Dimensional Hotel

(.)

Even after Little Red Riding Hood’s explanations, Yu Sheng still found it difficult to grasp how the orphanage truly worked or what day-to-day life there looked like. He couldn’t picture what the children here thought about, how they filled their days, or how the “Council staff” assigned to this place functioned. Most of all, he had no idea how the Council, which governed the entire Borderland, viewed such a peculiar orphanage.

After all, Yu Sheng didn’t fully understand how the enormous Boundary City itself operated, let alone the Council. The only “official” group he’d worked with was the Special Affairs Bureau, and that was just one branch of the Council’s many organizations.

The Borderland seemed full of contradictions to Yu Sheng, and what he was seeing of Little Red Riding Hood’s world only added to his confusion.

Standing quietly next to him, Foxy, who hadn’t spoken since they’d arrived, suddenly blurted out, “Why don’t the Special Affairs Bureau or the Council set up a dedicated department to run this orphanage completely?”

Little Red Riding Hood looked at Foxy, momentarily surprised.

Foxy blinked and scratched at her ear. “Did I… say something wrong?”

“No, not at all,” Little Red Riding Hood replied quickly, shaking her head. “Your question makes sense. But do you have any idea how many groups like ours exist in the Borderland?”

Foxy opened her mouth to respond but couldn’t find the words.

“It’s true that long ago, just like you suggested, the Special Affairs Bureau considered giving us ‘special treatment’ by forming a single Council-run orphanage. The idea was that the Bureau would manage it directly, providing full protection and guidance to every Fairy Tale child, so they wouldn’t have to look after themselves. But… something went very wrong.”

Yu Sheng frowned a little, conjuring mental images of horror movies and grim survival stories. “Let me guess: the kids got abused, and the Fairy Tales went berserk?”

“No, actually it was the opposite,” Little Red Riding Hood answered. “The Bureau and the Council aren’t stupid. They knew that ‘Otherworldly’ events can’t be controlled by normal human methods. From the reports, they did everything right—gave the children proper care, never mistreated anyone. But they missed one crucial fact.”

Irene, peeking out from Foxy’s arms, asked, “…What fact?”

“Fairy Tales don’t like adults,” Little Red Riding Hood replied, as though stating a simple truth.

Yu Sheng’s expression turned thoughtful. He felt he was starting to understand.

Foxy nodded after a moment, as if something had clicked for her as well.

Irene, however, still looked puzzled. She tilted her head. “Wait, what? Why do you all look like you get it? I’m confused!”

Nobody answered her.

“That’s the East Building over there,” Little Red Riding Hood said, pointing to a large structure in the distance. She turned back to Yu Sheng. “The orphanage has two main buildings. The East Building is where most daily activities happen—there’s a dining hall and some classrooms for the younger kids. The other one is the West Building, which has safe rooms and a small medical section for when someone’s condition becomes unstable.

“Originally, the buildings were linked by two corridors. One runs underground, but it’s sealed off now because it had some issues. You can only cross between them on the upper-level bridge, although the West Building also has its own gates.

“That open area over there is our playground. We built the swings and slides ourselves, and we dug the sandbox, too. The Bureau helped deliver the sand free of charge. We actually underestimated how big the sandbox would be—it ended up needing way more sand than we thought, so it took three truckloads instead of one. The Bureau half-jokingly accused us of hoarding sand.”

She gave a soft laugh, then pointed to a cluster of trees. “Those were planted by us, too. I was only ten at the time. The guardian who showed me how to plant them… isn’t here anymore.”

Yu Sheng listened, letting her words sink in. From the corner of his eye, he noticed several faces peeking out from the East Building’s main doors. A few older kids and some younger ones were watching them closely, whispering and pointing, trying to guess who these visitors might be.

Then a taller girl appeared, herding the onlookers back inside.

“How many kids live here?” Yu Sheng asked curiously. “Including all the older ones who help out?”

“Seventy-six,” Little Red Riding Hood replied. “It’s less than people usually expect.”

“That is a bit fewer than I thought.”

“It stays around that number, with a little changing now and then. Some children arrive, some leave. The Fairy Tale accepts the ones who fit its conditions and ends the connection when they no longer do. So you’ll see that a lot of floors up there are empty—especially above the fifth floor—and most of the West Building isn’t in use right now.

“Out of those seventy-six kids, sixteen are considered guardians. About half of the rest are between eight and fourteen, and the other half are younger. Overall, it’s about three-quarters girls and one-quarter boys.”

Yu Sheng nodded slowly. “I did notice that most of the kids I’ve seen so far are girls. Why is that?”n/o/vel/b//in dot c//om

Little Red Riding Hood smiled a little. “Because princesses are the ones who face the most danger. And village girls like ‘Little Red Riding Hood’ are no exception. You need to see this place through the lens of Fairy Tales.”

She led Yu Sheng, Irene, and Foxy into the East Building, guiding them down a hallway to a modest guest room.

Outside the door, more curious children peeked in, clearly tempted by the unusual visitors but too timid to come right up.

“I brought some things for them,” Yu Sheng said, lifting the bag of snacks and candy he’d purchased. “They can share these.”

“Thanks—that’s really thoughtful,” Little Red Riding Hood said, looking genuinely pleased. She waved to an older girl lurking by the door. “Hui Hui, come here and take these to the dining hall. Pass them out at dinner.”

Hui Hui, a lively teen of around thirteen or fourteen, hurried in. A swarm of younger children followed, excitement flashing in their eyes. “I want chocolate! I want the gold wrapper!” “Hey, do you have gummy bears?” “Thanks, Uncle!” “Hui Hui, Yaya just stepped on my foot!”

Suddenly, a small child popped out from under the table, staring wide-eyed at Irene. “I want to hold that doll!”

Irene bared her teeth. “I’m not a toy!”

The child froze… then burst into tears.

Chaos broke out as the kids scattered, half screaming and half crying, rushing in different directions. For a moment, it was exactly like Yu Sheng’s earlier nightmare: a house packed with tiny Irenes wreaking havoc.

He stood there, stunned and helpless.

Luckily, the uproar didn’t last long. Little Red Riding Hood was quick to intervene, her calm words restoring order. Hui Hui efficiently gathered the children, soothed their tears, and ushered them out, closing the door behind her.

Yu Sheng stared, impressed by how quickly peace had returned. Then he turned to Little Red Riding Hood. “…That was incredible.”

“You get used to it. They’re actually quite obedient. They might act like normal little kids, but they listen better than most. They know there are rules for a reason,” she said with a small smile. “We all learned that ourselves.”

For some reason, Yu Sheng felt a slight chill at her words.

“Tell me more about the Fairy Tale,” he said, trying to focus again. “That Otherworld—and the Black Forest I saw. How does all this connect?”

“The Black Forest is one part of the Fairy Tale,” she explained calmly. In that moment, Yu Sheng was reminded of the composed, knowledgeable spirit realm detective he’d met in the museum. “But before I explain the specifics, do you know how many types of Otherworlds there are?”

Yu Sheng looked stumped. “I… don’t.”

Little Red Riding Hood stared at him, and for a second it looked like she was annoyed. “…This is literally the first lesson in the archives. Weren’t you supposed to study that?”

Yu Sheng rubbed his neck. “I’ve been… really busy these last couple of days.”

“Busy with what? Another assignment from the Bureau?”

Yu Sheng froze, mentally reviewing how he’d spent the last two days: exploring that Otherworld, working on his farm, fixing cracks, raising chickens, petting Foxy, wondering how to build more Irenes using concrete and metal…

Yeah, that wouldn’t sound very flattering.

“Yes, the Bureau asked for my help,” he replied seriously. “To discuss the Dark Angel incident.”

Technically, every word was true.