NCSHG CH 04

Chapter 4

My eyes snapped open on their own.

At the same time, a sharp pain prickled the back of my neck.

“This damn… thing…”

I muttered viciously, but froze mid-action.

A soft touch grazed my fingertips. A fluffy bed…

I wasn’t wearing the heavy dress from before, but a light negligee and cardigan, as if someone had changed my clothes.

Taking it all in, I clenched my fists.

Cold sweat ran down my spine.

With trembling pupils, I slowly scanned the room.

It was an old room, yet somehow still exuded a sense of luxury.

Cobwebs hung from the ceiling, an old wardrobe stood in the corner, and the dusty marble floor looked grimy.

Through the tattered curtains, rain lashed hard against the large window.

“No way…”

I hastily threw back the covers and stepped onto the broken marble, which creaked under my bare feet.

Chills ran down my spine.

Hoping against hope, I grabbed the handle of the large glass door leading to the terrace.

Click, click, click!

No matter how I shook it, the door wouldn’t budge.

“Damn it!”

In disbelief, I grabbed a nearby candlestick and struck it against the glass.

But it just bounced off, as if a transparent barrier had been set up.

How many times had I struck it?

Clang!

My hands trembled so much that I dropped the candlestick.

“Hah…”

A shaky sigh escaped my lips like smoke.

It seemed I had triggered the original story’s inevitability and ended up inside the abandoned hotel—the main setting of the horror game A Child’s Secret.

I washed my face with dry hands repeatedly, forcing out shaky breaths.

My body felt weak—two days of soaking rain had left me feverish.

Clasping my trembling hands together, I gritted my teeth. There was no time for despair.

I didn’t even think about slippers; I stepped toward the door barefoot and flung it open.

The corridor was dark.

The faint flicker of a candle offered little help.

The silent hallway seemed ready for anything to jump out at me.

It was exactly like the hotel corridors in the game’s illustrations.

Goosebumps crawled all over my body.

I moistened my dry lips with my tongue and cautiously stepped into the corridor.

The cracked marble beneath my feet creaked in response.

The cold marble sent another shiver through me.

Being a “luxury hotel” concept, the floors were all marble.

To shake off the fear, I forced my mind to wander aimlessly and headed toward the lobby.

I had no idea where the others were.

I needed to find the main entrance quickly.

“I have to find it before the door closes.”

It might have already closed, but I clung to a faint hope.

I ran my hands along the walls and leaned against the small flickering candle to find the stairs leading downward.

To avoid attracting demons, I tiptoed down the stairs as quietly as possible.

Soon, I saw the wide lobby and the enormous front doors.

The same doors Friedel had opened when entering the hotel in the game.

I ran straight to the doors and pulled.

They didn’t budge.

I shifted my weight and pulled harder, even pushing with all my strength.

“Ugh…!”

…

Still, the doors made no sound, no movement.

“Why won’t it open?!”

Was it over now that I was inside?

Just as despair was setting in, a crackling sound preceded the sudden appearance of a system window.

[Main Quest Activated!]

Main Quest?

[Main Quest: Survive the Abandoned Hotel While Avoiding Demons]

[Objective: Escape through the exit gate inside the hotel]
[Time Limit: Until your death]
[Reward: Survival]
[Failure: Death]

Are you kidding me?

If I can’t escape, I die. If I escape, I survive. Simple as that. And this is considered a “reward”?

Feeling my anger flare, a loading screen appeared, then sparkled and displayed:

[Further rewards will be announced later.]

…Something else, huh?

But that wasn’t the problem right now.

I had already entered this damn horror game, and I was forced to participate.

“Damn bastards!”

A harsh curse escaped me without thinking.

I slammed my forehead against the front doors and pressed my lips tight.

No way around it. All exits were blocked, and the only thing I could do was find the escape gate.

The very fact that such a gate existed gave me some peace of mind.

Before I could catch my breath, another window appeared.

[Sub Quest: We’re trapped here!]
[Objective: Let them know you’re trapped inside the hotel!]
[But don’t let them suspect anything.]
[Reward: A cure-all potion to fully heal your staggering body!]
[Failure: The ‘future conqueror of this world’ will become murderous toward you!]

The “future conqueror of this world” was Halloway.

His suspicion…

I couldn’t see where he went anyway…

[Oops! ‘Future conqueror of this world’ Halloway now finds you suspicious!]
[Current Danger Level: ‘Everything you do is suspicious’]
[Danger Gauge increased by 10.]
[If it reaches 30, hotel difficulty rises by two levels, reducing your survival probability.]
[Example: 85% chance of losing an arm.]

Damn, that’s brutal!

I almost cursed at the system’s unnecessarily polite notifications.

I took a deep breath to calm my mind, lifted my forehead from the door, and studied the quest.

I had to wake people without looking suspicious… and then…

Thinking carefully, I frowned as I noticed something odd.

…but that wasn’t the problem right now.

I quickly looked at the floating window again.

The red text was clear:

[Danger Gauge increased by 10.]

“What? My danger gauge went up 10?”

Why? I hadn’t done anything yet.

Did I do something suspicious outside earlier? And how could it jump 10 points instantly?

At this rate, if I acted suspicious twice more, I might instantly enter hard mode.

At that moment, a clear voice came from below:

“Nuna!”

“Ah!”

I clutched my clothes tightly and sank down. Halloway was standing before me.

“My heart must have dropped out of my chest.”

“Then you’d be dead.”

Don’t say that.

You’re truly something else.

My heart, which had been racing like crazy, calmed down as if doused with cold water.

“…Since when have you been here?”

“Since you went ‘Ugh!’”

“That counts as ‘from the start’.”

This damn kid…

No, not a kid. Young man? No…

Then… boss?

Yeah, boss. The final boss of this island.

I must have been getting heated. My thoughts went off in strange directions.

“Nuna, why are you speaking formally?”

To survive.

I didn’t want to speak rudely to the boss and risk getting my neck snapped.

“I respect children too.”

“You’re speaking informally now.”

“I decided not to from now on.”

Fear made me babble.

I cleared my throat lowly and changed the topic.

The important thing now was not to appear suspicious.

Even though I already looked suspicious…

But what could I do? This was just my usual self.

“Why aren’t you asking anything?”

“Huh? About what?”

“You saw me open the door. Saw me cursing.”

I staggered to my feet and quickly scanned the surroundings.

The lobby, surprisingly clean for an abandoned hotel, had the front desk above, three staircases branching upward, creepy paintings and statues along the walls, and a moss-covered fountain on one side.

Other things flanked the area, but darkness obscured them.

Fear made me unconsciously stick close to Halloway.

“I saw it… but why are you staying next to me?”

“Because I’m scared.”

“Even so, shouldn’t a child be scarier?”

Well…

Not exactly something a childlike you should say, huh?

I held back my urge to snap back.

“I’m an adult more scared than a child. Anyway…”

I started acting properly.

Tears threatening, I grabbed Halloway’s small hand tightly.

“The door won’t open…! I need to tell everyone!”

I had to succeed at this sub quest to get the potion.

If you’re sick, you can’t do anything.

Halloway’s dark-red eyes shimmered like blood as he stared at me.

And simultaneously, a system window appeared.

[Danger Gauge increased by 3.]
[Halloway’s total danger gauge is now 13. If it rises by 17 more, difficulty increases.]

…Do I just look suspicious?

Or was my acting too awkward?

His gaze, which had been measuring me, softened slightly.

A 3-point increase seemed manageable.

From now on, I had to play it safe and succeed at the sub quest.

I stopped chatting and headed straight upstairs to the second floor with Halloway.

My body felt heavy, like soaked sponge; I staggered, and the not-so-demonic Halloway supported me.

Then I froze.

Halloway’s arms around my waist were warm.

The warmth touched my chilled, aching body, and I couldn’t help but glance at him.

Cold, in pain…

My head spun, making it hard to think straight.

Blinking, my legs gave way and I sank down.

“This won’t do.”

Even if he was the boss, he didn’t seem intent on killing me.

I had to use whatever I could and run if necessary.

I looked at the warm Halloway.

For a moment, a faint male silhouette overlapped in front of him.

Crazy… even hallucinations now…

I rubbed my eyes, staring at him.

He didn’t seem to mind being hugged.

No signs of revealing his identity.

So, maybe it’s safe for now.

In a weak voice, I called him:

“B-Boss.”

The title slipped out naturally—I’d been