Chapter 38
Chapter 38
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Translator: penny
Chapter: 38
Chapter Title: Welcome to the Doom Hotel~
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Once the fog lifted, people scattered in small groups.
There was no food left to scavenge here anyway.
And they all just wanted out of this place as soon as possible.
"Thanks to you, we survived, cool oppa. Next time we meet, I'll give you the real~ deal service~"
"Haha! So the guy you were talking about turned out to be such an amazing hero. The world sure is full of wonders!"
"Then, Ji-hoon! If the chance comes, I'll definitely repay this favor someday!"
After exchanging goodbyes like that, the crowd finally dispersed.
We could finally pull out our tickets to the Doom Hotel.
"We just tear along this perforation, right?"
"Yeah, that should teleport us automatically."
No sooner had Yoo-ri finished speaking than I tore the ticket.
A brilliant light enveloped us.
When I opened my eyes,
a black hotel loomed before us.
Or could you even call it a hotel?
It looked more like a resort.
Not that I'd ever been to one myself.
"Whoa! There are so many people! ......But like, way too many."
The hotel entrance was packed.
I know I'm repeating "packed" over and over, but it might sound like I'm just padding the word count.
It was seriously insane.
The crowd was so dense the entrance was barely visible.
It reminded me of a theme park on Children's Day.
"What's with all the people?"
"It's right after the main quest ended, so that's probably why."
Hye-na nodded in understanding at Yoo-ri's answer.
"Ah~ So everyone's in the same boat as us."
In other words, everyone had used their tickets right after finishing the main quest.
Which led to this massive pile-up.
"No way we can squeeze into that mess anyway."
"Yeah... me neither."
We'd be waiting ages even if we lined up.
There wasn't any real rush anyway.
That's when we decided to just wait patiently.
"Excuse me~"
Suddenly, a woman approached us.
"You're customers looking for the Doom Hotel, right? Well, you couldn't even get here without a ticket, hehe!"
She wore a black leotard with sheer brown stockings underneath.
But the real standout was the bunny ears on her head.
She was dressed as what people commonly call a bunny girl.
'......Damn, that's something.'
I thought you only saw this stuff in comics.
Oh, right. This is a novel world too.
Even so, having staff in such a sensual outfit.
This damn author.
Rotten personality, but knows his stuff, huh.
"Ow!"
Lost in thought, I suddenly got pinched on the side.
Turning, I saw Hye-na with a pouty face.
"What?"
"......Nothing?"
Didn't look like nothing.
She was clearly sulking.
But before I could ask, the bunny girl spoke up.
"If you hand over your tickets in advance at the Doom Hotel, we'll check you in. Just wait here comfortably."
Hmm, so that's the system.
I handed her our tickets and asked,
"Then why's there such a huge crowd over there?"
"Oh, even with the same ticket, room locations vary. Everyone prefers good views or convenient spots."
More realistic than I expected.
Even in a world facing doom, people gonna people.
"Actually, a lot of guests are already checked in. They got rooms first, and now we're assigning extras on top of that..."
"I get the picture."
Probably arguing why the same ticket gets different treatment.
"We got here first," they'd say, causing the jam.
I could kinda understand.
Unlike me, who lucked into a free ticket,
they probably earned theirs the hard way.
"Oh, I actually got mine as a gift from someone else. Any restrictions on using gifted tickets?"
"Pardon? A gift?"
The bunny girl blinked in surprise.
"...May I ask from whom?"
"Don't know his real name, but it was from the Mad Hatter..."
"M-M-M-Mad Hatter?!"
Her eyes went wide, and she gasped.
Even the bunny ears were twitching wildly.
......Those aren't a headband? They're real?
"C-Could you mean the Mad Hatter with Level 1 viewing privileges?"
"Uh....... Not sure about that. He runs the coin shop."
"P-Please wait just a moment—!"
The bunny girl dashed inside frantically.
I scratched my cheek blankly watching her go.
"What was that about?"
"Maybe the Mad Hatter's a big deal?"
That shady guy who prefixes weird English to everything—a big shot?
Well, as a shop NPC, he could be high up.
Say what you will, he did give me a peek into this world's secrets.
'Guess we just wait.'
We sat away from the crowd to wait.
Then someone else approached.
"Whoa there, newbies? Can't just stand around dazed like that."
Turning, I saw a man in a suit.
A suit in a doomed world.
Not something sane people wear.
"Get here too late, and you'll miss good rooms and wait forever. Looks like you got your ticket late. Stay put like that, and you might never get a room."
Who the hell was this guy?
I just stared, and he grinned.
"Wondering why I'm just standing here? 'Cause I got my ticket early and came right after the main quest. Practically top 10 first-come-first-served."
"Ah, okay."
"Wanna see a good room? You're welcome to join. Oh, bring those beauties with you, of course."
Nothing really to say back.
I'm not naive enough to miss his implication.
"How'd you snag such hotties anyway? Good looks?"
"We're not like that."
"Haha! No need to play coy between friends! Guy and girls coming to a hotel together? Obvious. Though these two are a rare catch."
Starting to feel uncomfortable.
Because Yoo-ri and Hye-na were pretending not to listen while clearly tuning in.
'Well, from an outsider's view, it's impressive.'
Yoo-ri goes without saying, but Hye-na holds her own anywhere.
Not that that's why we're here.
But yeah, not an everyday sight.
I ignored the chatty guy.
Then the bunny girl returned.
"Ah, there they are!"
But she wasn't alone.
The area stirred with murmurs.
"Whoa! Check that out."
"Damn."
Gazes converged on one spot amid the buzz.
At the center was a woman.
Golden blonde hair cascading to her waist,
a stunning bunny girl who looked like an actress.
Her near-perfect figure was enough to steal every guy's attention.
'Yoo-ri level.'
Ignoring the stares, she clicked toward me in red high heels.
Huh? Toward me...?
Author, you sure you wrote that sentence right?
"Are you Lee Ji-hoon?"
Damn, guess so.
I nodded calmly.
"Yes, that's me."
"Oh dear, sorry to keep you waiting. Such rudeness to a VIP."
She smiled with her eyes and took my hand.
I nearly lost it to the sight but kept my cool.
Thankfully, I stayed composed.
Just before Yoo-ri and Hye-na's moods turned murderous.
"To think the Mad Hatter gifted a VVIP ticket. You must be an incredible player. Ah, I'm 'March Rabbit,' owner of the Doom Hotel."
"Thanks for the warm welcome."
Looks like the Mad Hatter wasn't just any NPC.
Didn't expect the owner herself to greet us.
But it wasn't all good.
'Too much attention.'
The place was crowded enough.
Her actions drew every eye.
"Whoa, what's going on there?"
"That woman's some bigwig, huh?"
"VVIP tickets? First I've heard of 'em."
Drawing eyes like this never ends well.
Especially in a crumbling world.
First things first: escape this spotlight.
"Any VVIP perks? Like quick entry or a lounge?"
"Of course! VVIPs always get the Royal Suite. We promise top-tier service across the board."
No clue what Royal whatever entails.
But I wanted out of these stares ASAP.
"Can you show us right now?"
"Yes, follow me."
We trailed the bunny girl... no, March Rabbit.
Not the mobbed main entrance.
But a fancy side door that had been shut tight.
Including the suit guy who chatted me up,
everyone watched us slack-jawed.
I smirked at the suited man and said,
Not 'cause I'm a jerk.
Figure the readers would eat this up.
"Hang tight. We'll be right in."
With that, we entered the Doom Hotel.