Our Hotel Is Open for Business as Usual - Chapter 138

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This chapter was translated by Lunox Novels. To support us and help keep this series going, visit our website: LunoxScans.com
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Chapter 138.

Just beside the open door, I saw a pair of outstretched legs.

“….”

They hung limp, as though their owner had slumped against the wall into an afternoon slumber. The neatly pressed dress pants looked familiar. The extended legs caused the cuffs to ride up, revealing black socks and the ankles above them.

And beside that, I saw a face—half-visible, eyes turned toward me.

“….”
“Seme.”

An expressionless face. Eyebrows relaxed in repose. Eyes sharp at the corners. Dark pupils save for irises of burnished gold. Skin so pristine and pale it seemed translucent, hair swept back with meticulous care.

“Seme.”

Yet the legs lay to my left in my field of vision, while the half-exposed face appeared on my right.

“Play with me.”

Then the voice of my benefactor overlapped with that of my younger sibling.

“Play with me.”
“Come out and play with me.”
“Play with me.”

Drip, drip—blood fell from beneath the snow-white hand clutching the dead man’s head….

“―Seme!!”
“Gasp—”

The corpse’s eyes were hollow, and a scream thundered in my ears.

“Please, save me, it hurts…!! Help me!!”
“Gasp, ugh, ugh.”
“I beg you, I helped you too!! I saved your life!!”
“Ack….”
“You said you’d rescue me!!”

Crack, crunch―!!
In that thin, pallid grip, the benefactor’s head was crushed and twisted beyond recognition.

“Aaaahhh, aaaaaaaaaahhh―!!!”
“….”

Wait, was it thin and pallid?

Were those a woman’s hands? No, no. Looking again, they belonged to the Monster. Talons of a bird, grotesquely large compared to Lee Yeon-woo’s skull, crushed him and then swallowed….

Through its torn maw, it gulps him down.

“…Ah….”

Above the Elevator, hanging like a spider, that inverted face—red and white—enters his vision.

That thing, which had gazed at him with blooming crimson flowers blossoming around its eyes, suddenly stretched out its limbs, seizing the leg dangling to the left, grasping the ankle. Beast-like, sharp and hideous avian talons clench around Lee Yeon-woo’s body and drag him upward.

A body clad in a white shirt and black dress pants is hoisted into the air, shoes tumbling down with a soft thud.

“Ugh,”

The moment Seme glimpsed the gaping abdomen, he clapped his hand over his own mouth.

A headless corpse, gripped tightly in the talons of the raptor, is dragged up above the Elevator. Thud, squelch—the thrashing body strikes the walls again and again, scattering blood and flesh at Seme’s feet.

The moment it vanished completely above the Elevator.

“….”
“….”

Slurp, crack, crunch….

“….”

Crack, splinter.

“….”

Thud! Screech, crackle-crackle-crack.

Like rainwater pooling at the edge of a tile roof and cascading down, thick blood drips from above the Elevator doors, splattering down in heavy drops. With each grotesque burst, the Elevator walls and floor are painted crimson in succession.

“Ah, ah….”

My head spins.

“Ah, uh. Sob.”

It feels as though I’m trapped here, lost in a Nightmare.

I reach out with trembling hands and desperately press the Elevator buttons, but it’s useless. Nothing happens. The button for the 25th Floor still glows alone, and the doors that should close are held open by claws pressing down from both sides.

“Why, why, why… please…!”
“Seme.”
“….”

Tap—
the sound of a single drop of blood falling is crystalline.

“You seem quite startled.”
“…don’t.”
“You were frightened, weren’t you?”
“Don’t.”
“Are you afraid?”
“I said don’t.”

At Lee Yeon-woo’s voice—stripped now of all its familiar cadence—my legs buckled. I had no strength left. What had I said? What was I supposed to do? No, before that—what had I seen? I can’t remember.

I want to forget everything and lose my mind.

“Seme.”
“Damn it, stop….”
“Do you require assistance?”
“….”

My breath caught in my throat.

“Do you require assistance?”
“Do you require assistance?” “Do you require assistance?” “Do you require assistance?”
“Do you require assistance?” “Do you require assistance?”
“Do you require assistance?”

The Monster mocked me.

“Hehehehe, hehe, hehehehe!”
“….”
“Hehehehehehehehe! Ahahahahaha, hahahahahahahaha!!”
“….”
“Seme, Seme. Ser-sang has come! I have arrived! Lee Yeon-woo is here! Open the door, open the door. Invite me in. I’ve come searching for you, so open that door and look upon my face. My love, my beloved, my Guest. My Seme! My Seme! My Seme!!”

Screech! Crack, shriek, screech, screech-screech!!

“Seme!!!”

A sound like fingernails scraping glass or dry branches snapping echoed from all directions. Snow-white birds perched throughout the transformed Rooftop threw their heads back in unison, emitting piercing shrieks.

“Gasp—”

The bitter-sweet scent of poppies choked my breath.

“Hgh, ugh….”

I staggered backward as far as I could, pressing myself against the Elevator wall, and my legs gave way beneath me. I collapsed to the floor, which was drenched in blood and flesh. But outside, Hell itself had descended.

Caw, caw, caw—accompanied by the birds’ cries, a massive form descended lightly from atop the Elevator.

“….”

A feathered rustle—

Upon that beautiful face, flowers bloomed—murky and crimson as blood—encircling The Woman’s eyes without mercy. White hair stained red tumbled in disarray across her visage.

Across the colossal form that transcended human anatomy, tens of thousands of pristine wings sprouted at grotesquely unnatural angles. That blinding whiteness was unsettlingly sacred, blindly beautiful.

Pure white cloth draped The Woman’s upper body as though shrouding a corpse, and the feet planted upon the rooftop floor—supporting that enormous frame—were raw and grotesque, as if flayed of skin. Beautiful, yet horrifying.

‘A siren…?’

No,

‘A harpy?’

Either way, the morphology remained unchanged. Whether the entity had prayed to the divine and received wings, or was a goddess bearing divine bloodline, the fact that it was the Labyrinth with consciousness remained unaltered.

“….”

The Witch.

That widely-known epithet brushed across my mind.

The Witch of Poppies, draped in pristine funeral shrouds. That was the White Raven’s name.

“Grieve. Grieve. Grieve, I say.”
“….”
“A witch, you foolish one? It is you—barbarous and hollow—who burn even innocent souls in fire. Come, nestle in my embrace. Rest here with me, and let us dream together.”
“…I refuse.”
“Come forth, Seme. Ser-sang has arrived. Your benefactor dwells within this embrace as well. If you cannot trust this voice, then whom shall you trust? Fear no longer—we have witnessed the dawn, and before morning breaks, we shall become ash and vanish.”
“I refuse.”
“Eternal love resides within me. Eternal happiness, time, and future—all dwell here. You know not how soft and yielding my embrace is. Once you are held within it, you will curse the solitary hours you endured.”
“Stop….”
“Come, Seme.”

With hands as tender as a mother’s, she extended both arms wide.

“There is no more pain now.”
“….”
“I promise you….”

My vision blurs. No—it grows vacant.

“….”
“Poor thing, you suffered so.”

Yes, I suffered.

“Good people always leave your side first.”

Always I alone drift through this terrible Guchen like a phantom, neither aging nor dying.

“But you know this too, don’t you?”
“….”
“You know this, don’t you?”
“….”
“Good people are already all in Hell.”

The Pale Woman laughed.

“Even Hell itself, they wish to save.”
“Ah….”
“Isn’t that foolish?”
“It is foolish.”
“Don’t you miss them?”
“I miss them.”

Seme took a step forward.

“I want to see them.”

Splash—crossing the boundary where blood pooled.

“I wanted to see them.”

My brother. My hero. And my benefactor as well.

“Everyone abandons me.”
“Such wretched people.”
“They save me on their own terms, claiming it’s righteous, then vanish without even leaving a grave for me.”
“Lives that flicker out in misery.”
“I wanted a world where good people could be happy….”
“I’ll show you.”

Weeping and laughing simultaneously.

“Is he in there?”
“Yes. I’ve been waiting for you, sister.”
“What of The Master?”
“Waiting grew tedious.”
“And Lee Yeon-woo?”

Intoxicated by the fragrance of flowers, I asked.

“Lee Yeon-woo, where are you?”
【―Seme.】
“….”

Ah.

【Do you require assistance?】
“….”

Right. That’s how it was.

“…Yes.”

I will continue living.

Clenching my teeth, I twisted my body and took the first step toward the Outdoor Staircase.

A deafening roar erupted from behind.

“―The Caretaker!!!!”
“…ah….”

So this is the ‘control’ you spoke of.

“Ha ha…!!”

Seme found the Monster’s anguished cry somewhat satisfying.

‘Serves you right.’

Why torment people and cause such chaos?

He descended the Outdoor Staircase rapidly.

* * *

Dissolving into the blood of the White Raven, Lee Yeon-woo reflected.

Black Magic was undoubtedly a threat. A force that twisted and restructured the world’s very order. Though it could not completely consume him as a Belmarés, the bizarre aura flowing densely through that White Raven’s blood left his mind reeling.

Lee Yeon-woo decided to postpone his complete resurrection for now. He would remain within this colossal Monster and advance toward its core. How much the Hotel General Manager’s intellect would diminish in such a state, he could not yet fathom.

‘This way, I can prevent those two from being enthralled a while longer.’
“This is too much….”
“….”
“No one loves me.”

The Girl’s sobs echoed from the darkness.

“Why do all the people I love abandon me?”
“A topic worth discussing.”

Lee Yeon-woo replied indifferently.

“Personally, I regard love as merely the play of hormones for survival, yet you seem to hold its value as something sublime.”
“It is sublime. Do you understand that weight?”
“I do. But the moment one becomes consumed by that weight, the essence fades. Love is merely a form of social bonding—a state of trust and devotion mingled with a touch of passion.”

Lee Yeon-woo gazed quietly at the Girl’s essence. He found this tragic performance tedious.

“You’ve simply been gaslighted by the word ‘love.’ By that beautiful, supposedly perfect young lady.”
“….”
“True relationships are far more mundane. Wondering what to eat today, showing consideration for each other’s space—that’s enough. Hurting someone or trying to possess them isn’t love; it’s violence.”

The Girl fell silent for a moment before asking.

“…Can you treat me that way? Can you ask what I want to eat and show me consideration?”
“Of course. It’s hardly difficult.”

A pitiful soul, burned terribly by first love, reached out with trembling hands.

“Please take us in. Please have pity on us, young lady.”
“….”

It seemed the gender of this “young lady” hardly mattered.

Lee Yeon-woo pressed my lips lightly against the rough, healthy brown hand. It was less a gesture of courtship than an extension of the contract a manager would forge.

“If you desire stability in my way.”
“I love you….”
“Another unwanted family member has been added to my fate.”

Lee Yeon-woo smiled bitterly. It felt like I had forcibly adopted another daughter, but it wasn’t an unwelcome turn of events.

* * *

“….”

In the Deep Waters, The Wet Person swished its tail.

“Aah….”

This drooping sensation.

“Doing good deeds leaves a bad taste.”

Su-gwi leaned against the edge of the Swimming Pool, muttering silently.

“And if you don’t make room in your lungs for me after all this…”

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