I shook my head, but I couldn't shake off the filthy feeling.
This Soul Insight had lasted a long time, and it had felt as though I was standing there in person.
My tightly clenched fist tingled.
"Phew...."
I slowly exhaled and relaxed my fist.
Calm down.
This guest's lingering regret isn't something I can resolve all at once.
I needed to find some way to help her.
But in my current state of mind, I didn't think I'd come up with any good ideas.
"I'll show you to your room."
"Okay."
The guest stood and walked again with blank eyes.
Just as we were crossing the lobby together,
【 An Underworld Messenger has arrived. 】
At the same time as the notification, a man in a black suit wearing a traditional Korean hat entered through the hotel entrance.
Anyone could tell he was an Underworld Messenger.
'Did he come to take our guest away?'
Click, click.
The sound of dress shoes echoed through the lobby.
The Underworld Messenger approached and asked,
"Are you the new owner of this hotel?"
"Yes. I'm the owner of this hotel."
"Pleasure to meet you. I am Gangnim, an Underworld Messenger."
I stepped in front of the guest and asked,
"What brings an Underworld Messenger here?"
Gangnim raised the paper in his hand and gave it a flutter.
"I came to sign a Soul Guidance Contract with the hotel's new owner."
"A Soul Guidance Contract...?"
At that moment, Gangnim's eyes glowed blue.
Then he spoke to the guest over my shoulder.
"Jung Yu-ri. You cannot leave this hotel. Remember that."
"Yes."
After answering briefly, the guest slowly walked upstairs to her room.
Gangnim looked at me and smiled faintly.
"By any chance, do you have any food left?"
'What the hell is he talking about? Why is he suddenly asking if there's food?'
Still, I couldn't treat an Underworld Messenger carelessly.
I took Gangnim to the dining room and served him a meal.
After finishing his meal, Gangnim smiled with a slightly embarrassed expression.
"Hahaha! These days, hardly anyone serves a meal to an Underworld Messenger anymore. Thanks to you, I ate well."
Haah. I've been waiting long enough.
'How about getting to the point now?'
I wanted to grab him by the collar.
But I held myself back, afraid it might make him call my name three times.
'Kim Woo-jin. Kim Woo-jin. Kim Woo-jin.'
Goosebumps suddenly rose along my forearms.
I absolutely did not want to hear my name come out of that mouth.
I politely asked Gangnim,
"What exactly is a Soul Guidance Contract?"
"Ah! Right. My apologies. It's been a long time since I visited the hotel, so I got a little carried away...."
Gangnim straightened his posture and lowered his voice.
"Jung Yu-ri."
That was what the Underworld Messenger had called our guest earlier.
"May I take her with me now?"
Gangnim looked directly into my eyes as he spoke.
Would Soul Insight work on an Underworld Messenger too?
The thought briefly crossed my mind, but Soul Insight did not activate.
My mind raced.
The fact that he was asking me like this meant
'the outcome changes depending on what I decide, right?'
I asked Gangnim,
"Can I let her stay at the hotel for a few more days?"
I remembered the scene I'd seen through Soul Insight.
A flower that should have bloomed had been cut down far too early.
I wanted to comfort her a little more.
Gangnim nodded.
"Of course. Jung Yu-ri may remain in this hotel for up to fourteen days."
"Fourteen days."
"That isn't a date I chose arbitrarily. Forty-nine days after death. She must cross the threshold into the Underworld before then."
So that was what the D-14 in the notification window had meant.
If she only had fourteen days left....
She must have wandered outside for quite a long time.
"Ah, I understand what you mean."
"A soul that enters this hotel cannot leave on its own without the owner's permission."
With that, Gangnim held out the documents he'd brought.
"If you simply sign to confirm that you will not recklessly release Jung Yu-ri, I will withdraw for now."
The Underworld Messenger would just leave?
With no conditions at all?
I asked Gangnim,
"What are the conditions?"
"There are none."
"Did you ever have this kind of contract with the previous owner?"
One corner of Gangnim's mouth rose slightly.
"Of course. She could never simply ignore someone with a tragic story either."
So Great-Aunt had been the same.
"What do I need to be careful about?"
"Do not let the soul leave the hotel, and do not let forty-nine days pass. Those are the only two rules."
I picked up the pen and signed the document.
There was nothing difficult about it.
***
Underworld Messenger Gangnim left after taking only the documents.
I checked my remaining points.
【 Spiritual Power Points: 4,320p 】
'Let's use them.'
If I soothed the guests properly and sent them on their way, I'd accumulate Spiritual Power.
I'd spend them first and leave the consequences to my future self.
Underworld Messengers were already coming and going from this hotel.
What good would it do to hoard them until they turned to shit?
I selected the 'Manager' category first.
【 Manager Details 】
*Kim Woo-jin:
Good health
Spirit Sight
Soul Insight
Spiritual Power - 5p
Seeing 5p beside my name, it looked like my current Spiritual Power was 5p.
When I checked Min-ju and Min-jae under the 'Employees' category, both were listed at 0p.
Had Spirit Sight opened because of those 5p of Spiritual Power?
I didn't know, but there was one thing I could tell.
'The Spiritual Power I have right now is basically a speck of dust.'
Was that why the Lesser Spirits looked down on me?
No wonder the way they stared at me always felt so contemptuous.
I invested 2,000 Spiritual Power Points into myself.
【 Manager Details 】
*Kim Woo-jin:
Good health
Spirit Sight
Soul Insight
Spiritual Power - 2,005p
Once the number of digits in my Spiritual Power jumped by three places, it almost felt like the world looked different.
'Doesn't seem like anything's wrong with my body.'
"Then I should give some to Song-i too."
I tried to give Song-i points, but she didn't appear in the Management Window.
So I decided to recruit Song-i as an employee too.
I couldn't ask for her opinion while she was asleep.
But I was her legal guardian.
'Daddy's doing all this for your own good.'
Song-i, Daddy will grow this hotel properly and pass it down to you.
Even third-generation chaebol heirs sometimes start from the bottom as ordinary employees.
Song-i, who had Spirit Sight, also had 5p of Spiritual Power.
I increased her Spiritual Power by 1,000 points, bringing it to 1,005p.
For now, I should watch and see what kind of changes it causes.
If nothing strange happens, I'll raise Song-i's Spiritual Power even more next time.
【 Employee Details 】
*Kim Song-i:
Good health
Spirit Sight
Trust 99/100
Spiritual Power - 1,005p
Our Song-i doesn't trust Daddy one hundred percent.
How am I supposed to raise that last one percent...?
I'll have to do even better from now on.
Motivation surged up inside me.
After Song-i came Min-ju and Min-jae.
"Employee benefits have to be solid."
I gave Min-ju and Min-jae 500 Spiritual Power Points each as well.
With wandering-spirit guests and even an Underworld Messenger showing up, I couldn't exactly leave them defenseless.
【 Employee Details 】
*Kim Min-ju:
Good health
Trust 92/100
Spiritual Power - 500p
*Kim Min-jae:
Right Eye Vision Loss
Trust 94/100
Spiritual Power - 500p
The 'Frail' condition had disappeared from Min-jae's information after I raised his Spiritual Power Points.
So Spiritual Power could improve someone's constitution too!
'Ooooh! Spiritual Power was like a tonic.'
"I should've given Song-i a little more."
Feeling regretful, I gave the remaining 320 points to Song-i.
【 Employee Details 】
*Kim Song-i:
Good health
Spirit Sight
Trust 99/100
Spiritual Power - 1,325p
Song-i, let's stay healthy from now on too.
Daddy will make sure you've got plenty of support.
***
Morning sunlight streamed through the curtains and brightened the room.
"So it's morning."
Because of the guest who had arrived late at night, I'd only slept for about two hours.
'But why don't I feel tired?'
Normally, my body should have felt heavy and my eyes dry.
But right now, I felt refreshed, as though I'd slept deeply all night.
'Is it because of the Spiritual Power?'
As expected, Spiritual Power really was like a tonic!
Would Spiritual Power make my body younger too...?
I hadn't felt this refreshed since entering my thirties.
How are the guests doing?
I opened the Management Window and checked their conditions.
【 Guest Details 】
*Room 201:
White Fox
Recovering Spiritual Power
*Room 207:
Jung Yu-ri
Wandering
Hunger
D-13
"Looks like the Three-Tailed Fox's leg is completely healed."
The information about the White Fox's leg injury was gone.
"Jung Yu-ri's D-day dropped by one."
Jung Yu-ri now had thirteen days left in this world.
The final moments I'd seen through Soul Insight left a bitter taste in my mouth.
I made a plan to comfort her soul.
The most urgent thing was food.
Yesterday, she'd completely wiped out all the ingredients in the kitchen.
While I restocked the refrigerator, the day passed in no time.
Song-i and Hwanggeum, apparently tireless, ran around excitedly all day.
"Hwanggeum! Catch me!"
"Woof!"
Maybe it was because of the Spiritual Power, but Song-i looked especially full of energy.
'I need to gather more Spiritual Power quickly.'
While I was thinking about ways to accumulate more Spiritual Power,
the Three-Tailed Fox, who had been taking a walk in the garden, entered the lobby.
"Are you completely recovered now?"
The Three-Tailed Fox ignored my question, stopped in front of Song-i, and tilted its head.
— Your Spiritual Power has grown? How did you do that?
"I gave her Spiritual Power."
— You gave her Spiritual Power? Come to think of it, yours has grown too.
The Three-Tailed Fox narrowed its eyes at me.
— Hmmm? Looks like the owner of the Goblin Hotel has his own special trick?
"Speaking of which, what's good about having more Spiritual Power?"
— Yip! You gave it away without even knowing that?
"I know it's good for the body. Is there anything else? Like being able to drive away Lesser Spirits."
— That amount of Spiritual Power isn't nearly enough.
Put another way, that meant I could drive away Lesser Spirits if my Spiritual Power became high enough.
"How much more Spiritual Power would I need?"
— About five times what you have now?
If you know the trick, you could manage it even before that.
Five times....
Ten thousand points?
I caught hold of the fox and asked one more thing.
"Then do you happen to know how to close Spirit Sight?"
— How would you close Spirit Sight once it's already been opened?
I was trying to force down my disappointment when
the Three-Tailed Fox added,
— Ah, if your Spiritual Power became about a thousand times greater, there might be a way.
"R-Really? That would work?"
— I can't say for certain. But once you've accumulated that much Spiritual Power, there isn't much you couldn't do.
"Right. I see. Hahaha! So there is a way...!"
— Eat too fast and you'll get indigestion. Don't overdo it.
"Thanks for telling me."
While I was talking with the Three-Tailed Fox,
Jung Yu-ri, who hadn't come out of her room while the sun was up, staggered into the lobby.
"I'm hungry...."
"How does tteokbokki sound for dinner tonight?"
At the word tteokbokki, life returned to Jung Yu-ri's vacant eyes.
"Tteokbokki?"
"Cheese-bomb tteokbokki, rosé tteokbokki, nuclear-spicy tteokbokki. We can make any of them."
"Cheese-bomb tteokbokki...!"
"Shall we prepare the cheese-bomb tteokbokki?"
Jung Yu-ri nodded furiously.
"Cheese-bomb tteokbokki... cheese-bomb tteokbokki... cheese-bomb tteokbokki...."
I led Jung Yu-ri, who kept repeating only "cheese-bomb tteokbokki," into the dining room.
"Min-ju, make it a cheese bomb."
"Okay!"
Jung Yu-ri had devoured a tremendous amount of food yesterday.
Even after eating that much, she still looked hungry.
'The Three-Tailed Fox said she wasn't a Starving Ghost.'
What Jung Yu-ri needed wasn't a huge quantity of food.
Then what did she need?
That was when I thought of giving her foods she liked.
A hunger that one pack of salad and 500 milliliters of bottled water could never satisfy.
What food had she thought of back then?
I tried to think of foods teenage girls liked.
No matter what anyone said, tteokbokki was the best.
"Cheese-bomb tteokbokki...."
With a plate of tteokbokki in front of her, Jung Yu-ri fidgeted with her fingers as she stared at it.
It was completely different from yesterday, when she'd devoured food as though possessed by a Starving Ghost.
"You may eat."
Only after I gave permission did she carefully reach out and eat the tteokbokki.
Slowly.
Savoring the taste.
'Just as I thought. I was right.'
The way she behaved, completely differently from yesterday, made it clear.
This was the answer.
***
D-12, fried chicken.
D-11, fresh cream cake.
Day by day, I served Jung Yu-ri delicious food.
D-10.
Jung Yu-ri dipped Gorgonzola pizza into Tree-Hollow Honey and gave a faint smile.
Her expression was gradually improving.
'What a relief.'
After finishing her meal, Jung Yu-ri went out to the bench in front of the hotel.
She couldn't leave the hotel grounds without my permission, so there was nothing to worry about.
Sitting on the bench and looking at the stars, Jung Yu-ri hummed a song.
'I've never heard that song before.'
I approached Jung Yu-ri and asked,
"What's the title of that song?"
"Ah... it's just a song I wrote."
"You compose music too?"
"Just... a little, for practice."
To be able to make a song this good just for practice.
She really had talent.
"It's a good song. Could you sing more of it for me?"
Jung Yu-ri gave a small nod and began to sing.
Her clear voice spread around the hotel.
Could I become a star~
Even a shooting star about to fall would be fine~
If I could shine, even just for a moment~
The area around the hotel fell silent.
Even the noisy night birds seemed to prick up their ears to listen.
When the song ended,
Clap clap clap clap clap—!
"Wow...! That song is really good!"
"That's amazing."
"Big Sis, you're seriously awesome!"
"Woof! Woof!"
Min-ju, Min-jae, Song-i, and even Hwanggeum erupted into tremendous cheers.
Min-ju walked over and said,
"It's a shame no one else can hear this song."
Min-jae stamped his feet in frustration.
"Ah, the song is seriously so good...!"
Jung Yu-ri smiled bitterly.
Then Min-jae shouted,
"How about we record this song?"
I tilted my head, not understanding what he meant, so Min-jae explained further.
"YouTube. It probably won't get many views, but at least the song could remain."
A faint hint of interest appeared on Jung Yu-ri's face.
It seemed she didn't dislike the idea.
I asked Jung Yu-ri,
"Would you like to try?"
Jung Yu-ri nodded.
"Yes. I'd like to."
Min-ju checked while holding up her phone, then spoke in disappointment.
"It won't work. She doesn't show up on video. Her voice isn't being recorded either...."
Jung Yu-ri could only maintain a visible form inside the hotel. She didn't have a physical body.
Min-jae sighed regretfully.
"Haah... the song is really good. What a shame."
Then Song-i shot her hand into the air.
"Me! I'll sing that song together with Big Sis!"
"You, Song-i?"
"Yes! I'm good at singing. I was the best singer in my kindergarten too."
I turned to the guest and asked,
"The choice is yours. Your voice won't remain, but... would you still like to leave the song behind?"