21

Chapter 21

“Gio.”

4:29 a.m.

Yoo Seongwoon called out to the portrait.

“Gio, are you awake?”

“I am awake.”

“Good.”

Of course, he had called because he knew Gio usually opened his eyes around this time.

‘There are days when he skips it, but the window for communication is usually between four and five in the morning… I’ll have to observe the situation longer, but it would be best to regard this as another rule.’

Gio’s Portrait was friendly toward humans, but no being of the Source showed mercy to humans who violated its rules. Even an entity so gentlemanly that it appeared almost human had to be treated with caution.

“I wanted to have a conversation with you.”

“What business do you have with me?”

“I hear you’ve been wandering around the company building lately. There are all sorts of rumors about you.”

“I wonder what sort of rumors they might be.”

“I don’t know if you’ll like it, but… they’re calling you the ‘Black Cloak.’”

Yoo Seongwoon continued with his usual placid smile.

“It seems a rumor has begun that ‘the Black Cloak gives gifts to good people.’”

These were guild members sharp-eyed Bisabeol had personally gathered one by one. Whatever their fighting ability, they were no slouches when it came to using their heads.

In their own way, they had managed to identify the Black Cloak’s rules.

“It sounds like you gave gifts to other people again?”

“I did not give them to everyone.”

“I know. You gave them to the people who were especially polite or kind, right?”

The people who claimed to have received gifts from Gio had something in common.

‘They were either very weak or very strong.’

Yoo Seongwoon could guess why, to some extent.

Those who were very weak trembled in fear at the sight of Gio, so he must have given them gifts as compensation for the apology he felt he owed them. The strong ones had been able to communicate reasonably well even in the face of Gio’s overwhelming stature, so Gio must have judged them to be polite.

Gifts of apology or gratitude. It was a result that suited the one-to-one rule in its own way.

‘The ones who were neither one nor the other received nothing.’

Some employees were strong enough not to dissolve into tears and snot, but lacked the fortitude to communicate normally in the presence of such immense stature. They had received no gifts.

“Hmm…”

Yoo Seongwoon thought he needed to explain this point to prevent any possible accidents.

‘Since he’s imitating a human, Gio isn’t so savage that communication with him is impossible.’

Though how anyone could define a being of the Source as gentlemanly was another question.

‘This much should be all right.’

After preparing himself, Yoo Seongwoon spoke.

“If one of our employees fails to answer you properly, runs away altogether, avoids responding, or… does something like that, it doesn’t mean they’re bad people. They’re simply a little timid.”

“……”

“Anyone would be frightened by a huge, unidentified person in a black cloak who suddenly appeared at dawn, when no one else should be there.”

Yoo Seongwoon deliberately described Gio as though he were an ordinary person.

Gio considered himself an ordinary human. Yoo Seongwoon doubted anything good would come of deliberately exposing the stature of his soul or his true nature.

“Of course, it may feel rude to you. But I’m saying those people weren’t deliberately trying to be rude. From the perspective of someone timid, the situation may simply have been too much to handle.”

A calm voice soon replied.

“I understand what you mean.”

“You do? Then I’m grateful.”

As both a Curator and a Gardener, Yoo Seongwoon could not help but worry.

‘It’s only natural for a rabbit to cower before a wolf. If he judges that reaction to be rude and evil, things could become extremely troublesome. Innocent people might end up dying.’

Human standards were meaningless to a being of the Source. Gio’s Portrait was particularly sensitive to good, evil, and proper manners. The problem was that the entity’s standards might differ markedly from those of humans.

Even someone who had done nothing especially wrong—or was even good by human standards—might appear thoroughly wicked from Gio’s perspective as a being of the Source.

It was chilling when Yoo Seongwoon recalled Gio repeatedly saying that he disliked rude and evil people.

‘It truly sent a chill down my spine when I learned that some people hadn’t received gifts at all.’

Did that not mean Gio had “sorted” the humans?

“You said… yes, you said Guild Master Bisabeol wasn’t a bad person, didn’t you?”

“Yes, that is correct.”

“Every employee in this company was personally selected by him. He didn’t simply post a notice and hire them through mass interviews. They’re guild members he took great care to recruit one by one.”

“That must have required a great deal of time and effort. Impressive.”

“I wanted to tell you that while I can’t say every employee in our guild is kind, they’re competent, decent people.”

There might not be anyone in this world who had never committed a single crime, but at the very least, the people Bisabeol had personally chosen were not wicked enough to be called villains.

“Even if they don’t have exceptionally fine characters, they’re simply ordinary people.”

“Yes.”

“…Would it be terribly rude of me to say that I hope you won’t think badly of them?”

Yoo Seongwoon did not know how Gio distinguished good from evil in humans.

‘But just as humans have Appraisal Skills… Gio definitely has some standard by which he passes judgment. Otherwise, he could never have declared that Guild Master Bisabeol wasn’t a bad person without even speaking to him.’

Contrary to Yoo Seongwoon’s supposition, unless Gio was inside the portrait, he still had no way to assess the “safety level” of the person beyond the frame.

Some people had received gifts this time while others had not simply because Gio had offered them as compensation whenever he thought, ‘Oh, I’m grateful,’ or, ‘Oh, I feel bad.’ He had not made any other value judgments.

But unaware of this, Yoo Seongwoon could not help but suspect that Gio possessed an Appraisal Skill.

‘I hope the skill’s standards aren’t too exacting.’

Bisabeol had said this disturbance involving the strange tale was a kind of vaccination.

It was an opportunity for Gio’s Portrait—an uncontrollable natural disaster that could never be dealt with—to adapt to this world and respect its people, and for the humans of this world to understand and accommodate him in turn.

Therefore, Yoo Seongwoon had no choice but to try a variety of approaches.

“What do you think?”

“……”

Fortunately—or perhaps inevitably—Gio answered with the same blunt expression as always.

“I did not think those people were bad.”

“You didn’t?”

“The only reasons I did not give them gifts were that I judged they would have no need of them, and that some people fled before they could do anything. I did not think they were evil.”

“……”

“I simply thought there was no need to give them gifts.”

That was truly a relief.

‘At least he didn’t judge them to be rude and wicked. So there was a reason no one was injured even as the number of eyewitness accounts grew.’

Just as Yoo Seongwoon began to relax, Gio continued.

“I do feel some resentment toward the people who ignored my questions or ran away without answering.”

“Ah.”

“But I understand. As you said, an unidentified man in a black cloak who suddenly appears in a deserted hallway can easily inspire fear. I would be lying if I said it was not unpleasant, but I have no intention of becoming angry.”

Gio added an explanation.

“However, because I am also human, I cannot avoid feeling negative emotions.”

“Uh, right.”

“I tried to converse politely, so it hurts when this keeps happening. I sincerely hope the employees here will no longer ignore or avoid the Black Cloak in this manner.”

“I’ll discuss that with the Guild Master.”

Yoo Seongwoon struggled to swallow his discomfort.

‘…So he was angry after all.’

Apparently, they merely did not qualify as “bad people.” That did not mean they had not been rude.

Even an ordinary person would become angry if everyone around them rejected them, and Gio was a being of the Source who believed himself human.

Even if he mistook himself for a human, there was no way he would not become angry at humans who violated his clearly defined rules.

‘Even so… we won’t be able to dispel the fear surrounding this strange tale completely. His soul’s stature is simply too great, so it’s only natural that humans shrink in his presence. In that case, should we establish a new rule within the company building so we can at least regulate the employees’ behavior?’

After pondering for a moment, Yoo Seongwoon nodded.

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“…We share a close bond centered around the Guild Master. Since he personally brought in every single person, the employees tend to feel quite attached to him.”

“Yes.”

“I’ll speak to the Guild Master and do everything I can to improve the situation so you won’t continue to experience that discomfort. If the Guild Master argues for it strongly, I think the other employees will understand.”

“I would be grateful if you did.”

By the time he said so, Gio was holding a glass vessel Yoo Seongwoon had never seen before.

“……”

No. No, that was not right. Wait.

‘A crock?’

It was not a jar but a crock—large enough that it had to be cradled in one arm rather than held in a single hand.

“…What’s that?”

“Consider it a gift of gratitude for listening to my complaint and request.”

“I still haven’t finished all the cookies you gave me last time.”

“Why is that?”

“Ah…”

“I am not angry. I merely asked because I was curious why you still had some left when there were so few. Would you answer me?”

Had Gio been an ordinary human, Yoo Seongwoon might have wondered whether he was being sarcastic because he was angry. But Gio was unmistakably a being of the Source. It seemed to be a sincere question, so Yoo Seongwoon answered apologetically.

“I’m sorry. They work so well when I eat them while tired that I’ve been saving them and eating them a little at a time. It isn’t that your gift made me uncomfortable or that I didn’t like the taste.”

“You have no reason to apologize to me. I gave you a gift, and it now belongs to you, Yoo Seongwoon. You need not make excuses to me. I am merely pleased to hear that it gave you strength when you were tired.”

“When you put it that way, I feel even more humbled…”

Yoo Seongwoon looked at the glass crock inside the portrait.

“So, what is that?”

In response, Gio removed the hand wrapped around the crock and showed it to him.

“Fruit cheong.”

“…That is?”

“Anyone can see that it is fruit cheong.”

“Ah, right…”

Anyone could see that it was not fruit cheong.

‘…That’s fruit cheong?’

Fruit and sugar were expensive ingredients, making fruit cheong a rare indulgence, but Yoo Seongwoon was a capable Hunter. He earned no small sum, so there was no way he had never tried a fruit cheong that even second-class citizens could purchase.

‘But it’s… very different from the fruit cheong I know.’

It bore the color of twilight—vermilion, closer to orange, perhaps.

The clear, transparent liquid shone like the surface of a jewel, and a color intense enough to dazzle lay sleeping within it, evoking the evening glow.

‘Something resembling fruit has settled at the bottom, but…’

Its color was so enchanting that it hardly seemed edible.

“This is ice that tastes good when added to it.”

“…It looks just like a pearl.”

“Its name is Ice Pearl. You seem to possess the insight to guess a name correctly on your first attempt, Yoo Seongwoon.”

“Oh, yes. Insight…”

“It will not melt unless exposed to considerable heat, so if you wish to consume it, I recommend dissolving it in hot tea.”

“……”

Wow.

I can feel it.

‘I don’t think I can handle this.’

When Gio had first given him tea leaves, Yoo Seongwoon had asked him to “please restrain himself a little.” Then there had been the cookies he received in exchange for the seeds. Those had been anything but ordinary as well. Their fatigue-recovery effect was so extraordinary that he had been unable to eat them all at once and was still saving some even now.

‘But there’s so much this time.’

Gio had said he enjoyed cooking, and it seemed he was very generous with his portions. This being of the Source apparently had no idea how small a human stomach was.

“Please accept it.”

“…Isn’t that too much?”

“Please have plenty. It would be good for you to put on more weight than you carry now, Yoo Seongwoon.”

“I’m already fairly well-built.”

Though Gio had never seen Yoo Seongwoon’s body directly, judging by the outline beneath his cloak, Yoo Seongwoon actually had more muscle mass than Gio.

And yet Gio wanted him to gain even more weight? Yoo Seongwoon found it difficult to understand.

‘…Wait, does “weight” perhaps mean fat?’

Was Gio a man-eating Monster?

“I don’t taste good.”

“That is an amusing joke.”

“I was serious.”

Fortunately, Gio did not seem to possess the mentality of the witch from the gingerbread house, fattening someone before eating them.

‘Though it isn’t for a human to judge the aesthetic tastes of a being of the Source.’

Gio probably preferred the appearance of plumper humans.

It was a little unusual that he liked people who looked fat when his own body was so perfectly proportioned. Yoo Seongwoon had no idea what sort of history this being of the Source could possibly have.

‘…Come to think of it, whenever he gives gifts, they’re usually food, and he said he cooks or eats when he’s bored. He really seems to love food in every respect. The fact that he prefers the look of people with more flesh on them… that his portions are strangely huge… and that he likes giving gifts…’

Is this bastard a grandmother?

“……”

“What are you thinking about?”

“Ah, sorry. My mind wandered for a moment.”

“I see.”

Fortunately, Gio did not press him further.

“This is a gift in return for everyone’s kindness, so I do not require anything in exchange. More than anything, the new fruit cheong I combined this time seems to have matured deliciously, and I wanted to share it with all of you.”

“Hmm… I see.”

Even as he nodded calmly, Yoo Seongwoon wondered to himself,

‘…Does he know that he is bound by rules?’

Gio’s words just now had seemed to rest upon the premise, ‘I must receive something before I can give you a gift.’ Perhaps Gio himself had not created the one-to-one rule.

‘Or perhaps he created it and forgot.’

If a being of such stature possessed only the memories of a twenty-nine-year-old man, it was a plausible hypothesis.

“…Well, since you’re offering it, I’ll accept…”

Yoo Seongwoon used his Appraisal Skill on the fruit cheong.

[Honey of the Vein]

[Grade: -]

Fruit cheong made from Mangdung Fruit and Drought Tangerines that grow wild along the Vein of Fate. Vermilion in color, it is distinguished by its sweet-and-tart taste and deep, savory flavor. It was personally processed by Gio, the master of the forest, allowing even the human body to accept it. When diluted with water and consumed, it restores a human’s physical capabilities to their limits. It is especially effective against malnutrition.

Adding Ice Pearls that grow naturally in the glacier beneath Gio’s cabin makes it exceptionally effective at restoring physical and mental function.

“……”

“Does it not smell wonderful?”

“You’re an excellent cook.”

He could stand to be a little less excellent.

(To be continued)