Dimensional Hotel

Foxy followed Yu Sheng’s instructions without hesitation. As soon as he told her what to do, she picked up Irene’s oil painting, tucked it into her tail, and slipped out of the room, heading straight to the attic.

Meanwhile, on the bed, Irene was still holding onto a shred of optimism. “Hey, Yu Sheng, do you think something miraculous might happen…”

Before she could finish, both of the little dolls went utterly still. Their eyes lost all light, as though someone had switched them off, and they fell limply onto the bed.

For a few moments, Yu Sheng just stared in disbelief. Then he tilted his head at a slight angle, gazing at the ceiling. “I guess not.”

A few seconds later, he called towards the door, “Foxy! You can come back now!”

Quick footsteps sounded from outside. Foxy raced back down from the attic, retrieved the framed painting from her tail, and handed it to Yu Sheng. “Master! Here you go!”

The two little dolls on the bed suddenly sat bolt upright, their eyes wide with surprise.

Yu Sheng casually hung the painting on the back of one of them, turning her into Irene-P1.

As soon as Irene “woke up,” she didn’t complain about the lack of miracles. Instead, she stared straight at Foxy. “Can’t you clean up inside your tail?”

Yu Sheng’s eyebrows rose with curiosity. “Huh? You saw inside her tail? What’s it like in there?”

He realized right after speaking that his question might sound strange—though describing Foxy’s odd, rocket-powered, Doraemon-like tail always did feel a bit surreal.

“It’s dark, and I have no idea how big it is because I couldn’t see the end,” Irene explained, her hands fluttering as she spoke. “There’s a huge pile of junk in the middle, like a mountain. And on top of that, there’s all sorts of food, even leftovers. When I opened my eyes, there was half a box of instant noodles poking out in front of me, and next to it, a half-eaten roast chicken…”

Foxy hurried to defend herself, looking anxious. “I didn’t steal it. I told Master before—I saved the leftovers, too. It’s a waste to throw them out, and they don’t spoil in my tail.”n/o/vel/b//in dot c//om

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“At least organize it! It’s practically a garbage heap in there,” Irene complained. “Next time we go out, you should buy a couple of shelves, like in a supermarket. They’re not expensive.”

Their conversation grew stranger by the second, and finally, Yu Sheng interjected. “Let’s focus on Irene for a moment, okay?”

The doll and the fox girl ended their argument about food safety and the possibility of adding shelves in Foxy’s tail. They both returned their attention to Irene’s two bodies.

“Ahem,” Yu Sheng began, clearing his throat. “It’s confirmed: at least one doll body has to stay within five meters of the painting, or both dolls shut down and Irene’s soul returns to the painting.” He paused, then continued, “Now, let’s test how far the ‘secondary body’ can go while the ‘main body’ carries the painting.”

“How do we test that? There might not be enough space in here,” Irene said thoughtfully. “Should we head into the city? That would be tricky with so many people around…”

“That’s why there’s a better place,” Yu Sheng replied, a small smile forming on his face.

Before he could say more, Irene caught on. Both dolls spoke at once: “The valley!”

Yu Sheng nodded. “Exactly. It’s huge, so if we go from one end to the other, we can really see how far your secondary body can go. We also won’t have to worry about bystanders. But before we head there, I need to pick up some things.” Ŕ

The mere mention of shopping seemed to cheer Irene right up. Both dolls scooted to the edge of the bed. “Shopping? What are we getting? Clothes? Food? Or are you finally buying something for me? I’ve been wanting new outfits. I can conjure clothes, but it would be nice to have something different. Oh, and your coat is ruined. It was covered in blood yesterday and got torn, so you definitely can’t keep wearing that…”

The dolls began chattering, at first in unison, then separately, each rambling on its own. Yu Sheng soon felt a headache coming on. Irene was clearly growing used to controlling two bodies, switching between them and—even worse—talking with both at the same time.

He realized, far too late, that his “scientific curiosity” might have stirred up quite a problem.

Now, there were two chatterboxes going at once.

“Speak with just one body, please, not both!” Yu Sheng pleaded. “You’re giving me a migraine! And keep your voice down from now on.”

“But it’s so efficient!” Irene whined through the doll carrying the painting. Then she blinked up at him. “Anyway, you haven’t told us what we’re buying.”

“First, more food,” Yu Sheng said, counting on his fingers. “I’ll grab two boxes of instant noodles and a bunch of vacuum-sealed chicken legs for Foxy, as ‘reserves.’ Then we need vegetable seeds and some basic farming tools.” He paused, mentally calculating costs. “Oh, and I’ll need to stop by a hardware store… though maybe I should hold off if it’s too expensive.”

He looked worried at the thought. One more major shopping trip, and his savings would be drained. His new manuscript still wasn’t finished, and his “hotel” hadn’t brought in a single legitimate customer. The reward from the mission with Little Red Riding Hood wasn’t in yet—she’d said it could arrive today, but it was only a possibility.

Lately, it felt like money was only going out, never coming in—or rather, it had never really come in at all.

Most of his expenses went to Foxy’s meals. Clothing and basic necessities were one-time purchases, but feeding her was a never-ending cost. Still, Yu Sheng admitted that every penny spent on her appetite felt worth it. A tail that could store twenty chicken legs might sound like a lot, but in other words, she could launch a “cruise missile” every time she used up those chicken legs. Where else could he find a deal like that?

He even believed that if they started a chicken farm, Foxy could probably provide enough firepower to protect the entire Old City.

Irene, on the other hand, barely cost anything at all. Apart from the materials used to reshape her body—which had been the cheapest ones available—he hadn’t spent money on her clothes or her food. So far, the only thing she’d received was a tiny red hair clip, courtesy of Little Red Riding Hood, who had bought it during a casual shopping trip. It was just a children’s toy, really, but Irene had adored it for an entire day.

Thinking about all this, Yu Sheng suddenly felt a bit guilty toward Irene. She could be annoying and talkative, but she was always ready to help when something needed to be done.

“If worst comes to worst, I’ll use the emergency fund,” he muttered to himself. “And if that’s still not enough, maybe I can sell that ‘metal chunk’ to the Special Affairs Bureau…”

Irene, who was listening closely, asked, “What are you mumbling about?”

“Nothing,” Yu Sheng replied, waving away her question. “Just get ready to go. We’re not going far this time—just to the farmer’s market on the edge of the Old City. Foxy can carry you for disguise, and bring the painting so you don’t lose connection.”

“All right,” Irene agreed. One doll remained perched on the headboard, while the other, the one carrying the painting, climbed down from the bed. She took a few shaky steps before letting out a sigh of relief. “It’s fine if the other body stays still. By the way, how are we getting there? Calling a taxi?”

“…I’d teleport if I had a marker out there, just to save on the fare,” Yu Sheng grumbled. “But I don’t, so yes, we’re taking a cab.”

A few minutes later, Yu Sheng and Foxy—who had taken on her human form with long hair—stood on a street corner, waiting for their rideshare to arrive. Irene was being cradled by Foxy, looking every bit like a delicate doll.

“Once we have more money, we really should get a car,” Irene said in Yu Sheng’s mind, sounding hopeful. “We can’t always rely on rideshares…”

Yu Sheng glanced at Irene and raised an eyebrow. “What if it’s another Special Affairs Bureau car?”

“…Then I’ll pass,” Irene muttered.

Yu Sheng’s lips quirked into a grin. “Actually, I think an electric scooter would be good enough. A bigger one that can carry two people—Foxy could hop on the back, and when there’s nobody around, we could use her tail as a nine-tailed rocket booster. Just think: a hundred kilometers for a few cents of electricity plus a few buns to fuel Foxy. Maybe we’d even make money if the scooter has regenerative braking…”

“You’ve got quite the imagination,” Irene said irritably. Then something else occurred to her, and she gasped. “Hey, wait, where would I sit?!”

“I’d put you in the front basket,” Yu Sheng teased.

“…Yu Sheng, you jerk!” she cried.

Right then, a sleek silver car turned onto their street. Irene, who had been ready to fuss, immediately went limp in Foxy’s arms to keep up her “doll disguise.”

With a squeal of tires, the car pulled up in front of Yu Sheng.

Foxy leaned in and whispered, “Master, is this the car you ordered? It got here so quickly.”

Yu Sheng glanced at his phone and then at the license plate. “No… The one I called is still a couple of blocks away, stuck at a red light.”

At that moment, the window of the silver car rolled down.

The good news was, it wasn’t Xu Jiali’s worn-out old vehicle.

The bad news was that it belonged to someone Yu Sheng recognized—and not someone he was particularly thrilled to see.

Ren Wen Wen flashed them a beaming smile. “Hey, fancy meeting you here! Going out?”