chapter 5
chapter 5
Hotel Exploration (2)
[User: Han Gain (Wisdom)
Day: 1
Current Location: Floor 1, Corridor
Sage’s Advice: 1]
Finally, after walking for about ten minutes from the front desk in the direction opposite the main entrance, we found an elevator.
“…This feels suspicious,” I said. “The notice said the elevator was broken. What if something ridiculous comes out of it?”
“That actually makes sense,” Jincheol said. “Let’s stop for a moment. I’ll grab something first.”
No one objected.
He was basically 90% of our combat power.
Soon, he returned carrying something massive.
“Hyung… what is that?” Seungyeop asked. “A spear?”
“Yeah. I saw it earlier. It’s probably a flagpole or decoration. Took off the flag—now it’s just a metal rod.”
“That has to weigh over 10 kg…”
“Call me hyung, not Jincheol. And I told you—this strength isn’t normal. Must be the ‘Courage’ blessing. Not Superman… but maybe Captain America level.”
Honestly, it fit.
If anything—
He looked more like a monster than the monsters.
Feeling reassured, we approached the elevator.
The doors opened.
No monsters.
Clean.
But—
The 2nd and 3rd floor buttons didn’t work.
Only the basement.
“…So we can only go down?” someone said.
“Let’s try it,” Eun-sol said confidently.
As Song reached for the button—
[Going to the basement now is extremely dangerous.]
I grabbed her arm instantly.
Everyone froze.
“S-sorry… but I got a notification,” I said.
“That thing only you can see?” Jincheol asked.
“Yes. It says going down is extremely dangerous.”
“…This damn hotel.”
“Then we follow it,” Eun-sol said. “Let go of her arm, Gain. She’s about to faint.”
“Oh—sorry.”
“G-Gain hyung… how many uses of that ‘advice’ thing do you have left?” Seungyeop asked.
[ Sage’s Advice: 0 ]
“…Zero.”
“…Then that’s it,” Eun-sol said. “We stop exploring today. It’s too dangerous without it.”
“Does it recharge?” someone asked.
“Usually these things reset after sleep,” Seungyeop said.
It sounded like game logic—
But it made sense.
We all agreed.
And returned to Room 105.
“So we just separate again?” someone said.
“Probably.”
“Then let’s rest. Dinner is soon anyway.”
“…Honestly, I don’t even know what we’re supposed to do,” Jincheol muttered.
“I think we won’t have to worry about that,” Eun-sol said.
“What do you mean?”
“Something is managing us. Food, drinks—everything is tailored. It won’t just leave us alone forever. It’ll tell us what to do.”
“…That makes sense.”
“And one more thing—no matter what, show up during meals. Even if you don’t eat. We need to confirm everyone’s alive.”
She was right.
Communication here was nearly impossible.
Phones didn’t work.
We only met during meals.
“I have a suggestion,” I said.
“What is it?”
“Every hour, on the hour, we come out of our rooms. Just briefly. To check in.”
Song and Elena reacted immediately.
“That’s a great idea!”
“I agree. Privacy doesn’t matter here.”
Everyone agreed.
So we set two rules:
Always show up at meals, even if not eating.
Every hour, gather at the Room 105 entrance to confirm everyone is safe.
With that—
We returned to our individual rooms.
＊
My room—
Still absurdly luxurious.
Like a billionaire’s mansion.
I tried to convince myself—
“This isn’t so bad.”
But—
Man-eating monsters existed here.
So no.
This was hell.
“…What did I do to deserve this?”
Confusion.
Fear.
Anxiety.
Even a bit of excitement.
As I lay there—
My status window flickered.
[User: Han Gain (Wisdom)
Day: 1
Current Location: Floor 1, Room 105 (Rest Room)
Party Info (*)
Sage’s Advice: 0]
I focused on the party info.
It opened.
A flood of text.
Too much.
Dangerous to check in emergencies.
But—
It summarized everyone:
Han Gain (20) – Wisdom – College freshman
Cha Jincheol (31) – Courage – Former fighter
Yoo Song (17) – Affinity – Raises animals
Elena Ivanova (23) – Justice – Diplomat’s daughter, aspiring actress
Park Seungyeop (14) – Luck – Rebellious teenager
Lee Eun-sol (32) – Wealth – Third daughter of Daeyang Group
Everything matched what I had felt.
Jincheol—
A fighter.
Song—
Loved animals.
Elena—
Of course she was aiming to be an actress.
Seungyeop—
Typical teenager.
But Eun-sol—
A chaebol daughter?
That surprised me.
Though—
Did it matter here?
Rich or poor—
We were all trapped.
Still—
One thing was clear.
Jincheol mattered most.
Strength meant survival.
“…I should stick close to him.”
With that thought—
Exhaustion took over.
And I fell asleep.