Welcome to the Goblin Hotel - Chapter 44

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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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Episode 44
“Su Chan….”
I gestured toward the woman standing there with vacant eyes as I spoke to Min Jae.
“Min Jae, get her a room.”
Min Jae hesitated for a moment as he looked at her, then answered.
“…Manager, would it be all right if she stayed outside for a bit before checking in? She doesn’t seem to be in a good state for an immediate admission.”
“Fine. But don’t let her stay out there too long.”
“Yes, sir.”
I still didn’t know her name.
But once she checked in, I’d be able to see the Guest Details Information, so I’d know soon enough.
‘Once I have her name, I should contact Officer Choi right away.’
I was collecting my thoughts as I stepped into the Lobby, but something felt off—it was unusually quiet.
“Huh? Where did the kids go? Why’s it so quiet?”
I tilted my head in confusion.
Just then, Song Yi, Min Ju, and Deok Gu came bolting out of the kitchen.
“Dad!”
I lifted Song Yi high into my arms as she came running toward me with a laugh.
“How’s my Song Yi been?”
“Good! I’ve been good. I worked with the big sister and big brother too.”
“Worked?”
Min Ju shook her head vigorously as she spoke.
“Why did you buy so many groceries? We spent forever organizing them all. The refrigerator’s going to burst.”
“Huh? What groceries?”
“The groceries you sent, sir.”
“I did?”
“A food supplier truck came by earlier… wasn’t that from you? You said you were going out to buy groceries.”
“Something came up at work, so I didn’t have time. That’s why I was planning to go back out tomorrow.”
Min Ju’s face went pale and she began gnawing at her fingernails.
“Oh… this can’t be… we just finished organizing it all, and if it was delivered to the wrong place—”
As Min Ju’s face grew increasingly ashen,
my phone buzzed in my pocket. An unfamiliar number lit up the screen.
‘Is it the police?’
I raised my index finger in a quiet gesture and pressed the call button.
“This is Kim Woo Jin.”
「Manager Kim Woo Jin, sir. I’m Secretary Jang Young Seok’s secretary.」
“Oh, Secretary Kim. What can I do for you?”
‘It’s only been about an hour since we parted ways…’
「By Chairman Jang’s orders, we sent groceries to your hotel.」
“Groceries? The Chairman didn’t mention anything to me….”
「The Chairman instructed us this morning to send groceries needed by the hotel as a gesture of appreciation.」
“Ah, is that so?”
「They’re from a supplier that delivers to our affiliated hotels, so the quality is reliable.」
“I see, thank you.”
「I apologize for not notifying you sooner due to the sudden complications. I’m sorry for informing you so late.」
“No, not at all. Please tell the Chairman I’m grateful.”
Before leaving for the mountains, I’d casually mentioned that I needed to purchase groceries for the hotel on my way back.
I never expected him to arrange something like this.
I didn’t feel burdened by what he’d done.
‘I’ve done things for him too.’
I pulled up the corners of my mouth in a smile and shared the good news with Min Ju.
“Min Ju, those groceries are all ours.”
“Yes! Hehehehe!”
Min Ju let out a cheer, and even confused-looking Song Yi and Deok Gu began giggling along with her.
‘My chest felt tight, but hearing the kids laugh like that… it eases something inside me.’
“Hehehehe…!”
“Hihihi…!”
But then, just as suddenly, the laughter died.
Deok Gu toppled backward.
“G-g-ghost…! Ugggghhh…!”

A woman with vivid traces of red tears was entering the lobby alongside Min Jae.
***
The Medical Examiner examining the corpse’s fingers shook her head.
“We won’t get prints this way. Decomposition’s gone too far.”
At those words, Choi Jung Woo’s brow furrowed.
“There has to be another method, though?”
“There are some newer chemical treatments, but…I can’t guarantee anything with a body decomposed this badly.”
Choi Jung Woo gazed at the two corpses lying side by side and spoke.
“Do it. Whatever it takes.”
“Tch, fine. We can only hope for partial prints. It’ll take a day or two.”
“Right now—”
“Right now won’t work. The chemical treatment alone takes time.”
“Even if I called in favors, there’s really no way?”
“I said no. Minimum twenty hours. Pushing won’t help. So stop bothering me and get out.”
At the Medical Examiner’s curt tone, Choi Jung Woo raked her hair back roughly and muttered.
“Heartless woman.”
But she didn’t so much as blink.
“Out.”
***
The unconscious Deok Gu was dumped in the Staff Quarters, and the child’s mother—the ghost—was assigned a room.
The moment she entered, Su Chan opened the hotel’s management window to check the Guest Details Information.
【 Guest Details Information 】
*Room 210:
Hong Yeon Ju
Sorrow
Emptiness
D-4
“Hong Yeon Ju.”
So that was her name.
Tap. Tap. Tap. Tap.
Su Chan tapped the business card from Choi Jung Woo against the table, organizing her thoughts.
‘Will she believe me…?’
“If she doesn’t, I’ll find another way.”
Once this case was solved, there’d be no need to see her again.
So it didn’t matter if she thought Su Chan was strange.
Su Chan entered the number without hesitation and pressed call.
Ring-ring—ring.
Before the signal had even finished ringing twice,
the voice on the other end answered quickly, as if waiting.
“Yes?”
“Detective Choi? This is Kim Woo Jin.”
「 Kim Woo Jin? What’s the matter? 」
“Have you found Su Chan’s identification information?”
「 Ah, well, I can’t disclose investigative details. 」
“I see.”
「 It’s a sensitive case, so I hope you understand. 」
“Then, assuming you haven’t identified him yet, let me tell you something.”
「 ……What? 」
“The child’s mother’s name is Hong Yeon Ju.”
「 Ah, no. How could you possibly—…Don’t tell me you’re going to claim this is just intuition? 」
“Let’s call it intuition. There should be a gambler in her circle. I’d suggest you look into him.”
「 A gambler…? 」
“That’s where the case began.”
「 ……. 」
Only faint breathing came through the receiver for a moment, then a voice emerged that sounded forced and tightly controlled.
「 ‘Hong Yeon Ju’ isn’t such a common name, so I’ll look into it…but don’t think I’m believing everything you say. Understood? 」
“Yes. That’s more than enough.”
「 Oh, and—come to the station by eleven tomorrow morning. 」
“Understood. I’ll see you tomorrow.”
Su Chan hung up and leaned back against the sofa, tilting her head back.
“Sigh….”
Tap.
Something clinked against the table, and Min Ju settled into the chair across from me.
“We have apricot juice today. Please, have some.”
I kept my head tilted back, managing only a listless wave of my hand.
“No, I’m not hungry.”
“Just try a sip. It’s a brand I’ve never seen before, and it’s really good.”
I lifted my heavy head and reached for the glass on the table.
Beads of condensation clung to the rim, cooling my fingertips as soon as I touched it.
I moistened my parched throat with the cold juice and asked, “Where’s Song Yi?”
“With Min Jae in the Staff Quarters.”
“What for?”
“They’re drawing pictures on Deok Gu’s face.”
“Good for them. If the guests had seen him looking like that, he’d deserve the punishment.”
To work at our hotel, you can’t afford to have a thin skin.
What use is an employee who visibly panics in front of guests?
‘If I can’t straighten him out properly, I’ll have to let him go.’
That’s what I was thinking.
Min Ju glanced up the staircase and spoke quietly.
“Manager.”
“Mm?”
“The guest in Room 210… it sounds like they’re still crying in their room.”
“Today marks the forty-fifth day since the child passed. For all that time, sitting beside the body unable to do anything — they’re not in their right mind. They nearly became a vengeful spirit.”
“So they’ll check out in four days?”
“Yes.”
I wondered if we’d be able to catch the killer and hold the child’s funeral within that time.
I knew it was difficult, but I hoped for it nonetheless.
‘I’ll have to trust that Choi Jung Woo handles this.’
I patted my cheek lightly with my palm, steadying my resolve.
Then it came.
The notification I’d been expecting.
【 The moon waxes full. 】
【 Full Moon, D-1 】
【 A lost guest will find their way to the hotel. 】
Darkness settled beyond the windows as the long day drew to a close.
Tomorrow, another guest bearing their own story would arrive.
***
After receiving Kim Woo Jin’s call, Choi Jung Woo instructed her team to identify a person named Hong Yeon Ju.
Fortunately, the surname was distinctive enough that there were only eight people with that name in total.
Finding among them a woman with a son named Su Chan wasn’t difficult.
The youngest detective on the squad approached with a crumpled sheet of A4 paper.
“Team Lead, over here. This person has a son named Su Chan.”
Choi Jung Woo took the paper and scanned the text marked with a highlighter.
“The address….”
“It’s not far from where the body was found.”
“Is that so? Hmm….”
The junior detective watched as Choi Jung Woo stroked her stubbled chin thoughtfully, then tilted her head with a question.
“Team Lead, where did you get this information?”
“Why?”
“It doesn’t seem right. This Hong Yeon Ju’s son is eight years old. The child we saw looked about five or six.”
“You’re right about that.”
“So shouldn’t we discard this and, since we don’t have an ID yet anyway, call it a day…?”
“Better to be certain.”
“Sir?”
“We need to go verify it in person.”
“Now? At this hour?”
Choi Jung Woo sprang to her feet and rushed toward the door, calling out, “What are you doing? Come on. You’re driving.”
The younger detective’s shoulders sagged as her hopes of leaving on time evaporated.

“Strange that he’d pass this on to me….”
He followed Choi Jung Woo and shot a glare at the detectives seated at their desks.
The senior detectives waved at their youngest colleague.
“Ahem, kid. Take good care of the boss.”
“Heh, drive safe.”
“Man, traitors, all of you…!”
Bang!
The youngest detective muttered a parting shot and slammed the door hard.
***
The two detectives stood before a weathered door wedged in a narrow alley.
The small window inside was silent and dark.
“Doesn’t look like anyone’s home.”
But Choi Jung Woo ignored her junior’s remark and rapped on the door roughly.
Knock-knock-knock-knock—!
“Hello? Anyone there?”
Knock-knock-knock-knock-knock—!
“Hong Yeon Ju? Are you home?”
Bark! Bark!
Woof! Woof! Woof!
Howl! Howl! Howl!
As the knocking grew louder, the neighborhood dogs erupted in frantic barking, and the alley descended into chaos.
The youngest detective muttered under her breath.
“What a mess.”
Just then.
The door next to Hong Yeon Ju’s swung open, and a middle-aged woman’s irritated voice cut through the noise.
“That won’t help—nobody’s in there!”
Choi Jung Woo stepped toward the woman, pulled out her badge, and asked, “Police. The person living there—is that Hong Yeon Ju?”

The woman’s stern expression softened as she examined Choi Jung Woo’s credentials. She answered in a less harsh tone.
“Yes. She had quite an unusual surname, now that I think about it. The lease agreement’s inside—would you like to see it?”
“Are you the landlord?”
“Yes, I am.”
“Do you know where Hong Yeon Ju might be?”
“Haven’t seen her in ages—might’ve done a runner for all I know. I was just about to sort things out since the deposit’s gone and she owes me money.”
“How long has it been since you last saw her?”
“Maybe a month and a half? But why are you looking for her anyway?”
“There’s an investigation.”
The landlord tilted her head, muttering,
“Is it because of that gambler?”
Gambler.
The moment the word left the woman’s lips, Choi Jung Woo’s eyes flashed with sudden intensity.
Inherited the Dokkaebi Hotel
Author
: Why That Waffle
Production Date
: August 25, 2026
Publisher
: ACES Media Inc.
Editor
: ACES Media Editorial Team
Address
: 10F Urban Bench Building, 325 Teheran-ro, Gangnam-gu, Seoul
Email
: [email protected]
※ This work is published by ACES Media Inc. in accordance with the copyright holder’s contract.
The content may not be used in any form or by any means without the permission of the publisher and author.
This ebook is protected by copyright law, and any 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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