NOVEL NEXT WORLD Welcome to Dungeon Hotel
Chapter 186
??? What’s with the communication?
Since it said I could upgrade Mind Communication, it seems like this might be an upgraded version of Mind Communication. Moreover, this quest is related to a 5-star hotel. Seeing that each quest appears with a number next to it, it seems like following these quests might eventually lead to achieving a 5-star hotel. ‘It’s 5 stars.’ If I keep getting stronger by following the system like this, won’t I end up becoming a real S-rank hotel owner by chance? ‘That’s something to think about once you catch the customer.’ I spoke to Jan Schulz and Kang Seoncheol, who were trying to follow Sophia in confusion as they watched the ‘!’ getting smaller and smaller. “I’ll go.” “Yes? No, still.” “Since there are kids here, I think it’s best if I go check it out.” I made an excuse about the kids. This means that once the quest pops up, it is best for me to solve this problem. The system Merlin Grey created to teach Alex Grey is so sophisticated that it always provides nearly the right answer regarding guests. But Jan Schulz seemed a bit worried. “I think I did something wrong to Sophie. Because I couldn’t be a loving father to Sophie… Maybe that’s what was on Sophie’s mind. It’s better if I go and apologize and bring her back myself.” I’m not sure. Is it like that? In the quest window, it was written that Sophia was trying to escape from here. Could it be that the reason Sophia wanted to escape the hotel’s coffee shop was because she didn’t want to see a father who was only kind to his children when he was never kind to her? I looked at the children playing happily with Geumdong in the garden. “Woof woof! (No! You can’t touch that… noooo!)” “How cute. Oh, so pretty~” “Woof woof… woof! (That’s only for our boss… sniff… boss, I’m a bad dog.)” Well. I don’t know. Because the feelings of a parent with a child are complicated. It was then. Yoojun came towards me and persuaded Jan Schulz. “I’ll go back with the boss.” “Yes?” I was the one who asked back. Why would I go with you? “These kinds of issues often can’t be resolved within the family alone, Mr. Schulz. Don’t worry too much. If Grandpa goes out, the kids will be confused.” Yoojun patted Jan Schulz’s shoulder. Jan looked at the children playing in the garden in response to Yoojun’s words. Then he nodded his head with a slightly bitter expression. Yoojun smiled at Jan and walked out of the coffee shop garden to the beach with me. That’s unexpected. He’s better at persuading than I thought. “Hmm~ You seem to think that’s unexpected.” What is it? Does he have a mind communication skill too? The guest list didn’t say that. “But while you’re admiring something like that, shouldn’t we be following that car?” Yoojun pointed somewhere. At the tip of Yoojun’s finger, I saw Sophia getting on the village bus. You’re even taking the town bus? Yoojun quickly ran to the bus stop, which was a considerable distance away. He’s a healer, but he’s an S-Class. While he was saying something to Sophia, I thought for a moment. ‘This quest was to take a guest who would become a wanderer back to the hotel.’ Then, as expected. I took the car key out of my pocket and opened the car door. It was an instant to get in the car and get to the bus stop right in front of us. The sound of Sophia and Yoojun struggling could be heard through the open car door. “But still, go in for a moment and talk…” “That’s enough. Mind your own business.” “It’s not someone else’s business—” “Get in.” I opened the passenger door and spoke to Sophia. “…Yes?” Sophia looked at me with a panicked look. She looked around and asked if I was talking to her. I nodded. The quest content is to make guests come back to the hotel. But there is a precondition. ‘To make it come back on its feet.’ “Wasn’t your purpose to come and pick me up now? Dad asked you to bring me back to the hotel….” “Well, that’s true. But you can’t just not do what you want because of your family even when you’re out having fun. Right now, you want a little break from your family, don’t you? If that’s what you want… you should do it.” “….!” People who run away from home don’t just come back. It’s a way to want to come back after running away as much as you want. I don’t know the heart of my parents, but I can know the heart of a person. Because I’m not a parent, but I’m a person. But… Aren’t parents human? At that moment, a window appeared before my eyes. ‘Sophia (Coffee shop customer)’ seems to be deeply moved. ‘Sophia (Coffee shop customer)’ is feeling a sense of freedom. The sense of freedom is expressed in numbers… Loading… Ddring! With a cheerful sound, a sign of freedom appeared on Sophia’s head. 5 Although it is less than expected, it is important to start. It’s not bad. I glanced at Yoojun, who was embarrassed. “What are you doing? I won’t open the door. If you want to get on, get on with me. We’re going to go where the village bus usually goes. Today is the day of the five-day market.” ‘Yoojun (coffee shop customer)’ is thinking ‘What is this kid?’ “You just thought, ‘What is this kid?’” At my words, Yoojun’s face noticeably stiffened. However, Yoojun soon became obedient and opened the backseat door to let Sophia get in, while he got into the passenger seat. *** “It’s delicious…!” Sophia’s eyes were wide open when she tried fried squid, which was sold at the entrance of the oil field. “How much is this?” “5,000 won!” “Okay, okay! It’s so cheap. It’s delicious!” As Sophia’s Korean faltered for the first time, the numbers above her head ominously rose. 40 Sikhye, hot dogs, and even fried squid. Maybe it’s my illusion that the more her stomach fills, the more sense of freedom she feels. I smiled slightly. Sophia, who was putting the remaining bills in her wallet, saw my smile and said embarrassedly. “Why are you looking at me?” “Because it’s cute.” Sophia’s eyes widened at my words. Then her face slowly heated up and— 70 The numbers went up. Why? “D, do you know how to speak German?” Ah, I see. It’s because you met someone who speaks German in Korea. Well, it’s nice to meet someone overseas who can speak your native language. It gives you a sense of freedom, too. Until now, Jan Schulz and I have been speaking English, so she probably didn’t know that I also speak German. ‘Come to think of it… Sophia probably spent most of her time in places other than her native country.’ She must have been lonely. “Do you speak German too?” Yoojun also asked as if he was surprised. “As a hotel owner, the more languages you speak, the better.” I spoke to Yoojun, but he didn’t seem to understand. Looking at that dumbfounded face is somewhat amusing. I quickly told Sophia. “There’s a restaurant over there that serves delicious grilled fish. Would you like to go there? it is delicious.” “Okay, let’s go!” Just by pointing to a restaurant that serves grilled fish, Sophia’s sense of freedom skyrocketed. 54 As expected… It seems like food is the key to skyrocketing the sense of liberation. With that in mind, I took Sophia to a grilled fish restaurant. “Boss, here’s a set meal of oysters… for three people.” “Why are you hesitating? You don’t want to give it to me?” “….” Do I have to answer? You kept following me around and taking pictures. ‘You’re going to post that on social media again.’ Well, honestly, I didn’t really try to stop the plan to post it on social media because I was slightly curious myself. However, I didn’t have any intention of forcing myself to act close to Yoojun. I ignored Yoojun’s grumbling and sat down. While Yoojun went to the bathroom for a moment, the salty and savory smell of dried fish was already wafting from the kitchen. Sophia had an appetite that was unusual for someone who had eaten various types of snacks until now. “Didn’t you have a plate of sashimi for lunch today?” I asked and Sophia nodded her head with her subtle face. “Well, that’s true. I could barely eat because the kids were making a fuss at the sashimi restaurant. I was busy nagging this guy and that guy.” She said with a sullen face. So she felt a sense of freedom when she could eat whatever she wanted. “I’m a bad mom. All I do is nag at the kids.” I tilted my head. Even though it was only for a moment today, I watched from the side and felt she was only nagging the children when needed. Isn’t that something that needs to be done? “Of course, there needs to be someone giving the kids the necessary education, but it’s sometimes frustrating why it’s always me who ends up being the villain.” However, as soon as I heard the next words, some doubts were dispelled. So Sophia knows it too. That children need that kind of nagging. However, parents are also human, so whenever their child says something they don’t want to hear, they feel upset as well. To someone like that— ‘The world wouldn’t go on if everyone just pretended to be nice.’ It would be no use saying that. Anyway, it seems that Sophia isn’t upset because of personal memories about her father, as Jan thought. “Jan Schulz seems to think that you are upset because of him.” “Me? Why?” “Jan Schulz was not a good father when you were young, but now he pretends to be a good grandfather.” “Yes?” Sophia cleared her throat and shook her head. “Dad can be emotional like that sometimes. I am a mother. I used to be just Dad’s daughter, but not anymore. There was a time when I was also Seongcheol’s lover, but these days, I’m closer to being a Mom. Of course, I know. All those identities still exist within me. But now it’s time for me to try harder as a mom. Seongcheol will do the same because he is trying harder as a father. But I… Sometimes, I can’t switch gears. There are times when I feel burdened by the fact that I am someone who has a big influence on my children’s lives.” The words, ‘There are times when I feel burdened by the fact that I am a person who has a big influence on children’s lives’ resonated with me. This is because it felt like an honest sentence without lies. Sophia was a person who was able to look at her own emotions more objectively than I expected. Are some of one’s emotions inevitably difficult to control even for someone who can look at her mind objectively? As I watched Sophia quietly look into the West Sea, I also took a moment to look at it. I didn’t need to comfort Sophia. Even without me doing anything, Sophia seemed to enjoy her time and gradually find her freedom. 75 77 80 Although it was slow, I felt strange as I watched the numbers rise. If I let you run away from me, will you one day come back to me on your own? If you look deeply into your heart and the emotions pass, will they eventually come back to me, just like the waves recede and return to the mud flats? While I was immersed in those thoughts, Yoojun came back. “Are we finished with our German conversation?” Sophia laughed, a little embarrassed at those words. “Are you bored, Jun?” “I would be lying if I said no.” At that moment, a grilled eel set was served in front of us. Glistening white rice and neatly arranged oily grilled eel on a spacious plate. And as Sophia looked at the various side dishes, she smiled brightly. “I will enjoy it!” Sophia scooped a large spoonful of white rice, topped it with a piece of grilled eel, and swallowed it in one bite. I took a big bite of some of the side dish pickles onto my rice. Yoojun took a bite of the grilled eel first. All three of our eyes widened at the same time. “It’s delicious!” “It’s delicious.” This is a grilled fish restaurant that won’t disappoint. Above all, this restaurant’s salted fish is very delicious. Sudden Quest ‘The Ultimate Recipe – Salted Fish Oyster’ —You can meet the expert who has the ‘Ultimate Recipe – Salted Fish Oyster’. Receive the ‘Ultimate Recipe’ —Completion Reward: 1,000G, 300% customer satisfaction when a recipe is cast It might be a good idea to consider a business partnership later. With that in mind, I slowly enjoyed the early morning meal with Yoojun and Sophia. Of course, Sophia’s sense of freedom was 100% satisfied by the time she finished eating the delicious dinner. 100 Sophia pounded her stomach and clenched her fists. “Now, I feel a bit stronger. Strong enough to argue with Eugene and negotiate with Dad. It’s time to make a comeback as the nagging mom. Oh, of course… after a little more sightseeing at the market.” Sophia smiled cutely. But that was then. Yoojun, who was standing next to me, held my hand. “There’s something strange over there.” I didn’t really feel like holding his hand, but I didn’t refuse. Throughout the meal, Yoojun was watching a suspiciously moving man in a corner of the market. The fact that Yoojun, who has the eyes of Odin, is so focused on one thing— ‘It’s giving off magical power.’ While I was thinking that, a suspicious man raised his head right in front of me. The moment the man’s face, obscured by passing people, became visible, I furrowed my brow. “…Yoojun.” What Yoojun was watching was Yoojun. A handsome gangster-like face with different eye colors. Wait a second… Then, the person who ate with us…? Yoojun said, standing in front of me. “I was caught in a market alley when a vision suddenly appeared. You come out here right now! That guy is fake.” He was caught? At that moment, when I saw Yoojun next to me, he pulled my shoulder and said, “Boss, do you believe that? Be careful. He’s a fake.” A situation where both people say that each other is real. For some reason, I get a feeling of déjà vu because it reminds me of the goblin era and an old folk tale. It’s not particularly confusing. “What are you talking about? There is no way the real Yoojun would hug me like this.” I tried to slap Yoojun’s hand away in disgust. But Yoojun never took his hand off my shoulder. At the same time, Yoojun’s Odd Eyes turned red. As he did, Yoojun, with red eyes, smiled. The moment his lips moved and he started muttering something, I realized. – For the arrival of the Demon King. This one is fake. Even the fake Yoojun is now using the language of another world. That means that it was me that fake Yoojun was targeting. That guy is likely a follower of someone I know. ‘I’m glad Sophia doesn’t seem to be in danger.’ I quickly checked the master key in my pocket and spoke to Sophia in German. “Just go straight to the hotel. Don’t even think about looking for me. I will go there too.” As soon as I finished saying those words, the space and time in front of my eyes became distorted. A feeling of nausea came over me. While I was unable to come to my senses due to a crushing headache. I found myself standing by a vast lakeside before I knew it. Hello! You can also buy the advanced chapter in Ko-fi now, just click the ko-fi button and look for the title of the novel in shop. Thank you for your support!
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