Chapter 10
Translator: RaidenTL
Chapter 10
Although Yoo Seong-un’s impatience had caused the portrait to close its eyes, Bisabeol, the painting’s owner, didn’t get angry.
“That portrait would have never answered me anyway, even if I spoke to it. It wouldn’t even look at me.”
“…”
“The seventeen employees who supposedly conversed with it all fled, unable to withstand the pressure it exerted. In that sense, your attempt, Mr. Yoo Seong-un, should be seen as highly meaningful and successful.”
“But…”
“Making Gio retreat was certainly not ideal, but I scouted you because I admired that inquisitive nature of yours, Mr. Yoo Seong-un. There is no need to apologize.”
“I’ll be more careful in the future.”
“That is all I ask.”
Fortunately, Bisabeol was exceptionally caring toward his own people.
A curator’s duty was to maintain and manage artworks. The inquisitiveness of a researcher wasn’t necessarily suited for the role. Still, having a boss who defended him like this was something to be grateful for.
“Sigh…”
But Yoo Seong-un still felt uneasy.
Just because it didn’t cause a major problem doesn’t mean my mistake is erased.
It had been some time since Bisabeol had hired him as a curator. He thought he’d grown desensitized after so much time spent appreciating and managing Bisabeol’s collection, but old habits died hard. Seeing a true mystery of the dungeons after so long had made him lose his composure.
Yoo Seong-un went into his private studio and bit into a piece of candy. An adult worn down by fatigue needed sugar.
“…”
Yes, that was it.
Gio’s Portrait is no ordinary monster.
That was what had piqued his curiosity.
“…It could simply be a mutation, but…” he muttered softly.
“…”
Yoo Seong-un sat in his chair for a long time, staring blankly into space.
Finally, he spoke.
“…Should I try contacting the Gardeners?”
Gardeners were a specialized class secretly managed by the hunter associations of various countries. In truth, it wasn’t strictly a secret operation; anyone with the right aptitude could do the job. It was more accurate to say that because so few people possessed that aptitude, the role simply hadn’t become common knowledge.
But since I essentially disguised my departure as retirement from my role as a researcher, it’s awkward to contact them again.
As a sort of secret researcher and adventurer, a Gardener was someone who came closest to the truth of the dungeons. Consequently, they possessed information unknown to the wider world. Yet, even with all his knowledge as a former Gardener, Yoo Seong-un could not explain Gio’s Portrait. It was a type of existence he had never before encountered.
“…Well, things will work out somehow.”
Squeak…
Yoo Seong-un let out a sigh and slumped back in his chair.
“There’s no need to rush. Let’s take it slow.”
No matter what humans did, the Origin would not run away.
It’s far too massive an entity for that.
There was no reason to dig up its secrets in a hurry, nor did he have the desire to. After all, acting so hastily was exactly what had made Gio retreat just a few days ago.
“Time for some self-reflection…”
Fortunately, Gio’s avoidance did not last long. A few days later, Yoo Seong-un was able to see the portrait with its eyes open once again.
* * *
“…Oh…”
“Hello.”
“…Hello?”
Yoo Seong-un smiled awkwardly.
“Good evening.”
“Yes, it is.”
Inside Gio’s Portrait, the forest was bathed in a starry evening.
“It happens to be evening for us as well.”
“Wasn’t it dawn?”
“I came a bit early today. It’s not even midnight yet.”
“It is certainly earlier than usual. Is there a reason?”
“I came to check on the other works I’m in charge of,” Yoo Seong-un said with a shrug. “And then I saw that you were awake, Gio.”
“I am always awake.”
“Well, that’s surprising,” Yoo Seong-un remarked playfully before his voice returned to its characteristically calm tone. “What were you doing just now?”
His gaze drifted toward the paintbrush in the portrait’s hand. It was a bizarre sight—a painting holding the tools to paint.
The Guild Master would lose his mind if he saw this.
Gio answered readily.
“I was making a bird.”
“Ah, so you were painting a bird.”
“Yes.”
“May I see it? If it wouldn’t be an imposition.”
“If you wish to see it, Mr. Yoo Seong-un, I will show you.”
The stoic-faced man set down his paintbrush and lightly tapped somewhere out of Yoo Seong-un’s line of sight. As his delicate fingers moved with precision, a sound of sloshing water echoed, and a moment later, a bird appeared.
“…”
Yoo Seong-un was astonished. Of course, unlike the jewel from before, it was flat, clearly an entity from within the painting. But it possessed at least as much vitality as Gio himself.
“…That bird…”
“It is my new family.”
“Ah, I see.”
He wanted to respond as calmly as possible, but he wasn’t sure if he succeeded. To be honest, Yoo Seong-un was slightly thrilled.
“It’s a wonderful bird.”
The bird was tiny. If compared to a species from Korea, it was shaped somewhat like a long-tailed tit. However, its tail feathers were much longer, and its wings were nearly invisible, blending seamlessly with its transparent body. Perhaps they were fused together entirely. It was made of incredibly pure water, resembling the holy water Yoo Seong-un had occasionally seen in dungeons as a Gardener, or perhaps the spring water of some remote, untouched land where no life could survive.
“Did you just create it, Gio?”
He could understand why Gio had said “making” rather than “painting.” That was undoubtedly a living, breathing creature.
“You were holding a paintbrush.”
“I’ve taken a liking to it, so I am making several of them.”
“Several?”
“Right now, there are… slightly under a hundred, I believe.”
“That’s amazing.”
That meant he had painted all hundred of them, one by one.
“That couldn’t have been easy.”
“I have nothing but time, so it does not matter.”
“Ah…”
“And it is quite fun.”
“…”
So he seeks amusement more than I thought. Something to keep in mind.
Since Gio was excessively polite and maintained a rigid expression, it was hard to get a proper read on him. The fact that this entity of unknown nature—whether monster or something else—sought out entertainment was something a human should be wary of.
Committing this to memory, Yoo Seong-un asked another question.
“It seems to be made of water. Can that bird sing?”
“It has no vocal cords, but…”
Flutter…!
Splash, splash!
“…It can do this.”
“Ah.”
As the bird shook its body like a wet puppy, a sloshing sound echoed. It sounded like a small water bottle being shaken, or perhaps a thin, viscous jelly being stirred.
Yoo Seong-un chuckled softly.
“So that’s how it sings.”
The portrait added, “It can sing in other ways as well.”
“But didn’t you say it has no vocal cords?”
“It is a similar method to before.”
Gio pulled a small jewel from inside his suit.
“Here.”
Flap…! Flutter!
“It is yours.”
Chomp.
The tiny bird snatched the green jewel from Gio’s hand. It seemed to test the jewel by pecking it here and there with its petite beak, then promptly swallowed it whole.
“Ah.”
Gio, still wearing a stoic expression, handed over a few more jewels.
“Now it should be able to sing.”
“How…?”
Just then, a clinking sound rang out.
“…”
Yoo Seong-un quickly realized how the bird sang.
…By clinking the objects inside its body together…
It was a scene straight out of a fairy tale. The jewels trapped inside the bird’s transparent body drifted around, clinking against one another to produce sounds. Despite appearing to be dense gems, they floated effortlessly within that tiny body, sparkling as the water scattered the light.
Gio spoke as if teaching a newborn beast.
“Yes.”
Clatter!
“You are doing well.”
Click, clack!
“…”
Then, he blinked twice. Although his stoic expression hadn’t changed, he somehow looked tired—though it might have just been Seong-un’s imagination.
“They are quite the chatterboxes.”
“They seem rather quiet to me.”
“I cannot even imagine how noisy they would be if they had vocal cords.”
“Well… that’s true.”
Exhibiting the rapid movements characteristic of tiny creatures, the bird scurried around on Gio’s hand, busily fluttering its tail. It even spread its wings and flapped them.
Its wings are larger than I expected.
The wings, large enough to wrap around its entire body, were absorbed back into its torso, losing their shape.
That part is just like a slime.
Its eagerness to stuff things inside its body was also somewhat similar. Though in this creature’s case, it seemed to do so for decoration rather than hunting… How would it react if it encountered an enemy?
“…Your paintings are truly wonderful.”
Was this entity a portrait or a painter? As Yoo Seong-un spoke with these thoughts in mind, Gio looked at him. Those eyes, so black they almost seemed to shine, held his gaze for a moment.
“Thank you.”
“I hope I didn’t say anything rude.”
“It was the perfect compliment for someone who paints.”
“I’m glad to hear that, then.”
But a living painting…
Anyone would find that wonderful.
As Yoo Seong-un stared blankly at the bird, the portrait asked, “Do you have any other questions?”
“Ah, a question…”
Was this also one of the rules of Gio’s Portrait?
He seems to offer an opportunity like this every time.
Yoo Seong-un replied, testing the other’s patience and goodwill.
“I always have questions. And yes, I have one this time, too. Especially after you’ve shown me such a wonderful painting, Gio.”
“I see.”
“This bird is truly beautiful. Do these creatures have their own sense of aesthetics? Or do they act according to your tastes, Gio?”
“…”
The portrait blinked twice and answered, “I do not know much about these friends.”
“I see.”
“However, they like to decorate themselves by putting things inside their bodies.”
Perhaps because they had conversed for a while now, Gio continued without hesitation.
“I have made about a hundred birds so far, but each of them prefers different things. This one prefers jewels, while another wanted flowers, and some sought out twigs or pebbles. Sometimes it was a small fish or a fruit from a tree.”
Flutter!
When the portrait waved his hand, the bird perched on it took flight, the sound of sloshing water echoing in its wake.
“They do not move according to my aesthetic sense. They have firm preferences of their own. They might have been slightly influenced by me, but… it is not something I can force upon them now.”
“That makes them sound like real birds.”
“This is a painting. The paintings drawn by me, the owner of this painting, become real. If they wish, they can live and breathe. They are capable of it.”
“…”
After a brief silence, Yoo Seong-un spoke.
“This bird doesn’t seem like a simple painting. It feels alive. Could it perhaps come outside, just like you did, Gio?”
“I wonder.”
Gio did not give a clear answer. It seemed as though he himself did not know, or perhaps he simply did not wish to share. Yoo Seong-un didn’t press the matter.
Instead, he asked cautiously, “Does it…”
“…”
“…have a soul?”
Now, thirty-one years after the appearance of dungeons, people accepted the existence of souls. It was an inevitable shift, driven by the emergence of various skills that targeted them. Of course, any such skill was extremely rare.
“Did you just create a bird with a soul?”
“I wonder.”
The same answer as before.
I can’t read his intentions.
The portrait remained stoic. His face showed none of the emotion one would expect from someone who had just created life, which made him look all the more alien and eerie.
Is it because he performs acts that are so inhuman, yet possesses the eyes, nose, and mouth of a person? Is that what makes it feel so grotesque?
There was a sense of dissonance here on a completely different level from the monsters he usually encountered.
The portrait answered casually.
“I do not know either.”
“If you, the owner, don’t know, then who does?”
“Perhaps no one knows.”
His voice was clear.
“I simply painted a picture. And I am a person who entered the painting.”
“…”
“I can decorate this painting, and the painting decorated in such a way becomes real within this portrait. Just as you painted an apple for me last time, Mr. Yoo Seong-un…”
“…”
“In the end, it is just a painting.”
It sounded like a play on words, but it wasn’t wrong.
A painting within a painting is, in fact, real.
After a moment, Yoo Seong-un asked another question.
“You created a bird inside the painting. You painted a jewel and gave it to me. And you were able to deliver it to me.”
“That is correct.”
“Gio, you are clearly a painting, but at the same time, you are human and can influence reality.”
He asked, “In that case, can you paint a real life here?”
“…”
“I don’t mean simply stepping out of the painting and going back in like last time. I mean, can you paint a destiny, a past, or memories? Or perhaps…”
“…”
“…an actual human being?”
Gio soon replied.
“It may be possible, or it may not.”
“…”
“But I do not wish to do so.”
“…Why? Isn’t it lonely or boring inside the painting?”
“I do not feel lonely here.”
His tone was still blunt.
“I am comfortable here. The weather is always fine, a spring breeze blows, and the scent of the forest fills the air. Nothing here is troublesome or difficult.”
“…”
“If I am bored, I can simply create a new friend like I did just now. That is enough.”
Yoo Seong-un was slightly surprised.
“Are you satisfied with your peaceful painting world?”
Every anomalous entity he had ever seen coveted reality. Regardless of whether they possessed a sense of self, their actions were instinctive, like a plant stem reaching for sunlight.
“You don’t feel any desire to come out?”
“It is tiring.”
“Well… that may be so, but…”
“I do not want to go out. This is my home now.”
“…”
He had definitely just said “now.”
…Which means there was a time when he didn’t live in this portrait.
The portrait claimed to be human and stated there was a time he did not reside here, but there was no guarantee his previous dwelling was Earth.
It could be another dungeon or dimension. No, considering Gio’s usual remarks and his status, the latter is more likely.
Regardless of Yoo Seong-un’s thoughts, the portrait continued.
“I cannot create creatures that threaten me.”
“…Creatures that threaten you?”
“Humans always have the potential to harm others. The only creatures I can create are friends who are favorable to me. That is the rule of this portrait.”
“…”
“I did not know this at first either, but I came to understand after trying a few times. Because I am the owner of this portrait, I cannot create an existence capable of erasing me. Therefore, I cannot paint humans.”
The portrait murmured, “Because a portrait without an owner cannot exist.”
Having said that, Gio looked at Yoo Seong-un again.
“Creating humans is unsettling.”
“Why is that?”
“It is too special of an act.”
“Isn’t it good to be special?”
“I am not that special, so it is not good.”
“…”
“I am content with my specialness being limited to a talking portrait.”
That thought was far too profound for a mere portrait that had simply gained a sense of self.
It’s certain that he is no ordinary monster or item.
And that was precisely what made him so chilling.
“…”
“Is this a sufficient answer?”
“For today, yes.”
Not a monster, nor an item. If he was neither a ghost nor a human…
“I will see you next time.”
What on earth was he?