Dimensional Hotel

Yu Sheng could not shake the strange feeling that Little Red Riding Hood had been on edge for quite some time now. He suspected it might have something to do with him, though he wasn’t entirely certain. Still, he refused to let it bother him too much. After all, he was quite used to puzzling situations by now, mostly thanks to Irene. She had taught him the skill of keeping calm even when everything around him seemed to be falling apart. So, Yu Sheng quickly pushed aside his doubts and stood up, focusing his mind on the task ahead. He concentrated on their next move, his senses sharpening like a well-trained scout before an important mission.

All around them, the museum’s guards—who looked more like unmoving, plastic mannequins—seemed scattered across various corridors and rooms. Yet something rather odd was happening. Yu Sheng could sense it: some of these mannequin-like guards were quietly being taken apart in midair, bit by plastic bit. It was as if the guards had stopped functioning altogether the moment the “intruders” (Yu Sheng and his companions) had slipped out of their line of sight. Now, these silent sentinels were gradually being “cleaned up,” as though the museum itself was removing them once they were no longer needed.

This peculiar process moved along slowly, too slowly for Yu Sheng’s liking. He knew that if he waited until every last plastic guard was completely gone, they would risk missing the narrow window of time during which the museum remained open. Yu Sheng recalled what Little Red Riding Hood had mentioned earlier: the museum would only appear during the night, and it would vanish once daybreak arrived, leaving them stranded if they lingered too long.

“Let’s keep going. We’ll head that way,” Yu Sheng said quietly, pointing toward a door at the very end of the corridor. His voice was calm and confident. “There aren’t any guards behind that door.”

“Understood,” replied Little Red Riding Hood, wasting no time. She gave a quick, silent signal to her wolf pack, and they followed Yu Sheng’s lead without hesitation. After all, he was the only one who could sense where the safe paths lay in this unpredictable place.

They stepped through the door and into a room softly lit with a warm, orange glow. In the center stood a grand sculpture shaped like a towering mountain range. All around them, the walls displayed bright, cheerful landscape paintings. Curiously, none of these paintings had a signature or artist’s name—each one was carefully labeled as “anonymous.” There were no plastic guards here, no signs of security blocking their way. Just as Yu Sheng had sensed, the path was indeed clear.

Little Red Riding Hood found it more than a bit unsettling. She had never imagined they could move so easily through a museum that was supposed to be “activated.” According to the Special Affairs Bureau’s reports, once these artificial guards were formed, the place became extremely dangerous—a threat severe enough to require a fully-armed, elite team to handle it. Yet here she was, leading her wolves through this hostile environment, passing through exhibition halls and branching corridors as if the guards—who were said to be everywhere—simply weren’t there.

But reality reminded her otherwise. Only when Yu Sheng quietly leaned in and whispered for them to look out, pointing to a distant corner where a hidden guard still lurked, did Little Red Riding Hood remember that deadly threats existed in every shadow. Without his guidance, they would have stumbled straight into danger.

They continued onward, passing through several more halls and rooms, yet they still couldn’t find the mysterious white exhibition hall mentioned in their information. This was starting to feel like a fruitless search, and the tension grew with every silent step.

“What’s wrong?” asked Little Red Riding Hood at once, tensing up. Her expression grew serious, her posture alert.

“We still haven’t found the white exhibition hall,” he said, keeping his voice low and measured. “We’ve already passed through every area without encountering guards. The only remaining paths are those protected by those plastic mannequins.”

“Maybe it’s further inside,” Irene suggested, perched comfortably on Yu Sheng’s shoulder. She was a tiny doll, and since they’d entered the museum, she hadn’t bothered to walk on her own even once. “You did mention that the structure of this place changes randomly.”

Yu Sheng shook his head slightly. “We’ve explored all the unguarded paths. The only routes left lead into areas where the guards are active.” His frown grew deeper. “That means the white exhibition hall could be in the very place where these guards stand watch.”

Irene opened her mouth as though to say something else, hesitated, then muttered a quiet curse. She knew what that meant. If the white exhibition hall was behind a cluster of active guards, their job had suddenly become much harder.

“So,” Little Red Riding Hood said grimly, “worst case, the hall is completely surrounded by those guards.” She narrowed her eyes. “Why, of all places, did it have to be there?”

Yu Sheng took a moment to think before offering another guess. “Or maybe these guards actually formed inside the white exhibition hall itself.” He gestured toward a door. “If we go out through that door, we’ll find ourselves in the center of the area where about seven or eight guards have gathered. I’ve noticed something: the guards in other parts of the museum are slowly disappearing, as if they’re being called back, but these particular ones haven’t moved at all. It’s like something happened inside that white exhibition hall—something that caused them to appear, and it’s still going on. Whatever triggered them is probably still there.”

Little Red Riding Hood, Irene, and Foxy exchanged worried glances. Yu Sheng’s reasoning sounded too logical to dismiss, and none of them liked what it implied.

“What should we do?” Irene finally asked, breaking the uneasy silence. “We could retreat. It wouldn’t be a bad idea to give up now. But if we do, then all the effort we made tonight would have been a complete waste. Also, remember how we got knocked around before we got here? I really don’t fancy leaving with nothing to show for it.”

Little Red Riding Hood said nothing for a moment. Then, she looked at Yu Sheng. “You decide,” she said simply.

Yu Sheng blinked in surprise. “You want me to decide? I’m new, clueless, and have a reputation for taking reckless chances.”

She shook her head. “This isn’t about experience. You’re the one who can lead us out of this Otherworld. You’re the only one who can sense the safe routes. It makes sense to trust your judgment.” 𝙧�

Yu Sheng’s face grew thoughtful. He took a long moment to consider their options, weighing the risks carefully. Finally, he sighed and nodded toward the door that led to the guarded area. “All right,” he said quietly, “let’s move a bit closer and see if we can figure out what’s happening. We’ll try to observe the white exhibition hall without letting them see us. If we can understand the situation, wonderful. If we can’t, we’ll fall back straight away.”

Before they moved, Yu Sheng asked a practical question: “They react only if they see us, right? Approaching to take a look won’t trigger them as long as we’re careful?”

Little Red Riding Hood confirmed this with a nod. “They respond solely to what they see. Investigators have tested this. They have vision only—no hearing, no sense of smell. They have a field of vision about one hundred and twenty degrees in front of them. That’s why a few well-placed guards can cover an entire open hall and leave no place for anyone to hide.”

Yu Sheng nodded thoughtfully, satisfied with this explanation. Then, with quiet determination, he led the group out of the current exhibition hall and into another corridor. It looked almost identical to the ones they’d already passed through, blank walls and polished floors, as though the museum was repeating itself in a strange loop.

At the end of this corridor, there was an exit. Yu Sheng stopped them short of it, holding up a hand as if to say, “Wait.”

Irene squinted ahead, her eyes sharper than one might expect from a tiny doll. “It’s a white room,” she said softly, catching a glimpse of something bright through the slightly open door at the end.

Yu Sheng, however, could sense the presence of the guards far better than she could see. He could feel them standing there, motionless, and he could even see the edge of a dark blue uniform peeking through the gap. Just as they feared, the guards were stationed in the white exhibition hall, showing no signs of dissolving or being removed.

Just then, Little Red Riding Hood wrinkled her nose and sniffed the air twice. Her face darkened in an instant. “Blood,” she said quietly.

Foxy nodded in agreement. “I smell it too. It’s fresh.”

A chill seemed to settle over the group. They smelled blood. That meant a body, or something worse. The scent of death itself. There was no doubt about it—something violent had taken place in that white exhibition hall, and that was what had caused the guards to appear and remain. From their current position, however, it was impossible to see what lay inside. Getting any closer risked giving themselves away.

“…I really should have borrowed Dorothy’s drone,” Little Red Riding Hood muttered under her breath. “This would be so much easier if I had one.”

Hearing this made Yu Sheng curious. He had heard scattered bits of information about Little Red Riding Hood’s mysterious “Fairy Tale” group, but he knew very little for sure. The members all took code names from old stories, but he didn’t know what kind of abilities they had. Little Red Riding Hood and her wolves were unusual enough. What about Dorothy? What connection did she have to drones?

Emboldened by his curiosity, Yu Sheng asked softly, “If we get the chance, would you tell me more about your group? I mean, I know each member uses a fairy tale character as a code name, but that’s about it. I’m really curious about your ‘Fairy Tale’ organization.”

Little Red Riding Hood’s face remained indifferent. “Curiosity isn’t always a good thing,” she replied coolly. Still, she did not outright refuse. “Maybe one day, if they’re all right with it, I’ll introduce you.” Then she shook her head gently. “For now, we must make a decision. Moving forward into that hall is clearly out of the question.”

Yu Sheng rubbed his chin, thinking of other possibilities. “You mentioned drones,” he began carefully. “Would those guards react to a drone if one flew in front of them?”

“No,” said Little Red Riding Hood. “They only respond to actual intruders. These guards have no true intelligence; they follow a set of basic rules. That’s how we can sometimes trick them.”

Yu Sheng paused, considering. “What if we send one of your wolves to take a peek?” he suggested.

For a moment, Little Red Riding Hood didn’t answer. Then she shook her head firmly. “No,” she said.

“Why not?” Yu Sheng pressed, sounding puzzled.

“Because,” said Little Red Riding Hood, her voice unusually quiet and thoughtful, “in a way, my wolves are me.”