Chapter 62

This situation was unexpected.

“This is Eun-ha! My partner.”

“I heard priests are basically in pairs of two, you already have a partner.”

“From now on, Eun-ha and I are a team!”

Watching Cha Isold boast about his partner to his family, Jio blinked his eyes, which were hidden by the hood.

‘Looking at him like this, they certainly do resemble each other.’

The way he skillfully smiled despite likely being flustered from Cha Isold suddenly dragging him over.

Although there was a clear difference in that level of polish, that blue hair with a strange turquoise tint stimulated Giovanni’s memories.

‘I think Iseur’s name also means Milky Way.’

He didn't know for sure because it was a dream and he'd forgotten much of it since waking up, but the long, blue hair reminded him of the merman Iseur from his dream.

“…….”

“Um, these people are….”

Perhaps because of Jio's gaze, Eun-ha opened his mouth as if hoping Cha Isold would introduce them.

Cha Isold made an ‘oops’ expression before quickly explaining with a broad smile.

“You can tell my brother and sister are mine just by looking, right? And while he's not family, this is the Jio-hyung I told you about before!”

Cha Isold pressed for an answer.

“He's super handsome, right!”

“Huh? Oh, yeah….”

At that bold statement, Jio too became flustered.

How could he know if he was handsome when his face was covered by a hood?

‘That friend probably doesn't have a clairvoyance skill.’

Jio, who felt awkward being praised for his looks by a child so openly, couldn’t bear the awkwardness and offered a greeting.

“It is a pleasure to meet you for the first time, my name is Seo Jio.”

“…My name is Eun-ha.”

With a mature smile that felt strangely unfamiliar, the child named Eun-ha added briefly.

“Yes, it is the first time we are meeting.”

Hmm.

Jio thought to himself.

‘I guess it was my mistake after all.’

It might be a hasty judgment, but the Iseur that Giovanni remembered was a student who, apart from trying to be polite and courteous, was endearingly clueless and fun to tease.

‘Perhaps because he was clumsy in many ways, his way of speaking was also much stiffer.’

If anything, he was a friend quite far from the words ‘mature’ or ‘polished’.

Compared to that fresh, sunshine-like young student, the child before him had a somewhat chilly aura.

‘It must be a great fate to meet a child so similar to Iseur so soon after beginning to synchronize as Giovanni.’

Besides, the last image he recalled of Iseur was of him in his late teens to early twenties, which made it feel even more like they were not the same person.

“Since we’ve gathered like this, how about we have a meal together?”

At Jio's suggestion, Yu Seong-un nodded his head.

“Oh, that’s a great idea. I doubt the Cha family would be shy around us now, let alone Eun-ha-gun. Right?”

“B-but then we’d be too much of a bother….”

“I heard Cha Isold-gun won’t be able to come out for a while once he enters the dormitory anyway. Rather than two grim-faced guys like me and Jio eating intimately, it would be a much better atmosphere if it’s a bit more bustling, don't you think?”

As expected of our hyung-nim.

‘I need to learn from that polish.’

I truly admired his social skills, the way he could naturally draw the other party in the way he wanted without being rude.

Isn't he the epitome of an adult who is good at social life?

Of course, if Yu Seong-un knew of such thoughts from Jio, he would have been creeped out to death.

“Eun-ha-gun, is there anything you can't eat?”

“I tend not to eat meat.”

“Ah, a vegetarian? Come to think of it, if you look around, there are a lot of vegans among priests.”

“As long as it's not meat from land animals, it is fine.”

“Then you're not a very strict type, are you? Then it would be good to go for seafood.”

Even as he said that, Yu Seong-un discreetly observed the child named ‘Eun-ha’.

‘…For some reason, I feel a slight sense of unease.’

Behind a stoic expression, Yu Seong-un hid a faint suspicion.

Yu Seong-un, who frequently encountered the children of the Source, was particularly sensitive to the aura of non-human beings.

If he was feeling that sense of foreignness now, it was safe to judge it as a problem.

‘He doesn't seem to be a child of the Source, so he would be closer to a monster. Is he a dangerous one, I wonder.’

However, as he was a prospective priest, it was possible that Yu Seong-un was mistaking the foreignness of a god.

‘…It’s not like that hasn't happened before. Especially if it's a kid who receives a lot of a god's gaze or love, they can give off a sense of unease even if it’s not their own problem.’

There was also the fact that he was being particularly cautious due to the other's young appearance, so Yu Seong-un decided to swallow his guard.

After all, he might be suspecting an innocent child.

‘In case of an emergency, it would be good if I could get at least Jio out. He's a work of art whose behavior patterns and rules haven't been figured out yet… I don't want to give him any major stimulus if possible.’

As long as no harm came to the artwork he was in charge of, he couldn’t care less if the child before him was a monster or whatever.

It was a world where monsters killing humans, and humans killing humans, were both commonplace.

Here, humans were a part of the props.

The death of about 30 people wouldn't even make the news.

‘Still, I hope nothing happens. If it gets noisy, my overtime will just increase.’

As if he had not been thinking of anything else for even a moment, Yu Seong-un continued stoically.

“Anyone here who doesn't like seafood?”

“…I haven't eaten it so I don't really know….”

“Then you can try it this time.”

Cha Ara showed a reluctant reaction, but Yu Seong-un, who had already expected it, brushed it off lightly.

It was because the words were not spat out of inferiority or jealousy, but simply a reaction of ‘I don’t know jack shit, so why are you asking me’.

“I know a good hairtail fish restaurant.”

“What? A hairtail fish restaurant?”

“Even with a large number of people, the room itself is big enough to accommodate us, so how about we go there? I'll guarantee the taste.”

“That's not the problem, uh, if it's a hairtail fish restaurant, isn't it a very expensive place….”

As Cha Ara became strangely anxious, her older brother, Cha Eun-hyeok, showed a similar reaction.

“Is it okay for us, as 3rd-class citizens, to go to such a restaurant?”

“……?”

Jio, who had been listening without any thought, was quietly flustered.

‘…What did I just hear?’

Are 3rd-class citizens not allowed to eat hairtail fish?

‘No matter how much the class system has been revived, to discriminate with what people eat, how could it be this scary.’

Jio, who was serious about food, became greatly saddened.

He was very bitter about how his hometown had been corrupted.

‘If so, if I hadn't become a portrait, would I, a citizen of Gangwon-do, have been a 3rd-class citizen too? If I had lived on Earth paying monthly rent, I wouldn't have been able to have a single piece of hairtail fish.’

Jio, who was accustomed to a democratic society, was inwardly terrified, but the city's hairtail fish restaurants of this era were extremely high-class establishments.

They were the perfect places for 3rd-class citizens, who were subtly discriminated against in the city, to be looked down upon.

“I know what you're worried about, but….”

Yu Seong-un, who noticed their feelings, shrugged his shoulders.

“It's all private rooms anyway, and at this time of day, there won't be many people. If you guys are concerned, we can look for another place, but since we're spending money anyway, let's all eat something delicious together.”

Yu Seong-un looked back at Eun-ha.

“Eun-ha-gun, are you okay with hairtail fish?”

“I’d be grateful for whatever you buy me.”

“Thanks for saying so.”

Since even Eun-ha, who was presumed to be a Carnation Child, agreed, Cha Ara and Cha Eun-hyeok also agreed in a daze.

“Is this really okay…?”

“A hairtail fish restaurant.”

The Cha family followed behind Yu Seong-un with faces that looked as if they had been tricked for some reason.

Jio, who was about to move with the close-knit siblings, noticed Eun-ha who was strangely detached.

“…….”

“…….”

It bothers me when he acts like that.

“Student Eun-ha.”

Apart from the child resembling his old student Iseur, Jio, who had been a teacher in his own right, did not like the sight of a child keeping a distance as if to say this was not his place.

Fortunately, Iseur, who had a dry expression, answered Jio's call with a spark of life. He also seemed a little surprised.

“Ah, yes.”

“Shall we go together?”

When Giovanni offered a hand, Eun-ha, after a moment of hesitation, took it.

‘…Is it colder than I thought?’

That small hand was quite cool for a child who was said to be boiling with heat just from breathing.

“Your body temperature is low.”

“I think it’s because of my severe anemia.”

The child smiled skillfully.

It was a soft and benevolent smile that one could naturally associate with the word priest.

It might be a bit strange to use the word ‘benevolent’ for a child like this, but for some reason, Jio thought that smile was familiar.

‘It doesn't suit this student.’

Where had I seen this smile before?

While Jio was quietly retracing his memories, the child, perhaps anxious about the lack of a response, feigned composure and struck up a conversation.

“Is my cold hand uncomfortable for you?”

Would it be strange to say that it sounded like a question expecting something? Jio answered without much thought.

“I like it because it's cool.”

“It’s winter, and you say that.”

“Because I'm a person with a lot of heat.”

“…….”

Eun-ha, who was silent for a moment for some reason, said.

“Your hand is cold too, Jio-ssi?”

“Ah, that's right.”

“Why….”

“I had forgotten for a moment.”

“What did you forget?”

“I forgot the fact that I had become cold.”

Perhaps because he had been having a series of dreams called ‘Giovanni’s Theater of Life’ lately and was too out of it, he had honestly and completely forgotten.

Even his own body temperature.

‘When I was Giovanni, perhaps because I was a priest of the sun, I had a lot of heat in my body.’

Both Seo Jio and the portrait were not particularly warm-bodied.

‘Did that sound strange?’

Perhaps because his synchronization rate had been rising sharply lately, his words had slipped out.

As I was contemplating what to say next and looked back at the child….

“…….”

“……?”

I could see his small face had stiffened.

“Student Eun-ha?”

“It was just cold for a moment… I was lost in thought.”

“Then would you like to let go of my hand?”

“No.”

Eun-ha muttered.

“…If we keep holding hands, it might get warm.”

“That is also true.”

“…….”

“I am glad you do not dislike it.”

For some reason, the atmosphere was chilly, but to Jio, the child’s inherent nature was kind and gentle.

‘Kids like this need to be fed well to make them plump.’

Thought Seo Jio, who had inherited the firm belief of his grandmother, who had been the big hand of the village.

‘Become a pig, zap….’

Seo Jio was the type whose life satisfaction only increased when he fattened up scrawny men, women, and children of all ages.

***

They had such a conversation.

“Your hand is cold, Iseur.”

“Perhaps… It is because I am a mermaid.”

“Since our races are different, it would be natural for our body temperatures to differ.”

“Is a cold hand uncomfortable for you?”

Humans scorned the cold hands of mermaids, calling them those of underwater monsters.

Giovanni was also a human, and Iseur was a mermaid.

Above all, Giovanni, who was always warm from the sun’s blessing, might have felt revulsion at Iseur’s damp and cool hand.

But Giovanni laughed as if it were absurd.

He nonchalantly dismissed Iseur’s worries.

“On the contrary, I like it because it’s cool.”

“…It is winter now.”

“I am a person with a lot of heat, so it does not matter.”

“…….”

“Yes, it feels nice.”

Even if one had a lot of heat, who among humans would enjoy getting colder in the winter?

No matter how you thought about it, it was a lie to be considerate of the young mermaid, but still….

“…Your hand is warm, Teacher.”

He would needlessly try to hold that hand full of warmth.

“Is this high body temperature also due to the blessing of the Sun God?”

“That could be. After all, I was born on a summer day, when the sun’s blessing was at its fullest.”

“My teacher’s hand must not become cold because of me.”

He held on greedily, but he always felt sorry, feeling as if he were stealing that warmth.

“…I….”

Sometimes, Iseur was engulfed by the feeling that he was stealing what was Giovanni's.

If he, a mermaid, had not insisted on their bond, Giovanni would not have had to deal with people with such anxiety, nor would he have been trapped in such a small village with his excellent skills.

“…….”

So when he felt sorry for taking even this bit of warmth, Jio would say.

“I will always have enough warmth to give to you, Iseur.”

“…Is that not too harsh a thing to say for you, a creation of the sun?”

“I meant that you do not need to feel sorry just for holding hands. Iseur, you are often too timid. You can be more confident.”

“But I am a mermaid, Teacher. The more I learn, the more I doubt whether humans and mermaids can become one.”

“Nevertheless, are we not conversing in the same place like this now?”

He was always warm.

“As long as I do not become a corpse, you can always hold my hand.”

“…Am I not allowed to hold the hand of a corpse?”

“The dead must be sent on their way. That way, I too can go to the sun’s side.”

“…….”

“That is nature and the natural order.”

The foolish mermaid did not know, but your words, which were so warm, were actually wrong.

That hand, which was so full of warmth, became so cold after suffocating in the seawater.

You must have failed to return to the sun's side even in death.

Otherwise, there is no way it could have been so cold.

There is no way your corpse could have been that cold.

“…It feels sad already….”

And yet.

In the end, it turned out that way.

***

‘…Why does he have to remind me of that person so much.’

Iseur thought as he looked at the black cape sitting next to him.

‘And on top of that, why is the sun’s energy so strong?’

Seeing him up close made it even clearer.

This person was not simply a strong human, but had completely absorbed the divinity of the sun.

The great qualification that only a god could possess.

‘He seems to have a high understanding of humans, so perhaps he inherited the divinity while still being human.’

If that were the case, Iseur would despise this black cape.

“…….”

“Do you not have an appetite?”

With that affectionate name, Jio, while embracing the same warmth as his teacher… of all things, the Sun God.

‘Is this a scheme by the Sun God?’

During the long, miserable years, Iseur too had learned many things about humans, gods, and the world.

‘Perhaps the Sun God of Earth, who was wary of mermaids and the deep sea, orchestrated something like this.’

He had committed the atrocity of bestowing the sun’s energy upon a human who was terribly similar to that person.

‘…It’s still disgusting.’

Gods and humans, the sun's lot always made him feel nauseous.

“…It's just, this is my first time in a restaurant like this….”

“I see.”

“…….”

“You can eat slowly.”

The black cape’s voice was calm and gentle.

‘It's so strange.’

At one moment, it's as low as a quiet corpse, but when he looks at me, he bestows that kindness with a soft rhythm.

‘I'm curious about his true identity.’

Whether he was a god or a human, it was not the behavior befitting that cruel race.

“…Thank you.”

Even as he said his thanks, Iseur felt a hypocritical anxiety.

A tiny, small anxiety that faintly tickled the tips of his toes.

‘Soon, my sister will call the sea.’

Even that hot sun loses its vitality when submerged in the sea.

It was something Iseur had confirmed several times, so this person would probably be no exception.

Could this hand grow even colder than it is now?

“…….”

That seemed like it would be a little sad.

It was a feeling he had not felt in a very long time.

***

Upon returning to the temple, Eun-ha with the blue hair stopped Jio.

“Jio-ssi.”

“Yes, is there something that matter?”

“…….”

The hesitating child asked.

“…Do you like the sea?”

“I do like water.”

“Are you a good swimmer?”

“Actually, I am quite bad at it.”

“…….”

The child, who was silent as if recalling something, or perhaps lost in thought, soon opened his mouth.

“I hope it does not get too cold.”

“They certainly do say that this winter is exceptionally cold.”

“…….”

“Thank you for your concern.”

Jio realized that the one this child was worried about was not him, but the child himself.

Rather than worrying about him as a person, he seemed to be worried that a situation he disliked would occur.

He was a child with a somewhat twisted side due to thinking too deeply.

‘Life will be tiring like that, what a shame. Being mature is not always a good thing, after all.’

For Jio, whose month's worth of worries could be cleanly blown away by a single roasted sweet potato, it was an ascetic practice he could not even imagine.

“It seems the main ceremony will begin soon.”

“…You're right, I'll be going now.”

The child added, as if saying goodbye.

“It was fun.”

“I am glad to hear that.”

Jio realized that it was a lie.

‘…As expected of Hell Korea….’

Even the children were no pushovers.

‘It’s a tough world for a wimp like me, who only knows how to eat delicious food, to survive in.’

It was another day for the haunted portrait to be diligently intimidated.

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