Chapter 190

One day, Hyeon Si-gyeong, while conducting observations on an other-dimensional space—a Gap—that had manifested in the rugged mountainous terrain of the Gapyeong area in Gangwon Province, detected the existence of a unique anomaly: "Hotel One."

"Anomaly?"

As Kwon Do-heon turned the unfamiliar word over, Dan-cheong explained succinctly.

"It's the Western word for Dokkaebi."

"If you say Dokkaebi, then that."

"He means Recognition Species."

"Oh, does it differ by country?"

"You think the Westerners would know the word 'Dokkaebi'?"

"Westerners… that's a very grandmotherly way to put it…."

"I am a grandmother."

Just before the two went off on a tangent, Cha Do-hyeon cut in naturally and added supplementary explanation.

"Labyrinths are called 'Labyrinths,' and Recognition Species are called 'Anomalies.' These days the Western side sometimes just lumps them together as 'dungeons' or 'demons,' but the original classification is that."

"They're all four syllables."

"Four sylla—"

Cha Do-hyeon fell silent for a moment and rubbed his face, then nodded as if to humor him.

"If that's how it sticks, then so be it."

"I feel like I was just treated as a complete idiot."

"No, I always respect you."

"I do know the alphabet has more than four letters, you know?"

"Of course you would."

In any case, returning to the main topic.

"So then?"

At Kwon Do-heon's prompting, Hyeon Si-gyeong continued his observation report.

Unlike a typical labyrinth, which indiscriminately preyed on humans and emitted destructive psychic emissions, this place was equipped with the interface and control system of a highly rule-based "simulation game."

"…? That thing I saw?"

"Well, well—that's right, isn't it? Young nephew here said he could see something like a system window."

"That existed from the very beginning?"

According to Hyeon Si-gyeong's analysis, that was indeed the case.

"This is insane."

"I'm losing my mind too."

Dan-cheong furrowed her brow severely.

"So you're saying this labyrinth was built from the start with that… 'game' in mind?"

"A full-fledged game-type labyrinth like that? That's a bit odd. Just recalling the interface student Kwon Do-heon described, it's a considerably modern format."

Cha Do-hyeon likewise found it difficult to accept at face value.

"Above all, that would make it far too human-friendly. Existing game-type labyrinths were already considered fairly hospitable to humans thanks to the rule that 'a correct answer must always exist,' but… isn't this a bit excessive?"

At that, Hong Gyeong-yeon nodded and added his opinion.

"If so, then shouldn't we attribute it to the influence of 'Lee Yeon-woo's' existence?"

"I'm of a similar mind. No matter how I think about it, I can't see the Foundation or whoever 'The Devil' was intending this. They'd have had no reason to."

"Whereas Mr. Lee Yeon-woo would have every reason. Because he has to protect people."

Lee Seon-hae expressed agreement with Hong Gyeong-yeon's argument.

"He judged that it couldn't be destroyed and couldn't be fully isolated, so he opted instead to make it easy for outsiders to adapt to and limit the damage to a minimum—it would be reasonable to view it as the result of that."

"Granted, student Kwon Do-heon is the only one who's directly experienced what they call 'game-ness' so far."

Cha Do-hyeon, who had been quietly stroking his chin, muttered as though something had just occurred to him.

"Come to think of it, they did mention this place was in its 'soft-opening period.'"

"Ah, so…."

Lee Seon-hae nodded and offered her assessment.

"A kind of 'beta test,' then?"

The final inspection stage where real players are put in to find bugs and fine-tune the balance.

"And we were the beta testers."

"It does fit the intent, in its own way. Like reporting bugs or giving feedback on difficulty. It's a process of confirming whether the server and users can withstand this system."

"Something like a CBT—a closed beta test, maybe."

"Given that it felt like entry privileges were given only to specific people, that's about the right concept."

The work immediately preceding a game's official launch.

"And then?"

At Lee Seon-hae's question, Hyeon Si-gyeong continued.

The person holding core control authority over this space was indeed "Lee Yeon-woo."

In the course of analyzing the interior of this place, Hyeon Si-gyeong was the first to perceive the psychological and functional gap between when Lee Yeon-woo operated as the General Manager and when he existed in a state possessing a human ego.

"Oh… this is stuff we've discussed, right?"

"He seems to be distinguishing between Mr. Lee Yeon-woo as the General Manager, and 'The Devil' as the General Manager."

Hong Gyeong-yeon nodded at Kwon Do-heon's question.

"The current 'General Manager' certainly feels like private emotion has been perfectly purged. How to put it. Like a very cold artificial intelligence that performs only rational allocation of system resources and computation of optimal values."

Through tracking this dual state, Hyeon Si-gyeong finally discerned it.

The common destination that both "General Managers" ultimately sought to achieve. It was the overhaul of this labyrinth into a flawless, rule-based "game."

That is, the construction of "Eden."

"……."

"……."

At those words,

"What?"

Dan-cheong's face twisted fiercely.

* * *

The Foundation had sought to build a paradise for sinners.

* * *

"The Eden that Mr. Lee Yeon-woo envisions differs greatly in direction from the Foundation's."

"Yes, I imagine so."

Dan-cheong pressed hard against the furrow between her brows and exhaled deeply.

"Go on."

"Mr. Lee Yeon-woo's Eden is not an unreasonable stage on which humans are unilaterally sacrificed. It denotes a 'survival-guaranteed simulation labyrinth' designed with strict rules and a clear happy-ending route, ensuring that users can safely return alive."

The one who reacted most sensitively to those words was Cha Do-hyeon.

"Wait—a simulation?"

"Yes."

Hyeon Si-gyeong affirmed flatly.

"He is trying to eliminate entirely the possibility of 'real incidents' and 'real people' entering this place."

"What kind of insane idea is that? Then what does this labyrinth feed on? Since no one can actually die, wouldn't that backfire?"

"It would not. If this 'game' is actually completed."

He continued in a mechanical tone.

"Inspector Hyeon Si-gyeong realized that, even to prevent the catastrophic backlash of a reckless suppression campaign by the Sensitivity Bureau—the disaster of uncontrolled labyrinths and Dokkaebi spilling across the entire Korean Peninsula—Mr. Lee Yeon-woo's Eden-construction plan was the most realistic alternative."

The expression of Kwon Do-heon, listening nearby, twisted subtly.

"Third person…?"

"He breaks down like that sometimes."

"What's the reason?"

"He occasionally forgets whether he's himself."

"What does that even mean?"

"It's a thing."

Kwon Seung-jae laughed good-naturedly and brushed it off. Hyeon Si-gyeong ignored them and continued.

"Accordingly, Inspector Hyeon Si-gyeong chose not to suppress or negate Lee Yeon-woo's plan, but instead designed an intervention scenario in which he would fully align himself behind the scenes to drastically accelerate the completed timeline of the Eden that Lee Yeon-woo intended to build."

"Third person again…."

"Leave him—when the explanation's done, he'll come back on his own."

"This is insane."

"The concept of 'offering' within Hotel One differs fundamentally from the spiritual absorption of a typical classical labyrinth. In an ordinary labyrinth, an offering is a sadistic annihilation process that completely digests the ego and body of the human offered, destroying them without a trace."

Hyeon Si-gyeong looked Dan-cheong squarely in the eye and concluded.

"In the Eden system that Mr. Lee Yeon-woo seeks to build, offering does not mean the annihilation of the human subject. It has been determined to be closer to a process of importing the subject's unique story and survival instincts into the rules of the Gaps and integrating them."

"What does that mean?"

"That is to say, if Mr. Lee Yeon-woo's original intent is followed, the human resources who become offering subjects are not permanently swallowed and digested by the labyrinth. The system merely mirrors—copies—only their essential abilities and mental strengths as reference code for improving the game's convenience and survival rate."

"Uh…."

"To be precise, it can be described as a duplication process that creates a reference code to enhance the game's user-friendliness and survival odds."

"……."

At the dense explanation, Kwon Do-heon looked pleadingly at Hong Gyeong-yeon and Lee Seon-hae. Hong Gyeong-yeon haltingly attempted a youth-level translation.

"…So, I think it means copying-and-pasting a person's data wholesale into this game. That's my understanding."

"So people don't die?"

"Yes. So people don't die."

Hyeon Si-gyeong nodded.

"Once this duplication process is complete, the offering subject's body and soul are safely preserved, and they can exit the Gaps. Only their abilities are expected to be permanently and systematically installed as auxiliary devices within the labyrinth's internal system."

"So once the copying work is done, only the copy of their ability stays in the labyrinth, and the original goes out safely—that seems to be the gist."

"Inspector Hyeon Si-gyeong has confirmed, through investigation and observation, that the abilities of these human resources with their unique stories align perfectly with the individual system modules of the Eden that Lee Yeon-woo is designing."

At that, Kwon Do-heon made a slightly sick face.

"Is this some kind of human dossier?"

"Pretty much~…."

Kwon Seung-jae nodded as if accustomed to it, and Hyeon Si-gyeong, cleanly ignoring them as always, began to recite the list.

"There are a total of five offering candidates. They have been selected as: Kwon Do-heon, Kwon Seung-jae, Dan-cheong, Cha Do-hyeon, and Lee Seon-hae."

"Good heavens, I'm on it too?"

"Kwon Do-heon's ability is a detection eye that pierces through hidden contradictions and the essential danger of objects. It will serve to visualize hidden clues across the entire map for unspecified users and function as a danger-detection sensor."

This was intended to guide users toward intuitively spotting extreme traps, monster movement paths, and escape clues encountered during each episode.

"Kwon Seung-jae's ability is precision marksmanship and weapon control. It will serve to activate the in-system combat function for unspecified users and provide aim-assist calibration during ranged combat."

"So there'll be a combat system too."

"This will enable users to mount a minimum of physical resistance against the lower-tier hazards and monsters that exist within the labyrinth."

"This is shaping up to be a surprisingly generous game."

Next was Dan-cheong.

"Dan-cheong was selected for her overwhelming knowledge of labyrinths and the Gaps and her vast survival expertise therein."

"Well, would you look at that? Not going to extract my ability?"

"This will serve as a role that provides worldbuilding and spatial background information and activates a real-time injection guide, injecting into users—in informational form—the irrational terrors inherent to humans and the origins of the rules, thereby guaranteeing cognitive resistance."

Next was Cha Do-hyeon.

"Cha Do-hyeon was selected for his ability to perfectly immerse himself in both character and stage and draw out optimal developments—his dramatic directorial power. This ability will operate as a single-'episode' creation gimmick based on a scenario-generation engine."

"So the idea is to really ramp up the 'game' feel with that?"

"This will contribute to overcoming simple spatial repetition and realizing a theatrical stage with a distinct beginning, development, climax, and resolution—a narrative space with completeness."

"This is really turning out hilarious, isn't it?"

Cha Do-hyeon grinned and pointed at Lee Seon-hae.

"And our Director?"

"In the case of Lee Seon-hae,"

Hyeon Si-gyeong's gaze fell on Lee Seon-hae, whose expression was subtly tense.

"She was selected for her exceptional intuition in reading the board and her survival instinct."

"…That's really what I've been hearing all along."

"Her ability will serve to forcibly guarantee the safe return of unspecified users, constructing game routes and implanting horror-genre advisory guidance."

"And the expected effect?"

"It will ensure that users do not fall into behavioral paralysis due to arbitrary panic and will construct an absolute escape route so that they can follow the optimal path and survive without fail."

"Wow."

Lee Seon-hae exclaimed in spite of her bewilderment.

"This really is a game in and of itself."

"That is correct."

Hyeon Si-gyeong continued.

"However, Writer Hong Gyeong-yeon and I are exceptions."

"Oh—the speech pattern's back to normal."

"In Writer Hong Gyeong-yeon's case, it is because he is a thoroughly ordinary civilian with no spiritual awakening or supernatural background whatsoever. Mr. Lee Yeon-woo is taking the stance of rigorously excluding him from the list, so as not to treat the writer as an offering subject for the labyrinth or inflict harm on his fragile soul."

"Oh, um."

Kwon Do-heon looked at Hong Gyeong-yeon and murmured low.

"A soul that isn't strong…."

"I heard it, so there's no need to kindly point it out again, student Kwon Do-heon."

"To avoid inflicting harm…."

"I said I heard."

"How exactly did you end up here…?"

"Whose fault do you think?"

Hong Gyeong-yeon was a little choked up. But what held the Director's attention was decidedly not his tearful grievance. She narrowed her brow and fixed Hyeon Si-gyeong with a glare.

"So you're saying you positioned Writer Hong Gyeong-yeon as a safe observer, and the very fact of his presence was meant to stimulate the 'board-reading survival instinct' latent in Miss Baeksan's psyche and trigger its Awakening—is that it?"

"It is Inspector Hyeon Si-gyeong's assessment that Mr. Lee Yeon-woo precisely calculated that the desperation to protect one's own people was the surest catalyst for Awakening Director Lee Seon-hae's ability."

At those words, Lee Seon-hae's eyes blazed.

"Even if they share one body, that criminal and our Yeon-woo are clearly distinct."

"I shall define him as 'the General Manager' for now."

Hyeon Si-gyeong corrected himself calmly.

"If it was not the General Manager's intention, then it is believed to have been the intention of the 'Guest Without Taste.'"

"Ah, true—the one who sent the invitation was that vampire…."

"What is certain is that Mr. Lee Yeon-woo orchestrated the board with meticulous consideration for the microscopic emotions of humans and the safety of innocent civilians."

"Wait."

This time it was Hong Gyeong-yeon who raised an objection.

"Then what about you, Inspector Hyeon Si-gyeong? Your own name wasn't on that offering list."

"I came of my own volition."

Hyeon Si-gyeong replied with perfect serenity.

"To confess the intent of Inspector Hyeon Si-gyeong's intervention honestly,"

"Third person again."

"The completed Eden structure of this Hotel One was originally a destined, predetermined path that would have gradually come to fruition over a long span of time."

"Pardon?"

"Had it followed the original timeline, the outbreak of the Kwon Do-heon episode and the successive contacts with unique anomalies would have served as catalysts for Lee Yeon-woo to welcome guests one by one over the course of several years."

"The words are getting more and more…."

"He would have gradually referenced their abilities and cautiously assembled the 'game' piece by piece."

Cha Do-hyeon, having caught a flaw in the long, mechanical explanation, interjected.

"Hold on, Officer."

"Go ahead."

"What you're saying is that this whole setup wasn't a plan 'Lee Yeon-woo' devised—isn't that right?"

"It was a plan that the 'Lee Yeon-woo' of the future would have devised."

"So right now… you're saying, 'You're going to do this eventually—I know it all,' and then you plopped a five-year-old infant Dokkaebi right in the center, and a bunch of scheming adults who know everything surrounded him and went to town? Am I wrong?"

"Actor Cha Do-hyeon also consented to this process."

"Look, I didn't know it'd go this far. Come on. I do have a conscience."

The excuse was useless. Hong Gyeong-yeon's and Lee Seon-hae's gazes had already gone ice-cold.

"Senior Cha, I really didn't think you were like this…."

"Actor Cha… how could you do that to Yeon-woo…."

"Oh, for the love of—are you kidding me??"

Hyeon Si-gyeong cleanly ignored the commotion.

"'Lee Yeon-woo' outside of the 'General Manager' state is indecisive and shackled by a self-destructive sense of responsibility."

"Am I misunderstanding the meaning of the word 'indecisive'…?"

"Every time he witnesses another's injury or bleeding, he suffers a severe internal dilemma, and he attempts to forcibly take upon himself the tribulations inflicted on the guests, shattering his own body to clean up the aftermath."

Having likewise ignored Kwon Do-heon, Hyeon Si-gyeong continued.

"Had that gentle and altruistic state persisted, he would never have been able to undertake the gamble of cramming this multitude of ability-holders into the labyrinth all at once and wringing out every last fragment of his ego."

"No, what—"

"Inspector Hyeon Si-gyeong detected the moment when Lee Yeon-woo temporarily shifted to the 'General Manager,' capable of controlling those with whom he had shared blood, and the lag of emotion was cleared in a single sweep. And he perceived that now was the opportunity to alter this hotel's dimensional paradigm."

"Just a moment."

"Accordingly, Inspector Hyeon Si-gyeong forcibly deployed, at an opportune time, the core human resources of the destined episodes that should originally have appeared one at a time over long intervals and been constructed gradually…."

Hyeon Si-gyeong's eyes swept over the "human resources" one by one.

"Namely: Lee Seon-hae, Kwon Seung-jae, Kwon Do-heon, Dan-cheong, Cha Do-hyeon, and others—all forced in at once."

"Just a moment."

Hong Gyeong-yeon was aghast.

"Are you the mastermind?"

"I am not."

Hyeon Si-gyeong denied it flatly. It was an answer that failed to convince a single person in the room.

"This rapid influx of multiple human datasets is also a design intended to deliberately introduce an 'error' into the General Manager system."

"……."

"As was analyzed during the script-writing process: when an excessive number of unplanned variables and anomaly components converge simultaneously in a single location, a critical overload occurs in the General Manager's control algorithm, which must be perfect and fastidious."

"……."

"This overload artificially forces the generation of an emotional error within the system—'anger' and 'irritation,' thoroughly private and human feelings."

And when an error occurs in the system,

"When a critical bug is detected in a system-oriented engine, the only solution available to the system is one: a complete rewrite of its own source code and an irreversible, wide-scale update."

This was the optimal shortcut that Lee Yeon-woo's own altruistic hesitation could never have reached, and Hyeon Si-gyeong had contributed his knowledge and his hand to bring this great labyrinth's standardization to completion.

"That concludes my report. I will now take questions."

"……."

"None, I see."

Hyeon Si-gyeong put the whistle hanging around his neck back in his mouth. WHEEET— a scatterbrained sound filled the room.

"……."

"……."

In the silence that followed, it was Hong Gyeong-yeon who spoke first.

"…You are the mastermind…."

Lee Yeon-woo had merely been used in the dirty dealings of adults.

* * *

"……."

"Hoot."

"Um…."

At the hesitant voice, the enormous mermaid, who had been leaning against the edge of the blue hole, opened her eyes.

"……."

The teeth inside her grinning mouth were sharp.

"You found your way here. Well done, kid."

Brave of you, at that.

* * *

It is a puppet bound in iron-chain decrees, every private passion and memory of days past carved clean away so that naught remains but the unblemished rites of a servant. Yet beneath that cunning formation, the soul of the original, pitiable mortal persists, suppressed.

Each time the mortal's soul clashes mercilessly against the spirit's decree, should the puppet alter its appointed countenance or stir of its own will, the crossbeam shall deem it as the shattering of jade and bring down the lash. Thus are its lungs rent and blood disgorged, and gore flows from the seven orifices—such is the grievous punishment it suffers.

Remember: decrees have their limits, and spirits have their taboos.

"What does that mean in simple terms?"

Call his name more than four times.

"Four times?"

"Hoot."

Call him until he grows angry, to the point of revulsion.

You must never deny that being's existence—not even once. The moment you say that such a person does not exist, the endeavor is ruined. You must not forget that this is a labyrinth swayed by words and by the mind's image.

And so, you must call him until he grows angry. Without fail.

"Won't that get me killed?"

Should you fail, I shall tear you asunder.

"…? No, excuse me? Hello?"

"Hoo."

"Excuse me? Why would you tear me?"

"Hoo-hoot."

"Seriously, why am I always the one getting this?!"

"Sigh…."