Year’s, but suddenly my parents had an unexpected schedule.”
Suddenly, Cha Eunpyo paused and slyly glanced at the writer.
“Could you please adjust the next part suitably later?”
The writer smiled slightly, almost like he could read the young man’s thoughts.
“It seems like there’s a legal issue entwined with your story. You have nothing to worry about. If you wish, we’ll thoroughly protect your personal information.”
“Thank you. As you may have heard, it’s illegal to leave children alone at home in America. At that time, due to various overlapping circumstances, my parents left me home alone. In return, they gave me far more toys than usual.”
The space around us began to tremble a little.
… Just before entering the third story, I suddenly realized. If this keeps up, I’ll be the narrator for the fourth story. What on earth should I talk about?
*
– Home Alone
“Kevin!”
…
“Kevin! Are you listening to Mom?”
“Uh, I’m listening.”
Wasn’t his name Cha Eunpyo? Since it took place in America, is he using his American name?
“Mom will write it down, so just follow it. Dinner is in the fridge—”
Kevin’s mom went on for a while about how to prepare meals, what not to do outside, how she had prepared the dog’s and cat’s meals, and that he should avoid watching too much TV.
“Kevin, you must feel bad that Mom and Dad couldn’t take you skiing, huh?”
“Nope.”
“I’m really sorry. Your dad feels the same way. But instead, there’s something you’re gonna love waiting for you in the living room of your room—make sure to check it out later.”
About ten minutes later, she hugged me and kissed me on the cheek before leaving with her husband. Time to assess the current situation.
…
Let’s sort out my situation first.
Physically, I’m a twelve-year-old boy. I look pretty adorable and bright-eyed, but I’m just an ordinary kid without any superpowers. The blessing of being ‘The Girl With No Presence’ was already used in the second story, so I’d need another half-day to reuse it. Right now, my only usable ability is a ‘compass.’
Externally, things are a bit complicated.
First off, the size of the house is laughably huge. It’s three floors, and counting the rooms is difficult. It’s a mansion with terms like ‘my room’s living room, my bedroom, my playroom’ that the average person would have difficulty understanding. Besides that, I’m raising a dog named Suji and a cat named Cash.
What on earth is going on? Is it an attack from burglars targeting the wealthy? Should I set traps around the house?
I will repay with regular updates.
Plus, since it’s a holiday, I packed a bit of hefty content. Wishing everyone a happy New Year! May good things come your way!
My site has received a lot of DMCA notices, lol. From now on, I will update the MTL on https://darkmtl.com/.
The site is fast and lightweight because there are no ads yet. However, the theme is different from Cybor-TL, so take some time to familiarize yourself.
Support me by donating at least $10, and you'll have the right to request any novel from Novelpia (excluding 19+ content) using a newly developed tool.