The Artist Who Paints Dungeon - Chapter 127



Only Krnovel

Episode 127

It was a peaceful world.

“… … .”

Isn’t that so?

My benefactor, who had died a horrible death, is alive and well, and he always prepares meals for Aria when she comes. He consoles her with the same voice as before, and he laughs, chats, and enjoys himself with his new children… .

I had no intention of undermining this terrible peace.

“…Giovanni.”

No matter what happens in the future, Aria is determined to cherish this peace.

“My teacher.”

“Yes, Aria.”

After the short meal, Geo returned to his blunt face. With a calm face that seemed to have never smiled before, but with a familiar affection, the teacher asked.

“Do you want dessert?”

“Is that a dessert loaded with sugar?”

“Yes, it’s very sweet.”

“The cake I ate last time was really delicious.”

“Just what Aria wants is right here.”

“This is where I always found what I wanted.”

“You’re smart too.”

He brought a small cake.

“Is this what you wanted?”

“That’s right. You also gave it to a human named Yoo Seong-un who visited here before?”

“That’s right, I got a fish-shaped bread in return.”

“That’s quite a modest price to pay….”

The ‘price’ coming out of my mouth was like a child’s play.

“I’m talking about such a delicious cake.”

It resembled a small round cake and had a very light texture.

First of all, the sheet was like that. It had a soft texture that was like chewing on a well-baked meringue cookie, with a soft crunch and a smooth texture that soaked right in. The outside was smooth and had a sweet sugar powder sprinkled on top.

The layers are divided into four: vanilla cream, green tea cream, and mascarpone cream cheese. Although it is said to contain a lot of sugar, it feels lighter than expected thanks to the exquisite harmony.

“I didn’t know you had talent for pastry, teacher.”

“Your baking skills are not bad, so I think it might be because of that influence.”

“That could be the case.”

It has a distinctly chewy crunch, but its weight and texture are so light that you don’t even realize it’s going down your throat. It’s an exquisite texture that humans could never create.

“You can’t hide your sense of discomfort just because the taste you feel is human.”

“I don’t know what you want to say. Do you have any advice for me?”

“I was just saying that once. I really don’t know what kind of teacher you want to be….”

The taste was quite familiar. When I spied on the Earth, I saw that this type of sweet and soft cream was popular. Perhaps Sergio wanted to imitate it.

However, Aria, who is a great analyst, knows what kind of an outing this is. She realizes it after just one bite of the cake. It would not be easy for a human to imitate this texture.

“I respect my teacher.”

Geo was a smart person, but he was not one to be caught up in his surroundings. He was even a person who could bestow his own death with loving mercy.

Oh, how arrogant he is.

“You can make a cake like this, can’t you?”

“I feel embarrassed that I am receiving so much praise for just a cake.”

“A dessert this delicious deserves more praise.”

“Would you like a cup of tea?”

“I haven’t had my tea yet?”

It was so delicious that I forgot about it for a moment.

“Would you like me to have a glass of what you’re drinking right now, teacher?”

“Let’s do that.”

A delicate and clear sound like a bead made of cut gems striking each other. The sunlight streaming in through the window shattered into the light blue-colored tea. It seemed as if what was inside should be a gem, not a liquid.

Still, what Aria received was tea of ​​the right temperature.

“… … .”

Drink it and look around.

“…I cherish this place.”

“I can tell without even hearing it directly.”

“But if you ask me if I like it, I don’t know.”

“I know that too.”

“… Yes, Giovanni… .”

Aria smiled wryly.

“This must be sadness.”

It was different from anger.

“This is what it means to miss something.”

“… … .”

“It’s another feeling of regret.”

In this comfortable place, Aria felt such emotions.

“I wondered why I felt that way in such a peaceful and quiet world. A place where I could meet my teacher again at any time, a cabin filled with sweet honey and fruit, and where I could hear the chirping of beautiful birds. A wooden house filled with warm air.”

It’s just so good.

“I always feel queasy when I come here.”

Aria asked.

“Why does this place feel like a grave to me?”

“I am alive.”

“I feel like you’re going to go somewhere again.”

“I will continue to be here.”

“It’s so strange to talk about such eternity.”

Giovanni never said ‘forever’, which was proof that we had come a long way.

The one before his eyes had already died once, and would experience countless more deaths in the future. And he would reveal even more changes to those he loved. That was how it was supposed to be.

“A person who longs for the dead is a failure. He will never be able to bring them back to life, so he will spend his entire life buried in the past. Those who rebel against fate are no longer human, so they become monsters.”

That was the situation now.

“I became that monster.”

“You don’t have to overthink it.”

“Geo, how about you?”

Are you human?

“Can you consider yourself human?”

“I ask you this, how could it not be so?”

“well.”

Aria couldn’t bring herself to say ‘no’ to him.

“You are always right.”

The being drinking tea with me in front of me is not a human being.

It may be human, but its very essence cannot be called human. In the end, the only human teacher of Aria is here, but it is not like that.

Giovanni is alive and dead.

‘It was stuffed.’

Like a faded portrait of a time at its most beautiful.

‘How many more of our most beautiful moments will be stuffed in the future?’

I feel lost in that short and colorful life and the eternal changes. Geo will never remain stagnant for even a moment, and Aria will be eager to follow his changes every time.

I felt hurt even though we were drinking the same tea together. I felt so distant.

“… Longing is truly a ?鵑贊? emotion.”

Aria continues speaking.

“It looks good, but it’s a mess inside.”

“It’s because I’m not immune to emotions.”

“Have humans become accustomed to these feelings?”

“We all live with a sense of longing, no matter what it is.”

“It’s horrible to think that I’ll be living like this my whole life.”

“It’s not that terrible.”

Geo’s voice was quiet, as if there was no sound.

“We can have memories because we miss them.”

“They say that even this is a memory.”

So Aria now.

“I’m lost in that memory right now.”

I felt like I was suffocating.

I felt like a fish in fresh water instead of the ocean. I felt like a human being trapped in a world filled with nitrogen instead of oxygen.

It felt both painful and peaceful. It was a really strange feeling.

“How should we define this peace?”

“Why don’t you just enjoy it without worrying?”

“It’s like a devil’s temptation, a more clever proposal than any devil I’ve ever seen.”

“Oh, you’ve encountered the devil.”

His blunt voice became warm, as if he was trying to appease his student. He asked with a gentle voice and smile.

“How were they?”

“Well, it’s of much lower quality than yours.”

In many ways.

“To be honest, I don’t have the confidence to accept this peace. I know it’s all true, but I think it’s a lie. I know it’s real, but I think it’s a mirage.”

“Aria thinks too much, it’s a problem.”

“In my opinion, it seems that the teacher is not thinking deeply. I don’t understand what kind of symbol it is that allows him to define himself as a human being without any hesitation.”

“Why wouldn’t my change make me human?”

“There are many reasons. There are many, but I think the teacher would not consider them as valid reasons. I have to say that such stubbornness is really trustworthy… .”

Or should I say it is ominous?

“You can achieve anything you want.”

But Geo, despite his ominousness, was something she could neither control nor possess. If the peace she longed for now were to suddenly disappear one day, Aria would be able to accept it.

And on that day we will learn despair. The long road we have already walked has proven that it was a predetermined fate.

“I have already learned fear.”

“How did that happen?”

“Because you’re not in my dungeon.”

When I lived as a monster, thinking that it would never exist and that it had already left my hands, I would rather laugh. But it was so scary when my benefactor, who I couldn’t even grasp, hovered around me with a smiling face.

Once was enough. I couldn’t lose it twice. I couldn’t bear that kind of loss again.

“That’s the guy named Giovanni. He comes up with ideas that no ordinary person would ever think of, he gives his all to such things, he understands even the smallest things, and his patience is beyond imagination.”

He was a man who would try anything.

“But now, you’re not just trying, you’ve gained the strength to do it. I’m not sure if it was like that from the beginning or if it became like this later… but you are still my teacher after all.”

“… … .”

“It will change over and over again. It will disappear someday. You may die before me, or you may outlive me. If you want it, it will happen. If you don’t want it, you will just enjoy your fate.”

“… … .”

“I admit it. But, Geo, don’t you know? We realized our hatred for your death and killed and harmed so many humans. We endured all these years. And what is this?”

Aria looked at Giovanni.

“You are too much to comfort us through all these long years.”

It soon turned black.

“… … .”

“… … .”

It turned red again.

“… so fickle.”

“You understand me well.”

“That makes me very anxious.”

It’s been too long.

“I have lived for such a long time enduring hatred and anger, but the teacher I met again unexpectedly does not respond to my greed. If it were up to me, I would put you in my dungeon, admire you without taking my eyes off you for even a moment, and spend all that time passing by together.”

Argio smiled wryly at the mermaid’s greed.

“That’s not fun at all.”

“I knew it wouldn’t be easy to catch, and I didn’t try because I knew I would fail.”

Because Geo didn’t forgive them and so he wouldn’t accept them.

That couldn’t hurt Aria. I think it’s natural and obvious. But because of that, the mermaids couldn’t completely get their hands on my gift.

“I wonder how the teacher will disappear in the meantime.”

“That’s what makes you anxious.”

“Yes, in that my only variable is to acknowledge and love the only one.”

Aria laughed along with him.

“How can you believe in this peace?”

“I think that’s homework left for you.”

“That’s exactly what you would say.”

The fact that a mere human was invited here, the future in which Geo’s color would change countless times, and the great responsibility of the mermaids that could not be fully shouldered even after tens of thousands of years.

All of this was ultimately just a homework assignment that Aria had to take on. A homework assignment to believe in the peace that exists now.

“I wish I were a stupid person.”

Then I would have believed it.

“Isn’t that right?”

“But it’s not a wise choice.”

“…Is that so?”

“Constantly worry and doubt.”

Golden eyes widened with affection.

“That will prove you.”

“As expected, you are… .”

Aria smiled weakly.

“… My teacher is right.”

A human being who has no limits in strange places, always has a realistic future in his mouth, and is busy teaching something.

Let us remember that the person in front of us is the only one who loved us, the mermaid… .

“love you.”

“so do i.”

Only then did I feel at ease.

We are still in our daily lives today.

* * *

Giovanni always said, ‘Learn as many emotions as you can while I’m around.’

“It will be a token of your mermaid life.”

“Proof?”

“Emotions are the tokens of memories, of learning, of all memories.”

He said that would make you grow into a mermaid.

“Your current feelings will tell you the way forward.”

“Geo, why don’t you tell me?”

“I am not at all like Aria, so I can be erased and disappear from that life at any time.”

“I won’t erase you or let you disappear.”

“After all, aren’t we still drawing a different future?”

“… … .”

“…even if I’m not there, and even if I’m there.”

Geo always said.

“I hope that this sign will help you understand more.”

But before he could understand much of it, Giovanni died.

Death took more than you might think. It meant no one to smile brightly when you woke up in the morning, no one to insist on having a meaningless meal at a set time, and no one to cover you up with a blanket at the end of the night.

Each and every one of them was truly ordinary and big. There were also small and many.

“… … .”

We have always learned about death.

So today was not much different from any other day.