Your True Body Is the King Suite, Isn't It? (5K)

Xie Yu had largely figured out the inn building's preferences.

It liked being praised for its height, liked emphasizing its construction costs as if showing off, liked guests who spent money on the king suite, and longed for business at the inn to improve. That was the kind of building it was.

It wasn't that the building was worrying like an owner or taking an interest in guests' gold coins.

At the heart of all these outward signs lay the building's anxiety. It cared about its own "repair costs." If the inn did poorly, its repairs and maintenance would suffer. That was also why it feared business drying up. The building wanted the inn to make money not because it was particularly interested in humans, but because it needed money for repairs and maintenance. Its concern for its own continued existence had turned into a desire for gold coins.

"Speaking of which, I just remembered: after my stay, a lot of people might come here this year because of my reputation and specifically ask to stay in you."

Xie Yu praised himself without hesitation.

Now that he had grasped the inn building's inner thoughts, it was time for the final push to win it over.

He was quite interested in the inn.

Judging by the patterns he had observed so far, the rewards for maxing out Affection had clear tiers. It wasn't as obvious with the first two options, but the third option, [Friend of XX], clearly had a hierarchy, with distinctions in rank among things of the same kind. For example, among wooden objects, a wooden cabin ranked higher than a cane; among paper products, a major exam paper ranked much higher than an ordinary book.

And this inn building should count as an even higher-level wooden object. Following the previous pattern, the reward should be more generous.

The rewards were only one aspect. Xie Yu placed greater importance on the patterns and principles behind his own ability, even giving them somewhat higher priority than striking at the nobility. He would further explore the Affection ability by understanding phenomena, hypothesizing patterns, observing more phenomena, and verifying those patterns.

Besides that, the building could observe the guests inside. It could even serve as an extra, invisible set of eyes and ears for him, more discreet than divination or mental and spiritual probing.

[A tall inn (Affection continuing to rise to 71) is very interested in the future you described and asks:]

[Oh? Are you someone famous? Let me think, your name is Xie Yu, Xie Yu, who is that...]

It really didn't seem to have paid attention to him before.

[Sigh, I'm too big. There are too many voices to hear and too many things to see every day. When there are a lot of people, everything gets jumbled, and I have a little trouble remembering... Who exactly are you?]

"You can take a look at the newspapers in the ninth-floor common area."

Xie Yu remembered that the newspaper bearing his photograph was lying open there. Yize hadn't tidied it away before leaving.

[A tall inn (Affection suddenly rises to 91):]

[There's a picture of you in the paper! You're somebody special! An honored guest!]

[Oh my, those inn attendants were so neglectful, leaving you alone in the king suite like that...]

[Please forgive them, my esteemed guest. My king suite will serve you wholeheartedly!]

[I will activate the Fresh Wind Array to air the room, the Geothermal Hidden Fire Array to adjust the temperature, the Quiet Care Array to prevent eavesdropping, and the Flawless Light Array to provide the best lighting for your complexion...]

[Activate! Activate them all!]

[Affection rises to 96]

Uh, the king suite has all these functions too? Xie Yu saw the room's white pine ceiling suddenly light up, casting an exceptionally soft glow. The wooden furniture, which had been serene and elegant in the natural light, suddenly shone as brilliantly as jewels. Just a little extra light had taken the room's beauty to another level.

The barely noticeable staleness in the air vanished at once, leaving it feeling like a stroll through the mountains.

[Do you need to use the bathtub? It doesn't look like you do, so I won't activate it for now. Would you like the Peaceful Sleep Bed Array on? You can give it a try...]

It was genuinely thinking about what Xie Yu wanted. Its attitude was far more sincere than that of the woman greeting guests in the lobby, the room attendant cleaning the hallway, or the suite butler who had just helped open the king suite. Its service was incredibly attentive.

"You can control the arrays? There's actually magic in the king suite too..."

For a moment, Xie Yu didn't know which part to be surprised by.

In the ordinary guest room where he had been staying, the only magic-related service had been the lighting, which was powered by light-element arrays.

The inn had said earlier that its magical construction had cost a great many gold coins. Other than reinforcing the building's structure, had it all gone into the king suite?

[I've watched them switch these on and off. All it takes is a light touch to activate them. It's very simple. You don't need to worry about the cost; it's already included in your room fee.]

[Besides, no one has stayed in the king suite for such a long time. It's been very empty... Your stay has brought me immense satisfaction. It's my honor to serve you. The Pinewood Inn serves you wholeheartedly.]

"I really have to give you a good review," Xie Yu said admiringly.

That praise completely opened the inn's heart.

[Really? I'm glad you're satisfied, Lord Xie Yu. I only did what I should. (Affection rises to 100)]

Grasp the core need, then follow up with just the right words. Winning it over was that simple.

[Congratulations! You have won over the tall inn (Pinewood Inn).]

[You may choose one of three rewards:]

[1. Lifelong Entrustment] [The method of opening the secret storeroom on the inn's fourth basement level.]

[2. Full Disclosure] [Gossip about every guest who has stayed in the king suite over the past twelve years.]

[3. Friend of Inns] [Initial Affection of all wooden objects encountered from now on +2. Stackable.]

Hiss...

Xie Yu drew a quiet breath. For the first time, he hesitated before the choice of three rewards.

None of the rewards this time was truly essential. None of the three options would offer Xie Yu direct, clear help at the moment, but each seemed to hold different possibilities waiting to be discovered, making him want to choose them all.

It was like a secret hidden branch appearing in a game. Though it offered no clear help in clearing the game, the value each displayed was considerable.

The inn had four basement levels? What was the secret storeroom? And why did this option qualify as "Lifelong Entrustment"?

Surely none of the people who could stay in the king suite were ordinary. The second option might broaden his knowledge considerably. Though it might not have any practical use, it interested Xie Yu the most.

The third offered more than the three-story wooden cabin had. Two points of initial Affection seemed unremarkable, but judging by the previous pattern, it could help him quickly start conversations to win things over, breaking through the indifference at zero Affection. And since the increase was permanent, it could also speed things up during the final, high-Affection stage.

In his previous attempts, 95 Affection had seemed to be a threshold. As long as he could accumulate five points of initial Affection in a particular category, it would bring a significant improvement.

However, this time Lifelong Entrustment contained no mention of "Affection will never decrease." The last time that had happened was with the Petulant Test Paper.

"By the way, you're so tall, your foundations must be especially sturdy. How many basement levels do you have?" Xie Yu asked tentatively.

He wanted to see whether he could judge the value of each reward in advance.

He also wanted to try obtaining a reward by other means without claiming it, such as getting gossip through conversation.

[Underground? There are storerooms, supply rooms, laundry rooms, staff lounges, offices, things like that... Oh, right, the big boss keeps his wealth in the basement. It's a huge, huge pile of gold coins, too many to count. There might even be enough to buy five of me outright!]

Gold coins? Xie Yu wasn't interested... Besides, the coins wouldn't go straight into his account. Even if he knew how to open the hidden storeroom, that didn't mean the gold coins would belong to him.

He wasn't a robber.

"By the way, a lot of guests have stayed in this king suite, haven't they?" Xie Yu asked about the second option.

[A tall inn is confused by the change of subject (Affection drops from 100 (+1) to 100):]

[Of course, but it's very important to keep former guests' secrets, just as all the inn's staff and I will protect yours.]

His question had been too abrupt. He had moved away from winning it over and pleasing it; pressing the matter would actually make its Affection fall below 100.

Bypassing the reward was possible, but it would require a great deal of cleverness, and he couldn't make a single mistake in handling the conversation. It might be harder than winning it over from zero.

[Even if you're an honored guest, I can only tell you a tiny bit. Quite a few guests have stayed in the king suite. Many were Magisters, and there were some very powerful officials... Oh, I remember, there were nobles too, some named Oren, Aitan, Brown, Perez... They all loved my king suite! This is a genuine noble-class experience!]

Brown... When Fry had spoken about Wig Brown before, he had said that a Magister from the Brown Family had stepped in to suppress the classroom incident in which someone had died. And Sealed Artifact 3-0771 had said that Wig Brown had taken it to see a mage specializing in the mental and spiritual field...

Xie Yu grabbed the pendant on his chest, which was curiously observing everything, and asked:

"Fate-Substitution Talisman Doll, you met a Magister from the Brown Family. Did that person come to Black Pine City, or did Wig Brown take you somewhere else?"

[Sealed Artifact 3-0771 asks in confusion:]

[Huh? Why is Master suddenly asking about that? Of course it was in Black Pine City, at Wig Brown's former residence. But I only met him once,]

"Option two, Full Disclosure."

Xie Yu made up his mind.

A visit to remote Black Pine City, sometime in the last twelve years, and the surname Brown...

Xie Yu had reason to suspect that the Brown Family Magister who had come to Black Pine City specifically to sort things out for Wig Brown might have stayed here.

"I'm very interested in your guests. Don't worry, I won't tell anyone else. Tell me quietly. For example, start with the one named Brown."

[A tall inn (Affection 100) still cannot restrain its desire to gossip and gives in to you. Besides, it doesn't really have much fondness for its former guests. Compared with your radiance, nobles and Magisters all fall far short.]

Once the inn started talking, the words came pouring out, good and bad alike.

[There was only one guest named Brown. It was five years ago.]

[He was an elderly gentleman. I heard the suite butler call him Mr. Miuan. He was very powerful. As soon as he arrived, he swept every corner of me thoroughly with his mental power. His Magister badge showed that he was a Five-Star Magister, and he claimed to be the patriarch of the Brown Family in Northern Plains Province. He looked down on Black Pine City... I actually thought it was very strange. If he was really that powerful, shouldn't he have lots of subordinates to do things for him? Why did he have to come in person to Black Pine City, a place he looked down on?]

[Compared with the other nobles I've seen, he fell just a little short. It felt like he was desperately trying to keep up appearances. And he had the nerve to look down on Black Pine City. What a poser.]

[He had a male cousin in Black Pine City too, someone named Wig Brown. I think I've heard that name in the past couple of days. Wasn't he the one you discussed with that Magister? I can't quite remember.]

[Anyway, this Wig Brown was much worse. He wasn't qualified to stay in the king suite. He was only a four-star mage, and he'd made a huge mess. Miuan Brown came to clean up after Wig Brown.]

[But Miuan wasn't much better. He threw his weight around as a Magister and bullied the inn's cleaners. He was also extremely sensitive to other people's emotions. One of our room attendants had a smile all over their face and merely complained a little in their heart, and he flew into a rage. He had no magnanimity at all.]

[All I can say is that mages in the mental and spiritual field might all be a little mentally ill!]

[He had money, power, and status, yet he was still suspicious of everyone and liked making trouble for ordinary people, acting as if everyone was out to harm him.]

[In this inn's opinion, that was a sign of being strong on the outside but weak on the inside. How could someone truly respectable be so petty? Though he did pay quite readily... But if he hadn't even been willing to pay readily, that really would have been beneath him.]

[There's one more thing. I don't know whether I should say it. Anyway, that man was rather... Oh, never mind, I'll tell you!]

[He once invited Seda Yang, president of the Pine Nut Chamber of Commerce, and Ms. Ruina, the former mayor of Black Pine City, to a meeting, right here in the king suite, right where you're sitting now... He started by threatening them with force, but former mayor Ruina wouldn't stand for it at all. She had a fierce temper, and the whole meeting nearly blew up.]

[I saw pure white flames pour out of Miuan's body and engulf them both. After a while, Seda Yang and Ruina woke up again, as if none of it had happened. They had completely forgotten the explosive conversation they'd had when they first met.]

[Then that old devil Miuan started bribing them, offering potions, gold coins, authority, all sorts of things. He combined that with veiled threats, threats against their families and the like, and only then did the two give in.]

[Later, Ms. Ruina was transferred to another province. I heard it was a promotion.]

"Miuan Brown, pure white flames, making people forget..."

Xie Yu thought back to his own experience. He too had a gap in his memory from when he had faced Wig Brown.

The same thing had appeared in the three-story wooden cabin's description of the white flames that killed Kaiming, and in 3-0771's subsequent account of how Wig Brown had been killed.

Pure white flames, precisely erasing memories and burning a person's body and soul to nothing...

Was this the Brown Family's bloodline, the so-called innate magical talent of nobles?

Just as he finished winning the inn over, Yize arrived with the newspaper's reporters.

The door to the king suite swung open, and Yize, Fry, the interviewer, and the recorder entered. As soon as they stepped inside, they were all struck to varying degrees by the suite's luxury.

Fry felt it most keenly.

When he had just stepped out to leave Xie Yu alone, the suite had looked nothing like this. Though it had been luxurious, it had also had a gray, aged look and a somewhat stale smell of wood. He hadn't expected the entire room to look as good as new after he had been gone for only ten-odd minutes.

The fluctuations of magical spirituality were clearly perceptible in the room. Extravagant arrays were running.

Was Xie Yu so nervous that he had studied all the magic arrays in the room?

The interviewer was a young adult woman, about thirty, tall and slender. She took the initiative to step forward and greet Xie Yu:

"I'm Fengye, chief interview reporter for Mirror Lake Press. I'm responsible for some of the news pages in the Northern Morning News and the Northern Evening News. Our newspapers circulate throughout Northern Plains Province, North Sea Islands Province, North-Central Mountains Province, and other areas..."

Xie Yu, seated in the main seat of the suite's reception room, closed the book in his hands and raised a hand to straighten his collar. He responded to the interviewer:

"I'm Xie Yu. I'm ready."

Fengye realized her introduction had been a little too long-winded. She smiled apologetically, sat in the main seat to Xie Yu's side, level with his, and began the interview:

"Mr. Xie Yu, could you tell us how you achieved a perfect score on the major exam? We're all very curious about what kind of magical talent you possess."

The recorder, Yize, and the others took nearby seats on either side.

"I actually somewhat regret getting a perfect score."

Xie Yu took control of the conversation.

"Oh?" Fengye didn't mind Xie Yu departing from the question-and-answer format. She evidently thought his topic was well worth exploring, and would have preferred him to be even more eager to talk. The more forthcoming he was, the deeper the interview could go:

"Really? I don't believe it. How could anyone regret getting a perfect score?"

Xie Yu continued:

"Because after I got a perfect score, one problem came after another. I haven't had a good night's sleep these past few days, and neither have Mr. Yize, who's responsible for my safety, or Mr. Fry. We've been hiding in this inn, living in fear."

Ms. Fengye didn't need a particularly keen nose for news. Her basic training as a reporter was enough to tell her that this young man was probably about to say something extraordinary.

She remembered Yize's instructions just now, and how difficult it had been to find information about Xie Yu over the past two days.

She unconsciously sat up straighter, wanting to encourage him to say more, in greater detail:

"Really? That sounds different from what most people imagine happens after getting a perfect score."

Xie Yu spoke slowly:

"In Black Pine City, there was a gentleman named Brown who wanted to kill me. He planned to use a strange sealed artifact to replace my fate and soul and claim the fate that awaited me after my perfect score for himself. Later, Mr. Fry saved me, and that gentleman named Brown died from the sealed artifact's backlash."

"An innocent person died in the incident. I was lucky to survive."

Ms. Fengye stared blankly, forgetting to ask a follow-up question for a moment.

Beside her, the accompanying recorder stopped both the array recording the sound and the pen and paper recording the words.

Neither of them quite dared to listen further. They instinctively turned to look at Lord Yize of the Education Bureau, seeking confirmation that this could be recorded.

When she saw Yize sigh and nod gently, Fengye wiped the sweat from her forehead with a handkerchief. Only then did she look back at Xie Yu and ask solemnly:

"A gentleman named Brown wanted to replace you?"

Xie Yu touched the pendant on his chest:

"This is Sealed Artifact 3-0771, also known as the Fate-Substitution Talisman Doll, which I took from Wig Brown. It was originally in the hands of the Pine Nut Chamber of Commerce in Black Pine City, but Wig Brown later came into possession of it because of an accident. He was trying to use this strange sealed artifact to replace my fate."

"I suppose Wig Brown may have dreamed of getting a perfect score on the major exam too."