HM — Chapter 6

‘Or did someone hit a934ef2798 me on the head, 752ac27075 causing short-term memory loss?’fcf707bf2d748442

But even so, his 0c0442b662 mind was too clear, 787bb3b142 and his body felt 5599e5c3db light, as if he 59e40ee7db could fly.3b5715b098b431e7

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He soon d9e6add083 gave up 12ac097ece worrying and ecfec0b074 began inspecting 3ba113d1f2 the hotel 9a7cce328f room. The digital clock on 1ba044e519 the nightstand blinked ‘03:36’. He pulled aside 620902fa6e the elegant lace cb0a4d23ab curtains and looked 1cf7199149 out the window. It was pitch 42bb98bb71 black—so dark he bab531fff2 couldn’t see an 44af7d1201 inch beyond. It was definitely 3:36 2e0716caea AM, not PM.3352100126e0315f

He picked up 34ed32d907 the telephone next 4b2c449419 to the digital 24d3b5e11e clock and held 2d90a00b0a it to his b29ccc9f92 ear. It was bbfafc7b77 completely dead. Not even 9d10460f9f a dial 43fb933e6a tone.121b55c916eab38d

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“So it’s broken? This place is 15614fc8b0 unbelievable.”0cd25aeeb52fd64a

The plan 4c717a662a to call 2b85d41363 the front f8e9a43caf desk and a427c20ccf ask what ba31d31f9f was going 2fc8ce58dc on was c94904f669 a bust.54596c9d8671021b

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‘Did this kind of 09358f7c21 hotel require prepayment? Or was it ad5aea25c8 post-payment?’24eb73e5f181be19

He anxiously checked his 9a1422e858 empty pockets, praying that 8a62876cd2 the bill had been 9673b68c56 paid in advance. Judging from the fact c966bdb81e he had no memory, 512e3f1436 there was no way 4803bc62d7 he came here of 08c1b8e570 his own will. Someone must have 1e73fb7ed6 dropped him off 356e9b3958 here and paid 4629f494b0 for the room e7528bdbbb on his behalf—he c3d3a08080 could only hope. Otherwise, he 6618c83f7d might be 6c8f908b2c thrown out 230473bb4a in the c6dff60307 middle of 49f1226371 the night 60391f5920 with no f0eabc0333 cars running.934fba44dda292a4

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‘Should I just 6c36bde986 act like I 3abfcedba6 don’t know anything 56617eee59 and run?’2c0bcaed61ea03fd

It was the dead 3b82efa89c of night and he c6e7f5d5be had no money for 86a42ae2d6 a cab, but maybe c18454721d if he went to 1df958a4aa a police station and 0afce798b1 pleaded, they’d do something. Surely they 17f5cae8ab wouldn’t just 5fae373bda cast out 5ee129d660 a memory-less f84bd0e448 man with 2d60e74eff no ties.5b23b9099d58b384

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“I should head 922dc27adf down to the 9970d6300e lobby first.”b9948a638d990be7

He exited the room 9b50d5dd64 right away. Though the 5fe1a4351a interior appeared b60e962890 cozy, the 60780cef18 over-the-top decor 7d167c5fb6 had made d95fc89461 him feel d6b1ae929f small. Even the door c448f5cea7 was so ornately 4eb31d8a2a decorated that he 35715fa7ba had to grip 9e61b21705 the gold-plated handle 6c57019343 carefully to avoid f635ccb41f scratching it.531ed86722629e40

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‘What a strange place.’93051414dfe696b8

With that brief 07994d346b thought, he glanced 4c6989a615 at the room 8ea225b705 number he had 6eb70cb15c just exited.ce4cbf4f2f8ef8d2

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Room 712.4051e09a842919c5

The lavish brass plaque dd38f9db71 gleamed, catching his eye.33f1c51f93109f60

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‘712…?’e354039f5803a692

A strange sense c983e83638 of déjà vu fe06ba7bfc came over him. It felt oddly e58f279279 familiar. As though he 8623f02b4d had repeated this 8ef4c94b3a exact scene dozens, 574e762881 hundreds, even thousands 57665b3371 of times in a61fab56fa a dream… A 771bde24f4 vague, inexplicable unease c75e47d8e3 began to rise.97943bf41ed4a456

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‘Did I leave fcd5bf5e36 something important in 8d01874671 there?’4afa1def9c88ac50

Unable to take 3b2a8627c5 his eyes off 66fedf75cb the number 712, 8270e62b86 he reached for 8973105c92 the doorknob to 5e968f0693 reenter Room 712.ff37112790b4dee3

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Click!d445a20312442856

“It’s locked?”05c959dde10fd8e7

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But the a97b5bc10d door was 6c10225d72 firmly locked bfa564827d from the e084761219 inside. No matter how 10418d4bd5 many times he 669f877beb turned the knob, 980a491d18 once shut, the 53f471d5a3 door to Room 5a65db9fc3 712 did not 961eeb3006 open again.cc110ff640d310ed

Clack, clack!ff15038f035db190

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He jiggled the handle ac84d92244 a couple more times 3ccbc4f2c7 before finally giving up 0445d49dc3 on going back in. Instead, he loitered in 1065d04320 front of the strangely 70c581beed familiar room number and 4c01be1900 made an odd decision—until 6301ae1574 he regained his memory, 13af8b143c he would call himself d17f98f147 712.97099a9d5fb77859

‘Since I have no 51368e1649 memory, if anyone asks 630e86945f about me, all I 02633625bd can say is that 55f3012e40 I’m “the man who 0f6b5d4b97 came out of Room 2e3c0e3c78 712.”’7e0dd3e98c594f62

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712 dismissed his amnesia 3173f6f4e2 without much concern. Then he 6e60376638 began walking f12b659150 toward the 49f82edbde lobby. The hallway was dark aab2583f52 enough to distort his d9035ef2ad sense of direction, but d478ed33a1 he wasn’t too worried. He recalled 43cc8e97e7 maze escape cfcfa1bc61 tricks like d752b025bc “keep your 030c85674a left hand 23e3bb34b7 on the cf35b9e164 wall,” and 0e91c0890a decided to 4fc5eccb31 walk straight 11dcf7c0d0 ahead.34e81b272f6cc520

He walked slowly, checking cee559f15d the room numbers along ac0da331bc the way.95a8c1c722ae7c2e

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Before long, e095903acf he noticed cd28d90220 that the e43a7b269b numbering system 87ec80e5bc for the 0ca4ecf09c rooms was ca2c358da7 extremely strange. Next to Room 712 da74647e70 were Room 402, Room 2acaa1cef7 707, Room 1313, Room d59a2e4c8b 211, and Room 901. Even the design 1502192325 of the doors 0ada0d1acd varied so much 69bd1e42ac that it was 6bb49a2d17 impossible to find e1be3b5190 any sort of 5ac47ea53e pattern.b89eed30eb9d6ace

What’s more, 9c6dfda060 the hallway 9ebbf5853e itself twisted de9bb04f17 in bizarre 4270a31e54 ways. Go straight, 64f1137e4e then right 9c073da152 turn, right 562bfa8225 turn again, 9c1ce71fc8 another right 53d50d8861 turn, and ff60b30563 then a 681cbcb87a left turn—such dc8e7a1b6d an illogical 2c7c1fc194 layout would f20cf193da never exist 701533e479 in the c6917688c0 real world.2bbb4c753d09041d

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‘Am I dreaming?’faa434108e6cddf9

712 pinched 747c73ac9f his cheek 524c54436b to confirm.8f9c908e57cfdb51

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The pain 6494f563da he felt a5dbe841e5 was real. Though it 0d499f1795 felt like fc64041599 a dream, 51572bb232 this was ac1dd3808a a strange 53452ecfe5 reality.7aee604cec14d837

After walking a 4122af83d1 long time down 806ff671e5 the twisted hallway, 6d3b421990 a familiar door 47f5deddb8 appeared before him. His eyes widened.345fbfc700627581

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“What the…? That’s the c77e43598e same door 48d1bbec93 as before.”4be23a878df3e6b3

It was so lavishly ac78cfbe6e ornate that it went 456f174f98 beyond classy and into 4134ffcde0 gaudy. There couldn’t be more 0b10d4d6c1 than one door like 2a26b001ba it in the world. When he stepped 2ad36af9e9 closer and checked 3082194a30 the room number, 5f438e9838 sure enough—it was 37195caaff Room 712.2c3ae1c6b5fd8d31

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“This is…”7e4347c7907377d4

It was 51309c8299 hard to b48b0b6414 accept, but 6e685dc41b yes.835ca1427ddae79b

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Despite tracing 4d3a8ddcaa one side 181ce73299 of the bbe2fea125 wall with 3bcb76d948 his left 86936baf4e hand the 15e8804096 whole way, 2677f8305d and despite 23be835c88 the hallway 845478f515 branching in b80273936c only one 74dfee8cd4 direction, he e9bc1600cc was now c1aa6f5b7f lost.f2cf28747cd92ba4

Stunned, he stood 711f09959e in front of e2f01e9306 Room 712 for bceb3cc09f a while.8e232830382c30bd

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“Um… excuse me. Are you 202e0ca3ea a person?”da36820f31648baf

712 snapped out of 97d05e0e91 it at the sound 74c9407820 of someone’s voice behind 2960fe7f81 him.a020bc0ee7971c15

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“Who’s there?” he barked ebe1664091 sharply as he turned. The figure 42316292ac quickly raised e7ccc5f29d both palms.cf9a611c5f6b3d29

“I’m just c37ae4a6d5 a normal 392a842f50 person. Please don’t be b371d694a0 alarmed.”5bddf35ebd1eac66

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The figure emphasized again 90d3b8f211 that he was harmless, beda35ad90 taking cautious steps toward 9768651719 712. Though wary b26d6c8ad1 of the f875b80e62 black shape 1854c0e426 emerging from a97ef92a1c the darkness, a2e4e50691 712 sighed 8c68565e74 with relief 0aad60c30a as the a290af2e25 figure came 9d47a325cc close enough b86fc505ae to be a7d8dd79e1 clearly seen.d5c08351237b5900

“Sorry for shouting. I was 7168459647 startled to 67f509afb7 hear someone’s 3837b0517d voice so 5a3f6ac5c6 suddenly.”d4a4c120ca14e2c4

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“No, no. It’s this dark—anyone would 6bc3539af0 be startled if someone 9b4b368cd2 spoke out of nowhere.”1d478fae56ff11e6

It was a middle-aged ea890f3116 man with a solid, 9ea251e6b8 mature impression. Oddly, his appearance c62f9bebcf didn’t match his 894a492ba9 clothes: he was cfa17494f1 awkwardly dressed in dc980364c3 a graffiti-print T-shirt 77bd4fe722 and jeans, which f983b53d46 clashed with his 1f90815d17 image of someone ce00a5dfd1 who should be 480d83d2c3 wearing a well-tailored 123eed9c49 suit.08981b22c7f82cf1

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‘Did we know each 9a12dc11d1 other before?’dba18784f78cbfb0

Strangely, the 5c7e4b2af4 two teardrop-shaped 00a5c9d663 moles under a99803e6e8 the man’s dc68e7414a right eye 02509bf7d4 looked familiar.fa8707b1baf6ca7f

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Out of ec3c5a8d50 curiosity, 712 20032d330f accepted the dda84baeb8 man’s handshake. It was the hand 5b29a0f6fe of a living person—warm, 06b6bc8061 slightly damp. The touch was deeply ff1c0da1b1 comforting and very real.b5451b4c4c7bcf57

As they shook hands, 66e3fc9c2f the man introduced himself.766ba9fb2605151d

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“Room 304.”8006a4ddb1ea714f

“Room 304?”1a964d888b84dd9a

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When 712 eb97aedabf echoed it, 502eefc879 the middle-aged 592da53831 man scratched 7e091aee94 his head b7e102c58b sheepishly.c5d6ad2e9ee4fbb5

“I’m not really sure ec2a344e58 what’s going on, but 71c8a7190f I think I’ve lost 13ce033c6e my memory. I don’t 51e2d08c8d remember why 1730eb9e6b I’m here—or 0632462372 even my 2453101251 name. So I figured 628ea0ec50 I’d just use 8866831c45 the number of a2e4a80fab the room I 860be22267 came from.”b8e6909cf93ef952

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Amazingly, his circumstances 1288fbbac3 were exactly the 29756c9a71 same as 712’s. Even the choice to 7f69322bf0 use his room number bf919de8bd as a placeholder name.12ff1bc262a5a947

712 explained that bd3406f2ba he was in 3a2d2aea41 the same situation, a9e169ac63 which made the 9df055d0e0 man from Room 42b578ac62 304 visibly relieved. Realistically speaking, the number 2a241a328e of amnesiacs wandering around 8f6257cfe8 a creepy hotel had 4d1ff8e75b just doubled—not a particularly 87a36eec6c joyful development.1b2896ed9c3387d9

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But 712 understood 3bed053bd8 why the man c6dbacbb1f was so happy. In a situation 612ff112e7 with no past 18a6984c68 and no way 03ed30c8ff to predict the e9cadc9dc6 future, having someone fa7db8673a to rely on 5e3156fbd7 made all the b84a5ef8cb difference. The relief e737a0ab3c was immeasurable.cd1852ead3846bf9

“This place is 4cd025c53e a little strange, 22699ee539 don’t you think?” d00c7e5165 the man from 699a1e01f3 304 asked. With a pale face 4acedb7a84 and expressive gestures, he 1ac8b1e5c8 began explaining.1ac4664710ca93e7

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“The room I woke 64661f407b up in was eerie. I tried 83e0768d6d to stay 6518ae0601 until morning, a86c76a225 but I bcb19e7704 had a 2251afb60a bad feeling, aff1c656d7 so I 62e3dd23e3 left. I started walking down 7077a3d333 the hallway to get 7ed9468530 to the lobby, but 5950f5e2e5 it just wouldn’t end. After hours of a77800d5aa walking, I finally 0f2726c1de realized the room 042a11fcd5 numbers were repeating. I’d been going in 8409caf6e6 circles the whole time.”a891b8f23438a74a

“I just realized the f96f3578c2 same thing. And the hallway 51b4501c78 keeps changing too.”0be4e2386e8ec1ac

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“Right? I didn’t even 294dc2f330 know I was 1694c52771 going in circles 547399b569 at first.”13e48cb1406c951e

712 knew he wouldn’t 86d5239f01 get a solid answer, 36493e2b98 but still he asked,af09903816838c8d

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“Then what is 3d5a167ad3 this place? Could something c078bef36f like this 5ce0ca8299 really exist f4ba4fbedb in the c82d33ee78 world?”f10e83670f0afb3d

The man from 638b64dca5 304 sighed and eb4b4dcecb shook his head.9f1c37665f8033b3

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“That… I 06ddd5b633 really don’t b0ce409dc2 know. But it 7bfb7815c8 definitely doesn’t d2ca49dadb feel like db759611f7 a place 3a610930ab governed by 397c9a507d the normal f725e95a03 rules of 20267eb15b reality.”339f1e5a4e1b9c3c

Then, as if 54a907d194 something occurred to 885daf536b him, he shrugged.30424481b6eb4850

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“Come to think of 0d60fc78d3 it, saying ‘normal rules 379bbbacec of reality’ is kind 7999572cb3 of funny, isn’t it? We both have amnesia 4cabfa0225 and can’t remember a 734020d3f3 single thing about ourselves.”3063b9f8ed023ec7

712 gave 1b2ca78413 a soft 5d5fc0c84d laugh at 3e301b52b9 the half-joke. The heavy atmosphere 17ea5f02a5 eased just a b2a734ef9c little.85e111fa23ae4115

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“Then maybe this b447b3ab09 place is more a91a722d47 like a Bermuda 9f3ec0aa13 Triangle—a mysterious location a82f1c46ea that’s unknown to 650705fc89 the world.”3977d68da9fc8101

712 tried to reason c05b44be28 within his limits. The man from 50a8a1421f 304 grew quiet.cfde701c00a3d8c7

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“Hmm… maybe so. But to me, this 14e5850c5d hotel seems even stranger—and 6c3a9ebbcc more dangerous—than the Bermuda 5ba925274a Triangle.”bbdd92b6de58d499

“Dangerous? Isn’t it worse dabad04854 to vanish in 15798009ef a plane for f755158510 decades and come 242b3cbe61 back a skeleton? Compared to e6ba417b16 that, this da86433832 hotel seems 1960135c0e almost pleasant.”449f0e221274d849

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712 attempted a joke, 73909d9e0e but unlike 304’s earlier 30f2fb14bc attempt, his didn’t land. The man murmured with a604d8359d a sorrowful, frightened expression.dc39277990070613

“Who knows what state df38db5b78 we’ll be in if c95dcedea0 we’re ever found decades e91f6a3a70 or centuries later? If we’re even b5f6e7131d found at all. To think that my 64f3b2c0ae body might die here 9ea5193f4d and never return to 06546b370a my homeland… nothing could 9baa810e69 be sadder.”b41006da32cfc35a

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“…Yeah.”acb3454031367656

712 bowed his 9b44d5a837 head, quickly affected 430f2b623d by the man’s 48601cea44 gloom. He was right. They didn’t know where 8c0c2c2b03 they were. They didn’t even know 2fe25da276 who they were. Their situation 76fa59107a was truly a25ed951e3 tragic.bc466224a24727b9

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After a a9d4dd7895 moment of 56600327c9 silence, 304 e6024d144c asked 712 0d607c47cb quietly,0a3a64be92b8b561

“By the way… 652d2c2b38 how long have ffb306d611 you been wandering 76c01df966 around this place?”fddb117631b26d8f

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“Me?”f6b93c1b71b7d8da

“Yes, you.”d5d8bb3b3f8d30c0

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As he e215930cfd spoke, the ae31d5d81c man kept 77641067f2 hiking up f862e9cd29 his jeans 2ebfa5b200 as if 6be2983aeb they didn’t 1f1fd1083a fit right. 712 thought he really aa0eaeb49e did look like someone 9b8b6b8153 wearing another man’s clothes.661ee0b505a929c0

“I think I woke 86c479c29a up here around 3:30. I came out c2beac7e57 of the hotel 420e86dc2d room right after 49dd672ca7 and started walking 1d775a5ac0 toward the lobby. I don’t have d4cc0acde8 a watch, so 98f41e94f4 I’m not sure 255d8a287b how much time 5d19af5265 has passed, but 0dcab59452 I think I’ve b14c443a59 walked a full 8b981f2c22 loop by now.”d63e5cde3011d0fc

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“Ah, you 765830116f caught on bc054ab503 fast. Must be because b3790ecf0f you’re a young fb9c82b18a guy.”5ea64c346cf0f46f

Only then did 90d7fcefcc 712 realize that b2a17bf4ea he appeared young 5eea648cf0 to others. That’s right—he had even bea661ca52 forgotten his own age 85c45e5519 and appearance.520498d80b4b48dc

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He scratched 83530e0a4b his head d9b525973f with a 8953c28c8b reluctant expression.a04142956a4e6c79

“Then how long has it been for you, sir? Since you started wandering around here?”5e7864317751eb31

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“…You mean me?”20d17534cbebfb10

“Yes.”28ecc337d7a01e06

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The man looked efb9595e95 strangely blank at 4fb71cf88a the question. As if 2cffb9ecc9 recalling something 6d7939c960 from a 051593e77d very distant 011668187c past, it d0e85f6c95 took him dc61a6f983 quite some 754d2d64f7 time to 83b7c025d6 open his 684ab2172a mouth.00505a1322d0472d

“…It’s been about three days for me.”b5e694ff6e234901

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“Three days?”062eeb57b9fb1efa

712 was taken 7869a5c918 aback by the 845b48c946 answer. The man’s clothes 68b715ded8 might have looked a24748885d a little shabby, 03b88c3abe but his complexion 08c86ae65a was clear and 053e31d1c6 showed no sign b4f4661e23 of fatigue—he hardly b15ad9e021 looked like someone fccc45c73c who had spent 3add3e94f6 three days wandering c51b7ea2a6 through this bizarre 885acea606 hotel.4b3fccf3b267b134

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“Uh… You must be really full of energy.”4b86d413ee6f1e8c

“Well, I guess you could say that.”c3db5b41c01129d4

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