Escaping the Mystery Hotel

A Mysterious Craftsman.

Considering the circumstances, it doesn’t seem like a coincidence that both the Lego’s name and the hidden NPC on the second floor, which I heard about from the merchant on the first floor, are called “A Mysterious Craftsman”.

Right on cue, the Lego started emitting a soft glow!

At this point, there was no doubt that the Lego was the hidden NPC on the second floor.

But what now?

The Lego wasn’t suddenly speaking to me, so it was hard to figure out the next step.

I came to a simple conclusion.

If the Lego won’t come to us, we can put it where we are.

Thankfully, when I inspected the snow globe, I noticed that the top could be opened.

As I carefully opened the top of the snow globe and placed the Lego inside, the Lego vanished as if it had disappeared into thin air!

After it emitted a soft glow, it vanished just like that!

The moment I witnessed this supernatural phenomenon unfold before my eyes, I felt it.

This is it! I found the correct answer.

Finally, I felt relieved.

While I had the top open, I thought of something else I could do.

I folded a small piece of paper like a bridge and made a path to climb up and down the mountain inside the snow globe.

I managed to complete three tasks in a short amount of time.

I stopped the snowstorm, made a path to easily climb the mountain, and found the Mysterious Craftsman.

There shouldn’t be anything else to do now, right?n/ô/vel/b//in dot c//om

I think I can go back in.

To avoid suspicion from Minyoung, I closed the top of the snow globe, returned to the same position I had been in before possessing his body, and then returned to my own body.

***“Haha! Did you all see that? I even found the hidden NPC Lego—”

“Get back out!”

“Huh?”

“Hurry and get out! Right now! We’ll talk later!”

Before I could even boast, everyone was yelling at me to get out again!

I saw that everyone, including me, had a notification floating in front of us when I looked at the empty space they were pointing to.

Today’s Special Event: Han Kain’s Travelogue– Exploring the Land of Giants!

Will Han Kain be able to find all the hidden elements in the mysterious location on the second floor?

1. Stop the snowstorm by operating the snow globe! (O)

2. Find the Mysterious Craftsman! (O)

3. ? (In Progress)

“…???”

What is this event?

It’s baffling enough that this event suddenly popped up, but what’s even more absurd is that I, the main character of “Han Kain’s Travelogue”, didn’t even know about the notification!

Did it not show up because I was outside the snow globe, which was technically outside the Hotel?

Then why hide something in a place where notifications don’t appear?

Was this really meant to be found?

With less than 20 minutes left before today ends, even getting frustrated was a waste of time.

I hurriedly went back and repeated the process, once again borrowing Minyoung’s body as he stood in the middle of the room, looking puzzled.

There was still one more hidden element in this place.

I frantically scoured the room, rummaging through everything to find something. I pulled out all the Legos, tossed the worksheets into the air, and shook out the bags, but unlike the Mysterious Craftsman, no object appeared to glow and announce itself as the solution.

Next, I started putting small items, one by one, into the snow globe, just in case they belonged inside.

As I confirmed when I placed the Mysterious Craftsman Lego, if I placed the correct item, it would disappear as soon as I put it inside, right?

I tried inserting and removing a Yu-Gi-Oh card, a Lego, and even an eraser and pencil lead, but there was no special reaction.

And the more I thought about how my actions might be extremely dangerous to my teammates inside, the slower I became.

There was still one hidden element left, and only 10 minutes left.

I inspected everything in a frenzy, from Legos and worksheets to the backpack and under the bed, but nothing special was to be found.

Am I missing something?

What could it be?

There’s no way there’s a hidden safe in a child’s room, so where is it?

Then I realized there was one place I hadn’t checked yet.

The Hotel was inside the snow globe, and my comrades were in there.

If I accidentally bump it, it could cause something like an earthquake for them.

That fear made me hesitant and overly cautious whenever I got near the snow globe.

In other words, the only place I hadn’t thoroughly searched in this room was near the snow globe.

“I don’t know if you can hear me, but everyone, be careful.”

I carefully picked up the snow globe and inspected it from all angles, but as expected, there was nothing.

Or is there?

…Maybe.

Maybe it’s something really small.

If it were a tiny object by our standards inside the snow globe, I wouldn’t be able to see it at all while in the body of this boy from the outside world.

Should I go back to my original body and search?

No, there’s no time left to search with my original body, which is even smaller than a speck of dust.

Then, an idea came to me.

Let’s recall what happened earlier with the Lego.

Didn’t it start glowing when my gaze was on it? That must have been the “hint”, right?

- Click!

I turned off the light.

From below the snow globe, a small glowing object appeared, softly floating in the air.

It was so tiny and light, like a feather, that it seemed to drift in the air.

It was too small to make out its shape, and I didn’t even dare to touch it with my fingers.

After carefully placing the snow globe back in its original position, I blew gently on the glowing object, causing it to fall onto my palm.

Finally, I cautiously opened the top of the snow globe again and dropped the object inside.

Just like the Lego before it, the glowing object disappeared the moment it entered the snow globe.

“Ugh… It’s finally over. It’s really over, right?”

There were three minutes left.

For the first time since entering the Hotel, I was back in the outside world, and it felt too disappointing to just return, so I instinctively looked around.

The familiar, peaceful—wait, what is that?

There was a pigeon outside the window.

But could it really be called a “pigeon” when it was larger than an eagle and had saw-like teeth in its beak?

I was momentarily stunned, but then I noticed something else.

While this room looked like an ordinary child’s room, the outside wasn’t.

The window had iron bars installed on the outside as if to prevent escape, and as the terrifying pigeon peered into the house, a robot that resembled a CCTV camera fired a laser to chase it away.

“…”

What the hell?

The pigeon was strange enough, but the house’s security system was even more remarkable.

Encountering monsters was no longer surprising after the numerous encounters I’ve had in the Cursed Rooms, but iron bars and laser turrets in a normal home?

What kind of world is this?

It’s like a world where even ordinary homes have adapted to a world overflowing with monsters.

A world different from the one I lived in.

With countless questions swirling in my mind, I returned to my original body.

***When I woke up inside the snow globe again, I realized the extent of the impact my actions had.

Due to the frantic rush of placing and removing objects inside the snow globe, it looked as if a massive earthquake had struck, leaving craters large enough to fit dozens of people.

Thankfully, the snowstorm had stopped.

I checked the Status Window for my teammates with a nervous feeling, and fortunately, they were all alive, allowing me to breathe a sigh of relief.

I found Ahri, Grandpa, and Jinchul-hyung scattered around.

“Is everyone okay?”

“…”

“…”

“Well… I was in a rush and didn’t know what else to put in, so I just put in everything.”

“You even picked up the snow globe, right?”

“Yeah.”

“That was really bad… I used to wonder as a kid, what would happen if a giant picked up and shook all of Korea. This was close enough.”

“When exactly was your ‘childhood’?”

“Hey!”

She can still throw a punch, it seems the earthquake wasn’t that bad.

While I sat down to catch my breath for a moment, Jinchul-hyung, who had gone to check the barriers, returned.

“Kain, has the date passed?”

“Yes.”

“Hmm. Looks like we can’t go outside anymore. The barriers won’t budge. Even with the Star, they won’t move an inch.”

“It didn’t seem like we’d stay connected to the outside world forever. If we did, it would’ve been a bigger problem. Imagine if Coco suddenly got moody and dropped the snow globe to the ground. That would be the end! Wouldn’t such a scenario be horrifying?”

“You’re right about that. But what was the last object you found?”

“It was too small for me to tell. Didn’t the notification say anything?”

“Notification? As soon as you started messing with the snow globe, the three of us were flying all over the place. We couldn’t see anything.”

“…”

“Well… I didn’t even know what you put in. But where did the Lego NPC and that glowing object you put in go?”

Grandpa answered nonchalantly, “If he put it in, that’s all that matters. The Hotel isn’t going to swallow up something we’ve worked so hard to find. It’s probably somewhere. Maybe it went inside the Hotel.”

“That makes sense.”

“For now, let’s head back. We’ve had enough trouble for one day.”

The return journey was much easier.

The paper bridge I made earlier was far easier to cross than the frozen ice wall.

After we returned to Room 105, everyone immediately passed out due to exhaustion.

The long and arduous exploration of the outside world on the second floor had come to an end.

***“…”

- Clack!

“Wake up.”

“Ugh, who is it? It’s Room 105—”

As I groggily opened my eyes, I felt the gaze of a giant owl the size of a house.

“…Didn’t you say it would be difficult to meet for a while?”

“Circumstances change, as they always do. Well done.”

“Huh?”

“You did well. Really well, in fact.”

“…Haha. Thank you. I’m not sure how to react to the sudden praise.”

“Finding that third object must have been really hard! I can clearly see how much sharper you’ve gotten compared to a few months ago.”

Indeed, that third object was so difficult to find that it made me question if it was even designed to be found.

The hidden spot beneath the snow globe was ingenious, but what was even more outrageous was that it was so small that I couldn’t even see it from the outside world.

I couldn’t search for it in my original body because I couldn’t move the snow globe, and while possessing the boy’s body, it was too tiny to notice.

I only became aware of its presence after turning off the lights and seeing its faint glow.

Even now, I couldn’t understand how they expected anyone to find it, and I felt a certain maliciousness behind the design.

But I found it!

“…”

Then, I noticed something strange.

The owl I hadn’t seen in a long time was in a cage.

“You must think I look ridiculous. Don’t worry, it’s nothing. But more importantly, pay close attention to what I’m about to say—do not miss a single word.”