Chapter 216
Translator: RaidenTL
Chapter 216
A change had come over Ju-hyeon.
“Mr. Ju-hyeon, what is that…?”
“It’s a tamed snake, so you don’t need to worry.”
“Ah, I see. But if I recall, you’re a non-Awakened, Mr. Ju-hyeon… and no matter how I look at it, that snake doesn’t seem ordinary.”
“Gio tamed it and gave it to me as a companion.”
“Ah…”
Slightly thinner than a child’s wrist, the snake wagged its tail, showing off its mesmerizing crimson skin. Its round, sparkling eyes and curved, cat-like mouth made it look incredibly harmless and cute.
The Collector’s employee nodded.
“A flashy snake, just like Hunter Seo Gio’s taste. Sparkling like a jewel, it looks like a monster designed specifically to charm people. Did he say he created it himself?”
“Well… something like that.”
“So that’s why you’re here today. If you can give me a general rundown of its characteristics and habits, like you did with the water birds, I’ll register it with the Association. That way, you won’t have any trouble getting around with it.”
“I’d appreciate that. Gio also gave me some snacks as a gift. Is there a good place to share them? There’s quite a lot…”
“In that case, the chief secretary’s office would be your best bet.”
“I’ll drop them off when I have time. For now, please register this little guy first.”
Coiled around Ju-hyeon’s neck, the red snake raised its head.
“Hello.”
“Oh, my goodness! It talks?”
“I would appreciate it if you called me San.”
“Um… yes. Nice to meet you, San.”
Befitting an employee of the Collector, who witnessed all sorts of bizarre things, she wasn’t overly shocked. She simply turned back to Ju-hyeon with a follow-up question.
“What can this little one do? If Hunter Seo Gio assigned it to you, it must have some exceptional abilities. Are there any parts you consider dangerous?”
“It has its dangerous side, but Gio is keeping that under control, so it’s fine. If I had to classify it, I’d say it’s a mental-type monster. It has a great talent for charm and brainwashing.”
“For your safety, Mr. Ju-hyeon, a direct physical attacker would probably be better than a mental type, but… well, I’m sure Hunter Seo Gio has his reasons. I’ll make a note of that for now.”
At their conversation, the red snake slumped.
“I am weak.”
This wasn’t a lament about being too weak to protect its charge, but a complaint that the snake body Gio had provided was far too feeble. Ju-hyeon, understanding the gist of it, stroked the snake’s head.
“I’ll give you a snack when we get back.”
“Oh, I like that. I want those bright red fruits from last time.”
“I’ll ask Gio, so just be quiet for a moment.”
“Understood.”
After registering Gio’s new contracted beast, ‘San,’ with the help of the Collector, Ju-hyeon returned home. Gio, who had been waiting inside his house in the form of a painting, welcomed him back.
“Did it go well?”
“Yes, thanks to you.”
From now on, Sankalut would spend its days with Ju-hyeon, trapped inside the body of a harmless snake. The condition was that it would stay by Ju-hyeon’s side and protect him. If it eventually received Gio’s permission, it would be sent back to its so-called ‘home.’
Sankalut was simply satisfied not to have been obliterated after being captured by a powerful divinity. While divinities couldn’t easily die, it was a different story when facing ‘Gio’s Portrait.’ As if already used to its new life, Sankalut made a request.
“Give me fruits. Fruits.”
“I believe you mean the Mangdung fruits.”
“Those sweet and sour fruits suit my taste perfectly.”
“I’m glad you’ve found a food you can enjoy.”
Indeed, Sankalut had ultimately been turned into a pig by Gio.
“I wish it would gain some weight, though.”
“Uh… wouldn’t that make it a bit heavy for me?”
“I believe weight-reduction magic exists.”
“If it gets any bigger than this, it’ll draw too much attention.”
“That would be troublesome for you.”
As an introvert himself, Seo Gio quickly understood the burden Ju-hyeon would feel and dropped the idea. Besides, the scrawny body housing a divinity like Sankalut wouldn’t easily swell just from eating a bit more.
“You can just drop by to pick up snacks from time to time.”
“I’ll do that.”
Visiting the cabin had become essential, if only to maintain Sankalut.
“Speaking of which, could we visit now? San ate all the Mangdung fruits, so I’d like to harvest some. Otherwise, it won’t listen to me…”
“Mangdung fruits are one of the easiest things to find in my forest. You are welcome to come in and harvest as much as you like. The water birds will help you, Mr. Ju-hyeon.”
As if they had heard Gio’s words, the translucent water birds, including Honey, scurried over and perched on the frame. Ju-hyeon let out a helpless laugh as they looked up at him, as if to ask, ‘When are you coming in?’ ‘Now?’ ‘Are you coming in now?’
“Pardon me for a moment.”
Ju-hyeon entered ‘Gio’s Portrait’ with practiced ease.
“…”
“Are you alright?”
“…I feel a bit of motion sickness…”
“I think it’s because of Mr. Sankalut.”
The bright red snake raised its head indignantly.
“I am innocent.”
“Your mere existence can have an effect. Especially inside the portrait.”
“…Mr. Ju-hyeon is too weak. He needs modification.”
“Mr. Ju-hyeon will live his own life just fine as he is. Do not interfere.”
“That’s unfair.”
Ju-hyeon looked slightly weary at their exchange.
“As I thought, your way of speaking strangely overlaps with Gio’s.”
“It can’t be helped. That body was modeled after me to some extent.”
The two of them set off. The most common fruit scattered throughout Gio’s forest was indeed the Mangdung fruit. Having left their nest for the first time in a while, the water birds scurried over and perched on Gio’s body. Gio and Ju-hyeon spent a long time engrossed in harvesting them.
Once the basket was nearly full, they went to the stream to lightly rinse the fruits.
“I never would have guessed an Evil God would like fruits.”
“I like red. Give them to me. I am waiting.”
“What are you going to do if you really turn into a pig…?”
“I can go on a diet. Trust me, Mr. Ju-hyeon.”
“Can snakes even go on diets…?”
It hadn’t been long, but over the past few days, Ju-hyeon and Sankalut had adapted to each other. Of course, they only seemed to get along because Ju-hyeon was determined to ‘somehow cook this thing, whether by roasting or boiling,’ while Sankalut harbored the hope that ‘maybe one day, I can find a gap to exploit.’
Regardless, on the surface, they looked perfectly natural together.
“Since you’re already here, would you like to have a meal?”
“I was wondering when you’d ask.”
“Were you looking forward to it?”
“No, I was bracing myself.”
As always, the meals Gio prepared filled Ju-hyeon with a strange sense of pressure. It felt like consuming something a human should never dare to eat, yet it was served in an absurdly familiar form.
“What kind of meat is this?”
“It’s rabbit meat. The aroma is unique, isn’t it? The texture is quite chewy, too.”
“As far as I know, the rabbits in your forest aren’t this large…”
“Lately, animals have been creeping in from beyond the frame.”
“Beyond the frame? You mean from another painting?”
“Yes. It’s called ‘Animal Kingdom.’”
“That’s a very literal name.”
“I didn’t name it, for the record.”
It certainly was straightforward.
“I tried to see if it was possible to raise them, but most were in a state of rampage. I think I’ll only know the exact cause once I visit the world beyond the frame, but I’ve been diligently putting it off because it’s a hassle.”
“‘Diligently putting it off’ is a bit of a contradiction.”
“I’m glad the food seems to suit Mr. Sankalut’s taste as well.”
“Are you changing the subject?”
The snake, which had been letting their conversation go in one ear and out the other, raised its head and tilted it to the side. After chewing and swallowing the rabbit meat—bones and all—that stuffed its mouth, it spoke.
“This is truly delicious. It is full of wrath.”
Ju-hyeon was puzzled. “Wrath? Why is there wrath in a rabbit dish?”
“I think it’s expressing the stinging pain on its tongue as wrath.”
“No, if we’re going by that logic, shouldn’t it be expressed as pain…?”
“…”
“…Mr. Gio?”
Gio didn’t answer, looking back at the snake instead.
“I thought Mr. Sankalut would enjoy fear rather than wrath, so this is unexpected.”
“I am not a picky eater.”
With that, it chewed and swallowed a whole bunch of bright red chili peppers that had been topped on the dish.
“But I like red things.”
“…If the people at the Research Institute found out that Sankalut, the Evil God of Pain and Fear, actually just likes anything red, they would faint.”
Ju-hyeon spoke with a look of sheer disbelief. In truth, he knew Sankalut wouldn’t have been this satisfied if it weren’t for the ‘red food’ Gio had prepared.
It’s just absurd to see an Evil God enjoying fine dining.
Humans are creatures highly susceptible to visual cues. Even if the things served before him were concentrated masses of mystery, they still took the form of food. It was a bizarre feeling to watch an ancient divinity plump up its physical vessel with nutrients.
“Come to think of it… San, you used to like the blood of children and the elderly.”
“Yes, I like it very much. I prefer it.”
“Looking at you now, you seem to like anything red. Was there a specific reason you distinguished between those age groups?”
“They are the children of providence, standing at the beginning and the end.”
It meant they were a kind of delicacy.
“They are also beings fit to enter my paradise.”
“I know about the paradise of the Sankalut Cult. It’s said that after offering up all their blood, pain, and fear, the victims spend eternity in a paradise so ideal no one could dispute it…”
“That is correct.”
“…Does such a paradise truly exist?”
“Of course.”
Sankalut licked its lips, seemingly pleased with the rabbit dish packed with chili peppers.
“It is just like Mr. Gio’s diary.”
“That’s a bit hard to believe…”
As Ju-hyeon’s expression clouded, Arjio’s eyes sparkled with interest.
“An afterlife created by another divinity… now that is something I would love to hear about. Would you care to indulge me?”
“…It is not as grand as yours, Mr. Gio…”
“I merely want to use it as a reference, since I have only ever painted. I am curious to know what kind of afterlife a proper divinity creates.”
“…Ugh…”
The snake twisted its body, as if Gio’s interest was an incredible burden, but it soon opened its mouth.
“…I gave them everything they valued. If they had lost family, I gave them family. If they desired a mate, I gave them a mate. If they wished for a child, I allowed them to conceive.”
Ju-hyeon’s brow furrowed. “But those people are all dead, aren’t they?”
“They are alive in my paradise.”
“That sounds like sophistry, but since I’ve never died, I can’t really argue…”
“Humans classify and value life and death based on the biological activity of the physical body. I believe that is an incredibly foolish and inefficient method. I treated their souls very well.”
“Where are those souls now?”
“They are in my stomach.”
The snake spoke as if it were the most natural thing in the world.
“They are a part of me that I consumed. Where else could they be? They are tasting the emotion of happiness and continuing their pleasant stories.”
“So you don’t use those souls to plot evil schemes or anything…?”
“That is a difficult question. I would appreciate it if you spoke more simply.”
“Are you dodging the question?”
Gio waved his hand. “I think he genuinely doesn’t understand.”
“Was what I said really that difficult…?”
“To use an analogy, it’s like asking you, ‘Mr. Ju-hyeon, can you plot an evil scheme with the rabbit meat you just ate?’ The question itself doesn’t even make sense, does it?”
“Uh…”
“It seems a young divinity has trouble with questions about matters too trivial and obvious for them to even ponder. As I keep saying, Mr. Sankalut doesn’t seem to be a divinity who enjoys communicating with humans.”
“…”
Ju-hyeon stroked his chin.
“As expected… the more I hear about the afterlife, the more baffling it gets.”
“There’s no need for a living person to worry about the afterlife. It would only cause various side effects.”
Arjio nodded understandingly. “The reason most divinities consider human life so cheap makes sense from that perspective. The physical body is merely a shell, and human life simply depends on the presence or absence of that shell.”
“Do you think so too, Gio?”
“If I did, would I be sitting here eating a meal like this?”
“Ah, that’s true…”
Once again, Ju-hyeon felt a strange sensation.
…So the disasters caused by divinities truly have no malice behind them.
In the end, good and evil were nothing more than standards created by humans. A divinity was simply nature and fate endowed with a will. They could never be categorized as right or wrong.
Just as one couldn’t distinguish up from down for a star floating in the void…
Of course, forcing Sankalut’s version of ‘rightness’ onto Earth—where it was most certainly not right—was a different matter entirely. Even a divinity should know how to read the room.
Having reached a conclusion, Ju-hyeon turned his attention back to Gio.
“What exactly is the concept of this ‘diary’ you made, Gio?”
“It’s literally a diary. It could be someone’s home, a travel destination, or a layover.”
It was like a villa where Gio had thrown the doors wide open so that anyone he wanted to befriend could enter at any time. They could settle down completely, or just rest for a bit before moving on to wherever they pleased.
Sankalut tilted its head at Gio’s explanation.
“Do you not eat them?”
“I am not so starved that I must devour my precious guests.”
“They would be delicious, though…”
“Is that your perspective, Mr. Sankalut?”
It was certainly interesting.
“…Amusing.”
After all, he merely harbored a divinity; he could not be called a proper god.