Our Hotel Is Open for Business as Usual - Chapter 3

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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 3.

Since there was no answer, I decided to think positively for now.

“The weather is lovely.”
“No.”
“….”

Patter, patter….

The faint sound of raindrops.

“…Right, I was spouting nonsense. I admit it.”

The weather beyond the Hotel’s windows was fundamentally harsh.

Whenever I looked outside, all I ever saw was thunder and lightning, torrential downpours, or fog. Today, with its misty drizzle, was comparatively mild by this place’s standards.

That hardly made it good weather, of course.

“But I’m in a state where I need to indulge in such nonsense just to find some peace of mind. If you could cooperate, at least you won’t have to witness me dying from failing to manage my blood pressure.”

I rolled my eyes toward Coco, perched on my lap.

“The frequent deaths of a co-operator would be quite troublesome for you as well, wouldn’t it?”
“Yes.”
“I’ll take that as a positive answer.”
“Yes.”
“Thank you.”

I had never been treated so poorly.

“It’s been quite a while since I visited the Family Home. If I’d known my life would become this dramatic, I would have stopped by sooner. It’s rather poetic how I’m repaid for postponing people instead of work.”
“….”
“Have you chosen silence now?”
“Yes.”
“Whether it’s intuition or learned consideration, I’m not sure. But I see. It’s been quite helpful.”
“Yes.”
“It’s strange that such a blunt response sounds endearing to me.”
“No.”
“Of course, it’s a rather sound strategy from your perspective. Earning the goodwill of a colleague is fundamental to professional life. I’d even like to commend you for it.”

I rose from the bed—a large, plush affair.

“Shall we change the subject?”
“Yes.”
“Every time I wake after sleeping, I wonder: what’s the principle behind this bed? How is it that merely resting allows one to recover from basic status ailments?”
“Hello.”

Did she not know, or did she simply not wish to answer?

“…But personally, I think it’s a research topic worth investigating.”

This body as well.

“It seems to be a manifestation of the game’s mechanics… but that’s the result, not the process.”
“Yes.”
“I’m pleased you agree with me, Coco.”

True to the Horror Game’s nature, players who engage with it experience various status ailments. Mental corruption, hemoptysis, tears of blood—the list goes on.

And most of them recover after sleeping in the Operator’s Lodging.

‘There are status ailments that don’t recover even with sleep or death, but that’s a concern for later.’

As long as bugs don’t cause problems, it’s a setting I need not worry about in this tutorial phase.

‘But that doesn’t mean this body requires sleep.’

The same applies to eating. I use meals only to address status ailments that sleep cannot resolve. Unlike ordinary humans, sleep and sustenance were not strictly necessary for me.

“….”

…Indeed, a fascinating subject.

“If possible, I’d like to try cooking as well.”
“No.”
“Yes, I remember. I won’t be able to cook unless I complete the tutorial. There are separate cooking recipes available by level….”

He rolled his eyes dryly.

“In that case, you would likely tell me to complete the tutorial first, correct?”
“Yes.”
“I cannot cooperate with a structure that presupposes unnecessary sacrifice. Yet I am treating the monster guests sincerely, so surely that should be sufficient, no?”
“No.”
“What’s needed in times like this is compromise.”

Lee Yeon-woo didn’t even have that common interface.

Since the game had become reality, it might have disappeared entirely. But Ho-won was a game that only provided a proper interface after completing the tutorial.

‘In other words, once I complete the tutorial, my current lifestyle might gain additional conveniences.’

When the interface opens, various functions are unlocked. Cooking, hunting, performance, and so on. Even locked areas become accessible. The hunting grounds in the basement were a prime example.

‘When that happens, the Hotel’s front entrance will naturally open as well.’

So Coco says to let human guests in.

I understand the intention, though.

“I’d have to be insane to let people in here. I’m not young anymore, and to commit such shameless acts― I’m someone with a bit of learning, after all.”
“No.”
“So this is a matter before morality and ethics even come into play.”

He spoke dryly.

“It’s difficult for me to bear causing trouble for others.”
“Yes.”
“Beyond that, when I think about how someone could be injured or killed right before my eyes… my head spins. My stomach churns so badly I feel like I need to find antacids immediately.”
“No.”
“Ah, I see. To your eyes, I must seem quite sturdy. Well, at nineteen, one is at an age where they could chew through stone.”

An excessive amount of faith.

“To offer a counterargument, this isn’t exactly a Hotel that treats its Operator gently, is it?”

I could have easily lost my mind.

“If I truly went insane, I might even open the Hotel doors to people. I have clear limits, and beyond that my judgment becomes clouded—I could commit senseless acts.”
“Yes.”
“However, by my current standards, that would be an obvious crime. Personally, I feel you’re recommending I admit human Guests for my own development and convenience, but….”
“Yes.”
“Still, I’m not inclined to do it.”

Day 100 of my confinement in the Hotel.

“…let’s end the small talk here.”

Lee Yeon-woo had yet to complete the tutorial.

* * *

“Thank you for visiting.”
“….”

Humanoid form. Unresponsive to conversation attempts during interaction.

Long, limp hair clung unpleasantly over a gaunt frame. Ordinary clothes drenched and clinging heavily to the body, water droplets falling with each step.

The dull eyes reflected no light whatsoever, and the pallor was already indistinguishable from that of a corpse.

‘So then….’

Out of habit, the appearance conditions lined up in my mind.

‘Increased usage rate of plumbing and water facilities. Condition not met.’
‘Activation upon check-in of those possessing drowning trauma or survivor’s guilt. Condition not met.’
‘External humidity 60% or higher and rain forecast.’

A faint patter of rain began to blend into the edges of my hearing.

“….”

Condition met.

“How may I assist you?”

The Guest answered my question with silence. While all surrounding noise receded as if into a vacuum, the sound of rain alone grew crystalline, pressing against my eardrums. Water-source noise amplification confirmed.

The acrid metallic scent of blood mingled with the briny dampness, piercing my nostrils. Moisture contamination warning. It was a harbinger of stimulation through emotional corruption beginning. Simultaneously, my fingertips turned glacial.

‘Hypothermic response confirmed.’

Water-affinity danger detected. The instinct to flee my post surged violently, but the Hotel’s irrational rules forbade movement during check-in.

My body temperature continued its descent. My ears felt clogged as though submerged in water.

‘Water-affinity pressure compulsion confirmed consecutively.’

In simpler terms, mental corruption.

‘…Today’s assault is particularly vicious. Or perhaps my luck has simply turned sour. Then again, misfortunes do tend to cluster together in life….’

I’d resign on the spot if I could, but such things are hardly simple. Seeking a human resources department to process my resignation in a place with no exit would be the height of foolishness.

‘Let’s see,’

Classification: Monster Guest, common to both variants.
Threat Level: High.
Collective erosion tracking entity.

‘Name.’

『The Wet Person』

“….”

…This guest wasn’t supposed to appear in the tutorial.

‘It seems my hundred days of prayer reached hell instead of heaven.’

I examined a suitable room and organized my thoughts.

‘The monster guests who find their way to this Hotel fall into three categories.’

Open version, Dual version common, and Closed version.

The difficulty of hospitality increases exponentially as you progress. The Closed version in particular is so-called “veteran” exclusive content—most players severed ties with this game right there.

‘But we’re still in the tutorial, mind you.’

Normally, only low-tier monster guests corresponding to the Open version should appear. Yet standing before me was unmistakably The Wet Person—a mid-tier guest from the Dual version common category.

A clear system error; the product of a bug spawned from clinging to the tutorial for a hundred days.

“Yes, honored guest. Would you mind waiting a moment?”

Yet I wasn’t surprised.

‘Rare as it is, Dual version common guests have visited a few times before. There were no major incidents then either.’

If you understand your opponent well, countermeasures naturally emerge. These were regulars I’d observed through the screen for twenty-six years. Even with reality added to the equation, they felt far from unfamiliar.

Lee Yeon-woo examined The Guest once more.

‘The desired length of stay…’

In the original game, a guest’s requirements appeared as a brightly glowing guide, but now I understood them instinctively. Even if this guest were a taciturn person who spoke not a word.

“…Two nights, three days. Confirmed.”

The standard procedure was to guide them to a room on the 7th Floor. However, Room 707 must be avoided at all costs. The moment they’re placed in that room, the Hotel floods for an entire week and incidents never cease.

‘In the end, it’s I who must clean up the mess.’

It’s problematic if someone—an Operator or The Guest—dies in an incident, and the cleanup afterward is a nightmare. Especially if The Wet Person flows into the Swimming Pool or Shower Room, there’s a 100 percent chance someone dies.

‘Given that there’s no one else in this Hotel right now, that means I’d be the one who loses.’

But if I assign them to a room outside the 7th Floor? The Operator drowns within a short time.

‘I’m not in a comfortable enough situation to indulge a water ghost’s tantrums.’

They accumulate every conceivable status ailment and devour precious Hotel resources. Most of all, I had no desire to experience firsthand just how unpleasant and suffocating the agony of drowning truly is.

“I shall escort you to Room 703.”

Inside the front desk, classical keys hung neatly on their racks. Checking the nearest slot, the key to Room 703 fell into my hand.

Even in reality, the convenient system of the game persisted.

“…Mm.”

After confirming the room number on the key tag, I handed it to The Wet Person. Cold moisture touched my palm, but I didn’t blink once, maintaining my smile.

“I do hope you have a most comfortable stay.”

Where the thoroughly drenched Guest had stood, water pooled like a puddle.

“Dear me.”

One of The Wet Person’s characteristics—leaving traces with every step. They were a typical “both versions common” difficulty Guest who caused building plumbing damage and minor disasters simply by existing.

‘The staff will have their hands full again. Perfect material for gossip after work.’

Indulging in such mundane fantasies unbecoming of this Hotel, I rang a small bell to summon the staff. Immediately, employees in matching formal attire approached silently.

“I would appreciate your assistance.”

I glanced at the damp floor and smiled with narrowed eyes.

“As you can see… the floor is rather slippery.”

At my brief request, the staff began wiping the floor with perfect coordination. Their movements were swift and practiced, producing not even unnecessary noise—a textbook display of service excellence.

After finishing their cleaning, they bowed respectfully to Lee Yeon-woo before returning to their posts. Watching their retreating figures, I pondered.

“….”

…They resembled humans closely, yet they were not human.

“…Though I wouldn’t say they look like androids either….”
“Yes.”
“I know it’s an impertinent curiosity, but I can’t help wondering. There’s no sound of breathing, no mechanical whirring, not even the faintest noise when they move. It’s rather uncanny.”

At this point, it felt almost like deliberate malice.

“As if they’re advertising themselves as mass-produced goods from the Power Generation Plant.”

It was as though the world itself was screaming at me not to regard them as ‘human.’ If that were the case, I had to wonder whether such a thing could truly be called ‘malice.’

“In the game settings, they were only described as ‘part of the Hotel, born from the Hotel’s resources.'”
“Yes.”
“When it was just a game, I could accept that, but now that it’s reality, it’s biologically difficult to comprehend. They appear to be neither living nor inanimate….”

Different faces and builds, yet uniform in height, physique, and that identical smile.

“…I’m not sure.”

I had never heard them speak.

“Is it prejudice to assume they have vocal cords simply because they resemble people?”
“No.”
“Now that this is reality, I thought they might at least exchange a word or two. It may make me seem immature, but as a veteran player, it’s disappointing.”
“Yes.”
“It would have been better if we could communicate more actively.”

The monsters in this Hotel can be categorized in various ways. First, there are the monsters I mentioned earlier—Guest monsters. They’re classified as Open Version exclusive, shared across both versions, or Closed Version exclusive.

Then there are the Master-Servant monsters. These exist only in the Closed Version, that stagnant content, and are literally the masters and servants of each floor.

And on top of all this, there’s the Horror Game element present in every version….

66 types of monster guests.
13 types of master monsters.
13 types of servant monsters.
16 types of major phenomena.

‘If we set aside the secondary horror elements as exceptions.’

A total of 108 entities.

“Coco, where do you think you fall among these monsters?”
“No.”
“You don’t consider yourself one of them?”
“No.”
“Then perhaps you’re a staff monster I can command?”
“No.”
“So you truly don’t fit anywhere at all?”

The more monsters the Hotel harbors, the more its power source—’nightmares’—is replenished. In other words, every monster within the Hotel is a resource. Yet Coco’s mere existence didn’t particularly fill that power source.

“Perhaps because you are the Hotel itself.”

Indeed, Coco was less like a salaried employee and more like the building’s proprietor.

“Yes.”
“I see. That explains why your demeanor is so different.”

So I’ve fulfilled my role then.

‘As have I.’

The user—the owner and general manager Lee Yeon-woo—oversees the Hotel’s entire operation. It was no coincidence that Coco took feline form. We were, quite literally, butler and master.

‘But it’s ultimately a game, a Hotel that would cease functioning the moment the user vanishes.’

Lee Yeon-woo stroked Coco gently. The touch proved pleasing; Coco nestled into his embrace with practiced ease.

“Ah….”

The sensation and weight had become familiar by now. This had seamlessly woven itself into Lee Yeon-woo’s daily existence.

“An irony, isn’t it.”

He held the Hotel’s leash, while the Hotel held his shackles.

“When will you open the door?”
“No.”
“You’ve lost your mind.”

At this rate, I’ll grow attached to this place.

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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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