Chapter 29.2 ?

“…It smells good.”

“Right, we haven’t even seen the restaurant yet. Isn’t it fascinating?”

“Is this smell only from this waterway?”

“I think I heard it’s a kind of promotional strategy.”

“I understand.”

Far from unpleasant, the fact that this waterway emitted such a delightful smell was fascinating, but what was even more strange was that the scent of the sea and the food could be distinguished separately.

‘…To think the scent of the sea in the middle of the city….’

If he lowered his head just a little, only the scent of the sea filled his senses. It was a pungent, brain-piercing, salty smell of seawater.

It made him feel nostalgic.

“…….”

Gio leaned closer to the water’s surface.

“Gio, that looks dangerous.”

“I just wanted to smell it for a moment because I like the scent of the sea.”

Gio’s voice, immersed in old memories, softened considerably.

“It’s strange that it smells like the sea even though this is a waterway connected to the Han River.”

“Well, unless it’s in the mountains, all the rivers and waterways in places like this are strongly mixed with seawater….”

“Is that so?”

Giovanni loved this scent.

The scent of the sea.

“…….”

The scent of a mermaid.

“… Once….”

It made him want to dive deep into that scent.

It tugged at his heartstrings.

“Gio, stop.”

“…….”

“…Even the driver looks alarmed.”

At those words, Gio looked at the water taxi driver.

“…….”

He was looking at Gio with an extremely flustered face, also seemingly a little scared.

“…I see.”

Gio acknowledged that he had acted rudely.

“Apologies, this is my first time on a waterway, and my curiosity got the better of me.”

“It’s fine, I was just worried you might get hurt, not angry.”

“Thank you for your understanding.”

Yoo Sung-woon’s face showed ‘concern’, but the driver’s face appeared closer to ‘fear’, though Gio just let it pass without thinking much. It was natural to be scared if the passengers you were carrying looked like they were about to fall into the water.

‘Like a passenger suddenly opening the door and jumping out onto the highway…’

Gio successfully convinced himself.

‘Otherwise, it might be that I unknowingly let out some weird energy again.’

Just like how it had happened a few times before at Yoo Sung-woon’s company.

Gio quietly sat back down, reflecting on the fact that he had been distracted by the fascinating waterway and caused trouble.

Yoo Sung-woon, who had been watching him as if observing something, hesitated with a face that seemed to ask, ‘Is it okay to ask this?’ and then cautiously inquired.

“Do you like the sea?”

“… Yes?”

No? Not really?

“I don’t particularly like it.”

“But earlier, at Cheonggyecheon and here in the waterway, it seemed like you were particularly fond of the sea’s scent. Of course, I apologize if I was mistaken.”

“There’s nothing to apologize for. I don’t dislike the sea, but I don’t exactly like it either…”

Gio then quickly changed his words after saying so.

“…Come to think of it, maybe I do.”

“Huh?”

“I think I consider myself indifferent, but I might actually like it.”

It sounded strange, but it wasn’t exactly wrong either. ‘Gio’ had no strong feelings toward the sea, but ‘Giovanni’ was different.

So when asked ‘Do you like the sea?’ Gio could only answer both yes and no. Since both thoughts were his own, it was hard to deny either one.

However, a thought suddenly occurred to him.

“Are there mermaids here too?”

“…Mermaids?”

Meanwhile, Yoo Sung-woon sensed the strangeness similar to what he felt at Cheonggyecheon once more.

‘He definitely said ‘here too.”

Gio seemed to have some kind of connection with mermaids.

“Hmm…”

After a moment of thought, Yoo Sung-woon slowly nodded.

“Sometimes, creatures like that do emerge. Even if they’re not necessarily monsters… there are entities that take on such forms.”

“……”

“In a world where worshipping statues, legends, or myths can bring real monsters into existence, mermaid-related creatures do appear from time to time in different parts of the Earth.”

“Is that so?”

“There’s a famous fairy tale by a very old author called ‘The Little Mermaid.'”

The Little Mermaid.

The familiar words made Gio fall into thoughts once again. He was thinking about ‘Giovanni’s request.

‘Come to think of it, there was a quest related to The Little Mermaid.’

But for now, he decided to leave it aside.

“It seems like we’re almost there. It’s a fancy restaurant.”

“Oh, you’re right.”

“I’m looking forward to it since the building is more impressive than I expected.”

They say you shouldn’t worry while at the dining table.

***

A luxurious restaurant that seemed to be made of ivory and marble was blended together.

It was beautifully decorated like a castle, yet its structure—with several rooms, stairs, and lobbies mixed together—was inefficient, as if not built by humans.

Yet, ironically, this oddity only served to solidify the restaurant’s concept.

“……”

White, pink, light green, sky blue.

The soft pastel tones, scattered like patchwork on an ivory-coloured canvas, gave off a dreamlike quality that made people feel dazed.

It was breathtakingly beautiful.

“There’s something I didn’t get a chance to ask earlier…”

Meanwhile, Yoo Sung-woon and Gio’s party had taken their seats at a cream-coloured table.

Gio, now seated, asked a question.

“This place was said to have been made from the remnants of a fixed dungeon, right?”

“Hmm? Yes, that’s correct.”

“Then, do fixed dungeons always leave behind terrain or buildings like this after being cleared? And is that how this dungeon left behind this land and restaurant?”

“Ah… yeah, something like that.”

Perhaps thinking it would be good to clear up any lingering questions before the main meal arrived, Yoo Sung-woon explained with his characteristic easygoing smile.

“Dungeons come in various types, whether fixed or mobile ones. Usually, they are categorized into virtual dungeons, villa dungeons, or entry dungeons.”

“There are three kinds?”

“Actually, there are more than that, but these three are the most commonly known dungeons.”

Yoo Sung-woon folded his fingers as he continued his explanation.

“In the case of virtual dungeons, there are no clear boundaries. The dungeon randomly traps individuals meeting certain conditions, and the game takes place in a virtual world. For example, ten men in their thirties who visit a convenience store exactly at 9 p.m. might be pulled into a game, where the game board resembles the convenience store.”

“That sounds incredibly unfair.”

“Exactly, and that’s why virtual dungeons are such a headache for hunters. How many of those ten men in their thirties would actually be suitable hunters for clearing the dungeon? Virtual dungeons are quite rare, but they’re hard to avoid and cause a lot of damage, making them a real concern for modern people.”

A world where this could be considered a ‘concern for modern people’ seems to be a bit unsettling.

Yoo Sung-woon, unaware that Gio had become completely terrified thanks to his stiff facial muscles, continued his explanation calmly.

“Next, we have villa dungeons. This is when some random terrain and rules suddenly appear on Earth.”

“Is this restaurant an example of that?”

“You’ve got it. Just like you said, this restaurant building was created as part of a villa dungeon. One day, out of nowhere, a restaurant suddenly appeared in the middle of the Han River.”

Yoo Sung-woon rolled his eyes as if recalling the memory.

“As far as I know, this restaurant wasn’t just a restaurant built on top of a new terrain. It’s an excessively long restaurant with a basement deep enough to reach all the way to the riverbed, but since only the restaurant is visible above the water, it’s known as the ‘water-floating restaurant.'”

He nodded as he continued.

“In this way, villa dungeons mean that mansions from other dimensions suddenly get built on Earth. Since the area has already been replaced with such terrain, there’s no way to restore it. So even after a villa dungeon has been cleared, it usually remains in place, with only its rules gone. How to handle and utilize it is left up to the people of Earth.”

“……”

“And the last one is the entry dungeon. This one is similar to a game. I’m not sure what kind of games you know, but…”

Yoo Sung-woon shook his last finger as he spoke.

“Unlike virtual dungeons with no physical boundaries or villa dungeons with existing but vague boundaries, entry dungeons are different. It’s a case where a gate appears, and once you enter, you can begin clearing a dimension from another world.”

“Aha…”

It indeed looked like those dimensional portals often seen in games. A game where entering a gate takes you to another map. Gio completely understood now.

As always, Yoo Sung-woon kindly and casually continued his explanation.

“However, examples of utilizing dungeon remnants as a restaurant like this one are pretty rare.”

“It’s unique and seems like a good idea, so I’m surprised it’s not done more often. Why is that?”

“Humans are fearful creatures.”

Hyung, are you going to keep treating me like a haunted portrait?

“There could be problems with letting regular people in, and there aren’t many people brave enough to live there or make use of the dungeon’s remnants. Above all, these remaining remnants tend to be picky about people… so most of the time, it was preferred to demolish them.”

“Picky about people?”

“Like, if someone it doesn’t like comes in, it’ll make them feel chills?”

“That sounds like a haunted house.”

Said the haunted portrait.

“……”

Yes, Gio did actually acknowledge his own identity.

‘After all, normal people don’t usually build a cabin and live a healing life inside a portrait.’

Gio, who didn’t intend to strongly assert himself as human anyway, made a subtle excuse.

“…I don’t give people chills.”

“Sure, sure, Gio is a human. Right?”

“That’s right.”

He was so grateful that he ‘yes, yes’ him like a 4-year-old cousin that it almost brought him to tears.