WeTried Translations
Translator/Editor: ZERO_SUGAR
Discord: https://dsc.gg/wetried
◈ Escaping the Mystery Hotel ◈
Episode 51: A Day at the Campsite, Meeting a Strange Merchant
──────
[User: Han Ga-in (Wisdom)
Date: Day 20
Current Location: Basement Level, Campsite
Sage’s Advice: 3]
“...”
“...”
Everyone sat around with blank expressions. With the facilities destroyed, none of them had slept comfortably, so they were still exhausted.
As if that was not enough, they had rushed to the underground campsite the moment they woke up, following the hotel’s instructions.
As a result, everyone sat around the campsite looking drained.
“So, are we supposed to spend the entire day here? Is there no way out?”
“Considering the door disappeared as soon as we came in, it seems we are supposed to tough it out here for the day.”
“There is meat over there, along with tents and sleeping bags. Shouldn’t we just get some more sleep?”
“I understand that Seung-yeop is sleepy, but shouldn’t we first consider whether this place is safe at all?”
“Elder, do you sense anything dangerous?”
“I am not some psychic. What could I possibly sense? Still, based on our experiences so far, hasn’t the hotel made something strange happen every day, except when we enter Curse Rooms?”
“Strictly speaking, today is not a day when we are not entering a Curse Room. It is a day when we cannot enter one.”
“Song-i has a point, but so does the Elder. The hotel does whatever it wants anyway. If we start assigning blame, we cannot enter a Curse Room because the hotel got wrecked, and Ga-in is the one who wrecked it. From the hotel’s perspective, there is no reason to go easy on us. It could still torment us today.”
“Sorry...”
“...”
Everyone fell quiet. I had noticed it since this morning, but whenever I spoke to someone or approached them, they flinched and seemed to avoid me. Had what happened yesterday shocked them that badly?
“It is early, but it is cold, so let’s build a fire. There is no heater here, but they have piled plenty of firewood over there.”
There was not anything else to do.
Everyone got up, gathered the wood in the middle, and used a lighter to nurse the flame until they finally got a fire going.
Then...
Night fell.
“...”
“Can anyone explain this bullshit situation?”
“You still have not adjusted to the hotel, have you?”
“What do you mean, Elder?”
“We came in during the morning, lit a fire, and it suddenly became night. What kind of absurdity is that? That is not the hotel way of thinking. Ah, something serious is about to happen, so the hotel kindly turned it into nighttime to warn us in advance! That is the proper hotel way of thinking.”
----Rustle. Thud. Rustle.
Something was approaching. Everyone naturally fell silent, quiet as mice.
What appeared was a bear that looked like it weighed over five hundred kilograms.
If this had been an ordinary campsite and we had been ordinary tourists, would everyone not have screamed and panicked the moment a bear appeared?
Of course, nobody here was going to scream over something as minor as a bear. If anything, I found myself thinking, Is that all? Just one bear?
Jin-cheol would handle a bear on his own, right?
Sure enough, Jin-cheol let out a hollow laugh and casually rose to his feet. The difference in size between a person and a bear was almost laughable, but... I did not think he would lose. It was not a demon, so was this not the kind of bear Captain Korea could easily beat to death?
Someone stepped forward before him.
Song-i casually stood and approached the bear. Then, as though she were leading over a giant dog, she brought it to the campfire and started feeding it some of the piled-up meat.
“...”
“...”
“I heard you raised lots of animals, but have you raised a bear too?”
“Of course not. Nobody raises bears at home.”
“There are people in Russia who do.”
“Hmm. Then I will correct that. Nobody does in Korea.”
“It is right in front of me.”
“My blessing was enhanced, so I wanted to test it. It works.”
Blessing. Come to think of it, Song-i, Seung-yeop, and I had our blessings enhanced at the Sanctuary of Blessings.
My enhancement let me see my companions’ locations.
“Come to think of it, how were Song-i and Seung-yeop’s blessings enhanced?”
“I think I can convey my intentions or emotions to Chaos Entities that feel goodwill toward me. It seems that even if they are not highly intelligent entities like Teacher and are only at the level of beasts like this bear, I can convey something like, ‘Come over and eat with me.’”
“Aren’t Chaos Entities demons or monsters like that? This is a bear.”
“Seung-yeop. Don’t say something so stupid. How could there be an ordinary bear in a place like this? When it comes time to fight, it will probably sprout horns or wings or something.”
Seung-yeop shrank at being called stupid by A-ri.
Seeing that, A-ri suddenly looked as though she had thought of something. She walked over and patted his head.
Seung-yeop immediately perked back up.
What were these two even doing here? Were they filming a sitcom?
“Since we are on the topic, how did Seung-yeop’s blessing change?”
“A transparent window has appeared since then. It is at 82% right now. I have not tested it, but I can press the window. When I do, it asks if I want to activate it.”
“So the cooldown is visible now, and you can use it whenever you want? That is incredibly useful. Ah, everyone’s blessings seem to be getting much stronger, but is there nothing for my HP Market? What always annoys me is that this market has nothing that directly makes me stronger.”
“If we are talking like that, my Status Window does not seem especially helpful either...”
“Even being made stronger does not mean much. Lately, all I remember is being controlled by someone and dying.”
The mood sank again.
----Jingle. ----Screech.
A strange sound, like metal scraping against metal.
Everyone went quiet again and cautiously looked around. The bear, which had been stuffing itself with meat like an oversized puppy, suddenly turned into a frightened puppy and ran away without looking back.
Absurdly, the bear’s legs split into eight as it fled. So it had not been an ordinary bear after all. If Song-i had not been here, had the situation earlier actually been quite dangerous?
Someone was approaching.
* * *
“Ho! Hello, everyone. I am a merchant passing through. Mind if I borrow some fire?”
An unknown being. Its entire body was wrapped in bandages, leaving no skin visible. Was it even human? Should we drive it away?
Jin-cheol strode forward and moved between us and the Merchant.
“If you do not have business here, why do you not go on your way? We do not have enough fire for ourselves.”
“Ha ha. That is a little disappointing. Did I not say I was a Merchant? My goods will be a great help to hotel participants.”
This person knew we were participants in the hotel.
While Jin-cheol was taken aback, a cheerful voice rang out.
“Come over and show us your goods!”
Did A-ri know something?
As we had already heard, this was A-ri’s second time in the hotel. A-ri knew more than we did.
The man took a spot beside the fire and held out a sheet of paper before us.
“This is the catalogue for the goods I sell. I would like to hand one to each of you, but sadly, I only have one copy, so I will read it out one item at a time. Shouldn’t I start with the best item?
“The first product is an Escape Ticket from the hotel!”
!
I was startled. No... An Escape Ticket from the hotel, out of nowhere? Was that not an unbelievably incredible item?
Eun-sol’s cold voice rang through the campsite.
“Nothing is free. So what is the price of this amazing item?”
Not, “How much is it?” but, “What is it?”
Would a Merchant who appeared in this hotel to sell suspicious items really want something as trivial as money in return?
“Ha ha! It is cheap. I promise you. Every one of my items is practically free compared to its value. At this rate, I will not even cover the cost! Sometimes I cannot tell whether I am a Merchant or a volunteer worker!”
“Quit talking shit and tell us the price.”
“Participant’s Life x3.”
...
The campsite froze.
“Why do you all look like that? There are eight people here alone, so what is three? Besides, there are people who are not much help, aren’t there? You there, young one. Do you think you are useful?”
“Eek! M-Me?”
Seung-yeop flinched and stepped back as a punch flew out.
----Boom!
The Merchant was sent flying with a sound more like a cannon blast than a human fist.
“I thought this guy might be useful, but he is just trash. Do not pay him any attention and let’s eat. How dare some little maggot-”
The Merchant who had been sent flying returned as though nothing had happened.
“You bastard!”
“Ha ha. This business is so hard. Why are there so many terrible customers? It is not like I forced you to buy anything. If you do not like it, do not buy it.”
“Next item.”
Was A-ri really planning to buy something from this bastard?
“Tell us the next item. Do not tell me you only brought one.”
“Of course not. What Merchant walks around carrying only one item?
“My second product is none other than an Inheritance!
“Everyone. Isn’t it moving? You do not need to wander through the hotel’s Curse Rooms and endure hardship and adversity to obtain an Inheritance. You can simply buy one from me. What a convenient path-”
“From now on, tell us the price as soon as you mention an item. Stop talking nonsense.”
“Participant’s Life x2.”
...
This again. What was this guy? Was he here to break apart groups whose relationships were not good or something? It occurred to me that if yesterday’s two-against-six conflict had deepened, today’s atmosphere would have been far worse. Eun-sol had been right to somehow smooth things over.
“Ah, I seriously cannot take this anymore. Do I need to rip your head off today?”
“Goodness. Customer, I am not forcing you to buy anything. Why are you acting like this?”
“Next item. If the price is lives again, shut up and get lost. Tell us about an item that does not cost lives.”
“Oh dear. You customers have less nerve than I expected. Of course, I have cheap items too, but cheap stuff has a reason for being cheap, does it not? Compared to an Escape Ticket or an Inheritance, they are utterly trivial-”
---Thud!
This time, Grandfather Mook-seong kicked him.
“This is the first time since coming here that I have had such an unpleasant conversation. Just say the item and the price. That is all.”
“There are two cheap items. First, a Standard Weapon Box. What is inside is random, so there is some fun in it too! The price is Participant’s Limbs x2.”
Participant’s Limbs x2. Did limbs mean the arms and legs I was thinking of?
“Two limbs...”
A chilling feeling came over me. Was A-ri really thinking of buying that?
Footnotes:
Join our discord at https://dsc.gg/wetried
