WeTried Translations
Translator/Editor: ZERO_SUGAR
Discord: https://dsc.gg/wetried
◈ Escaping the Mystery Hotel ◈
Episode 146: Rest and Reorganization (2)
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- Han Ga-in
“Wait! Everyone, listen up!”
A-ri shouted at us as we stood there, unsure what to do with the Protective Suit.
Once everyone was looking at her, she continued.
“Avoiding the issue of the Protective Suit won't solve anything. Sooner or later, we have to make a decision.”
Eun-sol spoke noncommittally.
“Then, while we eat-”
“No. If we discuss it while we eat, we'll just end up saying we should think about it more and decide later. Now! Let's decide now.”
A-ri continued, more resolute than I'd ever seen her.
“The core issue with the Protective Suit is who manages it when we're not using it, right? No one's touched it, and we've just left it here because we're afraid whoever manages it might put it on and secretly escape.”
Honestly, she was right. Everyone silently nodded.
“But we have to use this thing. You all know it isn't just a tool for escaping, right? It's impervious to blades and impervious to water and fire. Those two things alone tell us it's armor with supernatural capabilities. Why do you think the hotel gave us something like this?”
I answered.
“Because there's somewhere we'll need it.”
“Correct! Somewhere on Level 2, we'll definitely need it. We might have to enter lava or push through an extremely cold blizzard. We might even need to make our way through sharp objects we couldn't approach with our bare bodies.”
Jin-cheol, who had been quietly listening, spoke up.
“If you're the one bringing this up, does that mean you'll manage it, A-ri?”
“Yes. The biggest problem with the Protective Suit is that whoever manages it might put it on and secretly escape at night, right? It isn't enough to simply say someone seems trustworthy. The person managing it needs a more definite reason not to escape alone.
“I've already escaped from the hotel once. Even so, I came back because there was someone I had to save. I think I've already proven through my actions that I won't leave before saving my mother.”
It made sense. A-ri had already escaped once, yet returned because she had a goal.
More than anyone else's, the certainty that she would not leave before achieving that goal was beyond doubt.
Song-i raised a point.
“What about after you save your mother? Ah! I don't mean I suspect you'll run off with it! It's just-”
“It's okay. We need to check these things. That isn't a problem either. Escaping through the Protective Suit is for one person, right? So nothing will change even after I save my mother. Of course, if we keep being suspicious, there'll be no end to it. In the most extreme case, you could worry that I'd only let my mother escape. If you're worried that much, let's discuss it again after Mi-ro is resurrected.”
Jin-cheol asked in a slightly worried tone.
“Are you planning to be the one who uses it whenever we need it, too?”
“No. Whoever is suited to the situation should use it. Just look at how this suit looks. It isn't something you can wear while walking around normally, right? It's something to wear when necessary, so let's have the person who needs it use it at the time. They can return it to me afterward.”
The room went quiet for a moment.
That seemed enough to establish the rules for using the Protective Suit.
1. Whoever needs it for the situation uses it.
2. When it isn't in use, A-ri manages it.
3. After A-ri's mother, Mi-ro, is resurrected, we'll discuss it again.
It seemed reasonable. No one else appeared to object.
Once the issue of trust surrounding the Protective Suit was settled, the discussion quickly gained momentum.
Everyone had accumulated too many questions about it over the past few days.
We even put off eating and gathered together to test each of the Protective Suit's functions.
* * *
After struggling around in it for quite a while, Jin-cheol took off the Protective Suit.
“This is harder than I expected.”
Mook-seong spoke up.
“Somehow, you seem clumsier than usual.”
“It feels more like this thing is getting in the way of my movements.”
A-ri spoke as she fiddled with the Protective Suit's mechanism.
“It feels vaguely similar to a Management Bureau Powered Suit. This thing weighs over a hundred kilograms to begin with. It doesn't seem like something a person moves with their own strength. I think sensors read the wearer's movements and move it automatically. Put simply, the strength you use while wearing the Protective Suit has nothing to do with your own strength. It comes from the suit's mechanism itself.”
I thought I understood what she meant.
“Are you saying someone strong could actually become weaker by wearing the Protective Suit?”
“That would normally be rare. Even Seung-yeop became considerably stronger while wearing it. In most cases, it's right to say you become stronger by wearing the Protective Suit. There is just one person among us who's too strong for a powered suit to keep up with.”
Song-i joined in from beside us.
“What amazes me most is how its size changes. When Seung-yeop gets in, it becomes the perfect size for him, and when I wear it, it fits me perfectly too. When Jin-cheol put his arm in, it got bigger on its own. Is it magic?”
A-ri had a somewhat different opinion.
“Not to this extent, but Management Bureau equipment adjusts somewhat to the user's body shape too. Since its weight stays the same regardless of its size, it might not be occult power. It could be incredibly advanced science...”
It didn't seem like a particularly meaningful distinction. Ever since entering the hotel, incredibly advanced science and occult power had looked no different to me.
What caught my attention more was the Management Bureau Powered Suit A-ri had mentioned earlier. They had things like that too?
Bang! Bang!
Two gunshots rang out. Mook-seong exclaimed in admiration.
“Wow! A handgun can't even scratch the surface. Too bad we can't test it with greater firepower. What about your strength, Jin-cheol?”
“I tried punching the wall while wearing it and also using force on the Protective Suit itself, but it didn't budge at all. Still...”
“Still?”
“The Protective Suit itself is endlessly durable, but the person inside still seems to take some impact. It's reduced a lot, though.”
It was time for the last test.
Song-i, Jin-cheol, and I looked at one another and nodded.
A-ri was inside the Protective Suit.
Song-i went first.
The moment a pale flash burst from her bracelet, A-ri frantically waved her hand from inside the Protective Suit.
She was telling us to stop.
Defense failed.
Next, I took out the Grimoire.
My consciousness felt as if it had lifted free, and in an instant, I found myself inside the Protective Suit.
Since I was there, I pinched A-ri's cheek once before leaving.
Defense failed.
I'd already guessed the result by then. Still, we had to confirm it.
We moved closer to the front desk, and everyone stepped back. Jin-cheol briefly took out the Star.
It was only for a moment, but the Protective Suit's paint immediately peeled away. Jin-cheol put it away at once.
Surprisingly, once the Star disappeared, the Protective Suit's paint slowly returned to normal.
Defense failed.
That concluded our performance test of the Protective Suit, and we could draw a rough conclusion.
1. Everyone except Jin-cheol became at least somewhat stronger while wearing the Protective Suit.
2. It changed size to fit the body of whoever wore it.
3. The Protective Suit itself was nearly invincible, but a massive impact could still endanger the person inside.
4. It couldn't defend against the power of an Inheritance.
Finally, A-ri put it on and headed toward the rooms.
As everyone considered the Protective Suit's functions and possible uses, Eun-sol spoke with a worried expression.
“If we're going to use it when necessary, do we have to carry it around while going through Curse Rooms?”
“Wouldn't we have to?”
“It weighs more than a person. We don't have a scale, so I can't say for sure, but it's much heavier than Jin-cheol. It must be well over a hundred kilograms. How are we supposed to carry that around?”
“We'll have to judge based on the situation, but if possible, someone should wear it while we move around.”
“Something that flashy? All the time? Who?”
It seemed that apart from the person who managed it normally at the hotel, A-ri, we also needed to decide who would wear it in Curse Rooms.
One person came to mind, someone with a useful blessing but such poor physical ability that they couldn't use it properly.
* * *
- Lee Eun-sol
As the analysis of the Protective Suit ended and we were nearly done eating, Ga-in suggested that I use Greedy Hand once more.
When I looked around, Elena, Song-i, and Jin-cheol were all nodding too.
It seemed they had already agreed among themselves. In the end, I decided to use Greedy Hand.
After making their own preparations for battle, my companions gathered near the front desk.
I looked around, then thought of a wish to use Greedy Hand.
...
[Greedy Hand: 1]
Sometimes, I felt that the others and I were gradually changing.
We'd decided to create an event that could put our lives at risk for the sake of becoming stronger.
Could that really be the mindset of ordinary people?
It was a judgment only superhumans who had gained strength beyond ordinary humans could make.
My companions could twist all things with the power of the Star, summon Scales and crush an army, toy with people's senses with a single gesture, borrow the power of angels, or take over people's bodies.
Sometimes, my companions tossed out comments that sounded like jokes, though I couldn't tell whether they meant them.
Jokes like, “Of course you can't understand ordinary people like us. You're from a chaebol family!”
If I'd met them outside the hotel, I might have admitted they were right.
But after entering the hotel, I couldn't understand what they even meant.
What meaning did being from a chaebol family have now?
Any one of them could leave the hotel and bring down a chaebol overnight...
There were times I found them difficult to understand.
Why did they still listen to me so well?
Wasn't it an eternal truth that when the gap in power grew too wide, it became difficult to even have a normal conversation?
To be honest, at shareholders' meetings, I didn't even look at people who spoke up with a stake the size of a bean.
Yet when I saw my companions still listening whenever I spoke, I felt grateful, but also wondered what kind of people they were.
Looking at it this way, A-ri's joke that the hotel had chosen this party because we were kind seemed like a cold, accurate analysis.
.
.
.
It was weakness.
My weakness.
Everyone in the hotel was becoming superhuman, but I still hadn't left the realm of humanity. That was why I was trapped in such weak thoughts.
Wanting to cast off my helplessness, I looked at Greedy Hand.
That butterfly brooch from before, which I hadn't even used properly yet, wasn't enough.
Let me go further.
Help me stop getting caught up in thoughts like these.
At least lend me strength so I won't be consumed by inferiority when I look at my companions.
[Greedy Hand: 1 -> 0]
[Granted.]
‘Choose for yourself. You will have to pay a considerable price.’
/At the participant's request, a surprise event will occur despite the rest period.
Surprise Event: Strange Shop Open!/
A familiar figure appeared. An irritating voice followed.
“Ahahaha! Well, well~ Aren't you all excellent customers? Were you that desperate for my help?”
Footnotes:
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