Chapter: 32
32 – Room 103, Cursed Room – ‘Animal Farm’ (6)
[User: Han Kain (Wisdom)
Date: Day 13
Current Location: Floor 1, Room 103 (Cursed Room – Animal Farm)
Sage’s Advice: 3]
The snake (Lee Eunsol) curled up her body as much as possible.
Although everyone had their own roles assigned in the strategy, mine was undoubtedly the most crucial among them.
In reality, figuring out where I should wait for my cue was more challenging than it sounded.
Sure, creating chaos by wrecking the farm isn’t entirely tough for animals with intelligence, especially if they’re all in on it.
However, predicting the actions of the farm family amidst such pandemonium? That’s a whole different kettle of fish!
But, well… for laying an ambush, I didn’t need to predict every little move.
Just hiding in a spot they absolutely have to reach is enough.
Creek…
The door of the carriage swung open wide.
“Peter! Mei! Help your father get in! Peter! You can drive the carriage, right?”
“Um, I’ll give it my best shot. Dad taught me a bit here and there.”
“Great! Hurry up… We need to get to the doctor across the river!”
Everyone scrambled inside the carriage, wrapping bandages around the bloodied farmer. Peter took the driver’s seat while Brian, Amy, and Mei squeezed into the back.
Just as expected.
Amidst the chaos, predicting what would happen next was tough for me too. The one thing I could be sure of was that, no matter what, they had to leave the farm in the carriage.
Whether they were going to see a doctor, seeking help from outside, or merely trying to escape—whatever their goal was, the outcome always led them to the carriage!
Now, it was my time.
I might not have a high chance of surviving this, but… that didn’t matter.
Considering there were plenty of survivors, it should be fine. The rest will escape alive, and surely I’ll be back in one piece too.
Then, the snake’s head, which had been curled up in the crevice of the chair, suddenly shot forward.
Before the farm family could even react—its fangs sunk into Brian and Amy in an instant!
—
From the top of the hill, I looked down at the farm.
The farm, which had dragged us through various torments over the past four days, was now a whirlpool of chaos.
Livestock were running amok; families were fleeing, groaning in agony and despair; and a pack of wolves was lurking, eyeing their prey.
It almost felt like we were repaying our pain tenfold.
But… it’s not over yet.
Now that we’ve started a war, we need to see it through to the end.
It isn’t over until the enemy is down!
Family members who burst out of the farm supported the farmer and climbed into the carriage.
That too was according to Eunsol’s predictions.
I was reminded yet again how good Eunsol was at reading people’s actions.
I waited.
“Ahhh! Mom! Daddyyyyyy!!!!!”
“Aaah! You damn snake!!! Just die! Please die!!!”
Screams erupted from the carriage.
Before long, the severed head and body of the snake were flung out of the carriage.
Ah… Eunsol must have met her end at this moment.
It’s a pity, but it’s alright.
We wouldn’t have long until we met again anyway. We’ll just laugh it off over dinner later!
With this final rush of rage, I’ll put an end to this annoying farm once and for all!
From the hill, I dashed toward the carriage.
My back legs began aching intensely again—But I was fine. Just a little longer, and it’ll be over. I’m not someone who can’t endure that much.
Of course, in a situation where there was already an injured person, and their parents were bitten by a snake, no one was in any shape to drive the carriage, and it stood completely still.
The horses, noticing my charge a moment too late, neighing in alarm, warned their masters, but—
Too late, you dumb idiots!
The head of the black cow slammed into the side of the carriage!
Like something out of a major car accident—which, thinking about it, was probably not far from the truth—the family lay strewn on the ground, moaning in pain.
Earlier, when I was furious, I considered trampling over these people outright…
But seeing the kids crying as they held onto their unconscious parents twisted my intentions a bit.
After all, both the husband and wife were bitten by the snake, with their shoulders already turning blue.
They wouldn’t last long.
As for the kids… even without my help, the wolves would likely take care of them. The gun’s broken, the carriage is wrecked, and their parents are dead. Even if I left them alone, they have no chance of survival.
Thinking about it, the wolves probably wouldn’t stop after just attacking the kids.
We also had to start considering ways to survive against the wolves.
The question now was—when exactly would it be considered an escape? Did all the kids have to die before we could escape?
Wouldn’t it just be quicker for me to trample them? That might hurt them less, right?
But, even though I’ve turned into an animal, isn’t stepping on kids a bit too much?
When did I start thinking I could commit such atrocities against people?
While I was in this spiral of thoughts, the Discord notifications started going off like crazy.
Goose (Yu Songee): Listen to me! There’s something wrong with this plan!
Rat King (Kim Mooksung): What’s wrong?
Goose (Yu Songee): I just met the monster! There’s absolutely no consideration for the monster!
No consideration for the monster.
She wasn’t wrong, but I couldn’t quite grasp it…
Haven’t we always escaped without uncovering every secret of the guest rooms?
For instance, in the case of the Strange Family in Room 101, Seungyub managed to escape with practically zero insight on what was going on.
What even is this Strange Family? What drove them into madness? I have no idea, but merely surviving was enough to gain a pass out of there.
It was the same for the Mansion of Fear in Room 102.
Compared to the Strange Family, we did uncover a few more threats—like the devil in the basement and Sir—but that was about it.
All we had were bits of information with no idea how to handle the situation.
Thus, the conclusion we had reached so far was that knowing all the secrets of the Cursed Room wasn’t a necessity for escape.
The matter regarding the monster absolutely needed investigation down the line, but was it urgent now?
So, gradually, I compared every bit of this to previous rooms one by one, and—
A shocking realization hit me.
Something was seriously off. This was a complete disaster.
There was another issue different from what Songee had found.
Where did the strange phenomenon occur in the Strange Family? Among those twisted family members.
Where did the strange phenomenon occur in the Mansion of Fear? Among the mansion and its inhabitants. Songee merely became a vessel for one of the mansion’s residents.
So then, where did the strange phenomenon occur in the Animal Farm?
It was within us.
The farmer family, whom we had seen as enemies, was not unusual at all.
They were just ordinary farmers tending to their farm!
The bizarre beings in this story weren’t the family members—they were us, the animals who suddenly started thinking like humans!
My head swirled with confusion.
If we were the odd beings in this scenario… maybe our approach from the very start was flawed?
Why did we suddenly transform into animals? That was the crucial question, and yet… none of us had questioned it at all.
As this unspeakable despair washed over me, I saw the kids screaming. Their parents had died, and they remained helplessly weeping.
And then—
Their crying ceased.
Like a trick of fate, the faces of the children, who had been spiraling in despair, suddenly turned eerily calm.
The entire farm fell silent.
The noise of the livestock, the screams of the children, the howls of the lurking wolves—all of it vanished.
An overwhelming presence crushed the mundane noises within that petty existence.
The world turned blank with white.
All the “stages” flipped upside down.
The carriage disappeared, the horses vanished, the wolves were gone. The farm, the couple, even the sobbing kids… all gone in an instant.
And deep within this white hell where nothing remained, I existed.
A bug, rolling around like an ant in the gaze of far superior beings.
Ah… it finally clicked.
I understood the nature of this hell.
The moment I comprehended it, I desperately wished for a swift death. I could not think about escape or clearing anything now.
It was too frightening, too painful—I merely wished to fall into oblivion and sleep eternally…
[User: Han Kain (Wisdom)
Date: Day 13
Current Location: Floor 1, Room 103 (Cursed Room – Animal Farm)
Sage’s Advice: 3]
Current Location: Floor 1, Room 103 (Cursed Room – Animal Farm)
Cursed Room – Animal Farm
Cursed Room – Animal
Cursed Room – Ani
Cursed Room – A…
Cursed Room – ㅁㅁㅁㅁㅁㅁ ㅁㅁㅁㅁ
Current Location: Floor 1, Room 103 (Cursed Room – Athanasia’s Human Farm)
/You have failed!
Narrow-minded perspective! Black-and-white thinking! Why do I believe I’m always right and the other isn’t?
Isn’t this narrow-minded way of thinking rooted in a haughty self-assurance that I can never be wrong? To conquer the trials of the Hotel, you must be a wise skeptic, capable of doubting everything!
Of course, it’s only natural that you include yourself among those doubts.
A prejudiced person has no right to gain Diverse Perspectives.
You have neither escaped the curse nor resolved its roots. How unfortunate!
But there’s still an opportunity! Wait for your teammates.
…
…
One of your teammates has successfully resolved the issue! Congratulations! The successful resolution allows all members to return safely.
…
You have obtained the inheritance ‘Diverse Perspectives.’
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