Our Hotel Is Open for Business as Usual - Chapter 13

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

Chapter 13.

There are roughly four methods for handling monstrous guests.

1. Contract
2. Exorcism
3. Management
4. Neglect

The contract route incurs semi-permanent penalties. The exorcism route is dangerous and costly. Neglect is something I must never even consider if I wish to keep the Hotel operational.

Therefore, the safest approach is “management.”

“How troublesome.”

I murmured softly, gazing at the marble floor that had finally regained its original luster.

“The management manual for The Wet Person is straightforward. Reinforce the humidity control system, monitor the plumbing to track movement patterns, and above all, physically block contact frequency between it and human guests.”
“Yes.”
“It’s an extremely rational approach—at least no one would die—but the world has a way of being capricious. Things rarely unfold as I intend.”

Exceptions always arise.

“The humidity control system has failed.”

The weather exceeding critical thresholds was likely the culprit.

“When the system collapses, The Wet Person’s wandering frequency spikes dramatically. Especially the probability of it beginning to track human guests in response to their body heat increases exponentially.”
“Yes, it increases.”

An unwelcome development, both as Hotel General Manager and as a human being.

“The guests have also descended earlier than anticipated.”

According to protocol, I should have repaired the humidity control system first, but I lacked the physical time. The Wet Person had already secured the Lobby passage.

Meanwhile, the unsuspecting Guests were walking down the stairs on their own four legs.

‘It was a complete disaster.’

There was only one option: what they called Distraction.

‘Crude, but the most reliable temporary measure.’

The user becomes bait themselves, intercepting the monster Guest’s attention.

The distraction method against The Wet Person was surprisingly straightforward—simply block its path and provide appropriate movement guidance. The success condition required humidity above 65%.

‘Current humidity: 65.3 percent… it was cutting it close.’

If the distraction succeeds, pursuit of the human Guest is forcibly delayed, and the erosion rate is adjusted downward. The reason The Wet Person ascended to the 7th Floor without complaint just now was precisely because those conditions were met.

“Had I been even slightly slower, a far more gruesome stain would have marked the marble floor. Dealing with The Wet Person after it had already encountered the human Guest would have been difficult for me as well.”
“Yes, difficult.”

Of course, even with this success, there was a definite price I had paid.

“Increased frequency of nightmares, hypothermia, and actual wounds and excessive bleeding from the distraction… a classic case of surrendering flesh to gain bone.”
“Yes.”
“At least my memory hasn’t deteriorated.”
“Yes.”

Coco was undulating grotesquely as she observed Lee Yeon-woo’s injuries. She resembled a living liquid creature. It was apparently her way of expressing negative emotions.

“Is the condition severe?”
“Yes.”
“I suspected as much. Your back looks rather bare.”

There was nothing surprising about it. The Wet Person’s surface image was that of a ‘rainy-day murderer.’ The true nature was a manifestation of the concept of ‘the drowned,’ but she actually wielded various types of bladed weapons.

Most of them appeared to be kitchen knives.

‘With bad luck, you end up being torn apart like just now. I can only blame my own fortune.’

Attacks beyond bladed weapons—that is, ‘biting’—fell purely into the realm of probability. A mere eight percent chance at most. Today, that slim winning ticket simply happened to fall into my hands.

“At least there aren’t chunks of flesh rolling around the Lobby floor. Thanks to that, I managed to maintain some semblance of dignity in front of the guests. Should I be grateful for that, I wonder.”
“No.”
“Your refusal is so firm it’s embarrassing—here I was trying to transform the situation with humor.”
“No?”
“You’re right, this isn’t a situation to laugh off. I appreciate the objective and clear response. With all this blood loss, it’s hard to even manage a proper joke.”
“Yes.”
“I’ll probably need additional treatment… but I can’t seem to get a grasp on it. As a modern person in the 21st century, I’m actually considering self-surgery. This is why labor shortages are so terrifying.”

Honestly, that’s nonsense. My brain feels like it’s stopped working from the blood loss.

“…For now, let’s head somewhere safe.”

Lee Yeon-woo stepped into the operator-exclusive Elevator. Since the civilian guests had left, I figured this was the perfect opportunity to clean up this pathetic appearance. The Lodging would be the best place for that.

Upon arriving at the Lodging and standing before the full-length mirror, Lee Yeon-woo let out an exclamation.

“Well, how should I put this.”
“Yes?”
“It’s… rather grotesque.”
“Yes?”

The flesh was so severely torn that the bone structure was completely exposed beyond the muscle tissue. For someone who had lived forty years like Lee Yeon-woo, this wasn’t a sight one could easily witness.

‘Actually, it shouldn’t be easy to see in the first place.’

I’m not a doctor, after all.

“…This is the kind of sight that would only appeal to practicing surgeons. No, in a world like this, it’s probably quite offensive even to them. I’ve found myself in quite the predicament.”

During the guidance process, the Wet Person attacked the user. At first it was like being stabbed with a blade, but when I blocked with my hands, it tore at me like a beast. All courtesy must have been washed away by the rain.

“I say it again, but I never expected blood magic to be this useful.”
“Never expected?”
“Yes, I’ve only just started learning it, and it’s quite far from the definition of magic I knew. All I can do right now is move blood around, really…”

The most basic of basics. Of course, this would be a miracle and great progress for the medical field, but Lee Yeon-woo is not a doctor. I was merely an office worker barely managing my own life.

In the midst of all this, I wondered what I could accomplish with just handling some blood, but today I felt its usefulness acutely. I was controlling my own blood in real time.

‘To put it simply, I’m just stretching out my life a bit thinner and longer….’

I held back the blood pouring from the wound and forced my faltering heart to keep pumping.

“….”

That said.

“…When I put it into words like this, it sounds exactly like the ramblings of a madman.”
“Pardon?”
“Such things do exist.”

The human anatomy I’d memorized back in high school was actually proving useful in a situation like this. It’s something I feel a few times a year, but life truly is full of surprises.

“Normally, the pain and shock should have knocked me unconscious at minimum, but fortunately, having a game character’s body helped. However, that also means my condition is serious enough that I have to rely on the game system.”
“Yes….”
“Soon my brain will be split into four pieces.”

If I stop the blood magic, I die.

“As for me, it doesn’t matter if I die since I’ll just come back to life anyway….”
“No.”
“The problem is the human guests.”

They must have sensed something strange during that exchange in the Lobby earlier. I wish they would just run far away, but human curiosity doesn’t work quite so rationally.

Especially that brilliant gleam in Lee Sun-hae’s eyes yesterday—it troubled me deeply.

“Will those people return to the Facility again?”

As my concentration wavered for an instant, drops of blood pattered onto the floor.

“I’ve cleaned up as much as possible so the scent of blood doesn’t reach them. They probably wouldn’t have noticed the truth beyond the impression that something was ‘strange’… but still.”

My back remains wide open. A truly unsettling sight. My face in the mirror was pallid from blood loss, and my expression looked more menacing than usual.

“Lee Sun-hae and Hong Kyung-yeon are known for their sharp instincts and their love of danger. In the industry, they have quite a reputation for their unique curiosity.”
“Yes.”
“Yes to what, exactly?”
“Yes….”

The cat, which had been staring at him intently, spoke like a broken radio.

“―Lee Sun-hae and Hong Kyung-yeon. Love danger. Curiosity. Will those people return to the Facility again? Yes. Yes. Yes.”

I understood, more or less.

“…I never knew you were the kind of cat who could string together such long sentences, Coco.”
“Hello?”
“Yes, I’m so impressed I’m nearly moved to tears.”
“Yes.”
….

A slight irritation gnawed at me.

“…Ah….”

I swept my blood-soaked hand across my hair.

My reflection in the mirror was a mess. The hair I’d carefully combed back was matted with blood, and dark crimson stains smeared the collar of my shirt. Such dishevelment—a failure of basic self-inspection—was deeply displeasing.

Truly filthy and squalid.

“…Yes.”

I didn’t like it.

“This work really does exhaust me….”

Slick and damp, lukewarm to the touch.

“…First, let’s calm down.”
“Yes.”
“I need to treat the wounds first.”
“Yes. Treatment.”
“I’ve been saying this a lot lately, but if I’d known it would come to this, I would’ve become a doctor. A surgeon or anatomy professor, something like that….”
“….”
“Fine, I can’t exactly receive The Guest while I’m full of holes. Where should I start?”

Among the penalties corresponding to mental instability, the “Increased Frequency of Nightmares at Night” posed no real problem.

‘I’ve been through similar situations before, so I know. The penalty from The Wet Person shouldn’t be much different. At worst, it’s just some drowning cutscene during sleep, and that’s it.’

Literally just a “game cutscene”—it had virtually no impact.

‘It’s too early to be certain, but there’s a high probability hypothermia is manageable too. It’s just a setting, after all. And under normal circumstances, the Manager doesn’t die from hypothermia alone. Unless the Hotel’s temperature drops further, which isn’t the case here.’

Since I’m a game character, it’s “just a setting”—there are no actual additional symptoms from it. No trembling, no impaired judgment, no muscle stiffness. My body is simply cold, nothing more.

‘But injuries from attacks and the resulting excessive bleeding—even though they’re settings—are directly tied to the user’s life. Of course, in games too, excessive bleeding is a fatal status condition. And since this isn’t just a character but an actual physical body in reality… I could actually die if I’m not careful.’

If I factor in the time it takes to die and respawn, The Guest could be in danger during that interval. I had to prevent that. Besides, I couldn’t possibly meet The Guest in this state.

‘But what method is there? The blood magic tome had a section on regeneration, but I never learned it. Attempting regeneration with this level of ability is impossible.’

Then the next method.

‘Was there a regeneration item somewhere in the Hotel? No. Advanced recovery items are locked during the tutorial phase. To recover from injuries of this magnitude, the shop needs to be unlocked. So that’s difficult too.’

What about using the bed in the Manager’s Quarters?

‘It can resolve minimal status conditions. But the penalty from the common monster Guest doesn’t fall into that category of minimal status conditions. Even if I sleep and wake up, only the lost blood would be replenished.’

That’s something, but it’s not enough. And sleeping once means an entire day passes anyway.

“….”

A conclusion came quickly.

“…I’ll wrap bandages around my body to minimize the discomfort from the sunken areas, and use blood magic to buy as much time as possible to keep this body from dying.”
“No?”
“In the tutorial, resurrection takes a minimum of four days. If civilian guests arrive during that time, they’ll definitely suffer serious injuries. Or worse—death. I can’t allow that.”
“No. No.”

Few games allow character injuries to heal simply by leaving them alone.

‘This game is no exception.’

Without recovering from the injuries, the ‘excessive bleeding’ status won’t disappear either. Continuous damage accumulates, movement becomes restricted, and this body easily slips into panic.

It will certainly be inconvenient in many ways.

‘But I can manage it for about a week while Director Lee Sun-hae and her group stay and then leave.’

Don’t cling to what you lack. What I’ve been given is more than enough to solve this.

‘If I use the bed in the Manager’s Quarters to replenish lost blood, manage my blood to avoid death, and use blood to mimic the lost organs….’

Yes.
That will work.

‘No matter what status ailments I carry, the operator will never die on the lodging bed.’

There’s always a way.

‘If I sleep and wake up, then immediately focus on controlling my blood flow, I won’t reach death. The guests may sense something amiss, but if I just keep myself alive, I can manage the situation to some degree.’

Fortunately, there’s no pain.

“If there were pain, I couldn’t have made such a reckless choice. Quite fortunate, wouldn’t you say?”
“No?”
“How strange. I always hear that flat, emotionless tone, yet today it sounds almost flustered. Why is that?”
“Yes.”
“Good, remember this, Coco.”

Lee Yeon-woo’s eyes rolled dryly as I met Coco’s gaze across the desk. A faint smile drew itself across my bloodless face.

“If another guest enters this Hotel, I will respond in exactly this manner, without fail.”

Who brought people into the Facility?

Shamefully, regrettably, the real me couldn’t answer that question.

I didn’t know Coco’s true thoughts, or whether ‘this’ was really game data from the world I once knew. I couldn’t even be certain how my value as Lee Yeon-woo was measured in this answerless space.

But I had the right to offer at least this much warning.

“I’ll suffer in their place. I’ll rage. I’ll endure every conceivable status ailment until I die. Then I’ll come back to life and protect the guests again. Because that’s what I’ve decided.”
“….”
“I don’t understand why you treat me with such special regard. Is it because of the twenty-six years? Because I’m the creator of this game? Or do you have some other reason for bringing me here? It doesn’t matter. My conclusion won’t change.”
“….”
“When guests arrive, I’ll suffer as much as they should have suffered, bleed as much as they should have bled. No one will die here on my watch, and I won’t let people be treated like game data. As you know, that’s how I operate.”
“….”
“And one day, perhaps the me you cherish so much will lose its form and crumble. I’m not an infinite data construct like a game character—I’m just a fragile human who wears down and deteriorates easily.”
“….”
“Do you understand?”

Coco tilted its head.

“Yes.”

A gesture that revealed its essence was anything but feline.

“Yes. No. Human.”
“….”
“Yes. No? Yes, yes. Yes. Yes. Hello? Hello. Hello, yes? No. No? Yes. Did you understand: unpleasantly unpleasant. No one. Will protect. Decided. Understand? Understand. Understand. Understand. Understand. Understand.”
“….”
“Understand. Understand. Understand. Understand. Understand. Understand. Understand. Understand. Understand. Understand. Understand. Understand. Understand. Understand. Understand. Understand. Understand. Understand. Understand. Understand. Understand. Understand. Understand. Understand. Understand. Understand. Understand. Understand. Understand. Understand. Understand. Understand. Understand. Understand. Understand. Understand. Understand. Understand. Understand. Understand. Understand. Understand. Understand. Understand. Understand―.”

It cut off abruptly.

“Did you understand?”
“…They say cats are difficult creatures to comprehend.”

I tilted my head alongside Coco.

“Indeed they are.”

She didn’t seem like the type to back down easily.

* * *

“My, you’re still in the Lobby?”

And Lee Sun-hae the Director had returned.

“We, um… brought food for dinner today.”
“That’s right, we did well, didn’t we?”

Along with Hong Kyung-yeon the Writer.

“I feel terrible about this—really, how can we make it up to you? Our people had a schedule pop up in another region, so we sent them there instead. You were kind enough to rent us two rooms, and it feels awful to waste your goodwill like this. I’ve been worried about it the whole way here.”

Lee Sun-hae the Director held up the grocery bags with an easy smile. Yet beneath that cheerful expression, an unmistakable stubborn streak shimmered faintly through.

Lee Yeon-woo found himself thinking quietly.

“….”

There was someone else besides Coco who wouldn’t back down.

“…No, it’s only right that I make our guests comfortable.”

Real trouble might actually come of this, he thought.

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