The Artist Who Paints Dungeon-Chapter 109

"Who are you?"

Excuse me?

"...What should we do?"

"......"

What do you mean?

Gio thought.

'What did I do wrong?'

He couldn’t understand what was happening at all.

'Weren’t we just talking about the world until a moment ago?'

Amid his burden of being suddenly famous without his consent, this felt like a bolt from the blue.

Suddenly, Gio found himself asked a philosophical question about "who am I?" He fell into an unexpected moment of self-reflection. Even though Gio lived thoughtlessly, he at least understood that the question was quite serious.

'But that only makes it more confusing.'

It felt like a parent sitting across from their child, lamenting, "Son, how should we treat you?" But Seong-Woon wasn’t Gio’s parent. Gio was an adult man who had a job that disappeared.

'Why? Why me? Why suddenly career counseling?'

He couldn’t figure out where Seong-Woon had suddenly become so serious.

"......"

"......"

The silence stretched on, and Gio’s confusion and anxiety grew.

'...He asked so seriously, so I should answer seriously in return. But I don’t know what to say, since I know nothing. To think that I, Seo Gio, the very definition of a product of rote education, would have poor crisis management skills...'

In order to answer, you first had to understand the situation, right?

'Who... who am I...?'

Well, that’s a good question.

'If I had to define it, I’d say a haunted portrait...?'

That was probably the word that best expressed Gio’s identity right now.

But it felt odd to call himself a "ghost" when he wasn’t dead. After a moment's hesitation, he replied.

"I am a portrait."

"...A portrait, you say."

"I understand why you’re worried, Seong-Woon."

"......"

"But I can't understand."

It was sincere.

‘Who could call a harmless haunted portrait like me anything to worry about?’

Lately, Gio had been trying to manage his image because of the looming fear that "if I look too approachable, I’ll end up in a research lab," but he didn’t think his efforts had been impactful enough to truly make Seong-Woon feel threatened.

'But from Seong-Woon’s reaction, it’s clear that he is afraid of me.'

To be precise, he wasn’t exactly afraid of Gio himself, but it seemed he was worried about an ★ 𝐍𝐨𝐯𝐞𝐥𝐢𝐠𝐡𝐭 ★ accident that might happen if Gio ever lost control.

This was a baffling situation for Gio, who only knew how to stay at home painting and eating. He expressed his own lazy tendencies.

"I’m just a normal person who likes to paint, cook for my family, enjoy meals together, and lie on a bed full of spring air to nap repeatedly."

Do you know about Pokémon?

‘I’m like a sleeping Pokémon.’

A lazy, healthy, harmless animal that just eats, sleeps, and repeats.

"That’s the same whether I’m a portrait or not."

"...Is that so?"

"I think you already know that, Seong-Woon."

How could his own brother misunderstand him like this?

‘No matter how the world sees me, I’m just a talking portrait, you know, brother. Please believe in my triviality.’

Seong-Woon had been with him from the beginning, but it seemed like the noise from the world had made him confused about Gio’s danger level for a moment. This meant his image management had succeeded, but this situation wasn’t welcome.

For reference, Gio’s threat level was practically zero. It was a level lower than a fire ant. Comparing him to a fire ant, which could blind a person by spraying formic acid, or to the mountain and its health-consciousness, Gio was clearly outmatched.

"I understand why you’re worried."

Gio thought this was a communication problem.

"We haven’t had enough time to understand each other."

If Seong-Woon had talked with Gio more often and seen how Gio lived like a lazy man inside his house, he wouldn’t have had these absurd concerns, like a tiger fearing the violence of a rabbit.

"Just like how countless humans ponder and explore their own identity, I do the same. I also don’t know exactly what I am."

"......"

"So, why don’t you try to find out for yourself?"

Gio genuinely wanted to clear up any misunderstandings.

‘If Seong-Woon was able to find the void in Seoul barefoot, and if he worked even on Christmas to save someone named Park Eun-Gyeom, it meant he was truly a poor, capable employee.’

And such a person deserved to be fed well. People who were full didn’t think nonsensically and didn’t speak nonsense. This was the result of the weariness brought by society.

So.

"I invite you, Seong-Woon."

Gio had no reason not to feed Seong-Woon well.

Seong-Woon was drawn into 'Gio’s Portrait.'

"......"

The first thing he felt was:

‘Ah.’

It was warm.

The gentle spring breeze.

"......"

Seong-Woon raised his head and looked at the sky.

"...It’s so blue."

It was a rare sight these days, a clear sky.

Above that sky, large clouds floated as though they were sleeping, and the air was so transparent it seemed like dew would fall at any moment.

A peaceful and tranquil sky was here.

"It’s a sight you can’t see on Earth."

"Certainly, the air in Seoul was smoky."

"...Well, even if it wasn’t Seoul, it’s still...”

Seong-Woon couldn’t help but stare at the sky, lost in thought.

"Where else could you see a sky this blue?"

Long ago, Earth was said to have had such a transparent sky. For Seong-Woon, who was born just before the great catastrophe, this was quite unfamiliar information. He thought that maybe it was a dungeon, but to think Earth had once been like this was fascinating.

‘This is a dungeon, after all.’

Seong-Woon tilted his head.

‘...Why doesn’t it feel unfamiliar?’

It wasn’t normal to feel nostalgia for a sky he had never seen before.

"...This sky is really beautiful..."

"Do you like it?"

"Will the stars come out tonight?"

"They’ll rise enough for you to see the Milky Way."

"The Milky Way, huh, that’s impressive."

Now, Gio could freely admire the Milky Way here, something you couldn’t even see in the desert on Earth.

Lost in the beauty of the sky, Seong-Woon’s head slowly descended.

"......"

Before him was a soft-colored forest.

"This is the forest you mentioned."

"If you go deeper, you can meet my friends."

"Are you talking about forest beasts?"

At that moment, a deer with a long neck appeared from the thicket.

"Wow."

A beautiful, fairy-tale-like deer with sparkling eyes.

As Seong-Woon listened closely, he could hear the chirping of birds. Turning his gaze, he saw several birds sitting on branches, looking down at him.

Following the fluttering tail feathers, he saw a narrow, shallow stream flowing peacefully along the ground.

As he inhaled, a sweet and nutty fragrance filled the air.

"......"

The sunlight scattered across the stream, which shimmered like a gemstone, and the fish swimming inside occasionally swished their tails, adding to the sound.

The pebbles beneath the clear water glowed like smooth marble, reflecting the light.

"...This is really..."

Peaceful.

"It would be hard to want to leave here."

It was peace, like the grave of a wise old man.

"I’ve been seeing it through the portrait, but I didn’t know it would be this beautiful."

"Are you enjoying the view?"

"Really enjoying it. I’m curious about what’s further inside the forest, and I wonder what it would feel like to take a nap here."

This place had the kind of calm that made you lazy.

"It might be dangerous."

There wasn’t much sense of intimidation, but the comfort was so overwhelming that it felt like a trap.

If someone without resolve came here, they’d likely forget their identity and wish to become part of this forest’s sculptures.

‘But that doesn’t mean Gio has malice.’

This forest, too, held no malice, nor even goodwill.

‘It just exists like this.’

That’s nature.

This place was nature filled with a longing that humans could never handle. It was like a banquet of the gods, something beyond human capacity.

Without proper resolve, enjoying this peace would lead to losing everything.

"......"

...Somehow, Chara, an F-rank Hunter, managed to endure here.

‘It must have been her great affection for her family on Earth that kept her from losing her mind.’

With every breath, a sharp tenderness ran through Seong-Woon’s heart, and a pleasant tingling spread to his fingertips.

This peace was difficult to bear for those without attachment, without courage, and with weak identities.

"...What am I supposed to learn here?"

"I didn’t invite you here to learn something from this place, Seong-Woon."

"Then why did you invite me?"

"I just wanted to enjoy it together, without much meaning. The more we understand each other, the less we’ll be afraid."

As Gio spoke, he was now without his cloak. A young man with an oddly expressionless face continued.

"There was no reason not to share what I have with my friend."

"...Friend...?"

The portrait called Seong-Woon a friend.

"...Do I look like a friend to you?"

"...Was that a misunderstanding?"

"No, if I’m okay with it, I’d want a friend like you."

He wanted to communicate with the source.

"I’m a gardener."

Here, a source that could communicate existed.

"When I see such a beautiful garden, I get entranced."

"...If you like it that much, that’s problematic."

"I just meant that I really like places like this."

"Then I’m relieved."

"You live here, don’t you?"

Seong-Woon looked at the portrait.

"Did you make this place?"

"I painted it."

"How did that happen?"

"How did it happen."

"Interesting."

"I think so too."

"......"

Soon, Seong-Woon asked.

"Do you know? This place, it’s connected to you."

"I am the owner of this place."

"I know you’re the owner of this place."

But Seong-Woon wasn’t talking about that.

‘This garden is Gio’s portrait.’

This peaceful world, almost eerily calm, and 'Gio’s Portrait’ were not separate entities.

But that was only natural. Gio was the portrait, and this world existed inside that portrait. Everything in the portrait, centered around Gio’s identity, could only be him.

"Can only what you’ve painted exist here?"

"No, other things, things I don’t know, also grow on their own."

"I see. I thought as much. Can it be taken out of the frame?"

"Yes, it can be taken out of the frame. Do you need something?"

"No, I’m just... trying to figure out a few things."

Clink.

"......"

Transparent waterfowl sat on the branches. Among them was the honey that Gio called his son.

"...There are many fascinating things here."

Seong-Woon couldn’t read their gaze.

It was as if they were warning him not to harm this peace, or as if they were welcoming him, invited by their parent Gio. Or maybe they were simply watching him with no emotion, like a camera.

There was neither malice nor goodwill. Or perhaps both.

"......"

Where was this overwhelming longing coming from?

"...That must be your cabin."

"That’s right. Chara didn’t come into the forest, so I couldn’t show her around."

"May I see it?"

"My apologies, I should’ve told you that you could admire it as you wish."

"Thanks."

At Gio’s easy approval, Seong-Woon ran his hand along the cabin wall.

‘...It’s warm.’

And he felt a faint vibration.

It was the heartbeat of a dead tree.

"...Here."

"Yes, go ahead."

"It’s breathing."

It was alive.

"It might not be."

It was also inanimate.

"Am I saying something strange?"

"From what I hear, yes."

"Still, thank you for inviting me, I just love it so much."

"I think you’re just tired from everything."

"Definitely, if I’m going to die, this is the kind of place I’d want to end up."

A gardener is meant to be buried in the garden.

"This is really a wonderful garden."

This place is the source.

That was the definitive answer to his question.