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Translator: Vine
Chapter Title: A Night at The Signature
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It felt like we'd just gotten here, but evening was already upon us.
After a day of exhilarating sightseeing in Busan, we finally entered our hotel, ready for some sleep.
The 'Signature' Hotel, Busan's most expensive 5-star establishment.
As a patriot, I personally found it quite irksome that Busan's most iconic hotel had an English name. Why not use a Korean one? Instead of 'Signature,' we have a perfectly good Korean word like 'Sain' – which also means 'sign.'
...Come to think of it, 'Sain' might not be Korean either. And besides, isn't 'Signature' used in a different sense here? Whatever, let's just go in.
The lobby inside was incredibly large and grand, a space big enough to comfortably fit hundreds of people. I told Ms. Soobin to guard the luggage for a moment, while Seo-eun and I headed to the front desk for check-in. Since Seo-eun had made the reservation, she came along.
"Welcome. What's the name on the reservation?"
"Ah, it should be under Han Seo-eun."
"Yes, confirmed. Here are the keys for room 2708."
"...Is that just one room?"
"Yes. You only reserved one room."
"Ah, right..."
Holding a single key card, I trudged back to the lobby and asked Seo-eun, who was standing beside me.
"Seo-eun, why did you book only one room?"
Under my questioning gaze, Seo-eun avoided eye contact and said,
"Well... it saves money, and it's good, isn't it...?"
"Why would we save money? Between you and me, we've got money overflowing."
"Ugh! The bed's a super king, so just come and sleep!"
"Seo-eun? Even the bed is just one?"
As I stared at Seo-eun in dismay, Ms. Soobin came over from beside her, hugged Seo-eun, and said,
"It'll be nice to sleep all three of us together for the first time in a while. Hehe, I'm looking forward to it."
"Uh... but we've never actually slept all three of us together before..."
The two of them didn't listen to me and zipped off towards the elevator.
My authority as the head of the household...
***
"Wow, the room is really spacious!"
Seo-eun, who had entered the hotel room, bounced around the room in amazement.
Seeing her, who usually just sits primly in front of the computer, now moving around so actively with sparkling eyes, made me happy. Students really should go outside and play, definitely.
"Wow, the bathroom is as big as a hot spring."
Ms. Soobin, who had gone into the bathroom, also said with wide eyes.
Right, this is what a 5-star hotel is all about, I guess?
It was the largest and widest hotel I'd ever been to in my life.
Even a single piece of furniture was made of such luxurious wood, it felt like if you accidentally set fire to it, you'd have to pay tens of millions of won.
It felt like we absolutely shouldn't play with fire in this hotel. Oh, wait, you're not supposed to play with fire anywhere, are you?
"The night view is magnificent."
I said that as I drew back the curtains. It was literally true. Perhaps because we were on a high floor, it was a spectacular view overlooking the nightscape of Busan city. I could even see the distant night sea, with waves crashing.
"Yawn... Wow, the TV is huge."
I marveled at the TV in the bedroom. The TV at our base isn't even this big; maybe I should replace ours?
But despite all that, there really was only one bed. Of course, it was huge, almost like four beds put together, but... did she really have to book a room with just one bed?
To the two of them, still fumbling with their suitcases, I spoke first.
"Let's unpack, wash up, hang out a bit, and then go to bed."
I'm tired after walking all over the place today.
***
So, everyone washed up and lay down on the bed.
Seo-eun lay in the middle, with Ms. Soobin and me on either side.
We decided to just lie there and watch TV.
As I was flipping through channels, wondering if there was anything interesting on, Seo-eun, who was looking at her phone next to me, spoke.
"Oppa, can you get me some water?"
Huh? What? Did I hear that wrong?
"Water."
But Seo-eun just repeated it as if it were nothing.
No, Seo-eun, don't you have hands or feet...?
"Seo-eun... to think you'd try to order your Oppa around like this now. *Sniff*... I must have raised you wrong. I should have been stricter, oh dear, oh dear..."
When I made a mock wailing sound, Seo-eun waved her hands, flustered, and said,
"No, Oppa, it's not like that! You have telekinesis, don't you? Can't you just whisk it over with that? You just have to wiggle a finger, right?"
Ah, so that's what it was.
I thought our Seo-eun was becoming a disobedient child...
"Hmm, unfortunately, Seo-eun. You'll just have to get up and get it yourself."
"Hmph... Okay."
"No, the reason is, Oppa needs to conserve his strength."
"Strength? What do you mean?"
"Hmm... did I not explain this to you? Let's see... You know about MP in RPGs, right? Mana, I guess? The stat wizards need to fill up when they use magic."
"Oh, that? The blue bar below the HP bar?"
"That's it. My telekinesis is like that. If I use it too often, my power runs out, and it becomes as weak as a claw machine's grabber. But if I don't use it and just stay still, or 'charge'? What's the word, 'concentrate'? If I do that, my power gets a bit stronger. So, I need to conserve my strength for emergencies."
In fact, since the last time I used it was a few months ago, dealing with that alligator guy, I actually felt quite strong right now. Patience is a virtue...!!
"Ah. I get it now. I thought you could just use it freely... I'll go get it."
With that, Seo-eun trudged off towards the hotel mini-fridge. I might as well flip through channels while she's gone.
Variety shows... news...
I just put on the news. Honestly, in this world, the news is more entertaining than variety shows.
When the news talks about B-rank villains and fire-wielding espers, how could it not be interesting?
As I turned on the news, a picture of a blonde woman and a woman with long, sky-blue hair appeared on the screen. Oh, the one on the left is Stardust. And the one on the right is her. The North Sea Ice Woman.
The anchor's voice flowed from the news.
[Following reports of Shadow Walker's comatose state, public concern over national security has been ceaseless. In response, the Association's A-rank heroes, Stardust and Icicle, have personally stepped forward to address these worries. They announced they would be on a 24-hour emergency standby, with Stardust continuing to cover Seoul and the metropolitan area, and Icicle remaining responsible for Gyeongbuk, Gyeongnam, and the Busan region.]
Well, Stardust was always in charge of Seoul, and the North Sea Ice Woman was always in charge of Busan, so this basically means those two will be working 24 hours a day. Poor them...
No one calls her 'North Sea Ice Woman' yet; she's still referred to by her official hero name, Icicle, in the news. Of course, 'North Sea Ice Woman' is a moniker that only gets attached to her later, after she freezes North Korea.
While I briefly recalled the original story, the anchor continued speaking.
[In response to public concern, with people asking, 'How can just two heroes cover a country as vast as South Korea?', the Association issued a statement advising citizens to 'keep a baseball bat next to their bed in case of danger,' sparking nationwide outrage.]
...The Association is still like that, huh.
Well, the Association has always been like that, so it's not particularly strange. If I recall correctly, even the Association President was a bit unhinged from the start...
But honestly, public safety must be a bit unstable. Should I prepare something too?
"Oppa, watching the news again? When you do this, you really sound like an old man."
Seo-eun, who had suddenly returned to the bedroom, launched a full-on attack. No, that's unfair. To you, this might be everyday life, but to me, it feels like watching a movie.
"Huh? But that's not water, it's cola? Where'd you get that?"
"Cola? It was there when I opened the minibar?"
For a moment, I almost screamed.
"Seo-eun! What are you doing drinking that! Do you know how ridiculously overpriced the drinks and snacks in a hotel minibar are? That can of cola you're drinking probably costs about five thousand won!"
As I spoke, startled, Seo-eun shrugged as if asking what the big deal was.
"Well, what does it matter if it's five thousand won or fifty thousand won a drink? We have plenty of money."
At Seo-eun's words, I was momentarily speechless.
That's right, we have a lot of money, don't we?
If you combine the money I earned with my knowledge of the original story since falling into this world, and the money Seo-eun had already made, it's a huge amount.
But maybe it's because I've lived like an ordinary citizen for too long, I keep forgetting that.
"Besides, Oppa, just this hotel alone, how much do you think it costs? This place probably has the most expensive land value of all the buildings in Busan. It's the only 5-star hotel here, after all."
"Hmm, alright. Drink up. Just make sure you brush your teeth afterward."
"Honestly. Am I a child?"
Seo-eun protested to me, puffing out her cheeks. Uh, you look very much like a child right now...
Ms. Soobin just quietly smiled, watching us.
*
"Yawn... I'm getting sleepy now. Let's all go to bed."
If we want to wake up early and have fun tomorrow, we need to go to bed early.
So, everyone brushed their teeth, turned off the lights, and lay down.
We all lay down together, but the bed was so big it wasn't particularly uncomfortable.
Still, sharing one blanket together felt a bit... strange.
Not long after lying down, I heard Ms. Soobin's quiet, soft breathing from the opposite side.
Already asleep? She fell asleep as soon as she lay down.
As I lay with my eyes closed, trying to sleep, Seo-eun, who was lying next to me, quietly mumbled, seemingly still awake.
"Today was fun..."
"Hmm? Really? What was the most fun?"
"Seeing the ocean was nice, and exploring the market was fun too... I think it would be good to go out and have fun like this sometimes."
"Yeah. Let's go out and have fun sometimes in the future."
If we can, that is. First, I need to complete all the terror plans and the Stardust growth project in my head...
"Let's go to sleep now if we want to have fun tomorrow too."
"Okay..."
Seo-eun yawned once, then buried her face in the pillow and lay still.
I should go to sleep quickly too.
The hotel was so quiet, I felt like I'd fall asleep quickly.
And just as I thought, a few minutes later, I fell into a deep sleep. The sun would be up when I opened my eyes tomorrow, right?
***
However, late at night, the moon still illuminated the dark city, the hotel.
Thump.
Thump-thump-thump.
Heavy footsteps echoed from all directions.
KABOOM!—
The sound of something exploding from somewhere.
Aaaaaah! CRASH!
Someone's scream, and the sound of something breaking.
BANG BANG BANG BANG BANG BANG!
The relentless pounding on our door, like a noise complaint from hell.
"FBI OPEN UP!!!!"
And then, a shout from right outside our door.
"Oh, for f*ck's sake..."
I mumbled, jolting awake from my sleep.
What in the world do you want from me?