"That was dangerous."
Yu Seong-un said, like a sigh.
"It was a matter I agreed to, but watching the employees whisper about the 'ghost story' made my own heart tremble. A mutiny could have easily broken out."
"Our guild members are not so narrow-minded as to start a mutiny over a single ghost story. Do you have low faith in your colleagues, Curator Yu Seong-un?"
"Faith or not, it was too much of a gamble, wasn't it? This was not a matter where we could be reassured on the grounds of trust between colleagues."
Although things turned out well in the end, the fact that it was a dangerous gamble remained unchanged.
"It was practically letting loose a being of the Source whose identity hasn't even been properly identified…."
He still didn't know what Jio's identity was.
For some reason, that was still the case.
No matter how many books Yu Seong-un rummaged through, not a single similar entity appeared.
There might be an answer if he entrusted the investigation to the Association, but it was uncertain what the probability of that would be and in the first place, Bisabeol would not allow it.
'He's someone who puts so much effort into his own things.'
However, one thing was certain: 'Jio's Portrait' was clearly being strongly influenced by the Source.
Gardeners and the few humans who knew of their existence referred to such monsters, items, or skills or phenomena as 'Beings of the Source'.
It was a way of glossing over it, since it was difficult to define specifically.
It was a slightly embarrassing fact for a professional of this era, but 'Jio's Portrait' was just such a case.
"It could have easily turned into a situation where we let loose a disaster."
"Well now, what do you think Jio's identity is, Curator Yu Seong-un?"
"Are you changing the subject…."
"It is an ordinary question."
"...."
Yu Seong-un shrugged.
"Of course, I do not know. Just as it has been until now."
Jio was on a different track from ordinary Beings of the Source.
"First, it is highly probable that he is not a monster."
"Certainly, they are hostile to the civilization outside the dungeon."
"Their hostility is close to an instinct. It's reflexive, like how a human freaks out or wants to kill a cockroach on sight. It's not something a monster can control just by deciding to…."
"Even if we were to assume it's possible, with that level of patience and judgment, they would have already surpassed the level of a 'monster'."
"In that sense, I judged that he is probably not a monster."
Jio's goodwill, being due to his affection for the species itself, sometimes felt indifferent or merciless, but that did not mean it was not pure goodwill.
Therefore, he could not be a monster.
"He is showing a completely different aspect from a monster, isn't he?"
Yu Seong-un nodded.
"Of course, there are monsters that are friendly to humans, but strictly speaking, that's closer to a love-hate relationship than affection. The deformity incident 11 years ago, if it had been truly pure goodwill, they would have carefully observed the humans wailing in fear and sorted it out."
"But weren't they said to have been enjoying it?"
"There's the fact that they have no intention of understanding humans in the first place, and perhaps the humans' reactions were simply amusing. As for this part, the incident was hastily resolved, so it ended as an unsolved case… I can't say anything for sure either."
"That's not what's important right now, so let's move on."
"Hmm, and…."
Yu Seong-un rolled his deep navy-blue eyes and continued.
"He is not an item either."
"But there are certainly items with a consciousness."
"The consciousness dwelling in an item is strictly something created by humans. It has its limits."
He added.
"It's not something that can be determined by how much they can think like a human… you have to look at their essence."
"Essence, you say?"
"Jio created life, at least within the portrait."
After a moment of thought, Yu Seong-un tilted his head.
"Perhaps the life created in such a way can come out of the painting. I haven't heard the answer from Jio, but in the first place, since he himself has no restrictions on coming out and can easily smuggle out objects from the painting, the possibility is high."
"What if Jio draws a monster and it comes out?"
"That seems possible too. Even if it's not, it's already a confirmed fact that Jio alone can freely exit. If it's just an item and not a monster, or if Jio brings out a contracted beast he has subjugated with his soul, that alone is already impossible to handle."
"And a mere item cannot do that much?"
"All items are created by humans. Even if you think without prejudice, at most only a highly intelligent monster can create one. Creating life is impossible at the level of a human or a monster, and it has already been testified by numerous witnesses that the level of his soul is not something to be compared with a human's. He is not an item."
"Aha."
Bisabeol chuckled as if he found it amusing. For his age, he looked quite childish.
"Then what about a type of skill? In the case of skills, it was proven long ago that they can handle souls. There is only one, but there is a user of a resurrection skill that can even bring back the dead."
"That too is just fiddling with a soul that was already there; it does not create a new soul from scratch. Even if a skill capable of soul creation exists somewhere in the world… in the first place, a skill is an intangible energy that can be handled by an intelligent life form."
"Meaning that Jio, who has a form and a consciousness, cannot be the remnant of a skill, right? But what if he is just a type of awakener who obtained a skill that allows him to turn himself into a portrait?"
Bisabeol waved his finger and said.
"Jio also refers to himself as a 29-year-old young man, and said he has been in human society in the past. In that case, he could just be a type of awakener that has not been discovered until now."
Yu Seong-un shook his head.
"Impossible."
"Why is that? Do you see something, Mr. Yu Seong-un, who was the research team leader of the Association?"
"If anyone can see it, it would be you, Guild Master, who sees it better…. I just know something."
"Then what do you know?"
"In the first place, do you know why super-powered individuals came to be called 'Awakeners'?"
"Hmm…."
Bisabeol shrugged.
"It's not a field I'm that interested in."
"It seems your high pride would be scratched if you just said you don't know."
"Well, it would be quite a lot, I am the head of one of South Korea's top three guilds. Can you even imagine how expensive this single grain of pride is?"
"I'm sure it is."
Yu Seong-un, who had let out a hollow, bitter laugh, continued.
"It's easy if you retrace the meaning of the word 'awakening'."
"1. To wake up and come to one's senses.
2. To realize and know.
3. An attitude of coming to one's senses and being carefully observant and vigilant."
"…You said it's not a field you're interested in, but you're like a dictionary…."
"I wonder if there's any meaning in becoming a guild master with just an Appraisal Skill if I don't even know the meaning of words."
"Ah, yes. I'm sure you're right."
"So which one of these is it?"
"Hmm… any of them will do."
Yu Seong-un continued nonchalantly.
"What's important is its essence."
"Interesting."
"In any meaning, awakening is to be newly configured from a pre-existing state."
He rested his chin on his hand.
"Whether you open your eyes and come to your senses, fix your unfortunately twisted mentality, or mature internally and reflect on your younger days… it is a change that happens within that one person who has always existed."
"Aha, so?"
"An Awakener's skill is not a newly received ability, but a method by which an ability buried within one's own aptitude is awakened. When dungeons appeared, energy and resources that did not originally exist on Earth were generated, and the environment changed along with it. Humans evolved to match that."
"I think there was similar content in the Center's textbook. So, I can understand it as meaning that the era came when one could realize that the stone one originally had was a diamond, and so they realized it?"
"That's roughly similar."
Yu Seong-un scratched the back of his neck.
"In that sense, Jio cannot be considered an Awakener."
"Hmm…."
"Even if he were an Awakener, the level of his original soul would have been awakened, not newly granted."
"I suppose so."
Although these two did not know it, there was a flaw in Yu Seong-un's words.
Seo Jio was a case where, during the process of Earth's new birth, he had very, extremely, and incredibly coincidentally merged with the Source, and the level of his soul had risen.
This was a miraculous transformation with a probability that was difficult to observe in a small dimension like Earth.
"This is a headache."
"It is a headache."
Of course, the two of them, at a point only 30 years after the Great Catastrophe, could not have figured this out.
In their eyes, as ordinary humans, 'Jio's Portrait' was simply a being that was not human from the beginning.
"...."
Bisabeol, who had been pondering with his bright yellow eyes blinking, opened his mouth.
"Then what if we call Jio a 'Child of the Source'?"
"That's also a bit… strange, don't you think."
"Please explain in what sense it is strange."
"Most Children of the Source have nothing that can be called reason. No, we don't even have to go as far as the Children, this applies to almost all beings born from the Source…."
Yu Seong-un said with a reluctant look on his face.
"If I were to explain a Being of the Source in one phrase, it would be a 'living story'. Therefore, they cannot think. Even if they seem to be thinking, it's just an illusion; they are not actually thinking."
"Are you certain?"
"…Not really… no. No matter how much of a Gardener I am, this field has not been properly revealed yet."
After a moment of hesitation, Yu Seong-un continued.
"I was just saying that based on the Children of the Source I have seen so far, who could all be seen as nature itself."
It is not uncommon for a human with a strong thought to create a dungeon with their own rules and become the boss monster there.
But even they could not be called 'Children of the Source'.
"A monster is one of two things. It was either created in a dungeon, or it became a monster because it created a dungeon."
"Hmm…."
"It's a different story from the 'Children of the Source' who are generated directly from the Source or coincidentally come to belong to the vein of the Source and are thus generated here and there in the dimensions."
"That story is always fascinating to hear."
Bisabeol's eyes split thinly like a snake's as he smiled.
"From my perspective as a Hunter, it seems the biggest secret of the world is, indeed, the dungeons."
"That's a good thing. There are many people who still can't adapt to the existence of dungeons, so if you tell them that those dungeons were formed from a cosmic concept called the Source… everyone's heads would explode."
"I am always grateful to all of you Gardeners. Shall I make you some coffee?"
"No, thank you. I'm sick of caffeine."
Yu Seong-un was openly disgusted.
He was already busy and often worked overtime, but recently, to talk to Jio who only opened his eyes at dawn, he had been consuming all sorts of caffeine and was on the verge of throwing up.
"Anyway, well, that's right. If I had to categorize him, it would be much easier to explain if we call Jio a Child of the Source. There's no other way to explain it… and the Source is not a narrow concept that can be grasped in 30 years by mere beings of Earth."
"Well, we haven't even fully figured out the dungeons yet, so we probably don't have the capacity to explore the knowledge below that."
"The Association President still seems to be very interested, but, well. It's still hard to say anything about Jio's identity."
The Source is an ecosystem and nature itself.
Just as the nitrogen in the atmosphere does not understand humans, the Children of the Source are originally sorely lacking in understanding of humans.
They simply survive in their own way and cultivate their own 'story'.
But Jio was not like that.
"How is that possible… Well, I don't know. He said he was a human in the past, so if we investigate, we might find something…?"
"...."
"Even so, I can't understand how a human can become a Child of the Source. Even if he was a human, there's a possibility that he wasn't a human from Earth."
Many novice Gardeners often confuse 'monsters' and 'Children of the Source', but just because they were formed under the great influence of the Source does not mean they are the same.
"Monsters are born in dungeons and Children of the Source are born from the Source. They were born from different wombs in the first place, so the two cannot be the same."
"Would it be roughly the relationship between an uncle and a nephew?"
"Hmm… it would be somewhat similar."
The order is that 'dungeons' and 'Children of the Source' are formed from the matrix of the Source, and monsters are formed from those 'dungeons'.
This is the usual flow.
"In the case of a human-type monster or something equivalent, they might create a dungeon first and create new rules or monsters in it, but such cases are not common…."
The phrase uncle and nephew is not that wrong.
"In the first place, there is also a theory that the dungeon itself is one of the Children of the Source."
"Ah, is that so?"
"This part still requires more research. I can't say for sure. Anyway…."
Yu Seong-un looked at Bisabeol.
"So, was it alright?"
"...."
"You've decided to let such an unidentified being roam free."
At that, Bisabeol shrugged.
"…Weren't we just discussing the answer to that from the beginning?"
How on earth could one not let that unidentified, uncontrollable being be free?
"He's not a monster, not an item, not an awakener and to call him a Child of the Source, there are too many strange things."
"...."
"He creates life, the level of his soul is high, there is nothing he cannot do. He does it all by himself. If there were restrictions or conditions for him to come out of the portrait, it might be different, but he does that freely and easily."
"…That's right."
"How do you plan to stop him? Is it even possible? We can't even handle a god who has become much more familiar, so how do you intend to stop 'Jio's Portrait', whose identity is even more unknown?"
Bisabeol smiled and waved his hand.
"Ah, perhaps it would be possible if we took a human he cares about as a hostage."
"Are you insane?"
"I naturally expected such a reaction. Not only is it not to the taste of benevolent people like us from a humanitarian perspective, but we also don't know how effective a method it would be in the first place. With Jio's level of ability, he could smuggle out a hostage anytime… then we would only incur his wrath."
"...."
"Do you understand?"
He laughed as if he were amused.
"We can't stop him."
"…I know."
"What's the difference between that and trying to stop a tidal wave by setting up a single small child as a meat shield? Honestly. If we can't stop him anyway, we should at least not incur his wrath."
He smiled thinly.
It was a smile that felt like an old man's condescending gaze, as if placating a sulking child.
"And it would be better to curry as much favor as possible."
As the greatest fortune in the midst of misfortune, 'Jio's Portrait' is very gentlemanly, values etiquette, and is also fair.
If he receives something from someone out of goodwill, he too will return it with the same goodwill, with a greater value.
That is probably Jio's 'rule'.
"This incident was a kind of vaccination. It was a prior warning to coexist with a being that can never be dealt with. Fortunately, I know my employees very well, and they showed the indifference that matched my expectations."
"…The numerous ghost story commotions that have occurred in the guild so far must have also played a part. Nothing has happened until now, so they must have thought there was no need to tremble over a single ghost story now."
"That's exactly it."
"...."
"This is the 'Collectors'."
A place managed by Bisabeol himself, filled only with employees chosen by Bisabeol himself, and full of works loved by Bisabeol himself.
That was the number 3 guild in South Korea, the 'Collectors'.
"Mr. Yu Seong-un, please remember. 'Jio's Portrait' is not a being we can control."
Thinking of fighting was a foolish act.
"It is a natural disaster, and fortunately, it can communicate with us and hold goodwill. That can be seen as an incredible stroke of luck, an absurd miracle beyond that."
"...."
"Think that the fate of the Earth rests in your hands and don't foolishly throw away this miracle. We must be cautious, we must be bold, and we must always be kind."
"…Did you know this would happen when you bought Jio? That since he was on the auction block, he would be revealed to the world anyway, and you made the first move for the sake of the potential disaster that might occur in the process?"
"I see quite a lot of things."
"...."
"I thought he wasn't an ordinary work of art."
Bisabeol then laughed with a childish and playful face.
Dressed like a gentleman, it could have seemed quite out of place, but instead, it felt lively.
He said.
"Because he was the only work I could not read."
He was right.
"...."
"…I trust you, Guild Master."
"It's troublesome if you trust me too much."
"To be precise, I trust your eye."
He trusted those eyes.
Since it was a successful gamble in the end, Yu Seong-un decided to swallow his words.
"And yet, the reason I'm anxious is probably because I'm a mere human."
"You're harboring a talking disaster, of course you would be."
"It feels… like right before a horror movie starts."
Ah, right.
That's what it is.
"…Is it because I'm facing something too immense…."
What could be done about a heart that cowered before a giant?
Originally, humans were just such tiny beings.
***
Meanwhile, Jio, who on that day was the end of the Earth but actually wasn't, through a miracle of miracles that was so mind-boggling and nose-bogglingly absurd it shouldn't exist, had unconsciously merged with the Source and evolved into a haunted portrait….
"This is the taste."
He was farming.
Meaning, he had no thoughts at all.
-x-X-x-
"Nice."
As always, this content was quite a success.
"A person must sweat."
"Gung?"
"He who does not work, neither shall he eat."
"Gung-gung-gung…?"
The body of Honey, the sweet-colored water bird, trembled.
At the cry that seemed to ask, 'Then what about me who does not work?', I shook my head firmly.
"What on earth are you worried about, being that cute?"
"Guk."
"You are already doing your part with your cuteness, so don't worry about strange things."
No matter how thoughtlessly I lived, I was not an irresponsible creator who wouldn't take responsibility for a single life form I had birthed from my paint.
As long as it was the son of myself, a gourmet and a big eater, Honey would never starve.
"Do you understand?"
Honey was convinced and sprawled out comfortably.
"But get out of there."
"Kuru."
Of all places, inside my basket.
"It's hard to get the seeds out."
"Grrrng."
"Who do you take after to be this stubborn?"
"Guk?"
"Me? What a disloyal child."
I bent down and rummaged through the basket.
Honey's body was just transparent water with only a very weak viscosity, so it wasn't a big problem, but the little guy had played with the seeds and mixed them all up in a mess.
"This is…."
"...."
"…I think this was an eggplant seed."
Fortunately, Seo Jio, a native of a rural village in Gangwon-do, could identify the type of seed just by looking at it.
Not everyone from Gangwon-do could do this; it was possible thanks to the fact that I was serious about this kind of farming.
Having enjoyed farm work since I was young, I picked up the eggplant seed, stood up and put it in a pre-dug hole.
"Is it time to plant the potatoes now?"
"Gurk?"
"Hmm?"
There was a brief communication error, but soon I realized what Honey was questioning.
"I didn't mean I was going to plant Dad."
"Gung?"
"Potato is a term of endearment. It's like a second name."
There was an anecdote where my mother, who loved potatoes, saw a fetal ultrasound photo and said, 'It looks like a potato,' and named me 'Potato' as a fetal nickname, and my grandmother, upon seeing the newborn me, nodded and said, 'She ate only potatoes and gave birth to a potato.'
"All the adults called me Potato, so until I was 4, I thought I was a potato."
I also wondered if that was why I grew up so healthy and harmless.
"Well, that's all that matters."
"Kururu."
"You just grow up healthy too."
The Seo family, for generations, tended to respect the free will of new life.
A few days must have passed, and I finally succeeded in planting all the seeds Yu Seong-un had gifted me.
Having planted potatoes, sweet potatoes and corn, famous as staple crops, starving to death now seemed a distant prospect.
"Then again, it would be harder to starve to death in this body."
"Kururu."
"No matter how hungry Dad gets, I won't eat you, Honey."
The location where the crops were planted was the vegetable patch behind the cabin.
"Actually, at this point, is it a bit of an ambiguous scale to call it a vegetable patch?"
It had gotten a little bigger, but it was still a vegetable patch.
It wasn't as large and vast as the fields of those who made a living from farming, so I had a sort of excuse.
Anyway, it was a vegetable patch.
I was a wonderful adult who could compromise with reality.
"Then let's go back."
"Kukkuruk."
"Right, we have to try the cheong we made."
It was about time for the fruit cheong I had made earlier to have ripened.
"The combination of the sweet and sour Mangdung Fruit and the sour and bitter Drought Pot is excellent, for starters."
If there was one point of concern, it was whether the amounts of the two were in proper harmony, but that part didn't bother me much.
With my extensive experience of living alone, I had come to possess my halmi's touch.
"It was only by feel and by eye, but there's no way I could be wrong about the combination of something I'm going to eat."
Befitting such pride, a good scent was already wafting from the glass jar.
"Hmm."
Entering the kitchen, I blinked while looking at the cupboard where the fruit cheong was.
"Since I've sweated for the first time in a while, shall I try it as a cold tea?"
"Gurk?"
"I sweated from the soul."
Honey pointed out that my body did not actually discharge waste products like sweat, but anyway, didn't I do labor?
A human who has labored must drink a cool and refreshing tea for their work efficiency to go up.
"For that, I'll need to get some ice from the storeroom."
A pig does not hesitate in front of food.
Without a moment to wipe the sweat that hadn't come out, I went straight down to the storeroom.
In the ice cellar, which was full of all sorts of ingredients, there was, of course, ice.
In every corner of the storeroom, which looked so much like a cave that one couldn't even fathom where the end of the ice was, there were pieces of ice.
"Is it a little cold?"
As I opened the heavy door and entered the storeroom, Honey froze stiff.
"Ku, kugururuk."
"If you're too cold, you can stay out… uh."
"...."
"…Are you frozen?"
At the sight of Honey, who had become transparent ice itself, just as I, with my expressionless face, was violently agitated.
Even though it was already in a state of ice, Honey shook its body with a flit and pretended its feathers.
"Poof."
"?"
"Guk."
"Did you evolve?"
"Kuru."
"In a situation where I myself evolved from a human to a haunted portrait, there's no rule that says a water bird can't become an ice bird."
I was surprised once, thinking that Honey, who had instantly turned to ice, had died, and once again at the sight of it moving flexibly despite being ice, but if there was no problem, then what did it matter.
Honey was cute even when frozen, so it was fine.
"A moving ice bird seems interesting enough."
"Kurururururururuk!"
"This father's heart is pleased that you are also joyful."
Honey, who, like its creator, had no sense of crisis from birth, was simply delighted by its change.
Even for a bird whose body was water, I wondered if it was right for it to freeze this quickly, but having become a portrait from a human myself, I was not greatly surprised.
"Since when did we ever follow the laws of physics?"
To think I'd even ignore the laws of physics in my life, it was quite an interesting life.
"First, the ice…."
"Kuk-kuruk."
"It's over there, thank you."
Honey's icy wings did not clump together into its body as before.
Perhaps because it had gained feathers, or body parts, that it didn't originally have, after showing me the location of the ice, it frantically preened its body.
Being unable to leave their feathers alone must be a species-specific trait of birds.
'It was less so when it was water.'
Leaving Honey on my shoulder as it was, I slowly walked through the ice cellar.
"...."
It was cool.
"Haaah…."
My breath was visible.
A thick breath, visible at a glance.
It must be that cold, but for some reason, I did not feel the cold and the ingredients were not frozen either.
I couldn't tell if the ice cellar was deceiving me, or if I and the ingredients were tougher than the ice.
'Probably the latter.'
I looked down at the floor.
"…Hmm…."
I muttered.
"It would be a catastrophe if this broke."
An icy floor like a bottomless pit was visible.
'It seems to be a solid block of ice, but it's transparent, as if there's a lake beneath the ice.'
It was a very transparent floor.
Ice that has frozen very slowly is not opaque but clear as glass, and such ice was spread all over the floor.
I couldn't even guess its depth.
It was a little slick, had a faint blue hue, and occasionally, a shimmering halo of light could be seen from the inside.
They would light up their bodies for a few seconds like fireflies and then disappear and I was curious about their identity.
"Are they a type of resident similar to the forest butterflies?"
"Gung?"
"Or they might just be some kind of glowing moss or bacteria."
They did not move.
They just briefly lit up their bodies and then disappeared.
They resembled the faint starlight.
"...."
It was a dreamlike scene.
"The color is similar to a glacier, too."
It didn't have the deep scent of the sea, but the transparent and blue ice floor, whose depth was unknown, was reminiscent of a glacier.
I had never actually seen a glacier on Earth, but I felt that it would probably be a scene like this.
I lifted my head and looked at the full view of the ice cellar.
"Where on earth did all this ice come from? It's all ice on all sides."
I wondered every time I saw it.
"This ice cellar can only be reached by coming down a long way from the first floor of the cabin. Then maybe there was groundwater beneath the cabin."
Then a contradiction arises.
"Right, it doesn't make sense, logically, for the groundwater under a forest with such a mild climate to be frozen solid like this."
That was why it was all the more mysterious.
"Nice."
And funny.
"It's just like a fairy tale…."
I liked it.
I moved my feet with my face still expressionless and stoic.
Honey, perhaps having already adapted to its body that no longer spread out as before, flew around the large, cave-like ice cellar, making its usual pleasant chirping sounds. It was a scene like a movie.
After walking for a long time through the icy passage, I found what I was looking for.
"Yes, right. It was here."
It was ice that had grown like a stalagmite in a cave.
"I like this too."
"Guk?"
"It's just like a cave."
It was absurd, but the ice cellar also looked like a limestone cave made of ice.
I didn't know where it was flowing from, or if it had melted, or if it had a water vein like a tree.
Water was dripping here and there in the ice cellar and perhaps due to the low temperature, they would form shoots or create pillars like this.
"Usually, limestone caves are like this. As water containing a large amount of limestone drips, it slowly builds up a pillar on the cave floor, and the water droplets splash here and there, jutting out like coral, or…."
"...."
"Here. They remain in the shape of a pearl, like this."
They are actually called cave pearls.
"Of course, these should be called ice pearls, not cave pearls…."
At this rate, doesn't it feel just like a real cave? The great mold created by nature.
"...."
Ice Pearl
A pearl in the form of ice that occurs naturally in the ice cellar below Jio's cabin.
A transparent, edible pearl with a faint mother-of-pearl-like luster. It melts in hot temperatures just like real ice and is odorless and tasteless.
Elixir Recipe: When melted and consumed, it shows a great effect in stabilizing mental-type abnormalities such as depression and mania.
"Should I take this?"
Regardless of the effect, didn't it say the taste was the same as real ice?
"It's tiring to cut off that big ice shoot."
"Kuruk-kuruk."
The ice bird Honey, who had flown off with a flit, swallowed one of the roundly gathered ice pearls.
At that nimble sight, I couldn't help but be impressed.
"You're eating it? Are you a pig?"
"Kurururururu!!"
"No, it's a misunderstanding. If it sounded like I was scolding you, that's a very big misunderstanding. Dad likes pigs."
Having been raised for most of my life by my grandmother, I resembled some of her tastes, one of which was that I couldn't stand to see a skinny person.
In that sense, it would be a joyous thing if Honey, who could be called my child, became plump.
"Kids should eat a lot and grow up big."
Become a pig, zap.
"Then let's go up now."
"Gung-gung-gung…."
"I'm telling you, I actually like it, you pig."
"Kurururururu!!!"
"Kids have to be chubby to grow up well later."
Soothing Honey, I came up from the ice cellar and headed straight for the kitchen.
A good fragrance was coming from the fruit cheong I had taken out from the cupboard in advance, and I was already looking forward to how delicious it would be.
I took out a clean glass and transferred two spoonfuls of the fruit cheong into it.
"The fragrance is really nice."
The Mangdung Fruit, whose fragrance had intensified as it dried, seemed to have its fragrance further amplified when it went through a kind of aging process, even if it wasn't drying.
The Mangdung Fruit, which had soaked up the sugar and imparted its fragrance, gave off its unique refreshing, sweet scent.
"Maybe because the Drought Pot is also a citrus fruit, it seems to have a citrus scent too…."
Should I say it has the bitter and sour scent unique to a lemon peel?
"I'm looking forward to it."
The fruit cheong in the glass was in itself of artistic value.
The fruit cheong, which had absorbed the sugar completely and generously given up its juice, showed a glossy sheen.
The pulp of the Mangdung Fruit had changed into the form of a soft jelly, and the Drought Pot, whose thin membrane had been painstakingly peeled off, had hardened a little and its pulp had spread out enough to be visible to the eye.
"Let's add the ice pearl here too…."
"Kok-guruk."
"That's the pearl you just ate. Put it back."
"Guk?"
"I decline."
Honey, who had somehow become water again, was about to perform the bizarre act of vomiting up the ice pearl it had just swallowed, but I stopped it with my authority as a father.
I wasn't asking for penguin milk, not that much.
"Now, if I stir it gently…."
Clatter, clink.
The glass and the ice pearl collide, making a clear sound.
"Fruit tea complete."
"Quack."
"Are you a chicken?"
"Grrrng."
"I can't figure out your identity."
The completed fruit tea was so beautiful I wanted to draw it.
The vermilion tea, seen through the glass, was very transparent despite its deep color.
Perhaps due to the influence of the ice pearl, the sparkling blue light I had seen in the storeroom repeatedly shone and disappeared like a shooting star and between them, pulps in the shape of a full moon and a half moon could be seen.
When I took a sip of it as it was….
"...."
I felt an enchanting flavor.
"…It's delicious."
It was a flavor and a savory taste I had never tasted before.
The vermilion tea water was soft and cool and just when the sweetness felt too strong, a leisurely bitterness would approach and politely subdue it.
The intense sourness of the Drought Pot, having met the Mangdung Fruit and sugar, felt like a child's cute whining.
'I like the pulp too.'
The Mangdung Fruit, which had lost all its juice to the sugar, was like a jelly.
To be precise, it was similar to konjac jelly, but it was much mushier.
It was a texture that felt soft yet had a strange elasticity, like the pulp of a grape with all its skin peeled off.
The Drought Pot had a taste that popped, just like the pulp of a grapefruit or an orange. It seemed to have lost its juice to the sugar like the Mangdung Fruit, but it felt a little harder.
But it was not an unpleasant hardship.
The pulp, which spread gently in my mouth, delivered a pleasant texture.
'The taste and fragrance are all mixed together, so it's hard to distinguish….'
The tea water, which was by no means one-dimensional and showed a flavor like a soup, and the pulps that added enjoyment to what could have been a monotonous texture and the strange change of it melting softly on the tongue.
That small change was probably from the halo of light trapped inside the ice pearl.
"…Popping candy?"
It didn't exactly spread with a tingle or explode like a firecracker, but the blue halos of light dotted throughout the tea water added a strange savory taste.
I felt a pleasure on the tongue that could not be expressed with sweet or salty.
It was a fruit tea that made one smack their lips for no reason.
"...."
"Kururuk?"
"It would be perfect for a gift."
Since I had a lot, the thought of packing some up came to mind.
"I should give it to Mr. Yu Seong-un."
Wanting to share one's cooking is a halmi's instinct.
Having grown up hearing 'live by giving' from my grandmother, who was my life mentor, I wanted to fatten up Yu Seong-un.
-x-X-x-
"Jio."
4:29 AM.
Yu Seong-un called the portrait.
"Jio, are you awake?"
"I am awake."
"Good."
Though he had called knowing that he usually woke up around this time.
'There are days he skips, but the time communication is possible is usually around 4 to 5 AM…. I'll have to watch the situation more, but it would be best to think of this as a rule too.'
This 'Jio's Portrait' was favorable toward humans, but no existence of the Source showed mercy to a human who broke their rules.
He had to be cautious, even if it was a gentlemanly entity that looked almost human.
"I wanted to have a chat."
"What business do you have with me?"
"I heard you've been wandering around the company building lately. The rumors are quite something?"
"I am curious as to what kind of rumors."
"I don't know if you'll like it… but they're calling you the 'Black Cape'."
Yu Seong-un continued, wearing his characteristic easygoing smile.
"It seems a rumor has started that 'the Black Cape gives presents to good people'."
These were guild members that the discerning Bisabeol had gathered one by one himself.
Apart from their combat strength, their ability to use their heads wasn't bad.
They had figured out the 'Black Cape's' rules in their own way.
"I guess you gave gifts to other people this time too?"
"I did not give them to everyone."
"I know, you gave them to people who were particularly polite or kind, right?"
Those who had received gifts from Jio had something in common.
'Either too weak, or too strong.'
He could guess to some extent.
The very weak ones trembled in fear upon seeing him, so he must have given them gifts as a form of apology and the strong ones communicated relatively fine even before Jio's presence, so Jio must have judged them as 'being polite'.
An apology, or a gift of gratitude. It was a result that fit the 1:1 rule in its own way.
'On the contrary, those who were neither this nor that did not receive gifts.'
The employees were moderately strong enough not to burst into tears and snot, but not resolute enough to communicate properly in front of a great presence. Such people did not receive gifts.
"Hmm…."
He felt that an explanation was needed on this part to prevent any potential accidents.
'As much as he's imitating a human, Jio isn't a rough fellow to the point of being impossible to communicate with.'
Well, it's not like one could define the existence of the Source as gentlemanly.
'This much should be fine.'
Yu Seong-un prepared himself in his own way and then opened his mouth.
"If some of our employees don't answer you properly, or run away altogether, or avoid answering… that doesn't make them bad people. They're just friends who are a little timid."
"..."
"Anyone would be scared of a large, unidentified person in a black cape who suddenly appears at dawn when no one should be around, right?"
Yu Seong-un purposely described Jio as if he were an ordinary person.
Since Jio thought of himself as an ordinary human, it didn't seem like anything good would come from exposing his spiritual presence or his true nature.
"Of course, it might feel rude to you. But I'm saying that it's not that they were trying to be intentionally rude to you, but that it might have been a bit overwhelming from their timid perspective."
Soon, a calm voice was heard.
"I understand what you mean."
"You do? Then I'm thankful."
As a Curator and a Gardener, Yu Seong-un couldn't help but be worried.
'It's natural for a rabbit to shrink before a wolf, but if he judges that as a rude and evil act, things will get quite troublesome. One wrong move and innocent people could end up dead.'
To an existence of the Source, human standards are meaningless.
'Jio's Portrait' in particular was an existence sensitive to good, evil, and etiquette, and the problem was that his standards could be distinctly different from a human's.
Even if someone was not particularly at fault or was a good person from a human's standpoint, they could be a terrible villain from the standpoint of Jio, an existence of the Source.
Thinking of Jio, who had repeatedly made statements about disliking the rude and evil, it was a chilling matter.
'When I found out there were people who didn't receive a gift at all, it really sent a chill down my spine.'
Didn't that mean Jio had 'distinguished' between humans?
"You, yes. You said that Guild Master Bisabeol was not a bad person, right?"
"Yes, that is correct."
"Every employee in this company was personally chosen by him. They weren't picked through a large-scale interview after posting a notice, but are guild members he scouted one by one with great care."
"It must have taken a lot of time and effort, that is surprising."
"I wanted to say that while I can't say our guild's employees are nice, they are competent and good people."
In a world like this, who could have lived without committing a single crime, but those personally chosen by Bisabeol were at least not the kind of people to be called villains.
"Even if they don't have outstanding personalities, they're just ordinary people."
"Yes."
"…Would it be too rude of me to wish that you wouldn't see them as bad people?"
He didn't know how Jio distinguished between the good and evil of humans.
'But just as humans have Appraisal Skills… it's certain that Jio also has a standard of judgment. Otherwise, there's no way he would have concluded that Guild Master Bisabeol, whom he hadn't even spoken to, wasn't a bad person.'
Contrary to Yu Seong-un's thoughts, as long as he was not inside the portrait, Jio still had no way of grasping the 'safety level' of the person beyond the frame.
The reason there were people who received gifts this time and those who didn't was because Jio had gifted them as a form of reward whenever he thought 'Ah, I'm grateful' or 'Ah, I'm sorry'.
There was no particular value judgment involved.
However, Yu Seong-un, who did not know of such circumstances, couldn't help but suspect Jio's Appraisal Skill.
'I hope the skill's standards aren't too harsh.'
Bisabeol said this ghost story commotion was a type of vaccination.
That it was giving an opportunity for 'Jio's Portrait,' a natural disaster that could never be dealt with or controlled, to adapt to this world and respect its members, and for the humans of this world to understand and be considerate of him.
Therefore, Yu Seong-un had no choice but to try various methods.
"What do you think?"
"..."
Fortunately, or perhaps naturally, Jio answered with his usual blunt face.
"I did not think of them as bad people."
"You didn't?"
"The only reason I did not give them gifts was because I judged that they would not need them, and also because some people ran away before I could do anything. I did not think they were evil."
"..."
"I simply thought there was no need to give a gift."
That was a truly fortunate story.
'So at least he didn't judge them as rude and evil people. There was a reason there were no injuries despite the increase in witness accounts.'
Just as he was feeling relieved, Jio continued.
"I do have a bit of resentment for the people who ignored my questions or ran away."
"Ah."
"But I understand. As you said, a mysterious man in a black cape who suddenly appears in a deserted hallway can certainly be an object of fear. It would be a lie to say I wasn't displeased, but I have no intention of getting angry."
Jio added an explanation after saying so.
"But since I am also human, I cannot help but feel negative emotions."
"Uh, right."
"I tried to converse politely, but it hurts my heart when things like this keep happening. I hope the employees here will not ignore or avoid the 'Black Cape' in this manner."
"I'll talk to the Guild Master about that."
Yu Seong-un tried to swallow his bewilderment.
'…So he was angry after all.'
It seemed to be just at the level of 'not a bad person', not that 'they weren't rude'.
Even an ordinary person would get angry if those around them rejected them and Jio in particular was an existence of the Source who thought of himself as a human.
Even if he was mistaken about being human, there was no way he wouldn't be angry at humans who went against the clear rules he held.
'No matter what… I won't be able to completely quell the fear from the ghost story. His spiritual presence is so high that it's only natural for humans standing before him to be intimidated. In that case, should I create a new rule within the company building to at least regulate the employees' behavior?'
After pondering for a moment, Yu Seong-un nodded.
"…We have a tight-knit relationship centered around the Guild Master. Since the Guild Master brought each and every person in himself, the employees have a strong attachment to him."
"Yes."
"I'll speak to the Guild Master so that the discomfort you felt doesn't continue and we can improve things as much as possible. If the Guild Master insists strongly, I think the other employees will also be convinced."
"I would be grateful if you could do that."
As he said that, Jio was suddenly holding a glass jar he had never seen before.
"..."
No, that's not it. Wait a minute.
'A pot?'
It wasn't a jar, but a pot.
It was so big that it had to be held in one's arm, not lifted with one hand.
"…What's that?"
"I shall call it a gift of gratitude for listening to my complaints and requests."
"I still haven't finished the cookies you gave me last time?"
"Why is that?"
"Ah…."
"I am not angry. I was asking because I was curious why there is still some left when it was not a large amount. Would you please answer."
If he were an ordinary human, he might have wondered, 'Is he being sarcastic and angry?', but Jio was clearly an existence of the Source.
It seemed like a pure question, so Yu Seong-un answered with an apologetic face.
"Sorry, the effect is so good when I eat them when I'm tired that I was saving them and eating them little by little. It's not that I left them because your gift was uncomfortable or didn't suit my taste."
"You have no reason to be sorry to me. I gave you a gift, and it is now yours, Mr. Yu Seong-un. There is no need to make excuses to me. However, it is joyful news that it gives you strength when you are fatigued."
"Saying it like that makes me feel rather humbled…."
Yu Seong-un looked at the glass pot inside the portrait.
"So, what is that?"
At that, Jio took his hands off the pot he was holding and showed it to him.
"It is fruit cheong."
"…That is?"
"Anyone can see it is fruit cheong."
"Ah, right…."
Anyone can see it's not fruit cheong.
'…That's fruit cheong?'
Although fruit or sugar were expensive ingredients, making it a food that was hard to come by, Yu Seong-un was a competent hunter.
There was no way that he, who earned a considerable amount of money, would not have tried a fruit cheong that even a second-class citizen could buy.
'But it's somehow… very different from the fruit cheong I know.'
It had the color of twilight. Should he call it a vermilion close to orange.
The transparent and clear liquid shone like the surface of a gem and within it, reminiscent of an evening glow, a strikingly deep color lay dormant.
'There is something similar to fruit sunk at the bottom, but…'
The color was so mesmerizing that he didn't think he could bring himself to eat it.
"This is ice that is good to put in and eat together."
"…It looks just like a pearl."
"Its name is Ice Pearl. It seems you have the insight to guess the name in one go, Mr. Yu Seong-un."
"Oh, right. Insight…."
"It is ice that does not melt unless it is hot, so if you wish to consume it, I recommend you melt it in hot tea."
"..."
Wow.
I can feel it.
'I don't think I can handle this.'
The cookies he received as payment for the seeds after first receiving tea leaves from Jio and asking him to 'please restrain himself a bit'.
They too were not ordinary.
The current situation was that he hadn't been able to eat them all at once due to their tremendous fatigue recovery effect and had left them.
'But this time, the quantity is also large.'
He said he enjoys cooking, and it seems he is quite generous.
This existence of the Source probably didn't know how small a human's stomach was.
"Please accept it."
"…Isn't it too much?"
"Please eat a lot. It is good for you to gain more weight than you have now, Mr. Yu Seong-un."
"I'm on the sturdy side as I am."
Although he had never seen his body directly, judging by the outline of the cape, Yu Seong-un had more muscle mass than Jio.
But to tell him to gain more weight from here? It was hard for Yu Seong-un to understand.
'…No wait, by weight, could he possibly mean fat?'
Was Jio a cannibalistic monster?
"I don't taste good."
"That is an interesting joke."
"I was being serious."
Fortunately, it didn't seem like he had the mentality of a witch from a candy house trying to fatten up a human before eating them.
'It's not for a human to judge what kind of aesthetic tastes an existence of the Source has, anyway.'
Jio probably preferred more plump humans aesthetically.
It was a little strange that he himself had such a perfectly balanced body, yet he liked people who looked fat.
He had no idea just what kind of backstory this existence of the Source had.
'…Come to think of it, he said all his gifts are usually food, and that what he does when he's bored is cooking or eating. He seems to really like food in many ways. The fact that he likes to see people with more flesh… that he's strangely generous… that he likes giving gifts….'
Is this guy a grandmother?
"..."
"What are you thinking about?"
"Ah, sorry. I was lost in thought for a moment."
"I see."
Fortunately, Jio did not probe any further.
"This is a gift for your kindness, so I do not need a return gift. More than anything, the fruit cheong I newly concocted seems to have ripened deliciously, so I wanted to share it with you all."
"Hmm… I see."
While nodding nonchalantly, Yu Seong-un thought to himself.
'…Does he know that he himself is bound by a rule?'
Jio's words just now seemed to have the premise of 'I must receive something in order to give you guys a gift'. Perhaps the one-to-one rule wasn't something Jio made himself.
'Or he made it himself and forgot.'
If only the memories of a 29-year-old man existed within that immense presence, it was a plausible hypothesis.
"…Since you're giving it to me, I'll take it…."
Yu Seong-un used his Appraisal Skill while looking at the fruit cheong.
[Honey of the Water Vein]
[Grade: - ]
A fruit cheong made with Mangdung Fruit that grows wild in the water veins of fate and a Drought Pot.
It has a vermilion hue and is characterized by a sweet and sour flavor with a deep umami taste.
Personally processed by Jio, the master of the forest, so that a human body can also accept it.
When diluted in water and consumed, it restores a human's physical abilities to their limit.
It is especially excellent for malnutrition.
Adding Ice Pearls that grow wild in the glacier under Jio's cabin exhibits an excellent effect in restoring physical and mental functions.
"..."
"Doesn't it have a good scent?"
"You're a really good cook."
I think it would be okay if you were a little less good.
-x-X-x-
Yu Seong-un asked the Guild Master for help.
"Help."
"Ugh, what is it?"
"I have come to practice sharing."
"I'm just a punching bag for everyone, aren't I?"
In Yu Seong-un's hands, who had gone to see Bisabeol as soon as it was 9 AM, was a large glass pot.
It was a pot so large that even Bisabeol, who was subjected to the sudden visit, had his gaze stolen by it at a single glance.
"You have a unique taste, Curator Yu Seong-un. It's a rare item."
"Ah, stop poking at me when you know everything and help me out."
"Shall I?"
Bisabeol instantly recognized that the pot, from which a sweet scent was leaking despite the sealed entrance, contained fruit cheong and also the fact that Jio must have given it to him.
"Have you had it appraised?"
"I did as soon as I received it from Jio."
"The grade?"
"Still unknown."
"My."
Clink.
Bisabeol stared at the fruit cheong placed on the table.
"..."
"Can you see something?"
"It's very good for the body."
"I don't think it's just at a 'very good' level, but I understand for now."
"Didn't you say you haven't even finished the cookies from last time?"
"If I eat too much, I can't sleep. No matter how much of a cog I am in the wheel of capitalist society, a slave is still human, I need to sleep."
"Your reputation would be excellent if you handed them out to the employees working overtime or the guards at dawn."
"If I do that, our Portrait Association will get it taken away. No matter how tight-lipped they are, you never know where information might leak from."
"I know, I'm restraining myself as is."
Bisabeol let out a small laugh.
"Most importantly, you shouldn't treat Jio like an item dispenser."
"That part is…."
Yu Seong-un, who was mulling over Bisabeol's words, soon nodded his head in satisfaction.
"I'm glad you seem to be paying attention."
It was 'Jio's Portrait,' whose clear identity was still uncertain.
Not being scared beyond a certain point, but being as wary and conscious as possible would be the way to extend the lifespan of humans.
"Setting aside the effects, even its appearance looks so sacred that you would get great praise if you donated it to a temple."
"Yes, well, it said it's particularly excellent for malnutrition. I'm not in that state, so I don't know how it feels."
"When it comes to nutrition, the Temple of the Sun would especially like it. With this, it should be possible to save even the poor on the verge of becoming mummies."
"To think the Solar Cult would welcome it, I can certainly tell it's an item with a warm energy. Is the effect that good?"
"Since it's a concentrate, wouldn't it be a great help to the dungeon exploration teams even if they take just a spoonful each?"
Exploration teams were hunters dispatched not for the purpose of clearing dungeons, but to identify things like missing people or the dungeon's structure.
As it was impossible for them to get out in a short period, they consumed a lot of food.
The problem was that they couldn't take too much, as the dungeon's environment was what it was. Because of that, it was common to pack mostly bland nutritional supplements or potions.
"This one seems to taste good too, and since it's a concentrate, a small amount is enough, and since you drink it in the form of fruit tea, it's as easy to consume as a potion."
"..."
"If it were to become known to the public, it's too burdensome to enjoy privately, to the point the government would impose regulations."
"As I thought."
"But on a pan-humanitarian level, it is truly unfortunate that we will have to enjoy it privately."
Bisabeol smiled like a childish youth.
"We can't sell it, can we?"
"Ah, absolutely not."
It was a gift given out of goodwill by the existence of the Source.
If he found out it was circulating at an auction when he hadn't even given permission to sell it, the hatred and resentment Yu Seong-un would have to bear then would not be on a level he could withstand.
That was the 'rule'.
"It's a thought I always have, but the government's wariness of the Source is too low."
It was the 31st year since the Great Catastrophe.
It wasn't a short time, but it wasn't that long either.
Unlike dungeons where abnormalities could be easily detected, it was perhaps inevitable that the government's understanding of the Source, which was indifferent to humans, was significantly lacking.
"This president is paying quite a bit of attention and it's not that there's no one who knows about this kind of Source, but… still, nothing is being reflected in society realistically."
Yu Seong-un let out a frustrated sigh.
"It would be nice if safety prevention education was implemented not only for dungeons but also in the domain of the Source. It's very pitiful when I see people who died without knowing the cause by a child of the Source, or their bereaved families. There's a limit to what the Gardeners can handle."
"It's not a part that has been properly revealed yet, and as of now, the biggest threat is only the dungeons on the surface, isn't it? It can't be helped that they pay more attention to the dungeons that throw a fit at the drop of a hat than the Source that doesn't cause any trouble if left alone. There's a shortage of manpower too."
"Even though it's like they're just gnawing on the watermelon rind."
"The fact that there are few people who can sense the Source probably plays a part too."
Unlike dungeons, which any Tom, Dick, or Harry can see and recognize, and the monsters that make them their homes, the so-called 'children of the Source' are difficult for most people to detect.
Various theories have emerged so far, but the one that receives the most support is that it's because it's 'a domain that cannot be perceived with human physical abilities'.
Therefore, it's said that only a few humans who have evolved or been altered as the Earth's environment changed can see the 'children of the Source'.
"I believe it was said that not all children of the Source can be seen even if one is an Apt."
"Yes, this is also a type of talent. Just as people have different hearing abilities, there are children that all the Apt can see, and there are also children they can't."
"Stories from that side are always fascinating to hear."
"There is a hypothesis that the fewer the Apt who can see a child, the closer that being is to the Source. There must be a child somewhere that even I cannot see."
"It's certainly a chilling story that there's no one who can see the danger even when it's right there."
"If you can't see or sense them, you can't even touch them in the first place, and as long as you don't touch them, they don't get angry…"
Yu Seong-un sighed.
"I grumbled out of impatience, but honestly, even if the citizens don't know about the Source for now, there probably won't be a problem. They are indifferent to humans."
"Last time you said there are exceptions, didn't you?"
"Yes, of course there are exceptional cases, but… they aren't as active as monsters, so the damage would be less."
This rarity was also one of the reasons the children of the Source had remained unknown until now.
"Well, anyway."
"Yes."
"We have to eat this, but."
"Right."
"It's a thick concentrate and there's a lot of it, so it's a bit much for just us to eat."
"…Are you thinking of calling another sacrificial lamb?"
"I'll have to call the HR team."
The HR team, like the secretarial team, was a place where they had picked out the most tight-lipped people among the guild members.
This was because they had to handle everything from the overall care of the guild members to the secret orders of Guild Master Bisabeol.
"At least it won't spread to other teams."
"That much is true, but…."
"They've been out of their minds with overtime lately, too."
"You might as well reveal my cookies too."
"I'll lie and say this is an item I purchased separately."
"I appreciate that. Though I'm not sure if that's an excuse that will work on those smart people."
"Hey, they all have sense, so they'll keep quiet on their own. They're employees who hate additional work more than death."
"True, since you only gathered people like that…."
Yu Seong-un let out a sigh of relief.
'…Jio won't mind that I shared it with my colleagues.'
Of course, the rules of the Source weren't something to be glossed over like this.
There were often cases where it became poison if consumed by someone other than the specially designated recipient.
'But in the first place, Jio….'
He clearly said he wanted to share it with 'everyone'.
'That's what he said.'
It meant his words were directed at all the employees of this guild.
"..."
"Will it be alright, you think?"
"Yes, I've reviewed it, and it is indeed a gift intended for all employees, including myself."
"I guess he gave such a huge pot with that in mind. The amount is too much for you to eat alone, Mr. Yu Seong-un."
"Actually, I think he just gave it without thinking about that part…."
He was such a generous fellow.
"It is a funny thing for the existence of the Source to know what amount is appropriate by human standards."
"But Curator Yu Seong-un, didn't you say he has memories of when he was human?"
"He has them, but I predict they are not complete."
The employees who had met the so-called 'Black Cape' testified that Jio had introduced himself as 'Seo Jio'.
Jio, a young man who died at 29 or was set up to be so.
That was probably the memory that 'Jio's Portrait' possessed.
"However, the point to consider here is, why then was the portrait defined as 'Jio'?"
That wasn't given by a human.
"It is a name defined by the Source."
The skills used by Awakeners, that is, Hunters, all receive help from the Source.
It was the same context this time.
It meant that the Source, which could be called a kind of god or a trans-dimensional system, had named a single portrait, in the basement of a single building, in a single country, on a single planet, as such.
"Therefore, the portrait's name is 'Jio', not 'Seo Jio'. In that case, isn't it different from his own claim?"
"Perhaps… Does it mean that what the Source judged and Jio's memory do not match?"
"Correct. The name we're talking about here isn't one we gave ourselves, or another human gave to another human. It's a name for our essence."
This could be called the 'true name' given by the parent that is the Source.
"In other words, the name displayed in the system is the essence of the target as evaluated by the Source, so it is not something a mere human can easily ignore."
"Are you saying such a name is attached directly to Jio?"
"It is also marked so that anyone can interpret it. Whether it's a shabby-level Appraisal Skill or a high-level Appraisal Skill like the Guild Master's, it's a name that can be recognized by all, but…."
"The problem is that nothing more can be found out, I suppose."
"Correct."
Yu Seong-un waved his hand as if cutting something out with scissors.
"It's as if the Source has blocked it, saying 'This must not be read'. It just told us one single thing, the name 'Jio'."
"It sounds like a story of the gods."
"They say those who receive the gaze of a god go mad."
Yu Seong-un did not deny it.
"The Source is generally favorable to humans. No, it is favorable to everything it embraces. That's why it can seem indifferent."
"..."
"If it were only favorable to humans, dungeons, one of its children, should not have been born. However, it is helping all its children fight on equal terms."
Such distant arrogance could certainly be called 'godly'. Though the gods of this generation have become quite distant from omniscience and omnipotence.
"It is a portrait with a sense of self, that the Source itself has defined as dangerous, not to be delved into."
"..."
"…It really could be a god. Or it could be something more. Something that mere humans cannot define."
The 'something' that was deluding itself into thinking it was human.
"..."
"…As surprising as it may be to call something with the characteristics of a god in a world like today, anyway…."
Yu Seong-un let out a deep sigh.
"It's just one of the guesses. It's not a monster, not an item, and it doesn't seem to be one of the children of the Source, so all sorts of strange hypotheses can't help but come to mind."
"I thought it was a rather realistic hypothesis. Priests already serve gods and gods who enjoy amusement exist in this world. There is a possibility that it's a god who enjoys interacting with humans."
"If that's real, then let's stop because the Earth is in danger. The moment Jio realizes he is not human, a disaster-like miracle beyond disaster will occur."
"Hmm, you think so?"
"It would be good for us to think of Jio as an ordinary human ourselves. Because the Source is a 'Living Story', the level of danger changes depending on how people think of the target."
"That is truly surprising."
Bisabeol was very intrigued.
"Doesn't that kind of child of the Source mainly appear in Japan? Perhaps because it's a country with so many shrines, the variety of children of the Source that affect reality is diverse. What changes would occur if we came to believe in the god named Jio?"
"That's why I'm telling you not to think like that. Don't pour the terrifying oil that is the story of a god onto an already dangerous fellow."
"Living stories are scary, indeed. The moment you learn more about it or additional settings are incorporated, it becomes a more terrifying existence… they say accidents are particularly frequent in cultures that like mythology, right?"
"Don't get any strange ideas. Just what kind of disaster is this man trying to cause…."
Yu Seong-un, who had muttered with a fed-up face, returned to his usual impassive expression.
"Anyway, I believe the memories Jio has are incomplete. Leaving aside his essence related to the Source and what not… the fact that he shows no agitation about his own state and abilities despite thinking he's human proves it."
No. Jio simply had no thoughts about it.
However, that unbelievable indifference of his, enough to conclude his change with something like 'I was human but died and came back to life after 31 years and evolved into a portrait, tada,' supported Yu Seong-un's argument. Ordinary people didn't act so insensitive about their own bodies.
"If he were a proper human, he would have felt terror in his own state.
In the first place, he went from being human to a portrait, and he couldn't have not felt bizarreness or disgust from that part.
Moreover, the fact that he wasn't intoxicated by the omnipotence of being able to create everything except humans inside it… doesn't make sense for a human."
And that story that didn't make sense had actually happened.
Jio's miracle-like insensitivity shone in such a preposterous direction.
"It's a situation that's impossible with human sensibility."
"It certainly isn't ordinary."
"Of course, I don't know much about the Source either. I'm not sure if he was human and then came to belong to the Source, or if some existence from the Source took on a human form."
"Hmm…."
"But apart from answering questions obediently, Jio doesn't talk much about himself."
To say it again, Jio had no thoughts whatsoever.
He wasn't one to dwell on things that had already passed, and in a similar vein, he couldn't even conceive of the idea that Yu Seong-un would be curious about his past.
"While calling himself a human, Jio is accepting things that humans cannot do very naturally."
This too was a misunderstanding.
He was living so thoughtlessly that he hadn't fully grasped the situation yet.
The current Jio, who was enjoying a hurricane-like life, did not bother with headache-inducing worries.
Life was too busy just to be enjoyed.
Of course, even if he had grasped the situation, Jio was the type of person who would be shocked for about 5 seconds for the sake of politeness and then immediately start contemplating the lunch menu.
He was the impenetrable man of this era who gave no room for cold water to be thrown on his clear and fresh brain.
"Normally, one cannot be so composed."
"That is correct."
"Isn't it strange to be so unfazed when you have the power to commit mass slaughter and cause natural disasters right away?"
He was repeating the same story, but he simply hadn't thought that far.
For Jio, life's trials and tribulations were only the menu for his three daily meals.
In the first place, Jio judged his own transcendent abilities as something like 'the power to make food with pictures'.
He hadn't even considered that this was a power that could be a threat to humanity.
Jio was a great man who could say, 'I can make roasted sweet potatoes with this, so why would I do such a thing?'
"I do not think humans are beings with such a large capacity."
They were that large.
The clear-minded thinking of Jio's brain, which never let in wicked things, had the talent of taking in only the 'information' part of 'serious information'.
Jio was not very curious about anything other than the fact that he had evolved into a portrait and that he could make a living this way and that.
He was truly living life in a slapdash manner.
Of course, since this was an inside story that ordinary people couldn't even imagine, they were still serious.
"He also doesn't know quite a lot of information that he should know as a human."
"..."
"In that case, there must be a discrepancy between his own thoughts and reality in many ways…."
"And yet Jio is still insisting he's a human?"
"It could be that he knows the reality but is desperately denying it."
He was simply not yet fully adapted to the current world, 31 years later.
Just as a 90-year-old might struggle when using a kiosk.
But Yu Seong-un came to a conclusion on his own.
"In that case, it would be a suggestion at the level of self-hypnosis, so either way, it's not good for us to be the first to pry into Jio's identity."
"It's fascinating, as expected."
Bisabeol looked at Yu Seong-un as if envious. He spoke in a subtle tone, like a child wanting more ice cream from the freezer.
"I'd like to have a conversation too…."
"I see."
"Please arrange it."
"That's a bit much, as expected."
"Ah, why."
"Jio dislikes you."
"He doesn't hate me, does he?"
"He gets stressed."
Yu Seong-un shook his head firmly.
"You were the one who entrusted Jio to me, Guild Master. I have a duty to protect Jio's condition. As long as he thinks of himself as human, Jio needs sufficient care."
"Are you saying I am a human unsuited for that care?"
"Would you be suited?"
"Truly Curator Yu Seong-un. You never waste your words."
"…Ha…."
In the end, he doesn't even refute it himself.
'It's a good thing he has a shred of conscience.'
Yu Seong-un smiled bitterly.
"The point that we need to find out more about Jio remains the same as before. We still don't know his identity, his exact way of thinking, or if there are other rules."
"For now, since he is someone I brought in, please treat him with certainty. That 'Jio's Portrait' is satisfied with my gallery's service, that is all I wish for."
Bisabeol nodded his head.
"And please make it so he can continue to think of himself as human."
"It's a great burden, but I will strive for the peace of mankind."
That was why there was something Yu Seong-un had thought of.
"…I'm thinking of taking Jio out and about outside the company soon."
The portrait where Jio was staying was too alien of a space for a human to be said to live in.
Perhaps not wanting to deviate from his image as a human, Jio merely says that he 'just happened to be staying in a portrait,' but… if he stays only inside there, he will one day realize his true nature.
"The fact that Jio is under the delusion that he is human is a great fortune for us. If possible, we must make it so that he can continue that delusion. To do that, we need to insert Jio among humans."
"To hide a tree, go to the forest?"
"…Isn't that a little different? Anyway, if a human-like environment is created, that delusion will also be maintained for a long time. In that sense, I plan to show Jio around the inside of the city."
"The risk level?"
"..."
Yu Seong-un avoided his gaze.
"…We'll have to be careful."
"Will that be enough?"
"What can we do, it's better to do something than to wait for Jio to realize his essence and explode."
"It's a bold choice, to the point I can't believe it's Curator Yu Seong-un's judgment. Of course, I approve."
"I am also aware that I'm making a dangerous gamble. I just judged it to be necessary."
Yu Seong-un hadn't seen it properly yet so he didn't know, but wasn't it a portrait that could make people faint just by making eye contact?
"Jio has a strong sense of consideration for humans. He is gentlemanly and polite. There have been no fatalities among the employees he has encountered so far, and… in reality, there are a few hunters who give off as much pressure as Jio."
"It'll be a headache if it's revealed to the media that an S-class suddenly appeared. Because of the recent strengthening of Hunter pride between countries while talking about celebrities or idols, once a rumor starts, it will spread in an instant."
"That might be better. It will be easier to disguise him if we pretend he's a hunter. In any case, we'll be able to fit Jio into the human standard."
"..."
"The risk of a child of the Source changes with the size of the story it holds. If Jio's 'story' is reduced to a human level, the safety increases."
Yu Seong-un let out a sigh.
"…That's assuming Jio allows it, though."
"What do you think?"
"Ah, I don't know, don't ask me. My head is about to explode as it is."
"That's why I gave you the extra pay."
"Damn this capitalist society."
After pondering for a moment, Yu Seong-un spoke.
"Could you please tell the employees not to be too scared of Jio?"
"Will that even work? Has your brain melted in caffeine? Has it been canned and can no longer function?"
"Why must you be so scathing? I was asking you to at least create a rule."
He had a troubled expression.
"Jio felt displeased because everyone who ran into him became severely rigid. He judged them as rude."
"..."
"There's a limit to telling Jio not to feel displeased, so we on the human side must also do our best to maintain 'etiquette' towards him."
"…Hmm…."
Bisabeol nodded his head.
"If it's just regulating their actions, it should be manageable."
"Will it be possible?"
"It's not like I can't."
This was The Collectors.
The nation of a collector, so there was nothing he couldn't do.
This was the power that a guild master of modern society could enjoy.