I Have a Five-star Seaside Hotel

"Cut!"

"Absolutely perfect!!!"

The director of the crew shouted from the side.

"Incredible! Amazing, this scene feels even sweeter than what we see in the drama."

Watching the footage of Zhu Tingting preparing honey lemon water for the female lead, and the female lead gazing at Zhu Tingting with sparkling eyes,

even without words, the overwhelming sweetness in the atmosphere was palpable.

"You're truly a natural-born actor!"

"How did you come up with that?"

"I never expected you to carry honey and lemon slices with you..."

Praise from the crew members poured into Zhu Tingting's ears one after another.

Zhu Tingting nodded with a smile, clutching the paper bag of honey in his hand, a hint of bitterness flashing in his eyes.

This wasn't a carefully planned act,

but rather a habit he had developed in the past, one he couldn't shake off...

First love is such a curse!

Zhu Tingting tossed the honey bag into the nearby trash bin and was about to head to the makeup room to remove his makeup when his agent rushed over, beaming with joy.

"Tingting, I didn't expect you to receive endorsement offers so quickly."

"And it's double the good news—two offers at once!"

"Really?!" Zhu Tingting's spirits lifted.

He took the tablet from his agent's hands and looked at it.

"Magic Century Theme Park spokesperson... Isn't that the largest amusement park in the country right now? They want me as their spokesperson??"

Zhu Tingting was thrilled.

Just moments ago, he had been drowning in the bitterness of his first love, but now the joy of the endorsement offer washed over him, his eyes sparkling with excitement.

"What's the other one? Summer Momo Café?"

"What brand is that?"

"I've never heard of it."

A look of contemplation crossed Zhu Tingting's face.

He had been filming all over the place this year and had drunk quite a bit of coffee, but he had never come across this brand.

Instantly, his interest waned.

"Don't underestimate this café. It has a strong background!" the agent quickly interjected.

"The owner behind it is actually the boss of Lion Castle Hotel, your old boss, Chen Jianhai."

Zhu Tingting: Now you've got my full attention!!!

He quickly took a closer look at the endorsement offer for Summer Momo.

"I'll take it! I'll take this endorsement!"

"I can do it for free!!"

Before Zhu Tingting could finish, his agent shot him a stern look.

"Stop talking nonsense!"

"If you do it for free, how are you going to pay our salaries?"

Zhu Tingting's enthusiasm deflated, and he let out a sigh of resentment.

In the past, he was a lone wolf, responsible only for himself, with no one else to worry about.

But now he had signed with a management company, and there was a whole team relying on him for their livelihoods.

He could no longer live as carefree as before.

"If you can secure both the hotel and the café endorsements, we can gradually get you higher-level endorsements!"

The agent's eyes grew brighter as he spoke.

But Zhu Tingting felt a growing sense of unease.

Although he had been busy filming recently and hadn't communicated much with his boss,

he still kept in touch with Lin Suyang, the electrician, and the plumber.

Chen Jianhai had opened Lion Castle Hotel, which was currently in competition with the neighboring Magic Century Theme Park. The two were still rivals.

If he accepted the Summer Momo Café endorsement from his boss, what about Magic Century Theme Park?

Watching his agent negotiating prices and work details with the other party, Zhu Tingting felt a headache coming on...

---

Lion Castle Hotel 

7 PM.

Pang Xuehen shuddered, his eyes snapping open as he let out a scream.

At this moment, his entire body was drenched in cold sweat, veins bulging on his forehead, his hands gripping the bedsheet tightly as he gasped for breath.

The moment he opened his eyes,

Pang Xuehen looked around in panic, as if trying to confirm something.

"It's not a dream..."

"It's not a dream..."

Muttering softly, Pang Xuehen scrambled out of bed,

grabbed a nearby brush, and with trembling hands, wiped the sweat from his forehead as he frantically began drawing on the paper.

At his feet,

seven or eight draft sketches were scattered on the carpet,

each one eerily bizarre. Even though they were just rough outlines, the oppressive emotions they conveyed were overwhelming, making it hard to breathe and leaving one feeling uneasy.

Swish, swish.

Swish, swish...

Scratch, scratch.

The rough friction of the brush against the paper produced a faint, dense sound.

Perhaps because there was no television in the room,

or maybe because the hotel's soundproofing was too good,

the room was eerily quiet,

with nothing but Pang Xuehen's breathing and the sound of the brush to be heard.

After about an hour, a grotesque and terrifying sketch appeared on the easel.

"Phew..."

Pang Xuehen stared at the drawing, and even though it was his own work, it sent chills down his spine.

He loosened the easel,

and the draft once again fell onto the carpet.

After sharpening his pencil and setting up a new sheet of paper,

Pang Xuehen went to the bathroom and drank some water.

Then he sat back on the bed, leaned back,

and within five seconds, he was asleep again.

---

Lion Castle Hotel Reception Hall 

"Has something happened to the guest in room 1703?"

"From the time he checked in this morning until now, it seems like he hasn't left his room."

"Are you sure?"

"Maybe he left through the Elf Tower and didn't use the main entrance."

"Impossible!"

"The boss was worried about room 1703, so he specifically placed a camera in the hallway facing the room so we could monitor the guest's situation at all times."

"From the time the guest checked in this morning until now, he hasn't come out."

The receptionist spoke with concern to Lin Suyang.

Lin Suyang was also a bit confused.

"Could something have happened...? Usually, incidents in room 1703 happen at night, right?"

In all this time, there had been a few guests who stayed in room 1703,

but they all had incidents in the middle of the night and ran out. No one had ever heard of anything happening during the day.

"Should we keep an eye on it?"

"It's only 8 PM now. The uplifting energy of the news broadcast is still floating across the land. Surely nothing's wrong, right???"

The receptionist glanced at Lin Suyang and awkwardly said:

"But our hotel rooms don't have TVs."

Lin Suyang: ...

Just as everyone at Lion Castle Hotel was worrying about Pang Xuehen's condition,

Pang Xuehen in room 1703 had woken up in terror again, drenched in cold sweat as he sat on a chair, frantically drawing.

This hotel was simply incredible.

Every time he lay down on the pillow, he had nightmares.

The dreams were bizarre and fantastical,

filled with ghosts and monsters,

and even included memories of him hiding alone in a basement, living a dark life with no guarantee of meals or the ability to publish his work.

Each dream was different, and as the night progressed, the dreams became more vivid.

Just now, he had even experienced a dream within a dream!

The lines between reality and illusion blurred, and several times when he opened his eyes, he couldn't be sure if he was truly awake or still dreaming.

In any case, room 1703 was simply heaven!!!

After finishing the draft in his hand, Pang Xuehen let out a long sigh.

He rubbed his throbbing temples and pulled out a cup of instant noodles from his bag, pouring hot water into it.

"Good thing I brought a few cups of instant noodles with me. Otherwise, it would've been hard to find food this late."

Pang Xuehen stared at the new flavor of instant noodles, a hint of confusion in his eyes.

"Can this transition really succeed?"

The market is very resistant to dark, heavy themes these days.

Life is already hard enough. People prefer to watch sweet, happy, and lighthearted things. No one wants to open a comic during their free time only to be subjected to more suffering.

Although there are some popular comics with dark themes,

they usually start with cute, lovable characters and a light, fresh art style to draw readers in,

then gradually reveal the darker, more heartbreaking aspects as the story progresses, keeping readers hooked even as they curse the updates.

As for his own work, regardless of the content,

the art style alone is dark and eerie.

Even if the storyline is as plain as water, simply depicting the daily life of the protagonist, it still feels like a horror story. Reading it for too long gives people chills.

Honestly, with his art style, drawing ghost stories would be the most suitable.

But there's no way around it.

These kinds of stories aren't encouraged nowadays. He had barely started two ghost comics before they were banned.

There was no choice but to transition.

But the process of transitioning... is so difficult.

His art style and brushstrokes are almost ingrained in his blood. The moment his hand touches the paper, the heavy, dark tones uncontrollably spill onto the page.

Sometimes, after drawing for a while, even he gets scared.

After finishing the instant noodles, soup and all, Pang Xuehen let out a satisfied burp and picked up the draft sketches from the carpet, examining them one by one.

Each drawing was a nightmare.

"If I add more light and brighten the images a bit, I might be able to post them on an illustration website and gain some traction."

Pang Xuehen looked at the drafts with satisfaction.

Although he wanted to sleep a few more times to gather inspiration,

his body and mind couldn't take it anymore.

If he lay down to sleep again, he would surely go mad.

Since he didn't dare to sleep,

Pang Xuehen picked up his brush and began meticulously refining the drafts.

Time passed minute by minute,

and by the time Pang Xuehen put down his brush, rubbing his sore neck, it was already 1:30 AM.

"It's this late already..."

Pang Xuehen stood up and walked to the window.

Lion Lake Castle stood quietly under the moonlight, golden lights glowing within the rose-shaped lamp stands, and the faint chirping of insects could be heard.

"The night view here is beautiful!"

"Let's go out for a walk."

Pang Xuehen stretched lazily.

For a long time now, he had been living a nocturnal lifestyle, often sleeping until almost afternoon, eating, drawing, and then going out for a night run.

Today, he had slept all day and wasn't tired,

so going out to enjoy the hotel's night view sounded like a good idea.

With that thought, Pang Xuehen unceremoniously put on the hotel-provided elf robe, pulled up the hood, and walked out of the room.

---

Hotel Lobby, First Floor 

The receptionist and the night-shift security staff were huddled together, chatting and sneaking snacks.

At this hour, there were usually no guests around, so they could relax a bit, nibble on snacks, and slack off.

"It's almost 2 AM. Why hasn't he come out yet?"

"Right? I even prepared a bed for him."

"Do you think it's possible that nothing happened~ and he'll just peacefully make it through the night?"

"Don't kid yourself... Do you think everyone is as bold as our boss?"

"In all this time, besides our boss, I've never seen anyone else so fearless."

"You guys have no idea. That morning when we rushed into room 1703 with Brother Lang, the boss was lying in bed, snoring loudly, and even drooling."

"Drooling? I heard he was crying with his eyes closed."

"Haha, our boss crying???"

"Those were just tears from yawning! They were all over his face!"

...

Just as they were quietly gossiping about whether Chen Jianhai had been crying or drooling that morning,

the elevator beside them lit up.

"Someone's coming!"

"Could it be the guest from room 1703??"

They exchanged glances and quickly returned to their posts, ready to greet the guest.

Then, the elevator doors opened.

Instead of the expected scene of someone crying and running out in a panic,

a young man in an elf robe walked out calmly and composedly.

"Good evening, sir."

"Hello~"

"Good evening, sir."

They all greeted Pang Xuehen warmly.

"Hello,"

Pang Xuehen was surprised to see so many people at the reception this late. It startled him a bit.

After exchanging brief greetings, Pang Xuehen didn't linger and headed straight for the Emerald Lake outside.

At that moment, the receptionist's internal phone rang:

"How's it going? Did you take care of the guest?"

Receptionist: ???

Hotel staff: "The guest from room 1703. I saw him heading to the main building on the surveillance cameras. Didn't he come to you?"

Receptionist: !!!

Meanwhile, Pang Xuehen, who had become the center of attention for the receptionist and hotel staff, was walking along the white pebble path by the lake.

This lake is so beautiful!

The emerald-green surface of the lake, smooth and serene during the day, now shimmered under the silver moonlight, shrouded in a misty haze that blended with the night, creating a dreamlike scene.

"Huh?"

What's that?

Suddenly, Pang Xuehen's footsteps halted, his eyes fixed on the center of the lake.

In the dark, emerald-green center of the lake, a warm orange light suddenly flickered to life.

In an instant,

a hexagonal golden candy jar carousel appeared in the middle of the lake.

The moment the golden candy jar carousel appeared, the calm surface of the lake rippled violently, as if a massive creature was swimming up from the depths.

"Is this some kind of purification device under the lake?"

Pang Xuehen's interest was piqued.

He had always been curious about how lakes like this stayed clean and odor-free.

Now that he had the chance, he could finally satisfy his curiosity.

With that thought, Pang Xuehen couldn't help but take a few steps forward to get a better look.

In the next moment,

six beautiful, massive tails burst out of the water, their sleek lines and golden scales glistening under the moonlight, radiating a mesmerizing brilliance that was impossible to look away from.

"What is this..."

Pang Xuehen's eyes widened in shock, unable to believe what he was seeing.

Perhaps because he had spent the entire day oscillating between nightmares and wakefulness in room 1703,

or maybe he was still trapped in a dream within a dream,

joyful, fantastical notes danced under the colorful lights,

and a mermaid with flowing hair swayed her lotus-like, radiant tail on the carousel, stretching out her arms and arching her swan-like neck, singing under the silver moonlight.

In all his life, Pang Xuehen had never seen such a beautiful and dazzling creature.

"So beautiful..."

Pang Xuehen murmured, unable to tear his eyes away from the scene.

Is this a dream?