Chapter 300: Room 204, Mission Room – ‘Hotel Cinema’ (22)

– Theater

The moment a gumiho suddenly appeared on the screen, the theater started buzzing.

Jinchul, with his mouth half-open, showed a bewildered reaction, “What on earth is this? The protagonist suddenly becomes a gumiho?”

Elena tilted her head and expressed her doubt, “How does this connect to the initial coffee shop part? Surely the gumiho isn’t revealing her identity? Didn’t they say the scenario might be broadcast?”

Kim Sanghyun also showed signs of confusion, “This doesn’t make sense! You all saw the first story, right? In that world, there’s an organization called the ‘Vatican’ that hunts monsters. A gumiho revealing her identity on broadcast? Is she begging to be killed?”

Songee muttered as if trying to understand forcibly, “W-well, if we’re being picky, the first story was a bit strange too. We just watched it thinking it’s a movie, but it’s basically a wife who killed her in-laws and husband telling that murder story, right?”

Kim Sanghyun immediately refuted Songee’s words, “Miss Songee, that’s a completely different situation. It’s a case of a person killing people, so it’s a matter for the government’s judicial system to intervene. But it’s a case from twenty years ago, and they burned down the house right after the murder. There’s no evidence left now. Moreover, even if the truth comes to light, it’s self-defense. At this point, there’s no more problem.”

Kain nodded, “That’s right. In the case of the gumiho, just being a gumiho would be a capital offense. The Vatican would come and burn her to death…”

Ahri, who had been quietly listening to her companions’ conversation full of questions, sighed, “You’re all thinking too hard. It’s a simple story.”

Kain was greatly surprised, “What?”

“It’s not that I came up with the answer right away because I’m 10 times smarter than you guys. It’s just that similar things happen in reality sometimes, so it’s too familiar to me.”

“It happens sometimes? I really don’t get it.”

All the companions’ gazes focused on Ahri.

“First, you need to distinguish between the story inside the frame and the conversation outside the frame.”

Kim Sanghyun answered as if he understood that part, “The story inside the frame where we become characters is ‘what actually happened’, while the story the characters tell the writer outside is the ‘memory’, right?”

“That’s it. The first character, Park Sumi, is confessing after almost 20 years have passed since experiencing her newlywed memories. Some years have passed for Han Yuri, too.”

When her companions still looked at Ahri with eyes that said “What are you talking about?” Ahri answered simply, “At the point when Han Yuri entered the coffee shop, she had completely forgotten her past as a gumiho. She probably only has memories of people around her dying strangely during her school days. She came out to talk about that. So, in the second story, we need to create Han Yuri’s ‘current situation’ through the movie progression.”

“We need to create Han Yuri’s current situation through the movie progression? What’s her current situation?”

“Remember when Mooksung progressed, Han Yuri died after being hit with a fire extinguisher by a loser? Afterwards, Eunsol’s version of Han Yuri didn’t know at all that she was a ‘gumiho’ until she left school.”

Kain’s mouth was half-open, “Is there a way to erase the memory of being a gumiho itself? No, let’s say she used some mysterious secret technique since she’s a gumiho. Why erase it?”

Songee tilted her head and answered, “According to Unni’s monologue in the middle, it was for the purpose of suppressing the ‘cannibalistic impulse’, right?”

“Even so, isn’t it too dangerous to suppress everything to the point of dying from being hit by an ordinary person?”

“Suppressing the gumiho’s mind is, of course, for the purpose of controlling the cannibalistic impulse. But there’s another real reason for creating such a technique.”

“What is it?”

“Washing away the past. By erasing even her own memories, she ensures that even if the Vatican investigates her future human self, they won’t be able to find out anything.”

Kain’s mouth fell open, “Her future human self?”

– Thud!

Ahri hit the table, stopping the surrounding conversation.

“It’s a long story, so just listen. And don’t just listen to me, watch the movie too.”

Everyone’s eyes turned to the movie while their ears perked up towards Ahri.

“You’ve all probably heard stories about ‘gumihos wanting to become human’ while watching movies or reading novels featuring gumihos. How can they become human? The conditions differ by work, but they’re generally quite difficult.”

““…””

“The gumihos in folklore usually fail. The cliché is always similar. They need to eat the essence of 100 people, but they often die after meeting a passing scholar at the 99th person.”

““…””

“But have you ever thought about this? Why do they all only fail? Aren’t there any gumihos who succeed?”

“…Coincidentally, Eunsol is having a similar monologue.”

– Lee Eunsol

I thought as I became a monster inside that ominous abandoned house.

After recalling the bright and lively appearance Han Yuri showed when the movie started, and gathering the current situation and information in my head, an urban legend came out.

Yuri, you’re really amazing.

By gritting your teeth and showing perseverance and tenacity! By working haaaaard~! You ate 100 people and became human!

Wait, is this something I should really praise?

Whether it was the movie’s consideration or not, there was a diary written by Han Yuri on the table. The diary contained the number and identity of people she periodically ate, and things she experienced in the process of disguising her identity.

And…

I dazedly read through the bucket list of things she wanted to do if she ever became human.

“Please don’t do this…”

I sighed. Reading such a poor and miserable story made me feel sorry for her. But every time I saw the number written at the top of the white paper, my heart froze.

“If you need to eat 100 livers and the remaining number is 28, you’ve already eaten 72.”

This gumiho, she really lived hard. Moreover, after living so hard, she even achieved her dream.

She finally became human, washed away her past by erasing her memories with the secret technique of oblivion, and even half-achieved her dream of appearing on TV. It was truly a human victory—no, a fox victory.

“…”

– Peee~!

I felt an unbearable impulse.

Just in case, I blew the flute, but the effect was the exact opposite of my expectation. Instead of suppressing my impulse, the flute completely shattered the “secret technique of oblivion” that was still faintly remaining.

Thinking about it, it was natural.

The identity of the impulse I was feeling now was none other than appetite. Just as humans felt hunger when they were hungry, Han Yuri’s gumiho body was just demanding human flesh.

Appetite was a natural impulse created by the body, not an evil technique or mental illness. Of course, it wasn’t something the flute could eliminate. Rather, the “secret technique of oblivion” that suppressed that appetite was an unnatural technique.

So instead of removing my hunger, the Flute of Peace completely blew away the secret technique of oblivion and perfectly awakened my gumiho’s self.

In other words, I became hungrier and recalled various knowledge.

“Ha! Ha! Hahaha!”

I laughed. I could only laugh. Not because I didn’t know what to do from now on, but because it was too clear that I laughed.

“I just need to eat.”

I just need to eat people.

I needed to kill 28 humans and eat their livers. Then I could transform into the lively girl “human Han Yuri” who appeared in the coffee shop.

After becoming human?

I just needed to use all my remaining magical power to cast the “secret technique of oblivion”. Now I didn’t even need to set it to break when I left school like before. The final secret technique of oblivion used after becoming human never needed to be broken.

Of course, questions arose about how to obtain a normal human identity. Well, hadn’t Miss Han Yuri, the gumiho’s wannabe, the protagonist of a life—no, fox life reversal, endured a long time in the darkness of human society?

She must have her own ways for that. Honestly, I didn’t think the movie would demand that much from me.

“…”

– Click!

I thought as I walked outside.

Is this really the standard development?

For the gumiho to kill and eat 28 more innocent people, become human, and then live a happy human life as Han Yuri after washing away her past?

Is this really the only ending? Even if it’s a movie, should we create an ending that’s only good for the monster?

…Maybe I had fallen into meaningless contemplation.

Anyway, things inside the Hotel were different from reality, right? Moreover, the current situation was a movie within a movie. Did we need to think of the people existing in this world as real people?

An evil voice constantly tickled my ear. That voice was very similar to Han Yuri’s beautiful and pretty voice.

“Unni.”

I turned my head, pushing away the idle thoughts. Under the neon signs of the dark city, a thin-bodied girl walked towards me.

“…Saerom.”

“Have you come to your senses now?”

“Yes.”

“Why did you cast the secret technique of oblivion so strongly today? It was dangerous. Even in the morning, you were almost in danger from that idiot.”

“…”

“Is it because it’s hard? Just endure a little more. We’re almost there now. You have nine tails, and you’ve filled 72—“

“Tails, you… had seven, right?”

“Yes. If I collect 22 more, I can have eight.”

The moment I heard those words, information about the “ecology” of monster foxes flashed through my head.

“So you gain one tail for every 100 people you eat.”

“Huh? That’s right.”

“And after making nine tails and filling another 100, you achieve your dream.”

Saerom’s eyes shone wistfully at the word “dream”. This girl seemed so happy just thinking about it.

And I… made a decision.