Wu Xian, as the owner of a hot spring hotel and an elder figure in the role-playing community, how could he just sit back and let someone else take the title of "Shadow King" from him?
He didn't really expect the advertising event to bring him many customers, but seeing his opponent's professionalism, he suddenly felt a sense of competitiveness. If he couldn't even beat a little girl, how could he hold his head up in the community?
As for what impression the girl had of the hotel, it was no longer within his consideration. Even if she left a negative review on the forum... well, there were already enough people making sarcastic remarks about him, one more wouldn't make a difference.
In any case, he had to show the appropriate reaction to the witch based on his character traits. For example, he could give himself a suitable identity, a reclusive witch hunter tired of bloody battles, who lived on the outskirts and ran the hotel for a living, but still had a strong interest in the secular world and observed everything as a bystander.
He had long discovered that she was a witch, but due to his natural indifference towards the church, he had no interest in exposing witches for a bounty. In his eyes, all visitors were customers, as long as they could afford the price, anyone could stay.
Of course, she was the first guest since the hotel opened, so if she happened to be to his liking, it wouldn't be impossible to give her a free stay.
"Guest, welcome to Pukeko Castle Spa Hotel."
Since entering the door, the girl had been standing shyly at the entrance, grasping her hands tightly and feeling a bit lost. At this moment, she really didn't know whether stepping through that door was right or wrong. But at least one thing was clear, the owner of this hotel had no ill intentions towards her, and if not for his intervention just now, she would have been captured by the priests and had no chance of survival.
However, as the door closed, the bright lights in the corridor dimmed, and she could only see her own toes. The bronze snake reliefs embedded in the corridor walls seemed to come alive. She could hear the hissing of snakes and even feel several cold and slippery bodies sliding across her face, scaring her to the point where she couldn't move, and goosebumps covered her body.
For a moment, she wanted to leave this place regardless of everything. But the male voice suddenly coming from the lobby surprised her. This was actually a hotel! And it was a mysterious place named with a prefix she had never heard before.
Her gaze couldn't help but turn towards the lobby, which seemed quite distant from her position. A faint yellow light rose there, like a lighthouse, surrounded by darkness that surged and could devour everything in all directions.
"I don't have money..." The girl lowered her head, not knowing what fate awaited her.
The grand hotels in the capital didn't treat beggars and proletarians kindly, even sending guards to drive beggars away from the hotel walls. She had witnessed all of this and felt heartbroken. Who would have thought that she would also become a penniless wanderer, suffering discrimination and having to stay away from the church and clergymen in order to prevent them from sniffing out her identity?
She patiently waited for the hotel owner's response. Even if he asked her to leave, she would turn and leave without hesitation. Even in death, she would never bow down and beg anyone, doing anything that would compromise her dignity. This was her bottom line. She had lost everything, and this was her only remaining pride.
In the bright light, Wu Xian looked with interest at the girl who was completely immersed in her witch persona and had a conflicted expression at the door.
Indeed, how could a witch who was busy escaping for her life have money? So as an answer, Wu Xian deliberately adopted a cold attitude.
"Money? No, no, no. To stay here, what I need might not necessarily be money."
The girl opened her eyes in confusion, "What do you mean?"
It was the first time she had heard that staying at a hotel didn't require money. The darkness filling the corridor like ink and the omnipresent snake spirits made her realize that this was not an ordinary hotel. After all, the hotel owner had made a highly demonic whisper that forced a priest skilled in language arts to retreat.And just now, she took a sneak peek before the door closed. Outside the house, there was also a swirling black mist, as if she had suddenly left the village where she was being chased, and entered another time and space. "What do you need?" The girl asked, trembling, while enduring the pain left by falling off the cliff. At this moment, from the girl's perspective, a huge cloaked figure suddenly emerged from the dimly lit hall, far away from her. A voice that almost reached her soul sounded in her ears, "No matter what your status is in the mundane world, in my eyes, you are a guest at the hotel. It naturally requires a certain price to stay, but for you, I want to make an investment, for a witch who has experienced the world's ups and downs and strives for a peaceful life, her pursuit is perhaps stronger than anyone else's. And I happen to be able to provide all of this. So, if you can bring more companions, believe me, the door here will always be open to you." Wu Xian was very satisfied with his diplomatic expression. That's right, isn't this the promise of not charging her for lodging in exchange for her bringing in more customers? After all, a beautiful girl who is enthusiastic about role-playing games must have no shortage of companions who love such games. What she obtained in exchange for the painful loss was a rich source of customers. From a long-term perspective, she would not lose. "Could it be... Could this be the legendary Witches' Aid Society?" The girl suddenly remembered that when she was in exile, she had briefly interacted with a witch. She said that if there was still a place in this world where witches could survive, it must be the Witches' Aid Society. The girl asked if it was possible to remove a witch's abilities and become a normal person again. The witch shook her head and sighed, once becoming a witch, there was no possibility of restoration. Otherwise, how could the Witches' Aid Society exist? However, she didn't know the specific location of the Aid Society, so she wanted to find a paradise for witches before being discovered by the Holy See. Because their paths of pursuit were different, the girl did not travel with her. Wu Xian was very pleased with the girl's response. Yes, this is what he wanted, haha. He had not encountered such a dedicated player who was almost unable to distinguish reality from fantasy for a long time. "The Witches' Aid Society? No no no! Just remember, this is Pukeko Castle Spa Hotel. I provide accommodation services for anyone, as long as you can give me what I want."
