Escaping the Mystery Hotel

Chapter 121: Room 107 - The Gate Room, The Third Trial (12)

- Han Kain

The target Hyde chose for execution in the first and second rounds was “Kain”.

While I was momentarily speechless, my teammates began to speak quickly.

“Why is Kain the top target? Even if you’re not sure, just say something. That way, the Doctor can participate in the meeting naturally.”

Under Eunsol-noona’s urging, Seungyub, who was usually quiet, spoke up.

“Maybe it’s because he always thinks a lot?”

“Thinking a lot? That could be, but…”

Songee had a different idea.

“Isn’t there a more concrete reason? Like, because he has an Inheritance?”

“I’m not the only one with an Inheritance. You have one too, Songee, and so does Ahri. There are three of us with an Inheritance here.”

Ahri gave her opinion.

“Perhaps your Inheritance is particularly lethal to Hyde? Like, it can kill Hyde?”

“They said we can’t find Hyde with Inheritances.”

“True, but it never said anything about killing, right?”

Can’t find it, but can kill it?

It seemed plausible but also confusing.

Why did Hyde prioritize me as a target?

Is it because I'm the smartest?

Honestly, no.

I’m not the only one with an Inheritance.

Maybe the abilities of the Grimoire pose a threat to Hyde?

That seemed plausible.

But in what way is it a threat? Can it kill it?

I don’t know.

It was hard to grasp.

Since the start of the Jekyll and Hyde game, the Moderator has always shown us the time.

Two minutes left.

With that thought, the third round ended.

n n

The sun is setting. The day is over, and Hyde’s time has come.

My consciousness faded...

***

- 4th Round, Han Kain.

I quickly opened my eyes and looked around.

“...!”

One person is missing.

The response was immediate.

“Songee?”

“Songee-noona!”

The Moderator descended.

n n

Regrettably, Hyde’s third execution was successful. The Doctor failed to protect the correct target.

The Hyde of the third round was “Han Kain”. Now Hyde will move to another person.

With the first casualty, the atmosphere drastically changed.

But it was still manageable. One person wasn’t an issue; we could revive them.

The Hyde of the third round possessed me.

The execution target shifted from me to Songee.

Why didn’t Hyde execute me while possessing me?

Is it impossible for Hyde to execute its own host?

I asked directly.

“Moderator, can Hyde not execute his host? Would Hyde die if that happened?”

n n

It is possible to execute.

“Possible” to execute?

The word choice felt like the host was hiding something.

Ahri immediately pointed it out.

“What happens if Hyde executes its own host?”

The Moderator did not answer.

But the Moderator's silence told us everything.

Ahri spoke confidently.

“If the host dies, Hyde dies too! The method to eliminate Hyde is to execute the host, right?”

“So, Hyde executes the host only when there's one survivor left?”

“That’s right.”

“That’s why Hyde changed his target from me to Songee. The game would have ended if he executed me while I was his host.”

Eunsol-noona had a slightly different perspective.

“There’s another interpretation. The Doctor protected you twice in a row, right? Maybe Hyde concluded he couldn’t kill you because the Doctor would keep protecting you.”

Changing targets after failing twice? It makes sense.

This game wasn’t easy for Hyde either.

Hyde’s biggest penalty was “can’t possess the same person twice”.

Right now, there were still several host candidates left, but after a few more rounds, there would be few left for Hyde to possess, making it easier for us to identify.

Hyde also has a sort of turn limit.

Grandpa Mooksung, who had been quiet, spoke up.

“You didn’t notice Hyde possessed you at all?”

“No, not at all. So, I guess it’s impossible to eliminate Hyde with the Grimoire. Well, maybe if I trained with it for 30 years…”

An irrelevant comment.

Everyone was confused, and Elena spoke up.

“I feel like our discussions themselves are a bad move.”

“Because Hyde is listening?”

“Yes. Even if we figure out Hyde’s criteria, if Hyde knows we know, the criteria might change.”

My head started to hurt.

Discussing Hyde’s schemes while Hyde could listen felt counterproductive.

Elena’s point made sense, and our discussion quieted down as everyone started thinking on their own.

Ahri, who had been contemplating, spoke up.

“I have a feeling the next target is—”

-Clap.

Eunsol-noona grabbed Ahri’s arm.

Ahri quickly caught on and closed her mouth.

We all had the same thought.

We had a guess about the next target.

But we couldn’t say it out loud.

If Hyde knew we were guessing the next target, it might change targets.

The game was getting more chaotic, shifting the initiative to Hyde and making it harder for the Doctor to protect us.

...In the silence, everyone’s minds were racing.

The first target was me, and the second was Songee.

Both of us had an Inheritance. It couldn’t be a coincidence.

Is Hyde executing the “high-value participants?”

But this hypothesis had a flaw.

If Inheritance holders were the high-value targets, why was I prioritized over Songee?

Is it because of my Descent?

With Descent, I get it, but why was Songee prioritized over Ahri, who also has an Inheritance?

And what about the remaining four without an Inheritance—Eunsol, Seungyub, Grandpa Mooksung, and Elena?

How were they ranked?

It was getting more complicated.

There seemed to be a criterion separate from Inheritance ownership.

A criterion that could rank all seven participants.

Thinking about the immediate round, the next target would be Ahri, given the current trend.

Did the Doctor also realize this?

While pondering, an idea came to mind.

Hyde couldn’t possess the same person twice.

Since Hyde couldn’t possess me again, it would be okay for me to find out the identity of the Doctor.

As long as I kept my mouth shut, Hyde wouldn’t learn what I knew.

I quickly thought of a method to find the Doctor.

While the Grimoire couldn’t find Hyde, it could find the Doctor.

I summoned the Grimoire under the table and glanced at each of my companions.

Hopefully, they catch on quickly...

I started possessing them one by one.

First, Eunsol-noona.

“...”

Not the Doctor.

Noona was quick-witted and barely reacted after I left her.

Next, Grandpa Mooksung.

“…”

Not the Doctor.

Despite his lack of game knowledge, Grandpa was also quick-witted and only cleared his throat after I left.

Next, Elena.

“…”

I knew immediately upon possessing her!

A hologram similar to the status window was floating in Elena’s direct line of sight.

The hologram had everyone’s names and selection boxes.

Elena was the Doctor.

Why did Elena protect me for two consecutive rounds?

Because I had an Inheritance and Descent?

She probably judged I had the highest chance of clearing the Gate Room.

It didn’t matter.

Just before returning to my body, I used Elena’s pen to write a small note on her hand.

n n

Ahri

Elena would make her own decision on who to protect, but I left my opinion and returned.

Elena’s eyes widened slightly but showed no other reaction.

The 15 minutes were almost up.

n n

The sun is setting. The day is over, and Hyde’s time has come.

My consciousness faded...

***

- 5th Round, Han Kain.

I opened my eyes in tension.

“Ah…!”

A gasp escaped my companions.

Our luckiest member, Seungyub, didn’t make it this time.

The Moderator descended.

nn

Regrettably, Hyde’s fourth execution was successful. The Doctor failed to protect the correct target.

The Hyde of the fourth round was “Kim Ahri”. Now Hyde will move to another person.

In a defeated voice, Eunsol-noona spoke.

“It’s been about an hour since this game started? We’ve already lost two people... Even if we can revive one.”

Elena, the Doctor, buried her face in her hands, likely from failing to protect twice in a row.

I was also mentally exhausted.

I expected the next target after Songee and I would be Ahri, but it wasn’t.

Instead, Hyde possessed Ahri to execute Seungyub.

...Incredible.

Since entering the hotel, I’ve faced various trials, but this one felt particularly insurmountable.

With no visible enemy, we were losing teammates to the rules without being able to do anything.

Even Eunsol-noona looked defeated, and the others seemed on the verge of breaking down.

Focus.

One person needed to stay sharp in times like these.

My previous assumptions were based on one premise.

Hyde never acts randomly.

There was no solid proof for this.

But I believe the hotel wouldn’t kill us meaninglessly, and the game’s progression wouldn’t be purely luck-based.

If Hyde didn’t act randomly, there must be a criterion for determining the execution order.

This criterion should rank all seven participants.

Thinking differently, I considered the possession order: Yu Songee → Park Seungyub → Han Kain → Kim Ahri.

If there was a criterion for the execution order, there must be one for the possession order too.

The execution targets were Han Kain → Han Kain → Yu Songee → Park Seungyub.

The possession targets were Yu Songee → Park Seungyub → Han Kain → Kim Ahri.

A commonality emerged.

In both orders, Yu Songee was followed by Park Seungyub.

When I realized this, a revelation struck like lightning!

The criterion for choosing execution and possession targets was the same!

Hyde ranked us by a single criterion.

The order revealed so far was:

Han Kain → Yu Songee → Park Seungyub → Kim Ahri.

Let’s summarize.

Firstly, Hyde ranked us by a specific criterion. The order seems to be Han Kain → Yu Songee → Park Seungyub → Kim Ahri.

Secondly, if Hyde executes his host, he also dies.

Considering this, I analyzed the game’s progress so far.

Hyde’s top execution target was me.

To execute me, it possessed Yu Songee and Park Seungyub to target me.

The Doctor protected me twice in the 1st round and 2nd round.

Hyde decided he couldn’t execute me and changed the target to Yu Songee.

Since the target changed, Hyde possessed me and targeted Yu Songee in the 3rd round.

With the Doctor still alive, Hyde decided it still couldn’t execute me and targeted Park Seungyub.

Having possessed Han Kain, Yu Songee, and Park Seungyub, the next host was Kim Ahri, who then targeted Park Seungyub in the 4th round.

If my theory was correct, the next target would be Kim Ahri.

But who would be the next host?

I still lacked evidence.

Hyde could still possess Elena, Mooksung, or Eunsol.

To find Hyde, I needed to understand his exact ranking criterion to determine the order among Elena, Mooksung, and Eunsol.

What’s the criterion?

What could make me and Songee first and second, but rank Seungyub higher than /genesisforsaken