"Quick, quick, quick! Let's get to our rooms!"
"The rooms have to be safer than this lobby!"
"This is definitely pushing us to get to our rooms faster."
The middle-aged man frantically ran to the elevator and jammed his finger against the button for the third floor, pressing it over and over like that would make it come faster.
"Hurry, let's take the elevator up!"
"The stairs would be safer, right?!" Hoshino Ai knew the real reason behind the attack, so even while rubbing her sore cheek, she didn't feel particularly terrified.
"Right, right, right! The stairs are definitely safer. Who knows what kind of scary stuff might happen in the elevator?"
Hayato made a show of pushing the stairwell door opposite the elevator. He'd already tried it during time stop, but the door wouldn't budge. Locked tight.
"It's locked. Can't use the stairs."
No matter how hard anyone tried, the first-floor stairwell door stayed completely shut.
The quiet scene took on an even heavier atmosphere.
Clearly, they hadn't triggered whatever was needed to unlock it yet. It probably had something to do with the "emergency situation" mentioned in the rules.
Ding!
The elevator doors slid open.
Hayato stepped in first. The moment the others filed in behind him, the space felt cramped, six bodies pressed together in a confined metal box. The air grew thick with nervous breathing.
Hoshino Ai squeezed herself behind Hayato's back, not daring to look around. Her hands gripped the fabric of his shirt. Kamimura Miho wasn't doing much better, pressing close to her 'boyfriend's' side with white knuckles clutching his sleeve.
The doors slid shut.
The enclosed space felt suffocating. Every shadow in the corner seemed like it could hide something. The elevator hummed as it climbed, a mechanical sound that filled the silence between their rapid breaths.
What if something appears when the doors open?
Hoshino Ai's heart hammered against her ribs.
The elevator slowed.
Ding!
Second floor.
The doors slid open slowly, revealing the hallway beyond.
No terrifying monsters appeared.
But the hallway lights were dim, casting long shadows across the deep red carpet. Under the weak lighting, everything looked darker, more ominous. The atmosphere itself felt wrong, eerie in a way that made the skin crawl.
No one moved.
Hayato took the first step out onto the carpet, his footsteps muffled and soft. Seeing him move, the others followed quickly, not wanting to be left behind in the elevator.
Right now, Hayato was their courage.
Thud!
The elevator doors closed behind them.
"Let's check the hallway first. Maybe there are some clues."
"..."
No one dared refuse.
Everyone could only steel themselves and search, movements cautious and tense.
Five minutes later, they'd finished the inspection.
"There are 20 rooms total on the third floor. The third-floor stairwell is currently open and should let us go downstairs to the first-floor lobby, but I don't recommend trying it right now."
That one sentence made blonde Taisuke, who'd been about to check it out, pull his foot back fast.
Hayato's concern was simple, information about "emergency situations" was often tied to limited uses. He didn't plan to waste it on testing.
"Hayato-san, so now... can we go to our rooms?"
"Yeah. But if you find any special information in the rooms, you have to share it. Absolutely no hiding anything."
Everyone nodded vigorously.
Soon, they arrived in front of rooms [306] and [308].
Hayato swiped his keycard.
Click.
The lock disengaged.
He pushed the door open.
Pitch-black darkness stretched before them, deep and quiet, as if it wanted to swallow everything whole. The room felt like a mouth waiting to close.
Hoshino Ai's breath caught in her throat.
Click...
She immediately slapped the light switch, almost desperately.
Light flooded the room, bright and sudden, pushing back the darkness. Her suppressed anxiety released all at once, tension draining from her shoulders as she exhaled.
Blonde and the others opened their door with similar urgency.
Hayato walked deeper into the room, his eyes scanning carefully.
Unlike regular hotels, the love hotel's setup was designed for one thing. Red and pink decor created an ambiguous atmosphere. Sweet perfume hung in the air, the kind of scent meant to stimulate desire.
Two bed, big enough for three or four people at once, covered in deep crimson sheets. A plush sofa sat beside it. The bathroom stretched huge beyond the doorway, visible through the open door. The bathtub alone looked like it could fit two or three people easily.
Props were scattered around the room. Some he recognized. Others, he didn't even know how to use. All of them are designed to help couples achieve various positions, facilitate physical intimacy, and seek more pleasure.
Hoshino Ai's face flushed red the moment she noticed them. After one glance, she couldn't look again, her eyes darting up to stare at the ceiling instead.
"I'll check the bathroom and shower. Hoshino-san, you check the room. Don't miss any corners. If you find anything, tell me immediately."
"Okay, I understand."
Hoshino Ai knew she couldn't just stick to Hayato's side the whole time. If she didn't contribute anything, she'd be seen as completely useless.
She might even get abandoned.
She approached the bed, her movements careful.
First, she pulled back the covers. The fabric felt soft and expensive under her fingers, but there was nothing hidden beneath. She checked the pillows. Nothing there either.
Next came the hard part.
Steeling her nerves, she took a deep breath and bent down to look under the bed. The carpet was rough against her palms as she braced herself. Her heart beat faster as she peered into the shadowy space beneath.
Nothing.
Relief washed over her.
She straightened up and turned to the bedside table. Her hand reached for the drawer handle.
Should I open this?
Her fingers hesitated on the handle. In a love hotel, what kinds of things would be in the bedside drawer?
She already knew the answer.
But she had to check. She had to be useful.
Swoosh...
The drawer slid open smoothly.
The items inside came into full view.
Her face burned instantly. Heat rushed to her cheeks as her eyes went wide.
Lubricant. Spray. And that thing... that cylindrical thing with the smooth surface... It's definitely a vibrator!
Having never experienced such things, how could she have ever seen these kinds of adult toys up close in real life?! Her heart was racing so hard she could hear it pounding in her ears.
"Find something?"
Hayato's voice made her jump.
"N-no..."
Hoshino Ai instinctively slammed the drawer shut.
Bang!
The sound echoed through the room, way louder than she intended.
Hayato walked over, curious now. Right in front of her increasingly red face, he calmly opened the drawer again.
He glanced inside, then back at her.
"Pretty normal stuff. No need to be embarrassed."
Easy for you to say!
Hoshino Ai's burning face turned away, her hands fidgeting nervously at her sides.
"Um... Hayato-kun, have you... have you used these before?"
The question slipped out before she could stop it.
"Probably will use them in the future."
In... in the future?
Her heart slammed against her ribs even harder. Her throat went dry. She swallowed hard, unable to stop the thought that crashed into her mind.
Not tonight, right?! Please not tonight!
Hayato reached into the drawer and started taking out the items one by one, completely casual about it. Hoshino Ai's imagination spiraled completely out of control, her face growing hotter by the second.
Then his hand paused.
Underneath the lubricant bottle, a piece of paper had been hidden at the bottom of the drawer.
He pulled it out.
That was... new rules.