Chapter: 38
Chapter 38 – Party Time! – What on earth did you go through?
[User: Han Kain (Wisdom)
Date: Day 13
Current Location: Floor 1, Room 105
Sage’s Advice: 3]
Now, all of us, with a sense of familiarity, woke up in front of Room 103 and were returning to Room 105. No tears of joy, no hugs—everyone just wore blank expressions.
What in the world happened?
There was only one person who could answer that, and the rest had either played “animal games” until they lost consciousness, so no one had anything to say.
Stealing glances at Songee, the only one who could explain, I noticed something had changed about her.
Due to the hotel’s nature, if something terrifying happened inside, we would return to our original selves once we came out; but there was a change in atmosphere that couldn’t be hidden. Her usually timid demeanor was gone, replaced by an endlessly exhausted expression. Plus, right before waking up, the clear message appeared on everyone’s status windows.
Final Resolution. Inheritance of “Diverse Perspectives” Acquired.
I had no clue what it meant, but I understood that Songee had completed a tremendous adventure all on her own while we were out of our minds—and had managed to obtain the “treasure.” In other words, she had suddenly ascended to be the top of our food chain.
Everyone was sneakily glancing at Songee as we headed to Room 105 for lunch, hoping that she might share something as we ate delicious food.
*
Boom! Boom! Clap clap clap clap clap! Clap clap clap clap clap! Clap clap clap clap clap!
As soon as we stepped into Room 105, the sound of fireworks exploded in the air, and applause echoed throughout the empty room!
/Dear esteemed guests! Congratulations!
All staff members of our hotel sincerely congratulate you on discovering your first treasure. Endless trials! Missing comrades! Hopelessly strong foes! You have overcome all these adversities to reach the treasure! You have undeniably proven that you are the heroes we have been waiting for.
Of course, we hold no suspicions about the abilities of everyone else either. All invited guests are qualified to seize a treasure. We are thrilled to witness the heroic tales you will create.
However, the treasures possess great power and are very difficult to use. How about everyone takes a break over the next three days and gets accustomed to the treasure? Sometimes, a good rest is necessary for a greater leap forward.
Today’s surprise event: Party Time! will commence now.
# Party Time will last for three days during which no dangerous incidents will occur. There are also secrets in this hotel that only reveal themselves during Party Time!
A glittering announcement flickered across the display in Room 105. Everyone went speechless for about 30 seconds—
Clap clap clap! Everyone, shout thanks to Songee! Hurry up!
Finally, the mood burst open as everyone erupted into joyous celebration! Initially, Songee’s face showed confusion mixed with fatigue, but soon she turned red and returned to being the Songee we all knew and loved.
As we summoned food and began eating, the questioning commenced.
“So, Miss Dark-Songee, can you please explain what happened to us?”
“Unni! What on earth is with that strange title, Dark-Songee? What even is that?”
“Then how about we call her Fallen Songee? I was so terrified I couldn’t even talk to you until just now.”
The story she unraveled was shockingly wild.
A human farm created by aliens using mind-manipulation tools; a spaceship with that farm, and a divine transcendent entity responsible for its engine. She told us how she managed to escape and earn the inheritance with the help of that transcendent.
And then… the trials.
The tale of meeting accomplices in a place where countless intellects were tortured indefinitely, with only their heads remaining. The gruesome tale of massacring baby Athanasias to take down the administrator. By this point, we were all barely able to breathe, but the last trial she mentioned was a fight against us who had been under alien control!
Everyone fell silent.
Songee didn’t elaborate on how she got through those trials, and we didn’t want to bother asking about how she—essentially—killed each one of us. Looking back, she had also played the role of our killer in the Mansion of Fear.
She was practically the embodiment of a terror party slaughterer. Of course, I kept that thought to myself.
As the atmosphere turned icy, Eunsol-noona swiftly organized the chaotic situation as she always did.
“Alright! Anyway, let’s leave the past behind and figure out what we need to do moving forward!”
“According to the announcement, we have a break for the next three days. The first order of business is to spend time getting everyone on the same page about that ‘inheritance’,” I suggested.
“Sounds good. What about everyone else’s thoughts?” Eunsol-noona asked.
“They say no danger during Party Time, plus there is a secret that reveals itself only during Party Time. Isn’t that just telling us to explore the hotel?” Jinchul-hyung added, soon joined by Eunsol-noona.
“We have a lot to accomplish: understanding the inheritance, exploring the hotel. Is there anything else we all should ponder?”
There seemed to be something worth contemplating. In fact, there had been something puzzling me since I first laid eyes on the status window after waking up.
“It’s nothing serious, but the date on my status window shows ‘Day 13’. When we entered, it was Day 10, and our last day as animals was Day 13. Since then, the dates haven’t counted at all. I’m not sure how significant these dates are.”
“Hmm, if we think about it simply, maybe it’s because you were out cold, Kain? That status window is visible only to you, after all. It might not reflect the time after you either died or failed,” Jinchul-hyung speculated.
“Is that it?” I answered, feeling a bit unclear but it seemed reasonable.
“Let’s rearrange our ‘blessings’ one more time. For me, it’s simple—I get stronger and have better stamina. It’s straightforward, but it seems some of us have complicated ones…,” Jinchul-hyung noted.
“Mine is the ‘status window’. It alerts me during crises,” I chimed in.
“For me, it’s the market,” Eunsol-noona noted. “I’ve bought tonfas, capsaicin, and bandages. Oh! Speaking of which, according to Kain’s status window, it’s Day 13, right? My market seems to operate based on that. Basically, I can buy three items per week, and since tomorrow will be Day 14, we need to buy three useful items between today and tomorrow. I’m definitely getting more capsaicin. The others can figure out the rest.”
“My luck doesn’t seem to activate since that Weird Family… Maybe it’s a long cooldown blessing,” Seungyub said.
“I think I get what Affinity is. It probably allows me to gain favor from non-human beings,” Jinchul-hyung added.
“You all know mine, right? Communication,” I concluded.
*
So, we had a clearer understanding of the six blessings.
Han Kain (20) – Wisdom -> Status Window. Warnings in crises.
Cha Jinchul (31) – Courage -> Enhanced physical abilities.
Yu Songee (17) – Affinity -> Gained favor from supernatural beings.
Park Seungyub (14) – Luck -> Literally luck. Might be a lengthy cooldown.
Lee Eunsol (32) – Wealth -> HP Market.
Kim Mooksung (64) – Communication -> Like KakaoTalk in your head. Serious conversation restrictions.
And then there were still two blessings with unclear identities.
Elena Ivanova (23) – Justice.
Kim Ahri (16) – Suggestion.
I think I understand what Suggestion is about.
Ahri herself pretends not to know, but I clearly remembered her hypnotizing me in the Mansion of Fear. That was probably what Suggestion referred to. With our lunch wrapped up and after gathering all the relevant info, we agreed to check the inheritance before we embarked on a hotel exploration spree.
*
As soon as we began testing the bracelet for its function “Diverse Perspectives,” we discovered that only Songee could use the bracelet. She tried taking it off and giving it to others, but it showed no special qualities when on someone else’s wrist—only the rightful owner could use it.
Would this feature be a characteristic of future treasures as well, or just this bracelet?
Once Songee started using the bracelet on us, we collectively lost our minds.
*
What on earth is happening? For hours we’ve been going around experiencing this bracelet’s powers, but it’s shocking every single time.
In front of me, Eunsol-noona’s face suddenly tripled in size before disappearing and being replaced by Jinchul-hyung’s face. I was about to reach out to touch him when I realized…
There was nothing there to start with.
In disbelief, I turned around and suddenly found myself in a forest. I turned back again, and this time, I was floating high up in the sky surrounded by clouds.
The power of “Diverse Perspectives.”
Just like its name suggests, it completely shook our sense of perception of the world!
Even as I tried to think of some way to fight back against it, I had no idea how. Did all those Athanasias (or whatever they were) carry these mind-boggling items around? To us, they appeared utterly absurd, yet Songee reacted with ambiguity as she said,
“It feels different from when I was using it on the spaceship.”
“Different? What do you mean?” I asked.
“It feels like there are a lot more restrictions this time,” she explained.
???
“You mean this is under ‘restrictions’?”
It was already significantly harder to use than when the Athanasias had it, but that was likely a user issue. Still, it had gotten a lot more difficult since it became Songee’s turn. The mobility features were also disabled.
“Maybe the mobility function belonged solely to the ship,” she suggested.
“Could be,” I replied.
“What do you mean by it being ‘harder to use’?”
“Once I start using it, the mental strain is intense. I can barely keep it going for more than 10 minutes,” she said.
“Noona! Isn’t that a nerf?” Seungyub chimed in.
“Nerf?”
“Even in games, a super powerful weapon used by a boss gets seriously toned down when you defeat them to avoid ruining the game’s balance,” Seungyub elaborated.
“That’s funny, but it seems like a pretty accurate description.”
Eunsol-noona agreed, and then Songee decided to test it one last time.
“I’ll try it once more. This time… Ahri?”
*
Ahri
It felt weird. And certainly made me jealous.
An alien mind manipulation tool.
It was incomparable to the “shoddy toys” used by the Administration Bureau. What was astonishing was that, despite its absurd capabilities, there was virtually no cost associated. Unlike the “crappy gadgets” used by the Administration, which required a liter of blood, shortened lifespans, or were the size of buildings, only capable of creating a 10-second illusion.
The item that that girl had was bracelet-sized and could toy with intellects for over 10 minutes, with the only cost being a mild headache.
Because the hotel continuously distributed nonsensical items like this, it was no wonder the Administration could never let go of their greed and kept shoving agents into this hotel.
While I was lost in those thoughts, chaos erupted all around. Suddenly it transformed into a sea of flames, then a frozen wasteland (I even felt the cold), and then only the floating faces of my teammates were left.
Should I try to resist?
I had a feeling that I might stand a chance, but I ultimately decided against it. It would be exhausting to make someone with such powers wary of me.
The bracelet test was likely coming to an end. I felt a whoosh and returned to the room.
That’s when words appeared in midair.
What exactly are you?
I remember everything.
What are you hiding from us?
I will keep my eyes on you.
Ah, her suspicion level is already at MAX. I definitely wanted to avoid situations like this! But what can I do? If I hadn’t had to use my power back at the Farm, I might have killed her and ruined everything.
It’s going to be so tiring having someone with such powerful abilities be this cautious about me…
Should I do something to ease her caution?
*
Slowly, Ahri’s gaze came back into focus, and it felt like Songee’s bracelet test was nearing its conclusion.
Just as I was about to brainstorm our hotel exploration plan with everyone—
Ahri suddenly leaped forward and hugged Songee tightly.
“Unni! I love you~~!”
I was left utterly speechless.
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