I Became a Hotelier at the Goryeo National Hotel - Chapter 26

—————
This chapter was translated by Lunox Team. To support us and help keep this series going, visit our website: LunoxScans.com
—————

Episode 26

“I understand you’re all nervous and anxious. But you are the finest trainees selected through fierce competition. Believe in yourselves and greet Hyeeumwon’s first customers with your best performance!”

As the Deputy Commander’s encouragement ended, tension and determination appeared together on the trainees’ faces.

When Lee Jeong Ah took the first step, the Nok Sa and trainees followed behind her in perfect formation.

Under the lantern lights hanging along the path leading to the central gate, all personnel had already come out and lined up on both sides facing the main gate.

Lee Jeong Ah walked between them, conducting a final inspection of their appearance, then turned toward the gate.

After taking a deep breath, Lee Jeong Ah shouted in a resolute voice.

“Open the gates of Hyeeumwon!”

At the Deputy Commander’s order, the gatekeepers threw open the main gate wide.

It was the historic moment of Hyeeumwon’s opening.

* * *

Through the wide-open gates, Eun Cheon entered Hyeeumwon together with the Dashi Kingdom merchant party.

“Welcome! We welcome you all to Hyeeumwon!!”

The lined-up Hyeeumwon members greeted them with bright smiles on their faces in unison.

Some of the trainees were surprised to see merchants with exotic appearances they had never seen before, but under the Deputy Commander’s sharp gaze, they came to their senses and began performing their assigned duties efficiently.

The Nok Sa first quickly separated the horses from the carriages and put them in the stable, then moved the trade goods they had brought to the merchant exclusive warehouse, locked it securely, and handed the keys to the Deputy Merchant Leader.

Then.

Everyone’s eyes widened when they discovered boys tied with rope bonds coming in one after another behind the merchants.

‘What, what are those?’

Lee Jeong Ah was equally surprised.

She quickly ran to Eun Cheon and asked.

“General Manager, who on earth are those children?”

“Bandits who attacked the merchant party. More importantly, are all preparations complete?”

“Yes, of course, perfectly… Hm? I think I just misheard something. Ba, bandits?!”

“You heard correctly.”

“What?! Why bandits?!”

“First, give them something to eat.”

“Wha—at?!”

Having finished speaking, Eun Cheon went inside. Jun Gyeong approached Lee Jeong Ah, who was bewildered.

“What did Eun Cheon say?”

Lee Jeong Ah spoke with a dazed expression.

“…He said to give them food.”

“Huh? That frost demon? What’s gotten into him? Well, do as he said. They’re kids who’ve been starving for a long time, so don’t worry—they don’t even have the strength to hold chopsticks.”

“What, what did you say?!!”

Jun Gyeong also left the shocked Lee Jeong Ah behind and shuffled off to follow where Eun Cheon had gone.

‘What on earth is this situation.’

But whatever the situation, the Deputy Commander had to follow the General Manager’s orders.

Lee Jeong Ah called the Hyeeumwon Nok Sa to take care of the captured children, then turned her attention back to the trading company group.

* * *

Meanwhile, Nasim was on the verge of facial spasms from trying to manage his expression.

In truth, from the moment Hyeeumwon came into view, he had been completely captivated by the unfamiliar landscape.

The crimson sky, and the distant view of Hyeeumwon with lantern light gently spreading like fireflies from the mountains where shadows were beginning to fall, was breathtakingly beautiful.

Guided by the Nok Sa into Jigaek-cheong, Nasim unconsciously stopped in his tracks for a moment.

Though he had visited countless caravanserais (large-scale lodging facilities) following his father, the Merchant Leader, this was the first reception space he’d seen that possessed such unique dignity and beauty together.

Unlike the purely ornate royal palaces and wealthy merchants’ mansions of the Western Regions, this had a restrained yet flawlessly ordered dignity, and within it dwelt exquisite beauty.

He had never anticipated that the architecture of Goryeo, an eastern nation, would possess such grand yet refined aesthetic sense. Nasim thought he might need to completely revise his impressions of the East that he had formed until now.

But Nasim deliberately denied these feelings of his.

Who was he, after all!

Wasn’t he the one and only heir to both the Al-Fayruz Trading Company under the protection of the Seljuk Empire’s Imperial Court, and the finest ‘Wahat Alnu’ caravanserai in the Dashi Kingdom!

‘This Nasim! Don’t be carelessly bewitched by things that are only superficially splendid!’

Nasim took particular pride in the caravanserai operated by his family.

“It would be a grave mistake to think of a caravanserai as merely lodging where travelers sleep and receive food and water.”

To Nasim, a caravanserai was a bridge connecting settlement to settlement, a marketplace where precious goods from east and west, ancient and modern, passed through, a melting pot of information where all manner of rumors and gossip danced, and sometimes a wellspring of friendship where strangers leaned on each other’s shoulders like brothers.

A true caravanserai was like a living, breathing heart that connected civilization to civilization, person to person!

[…Excuse me, sir?]

Lost in contemplation, Nasim was startled when familiar words from his homeland suddenly reached his ears. And a woman’s voice at that?

‘Huh? There are no women in our group though?’

As Nasim looked around and then down, he saw a Goryeo woman looking up at him with a smile.

It was Oh Seo Rin who had called to Nasim.

Having heard that Nasim was the Merchant Leader’s heir, Lee Jeong Ah had sent Seo Rin, who could speak the Dashi Language, to check if he needed anything.

[Y-y-you, just now, w-w-were you c-c-calling me?]

Nasim found himself stuttering without realizing it.

‘…She’s pretty! A woman with clear skin that seems never to have been exposed to the sun, hair like a desert night, and cute, plump peach-colored lips!’

Though Nasim stammered in confusion, Seo Rin smiled brightly with a (business) smile.

Poof!

…Nasim’s face turned bright red at the beautiful Goryeo woman’s smile.

Nasim had so little interest in women that his companions suspected him of preferring men.

This was understandable, as his father had many wives and many children besides himself, and having received ‘special’ care from his zealous mother and elder sisters while competing with numerous half-brothers to become heir, he had come to shudder at the thought of women.

But… this woman before his eyes seemed different.

[Yes, that’s right. I apologize if I startled you.]

Nasim shook his head vigorously at her words.

[N-n-not at all!]

Nasim felt his mind becoming confused.

Part of it was because he hadn’t seen a woman in a long time, but the woman before him was close to Nasim’s ideal type!

Having grown up among his mother, who was as large as his father, and his elder sisters who took after her completely, Nasim’s wish had been to meet a cute woman who was small and delicate-looking, someone who would fit snugly in his arms.

‘Allah! Thank you! The reason you made me endure that long, harsh sea voyage was to guide me to this woman!’

Nasim looked at her with moist eyes, but Seo Rin didn’t notice this.

Seo Rin was recalling what Deputy Commander Lee Jeong Ah had said to her.

“This trading company’s visit holds significance beyond a simple first stay. They are closely connected to the Dashi Kingdom’s Imperial Court. If a positive reputation about Hyeeumwon spreads through them, trading companies from other countries will naturally come to seek this place as well. This will also be of great help in filling the state treasury. Therefore, be especially careful not to do anything that would displease them.”

Seo Rin glanced at the man before her with fresh eyes.

A large build that rivaled the Middle General’s, distinct and handsome features befitting an Arab man, healthy-looking bronze skin, and gray eyes with a hint of sky blue.

‘…He’s really handsome. He looks like a handsome Arab prince I once saw in the media.’

How should I put it… He was the kind of striking handsome man who immediately caught your eye.

Notes

1) Settlement : Land where one settles and lives in a fixed place.

—————
This chapter was translated by Lunox Team. To support us and help keep this series going, visit our website: LunoxScans.com
—————