Chapter 25.1 ?

8 AM.

Looking at the black cloak revealed in front of the frame, Yoo Sung-woon blinked his mint-colored eyes.

“……”

Hmm.

‘It feels a bit different.’

It wasn’t just a feeling. The pitch-black figure standing in front of the portrait didn’t exude the same eerie atmosphere as before.

As if it had turned from a monster into a human.

“Gio.”

“Are you here?”

“Did I come too late?”

“No, I arrived early.”

“Really?”

Yoo Sung-woon responded indifferently, thinking to himself.

‘…Even his voice sounds different than usual.’

Unlike before, when his speech was strangely orderly to the point of feeling unsettling, today’s Gio didn’t feel odd despite how he thought ‘He’s a bit overly polite’. It gave off the vibe of a person with an innocent nature.

‘Perhaps there’s a level difference when he’s inside the portrait versus outside….’

But that raised questions, as the testimonies from previous witnesses conflicted with this.

“……”

Yoo Sung-woon rolled his eyes for a moment before smiling and asking.

“Are you in a good mood, by any chance?”

“Yes, I am.”

“Hmm… Your atmosphere seems lighter than usual.”

“I’ve always been light.”

“Let’s say that’s the case.”

He’s definitely different from usual.

‘I don’t feel that overwhelming pressure either.’

Even though Yoo Sung-woon only saw his back, he knew how terrifying Gio could be outside the portrait.

That suffocating feeling and dizziness weren’t sensations easily experienced despite him having no malice or killing intent

‘Even so in a world full of various creatures, monsters and humans.’

It was said that the sensation became even more intense when you faced Gio head-on, but it was really strange. The current Gio simply felt like an ordinary human.

“……”

“……”

Perhaps sensing his doubt, Gio spoke first.

“I made some adjustments.”

“Adjustments?”

“I adjusted the resolution so that others wouldn’t be startled when they saw me. Judging by Mr. Yoo Sung-woon’s reaction, it seems my attempt wasn’t bad.”

“Ah, I see. No wonder.”

He seemed quite human.

Yoo Sung-woon nodded nonchalantly, but his inner thoughts weren’t as calm.

‘Does that mean… he can adjust the level of his soul?’

In the past, Gio’s level was so twisted that it couldn’t be expressed within human standards, but now it seemed to be around the level of an A-rank hunter.

The thought of being able to adjust the level of one’s soul at will felt like a truly nasty joke.

“…You’re not straining yourself, are you?”

If he forcibly lowered his level, the fatigue would be immense.

‘It’s basically like cursing yourself.’

He had softened his words, asking if there was no strain, but adjusting his level like this would cause more pain than fatigue.

In response to Yoo Sung-woon’s question, Gio looked down at his hand before shaking his head.

“It’s okay.”

“That’s a relief, but….”

How can someone be so nonchalant after doing something so insane? Yoo Sung-woon quietly felt a chill.

‘This is way too calm for someone who just self-harmed. If you want to pretend to be normal, be more thorough.’

Even a 10-year-old would understand the gravity of the current situation. In ordinary terms, it was like cutting off all your limbs and gouging out both of your eyes.

‘It’s no different from tying a leash around the neck of someone crawling around with just their torso and putting weights on them…’

Of course, Gio had no idea.

‘I’m hungry.’

After all, he was someone who—at least in his perception—had been living in an ordinary human state until recently.

His body that didn’t feel thirst, didn’t need sleep, and neither hungered nor felt full was certainly convenient… but he didn’t feel any aversion to his current state either.

He had lived this way originally, so there was no reason to feel discomfort. Rather, he was used to it.

“……”

“So where should we go now?”

“…Oh, right.”

Yoo Sung-woon answered while trying to keep a calm expression. It would be rude to keep showing concern to the fellow who came out to have a good time. When dealing with a being of origin, even he had to be careful of such small reactions.

“It’s morning, so I thought we could grab some breakfast.”

“What kind of place?”

“The one I’m recommending is a restaurant that serves set meals.”¹

Gio had once expressed himself in the Korean way as ‘Seo Gio’. Whether that was truly based on Korean customs or not was uncertain, but since Gio seemed to know Korea well in many ways, he opted for a set meal for breakfast.

Just in case, he added an explanation.

“It’s an all-in-one meal that comes with side dishes, rice, and soup. You can also order fish or pork.”

“……”

“It’s not too spicy overall, but since it’s breakfast, I found a restaurant that would be easy on the stomach.”

“That sounds good.”

Although Gio could eat just about anything, he had grown up under his grandmother who always served set meals, so he liked such comforting food. It made both his body and mind feel at ease.

Yoo Sung-woon nodded.

“Glad to hear it. Shall we go?”

Gio followed behind him.

‘…I can hear footsteps.’

He seemed to have been barefoot before, but now Gio was wearing shoes. However, what surprised Yoo Sung-woon more was hearing the sound of footsteps carrying the weight of a person.

‘Has he really lowered himself to a human level? I still can’t believe it.’

Starting from the sheer possibility of how that could happen, to why he would do such a terrible thing, his feelings were conflicted.

‘Maybe he did this deliberately to be considerate of other humans…’

Before Yoo Sung-woon could even feel embarrassed about thinking of excuses for any occured damage, a strange sense of guilt crept in. It was hard to handle such a ridiculous kindness, as if it involved cutting off parts of his own limbs and soul.

And the fact that he gave such out-of-the-ordinary kindness so casually made him feel even less human-like.

“Hmm….”

Yoo Sung-woon snapped back to his senses and led Gio to the elevator.

“Let’s ride.”

“This is a first for me.”

“What is? This elevator?”

“I usually moved through paintings.”

“So you really did move through paintings.”

He had already suspected as much, but this confirmed the mysterious portrait sightings often reported by night guards in the hallway.

Despite that, the ghost story of ‘Black Cloak’ had already taken root in this guild.

“Since I gave you an access card, why didn’t you use the elevator?”

“I thought it might be awkward if I encountered others in such a confined space.”

“…Makes sense.”

After all, even just encountering Gio in the wide corridors would often result in guards needing vacations, but in such a narrow space, they might have fainted with foam at the mouth.

However, that wasn’t exactly what Gio had meant.

‘Knowing the kind of people who work here, why would I risk being in a confined space with them?’

Gio, who knew when to retreat, was scared. The 31 years added with fantasy were enough to make even his homeland feel like a mysterious terror.

‘Who knows how much culture has changed? From the perspective of a haunted portrait, it’s too risky to act carelessly. Moving through the paintings is faster too.’

It was a decision that took into consideration his convenience in many ways, but…

“……”

Yoo Sung-woon couldn’t help but interpret it a bit differently.

‘…Isn’t this too kind? Maybe I’ve been worrying about the wrong things.’

He was starting to get concerned.

‘Worried that people might be pressured by his presence, he avoided the elevator and moved through the paintings. He even cut down his own level to avoid any unpleasant incidents during the tour….’

There were other suspicious details too.

‘Come to think of it, his fondness for giving gifts is a bit unsettling now that I reflect on it.’

This tour had been planned out of concern that the portrait might cause trouble, but if the humans ended up harming Gio instead, that would be an accident in another sense.

‘It seems I picked the wrong target to be cautious of. Instead of worrying about the gentleman Gio’s sudden actions, I should have been concerned about humans approaching and provoking him instead….’

Despite feeling exasperated, Yoo Sung-woon couldn’t help but wonder if his concerns were in the right direction.

¹: ?? / ?? (baekban) is the set meals described here. the dictionaries wrote it ‘meal with a bowl of rice, soup, and side dishes‘. but it wasn’t sth like mcd set meals either, it’s usually homemade like the image below.