Chapter 63

He had tried many things.

Iseur’s will was strong and his altruism was great, too great to start hating the existence known as humanity overnight.

He tried to approach humans many times.

He wasn't trying to make an excuse that he had done enough.

Yes, he didn't want to become complacent with just that, but….

“…….”

It was truly alright.

“Are you hurt anywhere?”

“H-huaaak…! I-it's a mermaid…!!”

It was sad to be met with contempt and disgust even after saving a life, but he could bear it.

“I can treat you.”

“Don't lie, how can I trust a mermaid's words?”

“But….”

“I'll kill you if you touch me.”

“…….”

It was also alright for the heart that had tried its best to be considerate to be trampled on so casually.

“A mermaid? Isn't that a monster?”

“…….”

“I heard they eat people, wow, that’s horrible.”

Being condemned for his very existence rather than for a crime he committed was also somewhat bearable.

“…….”

“…….”

“Iseur.”

His sister called him.

“Giovanni has been referred to trial.”

“…He is a renowned priest of the sun, so won't he be alright? You are allies, after all.”

“He'll be sentenced to the extreme penalty for being a traitor. You heard it too, a traitor to humanity.”

“But, Teacher… he saved so many people until now.”

“What a magnificent excuse. Since when did humans ever care about such things?”

“I do not understand. Did no one advocate for him?”

“Now that it's known he hid a mermaid, he's being criticized instead. It's no different from what we saw that day.”

“Why did no one….”

“Aren't humans fascinating creatures? You have no idea how fickle they are.”

“…Why….”

“When did they ever praise Jio's character and abilities, calling him a son of god, and now that his light is shared with the sea, they are making a fuss, calling him a disgrace to humanity.”

He was the only person who had affirmed the sea.

He was a noble being who had said that mermaids and humans were no different, and had waited with me for the day the sky and the sea would become one.

I know how much great mercy my teacher bestowed by his side, how much love and affection he poured out.

He was a person who sincerely cared for his patients and respected his friends.

“…No way….”

To think all of that was denied.

‘By the same humans, no less.’

That was too much even for the patient mermaid.

He could not endure it, it was not alright, and he could not bear it.

We mourned and sorted through our grief for years, finding even his natural death a waste, so how could you kill him yourselves.

How could you be so horrible?

“…….”

Are you not sad for his pain?

“I am going to try an experiment.”

“…….”

“Do you still like humans? Do you still think of them as fickle but lovely creatures?”

“…No….”

“Then do you trust them? Do you believe they will return favor with favor, that you can entrust your back to them?”

“…I do not think so.”

“If you have sorted things out, let us return to the sea together.”

His sister whispered sweetly.

“As you know, we cannot move people with a single glance or a single touch like Giovanni. A mermaid's cold touch on a creation of the sun would only be creepy.”

She was right.

“And for that reason, we can give pain.”

“Pain….”

She was right about that, too.

“My brother, Iseur.”

“…Yes, Sister.”

“Will you go with me?”

So Iseur decided to endure it, just one more time.

“No.”

It was not for the sake of humans.

“I will look for another way.”

It was for the sake of Giovanni, who had loved everything in the world until the very end.

“Humans and mermaids have already started a war for you to choose such a soft path. And it will be a war more vulgar and cruel than you can imagine.”

“I know.”

“If that is your choice, I suppose I must respect it. Do your best until you have no regrets, Iseur.”

“…Thank you.”

It was a very sad fact, but Giovanni was not the type of person to dream of revenge just because he was betrayed by humans.

‘So to torment humans and build a bad reputation for my teacher's sake would be to betray him a second time.’

He did not want to take out his anger vulgarly like humans, using that noble person as an excuse.

“…….”

Iseur endured tens, hundreds of times more after that.

He saved an innocent child during the war.

The mermaids did not understand their eccentric kin but simply ignored him, while the humans, on the contrary, framed Iseur with an absurd accusation and attacked him.

“One.”

He pulled a pregnant woman who had fallen into the sea onto land.

But the pregnant woman struggled to avoid being held by the mermaid's cold hands and drowned, and watching this, the humans screamed that the mermaid was now eating pregnant women too.

“Two.”

He pretended not to see a soldier squirming, not even worth attacking.

He didn't want to see blood, but that soldier came looking for him a month later and showered him with attacks and curses.

In the end, Iseur had to see blood.

“Three….”

The humans he barely befriended were either dead or contemplating betrayal, and whatever Iseur did was considered filthy, and his ill repute grew.

Humans poured poison into the sea.

A child died. He treated a wound.

He was stabbed in the side with a knife….

“…….”

And then one day, he counted.

“…One thousand six hundred forty-three.”

It was already over a thousand.

“…Ah, eugh….”

On the last day he counted, Iseur ate his teacher.

“…Heueu, huhuhu….”

His whole body ached.

“Hah, aaaaaah…! Aak…!!”

He was hungry.

I was so, so hungry.

“Aaaaaaaaaaaaaah―!!!”

***

“…….”

Even though it was evening, it was as bright as midday.

‘It’s just like a white night.’

The phenomenon is often seen in the polar regions, where the sun doesn't set even when it's night.

‘This is the romantic city of Seoul. Dopamine is overflowing….’

Jio enjoyed the pounding of his heart to the fullest as he watched the temple's priest procession.

The Part 2 ceremony proceeded much more splendidly than Part 1.

If Part 1 emphasized the unique solemnity of religious figures, Part 2 felt much more like a true ‘event’.

Clusters of light sparkled here and there, and the priests' white clothes fluttered.

There was so much to see that his eyes were getting dizzy.

“How is it worth seeing?”

“I like it very much.”

“That’s a relief.”

Yu Seong-un smiled his characteristic light smile.

“The event period is long, so I was worried if you were okay.”

“It is certainly a bit tiring, but….”

He was planning on staying cooped up in his cabin for a week once he got back.

He had started getting tired from the moment he stepped outside his home, so Jio's stamina had hit rock bottom a long time ago.

“Still, it is an event worth seeing.”

“Is it perhaps the influence of the god you are supporting?”

It was a question asking if he liked the Solar Cult's event because he served the Sun God.

“That could be.”

It wasn't as comfortable as my own home, but it felt as comfortable as a friend's house.

“…….”

“Jio?”

“…I was just thinking of some old friends.”

It's been 31 years, I wonder if these bastards are still alive?

‘I'm also curious how the kids are doing.’

It was something he thought about from time to to time, but being out this long, he naturally thought of the connections he had 31 years ago.

‘I'm not expecting much from the elders in the mountain village in Gangwon-do since they were already old.’

But he might be able to find out how the students he taught were doing.

“…….”

No, but what if I get captured and taken to a lab…?

‘Usually in movies, a moment of carelessness stemming from nostalgia plunges a person's life off a cliff, is there any guarantee that won't happen to me?’

Evolving from a human to a haunted portrait was, judging from Yu Seong-un’s occasional reactions, undoubtedly a huge deal even in this Hell Korea.

Jio resolved once again to just shut up and stay hidden.

‘If we're fated to meet, we'll meet even without intention.’

he thought, full of such dreams and hopes.

“Ah… looks like it’s wrapping up.”

“It was quite long.”

“An initiation ceremony like this is also an event to show off the sect's power.”

Especially for the Solar Cult, which boasted a fairly large following in Seoul, they would have had to show off this level of splendor.

‘There was also an unfortunate missing person case recently.’

Thinking that, Yu Seong-un glanced over at Jio.

‘…No matter how I think about it, it seems this incident is related to this guy….’

Jio looked truly unconcerned.

‘Either Jio really knows nothing, or he knows but doesn't feel any strong emotions about it. Either way, it's a plausible aspect of the uniquely-natured Jio, which makes it more confusing.’

It was when they were watching the ceremony as it came to a close.

“…….”

A momentary intuition.

‘…What is this?’

It's chilly.

‘It’s not a glacier.’

As a Gardener, he knew the essence of energy.

He smelled the pressure of nature that crushes the human body, and the fishy scent resembling the blood that oozes from it.

‘If so, this is….’

A cold, damp, and dark sense of pressure.

‘The sea?’

Yu Seong-un soon realized that it was the energy of the sea.

It was not a sensation that could be felt naturally, was it.

Yu Seong-un instinctively looked for the main culprit.

“Ah….”

When his eyes met with the blue-haired ‘Eun-ha’, Yu Seong-un felt a sense of dismay.

“Oh no.”

Kururuk―…!!!

“Was I too careless?”

A piercingly blue energy rushed in.

That energy was not like a fluttering mist. It had a viciousness that sought to take life relentlessly, and a ferocity that provoked human fear with sharp claws.

He immediately grasped the situation.

“It's a virtual dungeon.”

With Yu Seong-un’s quick judgment, the entire temple was dyed blue.

“■■■■■―…!!!!!”

A noise so loud it hurt his ears, as if a marble pillar was being scraped by giant claws, erupted.

As it gratingly scraped at his eardrums, the whole world distorted chaotically as if glass shards were exploding, and waves foaming white gluttonously devoured the people.

“…….”

Yu Seong-un, who always had a stoic expression, contorted his face.

‘…I can't predict the damage, but there's one thing for sure.’

Overtime again today.

“Hoo….”

Kwadeuk―!!

“I'm tired already.”

Yu Seong-un, who had created an ice spear, drove it into the floor.

‘I must not be pushed far away.’

Having made his judgment as an experienced Hunter, Yu Seong-un supported his body with the spear he had driven into the floor.

In the strong cold and vibration, Yu Seong-un looked back at the portrait.

“Jio, be caref—!”

And there.

“…….”

“…….”

There was a giant ‘eye’.

Yu Seong-un felt a dreadful silence, as if time had stopped.

What is that?

Is it an eye?

“…….”

It resembled nature, but he couldn't discern whether it belonged to the sun or the sea.

He saw an illusion of fragmented, sparkling pieces of light scattering, twinkling chaotically as if quickening, and reflecting a deep wave of unknowable depth.

Yu Seong-un couldn't take his eyes off the portrait that was swept away by the wave for even a moment.

There, within it, was the sea.

A white sea distorted by light. That sea speaks.

『Where the sun does not reach….』

That voice was like that of nature itself.

『You have come to the deep sea.』

Why did it sound like the judgment of a god?

He saw it with his own eyes but could not perceive it.

It felt as if he could hear the sound of the sun's rays.

He heard the sound of warmth.

The waves mixed with it, then soon hid their fangs and cowered.

It was only after that that Yu Seong-un came to his senses enough to realize anything.

“…….”

The sound returned, and time flowed again, free from the silence.

Once the loud noise that hurt his ears and the tinnitus that was like the stubbornness of the dead disappeared, the waves that were as ferocious as a monster of the abyss died down again and became calm….

“…….”

“…….”

“…….”

The world's scenery had changed.

“Ah….”

A ghastly chill that reeked of blood. Yu Seong-un looked around.

He could see people.

“…Wh-where is this place…?”

“A dungeon? Shit, don't tell me it's a dungeon?”

“A-any Hunters here?!”

This place, where people who had just come to their senses were chattering noisily, was clearly a dungeon.

“…….”

Yu Seong-un took in the shadowy, dark blue space.

The cavern, so vast that the ceiling could not be seen, was eerily illuminated by water scales of unknown origin.

Yu Seong-un’s gaze soon reached the blue water pillars erected throughout the cavern.

A lament escaped on its own.

“…Oh my goodness….”

Chimeras, which looked close to aquatic creatures, were crammed in there.

“This is trouble.”

Somehow it felt ominous from the very entrance, and the dungeon's difficulty seemed considerably high.

‘It’s too much to be a typical virtual dungeon, and there are more people dragged in than usual.’

Yu Seong-un barely held onto his mind that wanted to return home and calmly assessed the situation he was in.

So-called ‘virtual dungeons’ forcibly drag people who meet arbitrary conditions into another dimension and proceed with a game.

The capabilities of the dungeon master could be gauged by the number of participants and the grotesqueness of the game.

‘And just counting the number of civilians gathered in this cavern, it’s close to 20…. There could be people dragged to other places too, so it’s excessive in many ways. I can see how much the master of this dungeon has been grinding their teeth and preparing.’

And Yu Seong-un, as an A-class Hunter belonging to the Collectors, one of the top three guilds in South Korea, had the responsibility to protect these people and complete the dungeon.

“…….”

With this disorderly crowd of citizens, that is.

***

‘As expected of an A-class Hunter.’

At Yu Seong-un's calm demeanor as he instantly grasped and tried to manage the situation, Eun-ha, Iseur, was inwardly impressed.

According to Earth's standards, from B-class Hunters onwards, their way of thinking gradually deviates from the standard of ordinary humans.

Needless to say, it would be even more so for an A-class, a higher grade than that.

‘I heard he wasn't that famous of a public figure.’

Indeed, he was not to be underestimated.

‘But….’

What could a mere Hunter do in a situation like this?

‘With all these burdens, at best he'll die with the citizens or choose to flee to save his own life. Such a foolish existence is human.’

In the shadows of the cavern, far from the commotion, Iseur took in the sight of the humans running amok in fear.

“S-save me! I don't want to die here…!!”

“Where is this place? Where is this place? Excuse me, so where is….”

“Kyaaaaaak…!! Th-there’s a monster! There's a monster!!”

His ears were tired.

‘…Do they not know how to do anything but scream? They are nothing short of idiots.’

The familiar displeasure he felt dozens of times a day from the squawking noise rushed in.

It was a faded hatred towards humans.

“…….”

In this incident, Iseur's role was just to open the gate, and that was it.

‘…If the predecessor hadn't suddenly disappeared, I wouldn't have had to step up.’

Opening a gate to the deep sea in the Solar Temple of all places required quite a skilled technique.

‘Because of that, we had already tamed one of the humans and were in the process of training him.’

But for some reason, he was killed by a mysterious powerful being, and things got complicated.

The execution date was just around the corner. And at that moment, the only person who could open the gate was Iseur….

‘There is nothing I like.’

After mixing with humans for a short while, not a single part of his body or mind was sound.

‘They are a race one should not associate with for long. I feel like their incompetence is rubbing off on me.’

He wanted to finish this job as quickly as possible and dive into the silent sea.

“Hunter, you're a hunter, right! How are you going to take responsibility for this!!”

“What… what does this have to do with me, don't talk nonsense like responsibility!!”

“The priests? Shit, where did all the priests go!!”

“Th-the prospective priests… are priests too, right? Huh? They're priests?”

“Someone please help, what is this situation!!”

How could he give his heart to something that was shrieking so vulgarly.

“…….”

This place was located quite late in the path that the humans of Earth called a ‘dungeon’.

‘…It's too far to return to the entrance and the situation is not good for finding an exit, so most of them will probably die here. It will surely happen even if I don't lift a finger.’

As he was thinking of wrapping things up like that, the man in the black cape came to mind.

The Sun God is named Jio.

“…Hoo….”

In a situation where all the humans were scattered in random locations, he felt foolish for unconsciously tracking the man's position.

Why on earth would he do such a foolish thing when he was going to kill them all anyway?

‘Right, let's get this over with quickly.’

If any individuals remain intact, they will receive the honor of being used as his sister's test subject.

Requesting ownership of one of them might not be so bad either.

“…Then.”

He took a step forward from the shadows.

It was when he had gripped the staff in his hand and was about to do his job as a ‘monster’.

“…….”

Ah.

‘…A presence?’

Iseur looked back.

“…….”

At some point, the black cape was standing right behind him.

“……!”

No way.

‘I confirmed that this person was not here.’

No matter if the opponent was something that harbored divinity, for a mermaid who could even kill gods, this situation was unexpected.

‘Was I being too careless?’

Iseur stepped back.

Perhaps because he was in a child's body, he felt an unusually strong sense of pressure from the black cape.

Since this large body had moved, someone among the humans should have reacted, but no one cast their gaze towards the black cape and Iseur.

‘Why?’

At that indescribable sense of unease, Iseur bared his sharp teeth. They were the fangs that had even torn apart his teacher's body.

“Who on earth are you…!”

“Iseur.”

“…….”

…What?

“…….”

“Ah, Iseur….”

His name was called.

“…….”

It was a call as low as a corpse.

Iseur froze.

‘…He called my name.’

Like a fish that had touched ice water, he was frozen solid and could not move.

When the man, as tall as a thick wall, bent down and swept the child's cheek, the small body was swallowed by the shadow in an instant.

The pitch-black cape came down like a curtain, completely enveloping Iseur like a waterfall.

‘How….’

That was why the mermaid in a child's body could see the face of the one looking down at him.

“Weren't you cold?”

“…….”

“Did it hurt a lot?”

“…….”

“You must have been lonely and scared….”

The person who resembled the sunlight scattered on the sea.

“…….”

That warm platinum hair, and the eyes that resembled a brilliant wave.

Those distant blue eyes.

“I'm sorry.”

“…….”

“I am sorry.”

We were crying.

“…Ah….”

Giovanni.

My teacher, who had met the most miserable death in the world, was now a corpse, crying in front of me.

***

Jio lost consciousness.

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