### Chapter 315 – The Perfect Child (3)
—
– Han Kain (Wisdom)
Date: Day 136
Current Location: Level 2, Snowfield
Sage’s Advice: 0
—
– Han Kain
While my companions were spending their time in various ways, I grew curious about what Ahri was up to and headed up to the second floor.
It looked like Ahri had already stepped out to the snow globe snowfield. As I pushed through the softly falling snow, I spotted Ahri strolling around dressed lightly.
“Isn’t it cold in that outfit?”
“It’s bearable.”
With that, she continued ahead, leaving her footprints in the pristine white ground.
Ten minutes passed, then another ten. The snowstorm had cleared, but traversing the snowfield was still no easy feat. Just as sweat began trickling down my nose, I asked her.
“Are you going in today?”
“Not sure.”
“Wouldn’t tomorrow be better? You’d have the chance to ask for advice again.”
Instead of answering my question, Ahri threw me a peculiar one.
“Do you love your parents?”
If I said “no,” would I be branded as a very ungrateful child?
“Well, of course….”
“Why?”
It was such a commonplace question that I found myself momentarily stumped. Of course, there were countless reasons. My parents are great people!
“They raised me, right? Not just materially, but emotionally too. They’re really good people.”
“My question isn’t about the reasons for maintaining love, but rather what created that love in the first place.”
Curious to know the origin of love instead of its maintenance? What on earth is she talking about?
“You’ve loved your parents for twenty years, and even now that you’re in the hotel, you miss them because they raised you well. What if they were terrible people?”
“I probably wouldn’t miss them. If things were really bad, say they abused me? I might wonder when they would die.”
“Let’s go back to when you were an infant. You would have loved your parents then too. They probably thought you were so precious they could put you in their eyes without hurting themselves.”
“Usually, that’s how it goes.”
“Why is that? Why do parents love their children? Because they depend on them when they get old?”
“… That’s a stretch. That’s a matter for decades into the future after having children. Besides, the odds of a grown-up child taking care of their parents well aren’t that high.”
“You’re right. But what about the opposite? Isn’t it more intriguing? A child loves their parents the moment they’re born, even though the parents haven’t done anything to deserve that love.”
I think I’m starting to understand where Ahri is going with this. She’s saying that the love between parents and their children arises in a moment without rational justification.
Parents have no idea what kind of child is being born. Any benefit to them is too distant a thought. As children, how can newborns know anything about the parents they just met?
Yet, why do they fall in love from the very first encounter?
If I had to question the answer, no one would know. It’s not a romantic story that needs to be brought up.
“So, are you implying that the love between parents and children is due to genetics?”
Ahri nodded lightly at my words.
“Exactly. It’s more about genetics than the nurturing they received later or cultural backgrounds that affect their bond. The starting point of love is genetic. Don’t you think so?”
There’s some truth to that.
To suggest an elaborate reason for it, even brainless creatures like rats will protect their offspring, and the offspring will follow their parents. Thus, the start of love can indeed be traced back to genetics.
Of course, I believe human love is much more sophisticated than the love of animals…but even so, it’s hard to deny the significant role genetics plays.
“Somewhat true. But why the sudden deep talk?”
Ahri didn’t respond. Instead, her previously gloomy expression lifted a little.
Was there something comforting in our conversation? This conversation would usually feel uncomfortable and devoid of romance.
“Ugh!”
Suddenly, Ahri picked up a snowball and threw it at me!
“Yikes! What the heck?”
“Catch this! Flying Eagle!”
Before I could react, a fast-moving snowball flew right past me. Ahri’s absurd side reminded me so much of Miro!
It didn’t take long before our companions from the hotel burst out and started throwing snowballs too.
*
– Kim Ahri
— Splash!
“…”
— Thud!
“… Don’t you want to be friends with me?”
I keenly watched the Perro that I borrowed from Songee.
According to Songee, Perro behaved differently just before entering the Mirror Room…
“Isn’t it sleeping too much? Wham!”
I threw a round plastic toy from the tub at Perro. Showing off its lazy behavior was just a ruse; it’s agile when—
Well, it didn’t show any agility. Instead, it simply toppled over with a shriek from the toy hitting it.
“…”
— Beep! Beep!
“Seeing you like this makes it hard to believe you’re a mystical creature born from a golden egg.”
It seems it had no intention of giving any prior warning. Well, it’s always focused on Songee anyway.
Though it seems to pay a bit of attention to Seungyub in the Curse Room, that’s where it ends.
— Thud!
After getting out of the tub and drying my hair and body, I donned light clothing. I felt it was time to stop dragging my feet. Let’s get going.
I wanted to hear the Owl’s advice one more time, but I had different thoughts. The Owl isn’t one to simply provide straightforward answers.
It always mixes its intentions into bizarre and twisted responses. Would it desire Miro’s revival?
I doubt it. It might think of increasing unnecessary variables. So I suspected that no matter how I phrased my questions, it would deliver answers with negative nuances.
— Ding!
A clear sound echoed. At long last, the moment I had awaited for so long had arrived.
*
– Kim Ahri
It’s a space filled with light. Every surface—floor, walls, ceiling—was adorned with dazzling mirrors.
As I scanned the surroundings, I felt something was off. Mirrors don’t create light; they just reflect it. For them to shine, there must be a separate light source, but nothing of the sort existed in this space.
Not an extraordinary observation; in this hotel, that’s not all that unusual.
Moments later, I received a notification that had been anticipated.
“Participant Kim Ahri, congratulations! You have discovered the hotel’s hidden secret, ‘The Mirror Room!’”
“Everyone knows it was Songee who discovered it. So why does the wording stay the same? This feels a bit half-hearted, doesn’t it?”
I jokingly took a jab, but the hotel ignored my comment, delivering the remaining information instead. I knew the story well. It takes a ticket to make a wish, but the first time is free.
I slowly moved toward the massive mirror directly in front of me. The closer I got, the more colorful something began to manifest in the surrounding mirrors.
Some mirrors displayed a powerful sword infused with dark energy.
Others revealed a mystic throne bathed in celestial starlight.
Some showed me reborn as a transcendent being, awakened by the power hidden in ancient blood.
And some mirrored a ‘wise’ Miro sporting a smile.
“…”
I knelt and clasped my hands.
Channeling my mind to the omnipotent being somewhere in the hotel that even the Administration Bureau struggles to fully comprehend, I gathered my concentration.
Memories of long-ago resurfaced—days spent with Miro in a hotel from amuch earlier time.
Miro whining about not wanting to eat, and how happy she was when her friend was sealed in the Curse Room and almost wreaked havoc. Miro nearly killed a complaining companion just by overpowering them.
…Not the most pleasant memories to recall.
Ahem! Let’s think more positively this time.
The girl who would feed me delicious treats, the one who clung to me on the couch at night because she didn’t want to sleep alone, the one who flicked away threats from my companions with a mere gesture.
All these memories came flooding back as if they were just yesterday.
It’s quite curious. Humans are notorious for forgetting, so how can events from decades ago be so vivid?
Memories after escaping are far further back in time and they’ve become quite fuzzy. The branch manager who first took me in, and all the agents I called senior back then… I can hardly remember their faces now.
I steadied myself. Like a droplet of water falling into a calm lake, sending waves throughout, my singular wish began to ripple through my heart entirely.
One by one.
Different impulses that are native to human nature began to fade away. The one singular wish that was stronger than anything consumed all other desires.
Mirrors reflecting the sword and throne—my reborn self—lost their light one by one.
Finally, the mirror reflecting the mysteriously smiling Miro was the only one left, and I prayed fervently.
I hope my mother, who has suffered for so long, will be given another chance. I wish her spirit may once again be imbued with clarity before her resurrection.
The mirror trembled and emitted an unknown light. Is my wish being granted?
“With your wish, some parts cannot be fulfilled! Would you like to confirm?”
“Something can’t be fulfilled? Why out of nowhere—”
Before I could even respond, the mirror suddenly began to display an unclear video. This video—
It was a video about Miro.
*
…
…
*
I understood why some parts of my wish could not be granted in the Mirror Room and what “feasible options” entailed.
A conversation I once had with Songee flitted through my mind. What could have caused Miro to lose her intelligence? Was there a price to pay for making a wish in the Mirror Room?
Songee had dismissed that notion, saying that the Mirror Room only demands a ticket as payment and wouldn’t take away human intellect. Therefore, Miro must have wanted this herself.
“It’s okay. Now that I know the other direction…”
The Mirror Room had provided alternative possibilities to address this dilemma. So—
— Ding!
The clear sound resounded once more. The mirror showed me an unexpected video.
…The moment I was born.
I see a beautiful girl.
A girl who looks just like me, a twin with mysteriously flowing silver hair, kneeling quietly in the Mirror Room, praying.
“I pray to the ruler of the hotel, seated upon the great throne. I want a perfect companion—a child who can overcome the hotel’s trials. A child born with extraordinary powers and a unique destiny. Despite the evil god wielding endless strength, they should remain unyielding to fear, even when trials become tangled. A child with rationality that fears no sacrifice, capable of upholding the greater good of humanity.”
“And there’s one essential condition above all else: That child must love me and not betray me. Even if the heavens fall and the earth splits, no matter how endless time flows or memories scatter like fleeting dreams—my unwavering love for me shall remain. Please grant me a perfect child.”
As I turned my back on the girl laughing brightly in the mirror, I realized my eyes were welling with hot tears, blurring my vision.
Yes, I had suspected it softly. I had thought it strange for so long.
How could such memories and feelings toward Miro remain unchanged even after all this time?
Even as all my memories and emotions faded over the years…
Only one memory and feeling never changed.
I was Miro’s perfect child. My genes are Miro’s wish.
—
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