chapter 217

Chapter 217

The cabin after all the guests have returned.

“What is a god?”

When Gio asked ‘the sky,’ the sparkling night sky blinked its eyes. In the way it gently swayed its tail and listened, he could find blind devotion toward him, but still, no answer came back.

He hadn’t asked because he expected an answer, either.

“Hm, well...”

The stars pricked into ‘the sky’ connected in a line, glittering with curiosity. ‘Gray’ stars that resembled pearls. Gio narrowed his eyes at the Milky Way’s behavior, swaying as if it had will.

It feels like it wants to say something, but...

‘It could just be my imagination.’

As expected, he didn’t know.

“What do you think, Father?”

“Ku?”

“This time as well, you didn’t demand that I take on the guise of divinity.”

“Kuoo...”

The teddy bear furrowed its brow as if to say, ‘It’s not that I wanted posture as divinity from you specifically when your hair is red,’ but anyway, it faithfully participated in his son’s 고민. It gave an answer.

“Ku? Kukkuu.”

“A bystander as nature?”

“Ku.”

“Well, you were the sun.”

Unless it was casting down sunlight, the sun had no reason to descend to the ground.

“That would be a disaster, though.”

Gio hugged the plush teddy bear. Then Dana, who had been quietly watching the two, approached and sat coiled around them as if to embrace them, and at that movement, Honey, who had thought, ‘What is it?’ briefly came out of the hood and went back in.

That natural sequence pleased Gio greatly, but his 고민 still remained. He had to live for a truly long time.

“...”

He needed something to refer to.

* * *

“Gio hyung!”

“Have you been well?”

Gio lightly picked up Cha Isol, who came running up, and hugged him. Then, as expected, Gio’s eyes caught Priest Kang Seodam, who came out to greet him as well, and Apprentice Priest Lee Ruda, Cha Isol’s partner.

Giovanni smiled gently and asked after them.

“Have there been any other problems?”

“The mermaids’ matter was resolved well too, so where would any problem come from? There was nothing at all of what you were worried about, Hunter Seo Gio.”

“You’re still polite.”

He felt awkward because he was so overly formal.

After setting Cha Isol down, Gio’s gaze soon landed on Ruda. As if she had been waiting the whole time for that gaze to reach her, Ruda immediately met his eyes, and after hesitating, she opened her mouth.

“I feel like I didn’t get to convey my thanks for the gift you gave me last time, so I wanted to at least say it belatedly, and came along. Would it make you uncomfortable that I came out to greet you?”

“Uncomfortable? I feel great joy that such a kind friend came out to greet me. Would you permit me to enjoy this pleasure even more?”

“...Ah, th, yes. Thank you for saying that...”

Ruda was a little flustered.

‘Do people usually answer this far?’

Most adults were bound to be flustered if little, young Ruda approached as politely as possible.

And then Ruda, too, could find a little leeway in that gap. It was her sure-win method, learned because she was young and at a disadvantage, but still didn’t want to lose to adults.

‘As expected, this person is kind of uncomfortable.’

It wasn’t that she disliked him, but whenever she saw that benevolent face that seemed to say, ‘I know everything, but I will forgive you,’ her shoulders would naturally shrink.

For Ruda, who had always received only cold evaluations by objective standards rather than adults’ respect and consideration, he was a very difficult person to deal with.

‘At this rate, I won’t even be able to properly give my thanks...’

At the sight of Ruda floundering, Kang Seodam swallowed a sigh and said,

“It would be quite uncomfortable to talk here, so it would be best to move to the reception room. You said you were curious about the apprentice priests’ recent status, so we were going to move together—do you have anything else you want?”

“No, this is enough.”

“Apprentice Priest Ruda also seems to have something she wants to say, so let us continue that in an appropriate place. For any conversation, there is a suitable place and attitude.”

Ruda’s face reddened because her shallow little trick had been seen through.

“...I have been very rude.”

“Since I did not think it was rude, lift your head.”

Gio was simply admiring them.

‘Kids these days really are precocious.’

Honestly, at this level, it felt like she might even have better intelligence and social finesse than Seo Gio, a twenty-nine-year-old adult. He understood why Ruda’s eyes glittered and she had spoken to him.

‘Instinctively, she felt that if she couldn’t gain even a little upper hand, she wouldn’t be able to convey her thanks smoothly. As I felt last time too, Student Ruda has a strong basic wariness of adults.’

Not to the point of disgust or hatred, but it seemed like she had the perception that ‘adults are dangerous beings.’ If he acted like he knew too much, it would clearly be seen not as ‘it’s okay,’ but as ‘read the room yourself,’ so Gio simply changed the topic.

“I heard that Student Cha Isol wrote thirty-three pages of a reflection letter.”

“Ah... th-that...”

Ruda, who understood his consideration, nodded.

“Teacher Kang Seodam’s guideline was one page, but as he wrote, it got longer, and he even brought a whole stack of paper. Teacher said there was no need to go that far and sent him back, though.”

At that, Kang Seodam cut in.

“I told him to summarize it again into one page. Nothing is good if it’s excessive, and we needed a trace that Student Cha Isol reflected.”

“I understand the reason.”

Kang Seodam seemed to feel guilty that ‘I gave additional homework to a kid who was already tired from writing thirty-three pages,’ but his judgment was wise. In any case, shouldn’t there be a reflection letter recorded in the Sun Church?

‘It would have been hard to record all thirty-three raw pages as-is.’

Even if Cha Isol had hidden the ‘truth’ out of tact, he was still a child. In the process of writing thirty-three pages, there would inevitably have been some content that was difficult to record, so it was right to put it through a bit of refining.

“Priest Kang Seodam, you truly work hard to take care of your students. Thanks to you, it seems Student Cha Isol and Partner Ruda are growing into even more excellent priests, and I feel very glad.”

“You honor me. You don’t have to say it so far—these were basic matters I must do as a teacher and senior priest.”

“I know well it is not easy to keep even those basics.”

“...”

Kang Seodam shut his mouth.

‘...I don’t know what to reply to a person who was killed, sacrificed by an order that didn’t even keep those basics. It doesn’t seem like he’ll get angry, but it’s not a story good to put in your mouth.’

In the end, each of them sank into their own thoughts as they moved to the reception room. The only one chattering diligently the whole time was the eleven-year-old Cha Isol, excited that spring had come and the garden had become even more colorful.

The reception room they arrived at was quiet, with not a single person inside.

“It’s quiet.”

“I had them withdraw, thinking you might feel uncomfortable talking.”

“Thank you for your consideration.”

“No, it’s also for us...”

Even though Ruda was here and he couldn’t talk about the fact that he was the ‘Black Cloak,’ there were still plenty of conversation topics that would be better with fewer ears. Kang Seodam lightly held Ruda’s shoulder.

“Apprentice Priest Ruda.”

“Yes.”

“Would you like to speak?”

“...Thank you.”

Still hesitating, Ruda bowed her head.

“I apologize for the poor way I behaved earlier.”

“I believe I said earlier that there is nothing for you to apologize for.”

“Since you say that, I will shamelessly say what I originally wanted to tell you. The, the flower tea you gave me last time... truly helped me greatly.”

It was the basram flower tea that Gio had casually gifted her.

“I offered it to the Sun Goddess, and the goddess bestowed a blessing upon me. Thanks to you gifting me that treasure I couldn’t even recognize with my narrow knowledge, I was able to make some contribution, however lacking, in this war.”

Listening, Gio thought,

‘I wish she’d speak like a kid.’

Back in my day, kids speaking to me like this wasn’t something I could even dream of. It really was no exaggeration. For Seo Gio, an old-era modern person, it was simply bewildering.

Of course, Giovanni’s steadfast demeanor embodied benevolence and forgiveness with his whole body, and Ruda, taking courage from the way he didn’t show displeasure, straightened her shoulders a little more and continued.

“If you hadn’t given me that gift in advance, Hunter Seo Gio-nim, I might have ended up doing nothing even after Cha Isol was taken. I would not have been allowed to join the battlefield, and even if I forced my way there, I would clearly have only been a burden.”

“You may speak more comfortably.”

“...C-comfortably?”

“Yes.”

Unable to keep listening, Gio gently proposed it.

“Wouldn’t one line saying thank you for helping be enough?”

“I received something, and I used it as I pleased—how could I do something so rude...”

“What I gave Sister Ruda was, literally, a gift. I handed it over lightly because you said you enjoy chewing medicinal herbs good for the body, and if you were able to save Brother Cha Isol with it, that is Sister Ruda’s capability, not mine.”

“B-but... what I received has that kind of value...”

“I have heard well of Sister Ruda’s performance. Despite still being an apprentice priest, you bravely went to the battlefield, protected patients even for your partner’s share, and even made flowers bloom on a sea full of ice.”

“...I only tried as you instructed.”

“What a diligent student.”

Gio had found it torturous to listen to Ruda’s overly adult-like thanks, so he took the opportunity to start his tongue. Ruda wasn’t the only one who could offer praise and thanks enough to fluster someone.

“I do not know how grateful I was after hearing Sister Ruda’s story. No matter if it was for your partner, to stand on a battlefield where your life could be taken in an instant would have required great courage. And it would have required strong friendship and trust as well.”

“...Ah, n-no... I...”

“Thanks to you, Brother Cha Isol was rescued safely. Sister Ruda cannot take pride in what she has done, but it truly was great help. As proof, even after going through such hardship and escaping, Brother Cha Isol is still smiling comfortably, is he not?”

“...Th-that...”

“You did well.”

“...”

Ruda shrank again.

“...Thank you.”

“No, thank you.”

Alright, I made her into a kid-like kid!

‘As expected of me.’

Legally, there was no such standard as ‘kid-like kid,’ but this looked nicer.

He had been ready to stop immediately if she showed displeasure, but though she blushed, she didn’t react as if she disliked it. In truth, she’d pretended otherwise, but it was clear she wanted to be treated like a kid.

Gio, who had calmly hit her right on the mark as easily as breathing, looked at Cha Isol.

“Student Cha Isol, did you get scolded?”

“Yes, a lot! I won’t do it again!”

“That is a good posture.”

Cha Isol was young and inexperienced, but he was not the stupid type. He was a child with good tact and judgment, so he believed that even if the same situation came again, Cha Isol would be able to restrain himself and make a wise decision.

‘If you show up in the middle of a battlefield again like last time, I think I’ll truly lose my mind.’

After organizing his thoughts, Gio looked at Kang Seodam.

“Other than that, has nothing else happened?”

“...Other than the fact that, following last time, voices within the order have been gradually growing louder that we must make Hunter Seo Gio into the Sun Church’s saint, there has been nothing else.”

“Ah, that is...”

■■■■■—...

“...”

“...”

“Excuse me.”

Plop—!

Gio shoved the gray paint that suddenly popped out of his shadow back in.

“This friend is inflexible.”

“...Pardon my rudeness, but could you tell me what it was I just saw?”

“If Priest Kang Seodam is truly curious, I can gladly tell you, but it may become a bit troublesome. Would that be alright?”

“I misspoke. It seems it would be better not to know.”

Even as he said that, Kang Seodam instinctively sensed the essence of the ‘gray paint’ he had just witnessed. The chill that had dropped the room’s temperature in an instant, and that pearl-like fine, white texture that rippled like water-scales...

It was certainly a creature’s traits that felt like he’d seen them somewhere before, but—

‘This far.’

Kang Seodam forcibly stopped thinking.

As Hunter Seo Gio said, there was nothing good to come from digging deeper. He cleared his throat once, then asked carefully.

“...Is it a contracted beast you are taming recently? If I caused you any discomfort, I truly apologize. I had no intention of displeasing you.”

“You do not have to be so careful—this will not attack Priest Kang Seodam. I was not displeased either. What you saw just now... to use an analogy, it was like this friend’s spinal reflex.”

“A spinal reflex...”

“Even in a creature right after death, the nerves still live and twitch, do they not? It is like that.”

‘Spinal reflex,’ and then ‘right after death.’

“...Yes.”

Anyway, he was glad Kang Seodam seemed willing to go along with the excuse of ‘a contracted beast I’m taming recently.’ Once the setting was organized, Kang Seodam and Gio’s gaze naturally turned to the kids, who were reacting in shock.

Cha Isol’s face was full of joy and excitement, while Ruda’s face was pale as if she had seen something impossible. At the starkly contrasting sight, Gio smiled.

“Are you all right?”

“...Y-yes.”

“Excuse me. It is a travel companion I recently made family, but it sometimes does not listen. I have put it back in properly, so it will not repeat the same rudeness.”

“Th-that is a relief.”

Ruda hesitated, then asked,

“I heard you are a tamer—do you even tame monsters like that...?”

“It is closer to a single lump of mystery than a monster with reason or survival instinct, but of course. I am always recruiting diverse family.”

“Ah, right—so you are from the Collection Merchant.”

He didn’t seem like that sort at all, so she’d forgotten.

‘If he’s from that guild, then even if he’s taming a few dangerous objects, it’s not strange.’

Ruda judged that what she had just seen was, rather than a living creature like a monster, a dangerous item that held some living traits. Like the monsters that were common all over the Collection Merchant.

‘So he really is the kind of hunter where rumors say he’s a hidden S-rank.’

Without realizing it, Ruda looked at Hunter Seo Gio with admiration.

‘There won’t be many hunters like this in the world.’

It was a markedly different look from her reaction earlier, when she was a bit frightened—but for Ruda, who admired strong and capable people, Hunter Seo Gio, who handled many dangerous and unique contracted beasts, looked that incredible.

“...Me too...”

Maybe because of that, words that didn’t need to be said leaked out.

“...When I was young, I wanted to become a tamer.”

“Ah-ha, I see.”

Gio thought,

‘Aren’t you still young?’

He smiled and nodded.

“How is it now, being active as a priest?”

“I am only grateful that I can do my share of work.”

“Is it enjoyable?”

“...”

Ruda was briefly at a loss for words.

“...”

Enjoyable?

‘...That’s an unfamiliar kind of question.’

Adults had always wondered what she could ‘do.’

Whether what she was doing fit her aptitude. Whether she was producing performance. What she was learning lately and how she would use it—those were the things adults mainly asked. Even if she was still young, as long as she was a hunter, she had to do her part, so it was only natural.

She couldn’t immediately find an answer.

‘Enjoyable? This work? My situation right now...?’

She had never once considered that.

“...Th-that...”

In that moment, Ruda’s eyes met Cha Isol’s.

“...? Me?”

“...It’s enjoyable.”

Only then did her mouth open.

‘It was fun.’

It would be a lie to say there was not even a single regret or mistake, but now that she thought about it, her current life had been fairly enjoyable. Being here was why she could make a unique friend like Cha Isol.

For some reason, she felt reassured. Sitting in a quiet, comfortable confessional with sunlight coming in made her feel a little at ease. Feeling a bit awkward, Ruda continued.

“I think there have been many good opportunities given to me because I became a priest.”

“I see.”

“Even if I had awakened as a tamer, I’m sure there would have been joys unique to that, but I am satisfied with the joys I can enjoy only as I am now. So I think... it is probably enjoyable.”

“Truly... it cannot be anything but an excellent way of thinking.”

Giovanni loved children with such straight cores.

“Do you like sheep?”

“Sh-sheep? What part, exactly...?”

“Fur, for instance.”

“I don’t particularly like it or dislike it...”

“How about a scarf? The weather is still chilly, so it would be good for warmth.”

“...Are you offering another gift right now?”

“I cannot retreat without giving you a gift.”

“No, I...”

Looking flustered, Ruda looked at Cha Isol. It meant ‘What is wrong with this person?’ or ‘Stop him,’ but Cha Isol, not seeing his partner’s SOS, was simply delighted.

“Then I’ll make you flower tea! You said you like tea, right?”

“Hey.”

“Huh?”

“...”

Ruda went speechless.

‘...Ah, right. The Black Cloak’s apostles...’

Belatedly, the phrase ‘The Black Cloak gives gifts to kind people’ came to mind. If you considered that quite a lot of divinity tends to cherish believers that fit them well, this wasn’t such a strange situation.

I don’t know if I’m a kind person, but anyway.

“Well, spring has come now—maybe a scarf would be too much.”

“Then let’s make tea together! Flower tea!”

“That would be good too. You could bake plain cookies to go with that tea.”

“I’ll bake too! I’ll give it to Ruda and teacher.”

...But no matter what, did they have to resemble him this much?

‘It’s definitely a good thing, but why does it feel so ominous?’

Without realizing it, Ruda looked up at Kang Seodam.

“...”

“...”

Ah.

Reading the familiar resignation on Kang Seodam’s face, Ruda pressed her lips together. She wanted to say something, but her mouth closed on its own and her tongue curled inward. It was like he was her future.

“...Please go easy on me.”

“How can gifts go easy?”

“Yes, thank you...”

Anyway, it really isn’t that she dislikes it, but...

‘It feels weird.’

It was terribly frustrating to have her momentum pushed back by something like this.

* * *

Earth’s sun was watching it.

And Gio knew that too.

The two kids were busy bickering.

And Kang Seodam was about to die of burden.

(To be continued in the next episode)