Yoo Seongwoon came running.
“Gio.”
“Yes. What is it?”
“Did we do anything that hurt your feelings, by any chance?”
“I do not understand why you would ask that, but no.”
“That’s a relief.”
Yoo Seongwoon laughed hollowly and asked,
“You seem to be speaking with the other employees often these days.”
“Did I interfere with their work?”
“A little? It isn’t as though you were terribly rude…”
It was difficult to decide whether creating an atmosphere of terror counted as an inconvenience. That was especially true for Yoo Seongwoon, who knew Gio’s true nature was neither Monster nor god, but a portion of the Source.
Still, he was curious.
“I heard you’ve been going around asking about Evil Gods.”
“You heard correctly.”
“Urgh!”
Yoo Seongwoon jumped when Gio abruptly thrust his upper body out of the Portrait.
“You can come out that way too?”
“I am merely leaning half my body through.”
Beneath the black cloak undulating like a curtain, Yoo Seongwoon caught sight of low-saturation red hair. Judging from the distinctive, provocative sharpness of his tone, he appeared to have become Argio, who introduced himself as an Evil God.
He leaned against the frame. The nails he tapped lightly against it had grown long like those of a beast. Argio continued.
“I recently found myself questioning Evil Gods.”
“Questioning them? What do you mean?”
“What is an Evil God? What must one do, and…