In the world of anime with the power to stop time.

Chapter 027: The Meaning of Numbers

Hoshino Ai clearly remembered that after Taisuke interacted with the female receptionist, it led to her transformation into a grotesque, eerie entity.

Now, Lin Ye intended to go to the lobby to interact with the female receptionist. But why?!

Faced with the two women's confusion, Lin Ye didn't offer an explanation. Instead, he continued downstairs and pushed open the emergency exit door on the first floor.

The emergency exit door, which couldn't be opened from outside no matter how much force was used, now opened effortlessly with a slight push.

Bright light from the first-floor lobby streamed in, dispelling the dimness at the stairway entrance.

The three of them once again entered the lobby of the hotel's first floor.

At the reception desk,

A woman in a black suit sat quietly,

When Lin Ye and the others appeared in the lobby, she proactively approached them step by step, her curvaceous figure on full display once more.

"Guests, how can I assist you?"

Her inquiry style hadn't changed much.

Hoshino Ai kept her mouth tightly shut. No matter what she heard, she wouldn't respond in any way.

"We encountered an emergency situation,"

Lin Ye spoke.

"After the cleaner finished tidying the room, they closed the door, making it impossible for us to re-enter. Now, both the room cards for Room 304 and Room 306 are invalid."

He took out the two room cards and handed them to the female receptionist.

"Please help us reset the room cards."

"I understand. We apologize for the inconvenience caused by the negligence of our staff. Thank you for your patience."

After accepting the two room cards, the female receptionist returned to her workstation and began a series of operations.

Hoshino Ai and Kuroda Hikaru stared in astonishment.

So that's how it was.

So that's how it was.

Does asking the front desk for help in an emergency refer to this situation?

Well, in a normal hotel stay, if the room card fails, seeking help from the front desk is indeed the right thing to do.

They could return to their room.

But,

What about the contamination issue?

Hoshino Ai glanced at Lin Ye, then at Kuroda Hikaru. The contamination on both of them hadn't diminished at all; they were just two or three degrees away from resembling the grotesque cleaner they had seen earlier.

Two minutes later,

The female receptionist approached Lin Ye, handing him the two room cards.

"Guests, everything has been taken care of,"

"Thank you,"

"It's my duty,"

She smiled.

"I really mean it—thank you for your help."

"It's part of my responsibility as a staff member of this hotel. May you have a pleasant night here."

The three took the elevator back to the third floor.

The cleaner was no longer there.

Beep...

The door to Room 304 opened.

The three of them stepped inside.

The room was now spotlessly clean, with no trace of dust or blood, as if it were brand new.

"It's been cleaned thoroughly—nothing is left."

Lin Ye noticed a change in a particular item and smiled.

His analysis had been completely correct.

There would be no problem until six o'clock.

"All right, let's get some rest! We have three hours to sleep."

Hoshino Ai blinked, completely confused.

"Um… could it be that Lin Ye-kun has already found the cause of our contamination and successfully resolved it?"

"Something like that."

Hoshino Ai and Kuroda Hikaru exchanged a glance, then immediately moved closer to Lin Ye, shaking him as they asked,

"Tell us! What's really going on in this hotel? Why did our contamination worsen, and why is it suddenly fine now?"

Having survived in the hotel for several hours, Hoshino Ai was intensely curious, eager to understand the mysteries and rules of the situation. Kuroda Hikaru felt the same.

The two women stared at him with wide, expectant eyes.

"I'm tired,"

"Lin Ye-kun,"

"Lin Ye-senpai,"

The two girls flanked Lin Ye, one on each side, enthusiastically using their small fists to massage his shoulders and back.

"Please satisfy our curiosity, Lin Ye-kun! I... I... after we leave this hotel and return to reality, I'll wear white stockings just for you… and even perform a dance just for you."

This… wasn't bad.

"I, I..."

The pressure shifted to Kuroda Hikaru.

"I'll wear a school swimsuit for Lin Ye-senpai to see," Kuroda Hikaru said, barely containing her embarrassment.

"Fine, fine! It's not actually that hard to figure out, but if overlooked, it's easy to miss entirely."

Lin Ye began to explain,

"Did you notice that?"

He pointed to the digital clock hanging on the wall.

"The clock?"

"The numbers beneath the time display."

"It's zero. What does that mean?"

"When we left Room 306 at 1:15 a.m., what was the number? Did either of you notice?"

The two girls shook their heads.

"It was 70."

"This..."

"But now it's zero."

"Why?"

"Cleaning," Lin Ye explained.

"After a room is cleaned, everything inside resets to zero."

Reset to zero?

Wasn't that just the room being cleaned and tidied up?

Hoshino Ai vaguely grasped something but felt as if she were still separated from the truth by a thin layer of glass, unable to fully break through.

What did that number represent?

She felt that was the key.

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