Escaping the Mystery Hotel

User: Han Kain (Wisdom)

Date: Day 92

Current Location: Miro’s Hell

Sage’s Advice: 2

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I moved towards the location the Chat Window guided me to, with the endless carol softly tickling my ears.

After walking around for less than five minutes I was sure of it. This place was a boarding school.

A British or American boarding school from quite some time ago.

- Click!

As I entered a room that seemed to serve as an office, like a faculty room nowadays, Grandpa and Ahri were already there.

“Oh! You’re here. I was beginning to wonder if you got lost along the way.”

“I was a little late because I was checking things out. The information the Hotel implanted is slowly coming back to me as I walk.”

“Yeah, well—why don’t you greet your noona?”

“…”

“…”

Neither Ahri nor I laughed.

Oddly enough, we had been given the roles of twin siblings.

“…Honestly, we don’t even look that much alike.”

“Are you an idiot? We’re not a pair of twin brothers or sisters, we’re a twin brother and sister. Being fraternal twins means that scientifically speaking, we shouldn’t resemble each other any more than regular siblings do.”

It’s not even just that.

Honestly, it feels like we’re different races.

Ahri’s appearance has a surreal quality that makes it hard to pinpoint, but she gives off a vibe of having mixed Western and Eastern ancestry.

Obviously, I don’t.

I let it go.

This was the Hotel, after all.

In this place, you just roll with the absurdities.

“Where do you think this school is? Judging by the atmosphere, it seems like it’s in America or Britain—”

“The time period is probably the early 1980s, and the school’s name is Eastwood High School. It’s in the U.S. By the way, you’ve probably remembered by now, but we’ve just transferred here as freshmen, so keep that in mind.” Ȑ

The general background was also gradually coming to me, and when I heard the school name and country, it made sense right away.

But the time period… That’s information I didn’t get from the Hotel’s implanted memories.

“Is this a school you know?”

Ahri nodded confidently.

“This is the high school Miro went to. But the educational system here isn’t like Korea’s 6-3-3 system (six years of elementary, three years of middle school, three years of high school). It’s a 5-3-4 system. So we’re technically more like 9th graders, rather than high school freshmen by Korean standards.”

“You seem to know quite a lot.”

Ahri’s expression suddenly turned somewhat wistful.

“I used to wonder a lot about what kind of person Miro was back on Earth. I spent a long time looking into it. Miro experienced a very tragic and terrifying event at this school around this time. She was rescued by the Administration shortly after and became an agent at a young age.”

The current time corresponds to when something tragic and terrifying happened during Miro’s school days.

Hearing that, I started to get a clearer sense of what this “hell” really was.

“It can’t be a coincidence that we’re reliving the most terrifying time of Miro’s life, right?”

“…”

This must be the moment when Miro first experienced Chaotic Disasters.

Although she saw countless horrors while working for the Administration afterward, none would have compared to the shock of her first traumatic experience as a child.

The essence of this hell was to replay the most painful moment of the person’s life.

Who could be behind this?

Who would create such a place of suffering and torment others so cruelly?

I sighed and returned to reality.

“You mentioned earlier that you’ve traced Miro’s past. Do you remember what kind of ‘incident’ she went through?”

Ahri smiled bitterly.

“I used to know, of course. I used to.”

As I suspected, the Hotel had selectively erased the part of her memory related to what happened to Miro.

It wasn’t surprising at all.

There was no way they’d let us go in knowing the answer beforehand.

“Still, if this is from Miro’s childhood, there’s an advantage. At least we don’t have to worry about her running wild with the Inheritance she gained in the Hotel.”

“Running wild? Our task is to save Miro, not hunt her down.”

“It is a rescue mission, but based on what we’ve heard, the person we’re supposed to rescue seems like the biggest threat here.”

“And it seems like you haven’t noticed it yet; Miro isn’t the only one without her Inheritance.”

At that, I tried summoning my Grimoire but realized nothing had come out.

It seemed like the thread connecting me to the Grimoire had been severed.

Just like the rooms where Inheritances were sealed, it appeared that this place also restricted their use.n/ô/vel/b//jn dot c//om

It was as if they wanted us to solely rely on our Blessings.

Fortunately, my wing tattoo and pen were still intact.

Grandpa slapped the desk with a firm hand.

“Get moving. You two need to attend class in the afternoon, don’t you? Look for Miro if you can, and search the school while you’re at it. Just don’t overdo it—your bodies are those of students, and you don’t want to get caught by security. I’ll handle the more aggressive investigation.”

A teacher would certainly have more freedom of movement than students.

After splitting up tasks, we left the office.

While walking down the hallway with Ahri, I couldn’t hold back anymore and asked her a question.

“There’s been something odd that’s been bothering me.”

“What’s that?”

“This school—did you say it’s set in the 1980s?”

“Yeah. I don’t remember the exact year, but I’m guessing that’s another detail the Hotel erased.”

“This is your mother’s childhood, right? How could it possibly be in the 1980s when your mom was older than you? Not just this school, but even the first party you mentioned, or the things you said about Perfect Life… Everything seems off when it comes to the ‘time period.’”

Ahri responded with a smile instead of an answer, “…Remember before we entered the Gate Room? Didn’t we make a promise? To stop hiding things from each other…

“I can tell you this for sure: First, this isn’t some personal secret of mine. Second, at least here in this Hotel, it’s not something you need to worry about. Third, when you get out, you’ll naturally learn the answer.”

Ahri walked ahead, making it clear she didn’t want to talk about it further.

That afternoon, I met Miro for the first time since entering the Hotel.

***“During the Revolutionary War, the Iroquois Confederacy faced its greatest internal division since its founding…

“…The Six Nations fractured, each tribe pursuing independent paths…”

…My mind felt hazy.

If this were a math or science class, maybe I could focus, but listening to the obscure details of Native American tribes during the American Revolution was making my mind drift into a fog.

- Thud!

A noise brought my attention back to reality.

“Teacher! Let’s take a break.”

It wasn’t break time.

We were in the middle of class. But the girl who brazenly suggested a break didn’t seem to care about such frivolous details. The other students began pulling out snacks without waiting for the teacher’s response.

“Oh, uh! Was my lecture boring? Maybe I should have made it more fun. Miro, what would be a fun topic for you?”

“Let’s just have sandwiches.”

“Sure!”

What do you mean by “Sure!”?

Isn’t this a classroom?

The teacher’s authority collapsed before my very eyes!

A student had interrupted the lesson and started snacking, and the teacher responded by encouraging it.

Seeing this insanity unfold, I could feel my Confucian spirit igniting in fury.

But Miro started to rally the students with a wave of her hand as if she were a queen bee leading her swarm.

“Hmm. Thomas, do you want a sandwich?”

“Yes! I do!”

“Do a handstand for 30 seconds, and I’ll give you a bite.”

The blond boy immediately stood on his hands, struggling to balance in exchange for a bite of Miro’s half-eaten sandwich.

Watching this chaotic scene, I could barely contain myself.

Han Kain: Your mom’s something else.

Kim Ahri: This is how American kids are.

Han Kain: Don’t generalize American kids as crazy.

Kim Mooksung: Save your words!

Neither Ahri nor I had the courage to step in and stop this, and we didn’t see an opening to intervene either.

Moreover, it was too risky to get involved, considering we might get caught up in the Chaotic Disaster too!

From a certain perspective, this was like a contagious mental contamination.

As the next period started, things got even more “free-spirited”.

- Thud!

“Hahaha! Here comes the knuckleball!”

“Headshot~! Nice!”

“Miro! Over here, over here!”

“The ball’s rolling~!”

The chaos of a snowball fight echoed from outside.

More than 20 kids were rolling around in the snow, and Miro, seemingly channeling the spirit of a Major League pitcher, was knocking them out one by one.

It was a scene of pure joy—if you ignored the fact that this was supposed to be math class.

Of course, it didn’t seem to be a problem.

The teacher was outside throwing snowballs too.

The only ones left inside were the kids who were sick or too sleepy, and then there was me and Ahri.

“…Miro seems to have had a happy school life.”

“Isn’t Miro super cute?”

Ahri, now looking at her mother’s younger self with what could only be described as rose-tinted glasses, left me speechless.

“Isn’t she just a brat?”

“She’s a middle schooler. That’s an age when kids are usually immature. And it’s not like she’s doing anything bad. She just likes having fun.”

- Whoosh! Thud! Crash!

A snowball flew through the window and hit me square in the head.

“…”

“Uh… Fun, right?”

Kim Mooksung: Ahri, can you come outside for a moment?

Suddenly, Grandpa called Ahri outside. Had he found something suspicious?

Ahri, who had been flustered by the snowball hitting me, quickly excused herself and went outside.

- Whoosh! Thud!

The second snowball?

This isn’t a coincidence, is it?

“Who the hell is it? I’m not going outside—”

“You really won’t come out?”

When I turned towards the window, there she was—a girl who looked like a snow fairy, smiling brightly at me from the other side of the window.

“…”

“Why won’t you come out? Let’s play together! If you stay in there, I’ll keep throwing snowballs!”

“I said I’d just stay here…”

“It’s more fun if everyone plays. Come on, come out~ come on~!”

Feeling tired, I turned back my gaze back to the classroom. I wasn’t interested in going outside, and I definitely didn’t want to engage in middle-school-level studies again.

“…You’re not listening to me.”

…?

“Look into my eyes.”

My head suddenly felt light, like I was floating in a dream.

Without realizing it, I turned toward the fiery glow in her eyes.

Those eyes—they were like Ahri’s, but also different.

Deep, endlessly deep, like a vortex.

A blessing from the heavens bestowed upon her at birth.

“You are my friend. My friends should follow me.”

Why do I always act on my own?

Is it rational caution?

Or is it from the primal fear of encountering a predator?

Friends are always together.

I’m Miro’s friend, so it’s only natural that I follow her.

This is the way it should be.

“You’ll have a good time with me.”

Ah! Now my mind is clear.

How fun would it be to follow Miro?

Let’s go outside.

Let’s have a snowball fight.

The discomfort that had filled me moments ago disappeared in an instant, replaced by a sense of pure contentment.

Feeling joyful, I stood up and began walking towards the door—

- Stab!

“Argh!”

“Don’t mess with me! Do you really think I’d fall for such cheap tricks?”

I slashed Miro’s eye with my pen and bolted out into the hallway.