READ NOVEL ONLINE Welcome to Dungeon Hotel
Chapter 156
What’s going on, and how is it going?
The manager collapsed, and the hotel was suddenly fully booked? Something seems strange— “Dad, I think I need to go to the hotel now…” After hanging up, Dad looked at me with a bewildered expression and said, “Should I go? I’ll drive…” “No. There’s no need to drive.” I took out the master key from my pocket. “….!” * * * “So you accidentally used an S-class solicitation skill?” The manager nodded with a freshly brewed coffee in hand, her face looking shaken. “Uh… I accidentally triggered it while talking to Mom about having the solicitation skills…” The manager’s face was still pale. Of course, it’s enough to make her faint. Even when I was an F-Class, my hands used to tremble when I used ‘Housekeeping’ once. Fortunately, I came to the hotel with Dad and Uncle Minhyuk, and Dad infused mana into the manager, so the manager woke up safely. ‘Infused mana into someone else…’ It was an amazing sight. This would have been possible because Dad had an overflowing mana and combined with his exceptional skill in mana manipulation. ‘Anyway, I was fortunate to have Dad and Uncle Minhyuk with me…’ When I told Dad that I was going to the hotel, he immediately followed me, and when I told Uncle that Dad and I were going, he followed us. Even though I wonder why Uncle Minhyuk followed, now that he’s here, I’m grateful. Because— We’re so busy right now! Geumdong was mobilizing all the firepower of the kitchen counter, which only had three burners, to fill the guests’ orders. The manager and Toto are processing orders coming in from the cafe in the lobby. “I’m sorry… It’s all because of my solicitation skill…!” “It’s oka…!” The manager was in tears and kept nodding her head. But there’s no time to apologize! The manager’s S-class solicitation skill attracted a lot of guests not only from the dungeon but also from Yeongchun-myeon, even though the range of operations was limited due to a lack of mana. Thanks to this, the hotel was fully booked in an instant. Fortunately, Toto, Geumdong, and the spirits that I had requested to be dispatched to the Grey Hotel were able to resolve the problem for the guests of the Dungeon Hotel—. Coffee shop customers were lining up in front of the door, fanning themselves, saying they suddenly wanted coffee this evening. “The sauna has been cleaned!” The Samoyed came up from the basement, his face flushed, and he wiped the water from his head. He seemed proud to have finished cleaning the sauna, but— “Ugh! The shelf here is broken. I’m sorry, but please help the guest pay while I repair the shelf.” Soon, I was taken by Lim Sehwan and had to take charge of the checkout counter at a crowded pop-up store. A Maltese and a cat manager were in charge of cleaning the guest room floor, but they would have to leave soon. Because time here flows relatively quickly, we decided to ask for help for only one or two hours and then leave. This is why I’m so glad that Dad and Uncle Minhyuk came. Dad was helping with the serving, and Uncle Minhyuk was helping with the dishes. “I will confirm the order. One shrimp fried rice, one Jjamppong soup, and two cans of beer.” “Yes. That’s right. By any chance, are you Hunter Lee Semyung…?” “Yes? Ahahaha… That’s right.” Dad had worked part-time at a restaurant for a long time in the past, so he seemed to be good at taking orders. However, due to his overly familiar face, he often received autograph requests from customers, causing delays in getting the orders to the kitchen. “1T, shrimp fried rice, jjamppong, and two cans of beer.” Uncle Minhyuk looked at the order that took a long time to arrive and said as if he found it pathetic. “It’s going to take an hour just to take the order.” Taken aback by Uncle’s uncharacteristic sarcasm, I glanced at Uncle’s head. 20% Similar numbers are floating above Dad’s head. 19% …Why is that thing floating? The two are not hotel guests right now, but both Uncle and Dad have satisfaction marks on them. I suddenly thought that the phrase ‘until next visit’ in the quest might not necessarily mean coming as a hotel guest. So, is it really necessary to achieve 100% satisfaction with this visit?! I got a little creeped out. Because— “I don’t think it’s right for someone who takes twenty minutes to wash one cup.” Because Dad was also constantly arguing with Uncle. Uncle Minhyuk paused his hands, which were habitually wiping the glass to ensure there was no trace of water marks left on it. “….” The moment Uncle Minhyuk glared at Dad, the numbers above their heads changed. ‘Yeah. Fall again this time! Fall all the way down to minus!’ The moment I think like that… 21% 20% …? The numbers went up. ‘Why on earth?’ While I was wondering, Dad said. “Are you still not over your mysophobia? Anyway, you’re such inflexible guy. Didn’t you grow up without even doing the dishes once?” “You’re the one who still can’t get over that fake kindness. Acting like a loving and kind Earth hero.” The two people exchanged sharp conversations and casually exchanged dishes. 22% 22% It went up again. Just exchanging cups while swearing at each other increases satisfaction. Just looking at the results, you might think they are sadists, but— ‘I get it.’ I realized while watching two people work together as if they were familiar with each other. These two people were former colleagues who had worked together before. It’s clear that the reason they initially became close was also because of work. Actually, the two people’s personalities don’t match that well. Dad is kind and affectionate to everyone, but inwardly he tends to have a wall, while Uncle may seem picky and sensitive, but inside, he’s warm-hearted. Even the family environments of Dad, who grew up poor as an orphan, and Uncle, who grew up as the hidden child of a wealthy family, were different. There is only one reason why those two people could become friends. Because they were colleagues at work. I, too, have tried part-time jobs and experienced working for a company, so I can understand. Even if someone doesn’t usually match with me, if they have a good work ethic, my affinity towards them increases. Of course, this applies only during work. What about when it comes back to a private meeting? It decreases. As soon as I realized that, I quietly headed towards Lim Sehwan’s pop-up store. And I smiled at the Samoyed, who was looking intently at the stall. “Samoyed-ssi.” “Yes?” The Samoyed’s adorable eyes turned to me. “I think it’s time to end the dispatch.” “Yes…? Our boss said it’s fine to fill up two hours here…” “It’s okay. You’ve worked really hard today. The dog treats here are really delicious, you know. I’ll bring you some dog treats that even our bellboy approved of.” “Heuk, those were really tasty… Oh, no. Just this much and…” I firmly grabbed the Samoyed’s wrist as he tried to tidy up the receipts and said. “Get off work. Right now. Immediately.” * * * ‘I’m too busy…’ I heard that the hotel manager used strong customer solicitation skills. However, with fully booked reservations, we couldn’t even accommodate non-guests for dinner, let alone provide takeaways. This led to a hectic atmosphere in the hotel, with even non-guests crowding in. At least there was a moment to breathe when the spirits were dispatched, but when the spirits disappeared, it felt like there was no time to breathe. Still, Junghyo explained that there was no choice as there was a set time for dispatch. Thanks to this, even S-Class Lee Semyung felt the limits of his stamina. However, when looking to the side, Junghyo adeptly responded to the guests without showing any signs of exhaustion. Besides— “Since today’s menu has a lot of crustaceans, it might be a good idea to provide each table with a bin. There tends to be a lot of crustacean waste, right?” It’s delicate. It’s like she’s sensing what points are making the guests uncomfortable, even without them explicitly saying it, just by quietly reading the atmosphere. He was surprised that something like that was possible even in this busy time. While he was lost in thought, someone who never tolerated seeing Lee Semyung resting handed him a glass and a towel. “…At least clean this before the guests come.” It was Han Minhyuk. “This is technically part of dishwashing, isn’t it? I’m in charge of serving.” Even while grumbling, Lee Semyung carefully wiped the glass clean and placed it down gently. At that moment, Han Minhyuk, who was busy with the dishwashing next to him, held out another glass. The rhythm of the new glasses arriving as soon as Lee Semyung finished wiping them clean was quite excellent. “…This reminds me of the old days.” Of course, at that time, the exchange between the two wasn’t with glasses, but rather with weapons like long swords or guns. When they exchanged glances, they could instantly understand each other’s needs, and the feeling of their hands and feet moving in perfect sync was no joke. Lee Semyeong recalled the past and smiled with a strange expression. 65% …Without knowing that the number was floating above his head. However, Han Minhyuk answered with an expressionless face. “Back in the old days. Remember when you abandoned us all to play hero by yourself?” “…How long are you going to be like this?” Lee Semyung’s face crumpled. “For the next 15 years.” “….?” Han Minhyuk neatly rolled up the hem of his flowing shirt and said as if it were obvious. “You left us and Junghyo without even giving us a single explanation.” “That’s…” Even before Lee Semyung could say anything, Han Minhuk smoothly pulled up his rubber gloves beneath his neatly arranged shirt cuff and spoke with an indifferent expression. “…They even gave Moon Heeyoung the name ‘traitor.’” “….!” Lee Semyung bit his lips. He…knew it. Because he was the one who told Heeyoung to go to America. “I happened to overhear. It seems like you and Moon Heeyoung forgot that the soundproofing in the base camp we used back then wasn’t great.” “….!” “Yeah. When I first heard about that operation, I thought you were the strongest among us, willing to ‘sacrifice’ for us. But I was convinced after hearing the conversation with Moon Heeyoung.” Han Minhyuk spoke while washing the dishes with elegant hand gestures, as if playing jazz music or writing with a fountain pen. “You just didn’t trust the colleagues you had been working with for a long time. You probably thought there was no hope for South Korea anyway. So, you thought it would be better for one person to die based on utilitarianism rather than five people dying… Also…” A trace of emotion began to show on Han Minhuk’s previously expressionless face. “I guess the contract was quietly written behind the words ‘please take care of Junghyo’.” Lee Semyung almost dropped his cup. He hadn’t expected him to know that much. ‘Do you want me to divide the money you have in half between Junghyo and Minhyuk?’ ‘Yeah. For now, having it in foreign currency is the safest option. Just in case things go wrong and I, or even South Korea, end up on the path to destruction… distribute it then.’ So he even heard about the account he had asked Moon Heeyoung to distribute between Junghyo and Han Minhyuk when Junghyo turned 30. “So, as soon as you came back, you said it was a ‘promise’ rather than a request. Taking care of Junghyo was just a contract for you. You thought you could buy off your guilt and responsibility towards Junghyo with money.” All the emotions he felt earlier disappeared from Han Minhyuk’s eyes. Instead, there was something else in his cold, chilly eyes. Contempt. “If a guy like that comes back after 15 years and tries to act as Junghyo’s father or our old friend, are we all going to have to play along to erase your sense of responsibility and guilt?” “….” Han Minhyuk’s lips twisted as he looked at Semyung, who was just keeping his mouth shut. “Once again, you’re keeping your mouth shut. I expected it. Pretending to be affectionate and kind on the outside. All while silently observing everyone from above…” “It’s not like that.” Semyung finally opened his mouth. “I believed in you more than anyone else. It had to be done. To stop ‘that’, the rest of the S-class had to stay alive.” “‘That’? Are you talking about the demon king? Are you also caught up in some kind of religious game, like the Mara Cult or whatever it is…” “What I’m talking about is ‘the future.’” For the first time, Han Minhuk’s eyes wavered. “What?” “The future where the world is destroyed. That’s what I saw.” Hello! 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