WeTried Translations

Translator/Editor: ZERO_SUGAR

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◈ Escaping the Mystery Hotel ◈

Episode 201: Party Time - The Ninth Companion (3)

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[User: Han Ga-in (Wisdom)

Date: Day 95

Current Location: Level 2, Frozen Hell - Resurrection Room

Sage’s Advice: X]

- Han Ga-in

The moment Kim Sang-hyeon recognized “Mi-ro,” everyone was taken aback. No one had expected him to recognize her. When everyone turned to A-ri, she looked just as flustered. In the sudden, awkward pause, A-ri spoke.

“Mr. Kim Sang-hyeon, just in case, I'm not Mi-ro.”

At that, Kim Sang-hyeon looked as if he'd realized something and became noticeably more cautious.

“I-is that so? If I've misunderstood something, could you explain it to me?”

A-ri briefly explained that she was Mi-ro's daughter and that there seemed to be some secret surrounding her birth.

“I understand the situation. I'll be as careful as possible from now on.”

“Careful?”

“I'll act naturally.”

Wasn't that answer a little strange?

Everyone seemed to feel that something was off about the conversation as we walked for another three minutes. Then A-ri suddenly stopped us.

“Seriously! Stop, everyone, stop!”

A-ri immediately turned to Kim Sang-hyeon with an irritated expression.

“Kim Sang-hyeon! Come here!”

She was speaking casually to him without hesitation. Of course, Kim Sang-hyeon showed no sign of dissatisfaction.

“Yes?”

“You think I'm Mi-ro hiding my identity right now, don't you?”

“... Even that way of speaking is exactly as I remember it.”

“Huh? Really?”

... I'd thought the earlier conversation sounded strange, and this was why. He hadn't understood that A-ri and Mi-ro were different people. He simply seemed to think that Mi-ro was hiding her identity for some reason.

Still, I understood Kim Sang-hyeon. Having seen both of them, I could say with certainty that aside from their hair color, A-ri and Mi-ro looked almost identical, like identical twins. There was a reason Mi-ro had said, the moment she woke up in Mi-ro’s Hell, “The Hotel's tricks are why I couldn't recognize you.” Anyone with normal intelligence would mistake them for the same person at first glance.

A-ri seemed to understand that too and spoke kindly again.

“Mr. Kim Sang-hyeon, it probably won't be easy to convince you with words alone, so come with me for a moment. It's damn cold here, but there's something you need to see.”

I could guess what it was. We stopped and waited while A-ri took Kim Sang-hyeon to see Mi-ro's ice statue. A little later, Kim Sang-hyeon returned, still unable to hide his surprise.

“Please excuse my earlier rudeness. I'll call you Miss from now on.”

“Huh? Miss? That's a little...”

“Your mother didn't seem like someone who could have children, but you never know what life has in store.”

What did that mean? No one had anything to say, so we stayed quiet while our minds raced. It seemed we had a great deal to discuss. First, though, we needed to get somewhere warm.

The questioning of Kim Sang-hyeon began the moment we arrived at Room 105. Perhaps he'd realized that we were wary of him.

Kim Sang-hyeon answered with an attitude that was almost deferential. Grandpa, who seemed accustomed to this sort of thing, led the conversation.

“I hope you don't find my questions too burdensome. We have a great many things we're curious about.”

Meanwhile, Elena casually moved into position behind Kim Sang-hyeon.

“Of course. Given the nature of this place, I understand. Does this person perhaps possess the power to discern truth?”

Everyone fell silent.

No one had said anything about Elena's ability! Had he figured it out when he saw Elena naturally position herself behind him as soon as the questioning began? Or had one of us unconsciously gestured toward Elena?

Grandpa gave a bitter smile.

“You aren't an ordinary person either. Is it because you've already experienced the Hotel? That's right. We hope there will be no lies in this conversation.”

“Yes.”

“My first question. How exactly do you know Mi-ro? Did you work with the Management Bureau outside the Hotel? It doesn't seem like that was the case.”

“I participated in the Hotel with her in the past. Unlike now, it was the Deep Sea Hotel.”

The Deep Sea Hotel. It was a familiar term. A-ri let out a sigh and lightly clutched her head before joining the questioning.

“Sorry, but I was part of that party too. I don't remember seeing someone like you. Well, I can guess why. I was born on the second floor. Did you die on the first floor? I heard two people died there.”

“That is correct.”

“That's why I don't understand. I know the names of the people who died on the first floor. Johnny and Muhammad. But this is the first time I've heard the name Kim Sang-hyeon.”

“I can answer that simply. My original name is Johnny.”

The facts revealed in that brief exchange were simple. He was a Korean-American named Johnny Kim. He hadn't exactly lied about his name, and Kim Sang-hyeon was indeed his Korean name. His explanation that he thought using his Korean name would get through to me better when he asked me for revival, since I was Korean, was convincing.

A-ri reacted again to the name “Johnny Kim.”

“The name is fine. I understand that you weren't exactly lying. But as far as I know, I heard you had quite an impressive career?”

“It isn't anything so remarkable.”

“No, let's stop with the excessive humility. Aren't you a former doctor, former special forces soldier, and current astronaut?”

... I'd heard it once already, but it was still surprising. Was that really one person's career? A former doctor, former special forces soldier, and current astronaut? Was he some kind of regressor?

The others all looked aghast at that terrifying list of credentials. Jin-cheol couldn't even close his mouth. Kim Sang-hyeon, who had been quietly watching, spoke.

“Some of you may be wondering why I didn't mention my career when I asked Han Ga-in to revive me. First, I apologize for that. While progressing through the Hotel in the past, I painfully learned that appearing overly confident could instead make others wary.”

“... So because of that lesson, you decided to hide everything except your medical experience from Ga-in?”

“I thought medical skills were the kind of ability that would make people think, ‘This person seems useful,’ without making them wary.”

That judgment had been correct. We thought he was simply a doctor, so he seemed useful without appearing particularly threatening.

Perhaps he sensed us murmuring among ourselves. He quickly began to explain.

“It is by no means a lie when I say my career isn't that remarkable. This is the Hotel, after all. Doctor? Special forces? Astronaut? You said that all of you are progressing through the second floor without a single death. Among the people here, there may already be someone who can fly into space with nothing but their bare body. Compared to that, those credentials are meaningless.”

“Uh... Surprisingly, no one can fly all the way into space yet. Ah, maybe Ga-in could if he used Descent?”

“If I used Possession to borrow Pero's body, maybe someday I could.”

--- Screech!

Pero somehow understood my words and vanished somewhere. Song-i looked dumbfounded.

“You, in Pero's body, flying into space? I think it'd be hard for you to fly even ten meters.”

“...”

Perhaps sensing that the mood had eased, Kim Sang-hyeon continued.

“Compared to all of you now, they carry little meaning.”

I could feel Kim Sang-hyeon's anxiety. His fear that he might make us wary showed in every gesture. Because he was so desperate, the way he put himself down felt pitiable rather than pathetic or servile.

The woman who seemed to have reached the same conclusion as I had joined the conversation.

“All right, Mr. Kim Sang-hyeon? You don't need to be so nervous. We're not still deciding whether to choose you. We've already chosen you. We already used the Ticket for you.”

“Once again, thank you...”

“I'm not saying that because I want to hear you thank us. We've already paid a considerable price for you, so we can't easily give up on you. So relax.”

For a while, we stopped talking and drank tea and coffee while eating snacks.

“It's delicious.”

“The Hotel's food is good. Was it like that in the past too?”

“It was. Every dish was prepared with top-class skill.”

“Your career is reassuring, so I bet there are a lot of things you're good at. Since you used to be a doctor, you're probably good at first aid, and you can shoot a gun too, right? Is there anything about being an astronaut that could help in the Hotel?”

Having relaxed a little, Kim Sang-hyeon gave a small laugh.

“Becoming an astronaut was one of my lifelong goals, but once I came to the Hotel, it turned out to be my most meaningless experience. Still, who knows? Somewhere on the second floor, we may encounter outer space.”

“When that happens, we'll be counting on you. And...”

As if launching a surprise attack, the woman asked a question that struck at the heart of the matter.

“What kind of relationship did you have with Mi-ro in the past? Please be honest.”

Golden light filled Elena's eyes again. The man's expression tightened with tension once more.

“What... What exactly would you like to know?”

A-ri cut in.

“To put it simply, were you enemies? Companions? That sort of thing. I heard my first party split into two and fought like crazy. Since you were already dead, there weren't many stories going around about you, so I don't know much.”

Kim Sang-hyeon spent a long time choosing his words before answering.

“I apologize, but it seems the information you have is missing much of the context. Just as I don't know what Mi-ro and you experienced from the second floor onward, you likely don't know exactly what I experienced on the first floor.”

“... That's probably true. From the perspective of the people who told me old stories, it was all long over, so they must have given me a simple summary. And that ‘Miss’ thing makes me a little uncomfortable.”

“Would you prefer that I call you A-ri?”

“Just call me Miss.”

“The conflicts within the former party didn't unfold so simply. First of all, we weren't fighting from the beginning. Rather, at first, everyone proceeded as one under Mi-ro's leadership.”

“Under Mom's leadership?”

“She possessed natural charisma. To exaggerate slightly, it wouldn't be an overstatement to say that at the time, we went beyond trusting and following her. We worshipped her.”

Mi-ro's supernatural power. I already knew about it from experience. Even when she was a teenager, ordinary people couldn't easily resist it. How powerful would Mi-ro have been after spending so many years mastering that ability? It seemed like she could control ordinary humans with a single word. Thinking about it that way, the Management Bureau had been right to put Mi-ro in the Hotel. It was even stranger that conflict had arisen in the first place.

“Problems began around Room 104. We spent an extremely long time in that room, but unfortunately, Mi-ro was eliminated fairly early on. The rest of us endured for several months before escaping.”

A-ri looked as though she couldn't believe it.

“After Mi-ro died, the remaining people came to their senses over the next few months?”

“That is correct. One month, then two months passed after Mi-ro disappeared, and at some point, everyone realized it. She had been manipulating us through an unknown power.”

After taking another sip of tea, the man continued carefully.

“Where faith collapsed, anger and a sense of betrayal remained. The leader who had guided everyone with exceptional leadership, the person believed to be an agent of the Management Bureau protecting the world, began to seem like a suspicious witch.”

Footnotes:

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