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◈ Escaping the Mystery Hotel ◈

Episode 7: Room 101, The Cursed Room - 'The Strange Family' (2)

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[User: Han Ga-in (Wisdom)

Date: Day 2

Current Location: Level 1, Room 101 (Curse Room - Strange Family)

Sage’s Advice: 2]

Today was strange.

I was definitely hungry, and I had not eaten anything since morning, yet I had no appetite at all.

I had not even taken a bite of breakfast, much less the duck at lunch?

Whenever we went to a duck restaurant when I was little, Mom used to scold me, asking if I had a starving demon in my stomach because I inhaled meat so quickly. Considering that, it was strange that I had spent all of lunch just having a staring contest with a duck.

There was free time until dinner.

The rest of my family was nowhere to be seen, probably off doing whatever they wanted.

As I walked away from them, I felt like my mind was clearing.

It felt like there was something I had forgotten, but I could not remember what it was.

Would it come back if I thought harder?

It was hazy...

Faces of strange people rose from the depths of my memories.

A huge middle-aged man, an older woman with the air of an openly wealthy career woman, a squirrel-like schoolgirl who struck me as adorable, and a shy, quiet boy.

Then there was a stunning young woman whose appearance made my head throb the instant I remembered her.

Who was she? Had I watched a movie with an actress like that in it? It was too vivid to be a memory from a movie.

It also felt like I had spoken with her.

I had spoken with a breathtakingly beautiful blonde actress?

As I focused on the questions piling up one after another, I heard footsteps from across the way.

“Ah! What are you doing here, Han Ga-in?”

“Oh, you are here. Where are Mom and Dad?”

“They went to look at the aquarium. Apparently, there is a shark show?”

“A shark show?”

“It is the resort's big attraction. Employees in swimsuits go in and play tag with great white sharks. If you pay extra, tourists can go in with them too!”

“Isn't that kind of dangerous?”

“Who cares? That's what makes it fun! Mom and Dad can't swim, so they won't go in anyway. I really wanted to watch too, but they turned me down because I am a minor! What a joke.”

After talking with my little sister for a while, the stray thoughts clouding my mind vanished in an instant.

I really was acting strange. Was I still affected by the nightmare I had this morning?

It was a family trip. Instead of acting all solemn by myself, I should go look around.

Just then, something flickered at the edge of my vision.

I must have been really hungry after going so long without eating.

* * *

[Get away from your sister immediately.]

* * *

Dinner was a lavish buffet.

When I entered the restaurant on the first floor of the hotel, beautifully crafted plates carrying food were flying through the air.

Ah, so that was the food-flinging-and-catching trend everyone talked about! I had the vague feeling that celebrities did it a lot on TV.

Chefs in white appeared with wide smiles and tossed food-laden plates like flying discs.

Half the food fell off as the plates flew through the air, but people happily licked the food off the floor without hesitation.

Every now and then, someone athletic would spring up and catch a flying plate in their mouth.

The plate would shatter immediately, covering their entire face in blood and making a complete mess, but it was such a joyful moment.

I tried it a few times too...

It really was not easy to catch a flying plate with your mouth.

After repeatedly headbutting them instead, I got a little stubborn and skipped the meal to focus solely on catching plates.

Near the end of dinner, I finally managed to catch and eat a piece of fruit.

Unfortunately, the plate fell first, and only a slice of mango came flying toward me.

Ah... Catching the plate was the whole point, but there was no plate, only mango!

Still, the mango was unbelievably delicious, so I was satisfied with that.

As I chewed the mango contentedly, my little sister approached from across the room, where she was eating braised live rabbit.

How could anyone eat braised live rabbit when it was still struggling despite having its limbs tied up?

“You spent all day without eating anything expensive, and now you are only eating dead mango. Is that even good? It does not even have a garnish on top.”

“For some reason, this is the best thing I have had all day.”

“Really...? I feel sorry for you since you have not eaten anything today, so here. Have this.”

My sister held out a plate.

Had she seen me eating only mango? It held several pieces of it.

The only disappointing part was that each slice had its own cow's eyeball attached with a toothpick.

I had heard it tasted good when eaten together like this...

For some reason, I did not like it, so I removed the eyeballs and ate only the mango.

The fishy smell was somewhat strong, but the mango was delicious.

After finishing that vaguely dizzying meal, I returned to my room at the resort, casually watched something on Netflix, and lay down on the bed.

Was it because I had not eaten properly all day? I was so hungry that I could not fall asleep easily.

Lying in bed away from my family, my head began to ache again and stray thoughts started creeping in, just like before.

That young woman's name was... Elena. The name suddenly came to me. Had I seen her in a dream?

She was someone I could never forget for the rest of my life.

Her hair shone brighter than melted gold, and her eyes looked as if they held finely cut jewels.

And there was even that particular part of her that surely had to be full of kindness!

I wanted to see her again.

A few other people almost came to mind, but honestly, I could not remember them clearly.

Something... felt distant.

I had promised to meet with some people and do something. A dangerous room, a beautiful and magnificent treasure?

Maybe I had dreamed about going on some sort of adventure.

Hotel Pioneer suddenly came to mind. What was that?

I felt as if my mind were about to snap awake.

At that moment, I got a KakaoTalk message from my sister.

Ah, Mom and Dad must have gotten into another fight over something trivial.

It felt like they had been bickering over nothing for decades, even when they went on trips.

Was every married couple like that?

I giggled as I exchanged messages with her, and all my complicated thoughts disappeared. Before I knew it, I had fallen asleep.

* * *

[User: Han Ga-in (Wisdom)

Date: Day 2

Current Location: Level 1, Room 101 (Curse Room - Strange Family)

Sage’s Advice: 1]

Morning came, and I woke up.

Strangely, it felt like I had only slept for about three seconds.

Sometimes, after working yourself to exhaustion and falling into a deep sleep, it could feel as though you had gotten up right after lying down. Still, was this not too much?

I was not joking. It really felt like I had not slept at all, but it was already morning.

Yesterday must have been incredibly tiring.

I changed clothes, washed up, and put on all my ski gear.

It had been quite cold when I stepped outside yesterday, so I made sure to put on a thick down parka.

As always, the moment I thought of it, I arrived at the top of the ski slope in one second.

My family had all gathered there, but their clothes were a little different from mine, which I found odd.

“Wait, Mom? Hee-gang? Won't you be freezing dressed like that?”

“Good grief... Look at your brother. Sometimes, he really drives me crazy!”

“Hey, Han Ga-in! No, forget it. Seriously, who layers up that much in winter these days?”

“Uh... But it is cold if I do not dress like this. That's why I put on so much.”

“Ga-in. Winter is supposed to be cold. Spring is warm, summer is hot, autumn is cool, and winter is cold. That's the order of nature. Have you never thought that taking off clothes because you are hot or putting them on because you are cold goes against that order?”

When I thought carefully about Dad's words, he was right.

What were the laws of great nature, after all?

Korea had four seasons, so it was the natural order of the world for it to be hot when it was hot and cold when it was cold.

Wasn't it foolish to try to change something natural with something as insignificant as clothes?

Besides, this was the age of environmental protection.

Didn't environmental protection mean adapting to the environment?

It seemed right to follow the ways of the world, so I immediately started taking off my clothes.

Only then did my family's expressions relax, and we all laughed happily together.

I felt an incredibly intense cold, but it was no big deal.

Winter was supposed to be cold, so why was I surprised?

As I laughed, I felt something flicker at the corner of my vision.

[□□□ □□□□ □□□□. □□ □□ □□□ □□□.]

* * *

[Your body temperature is dropping. You must put on clothes immediately.]

* * *

Skiing happily made me happy. It really was such a wonderful moment!

Gathering with my beloved family, running around the arboretum, tearing into delicious duck meat, enjoying the splendor of a lavish resort that evening, then skiing together the next day.

When would a happy moment like this come again?

I felt my mind gradually growing hazy.

It was nothing. Winter was supposed to be cold.

Suddenly, I fell while skiing.

My skin felt like it was sticking to the ground, and I could not get up.

Ah... Did I really need to get up?

Looking around, I saw people lying down comfortably everywhere.

Ah, so lying naked on ice was what was popular these days.

My vision slowly went dark.

At some point, I stopped feeling cold.

I could feel the happy trip coming to an end...

/You have failed!

A kind son, a good older brother. Filled with love for your family, you failed to notice the anomaly of the Strange Family. After staying with them, you became tainted by madness and crossed the point of no return. You neither escaped the curse nor resolved the Source of the Curse. What a pity.

However, there is still a chance! Wait for your companions.

...

...

...

...

A companion has successfully escaped! Congratulations! Since an escapee has emerged, all members will return safely./

Han Ga-in felt his sunken consciousness slowly begin to rise...

Footnotes:

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