Welcome to Dungeon Hotel - Chapter 74

70. This is the taste

 

I finished the chat window first.

 

YeongChun Hotel

 

The package product is still in preparation. Perhaps, I can guide you on the day? I apologize. It’s not that long since our hotel opened.

 

Typing…The display popped up a little, and soon a message came.

 

Purified Fairy King

 

Yep yep~\٩(๑`ȏ´๑)۶. I’m really curious about what package it is! I’ll see you next week…! 

 

Now, let’s catch Toto, who is floating with ‘!’.

 

“Shall we… talk?”

 

Toto trembled slightly as she looked at me with a serious expression.

 

“I, I understand!”

 

Still, it was a loud answer, as usual.

 

There is only one reason, given that the quest window tells me to use Toto.

 

Aren’t there usually two types of performances in this world?

 

“Have you ever seen a hologram performance or a VR performance?”

 

“You don’t even know what that is?”

 

I didn’t know either.

 

If I hadn’t read the story in <A Guide for Managers Who Run Dungeon Hotel> that a hotel hosted a performance by a world-class idol in a hologram at a theater in the building next to the hotel and made huge profits from the package product.

 

This is why people should read the guidebook carefully when they start anything.

 

I briefly explained the hologram performance to Toto.

 

“So you want me to make something that isn’t real seem real, right?”

 

“Mmhm. Is it possible?”

 

“Yes. It is in the realm of magic. I’ll make it look cool!”

 

Toto answered confidently.

 

“Good. But what kind of stage do fairies like?”

 

“Fairies? Hmm… I’m not sure? There are so many different people. Just as each person has a different favorite singer, wouldn’t fairies be a bit different?”

 

“Still, a singer they like in general?”

 

Toto thought hard about my question and answered with a sullen expression.

 

“I don’t know because I’ve never heard of such detailed tastes. If necessary, I will study hard…!”

 

“N, no. It’s all right. I’ll look into it.”

 

* * *

 

In this case, as expected, finding information is also a priority.

 

Thinking so, I started searching for the Fairy King.

 

Of course, nothing came up when I searched for it.

 

However, there were several items in the keyword ‘fairy,’ but the most common ones were pictures of fairies with excellent beauty in famous novels.

 

Most of the fairies seemed to be characterized by a beautiful face.

 

It also has wings that emit mysterious light.

 

It was said to have a good and kind heart and greatly help ordinary humans.

 

But all of this was just hypothetical speculation.

 

In fact, there is no monster named ‘fairy’ among the monsters.

 

So, there was little research on the species called ‘fairy.’

 

“Then, perhaps…?”

 

I picked up the guidebook that was on the other side of the desk.

 

What could possibly be here?

 

While looking at the chapters, I opened a chapter called ‘Bonus Book.’

 

Then, unexpectedly, there was a part called ‘Types of guests to be watch out of.’

 

“Oh?”

 

Types of Guests to Watch Out for

 

—Human

 

—Dwarf

 

—Fairy

 

 

There’s a fairy.

 

For reference, this article was written in the part where it was written as a human being.

 

Humans: Be careful when serving, as the body is as fragile as glass. Can be fatal if handled with normal force.

 

I don’t know who the former manager of this hotel was, but I couldn’t help it because it was such a scary article.

 

Next up is Dwarf.

 

Dwarf: They like to disassemble and reassemble hotel things, so be careful with expensive things. Sometimes it can be reassembled and recreated into a new object.

 

I’m not sure what this means, so let’s move on.

 

Because the important thing is the fairy.

 

Fairy: Since there are many elderly guests, throw away the butterfly shape and put a carpet on the marble floor to avoid straining their joints when walking around.

 

An elderly guest.

 

No matter how I looked at the fairies in the picture I saw earlier, there were only fairies in their teens and twenties.

 

As expected, the fairies in the creations and the real fairies are a bit different.

 

However, I did get some useful information.

 

I was satisfied and kept thinking about which singer to decorate the stage with.

 

* * *

 

The next morning.

 

As soon as Lee Minok, the owner of a hair salon in Yeongchun-myeon, woke up, she instinctively looked for coffee.

 

“…Unnie, coffee…”

 

Minok’s older sister, Kangok, naturally started boiling water in a pot at those words.

 

In the meantime, Minok sat up, clutching her hair in the aftermath of her drink last night.

 

Kangok saw Minok like that and started nagging her.

 

Kangok always liked to nag Min-ok, who failed to get married and came down from her business in her 40s, like a child.

 

“When are you going to come to your senses? Even if you drink alcohol at the Merchants Association, you should drink it well, you brat. Are you going to be so embarrassing to the people in the neighborhood?”

 

“Did I drink straight?”

 

“Yeah. When I went to pick you up, you weren’t completely human, you were just like a piece of paper!”

 

“…I see…”

 

Why did she drink so much yesterday?

 

Even if she drinks, she usually drinks quietly behind her older sister’s sight.

 

Come to think of it, the atmosphere yesterday was really good.

 

The Yeongchunjang lobby was so clean and warm.

 

In this corner of the house, even in the middle of winter, when her older sister saves on heating bills, the floor is cold like an ice field.

 

If she enters that warm and fuzzy lobby, she will want to be spread out for some reason.

 

‘Please come often.’

 

Even the cute-looking owner there.

 

It looks like a cat in the middle of the day lying on top of a well-shaped roof, and is subtly quick-witted.

 

Should she say that it’s right next to her even before she needs it?

 

It doesn’t feel like a nuisance, like a dog wagging its tail.

 

It feels like she’s just ignoring it, but strangely, she does everything she needs.

 

A service like air that seems to be present or not.

 

This expression seemed to fit perfectly.

 

“Drink this and come to your senses. This.”

 

Minok soon blew and drank her coffee mix, which was brewed by Kangok.

 

Kangok’s coffee was famous among hair salon customers.

 

Sugar, cream, coffee, etc.

 

Water control that adds to the finishing touch.

 

When she drinks Kangok’s mixed coffee, the sleeping customer wakes up while waiting for her perm medicine to be put on her hair, and the customer’s face, which had been frowning because her hair dye was too strong, straightens.

 

That is the skill of a 20-year-old beauty salon.

 

But… what is this.

 

Minok was drinking Kangok’s coffee, then raised her head with her eyes wide open.

 

“Unnie. This coffee…”

 

“What. I know. My coffee is delicious.”

 

“No, that’s not it…”

 

“?”

 

“I am not impressed.”

 

Minok tilted her head as she drank her mixed coffee once again.

 

“It doesn’t taste like this…?”

 

As soon as the words came out, Kangok slapped Minok on the back.

 

“This! If your sister make it for you, you should say thank you and drink it!”

 

“Ouch! It hurts! It hurts!”

 

Minok quickly got up from her seat and walked to the entrance with the money in the money box.

 

“I say it’s not a problem with Unnie’s coffee-making skills, but rather a problem with the beans?”

 

“What kind of beans…! You always ignore your sister because you live in Seoul!”

 

“No, it’s not that, you know. That…”

 

Minok had trouble saying the name in her head.

 

“Caramel Macchiato! I want to drink it.”

 

“This is going to be a waste again…”

 

Kangok clicked her tongue.

 

Then Minok shook her head and said.

 

“No, that’s not it! That’s why Yeongchunjang sells sweet coffee! Yesterday, Unnie also came to pick me up and bought me a drink!”

 

“Ah. The one that Miyeon bought you?”

 

“Eung. That one.”

 

At the same time, the two fell silent, recalling the cool and sweet taste of the coffee they each drank yesterday.

 

“I’m going to buy that. Unnie, are you really not going to drink?”

 

At Minok’s question, Kangok cleared her throat and looked at the distant mountains.

 

“…Buy mine, too…?”

 

As soon as Minok left the hair salon, she secretly murmured to her sister outside the door.

 

“Anyway, she has such a dirty temper.”

 

Then she dragged her slippers toward Yeongchunjang.

 

When she opened the door with her collar closed in the chilly weather, the owner of the cat statue greeted her with a bright smile with warm air.

 

“Welcome.”

 

Ah. This sweet and kind face.

 

Minok, who always looked at her sister’s angry face, felt her insides unravel.

 

“Please sit comfortably.”

 

“I came alone… I’ll order two cups of coffee. Can I sit over there and have a drink?”

 

And she wanted to kill time here and go.

 

“Of course, it’s fine. You can order a drink. What can I get you?”

 

“Eung. My sister is an iced caramel macchiato. And I…”

 

As soon as Minok sat down in an overstuffed chair, she suddenly changed her mind.

 

Even the sea, which is always boring to see, looks nostalgic and beautiful when viewed through a small window here.

 

Should she say that getting away from her daily life gives her time to relax?

 

Other than ordering perm hair, smelling the strong smell of hair dye, working with customers, and playing Go-Stop, when else will she have time to spend leisurely time sitting on a soft chair and looking at the sea?

 

Originally, she was going to have an iced caramel macchiato, but a bitter black coffee that feels lonely somehow suits this kind of time.

 

“Black. With lots of sugar.”

 

“…Ah. A, ah. Yes.”

 

Yeongchunjang hesitated for a moment and nodded quickly.

 

And soon, Yeongchunjang came out with a warm coffee and said.

 

“About the Ice caramel macchiato, please tell me when you will go. Because the ice can melt.”

 

Minok was impressed when she felt that she cared for her leisurely time to the fullest.

 

Minok nodded and took a sip of the bitter black coffee or Americano.

 

As soon as the hot, bitter liquid passed down her throat, Minok’s mouth spontaneously exclaimed.

 

“…This is the taste. This taste.”

 

She doesn’t even know that Junghyo has this window because Minok is happy after drinking “a cup of coffee in black” (E).

 

‘Hotel Coffee Shop Is A Place To Relax’ quest

 

—Let’s give pleasure to ordinary customers who come to drink coffee with a coffee menu (1/10)

 

—Reward: 10,000p EXP, 100G

 

And soon, the table nearby started to fill up with customers who came in looking for the ‘taste of coffee’ like Minok.