WeTried Translations

Translator/Editor: ZERO_SUGAR

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◈ Escaping the Mystery Hotel ◈

Episode 180: Party Time - Natural Selection (7)

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[User: Han Ga-in (Wisdom)

Date: Day 90

Current Location: Level 1, Room 105 - Rest Room

Sage’s Advice: 1]

- Han Ga-in

Elena hadn't returned by the time the second day of Party Time was nearly over. Even the companions who had kept saying she'd probably come back for lunch, then dinner, were starting to worry.

“Song-i, did you check the basement?”

“Yes. While I was waiting, she kept coming out to take short breaks. I even asked her to come eat with us, but... she said she was almost done and wouldn't come out.”

“This is awkward. If she's almost done, it doesn't feel right to drag her away.”

If this was an important moment for Elena to develop her ability, it was probably best not to interfere.

“Let's wait a little longer. I think she'll come back with good news.”

“It'll be a relief if you're right, Ga-in. By the way, have you used up all your Advice?”

The second question we'd asked was, “Tell us what else we need to prepare,” and the answer had been, “Prepare food supplies.” That was how we learned the sad truth that, once Party Time ended, the Hotel probably wouldn't even feed us properly for a while.

Because of that, everyone was busier packing food than eating dinner. Beside me, Jin-cheol was filling containers with pork belly.

“I'm still thinking about the third question. I'll use it once I've made up my mind.”

“Fine. Just tell us the answer afterward.”

Song-i came over to Eun-sol and me.

“Um... I saw something while I was waiting to bring Elena back earlier. She kept going in and out of the Safari.”

“Really?”

“... Every time she came out, she was swaying badly and looked awful. She told me not to come close.”

Eun-sol and I didn't react much, but Jin-cheol's expression darkened at once.

“This is really bad.”

“Is something wrong?”

“Eun-sol, if Elena wanted to practice her ability, she could just stay inside the Safari. Why would she keep going in and out?”

“Uh... because she's tired?”

As expected of the person who had used the Safari more than anyone else, Jin-cheol immediately found the answer.

“She keeps dying. The Safari brings you back outside the moment you die. She's staggering every time she comes out because of the stress.”

Everyone's faces fell at those words. We'd grown numb to death after going through Curse Rooms, but pain was something we could never get used to.

A-ri immediately pushed me from behind.

“This won't do. Go bring her back.”

“Would she come just because I go? You or Eun-sol should-”

“Just go get her already.”

* * *

In the end, A-ri forced me to head down to the basement and bring Elena back. I was prepared to wait until she came out if necessary, but fortunately, Elena was already outside.

“Elena!”

“...”

No answer. Something about Elena's expression was strange. When I approached, she suddenly waved a hand at me. What did that mean? I ignored it and stepped closer, and Elena twisted her face as she shouted.

“Don't come any closer! It's not like you can help anyway! If you hadn't recommended I get an ability like this in the first place- Oh my! I'm sorry. Ah! Aah! I'm sorry! You came right before Clear Mirror, Still Water activated! What do I do...?”

She suddenly snapped at me, then began apologizing so desperately that she was almost crying before I could even react. I couldn't understand what was going on, but I felt like I had to do something.

... What was I supposed to do in a situation like this?

It felt childish, but I held Elena's hand tightly for a moment. Gradually, her sniffling stopped, and the torrent of emotions raging through her seemed to settle.

“Are you all right? You haven't eaten all day, and everyone's worried because you've been going in and out of the Safari. And your reaction just now made it seem like you weren't doing well.”

“I'm fine now. And what is this? Are you an elementary schooler?”

“...”

--- Flick.

She did seem better. Elena soon chuckled and shook my hand off.

“I realized while practicing all day that Ominous Imagination has a way of driving you out of your mind the more you use it. It's like the ability constantly stimulates a person's trauma. You have to think ominous thoughts to get the ability going in the first place, and once it activates, the ability itself clouds your mind.”

“... The side effects are worse than I thought. From what you said earlier, could it be that I-”

“No, please don't worry about what I said. I was half out of my mind and just blurted out nonsense before Clear Mirror, Still Water restored me!”

Elena took my hand again and stared straight into my eyes as she spoke, so I nodded without thinking. It seemed what she'd said earlier hadn't been her true feelings.

Speaking of which, Clear Mirror, Still Water. Wasn't that the skill Elena had recently acquired? Reading the curiosity on my face, Elena began explaining, perhaps to change the subject.

“When my mind gets clouded past a certain point, Clear Mirror, Still Water snaps me back to my senses like someone dumped ice water over my head. I kept using the ability until I was half insane and suffering from all kinds of paranoid delusions, but it brought me back to myself in about three seconds.”

“That sounds amazing. But can't you use Clear Mirror, Still Water beforehand to protect your mind while using Ominous Imagination?”

Elena gave a bitter smile.

“People really do think alike. That was my first thought too. Unfortunately, I can't use Clear Mirror, Still Water consciously. It activates after my mind has already gone bad and stabilizes me afterward.”

“Ah, so it isn't a power that blocks an attack beforehand, but one that heals you after you've been hit. Then what about getting help from Song-i's bracelet?”

Elena laughed as soon as she heard that.

“I met Song-i earlier, and she said the exact same thing. That's impossible too. Ominous Imagination isn't an ability that makes you lose your mind when you use it. It's the kind of power where you have to lose your mind to use it.”

I understood what she meant. In short, getting swept up in madness was required from the beginning to use the ability. If you defended against the madness itself by some means, you wouldn't be able to use the ability at all.

That was why the Sponsor's blessing enhancement, meant to compensate for it, wasn't an ability that stopped madness. It was one that let her recover after being consumed by it. What an exhausting ability. With such a powerful penalty, it had better be just as powerful.

Elena hadn't eaten all day, right? Worried about her, I took her to the snack table on the first floor. A-ri, who seemed to have been waiting for us, came over and immediately asked,

“Elena! You worked hard. Did you make some incredible monster?”

This girl really didn't hold back! She asked right away! I was too worried that Elena might have gone through all that training without any results to ask.

“I did make a fairly tame child...”

“Oh! In just one day? Already? Elena, are you some genius of the century?”

“... Don't tease me.”

“What kind of monster is it?”

“It came out in a way that's hard to understand.”

“What does that mean?”

“Hmm. It's hard to explain. It's like I almost understand it, but not quite.”

“Now I'm even more curious. Can you show us?”

Elena looked hesitant, but soon nodded. She seemed to feel a sense of accomplishment herself and wanted to show it off a little.

“I used almost all my strength in the Safari, but I'll give you a small demonstration. It'll be small, but it should feel similar!”

With that, Elena looked around for a moment.

“Are you looking for something?”

“Yes. An image? A memory? I need a mirror or a window to bring something like that clearly to mind...”

A mirror? A window? There was something similar over there.

“It isn't a mirror or a window, but there's the front entrance. It's a transparent glass door, after all.”

Was transparent glass all that mattered? Elena nodded and walked toward the door.

A moment later, silence fell over the Hotel.

The noise Seung-yeop had been making somewhere vanished.

The fizz in the cola I had been drinking on the table went quiet.

Even the creaking chair A-ri was leaning against stopped.

At the center of that incomprehensible world where every sound had ceased, Elena brought out a monster and said happily,

“Oh my, it came out, even if it's a little small. Isn't it kind of cute?”

...

I couldn't breathe.

To Elena's right, where she had somehow returned to the table, a caterpillar with a human head had appeared on a chair, making a strange noise. Its head turned three hundred and sixty degrees. Eyes repeatedly appeared and disappeared all over the spinning head.

Fuckfuckfuckfuckfuckfuckfuckfuckfuckfuckfuckfuckfuckfuckfuckfuckfuckfuckfuckfuckfuckfuckfuckfuckfuckfuckfuckfuckfuckfuckfuckfuckfuckfuckfuckfuckfuckfuckfuckfuckfuckfuckfuckfuckfuckfuckfuckfuck

“Argh! This is driving me insane!”

Just before I completely lost my mind, I barely managed to cover myself with the Filter from my Status Window. My vision blurred, and my clouded mind returned to something resembling clarity.

“Ah... Aah...”

A weak groan came from beside me. When I turned, A-ri was collapsed on the floor, making strange sounds.

It had been a sudden disaster!

Elena had said she could control it, and hadn't she also said she had almost no strength left?

Neither A-ri nor I had expected something so horrifying to appear. Elena was just as flustered.

“Huh? Huh? Wh-what is this? Why-”

“Elena. Can you get rid of it?”

“N-not right away! I didn't use that much power in the first place, so it'll disappear on its own in about twenty minutes.”

“Then take it away for now. Let's talk tomorrow.”

“... I have no idea what's going on. See you tomorrow.”

Elena disappeared from sight. The caterpillar with a human head crawled across the floor and left with her.

--- Splash!

The moment Elena took the monster away, I immediately grabbed a cup and splashed water over A-ri and myself.

“Ah.”

“Feeling better now?”

“... Thanks. I'm wide awake.”

“What was that thing? She thinks that's cute? Is Elena still out of her mind? She said Clear Mirror, Still Water had activated, didn't she?”

A-ri muttered with a blank expression.

“I think I get it.”

“You get something?”

“Natural selection.”

A concept from evolutionary theory had suddenly come up. I looked at her, asking for an explanation, but A-ri remained still for a long time with a vacant expression.

“Explain it.”

“... Elena was in the Safari all day. How many times do you think she made monsters like that?”

“At least dozens of times?”

“Dozens of failed creations, maybe more, were born. Every time, Elena probably threw away a monster she didn't like, saying this wasn't it, then made another with a different feeling. It was a kind of natural selection among monsters. The only difference is that the one selecting them wasn't nature, but Elena.”

“... So after that process, a monster appeared that looks like a child who listens only to Elena?”

“Probably. Elena isn't crazy. That monster probably genuinely looks like something cute to her. Judging from her reaction, it must look like a small child to Elena. The three of us saw different forms in that monster just now.”

My thoughts were complicated. It had caught us off guard, but both A-ri and I had been overwhelmed by the grotesque power of that horrific monster at the same time.

The experience had been unpleasant and terrifying beyond words, but I also felt relieved. It seemed to listen to Elena, and above all, it looked extremely useful.

The time for worrying just because someone could create ugly monsters had passed long ago. The ability I had obtained was the power to steal another person's body. If it appeared in a game, wouldn't it be the power of an evil black magician rather than a hero?

Thinking that way gradually put me at ease. It was our weapon, after all. Its ugliness and horror could even be strengths. If Elena could handle a monster like that, it would become a tremendous asset in overcoming the Hotel's trials.

I finished my cold cola and, as I stood to return to Room 105 and shake off the bitter memory, had one final thought.

A moment ago, I had seen the phantom of the Unborn One, whom I had fought so fiercely in Room 102, in that monster. It was probably because that was the monster that had left the strongest impression on my heart.

... What had A-ri, who had spent decades working for the Management Bureau, seen?

Footnotes:

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