chapter 195

Chapter 195

It wasn’t that Gio had wandered off down a different path solely to satisfy his own selfish desires.

“...”

No, well, that was part of it too.

‘After making such a mess, even I feel my conscience pricking at the thought of insisting I’m innocent.’

Gio forced himself to ignore the surrounding scene, where monster remains were strewn everywhere.

Perhaps because he hadn’t completely “assimilated” with Argio yet, unlike Giovanni, his sense of self as Argio sometimes felt separate. Gio wore an ambiguous expression and wiped the blood from his face.

“...Mm, yes...”

“...”

“Should I say it’s been a while?”

Looking at the mermaid standing before him, Giovanni smiled awkwardly.

“I didn’t expect you to come looking like this.”

“I didn’t expect you to come all the way to this outer zone either.”

“Chasing my interest led me here in the end.”

“Is that really all?”

“With people left behind here, how could I be the only one to retreat?”

Gio tilted his head.

“You aimed for this, didn’t you?”

It was hard to see it as coincidence that civilians who should have been evacuated to this outer area long ago, along with fragile rear-position hunters, had been isolated. Those flashy monsters that had stolen Argio’s gaze were likely the mermaids’ handiwork as well.

“Why did you call me here?”

“I understand you refused my elder sister’s invitation last time.”

“How could I accept when you outright asked me to be kidnapped?”

“Certainly, you don’t make sacrifices without reason.”

Iser smiled faintly. A smile that looked gentle at a glance, yet held no emotion.

“So I made you a reason.”

Iser pointed at the surrounding humans.

“That one is injured.”

His words continued at length.

“Both legs are broken, so they can’t move. That one is quite young even for a human. Not even twelve yet, perhaps? That one is in a panic, and disgustingly, it can’t understand what’s being said...”

“What’s the point?”

“I don’t think you can truly not know.”

His eyes curved.

“Come to us.”

“That’s a very ambiguous way to put it.”

“You may accept the kidnapping I proposed before, or you may come fully to our side.”

“Both seem like troublesome proposals.”

Gio rubbed his chin. Perhaps he looked like he would refuse, because one of the isolated people shouted.

“H-hunter-nim...!!”

“Oh.”

“Please save us, I don’t want to die...! Help me!!”

“I see.”

As always, Giovanni smiled gently.

“I understand that feeling.”

Whether they took courage from those words, or whether they had been waiting for it, the people who had been clamping their mouths shut in fear began pleading one by one, clinging as if to him.

“Please save us...”

The voices grew louder.

“Please, Hunter-nim...!”

“I don’t want to die!!”

“It hurts so much, please save me!!”

“Why are you so late!!”

“You should’ve come sooner, how many people died!!”

“Please save me! You can do it...!!”

Boom—!!!

The mermaid slammed his staff down.

“...”

“...”

The uproar died as if a mouse had been killed, and Iser asked the priest who was still smiling,

“They are hoping for your salvation.”

“That does seem to be the case.”

“Do these humans who force sacrifices not look disgustingly worm-like to you?”

“They only look terribly pitiful. They’re frightened—of course they are.”

“You stand on the humans’ side to the very end.”

The smile vanished from Iser’s face.

“If you won’t take the deep sea’s side, then at least come with that body.”

“Is this a threat?”

“You’ve understood correctly.”

With a strange hue like rippling water-scales, the mermaid’s eyes shone.

“Before I can no longer endure my hatred toward humans.”

He held out his hand.

“...You should come this way.”

“And if I don’t?”

“It’ll be faster for these humans to die than for me to die to you.”

“That could be.”

Gio could make use of quite a few means, but Iser wouldn’t be unaware of that. He would have come with sufficient preparation, so at the very least, he could probably kill one person.

And Giovanni was someone who wanted even a single futile death to be unacceptable.

‘Then what should I do now.’

For a moment, he thought with the wicked nature of an evil god.

“Mm... there is also a way where I ignore these pitiful people and fight.”

“No, you won’t do that. I know it.”

“My goodness, how can this be. I didn’t know I was such an obvious human.”

“It seems you’re the only one who doesn’t know.”

“...Yes.”

Giovanni’s smile twisted for the first time.

“That must be it.”

“...”

Iser did not answer.

Gio looked around. In the eyes of the frightened people was fear and resentment in full. In the eyes of ordinary people who could not be called evil, acrid venom had settled.

He knew those eyes.

“It will be only for the moment.”

Because they were never truly evil people, once they reclaimed what was theirs and regained their leeway, they would soon come to regret it. Giovanni could not endure it because it was so sorrowful and pitiful.

Why do these people walk the road of pain themselves?

“Fine, I will go to the deep sea. Then what happens to me?”

“...You’ll be confined so that the Black Cloak can no longer protect the humans of this planet.”

“So that’s what it feels like?”

Giovanni grinned.

“I understand. Interesting.”

This was the mermaids’ final act of childishness and a gift. No matter how their responsibility ended, it would allow the “Black Cloak” to take root in the world and continue another story.

If they had prepared such a cute farewell greeting, there was no need to accept a loss.

‘And people are afraid, too.’

Gio decided to play along with the mermaids’ surprise party. It was the most comfortable path, where no more blood needed to be shed and there was nothing to lose in any respect.

“It’s been quite a while since I was threatened.”

How embarrassing.

‘What kind of give-and-take will satisfy everyone?’

Gio pondered briefly, and soon came to a conclusion.

Since it had come to this, he thought it would be better to reveal the “Black Cloak” more clearly to the world.

“...Even if I’m confined in your hands, that ghost story will not withdraw from Earth. Even if you kill me, it will be the same.”

“We’ll only know once we try. We don’t know whether the root of that existence is on Earth, but shouldn’t we at least block it from extending its branches?”

This was definitely childishness. It seemed the mermaids really disliked that their teacher’s roots were on Earth. The image of them holding Giovanni and locking him in their embrace was obvious.

Gio nodded.

“Do you promise you will release these people safely?”

“On the honor of my family... and on my qualification to hold the golden branch I now grasp, I swear.”

“I will choose to believe those words.”

Then, expressing his surrender, he raised both hands.

“Take me.”

Now it was time to wrap up the story of everyday life, and for mermaids and humans to settle it.

* * *

Meanwhile, as the sea grew turbulent, Seoul also fell into a bleak anxiety.

Hearing the news inside the Collection Merchant building, Juhyeon was utterly dumbfounded.

“...Missing?”

“If we’re being strict, it seems like kidnapping.”

“I think you need to be even more strict than that—Mr. Gio just played along, didn’t he?”

“As expected, Juhyeon-ssi, your insight is exceptional!”

Visabel, who was in the reception room with Juhyeon, gave his characteristic smile.

“Isn’t it that he decided to play along with the mermaids’ sulking?”

“And it had to be at a time like this...”

“Rather, because it’s at a time like this, it would be such a thing.”

“Is it like Mr. Gio’s final mercy?”

“Or it might be work to make the story of the ‘Black Cloak’ more certain?”

“...Would the mermaids cooperate with that?”

As he asked that, Juhyeon clutched his head.

“No, in the first place, it might have been a mess made for that purpose. Ah, my head...”

“You really are quick on the uptake.”

Visabel clicked his tongue.

“You have a head, but I don’t know why you sometimes do brainless things.”

“Hey, I can hear you. The person in question can hear you directly.”

“Oh dear, did you hear? How embarrassing, that my monologue carried that far.”

“If it’s loud enough for an unawakened person like me to hear, isn’t it something you said for me to hear?”

“Seeing you talk back so precisely, you really do have a brain... but honestly, a person is...”

In a tone that even held pity, Juhyeon asked,

“Why are you only picking a fight with me??”

“I have a chronic illness where I pick fights when I see foolish humans.”

“Go to the hospital.”

“I’ll take that under advisement.”

For the safety of the human Gio cherished, Visabel was specially protecting Juhyeon in the inner room of his guild. Juhyeon knew the intent, so even with all the picking, he didn’t storm out of the room.

But even if his body was safe, his mind was not at ease.

“They said that when Mr. Gio went to save Student Cha Isol in the old ‘Nation of the Deep Sea,’ he came back very badly hurt—this time too, it feels like it’ll be like that, and I’m really... so worried.”

“That, too, is Mr. Gio’s intention. You’re not thinking of refusing to respect that, surely, and it seems you can’t help but worry, but it would be more comfortable in life if you corrected that foolish kindheartedness.”

“I’d really appreciate it if you’d do one or the other—either give advice or spit venom. At this point, I’m starting to get attached.”

“No, how can this be. Were you treating me so coldly, Juhyeon-ssi? I’m so hurt I feel like tears might come...”

“I feel like I’m the one who’s going to cry, Guild Master.”

As a fragile unawakened person, he couldn’t even slip away anywhere, and he felt like he’d die of grievance.

“...It doesn’t seem like the people of the Collection Merchant are that worried about Mr. Gio’s safety.”

“That discomfort arises because Juhyeon-ssi treats ‘Gio’s portrait’ as a person.”

Visabel continued, with a rare listless face.

“Think of ordinary works. An artist says they’ll show performance art and slashes the canvas with a knife. At that time, what would you think?”

“I don’t know much about art, so... I’d probably just think, ‘I see,’ I guess.”

“Yes. That is how we view works. And on top of that, this is a path the work itself chose—how could a mere viewer deny that choice and block the way ahead?”

“...”

“Of course, Juhyeon-ssi probably wants to say this.”

His face was still sullen.

“Something that can eat, speak, sleep, and laugh—can you really treat it as such a ‘work’? You can’t endure how disgusting that is, can you?”

“...It is kind of creepy.”

“That’s the kind of creeps who gathered and made this guild.”

Visabel created such a guild. Not wanting to be alone, he founded the Collection Merchant, and displayed his family in this enormous showcase. Then he managed them diligently so they wouldn’t run away or become tainted.

“Juhyeon-ssi’s perspective isn’t strange. If anything, it’s the Collection Merchant that falls into the strange side, and neither I nor the other guild members are unaware of that. But we gathered for that ‘creepy act.’”

“Only for the guild master’s sake?”

“I thought it was a win-win deal for everyone. Of course, Juhyeon-ssi might think differently. I want to respect that, but personally, my stomach isn’t exactly that strong...”

“I’m suddenly curious—how many times a day do you hear that you have a bad personality?”

“About twelve times a day. Our guild members are loyal subjects, so they only speak the truth. Aren’t they adorable?”

“That’s an illness.”

“Probably. I know.”

Visabel laughed.

“Didn’t I just say earlier it’s a chronic illness?”

“Looks like there’s another illness besides ‘the chronic illness of picking fights when I see foolish humans.’”

“In the end, it’s all a similar context. The way I treat Mr. Gio isn’t very different, either.”

To him, a work simply looked like a work, and a hero looked like a hero.

“I find ‘Giovanni’-ssi’s actions truly strong and brilliant.”

They simply saw different things.

“From the stories of the rescued survivors, I hear that he sacrificed himself for other humans. Even after harsh words and betrayal from humans, he only held pity, and still stepped forward for the greater cause. He is a true ‘hero.’”

That was the path Gio chose for himself. He decided to save those many people. As a result, many humans were freed from pain, and Gio himself was satisfied with it.

“I think that decision is very noble. With so many having been saved, no one should be allowed to diminish that value.”

“...It’s surprising to hear you say that.”

Juhyeon asked,

“So you don’t seem to dislike... that kind of ‘hero.’”

“It’s a story of a dead person, so there’s no reason to hate it.”

“You dislike me because I’m alive?”

“A story completed through death and a human still alive are clearly different.”

Visabel cherished his guild members while treating them as collected items, but he had never forgotten they were human. So it was true that a dead “hero” and a living “hero” felt entirely different.

He soon smiled broadly.

“Am I wrong in what I see? What ‘Giovanni’-ssi showed was exceedingly noble. What kind of person could do such a thing? Even the sage of the century, even countless saints—no one could give themselves so completely and show humans such affection and mercy...”

“...That is also one part Mr. Gio has, but it is only a single fragment. Whatever his essence and origin may be, he is one human who can cry and laugh and feel pain. I don’t think what I see is wrong.”

“Correct. That, too, is one of the aspects ‘Gio’s portrait’ possesses.”

“So you mean you believe neither of us is wrong.”

“You’ve seen it precisely, Juhyeon-ssi.”

They were this different.

“I don’t think we’ll be able to become close, after all.”

“...I agree.”

They lived in different worlds.

* * *

And Yoo Seongun said with bloodshot eyes,

“Rescue team.”

“Ah, no. Wait a moment...”

“When are you going to form the rescue team.”

“I, we still haven’t finished maintenance on the hunters, so...”

“Then didn’t I ask you to let even me through?”

“You know you can’t take personal action in a situation like this, Hunter Yoo Seongun...”

“How can you be this slow when you don’t even know what predicament Hunter Seo Gio might be in?”

“...Why are you doing this to me...”

The Association staff member dispatched there teared up in sorrow.

‘Hunters are scary.’

He wanted to go home.

(To be continued in the next episode)