WeTried Translations

Translator/Editor: ZERO_SUGAR

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◈ Escaping the Mystery Hotel ◈

Episode 165: Room 201, Curse Room - ‘The Cube’ (14)

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- Han Ga-in

My eyes flew open with a snap.

At the same time, an icy wind that felt like it could tear through my skin seeped in.

“Brrr! Seriously, Hotel! This weather is ridiculous!”

As I complained about the weather, I glanced sideways at my companions.

What would the mood be like this time?

...

About the same?

Most of them looked half out of it, letting out deep sighs.

Room 201, wasn't this a little too much?

At this rate, I'll spend the whole thing sleeping!

At least let me out!

“Alright, alright, cheer up! I have a lot to tell you, so let's get moving!”

At least one person looked incredibly happy.

Seeing Eun-sol's lively expression, everyone seemed to perk up. Their faces brightened, and we set off.

I'm looking forward to this.

The moment we entered the elevator and escaped the cold, my companions started chattering noisily.

From what I could tell, the group that had gone to fight Beatrix had gotten thoroughly beaten.

I heard grim talk about how her real body was somewhere else and how there was no way to kill her.

Only after we returned to the warm Room 105 did Eun-sol begin her full explanation.

* * *

For quite a while, Eun-sol told us stories of how she and Grandpa had distinguished themselves at Headquarters. There were more than a few moments that made everyone gasp in admiration.

Everyone applauded when she described how Grandpa had come up with a countermeasure to the truth serum in that short time, and how she had brought in the Management Bureau's forces.

By the time she recalled Pero's Sealing being released and Pero sacrificing itself so they could escape, I was tense enough to break into a sweat.

Maybe Eun-sol was overwhelmed too, because she suddenly hugged Pero beside her and rubbed her cheek against it. She only let go after Pero tore at her ear with its beak.

Only after she finished telling her story did she begin explaining the information she had gathered.

“Where should I start? Right, I'll go in chronological order. In the 1980s, an entity called the Zero-Dimensional Eye suddenly appeared. No one knows where it came from or what its purpose was. The moment it appeared, it brought the entire world into its field of vision, and people who began to perceive the Eye were quickly consumed by madness. According to the records, the world collapsed in less than half a year.”

The story was so absurd from the beginning that I had to ask.

“The world collapsed?”

“According to the materials I saw, yes. Of course, considering the quality of the weapons we used inside Room 201 and the Management Bureau army we saw at the end, it didn't exactly feel like a collapsed world... Still, it's an incredible organization. I guess they somehow got things under control.”

Grandpa nodded.

“The Zero-Dimensional Eye. That damn eyeball Elena and Ga-in saw must have been that thing, right?”

“Probably. I'll continue. At the time, the Management Bureau somehow succeeded in sealing the Zero-Dimensional Eye. This is where our Chief Researcher Han Ga-in appears!”

Everyone's gaze suddenly turned toward me. I had nothing to say, so I stayed quiet.

“It doesn't say exactly what method the Chief Researcher used. Judging from the circumstances, it seems he used a tool called the Irregular Polyhedron. Honestly... the Chief Researcher vaguely described in various records didn't seem human.”

The more I heard, the more curious I became.

“What kind of person was I supposed to be?”

“Because of the title Chief Researcher, you imagined a neat, sophisticated intellectual type, right? You were wrong. According to Patrick's journal, he was a bizarre man with demonic charisma.”

A-ri seemed to find that description funny.

“Ga-in! Stop doing demonic things from now on.”

“...”

“Anyway, the Chief Researcher used the Irregular Polyhedron to seal the Zero-Dimensional Eye in a strange space that couldn't be reached by ordinary means. He received a major promotion for that achievement. Then quite a long time passed. In the 1990s, the Beatrix in question appeared in New York.”

Now it begins. Beatrix.

“They say Beatrix had the power to create monsters from the moment she was discovered. Because of that power, she lost both her parents at a young age. At first, the Management Bureau tried to eliminate Beatrix. They thought her ability itself was useful, but because she couldn't control the monsters, they judged her to be no different from a natural disaster.”

I already knew this part.

“This is where I was involved again. You said I made it possible for Beatrix to control her power?”

“That's right. There were more details written down. During the Chief Researcher's experiments, Beatrix created countless monsters, but most of them were failures. Those endlessly produced failures were the real problem. Here, failures didn't mean weak monsters.”

“It meant monsters that couldn't be controlled. Beatrix couldn't control them either, and they were incredibly powerful.”

“Exactly. Then our Chief Researcher Han Ga-in came into play again. He remembered the place where he had sealed the Zero-Dimensional Eye in the past.”

Having heard that much, A-ri opened her mouth in disbelief.

“Don't tell me... he built a Research Lab inside the place where the Evil God was sealed? Beatrix kept producing monsters there, and they threw the failures to the Evil God?”

“You understood right away. You really are from the Management Bureau, A-ri.”

Grandpa looked utterly dumbfounded.

“I can only say they crossed the line...”

Jin-cheol couldn't hold back any longer and asked.

“Grandpa, did the Management Bureau in our world do things like that too?”

“Doing something that reckless is rare.”

Song-i sighed.

“Rare means it isn't unheard of.”

“...”

A-ri added as if she were defending herself.

“Even if the Management Bureau does have aspects that are beyond ordinary people's common sense, this crossed the line. They actually planned to create monsters and use them... This was never a normal situation. That Han Ga-in bastard was obviously the problem.”

It wasn't my story, but it felt like it was, and I could barely breathe.

Eun-sol seemed to have realized something.

“Think back to what I told you earlier. According to the records, the world inside the stage was nearly destroyed by the Evil God. Chief Researcher Han Ga-in stopped it. If we exaggerate a little, he accomplished something like saving the world. How much influence do you think he would have gained? The Management Bureau is still an organization run by people. Would anyone object to what the person who saved Earth wanted to do?”

After hearing that much, I organized the truth of Room 201 in my own way.

First, in the 1980s, an overwhelming entity called the Zero-Dimensional Eye appeared and pushed the world to the brink of destruction. The Chief Researcher saved the world by sealing the Zero-Dimensional Eye with a tool called the Irregular Polyhedron.

Second, in the 1990s, a girl named Beatrix appeared who could create monsters. At first, she couldn't control them, but the Chief Researcher began experiments to control Beatrix's ability. During this process, countless failed monsters were mass-produced.

Third, the Chief Researcher built a Research Lab inside the place where the Zero-Dimensional Eye was sealed. He conducted experiments on Beatrix inside the sealed site, letting the Evil God kill every failed creation.

Once I understood the larger picture, the information everyone had gathered began to fall into place.

A-ri spoke first.

“Right before I died, I saw an absurd place. At first, I thought it was a red wasteland, but when I got closer, it was actually countless monster corpses, enough to fill an enormous lake. That place was the trash bin.”

Song-i nodded as well.

“The Cube was like a monster breeding chamber. They made monsters inside dozens of boxes, took them out if they seemed useful, and opened and flipped over the boxes if they weren't. The monsters must have fallen below.”

“Was Patrick so confident that the facility couldn't be destroyed because it was the place where the Zero-Dimensional Eye was sealed?”

Grandpa answered.

“Probably. According to Eun-sol, they had helicopters and armored units ready, but they waited instead of physically destroying the facility. They must have been waiting for Beatrix to come out.”

“Then Patrick underestimated the Management Bureau. He thought the place was safe because they couldn't physically destroy the facility, only to be taken out by biochemical weapons.”

“It's common for little shits to get supernatural power by luck, think they're something special, underestimate the Management Bureau, and get crushed.”

Seung-yeop asked a question.

“If the failures were thrown into the trash bin at the bottom of the Cube, where did all the successful ones go?”

“Weren't the ones left in the Cube the successful ones? Beatrix could actually control those monsters.”

“Is that so?”

I had another question too.

“Didn't you say that, by the time you entered, hundreds of people had already been sacrificed in the mansion according to the setting? Why did they bring in ordinary people and kill them in the first place? Doing that would make it easy for the Management Bureau to find them.”

A-ri seemed to think for a moment before proposing a hypothesis.

“Maybe the monsters Beatrix creates are the type that need to eat people.”

Hearing that, I really had to ask.

“So the Management Bureau wanted to use a girl who creates monsters that have to eat people as a useful weapon?”

“... Why are you asking me? I'm just a fifteen-year-old girl who doesn't know anything.”

Silence fell over the room at that completely unfunny remark.

There were still many questions left.

For example, how had the Chief Researcher ended up trapped inside that tank?

If they could confine him in a place like that, they could have killed him too. Why hadn't they?

It seemed Eun-sol hadn't found any materials on that part either.

It couldn't be helped. We couldn't uncover every secret connected to a Curse Room, and we didn't need to.

We only had to learn enough to resolve it.

The next topic of conversation was how to release Han Ga-in from sealing.

Eun-sol told us where I was trapped and the conditions necessary to release the seal.

The more I listened, the more I realized it wouldn't be easy.

“So it's not as simple as storming Headquarters and destroying the place?”

“No. According to the information I found, only Patrick and Beatrix can release your seal.”

“That makes things difficult. We can't ask Beatrix to guide us there, so do we need to brainwash Patrick somehow?”

Curious, I looked toward A-ri. She gave an uncertain response.

“For ordinary people, I can control them briefly just by meeting their eyes. Even strong-willed people can't resist if I force them to drink my blood. The problem is that Patrick isn't an ordinary person. He'll have some way to resist. Capturing Patrick alive in the first place will be difficult.”

Jin-cheol looked deep in thought.

“If it comes down to it, I think I could force my way in with my Star, even if I have to smash through everything.”

“Do I need to explain again why that's dangerous?”

“I understand. I'm just saying we should consider it something like Plan D.”

Song-i raised a problem from another angle.

“It seems we'll all cross over to Headquarters next time, but what about Beatrix? If we start rampaging through Headquarters, won't Beatrix come over there too?”

Elena answered simply.

“I'll conserve Justice until then, then use it when Beatrix arrives. While I hold her off, you can release Ga-in, right?”

The outline of how to proceed with the third attempt began to take shape.

We would all travel to Headquarters through the TV, then destroy Headquarters and free me from sealing.

If Beatrix attacked along the way, Elena would buy time against her.

Afterward, we would deal with Beatrix together with the revived me, and the problem would be solved!

Everyone began celebrating, saying that the resolution to Room 201 was finally within sight.

Amid that excitement, I...

Honestly, I was extremely anxious.

There was one very important problem missing from the plan my companions had made.

Fine, but how the hell were we supposed to kill Beatrix?

You all made this plan thinking, ‘Once the great Chief Researcher Han Ga-in is released from sealing, he'll somehow be able to stop Beatrix,’ didn't you?

Was this for real? Was this actually a strategy we could trust?

I didn't even know what Beatrix looked like, but my companions seemed to think that if they just released me, the great Chief Researcher would take care of Beatrix somehow. It made me unbelievably nervous!

Unable to bear it any longer, I spoke.

“Um... I'm sorry if this ruins the mood, but can I really take down Beatrix just because I'm released from sealing? Wouldn't it be better to summon the Management Bureau again?”

Eun-sol gave a somewhat gloomy response.

“... There's something I haven't told you all.”

Footnotes:

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