WeTried Translations

Translator/Editor: ZERO_SUGAR

Discord: https://dsc.gg/wetried

◈ Escaping the Mystery Hotel ◈

Episode 166: Room 201, Curse Room - ‘The Cube’ (15)

──────

- Han Ga-in

“... There’s something I never told you.”

“What is it?”

“You remember how I said there was a Management Bureau army outside the Research Lab?”

“Yes.”

“Actually, the escape notification didn’t appear the moment I stepped outside. I saw the Management Bureau army fighting Beatrix too.”

“Whaaaat???”

Everyone turned to Eun-sol in shock!

“No, think about it. The moment I saw the Management Bureau army, I thought, what if I hid somewhere and stayed alive while they killed Beatrix? Wouldn’t that solve everything?”

“That’s certainly possible. We don’t necessarily have to kill the Adversary ourselves. In Room 103, it was the Devourer who killed Athanasia.”

“So, as soon as I got out, I used my badge and hid nearby. The Management Bureau recognized me, so they didn’t attack.”

Grandpa asked impatiently.

“Why’s this introduction so long? Who won?”

“If the Management Bureau had won, wouldn’t I have come back with the Inheritance?”

“...”

“At first, it looked like the Management Bureau was winning. They tore Beatrix’s body apart with sheer firepower. Then she remade it as if nothing had happened and let out one scream. An army of immortal monsters poured out from underground.”

We were speechless.

“The Management Bureau fought pretty well too. They killed almost all of those monsters one way or another. That’s why I was able to escape in the end. But in the end, the tide turned in Beatrix’s favor, so I ran without even stopping to breathe.”

I barely managed to pull myself together.

“So Beatrix’s successful creations weren’t only in the Cube.”

“I think the ones left in the Cube were the mediocre ones. The things underground were the real deal.”

“... Then do you really think having my Sealing released will solve this?”

After slowly sipping her coffee, Eun-sol answered in an unexpectedly relaxed tone.

“Watching that scene actually convinced me.”

“Convinced you of what?”

“Room 201 wasn’t made for us to beat Beatrix to death with brute force.”

“It wasn’t a room made for us to beat her with strength...”

“She’s too strong to overcome by force. An organization that supposedly protects Earth brought an army, and they still lost. I’m sorry to all of you, who tried so hard to defeat Beatrix on our second attempt, but the Beatrix you struggled against was actually...”

Eun-sol hesitated, but Elena finished the thought.

“She was only playing with us. Her true ability is creating monsters, and she didn’t even use the successful creations she made with that power. She buried them beneath Headquarters.”

“Right. She was just playing with us. Beatrix never felt any real danger from us. And because she’s that strong, it makes this even clearer. She isn’t an entity we’re supposed to defeat through force. The hotel doesn’t give impossible missions. We can’t beat her with strength, yet it’s still possible to clear the room. Simple, right? There’s a way to win without fighting. There has to be.”

I thought of the fetus of the Nebula Dragon in the Curse Room, Room 102, House of Horror. It had been an entity we could never defeat through normal means.

The scenario had become tangled beyond repair, leaving us no choice but to break through with the cheat code called Descent. Under normal circumstances, though, it had never been an opponent we were meant to fight head-on.

Beatrix was similar. If even the Management Bureau’s army had collapsed, she was an entity our group’s current combat strength could do nothing about.

“Now that I think about it, the Owl passing on ‘Look to the Moon, Not the Finger’ twice must have meant something like that. This isn’t a room made for us to fight Beatrix, so why are we obsessed with the finger called Beatrix and only thinking about defeating her with strength? It all sounds convincing, but what should we do, then?”

Eun-sol calmly pointed at me.

“Am I really the answer? Do you think I can handle this easily with Possession?”

“Maybe, but I don’t think Possession is the solution. That would still be winning through force, and I think that path is wrong. Ga-in, if a clone is standing in front of you, can you possess the original body?”

That seemed difficult. It was like asking whether I could watch TV and possess someone on-screen. That was beyond what I could do.

“I think I could only possess Beatrix’s clone or the monsters in front of me.”

“Exactly. I don’t think your Possession will give us the answer either. There aren’t just one or two monsters. Would possessing one of them mean anything? Beatrix would just order her monster army to destroy your body, and she’d win.”

A-ri, who had been drinking beside us, spoke up.

“I think I understand what Eun-sol means. There’s no way to defeat Beatrix through force. We need to find another solution.”

Grandpa seemed to understand why Eun-sol had been so confident.

“The Chief Researcher was the one who raised Beatrix into a monster like this in the first place. Unless that bastard was a complete idiot, he must have prepared a way to control Beatrix. It looks like it wasn’t perfect, since Beatrix got the better of him, but the method itself must exist.”

The more I listened, the more I understood why Eun-sol thought having my Sealing released would somehow solve things.

Beatrix couldn’t be defeated with strength, and the hotel didn’t give impossible missions.

To compare it to a game, it was like facing a boss monster with 99,999 health and an invincibility cheat on top of that!

At first, we didn’t know any better, so we tried to force our way through. But once we understood some of our opponent’s power, we reached the conclusion that Beatrix was never an enemy we were supposed to defeat by fighting.

There had to be a way to subdue her without fighting.

The Chief Researcher was, based on the circumstances, the one most likely to have prepared that method. Someone who experimented on a girl capable of creating monsters as easily as breathing would never have failed to prepare a way to control her.

“Was there anything in Patrick’s room about what that method might be?”

Eun-sol let out a small sigh.

“If I’d found it, I would’ve told you first. Still, there’s circumstantial evidence.”

“Circumstantial evidence?”

“There was something like a diary. It had plenty of records saying that Beatrix feared the Chief Researcher.”

I understood. If Beatrix, a monster with overwhelming power, feared someone, she had to have a reason.

Song-i joined in, looking tired, perhaps because it was late.

“I think we’ve said almost everything there is to say among ourselves. Shouldn’t we use Ga-in’s Advice already?”

I agreed. We had said almost everything we could, and it was late.

It was time to hear the unfriendly Sponsor’s advice.

[Sage’s Advice: 3 -> 2]

‘Does the Chief Researcher have a way to subdue Beatrix?’

It seemed likely, but we needed to confirm it through Sage’s Advice.

[A dog owner doesn’t keep the leash far away.]

Was it because I was asking about something where we had already gathered enough information to be halfway certain?

The answer was rather kind!

Not only did a method of subduing Beatrix exist, but it was also near the dog owner, the Chief Researcher.

When I told the others, their expressions brightened.

Elena asked, sounding impressed.

“That answer was pretty kind. It didn’t even throw an idiom at us?”

I knew the answer now.

“It’s because we gathered enough information ourselves, reached the correct answer, and then asked for confirmation. It’s unfriendly when we ask because we lack information and don’t know the answer at all.”

“Doesn’t that make sense and sound absurd at the same time? We ask questions because we don’t know, but it answers us unkindly because we don’t know.”

“Exactly.”

One of my wishes is to punch the Owl at least once before I leave the hotel.

Eun-sol spoke with a pleased expression.

“See? I told you. Based on the circumstances, your Sealing and the solution have to be closely connected. We can never win through force, but clearing the room is possible. That means there’s a way to win without fighting, and who else would have prepared the means besides the Chief Researcher?”

Our group’s guesses and the answer from Sage’s Advice pointed in the same direction, which made me feel a little more at ease.

I used the remaining two uses of Sage’s Advice on questions essential to resolving the room.

...

The answers were partly within what I expected, though there were some surprising parts as well.

I learned where Beatrix’s true body was.

I also understood why it had to be me, not another companion, who was Sealed.

Curse Room, Room 201, ‘The Cube’.

With this much information, once I woke up, an hour would be enough to resolve it.

* * *

[User: Han Ga-in (Wisdom)

Date: Day 85

Current Location: Level 1, Elevator

Sage’s Advice: 3]

- Han Ga-in

“Do you think we can resolve it today?”

“I hope so.”

Perhaps because we had found a solution through yesterday’s long discussion, my companions seemed tense but expectant.

“It’s morning, so the number of Advice uses has refreshed. Is there anything you’re curious about?”

Eun-sol answered firmly.

“A lot. So save them.”

I had been planning to save them anyway. I only asked out of courtesy.

Our plan was practically centered around having Han Ga-in’s Sealing released, and we had already obtained most of the information needed for that.

What we didn’t know was what to do after I woke up.

There were still many unknowns about what Chief Researcher Han Ga-in should do after being released.

The me who woke up later would have to figure it out based on the Chief Researcher’s memories.

So it would be better for the me who woke up later to use Sage’s Advice.

--- Ding! Dong!

An enormous chill swept through us with the elevator alarm.

This damn cold was a huge problem too!

I expected the Hotel Repairs event to happen after Room 201 was resolved and Party Time began, but how would it work?

I had no idea. What kind of idiotic hotel made its customers do the repairs?

“Good luck, everyone!”

Jin-cheol ran ahead and reached the door. The moment he opened it while shouting encouragement, I was sucked through too, even though I was still running toward it.

...

...

...

Bubbles rose from all around me.

The familiar test tube. People hurried busily around outside.

Before long, my consciousness faded.

...

...

...

--- Crash!

[Sealing has been released!]

Now it was time for the protagonist to step up!

* * *

- Third Attempt, Kim A-ri

“Team Leader Elizabeth, this mansion is Hesbeth Mansion.”

“Hmm. You’re saying hundreds of people have already died in a place like this?”

“At this rate, it’ll be thousands by next year.”

“Isn’t that why we came? Let’s go in.”

--- Clunk!

“What was that sound?”

“Team Leader Elizabeth! The door is locked!”

“What are you talking about? Contact Headquarters!”

“What? What is this? The signal is gone!”

--- Beeeep!

The beginning went no differently from before.

The only difference was that A-ri had no intention of playing along with Elizabeth any longer.

If Elizabeth started going wild, she would do strange things, like summon monsters from other rooms. It was better to deal with her in advance.

“Hey, Team Leader.”

“Cha Jin-cheol? Do you have some complaint with me-”

--- Crack!

“It’s time for the extra to leave the stage.”

Cha Jin-cheol immediately twisted Elizabeth’s neck 360 degrees, then watched for a moment in case she turned into a monster. Fortunately, killing her outright caused no unusual changes.

Of course, Oliver made a huge fuss beside them, but Kim Mook-seong beat him up so he couldn’t follow. Sorry, but he was better off staying quiet.

Eun-sol approached.

“Let’s follow the exact first route this time. We found the TV room quickly then, right?”

“Yeah. Basement in the first mansion, front door in the second mansion. Then we went straight to the TV room.”

Before long, they all arrived at the TV room.

The moment “Oath!” began, they pressed mute and opened the path leading to Headquarters.

It hadn’t even taken ten minutes.

Cha Jin-cheol cried out admiringly.

“This is nice and quick.”

“Don’t let your guard down. The real fight starts once we enter Headquarters. There are quite a lot of Headquarters special forces beyond the TV.”

Just as Kim Mook-seong said, tension filled the air as they stood before the TV.

Now the real beginning! If we released Ga-in’s Sealing and found a way to subdue Beatrix through the Chief Researcher’s memories, wouldn’t this tiresome Cube finally be over?

Everyone looked at me.

Ah, I knew it, but there was only one way to enter Headquarters safely.

With a deep sigh, I had to take out a syringe.

“Could you all at least pay me? You’re draining this much blood from someone. We got an Inheritance that gives us the power of vampires, so why am I the only one getting my blood sucked?”

Footnotes:

Join our discord at https://dsc.gg/wetried