Chapter 104

It's something I'm only saying now, but.

If one had to classify the ‘City of the Void,’ it could be seen as something close to an Entry Dungeon.

“In the sense that an entrance and exit clearly exist.”

It is different from a Virtual Dungeon, which is a dimension whose existence is unknown, let alone having an entrance and also different from a Villa Dungeon, whose material substance is not hidden and is fully exposed.

Jio’s picture frame, which exists only as a passage, could indeed be called an Entry Dungeon.

“The framework itself is similar, as there are mobile types among Entry Dungeons.”

Apart from the three types above, dungeons could also be divided into mobile and fixed types.

If we were to categorize it based on the fact that it doesn't stay in one place and keeps moving, it could be roughly defined as a ‘Mobile-type Entry Dungeon.’

“Though it’s the first time I’ve seen one in the form of a picture frame….”

Originally, the entrance of an Entry Dungeon did not have a fixed form.

‘It could be a book, a pit, or a curtain.’

However, most entrances to Entry Dungeons were in the form of a door.

It was at a level where anyone could look at it and know, ‘Ah, that must be the entrance.’

If it looked like it could be entered without difficulty, it was often an Entry Dungeon for sure.

“…….”

Still, people don't usually think of a picture frame as an entrance.

“…In the first place, if no one had been dragged in, I wouldn’t even have thought it was a dungeon at all.”

I knew that Jio could usually come and go through the portraits in the gallery.

However, the portrait had a strong impression of being Jio's 'home,' so I perceived it as a building that couldn't be entered unless he permitted it.

‘It was the same when Hunter Cha Ara was invited to Jio’s cabin.’

‘Jio’s Portrait ', which was filled with a serene and heavy atmosphere compared to the dungeons that showed the cruel and harsh capitalism of modern society, was different in many ways.

Perhaps that’s why I failed to notice that the two were similar concepts.

Though that's all just an excuse.

‘All this time, I thought Jio was something close to an object.’

I had said there was a possibility of him being a monster, but I had not considered the ‘dungeon’ that naturally follows such a monster.

After all, even as the Source explained it, Jio was clearly a ‘portrait.’

“In that case, should that portrait be treated as a single dungeon….”

Jio was already creating dungeons by painting pictures.

It was unknown whether he had painted ‘Jio’s Portrait’ himself, but hadn't ‘City of the Void’ following ‘Breathing Sea’ been witnessed by people?

“…Then again, it would be more difficult to say that it’s not a dungeon now.”

Yu Seong-un recalled the black portrait sleeping in Bisabeol’s gallery.

It had covered its face with jet-black ink of its own will, and with that, it was erased from the minds of the people of the world.

The only ones who knew what ‘Jio’s Portrait’ looked like were the very few people who had seen its face before.

‘Even they forget from time to time.’

It had erased history without any sense of incongruity.

“…….”

Wasn't it a formidable influence?

“I hope he doesn't become hostile towards us.”

‘Jio’s Portrait’ was a threat to humanity by its very existence.

If he were to become hostile to humans with his own will, it would be difficult to find a disaster of that magnitude.

Why was Yu Seong-un suddenly spouting off like this?

“…Hoo….”

It was because the ‘City of the Void’ was right in front of him.

“It really appears out of nowhere.”

The place where Yu Seong-un discovered this gray picture frame was none other than an overground train station.

It was a place he had visited with Jio before while giving him a tour of Seoul, and thanks to that, Yu Seong-un was able to form a hypothesis.

“Does this picture frame mainly appear in places its owner, Jio, has visited?”

Or in places that might interest him.

Listening to the eyewitness accounts, it didn't seem to appear only in places Jio knew.

It would sometimes appear in a slum, sometimes on a road, and sometimes pop out from inside an abandoned building.

‘People who aren't Hunters wouldn't know this is Jio's painting, so it probably didn't become a rumor.’

This picture frame, surprisingly, appeared more frequently in everyday spaces frequented by civilians rather than in dungeons.

Among those, the most frequent locations were, indeed, spaces Jio had visited in person.

Suddenly feeling exhausted, Yu Seong-un took a seat in the overground train station.

“Oh my….”

His whole body ached.

“Fortunately, there’s no one around.”

The current time was 4:16 AM.

It was a time when modern people, worn out by fatigue, were asleep in unison, so it was only natural that there was no one at the overground train station, which was expensive to begin with.

‘Still, it’s just turned the 26th, so I thought there might be some aftermath of Christmas left. Above all, the overground train runs 24/7, so I thought there might be at least one drunkard heading home late after a night of fun….’

Yu Seong-un, who had been thinking that, soon nodded his head.

“…It hasn't been long since people gathered like that and died at the ‘Temple of the Deep Sea’.”

It was an event held at none other than the Temple of the Sun.

Even in such a place, a virtual dungeon appeared and swallowed the entire crowd that was watching the initiation ceremony.

Considering that time, it was understandable that many people were still anxious about gathering.

“Thanks to that, fewer people gathered this Christmas in particular.”

Whenever a crowd started to form, everyone seemed to recall the tragedy of the initiation ceremony and subtly moved away.

“Anyway….”

For Yu Seong-un, who did not want to escalate the situation, it was a good thing.

‘…To see citizens trembling in fear and think it’s a good thing, I’ve really been tainted. I hope I don’t become so narrow-minded while living like this that I become unfit to manage the garden….’

The ‘City of the Void’ came into his view.

“…….”

Is it a little creepy?

‘…It feels like I can sense a disillusionment with the city.’

Having lived as a curator for several years, he could also feel the imagery contained in the work.

The city, with its grotesque collection of gray buildings, seemed to depict the silence within a crowd where it is somehow noisy and chaotic, yet no one seems to open their mouths.

‘Even though that crowd isn't even visible.’

Looking at the gray picture frame that somehow made one’s mind go blank, Yu Seong-un muttered softly.

“…It seems it certainly doesn't capture people just for looking at the frame.”

As he did the legwork and went around himself, he found a total of 4 witnesses.

All of them were ordinary citizens in Seoul, not even Awakeners, and none of them were harmed by the ‘City of the Void.’

‘They all just thought of it as a painting hanging in an odd place.’

Among the 4 witnesses was an alcoholic who was ambiguously not good-natured.

According to the locals, he had always lived alone and sometimes caused petty trouble in front of the convenience store.

‘Does that mean that level of person isn't considered an evildoer?’

Or does it only attack if one commits an evil act right in front of the frame?

“…There aren’t enough comparison groups, so I can't be sure.”

Yu Seong-un had a history of killing.

‘It’s not such a rare record in this day and age.’

Of course, it wasn't that he killed just anyone; it happened when he was stopping a 5th-class citizen who was clearly harming society or a criminal of equivalent standing.

It was more advantageous to fight with the intent to kill rather than just aiming for subjugation.

‘But that doesn't mean it was the right thing to do.’

In this grim and harsh era, there probably wasn't a single Hunter who hadn't killed a person, but in the end, a wrong was a wrong.

Judged morally, Yu Seong-un had sinned.

Nevertheless, the ‘City of the Void’ remained silent.

“…….”

There were many possibilities.

“…I can't feel the dungeon's master, Jio, in this picture frame.”

In that case, this picture frame might just be moving according to Jio's orders.

‘That's why it doesn't have the same level of emotional sensing ability as Jio.’

Jio could judge a person's good or evil just by looking at them for a moment.

But this picture frame, which simply received and executed orders, might not have that level of ability and could be judging good and evil only by the situation that unfolded right in front of it.

A downgraded version of ‘Jio’s Portrait.’

“…If not that….”

It could be that it judged that Yu Seong-un or the alcoholic he saw were ‘not evildoers.’

Come to think of it, Yu Seong-un did what he had to do and the alcoholic had only been a major nuisance.

Taking that into account, they might not be evil enough to be attacked by Jio's standards.

‘If that drunkard had committed a crime beyond just being a nuisance, it would be much easier to judge.’

If he had done more than just cause a nuisance, there was a high possibility that the ‘City of the Void’ only collected evildoers who were confirmed to be committing evil acts directly.

“…….”

But there was one thing that was certain.

“…Jio’s good and evil are decided according to his taste.”

If Jio had defined ‘murder’ itself as an evil act, Yu Seong-un should have already been abducted and gone missing by Jio.

But the fact that it hadn't happened yet meant that Jio distinguished a target's good or evil depending on the situation.

“I don't know if this will be a good thing or a bad thing for humans….”

Anyway, what Yu Seong-un had to do now was clear.

“…I’m dead tired.”

He had to go inside that ‘City of the Void’ and check the condition of the hunter named Park Eun-gyeom.

Yu Seong-un approached the work hanging on the transparent wall.

“How can I get inside?”

A typical Entry Dungeon didn't require any special conditions to enter.

From the dungeon's perspective, it was a case of prey rolling in on its own, so there would be no reason to block it in the first place.

‘But if Jio is still favorable to humans, there would certainly be a reason to block that part.’

At the very least, he wouldn't want people to fall into his dungeon indiscriminately and die.

As Yu Seong-un looked at the painting that made him feel more and more stuffy and indignant the more he saw it, he confirmed something in that empty city.

“…….”

Noticing something strange, Yu Seong-un looked at the painting more carefully.

“…That is….”

Along the long main street and the buildings lined up on both sides, and between the alleys they created.

Something black and whitish caught Yu Seong-un’s eye.

“…A person?”

It also looked like a person crouching down.

‘It’s too small to confirm.’

But the black dot that stuck out in the city that looked clean enough not to have a single speck of dust was definitely strange.

It was natural enough not to feel particularly out of place, but after consciously looking at it for a long time, he could tell that it was not a picture that belonged in the ‘City of the Void.’

The black dot seemed to be faintly stirring.

“…….”

Yu Seong-un felt a chill run down his spine for a moment.

“…Is this, Hunter Park Eun-gyeom?”

If one didn’t specifically try to find it, it wouldn’t even catch the eye.

Because to anyone, it was just a ‘painting.’

***

“Kuruk?”

“Dad’s busy.”

“Kururu?”

“I’m looking after your younger brother.”

“Kkung?”

Honey kept tilting its head, but Jio was resolute.

“I have to comfort our Void right now.”

He was currently wrapping the ‘City of the Void’ in a baby carrier and rocking it gently back and forth.

Iseur, who had visited for a moment, had nodded with his characteristic benevolent smile and left, but Jio instinctively felt that the ‘City of the Void’ was quite pleased with his care.

“If our Void had a mouth, I would have fed him, but what on earth does he eat to live?”

“Kuru….”

“People? People, you say. Unfortunately, that’s not something edible.”

“Kku-ung?”

“I don’t know why all my children talk about such scary things.”

Jio, who was conversing with his eldest son, noticed that the picture in the ‘City of the Void’ had changed for a moment.

“What is this?”

It had taken the form of none other than Yu Seong-un.

“…….”

“Kurururu….”

“I don't know why you're smacking your lips, but it's not what you're thinking, so calm down, and what on earth is this situation. Father, if you're watching me, tell me the answer….”

The Sun God told him the answer.

“Kkuu, kkukkuu.”

“Are you saying that Mr. Seong-un is actually in front of our Void right now?”

Is this the new generation intercom?

‘Has the trend come so full circle that it’s back to portraits now?’

Of course, that couldn't be true.

In any case, since the ‘City of the Void’ could also be considered one of Jio’s households, he was grateful for the intercom function that he had never installed in the picture frame.

“I almost couldn't even greet my guest.”

He didn't know why that guest was in front of the ‘City of the aVoid,’ but it didn't matter.

To Jio, who had preserved his purity again today on the holy birthday of Jesus, this welcome face was welcome and then some.

It’s been a while, Seong-un hyung, right?

“Void, open the door. It’s dad’s friend.”

“ ”

“I think my child just answered, or was it an auditory hallucination.”

“ ”

“My adorable baby babbles so well.”

Is there any need to think so deeply about life?

To Jio, a variable in life was nothing more than the appearance of new content.

He paid no mind to this sudden situation and finished preparing to become an extreme extrovert.

“It’s been a while since I've seen my elder brother's face.”

Anyway, as long as it was fun, that's all that mattered.

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