The darkness didn’t persist for long.
I soon found myself in a spacious room furnished with sofas, paintings, and a carpet that stretched across the floor. It looked every bit the definition of a luxurious apartnt, though the decor carried an air of being sowhat outdated.
But it made sense considering how old the hotel was.
"...We’re here."
"This place is quite nice."
"Wow, they even have a TV. I wonder if it works."
Before any of us could react, Nora bounded over to the sofa and switched on the TV with the remote.
Click!
A program began to play right after that.
—Welco to Hotel Claire, one of the island’s most luxurious destinations. Here, you’ll find top-class facilities, from a swimming pool to private venues and so much more! We’re delighted to welco everyone to the hotel!
An image of the hotel filled the TV screen, one that soon changed to the swimming pool area, displaying people in swimsuits lounging under the sun, their faces lit with carefree, cheerful smiles.
It looked like the usual hotel introduction program.
"Tsk. Tsk." Nora clicked her tongue, holding the remote forward as she pressed the buttons several tis, "Looks like this is the only program available. It’s not letting switch to any other channel."
"Of course it isn’t."
Mia chid in, looking at Nora as if she were an idiot.
"There’s no satellite in here. How else would they have other channels?"
Her words were soon followed by a face as she lowered her head to look at the cara positioned on her chest.
"...That girl, I’m sorry. She can be stupid at tis. Don’t mind her. Please don’t leave the show because of her."
"You do realize that all they see is your double chin, right?"
"Nnn....!?"
Mia’s face changed drastically, her mouth opening as she looked at Nora. She looked both shocked and hurt, her face seemingly trying to say, ’I have no double chin!’
It was a good thing that Joanna stepped in right after.
"Stop it, you two. We’re here on a mission. It isn’t ti for you two to be ssing around."
"But—!"
"Stop."
"No, but she—"
"Stop. "
"Nnn!!!"
Mia’s face flushed red as she shot Nora a glare, which only made Nora chuckle with delight.
"Squad Leader."
A mont later, Joanna turned her attention to and handed a thick file.
"This is...?"
"The information regarding the scenario. I noticed that you haven’t been paying attention in the briefings. I don’t know if it’s because you are trying to test us, or because sothing happened, but I figured you’d like this."
"....."
I didn’t know how to react. Looking at Joanna and then the files in her hand, I felt both embarrassed and happy.
Embarrassed by the fact that I had been so careless and stupid, but also happy to have a reliable mber like her in my team.
’Yeah, I should stop letting everything get to my head. This is important. I can’t believe I was this irresponsible.’
"Thank you."
I took the papers and unfolded them, carefully scanning the first page. As I read, Joanna’s voice echoed in the background.
"We’ve still got a bit of ti before the scenario begins. It should start once every team has settled into their rooms. Since we were sent here fairly quickly, I’d estimate we have about ten to twenty minutes."
"What do you suggest we do?" Niel suddenly asked, lifting his glasses up. His action prompted an annoyed mumble from Nora that went along the lines of, ’Can you stop lifting your glasses every ti you talk? Is that the only thing you know to do?’
I couldn’t help but agree, but chose to remain silent.
Niel’s face twitched, but he quickly brushed it off and kept his gaze fixed on Joanna.
"Should we go out and expl—"
"No."
Joanna shook her head.
"That wouldn’t be ideal, and even if we wanted to, the door is locked. We can’t go out of the room. The best course of action for now is to rest for a bit and prepare for the upcoming scenario. Brainstorm any plans, and prepare for any potential differences that might occur."
As she spoke, her gaze slid toward . She didn’t say a word, but the aning behind her look was clear.
She wanted to wait for to finish reading everything.
The others also appeared to understand the ssage and moved towards the nearby table as Joanna started to detail to them the plan that she had co up with. I stared in their direction for a mont before sitting down and looking through the file that Joanna had given .
’Okay, so from the looks of things, each team is assigned randomly on each floor. Each floor has its own trial in so sense, with the seventh floor being the last floor and the one that is most difficult to clear. There aren’t many teams that have cleared this floor.’
In that case, clearing six floors would give us a chance to pass the Trials, while reaching the seventh would almost guarantee us a spot.
Okay...
I examined each scenario carefully. There were quite a few, and it was very likely that the scenario we would encounter would be completely different from any listed.
Still, it was good to read about all of the previous scenarios and morize the rules and ways to clear them.
This was exactly how I spent the next ten minutes doing.
Although ti was short, I managed to familiarize myself with many of the scenarios, noting them ntally as I flipped through the pages. At the sa ti, I kept track of the discussion unfolding among the group.
"We should act as we usually do in the scenarios we’ve gone through in the gas. Keeping communication constant is important, and we also must remain collected at all tis. The worst enemy isn’t the anomalies. It’s ourselves."
I couldn’t help but nod from ti to ti.
Very good advice.
Flip—!
Flipping to the next page, I prepared myself to read the next part, when—
Ding!
A sudden notification appeared in my vision.
[The scenario is now starting...]
[Operation: Hotel Claire]
Class : ■■■
: An abandoned hotel that had encountered an unfortunate fate. Eight floors in total. Each guest has a story, and within those stories lie clues to the truth of what happened. Was the fire truly an accident, or is there sothing more? Who is responsible, and if so, where are they hiding?
[Scenario candidates will be joining shortly. Do you wish to purchase any item?]
[From the mont the scenario begins, you won’t be able to purchase items]
[You have sixty seconds]
"Huh?"
Reading the description, I froze.
Wait, wait, wait...
Eight floors?
Weren’t there seven?
Not only that...
’It wasn’t an accident?’
I quickly looked at the docunt in front of , going back to the first page where I read about the incident.
[The cause of the accident has been identified as a gas leak. The exact source remains unknown, though many suspect faulty construction. Further investigations have yielded no substantial findings.]
"....!?"
My breath paused at the sight of the description.
No substantial findings...?
My lips parted, but before I could think of anything, more notifications flashed before my eyes.
Ding!
[The ti limit is up]
[The shop is now closed]
[Best of luck!]
Sixty seconds had passed before I knew it.
And then—
To Tok—!
A loud knock echoed from the door, sending chills down my body.
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