Chapter 46: The Odd Butler

— Come along, sir. There is another room on the floor above us. I’m certain you’ll find it much more to your liking.

Marcus remained silent before reluctantly following the butler.

’A chance to escape...’

Once again, his strange constitution had brought him a stroke of good luck after giving him some bad ones...

Although, considering how close he’d come to getting himself into trouble, he wasn’t entirely sure whether he should be grateful or annoyed.

As they walked through the hotel corridors, Marcus couldn’t help but notice how eerily quiet everything was.

The only sounds accompanying them were the soft patter of their footsteps against the floor.

The dim lighting did little to improve the atmosphere. In fact, it only made the long, empty hallways feel even more unsettling.

When they reached the elevator, its doors slid open, revealing several faceless butlers and maids inside.

They were carrying trays of food while standing motionless, their featureless faces turned towards the two of them.

The moment they noticed Marcus, their expressions of confusion and displeasure became apparent through their voices.

— A guest... outside his assigned room? Why?

— How could you allow this to happen? Have you forgotten your duties?

— Kill yourself. Kill yourself. Kill yourself. Kill yourself. Kill yourself. Kill yourself. Kill yourself.

Their voices overlapped, growing increasingly agitated as they questioned the butler accompanying Marcus.

The butler, however, remained perfectly composed.

— I assure you, I am not responsible for this guest leaving his assigned room. The previous maid entrusted with his care failed to provide satisfactory service, leaving our guest dissatisfied and prompting him to leave.

He smiled as he continued in the same courteous tone.

— I am simply escorting him to a more suitable room. I would appreciate it if you refrained from interfering with my duties. Otherwise, I may have to submit a formal complaint to [Euphoria] regarding your conduct, particularly your inappropriate language in the presence of a guest.

The moment they heard the name [Euphoria], the other servants fell silent.

Not a single one dared to utter another word.

Marcus, who had witnessed the entire exchange, remained equally quiet.

’...This butler is quite something.’

He wasn’t entirely sure how to describe it, but there was something rather peculiar about the creature accompanying him...

Despite its polite mannerisms, it seemed perfectly capable of intimidating the other servants without raising its voice.

As the elevator slowly ascended, Marcus could feel the intense stares of the maids and butlers behind him.

None of them said anything, but their attention never seemed to leave him.

Ding!

The elevator doors opened.

Following the butler out, Marcus walked through another two corridors before finally stopping in front of a door.

[Room 88]

— Here we are, sir. Welcome to your new room. The great being I serve has personally arranged for you to stay here. I trust you will find your accommodations satisfactory. If there is anything else you require, please do not hesitate to make a request.

With that, the butler gave a slight bow before turning around and walking away.

Marcus hesitated as he watched the creature disappear down the hallway.

’The great being... Is he referring to [Euphoria]?’

He stood before the door for a moment, uncertain whether he should be relieved or worried about this sudden change of accommodation.

Eventually, he took a breath and gathered enough courage to reach for the doorknob.

Click.

The door slowly opened.

"Marcus!"

To his surprise, Clara, Jonathan, and Elias were already inside the room!

"You’re here too?"

Marcus closed the door behind him and cautiously stepped inside. Although he was relieved to see the others, he couldn’t help feeling suspicious.

For all he knew, this could be another illusion created by the Supernatural Space.

However, his instincts, along with the strange constitution that had brought him both trouble and good fortune, told him that the people standing before him were genuine.

"Were you also brought here by that strange butler?"

Marcus nodded.

"Yes. Was it the same for you?"

"All of us were. I actually tried escaping after tying my butler’s legs together with the bedsheets. Unfortunately, I was spotted by that strange butler while making my way through the hallways."

Clara frowned as she recalled what had happened.

"After finding me, he scolded the butler assigned to me and threatened to report him to a being called... [Euphoria], was it? Shortly afterward, my butler killed himself."

Elias nodded in agreement.

"The same thing happened to me and Jonathan. I’m not entirely sure why, but that strange butler seems rather determined to make the other servants kill themselves before bringing us here."

"From what I can gather, this might be a narrative-type Supernatural Space..."

The team began exchanging their observations, naturally piecing together the information they had gathered from their individual experiences.

"Just based on what I can infer, the storyline seems to revolve around that strange butler eliminating the other hotel employees while gradually freeing the guests from their rooms. If we follow the general principles outlined in [Ways to Finish a Supernatural Space], then completing this storyline might be the key to clearing the place."

Jonathan considered this before offering his own interpretation.

"Could it be a revenge story? Perhaps that butler is trying to kill the being known as [Euphoria], and we’re supposed to help him accomplish that?"

Marcus shook his head.

"I don’t think it’s that simple. Or rather, that might only be part of what’s happening."

He thought back to the behavior of the servants he had encountered.

"Every worker in this hotel seems extremely determined to keep us inside our assigned rooms. Apparently, allowing a guest to leave is considered a serious failure of their duties. Once another worker discovers such negligence, they can use it as grounds to punish the incompetent servant, even forcing them to take their own lives."

"That strange butler has been taking advantage of this rule. He’s deliberately finding servants who have failed to keep their guests satisfied, using their mistakes as an excuse to have them executed. In a way, he’s exploiting the hotel’s own rules to eliminate its employees."

"Therefore this might not be a straightforward storyline with only one way to complete it."

Marcus continued.

"There could be multiple possible endings... For example, one might involve helping that butler accomplish whatever he’s planning, while another might involve exposing his actions and having him caught. Before we do anything, we need to figure out which side we’re supposed to support."

He looked around at the others.

"After all, we don’t know whether the seemingly friendly butler is actually on our side, or whether the other servants are any better."

Jonathan nodded at Marcus’s explanation before raising another possibility.

"But what if neither side is actually safe for us? What if both of them are equally dangerous?"

Clara immediately agreed.

"That’s what I’ve been thinking too. It’s difficult to believe this place is only F-ranked. The rules and the possible outcomes seem far too complicated for a Supernatural Space of that rank."

Marcus nodded.

"I think its F-rank classification comes from how harmless the place initially appears. As long as we remain inside our rooms, we’re allowed to enjoy our stay, request food, take baths, and do practically anything we want."

Marcus recalled the events from earlier.

"However, I suspect the real reason behind its complicated structure is the existence of that being called [Euphoria]."

Elias furrowed his brows.

"A joint Supernatural Space..."

He leaned back slightly, considering the implications.

"That’s troublesome. It seems the management didn’t properly account for the possibility of encountering something like this before deploying us. If we make the wrong decision, we might end up triggering the involvement of a much higher-ranked supernatural existence."

Clara seemed to realize something as she spoke up.

"Wait. If this really is a joint Supernatural Space, then there must be some sort of condition preventing the higher-ranked existence from interfering with the lower-ranked one."

She looked towards the others.

"Otherwise, there would be no reason for them to coexist as separate entities in the first place. But that also means that if we accidentally fulfill the wrong condition, wouldn’t [Euphoria] be able to enter this place?"

Marcus nodded.

"Correct... We don’t know whether siding with that strange butler or cooperating with the ordinary hotel employees would eventually trigger [Euphoria]’s arrival. We need to be extremely careful about which side we choose."

He glanced around the room.

"This is probably the most important turning point we’ve encountered so far. Does anyone have an idea how we should determine which side to support?"

The others fell silent.

Everyone began contemplating the possibilities, but there didn’t seem to be any obvious answer.

They had too little information to make a proper decision, and blindly choosing a side could potentially lead to disastrous consequences.

Just as the room fell quiet, a sudden knock came from the door.

Knock, knock.

Everyone immediately turned their attention towards it.

Before anyone could respond, the door slowly opened, revealing the strange butler standing outside. He was carrying a tray covered by a silver serving lid.

The moment they saw him, the atmosphere inside the room grew tense.

— My apologies for the interruption, dear guests. I’ve come to deliver your final companion. I sincerely hope you enjoy your stay together. I’m quite looking forward to seeing what your presence will bring to this hotel.

With that, the butler stepped inside and carefully placed the tray on the table.

He then lifted the silver lid.

Underneath it was a small doll wearing a dark-blue jacket, with neatly combed hair and a distinctive scar around its right eye.

Everyone immediately recognized it.

It was their Supernatural companion...