Welcome to the Goblin Hotel - Chapter 18

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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 18
Min Ju emerged from the kitchen the moment he received the text.
“Boss, please don’t send texts like that anymore. Just call me. That gave me chills.”
“I thought you’d be sleeping.”
“I’m not sleeping much these days anyway. I was just lying around.”
Min Ju greeted Kang Rim with a bow.
“Grim Reaper, hello!”
“Young one, today I’ve got cash! Haha!”
Kang Rim pulled money from his pocket and waved it.
In his hand was a single 10,000 Won note.
“Ah… understood. I’ll have it ready in just a moment.”
Min Ju glanced at the 10,000 Won in Kang Rim’s hand and headed into the kitchen.
I asked, settling into the seat across from Kang Rim.
“Is that perhaps payment from the dead?”
“Yes. I received it from a deceased person.”
“Surely you didn’t take it by force?”
“Absolutely not! This is fair compensation.”
Kang Rim held out the 10,000 Won with a proud expression.
“Here is the meal payment.”
【 Service Fee has been settled. 】
【 Service Fee Settlement Details: 10,000 Won 】
‘First time I’ve received cash like this.’
As I tucked away the money Kang Rim had given me, Min Ju brought out the meal.
“Grim Reaper, your food is ready!”
The table Min Ju had set was laden with vegetables.
‘It was practically a garden.’
Kang Rim gazed down at the side dishes, his expression growing melancholy as he looked up at Min Ju.
Min Ju spoke to Kang Rim with a helpless look.
“Grim Reaper, what can I do? We don’t farm for a living.”
Then he continued.
“I’d love to serve you meat side dishes too, but I just can’t. If you don’t have cash on hand, is there something else… anything you might want?”
‘Wow…! Kim Min Ju.’
Min Ju had cut a deal with the Grim Reaper.
I’d tried to block him before Kang Rim could write Min Ju’s name into the ledger.
But Kang Rim was faster.
“Will you accept items?”
Kang Rim asked me, and Min Ju answered swiftly.
“Of course!”
Kang Rim untied the cord wrapped around his waist.
“Even so, the belt is a bit much…”
Kang Rim shook his head.
“This is an Underworld Restraint Rope.”
I asked Kang Rim.
“An Underworld Restraint Rope—you mean the one from ‘Let the guilty receive the rope’?”
“Exactly. This is a standard-issue Underworld Restraint Rope from the Underworld Administration. It’s quite useful for binding evil spirits and malevolent spirits.”
After hearing the explanation, Min Ju beamed and spoke.
“Grim Reaper, do you like stir-fried pork and vegetables?”
Kang Rim nodded with a satisfied smile.
“Medium spice.”
Min Ju dashed into the kitchen.
Kang Rim watched his retreating figure with a pleased expression.
‘What’s Min Ju’s deal, anyway?’
I worried that accepting something like this might cause problems later.
I wasn’t sure if it was proper to take items from the Underworld like this.
I asked Kang Rim.
“Won’t you need the Underworld Restraint Rope yourself?”
“Haha, it’s fine. I can get a replacement sent right away.”
So it wasn’t really that significant an item after all.
Only then did I relax and pick up the Underworld Restraint Rope.
Despite its thick appearance, it weighed almost nothing.
【 Service Fee has been settled. 】
【 Service Fee Settlement Details: Underworld Restraint Rope 】
【 Estimated Value: Value conversion unavailable. Binding. 】
‘Binding?’
“This doesn’t seem to be an ordinary object.”
“It’s a rope that binds souls. Common enough in the Underworld. Only those with Spiritual Power can use it, but there shouldn’t be any problem for the people here.”
“Spiritual Power?”
I learned of another use for Spiritual Power.
That meant Min Jae and Song I could use it, along with me—not just Min Ju.
‘If I got one for Song I too, wouldn’t that be safer?’
While I was thinking it over, Kang Rim pointed to the Restraint Rope and added his explanation.
“If you have a soul you need to bind, use this. It will never escape.”
Never, he said.
Light as the words were, they carried the weight of something extraordinary.
Yet Kang Rim handed over the Underworld Restraint Rope along with a plate of grilled beef strips.
‘Can a Grim Reaper really be this careless?’
“Your grilled beef strips are ready!”
Min Ju set a glistening crimson plate of grilled beef strips in front of Kang Rim.
Kang Rim sniffed at it deeply, then nodded with satisfaction.
“Medium spice level two. Your cooking skill is truly exceptional.”
Kang Rim cleaned the plate entirely, not a morsel of meat left behind.
Once he finished eating, Kang Rim rose from his seat.
“That was delicious.”
He turned to leave, then stopped and turned back.
“Oh—you are aware that tomorrow is the New Moon, aren’t you?”
After a full moon passes, a new moon must come around again.
But why would a Grim Reaper bother mentioning it?
“…Is something supposed to happen on the New Moon?”
“That day carries strong yin energy, and wicked souls run wild without restraint.”
“You mean Evil Spirits?”
“Sometimes worse things appear. Stay inside the Hotel tomorrow night, and you should be fine.”
I nodded and replied.
“Thank you for the warning. Next time, let me treat you to a meal.”
‘Important information gets paid in food.’
Feed him important information, and he eats well.
Kang Rim’s mouth fell open at the realization.
For him, that would be a very sweet reward.
I wrapped the Restraint Rope around my waist and reflected.
‘I hope he keeps sharing good information like this.’
I was grateful to Min Ju too—for creating the opportunity.
As expected, my talent at hiring staff was excellent.
***
After hearing Kang Rim talk about the New Moon, the garden suddenly felt darker.
It was fine when the moonlight was bright, but on a New Moon night, I wouldn’t be able to see an inch ahead.
‘I’ll need to install additional lighting.’
The lights currently set up outside the Hotel didn’t seem like enough.
And if it’s dark, it’ll be inconvenient for Choi Il Joo to tend his vegetable garden.
Brighter was always better.
I left the kids in charge of the Hotel and headed downtown.
As I entered a shop that sold various kinds of lights, the clerk at the counter gave me a quick once-over and asked.
I was dressed in full formal wear—the kind I wore during hotel shifts.
The clerk’s eyes lit up at the scent of money.
“Can I help you find something?”
“Do you have LED Garden Lights?”
“Is your garden very dark?”
“Yes. It’s in the mountains, so it gets quite dark.”
“Ah, then you’d want something easy to install with high brightness, wouldn’t you?”
“That would be ideal, if such a thing exists.”
The clerk pulled out a box.
“How about this? It’s a solar-powered LED Garden Light. No wiring needed for installation.”
“You mean I don’t need to connect the electrical line?”
“This model charges the battery by collecting solar energy through the control panel here.”
“Excellent. I’ll take twenty of those, then.”
“The unit price is rather high—are you certain that’s alright?”
“Yes. That’s fine.”
The employee’s face brightened.
“Your garden must be quite spacious?”
“Yes, it’s fairly large.”
“In that case, would you consider adding some Decorative String Lights as well? They’re quite popular for landscaping.”
“Yes, I’ll take five of those too.”
Twenty solar LED Garden Lights, as the employee had recommended.
Five sets of Decorative String Lights.
‘Song I will love those little lights.’
I drove toward the Hotel with a satisfied heart.
I was cruising along the Riverside Road near the Hotel when something felt off.
An unease crept over me, different from the ordinary.
‘What is it…? Something’s changed.’
I glanced at the side mirror, checking the place I’d just passed.
Then—
Screech—!
I slammed on the brakes.
“…What is that?”
The Zucchini Stew Restaurant, known for its delicious food and usually crowded with customers waiting in line.
Yet at that moment, not a soul was to be seen at its entrance.
And before its door, a black shape was writhing restlessly.
It was far larger than the wisps of grudge I’d seen at Cheongpa Library.
‘I need to get a closer look.’
The Hotel was less than five minutes away from here.
I couldn’t rest easy with something like that so near.
I slowly turned the car around and parked in front of the restaurant.
The black shape writhed.
“A Korean Rat Snake…?”
The black form—dark as a mass of storm clouds—had taken the shape of a Korean Rat Snake.
Click—
The restaurant door creaked open, and the elderly owner emerged.
Whoosh—
The black snake-like figure slipped back inside through the door the grandmother had opened.
‘I need to see this up close. How do I…?’
“Welcome, but I’m sorry—we’re closed for a while.”
As she finished speaking, the grandmother’s body swayed suddenly.
I quickly caught her arm.
“Let me help you inside, ma’am. We can’t have you falling.”
“Thank you. Thank you so much.”
The grandmother nodded.
I pushed the door wider and guided her in, supporting her weight.
“Please, sit here for a moment.”
I settled her into a seat and handed her a glass of water.
“I’ll treat you well next time you visit. I’m so grateful.”
“Ma’am, is something troubling you?”
The grandmother’s expression darkened.
“There’s been a lot going on at home lately.”
I turned my head and saw the black presence.
It was coiled among the decorative rocks arranged by the window.
Even in this daylight, that corner seemed strangely shadowed, the darkness unnaturally deep.
As I approached, the thing unwound slightly and retreated back.
‘Why did it come in here?’
I examined the spot where it had been. A Black Stone lay there.
It was as if a sheer cliff face had been hewn and placed inside.
The stone, bearing the rough contours of a mountain peak, gleamed darkly, drinking in the light.
I reached my finger toward the stone’s direction.
“Grandmother, where did you get that stone?”
The old woman’s gaze shifted to the Black Stone.
“…My son found it in the river. Everything you see here—he brought it all home.”
“Where is your son now?”
The grandmother exhaled slowly, her breath trembling.
“He’s at the hospital. My son and his wife fell ill suddenly, so we haven’t been able to run the restaurant.”
The old woman herself didn’t look well either.
‘Could it be because of that stone?’
“I’m sensing an unusual spiritual presence coming from the stone. May I examine it more closely?”
The grandmother’s eyes widened.
“You can sense such things?”
“Yes. I’m able to perceive them.”
“When my son brought it back, my skin crawled. I told him to return it to the river, but of course he didn’t listen.”
The old woman’s breathing grew ragged as she continued.
“Please, take a look. Is my son and his wife’s illness—could it be because of that?”
I reached out slowly.
The moment my fingertip touched the stone, a notification appeared.
【 This object carries a wish. 】
A wish was embedded here too?
I attempted to use Spirit Insight on the Black Stone.
【 Spirit Insight 】
Nothing appeared.
‘Why isn’t it working…?’
I examined the Black Stone more carefully.
From the bottom of the stone, a strand of black energy flowed out and connected to the form of a Korean Rat Snake.
Could it be—that?
I attempted Spirit Insight on the black form.
【 Spirit Insight 】
My vision darkened, then flooded with light.
# A riverbank thick with dried grass.
Beside it, a Korean Rat Snake lay coiled.
Rough breathing echoed.
A man with stubbled cheeks approached, gripping the Black Stone in his fist.
“Disgusting things.”
Crack—!
The man brought the Black Stone down hard on the snake’s head.
The creature’s body convulsed.
The man, breathing heavily, brought the stone down again. Again. A third time.
“This damned thing settles here and the rain won’t come! Bah.”
The man hurled the Black Stone aside and stalked away, muttering.
A moment passed.
Another Korean Rat Snake emerged through the dried grass.
It nudged the one crushed beneath the stone.
It did not move.
It was too late.
The living snake embraced the dead one, rubbing its body against it for a long time.
Pitter. Patter. Pitter-patter-patter—!
Suddenly rain poured down.
Relentless. Unceasing.
The river swelled, swallowing the snakes and the Black Stone alike.
Thus the Spirit Insight ended.
I understood.
This stone held the wishes of two Korean Rat Snakes.
What those wishes were, I could not know.
【 Will you burn away this wish? 】
Pitiful as it was, the wish was dangerous.
The grandmother’s family’s illness—it seemed to stem from this stone.
I ignited blue flames in my palm.
Then I grasped the Black Stone.
‘Burn.’
Suddenly, black energy erupted from the Black Stone like an explosion.
The lights inside the restaurant flickered.
The owner’s startled voice rang out.
“W-what…what’s happening?”
The black serpent’s form lunged forward with its mouth gaping wide.
I quickly unwound the Underworld Restraint Rope and hurled it toward the charging creature.
Whoosh—
The rope ensnared the black form in an instant.
Bound by the rope, the serpent couldn’t move an inch.
Blue flames swelled and consumed it.
There was no scream.
No ash remained.
Only the Black Stone split in two and rolled helplessly across the floor.
【 Wish resolved. 】
【 Spiritual Power Points +500 】
I hadn’t expected it to shatter like that.
What do I do?
I turned to the owner with an awkward smile.
“Ma’am, I didn’t mean for this to happen.”
The owner’s eyes widened as she looked at me.
Then she dropped to her knees and prostrated herself.
“Dokkaebi, thank you so very much.”
Ah… she’s gotten the wrong idea, hasn’t she?
Dokkaebi Hotel Inheritance
Author
: WhyGraNol
Production Date
: August 25, 2026
Publisher
: Acesis Media Co., Ltd.
Editor
: Acesis Media Editorial Team
Address
: 10F Urban Bench Building, 325 Teheran-ro, Gangnam-gu, Seoul
Email
: [email protected]
※ This work is published by Acesis Media Co., Ltd. in accordance with a contract with the copyright holder,
and its contents cannot be used in any form or by any means without permission from the company and author.
This e-book is protected by copyright law, and unauthorized reproduction or copying may result in legal liability.
UCI
: G720:N+A129-20260730113

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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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