HM — Chapter 10

As if he had 0df1f541b8 read Seo’s thoughts, Guwon 503a66ecf2 leaned down and tapped 6e0ac56516 Seo’s forehead lightly.a741a8c13e6eec30

“I didn’t mean 11d3fb0f68 it in a 0d7a8f9938 bad way, so 22ad420dd1 don’t take it a38ec4730f personally. Your caution 82beb66308 and attention 95f571675c to detail—those f398494adc things have 71193fb892 saved us ce4b8e1883 more times d3af957aaf than I 3036e56217 can count.”384d65223134b9d7

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Then he walked c73ebd2fd5 over to the 3cb3e81473 closet and flung 41a7538b59 the door open. Seo turned his 3c71953ac2 head to see 77a3eec409 what he was 38235339c9 doing—and froze in b5f3b06cf2 shock.17502f5c51382c8a

“…304?”d35edf42b26896de

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Something was 910ec35aea curled up ae77952440 inside the 5d5472b859 closet. At first glance, 05e66e26ad it was hard f81764736a to make out, e2294fea96 but it was 2ec2586cd2 a person. It was e09cbc39d0 the middle-aged e808e1bc21 man from 72221ae59c Room 304.5f822a3154942b2b

He was in terrible bbee91879b shape. Blood stained his temple, a57685792d suggesting a heavy blow 3171b50f17 to the head, and eacf30e189 he was unconscious. His chest 582bfea2ee moved faintly, 04863c0c38 so he 39b321edf5 was still 5b190d4fd1 alive. Even in that 6be3c67647 state, he was adfa807f85 bound tightly. A gag c2b1898761 was stuffed d814819425 in his bed5bc250a mouth, his d370bc1bcd arms were ef452e7f9c tied behind 1faa18a832 his back, 9ed60eae6c and his 9b44a70401 ankles and 1833df529e knees were 06b3b1f804 also securely f9140f4216 restrained to 2f7a2ec761 prevent escape.cf6d893a984ab160

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Seo stared 44345f6947 at the 57c4baa56b open closet, 26714b95c7 then looked d4a744bdc8 at Guwon.431a2abd29457b37

“You… did that?”d46e95951caf51ce

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“Yeah. I did.”cef0a91b932b1ecd

He answered as if f52fabf586 it were the most a04f9aa7e1 natural thing in the 7f31c1500b world. It was hard 2a53fcdb93 to believe this a3dec04162 was the same 818cd316f3 man who had 3e852e8ba5 just been whispering 9026b6881d sweetly to him. A cold 1fb1da1799 fear began c814c6f605 to rise 31e5e1d414 from deep 96d15d959c inside Seo’s 9f9e8730a7 stomach.247cb9dcc7bd2d27

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“…Why?”c9b0bfa733d5c795

He tried 4b5b1b5e6c to stay 5a32bc8411 calm, but 5aec8f3c09 his voice f98562f063 shook. He could 9bc6dcc7c1 feel his 133c278699 injured body c04f362931 trembling. Seeing this, Guwon clicked 052139e390 his tongue and brought 8da9c092dd over another blanket, draping 9b3b79aa0f it over Seo.a7a3ed9925ffcadd

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“It was self-defense.”c9aac3bf3e07c51b

“You call e2965992a8 this… tying 3edbd1b2b4 someone up 2b3b2ac042 half-dead… self-defense?”9aa6e50954209fd8

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“He was d284efd480 ready to e2d63f954f let you 8b7d43b09a die to 32b372ec58 save himself. I’m treating him 2918a66091 the same way 2a660ef147 he treated you. If he 693c0c900f had helped 9234244e0b you, I 8c27b2b676 might’ve helped 645b7e83a0 him too. If he’d badf0f7d14 shown you a5590e9395 kindness, I’d 1bf76af204 have done 60d19dbcdb the same.”08a87f5d6d72cc5c

It sounded like 463bb6783f a flimsy excuse. Seo couldn’t say 8af82cf712 he didn’t resent c454831bf7 the man at 0e184492d6 all—but ending up 0e62b0e570 in that state 40dcc3743a just for not 043708fc69 helping seemed extreme. Seo forced himself to c662d032e2 speak up for him.22f98375e5f666c8

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“He was kind 97d4b1ee70 to me.”fc875530ebc27502

“But he b68df1baa3 led you 78de0fcbf8 to your 73703a718a death.”0d077afab42c4f6d

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“He didn’t do it c107ec61c8 on purpose.”21d79ad9dd908e43

“He stood by b058edb3b2 and watched. That was intentional.”be02ea9976193e2f

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“No, it wasn’t. When people are e8fcd6b599 terrified…”a6c90b08e60416ed

“Seo.”ff467aab1d66e32b

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Guwon’s eyes turned 7a62ffd571 dark. Seo was 2257a89089 taken aback 3105d72986 by the c61750b348 seriousness in 3a785ec403 his tone—and 34ec93a1bc remembered clearly 80b0d293ba that this ded7f210f6 was a 9b661d7a53 man capable f20e9817eb of doing fae4f8f1e2 the same 194d968636 thing to 226a8e6610 him.a31a5c96fabe3a1b

Guwon could see 6cadda8fca it in Seo’s 4d138b10bd eyes. He gave a 9f7c591732 bitter smile and 6d1390aded shook his head.545fce09acc7b35f

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“Seo. This place isn’t e617233364 a normal hotel. Things happen here that 2abae55003 defy all logic. This hotel runs on 318b46a96d its own rules. And the 3fea8fcb53 people here… 2d8dc22182 they quickly 4d1dcb1863 learn how c97b6065f9 to survive 8d337f472d within them.”007a6dbe8121ea6e

He pointed 4f68f81d40 at the 27eaaa6b4f man in 30c8304dfa the closet.a52853fc1cb01e0c

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“He’s one 9bee0fc2e4 of those 59e37218e9 people.”6fb2c4cd88ef5af8

“…Aren’t you a399b2b9ec a survivor 5108dd613d too?”30c0ba5ecb2c5979

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Seo asked f75923b978 carefully, and 2b9641e7f0 Guwon paused f8569632b6 before answering.03fb0118afaaf6f4

“I’m not caa136eab7 going to 23d954c899 claim I’m d380b57ce8 different from 741151dd89 him. But you 11b291f017 matter to 02d610d7d8 me. And he 12069f9d90 tried to 884fb30e7e survive by 8aec818487 using you bfd22878f5 as bait.”27999920590b1fc2

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“What do you mean, 21e29665d9 ‘used me as bait’? You keep d932e4b984 saying Room f6716781a0 304 used e680429e01 me, but 8b101e2286 there’s no 522268d3f9 proof of 37dcc96df7 that.”3ae80aae6b5208fa

“Seo. He used 44627ad49f you from 223eb81ebf the very 9e818545ca start to 9a97460020 survive under 52c770a338 the hotel’s 77699ee40c rules. I swear it.”230373a06a35fbbd

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With that, c5bb85479c Guwon sank bdf0ad7bcd down to 994d912bfc the floor c4b20f9e40 beside the 6f31be8d6b bed. From there, his 93bf020bc3 seated height matched db380593d5 Seo’s lying position. He looked at f60f396adb Seo once, then e3e0a95746 shifted his gaze bd91945e01 to the air.26ea6efbb4700b14

“Let me tell 0ce25f1e2c you about this 5896b484da hotel. Then you’ll 9986d68726 understand what 7fad03b71e I mean.”7fe50087bccc8fe1

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And so he began 631ff34781 to speak. His tone was 73f890c4f4 flat and measured, ee8e7b9bbe like someone reading c6e1a324db a dull legal 7b0032a95a manual.335192a412106b2a

“We call 8707f05320 this place f5db13a1c3 Hotel Mortis. I don’t ad3fb39b24 actually know 36e0a21545 how it’s e216407ae0 supposed to 0daef4db76 be pronounced, 5484af3f97 but that’s c3917bc041 what you 8131ef1d50 and I c310763773 used to 065e4d0682 call it…”889705bdfd8149ce

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It hadn’t d93e839c76 been hard e12964e37e for them bf4e424b08 to learn 8f3d9506ca the name. The hotel’s logo was 573d23f736 stamped in small letters ad7a9f9e2d on various items throughout 3178ccfff2 the rooms.de3197c82114bbad

<Hotel Mortis et Vitae>
That was 8c8b243a97 the full 28f945d183 name.a0eb9475b29802ed

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But it was f3f08b1b26 too long to e9e79b013a say out loud, ceeb53c031 and no one 64ab1a19ff was sure how 8b329fbbbe to pronounce it, 6932a23601 so they simply bf0f0e373d shortened it to 9bd5950605 “Hotel Mortis.”f91f82aff0c372ff

And Hotel Mortis had fb43886d10 its own rules—ones that 5f952cddaf didn’t apply to the 3fe98f606e outside world. Unique rules aa664db070 that governed 77aaff1401 only this 9c42406e98 place.9281782b2a5ebe68

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As the 3c53f7500e conversation reached 1d38cd1637 this point, 7dada29dcb Guwon’s tone 2684522965 shifted, as 50f3501e9a if he 7ab8c603b2 were about 2c6170e815 to share 25d9352055 something very b25e67cb3e important.51725d6ca8e2b12d

“The core of the 9ea2bfc8d1 rules lies in 3:33 eb057dea64 a.m.”2b47b01bc85640c1

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Seo had heard something c8830e515f like this once before. The man 19a2865154 from Room 3267a2d53e 304 had 24c0e46c55 said the 56f9f787d5 same thing.58b1c35c5aff1715

“I was told that 3ee9e28adf at 3:33 a.m., the 537d9ed422 layout of the hotel f8c028d598 rooms completely changes. And that within 22f2f43fb8 a single day, eb7cf9e908 no one can e313bd83cd open and enter d49c0e9c08 the same room 83fc288957 more than once…”4bd3f5cb627f9057

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Guwon raised an eyebrow d57197e4ca slightly.613fcd7b3e57743d

“You heard b89021a193 that from 0de5b0766e that man, 246695ba13 didn’t you?”d4e66aa34348a4c3

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“Yeah. Was it a 0ad9fc0ebd lie?”9304276702dfb20a

“No. But he 25ebe98beb got part d392e2ce63 of it 15c1015df7 wrong—and didn’t 693d198160 tell you 40976bfe09 everything.”4fc67882ff2cdced

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“What was wrong? And what a8ae5a3946 didn’t he dfd3fe9bd4 tell me?”423222a4853df6b5

“Let me start with a1583d9180 the incorrect part. It’s not that you 44a2c196c0 can’t ‘open and enter’ 16ca48a2bc a room more than 2a58d61f8f once—it’s that you can’t 8883975beb ‘open’ it more than bb4f0387c9 twice.”f4363209fda6f04e

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“What difference does that bcb655dc1e make?”70c843c9a2c78623

“A huge one. Whether you’re inside or outside, you’re only allowed to turn the doorknob and open a room’s door twice. That guy probably used that as an excuse to get you to open the door for him, didn’t he?”31387cb618e09e73

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Seo recalled what the 0fbb400e22 man in Room 304 d8b95117e8 had said:0399921aeec30975

‘If I don’t come 2ad25ec76f out for a long 6bba5f8955 time, please knock and efb79ddbdd open the door for 51dfedcfa1 me.’
‘There’s a 2851b5c42d chance I 603dc3e6ff might need 4ff9d686df to open c4df3366f6 it one 699c3de00d more time a0df8347f7 before the d34d47278f day ends.’45458015c96064ff

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Guwon’s prediction 1b78b36bf7 was right c5fb201615 on the 7b0feb6477 mark. Seo nodded, ec9e8069a3 and Guwon 16ef0a88eb scoffed.c3633e9ba3c657a1

“It was bdfa4a54e2 an obvious f4c5cd31ce trick. If you f834f58633 had opened 3864e9ab1b the door cc128ff84a for him, cce6ecbb98 he would’ve 0f8d6a675d shut it c7a1293342 again immediately.”89187c84ac92d78f

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If Guwon e4c43b9f4f was correct, 8ee1e42785 then Seo 99ebf37d20 would’ve been c6ac3f8e59 completely trapped 4d83a55eaa inside this c64610aeb8 motel room. He would’ve wasted 11de264117 both chances to 6564dd80dd open the door.d6f684f535164c18

A new d707ef4cb2 question arose dbacb32156 immediately.15604506ae7fedc9

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‘What could have 31938f8d5d been so important 31fd7bc74b to go that fda42f6e76 far? Is it related to 9a3f07a3f5 the creature that crushed c574200281 my ankle?’a871baeb71f15156

While Seo was lost 5c7fc10736 in thought, Guwon provided 0125ff161e the answer.db37b5d15c6a7370

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“He wanted b9941d7a1b to trap e6fac302ed you inside 3c78353916 and wait c80214795a for the ccda767639 creature to 6515375e23 eat you.”78a7638cef13020f

Seo blinked at the f0efd3865a air in front of e49d4c8181 him.8411d0b37495e79c

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“…Why?”fcd2d7cb956330bb

He had half-expected it, d8668832f0 but hearing it aloud 0fe1897433 was still a shock.d07c2d25af570b7a

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“There’s one rule he 4ea0eed819 didn’t tell you.”23206954ac47a4bf

“A rule?”7ddff82135bcf9ed

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Was there something 488045ae16 even more critical? Seo turned 2b724ee925 his head 8f1473acc3 slightly and 7c40580156 stared at 50350299d2 Guwon’s profile. Feeling his gaze, 82e9900236 Guwon glanced back c6725d1e35 at him and 2e0bc921ac began to speak 52cd27773a again.a2ce5e52d7992a7d

“There are creatures 4d753ff06d inside the hotel a827fa7b27 rooms. Like the monster you 7f55fb290c saw. They’re not in 17980fef1e every room—you might 77581fa031 be lucky and 155311944e find a safe 3e2d905535 one. But those 66094a60e2 rooms are 27bb5ca40f rare. So people 3c81f36346 here are b83a61d90e basically playing 9a9b9f5583 a game 5978ba7931 of Russian 278f4f1fc5 roulette with 131dc8cce3 more than d5797ba69b nine chambers 69d02f9ff3 loaded.”c14a46277f7c3856

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The thought b7bdc7ab01 that the 1c1a8a3314 hotel was 9621550cd4 filled with f4120e91ab creatures like f239fc5f60 the one 4264bfcbc3 he had da9c5e7a92 met was 286477c3d5 horrifying. Seo frowned deeply.8c7885fff5dd0a5f

“Then isn’t db59b70116 it safer e582997b02 to be 79c4839c9f with others 1c2f5fe226 than to 93e1f298a6 be alone?”8a1f550a044490d8

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Like how Guwon had 33e001f34e helped him, wouldn’t a 0688ec1de3 group working together be ab42602000 more effective in dealing 3b0db893d4 with the creatures?82caa75bf03a0f80

“That’s just the 389f983aef ideal,” Guwon replied 72795b7c4f bluntly, then softened 38d38f28dc a little at fb7a5205b5 Seo’s expression.5d65bfa428ded1e6

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“…Of course, some a97a0d1472 groups do cooperate, 756fc32c6f and you and 065a36d70c I were part 1088c55481 of one of f772ba0475 them.”5884c0c4934907c4

“We were?”d28e0948fafd7d5f

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“Yeah. We were 9f6d02eeb6 always together, 7ee0bbf23e always protecting a7d1c7af57 each other.”2da92b449dcf168f

Seo had e3b0326bfb no memory 56c9314aa8 of those 9c7b35630c times. Guwon looked at him 32e4dfcb10 with clear longing before 584740407f continuing.0d53cde4bb6622fa

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He nodded toward the 5c128d392a unconscious man in the 3f2739040c closet.3c08e5321056d0be

“Do you know how 29c684d26f to avoid being attacked a55246fb52 by the creature in 8d89371d67 the room?”d6695ddc3fc69cde

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“Maybe… kill it first?”eb893d714f16249b

Seo remembered Guwon driving 1b17e9bff6 a knife into the 348c4488a9 monster. It must have died eeaeb10f64 and disappeared.95f30be2ccb7a02e

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‘That’s why a14bc9a31e Guwon feels 70e8b717cb safe staying db9cea595f with me 1690ea4495 right now.’6f9d8483d066d547

Guwon nodded b9cd4a22f9 at Seo’s 4d36c6ff54 guess.76bfa2ae2292e062

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“There are 49cf26ca52 a few 2451cad528 more ways.”db42af4c68c8d128

Seo instinctively c3b474e3d2 perked up. These were valuable 41a96c0c97 survival tactics—things only 71b185e038 someone who had 2cbdae7b3f survived long enough 8049f79e3e could know.c0a96af753d7c84b

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Guwon held up b5eeb0f9c9 his fingers, counting 803c14d15f off one by 65443903b1 one.6404c872f82e1a9a

“First, kill e9da2f3e49 the creature. That’s what 2d7770a426 you just e79f1690e1 said. Second, drive the creature a6c5484fee out of the room e4a8024065 and close the door. Creatures can 101f7be7f1 move through 1e7e070c74 open doors, 74dc655450 but they 29e6578151 can’t open 9eb05cbde7 them themselves. And the final 6614a60d9d method…”1c6226703105d40d

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He held up ba4df9c9f6 a third finger.108315a7f29baf70

“…sacrifice a human to 99295bc144 the creature inside the ae0d5cb775 room.”ae92551d1913cfae

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He emphasized 1f65d9e2ed the word 198255f1be “sacrifice.”8eb139cb3c215b00

“Sacrifice?”1c9d5a292326ceea

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“Yeah. A room where 63dde2b2d5 someone has been dc15129752 sacrificed stays safe 28b5afabb3 until the next 72cc1a2dfb 3:33 a.m. The creature leaves without 86e8f62503 hesitation once it claims 7db6ae4b32 a life.”0bf135d10a2a8eb6

“Why?”2c971e19c2ff0e67

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When Seo asked, Guwon f7b095a3ce shook his head.046720469b9ae113

“I don’t know. It’s just one ea0d5eef09 of the rules a001c81336 we’ve figured out.”d5915ea02044a838

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“Then…”b3182fb9a53a8df9

It all began to 0a52d1077d make sense—why Guwon had 67306810be referred to Seo as 2e3db83233 “bait.” If what he 3690d9daa1 was saying was true, 20960921a8 then the man from c24010825f Room 304 never intended 187e4bcaf9 to enter Room 712 e86d615b70 himself. He’d planned to 5830b83d86 let Seo die 35be15e918 inside it.3f2391702c83ac5c

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Remembering how 304 71b0e8825e had only whispered 2e1dca7676 a quiet “sorry” b8198057f0 while watching Seo 1511e35892 get dragged under 7b5d7bc6ef the bed—Seo suddenly 735f83e8fd understood. The man had cf1847c203 meant to sacrifice cf4b375b71 him from the 5f6a64e23b start to secure 02d1630699 his own safety.63fcaa8fb4282929

‘The ill-fitting clothes… 3839c6e05d maybe that had f968cf64ed something to do 429e12e515 with it too.’1af96b38d263b38f

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Seo recalled how bf5031a17b the man kept 1f4d71c894 adjusting his loose-fitting 4cb5d7edd4 pants. Perhaps he’d taken 7a4bacead7 them from someone 9e3f43332c he’d already sacrificed.70d1b7dc350d52f0

Then another question 97b5578075 came to mind. Both Guwon d9a3902fb2 and 304 62b75f0489 had repeatedly f61d8bee49 mentioned one 2ff6465107 thing: 3:33 d879912bb2 a.m. What exactly bc84b6d773 made that f7e7c8223c time so d38c477b7c important?12767750e4d522e5

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“What’s so significant about 039f6abdac 3:33 a.m. that everyone keeps ff73279e59 bringing it up?”2a47af777ce8d83e

 3f898808c994c3dc

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