"Hey, Second. Wake up."
"H-Huh?" she yawned.
"It's already 7:00 PM. We need to guard room 305."
Second woke up when she heard that. She twitched her body to sit. She gazed at the wall clock, and it was nighttime! She ate the food she had bought earlier outside. She took a quick shower and changed into new clothes. How long had she been asleep?
"Why didn't you wake me up earlier?" she complained at First.
"Don't worry, I can't detect the presence of that monster."
She ran to the elevator, but it was taking a long time, so she just climbed the stairs. After all, her room was only on the 2nd floor. She looked around and went to the front desk, but the receptionist was not there. She approached the chambermaid who cleaned her room and changed her bedsheet earlier.
"Ma'am, nothing. I didn't notice her."
She just observed something about the chambermaid; she had beautiful eyes. She approached the janitor. He was in the men's comfort room.
"No, Ma'am." There seemed to be something in what the janitor said. She shrugged it off.
Everyone sounds busy. A series of murders had occurred in this hotel, and the suspect was not an ordinary human, so all the workers there must work harder. She had no choice but to go to room 305. She went up in the elevator. When she arrived on the 3rd floor, she looked for room 305 hastily. She knocked several times, and luckily, someone opened.
"Oh, Ma'am, it's you. Do you need anything?" The receptionist was wearing shorts, a t-shirt, and slippers.
Second guessed she would no longer work since she wasn't wearing her uniform and had left her post.
"I just wanted to say something. We stopped talking earlier, right?" Their conversation got interrupted.
"Ah, yes. Come on in," she invited her into her room. This would be a private talk, so this was perfect.
At first, she was skeptical, but she insisted on letting her in. Her room was about the same size as hers. She sat on her little red sofa while she prepared snacks. She looked around, and it was just an ordinary room. There was a red sofa, a small bed, a table, a lampshade, and a bathroom. She thought it was cold there. She saw her window. The curtains weren't fastened properly, as if they had been pulled forcefully. The window was also open, so it was cold. She gazed at the air conditioner; it was turned off. She must have been changing her curtain.
"Here," the receptionist lowered the tray she was holding. "Have some."
Second checked the snacks she had given her. A soda in a can, chips, and cookies.
The receptionist smiled at her. "Ma'am, what are we going to talk about?"
She sat on the edge of her bed opposite the sofa she was sitting on. She took a goblet with her left hand and filled it with wine. She was ready to give some of it to her, but she refused.
Second scratched her head, thinking about how to restart the conversation they had earlier. She got chills from the cold. Wasn't it cold, or was her skin just too thin?
"Oh, your window is open. Aren't you getting cold?" she mentioned.
The receptionist was a little surprised and stood up rashly. "I'm sorry. I think I left the window open, and I just arrived here." She closed the window with her left hand. She felt shy. That was quite demanding of her. When she returned to her seat, Second questioned her.
"Miss, do you like sweets?"
She must like sweets, as seen in the snacks she gave her. Earlier, she saw near the bathroom some bags with grocery items.
"Yes, so much."
"Did you just buy them?" Then she pointed out the bag of snacks.
"No, it's already in stock. I really like sweets, don't I?" she chuckled.
She nodded. "So, how is your baby?"
The receptionist caressed her stomach. "It's okay, very healthy." She smiled.
There was something off there. Second scanned around. Red small sofa, small single bed, table, lampshade, and bathroom. The sofa was only good for one person, so it was not possible. As for the bed, she didn't see anything under it because the bed sheet wasn't hanging on its side. The only possible place was… the bathroom!
"Miss, can I use your bathroom?"
Her eyes widened for a moment, and she blinked. "I'm sorry, it's under maintenance. You can go to the lobby's comfort room."
Why did she react like that? Were her suspicions correct? She calmed down because of the imagined possibility. She would take this one slowly before she caught her alive. She went back to sitting, and she smiled at her. She told her she would use the comfort room in the lobby later, after they talked.
Second became instantly rattled. "About my real purpose here..." She hoped she could convey her intention of being there.
"Mm?" She seemed eager to hear her purpose there, but because of what she found out, maybe her real purpose would change as well.
Second knew First saw her now. She hoped he also noticed something strange in their situation now because… she was in danger. She was getting nervous. Her heartbeat quickened, and there was sweat dripping on her right eyebrow. Were they still going to proceed with their original plan, which was to protect her? They had an idea that the one who lived in room 305 would be the next victim of Zarod. His victims had room numbers 605, 505, and 405, so the next one was 305. An obvious killing pattern that Zarod did. They didn't know yet if it was purely a coincidence or if he did it on purpose.
"Second, I know what you're thinking. Get out of that room, now!" An authoritative voice of First engulfed the silent room. The moment she heard that tone, it meant the grave danger that she needed to follow his order.
First could control her right now to leave that room, but he was giving her her free will. Even without an attacking enemy, he could still do it, but he strongly respected her decisions. And that was one of the traits she liked the most.
"Listen to me. I know you already deciphered it. It's too dangerous," he convinces her.
It wouldn't end if no one ended this. From the beginning, this had been First's and her mission. She used to escape Zarod because she was alone and got scared, but now... she would face him—they would face him.
"Hey, stop that-"
Please coordinate with me, First.
Second knew he could read her thoughts without the need to speak out.
"You won't get anything out of pretending... Zarod," she uttered with a serious tone.