Chapter 169
Translator: RaidenTL
Chapter 169
It’s a common legend that evil cannot enter without an invitation.
Even seemingly omnipotent beings have limitations, things they can only do with permission. They can’t enter a home uninvited or leave without assistance—things of that nature.
“……”
“……”
The guild members exchanged glances.
“…Mr. Seo Gio?”
At the trainee’s question, a voice answered from outside the door.
“Yes, my name is Seo Gio.”
The contradictory emptiness in his voice momentarily sowed doubt.
The Collector’s Gallery, a repository for all manner of bizarre creations, was naturally rife with ghost stories. They had certainly been waiting for ‘Mr. Seo Gio,’ but they couldn’t help but worry that one wrong move would invite disaster.
Just then, the 5th Floor Manager, Curator Garasani, stood up.
“Manager.”
“What are you worried about?”
“Ah, well…”
“……”
“…I’m sorry.”
“Tsk.”
Scanning his juniors, Garasani opened the meeting room door.
“……”
“Welcome, Mr. Seo Gio.”
Standing before him was a platinum-blonde man.
Hair that flowed softly and eyes that held the summer sea. Garasani avoided his gaze, instead bowing deeply—the proper etiquette for addressing an artwork. He was, after all, a servant to countless such pieces.
“We have been waiting for you.”
“Am I late?”
“No, you arrived right on time.”
The current time was 4:00 PM, the exact time of their appointment.
The trainee who had first spoken looked past Curator Garasani at the tall man. In stark contrast to his coloring, which suggested warm sunlight, his expression was chillingly blank.
‘They said he resembled a funeral.’
Spotless and pristine, yet he carried an air heavier and more somber than the word implied…
“……”
Ah.
‘…We made eye contact.’
His eyes curved into a gentle crescent.
“It is a pleasure to meet you.”
In an instant, the deathly aura vanished, replaced by the warmth of sunlight.
It was instantly clear that this was a monster mimicking a human.
* * *
Within the Collector’s Gallery, the Black Cloak’s status was that of a ‘free-roaming artwork.’
The so-called ‘Mr. Seo Gio’ could often be found wandering the building. Sometimes he was in human form; other times, he took the form of a portrait. The employees, for their part, avoided talking about him as much as possible.
While this was partly to avoid any potential curses, the primary reason was…
‘If I get caught, I’m screwed.’
‘Absolutely no overtime…’
‘As long as it’s not me.’
Indeed, they simply didn’t want to get dragged into complicated matters.
“Of all things, why does he have to be friendly toward humans?”
“How much easier would it be if his social skills were nonexistent…”
No matter how much Bisabeol treated his guild members like his own collection, he didn’t treat them as subhuman. He made a strict distinction between human collectibles and non-human artworks.
Would a man like Bisabeol really be crazy enough to let a dangerous urban legend roam free inside his headquarters? No, which meant this particular urban legend, ‘Mr. Seo Gio,’ had to be exceptionally kind to humans. This also meant that the closer they got to him, the higher the likelihood they would end up working overtime.
“Look at Mr. Yoo Seong-un.”
There was a perfect example.
“Poor guy. He probably hasn’t even been home.”
“But wasn’t Curator Yoo Seong-un always busy anyway?”
“It doesn’t change the fact that he got saddled with all kinds of extra work related to Mr. Seo Gio.”
“Ah, that’s true. I should absolutely avoid getting involved.”
And so, that was how things stood.
Because of this, the guild members of the Collector’s Gallery did their best not to acknowledge ‘Mr. Seo Gio’ even if they saw him. Following instructions, they maintained the utmost politeness while gritting their teeth to actively avoid his presence. They had no desire to befriend the eye of the storm and get swept up in a disaster.
There were also many who were simply afraid of ‘Mr. Seo Gio’ and wanted to be cautious.
“Being friendly is one thing, but you never know when he might suddenly turn on us.”
“As a guild member of the Collector’s Gallery, I respect ‘Mr. Seo Gio’s’ existence and words, but… he is scary.”
“Besides, is there really any need to act friendly with an urban legend…?”
They did not view ‘Mr. Seo Gio’ as a human who required social interaction. He was a natural phenomenon, an urban legend that had quietly and chillingly seeped into their daily lives.
Few people would want to strike up a conversation with an urban legend like the Red Mask, which still persisted in South Korea. Who would want to build a personal relationship with a nurse ghost wandering a hospital late at night, or a woman in a white dress on a deserted roadside?
“Well, I’ll do it if I have to.”
“If they order me to, I will.”
“If it’s required, sure.”
The highly competent and responsible employees of the Collector’s Gallery never did anything they weren’t ordered to, and this was no exception. Even if an order were handed down, they would probably treat it like ‘saying nice things to a houseplant once in a while.’
“But isn’t this basically workplace bullying?”
“…Does that even apply to an artwork?”
“Ah, I suppose not.”
To them, ‘Mr. Seo Gio’ was Bisabeol’s eerie artwork. He was merely something in human form, not a real human, and thus they felt no need for any special interaction.
If he were a real coworker, they would have at least tried to strike up a friendly conversation. The guild members of the Collector’s Gallery were highly individualistic, but they weren’t socially inept. But ‘Mr. Seo Gio’ was an artwork, wasn’t he?
“I ran into Mr. Seo Gio yesterday.”
“I’m surprised you managed to come to work today.”
“He was more of a gentleman than I expected, so… it was fine.”
“You must have lived a good life.”
“We just introduced ourselves, and I got a gift.”
“Clean and simple.”
The ‘Guidelines for Dealing with Mr. Seo Gio’ that Bisabeol had previously distributed also contributed to this atmosphere.
By now, their perception of ‘Mr. Seo Gio’ had solidified: he was an eerie artwork, and on the rare occasion you ran into him, you might get a gift if you managed a successful conversation.
In other words, he wasn’t a coworker but rather a creepy natural phenomenon coexisting in the workplace. The guild members of the Collector’s Gallery had adapted to ‘Mr. Seo Gio’ in their own way.
“……”
“……”
And returning to the meeting room where the dispatch team had gathered…
‘…So this is the Mr. Seo Gio I’ve only heard about? The Black Cloak who gives gifts to good people…'
‘His presence is definitely on another level. He looks perfectly human, which makes it even more uncanny.’
‘I heard he’s skilled at interacting with intelligent creatures, but I wonder how far his human mimicry goes.’
A subtle tension hung in the air. They had been placed on a team with none other than the headquarters’ most famous urban legend.
Since he was an artwork cherished by Bisabeol, the chances of them being in danger were slim, but seeing him in person made it impossible not to feel tense.
‘No matter how I look at him, the impression of perfection is overwhelming.’
‘It feels like looking at something ideal that shouldn’t exist in reality…'
His appearance was incredibly beautiful, and his build was neither too thin nor too bulky. His form, seemingly tailored to the perfect average of some human ideal, only heightened the impression that he wasn’t human at all.
‘Is he taking on that form to leave a favorable impression on humans?’
It was a perfect strategy, especially in South Korea, where physical appearance held significant sway. In fact, many guild members were captivated by his beauty, as if they were looking at an incredibly precious gem or relic.
“……”
A silver-haired woman with copper skin scanned the room. The 5th Floor Manager, who had opened the door, stepped back, putting silent pressure on the other employees to act.
‘He wants us to play along.’
Given the unusual circumstances, she didn’t know if she could get a gift, but according to the guidelines, the very first thing to do was exchange names with the Black Cloak.
Having organized her thoughts, the woman stood up and welcomed ‘Mr. Seo Gio.’
“Mr. Seo Gio?”
“Yes, my name is Seo Gio.”
“I must say, I’m surprised. You’re even more handsome than the rumors suggested.”
“Is it a face to your liking?”
“It’d be hard not to like it, wouldn’t it?” she greeted him with her characteristic playful banter. “Nice to meet you. I’m Yoo Ji-na.”
“Ah, Ms. Yoo Ji-na. How should I address you?”
“You can call me what you just did, or you can just call me Ji-na if you want to be comfortable.”
The trainee smiled, her eyes curving playfully.
“I look forward to working with you on this raid.”
Indeed, he truly seemed human.
‘…Does he not realize that slight imperfections are what make someone seem human? Aside from his excessive, ideal perfection, everything else about him was exactly like a person. With mimicry of this level, anyone who doesn’t know his true identity would be completely fooled. It’s so skillful that it’s actually dangerous.’
He showed almost none of the uncanny dissonance that other bizarre mysteries often revealed while mimicking humans. His only dissonance was that he was ‘too ideal’—there was nothing else concrete to point to.
‘They said his human mimicry wasn’t this skilled at first. Maybe he’s growing…'
The growth of an unidentified mystery was bound to trigger human fear. Ji-na forced down the dread rising within her and continued the introductions with a friendly smile.
“And over here are Kang Neuru and Danmi!”
At that, the field staff cast grateful glances at Ji-na before speaking up.
“Hello, I am Kang Neuru, a field staff member of the Collector’s Gallery.”
“I’m in the same department as Neuru. My name is Danmi. It’s a pleasure to meet you.”
After the smooth introductions, Ji-na shrugged.
“We have one more person coming from our trainee team, but she seems to be running a bit late because of some business on the first floor.”
At that point, the 5th Floor Manager stepped in.
“My apologies, Mr. Seo Gio. If you permit, I will go and fetch her myself.”
To an outsider, it might seem excessively subservient for a minor tardiness, but their counterpart was one of the gallery’s artworks. There were more than a few artworks that would slaughter someone for being late to an appointment.
The reason they hadn’t dragged the remaining member here earlier was that ‘Mr. Seo Gio’s’ standards were known to be lenient. He only showed slight displeasure toward rude people, and as long as they didn’t repeat the same mistake, he showed generous tolerance.
‘But no one knows where his limit is.’
That was why the 5th Floor Manager stepped forward first to gauge the artwork’s mood.
“If you are highly displeased…”
“I understand she might be busy.”
Fortunately, ‘Mr. Seo Gio’ did not express any displeasure.
“Since she had sudden business, it can’t be helped.”
“Thank you for your understanding.”
“I am truly grateful for your warm hospitality, but at the same time, I feel a bit apologetic.”
He smiled, his gentle eyes curving as he mimicked ‘awkwardness.’
“Am I frightening to you?”
“No.”
The 5th Floor Manager offered a bright smile, like an elderly man looking at his grown grandson.
“It is merely an honor.”
That was a smile Curator Garasani reserved solely for artworks.
“Though we are already familiar faces, they must still be strangers to you, Mr. Seo Gio. Since this is a gathering to get used to one another before the raid, I hope you will feel comfortable joining us.”
“Thank you for your kind consideration.”
“Think nothing of it. Since you primarily work the dawn shift and are only seen then, you probably don’t know their faces well. Let us take our time talking and get to know each other.”
Although Curator Garasani had successfully seated ‘Mr. Seo Gio,’ he did not let his guard down. The employees had stiffened, overwhelmed by the presence and deathly aura this existence of the Origin naturally exuded.
Though they tried their best to hide it, Garasani could see right through them.
‘And if I can see it, then Mr. Seo Gio can obviously see it even better.’
It was a worrying matter.
‘They need to play along with the role Mr. Seo Gio wants.’
As a curator, Garasani had plenty of experience and could handle this skillfully, but it would be a difficult task for the trainee and field teams. Performing in a play dictated by a bizarre mystery was no easy feat.
With that thought, Garasani placed teacups in front of the team members.
“This is Ajankacha, newly prepared for today.”
“Oh, the Manager’s tea-brewing skills are always reliable.”
“I look forward to your brief thoughts on it.”
Hoping they would adapt to each other without incident, Garasani smiled.
* * *
Slide—!
A woman slid open the meeting room door and walked in.
“I’m so sorry, the wrap-up meeting took longer than—!”
And then she froze.
“Ah, Mr. Gio, you’re seriously so funny!”
“Did you really do that? No joke?”
“That’s insane… ‘Smiling Tyrant of the Sea Village’… it suits you so well…”
“No, how can a person be like that? Should I call this amazing or what?”
It was an unimaginably warm and harmonious atmosphere.
“……”
“Ah, welcome.”
At the center of it all, the platinum-blonde man looked at the trainee who had frozen solid, completely unable to comprehend the situation. In a soft, beautiful voice that felt capable of melting anyone, he spoke.
“My name is Seo Gio.”
“Huh? Ah, yes.”
“What is your name?”
“It’s… Kim Nana.”
“I see.”
The Black Cloak asked calmly.
“Would you like to converse with me?”
“……”
Was this not a textbook brainwashing scene?
‘…What on earth did he do to my coworkers?’
A cold shiver ran down Kim Nana’s spine.