"Mountain Inn": It Always Feels Like He's Guiding Them Toward Something

Being suspected of not being human by someone who might be a monster himself was, admittedly, a peculiar feeling.

"Hmph. Compared to us, I'd say you're the one who seems less human." The Burly Man showed no intention of letting go. Instead, he pressed down even harder. "There's a thick layer of dust all over this inn. You say you're Yang Wu, the guest staying in Room 202, but your room doesn't look like anyone's still living in it."

The young man felt as though his arm was about to snap and cried out in pain. "Wait, wait! I've been staying in this room ever since! Otherwise, I wouldn't have known there was a passage under the wardrobe. Besides, haven't you noticed this room is much cleaner than the others?"

"..." Xu Xi silently glanced at the dust-covered wardrobe.

It didn't seem that much cleaner.

"Then what do you eat and drink every day?" the Burly Man pressed.

Afraid the man would twist his arm again, the young man hurriedly answered, "There are plenty of wild vegetables and mushrooms in the mountains. Sometimes I catch a few wild rabbits too. That's enough to fill my stomach, and when I'm thirsty, I drink spring water. That's how I've managed to survive until now."

When none of them spoke, he apologized of his own accord to get the Burly Man to release him. "I'm sorry. I only attacked you for my own safety. After all... I really can't be sure you're alive."

The Burly Man wanted to ask something else, but the Refined Man stopped him with a look.

Some questions were better left unexplored. It was enough for everyone to understand without saying anything.

"So what exactly happened at this inn?" the Refined Man asked.

"Let me go first. I'm unarmed, and I can't beat the four of you."

The Burly Man looked at the other three. When they all nodded, he let go and stepped back a few paces.

Seeing this, Xu Xi couldn't help thinking that the Burly Man hadn't even noticed how control of the group seemed to be gradually returning to the Refined Man.

Once he was free, the young man—or rather, Yang Wu—sighed.

"It's a long story, so I'll keep it short."

"After my older sister went missing, I found out that the last trace of her was at this inn, so I came here to look for clues."

"I didn't find any clues, but strange things started happening at the inn."

"An unknown creature appeared in the inn. It could disguise itself as a human and imitate human behavior. We called that kind of creature an Impostor. But as long as you ignored them, nothing would happen, so the innkeeper put up a page of rules for the guests to follow, for their safety."

"At first, things were peaceful. Maybe some guests were quietly replaced, but we didn't want to attract those things' attention, so we all pretended not to know."

"But that peace didn't last long before it was shattered."

"The guests in Room 103 mutated on their second day here. In the end, the mutated grandmother ate her mutated grandson. The thing you locked in Room 106 is her."

"The guests in Room 204 were a married couple. They went out together, but only the husband came back. The wife returned the next morning, and that afternoon, they both disappeared."

"After that, the innkeeper disappeared too. I was the only one left at the inn... along with the mutated guest from Room 103."

His account could be said to have tied together all the clues the four had found and answered some of their questions.

Without betraying any reaction, the Refined Man asked, "So the White Humanoid that attacked our companion was the mutated guest from Room 103. Does that mean it's an Impostor?"

Yang Wu's expression was complicated. "Maybe. I've never seen what an Impostor really looks like either. They love knocking on doors at night and disguising themselves as humans. You have no way of knowing whether the person beside you is human or an Impostor."

He paused, looking a little embarrassed.

"...By the way, could you spare me some of the food and water in your bags? To be honest, I'm so sick of those wild vegetables I could throw up."

"Of course." The Refined Man generously took out a packet of compressed biscuits, a packet of beef jerky, and a bottle of water and handed them over.

"Thank you!" Yang Wu took the food and water with delight, then tactfully sat down at a table on the other side, keeping some distance from the four.

The Refined Man also found a place to sit. "Everyone, let's rest for a while. We've been on edge for so long. Whatever it is, we can talk about it later."

Once the other three had gathered around and sat down, he discreetly took out the phone they had found in Room 204, turned it on, typed a message in the notes app, and passed it to each of them in turn.

They communicated by typing on the phone.

Refined Man: What do you think?

Burly Man: No need to think about it. That guy definitely isn't human.

High-Ponytail Woman: Judging by the dust in the inn and the papers with writing so faded it's barely legible, this inn has been abandoned for at least six months. Could he really have survived alone for that long?

All three doubted the young man's identity.

The phone reached Xu Xi, and he typed a line as well.

Xu Xi: Do candles attract Impostors? Why isn't that in the rules?

Xu Xi still remembered how strongly the candle had attracted the White Humanoid. Otherwise, he wouldn't have escaped Room 106 so smoothly.

The flashlight also seemed to have some kind of stimulating effect on the White Humanoid.

If that White Humanoid really was an Impostor, why wasn't this important information in the rules?

He wanted to discuss the issue with his three teammates.

But to the other three, the question sounded like a hint.

The Refined Man's gaze sharpened, and he looked intently at the young man sitting across from them.

Refined Man: We may have made an assumption from the start. Those three rules don't all refer to Impostors. The second and third match the Impostors' habit of disguising themselves as humans, but the first might be a precaution against something else.

Burly Man: That kid was lying after all.

High-Ponytail Woman: He's misleading us, making us think the thing in Room 106 is an Impostor. In reality, the real Impostor...

They all understood whom she meant.

After all, Xu Xi's hint had been obvious.

Impostors only liked disguising themselves as humans. Candles didn't attract them.

Meanwhile, Xu Xi stared at them in bewilderment as they suddenly concluded that Yang Wu was an Impostor.

He had simply wanted to ask why the rules were incomplete.

Were their trains of thought on a completely different wavelength from his?

Refined Man: Let's keep pretending we don't know for now. The key to clearing the instance might lie with it.

[Does anyone else feel like something's off?]

[Huh? Is it?]

[Don't you think Boss Xu Xi... seems more proactive?]

[...Holy shit, now that you mention it, he really does.]

[I noticed it too. He seems to have talked more since entering Room 101.]

[And he's gone out of his way to give his teammates hints several times.]

[Although everything he's done has been perfectly normal, I keep feeling like he's guiding them toward something.]