The Artist Who Paints Dungeon

Fruit syrup is really easy to make.

“It's a bit of a hassle to prepare, but all you need is mix the pulp and sugar in equal parts and let it sit, then it becomes fruit syrup.”

Gio brought a cleanly sterilized glass jar filled with friendship, peace, love, and affection.

It was so large that it was more of a pot than a jar, but Gio, who took after his grandmother, a prominent figure in the village, won't spare on any ingredients when cooking. It had to be this big.

“Okay, let's see.”

He washed the full Goby fruit, and the Drought Jar, which had a sour and bitter aroma thoroughly in water. The pulp of the Goby fruit was as soft as tender jelly and juicy, whereas the Drought Jug was like an unripe tangerine, with less juice and firmer pulp.

Since the skin of Goby fruit was so thin it could melt away, so he simply cut it into quarters without any additional processing, while the Drought Jar was peeled off all the white and translucent skin, leaving only the flesh.

“And….”

Just pour it in.

At the bottom of the glass jar, he laid a layer of Drought Jar, then lightly sprinkled it with sugar. Then he added a layer of Goby fruit and poured a generous amount of sugar to form a layer. Once the sugar layer is solidly formed, repeat once again.

Gio pressed down firmly to ensure no air pockets formed between the pieces of fruit.

“Because I don't want it to spoil.”

While food in this forest didn't spoil or mold, this process was necessary for the pulp to mix well and allow the sugar water to penetrate. Gio filled the glass jar without any gaps.

“All done.”

Once sealed like this, it would be ready after being stored in a cool, shaded place for a few days.

“I hope it ripens quickly, but it will probably take some time.”

“Coo coo coo.”

“You can't eat it yet. If you take it out and eat it now, it's just fruit covered in sugar. Later, when the fruit becomes musher and the fragrance infuses into the sugar water, you can drink  it as tea.”

“Coo.”

“Cooking is sometimes about the art of waiting.”

Honey grumbled and expressed dissatisfaction, but there was nothing that could be done. It took some time for the fruit syrup to fully ripen.

“It won't take too long. Since the weather is warm, the sugar will quickly melt. The juice will come out smoothly too.”

“Cooo.”

“Don't stick to the floor, you'll get dust on you. Geez, at this rate, you'll end up cleaning our house's entire floors. You'll turn from a Honeybird to a Dustbird.”

Having just returned from a successful fruit syrup adventure, it was late, and he was hungry. It was time to seek a meal rather than waiting for the fruit syrup that won't ripen anytime soon.

“Hmm…”

Let's keep it really simple.

“Let's make rice balls.”

“Coo?”

“Can you eat rice, too?”

“Coooooooorrrr.”

“I wonder where the food goes and how it gets digested in that transparent body…”

Indeed, Honey was full of the qualities of a pig. Gio, the father of this round pig bird, nodded with pride.

“Cooorrrr!!”

“Alright, I get it. Let's go.”

This time, the rice balls Gio was going to make were literally just the food.

Freshly cooked rice with a little salt and sesame oil.

“I'm glad I cooked the rice in advance.”

Though there was a wood-fired oven in the cabin, there was no electric rice cooker. It was a world without electricity in the first place, so it couldn't be helped. However, Gio had previously drawn a huge cauldron due to that reason and placed it in the kitchen behind the cabin.

When he lifted the heavy iron lid, white steam billowed out.

“Nice.”

As he nodded, the steam that had been drifting around suddenly vanished without a trace.

At that moment, he noticed Honey beside him.

He wasn't sure if it was just his imagination, but for some reason, Honey seemed to have grown a bit bigger.

“Cooococo.”

“… Could it be that you're eating all the steam rising from the rice, now?”

“Coo.”

“Your body smells like freshly cooked rice. It smells really good, but if I sleep next to you, I'll be too hungry to fall asleep.”

“Cooong.”

“I've seen people use steam on their faces for skin care, but I've never seen anyone actually eat the steam itself before…”

So this must be what they meant by, 'Give it to your stomach, not your skin'?¹

“That's novel.”

The unique sweet scent of Lulupu's juice and the savoury smell of freshly cooked rice mingled. I couldn't even define what kind of scent it was.

Feeling a bit unsettled, Gio started to scoop out some of the rice. No matter how surprising it was, living beings had to eat.

“Let's make porridge with the rice that's scorched in the bottom.² It's a very comforting food, good to eat anytime. I've never heard of anyone feeling sick after eating it.”

“Cooor.”

“First, let's make the rice balls, then later, having the scorched rice (nurungji) porridge³ when groggy in the morning will feel refreshing.”

Returning to the kitchen, Gio lightly sprinkled the fluffy rice with salt and sesame oil. There was no need to worry about this or that since the cabin cupboard had provided all the basic ingredients.

'What will happen if I use up all of this?'

It would be fun if it will be refilled automatically to when he first checked the cabin, and even if not, he could always paint new ones, so it was fine either way. However, so far, it didn't seem to be refilled on its own.

Gio gently stirred the hot rice with chopsticks and seasoned it.

“Actually, this alone is tasty.”

The freshly cooked rice had a unique smooth and savory taste, which was delicately enhanced by the rich scent of sesame oil, and the rice balls that lightly seasoned with salt was incredibly warm when eaten right after it was made.

“It's a good meal when you have to eat but don't want to make something fancy.”

“Cooooorrr.”

“If you can eat it, go ahead. I'm not sure how you eat it, though… Was the steam from the pot earlier not enough? Your body seems to  be bigger, but are you not full yet?”

“Coooo.”

“Alright, then try it.”

Water eating rice would be a sight to see.

'It looks like fun, so let's leave it be.'

Gio resolved inwardly as he formed the rice balls.

About 39 in total.

“Dad's hungry.”

“Cooococoo…”

“It's because I'm hungry.”

Gio was a glutton.

“Sometimes you have to eat a lot like this to feel full.”

But he didn't stop there.

“I'm going to grill them for the texture. Rice balls that are browned on both sides have a nice texture and stronger flavour.”

“Cooo…”

“I'm not sure if it's because the stronger scent of sesame oil or because the grains are slightly burnt, but grilled rice balls like this are much tastier than the plain ones.”

“Coooo.”

“But wouldn't one get fed up if only eat rice?”

Gio lamented the situation created by his own laziness. In the end, he knew that the day would come when he would regret it like this.

“I should have prepared some side dishes in advance. Then I could eat a more varied meal even with just rice.”

“Coooor….”

“It might be nice to make a soup with fish caught from the lake, soaking the salted fish inside various mixed ingredients. Having some meat soup would also be great, but it's a bit difficult to eat meat here.”

Hunting creatures in this area was out of the question, not only because Gio didn't know how, but he was also reluctant to eat the cute, round animals that suited his taste. Besides, it was uncertain how much meat one could get from their small, round bodies.

“Should I ask Mr. Yoo Sung-woon for this, too?”

“Coooorrrrr.”

“Seeds and all, right?”

Gio placed the well-made rice balls on a sufficiently heated pan on the wood-fired oven. As he did so, a sizzling sound accompanied by the rich aroma of sesame oil and the toasty smell of burning grains filled the air.

'A simple but good combination.'

After grilling all the rice balls, Gio sat at the table and took a bite.

As expected, it was delicious.

'… Maybe thanks to being grilled, the rice came out firm and well, but had a good texture and aroma. The salt seasoning is also just right, not too much.'

The rice used here was painted by Gio, so while it wasn't of exceptional quality, it wasn't bad either. Therefore, expecting the taste from the ingredients was a bit difficult, but the rice balls still turned out quite delicious.

“Maybe it's because it's a meal after work.”

“Cooooorrr.”

A rice-ball-shaped bird entered Gio's field of vision.

“Oh.”

No, it was Honey who had swallowed a rice ball.

“God of Heaven and Earth.”

“Coocoo.”

“He swallowed it.”

“Cooooroooroo.”

“Even though it's bigger than your body.”

Gio was convinced after three seconds.

“It's funny.”

“Coo.”

“Since it has come to this, would you like to have another one? You could even get bigger.”

“Cooocoo.”

“Yeah, I'm sure you haven't done digesting yet. No problem. It does look like it.”

“Coo?”

“Yeah, dad knows everything.”

And so, another peaceful day passed like that.

***

Step…

Yoo Sung-woon tilted his head in front of the portrait.

“These days, it doesn't open its eyes.”

He had been waiting from midnight until the current time of 5 AM, but the portrait never opened its eyes.

Yoo Sung-woon murmured as he stroked his chin with his fingers.

“There doesn't seem to be a specific rule for this part.”

The portrait usually would choose least-staffed hours to open its eyes.

The time they could have a conversation varied every day. It didn't flee as long as he didn't ask rude questions, but that doesn't mean it was always looking outside the painting.

It seemed he was content with the world inside the portrait.

'Personally, I think it would be wiser to do so.'

No matter how the world inside the portrait was formed, it would certainly be much more pleasant than observing the dirty and complicated mess of modern society. Yoo Sung-woon certainly thought so.

“… Thinking about it that way….”

It seemed that 'Gio's Portrait' preferred quietness.

“This might be considered one of the rules.”

Yoo Sung-woon leaned against the wall in front of the portrait and took out his notebook.

“I should make a record.”

His task involved observing, analyzing, maintaining, and managing unknown objects or phenomena. With Yoo Sung-woon's vast knowledge, 'Gio's Portrait' was probably the first time he paid so much attention to.

Fortunately, 'Gio's Portrait' was a relatively amiable entity toward humans. It responded to questions and reciprocated favours, which could be considered quite gentlemanly.

“Looks like I've roughly organized it?”

Thanks to that, the analysis wasn't that difficult.

[ Values politeness ]

[ Enjoys giving gifts ]

[ No change in facial expression (perhaps because it's a portrait?) ]

[ Well-informed about humans and respects them ]

'… This part is definitely unique.'

While he hadn't fully grasped Gio's identity yet, caution was warranted. There was a reason why humanoid monsters were set as the highest threats regardless of their attitudes.

'Because they knew very little about humans.'

Eleven years ago, a humanoid monster friendly to Earthlings was sighted for the first time. Based on this, associations in various countries sought ways to interact with residents beyond the dimensional gate.

However, a situation where the envoy bodies who had crossed the gates in the name of friendship returned as 'healthily deformed' happened.

'The humanoid monster that time expressed it as its favour…'

From the perspective of the humanoid monster, the envoys' bodies had many inefficient parts, so their legs were extended into four and their mouth was divided into six parts.

It was a favour, but at the same time, it was a disaster for humans. That's when the saying “Monsters are monsters for a reason” came into being.

“Even thinking about it again, it's terrifying.”

Since that incident, humanoid monsters have also become targets of subjugation without exception.

No matter how friendly they were to humans, it was impossible to know how and when their terrible true natures might be revealed.

'So I want to be wary of this portrait as well, but there are too many suspicious aspects to do so. Gio knows too much about humans to be considered a regular humanoid monster. He doesn't unconditionally hate all Earth creatures.'

He wasn't extremely friendly to humans, nor he was overtly hostile.

Somewhat cynical, yet simultaneously polite and considerate, 'Gio's Portrait' seemed just like a severely blunt ordinary human being.

Tuk.

Yoo Sung-woon tapped his notebook with a pen.

“That part is even harder to understand.”

Gio didn't seem like a monster.

'Unless one is a curator or a gardener, they might say it's a monster, still ….'

He wasn't certain either.

“Well, it could really be a monster.”

It could have been an item with consciousness, it could have been just a cursed portrait, or it could have been an illusion at a high level unimaginable to him.

'It's only been about thirty years since dungeons appeared, so we can't know everything.'

Therefore, Yoo Sung-woon's best course of action right now is to analyze and respond to this portrait.

“Hmm…”

First of all, there was something he was curious about.

The portrait's eyes seemed distant, as if they weren't human, and its appearance—with its otherworldly beauty, gave off a strange sense of unreality with its pale yet stimulating colours.

'Like AI, its business-like tone and unchanging facial expression also add to that oppressive feeling.'

But.

“Anyway you look at it, Gio is a gentleman.”

As evidenced by the rules summarized above, Gio has never been a threatening or violent opponent based on his behaviour so far. Shown from his deep understanding of humans, he definitely cared and respected them.

'Unlike the ignorant humanoid monsters before, he seems to think from the perspective of humans.'

This showed a depth of understanding not seen in other monsters.

'And he bases his kindness and consideration on that.'

Didn't he even give gifts?

Yoo Sung-woon contemplated for a while before writing a new sentence in his notebook.

[ Prefers a kind or polite person (1:1 rule?) ]

'… Not certainly, but.'

If one looks at the people to whom Gio has given gifts so far, all of them are people who he owed or treated him favourably.

As it is a portrait that can distinguish between good and evil in humans, he thought he might prefer a kind and polite person.

'Well, anyway.'

That wasn't the important part.

“…The problem is why the other employees reacted with such alarm and fled…”

All the employees here were meticulously recruited or transferred by Bi Sa-beol one by one. Bi Sa-beol's tendency to collect was not only limited to objects, but also people, and such Bi Sa-beol who have strong attachment for his employees definitely wouldn't choose foolish or incompetent people.

Thus, no matter how low the employees' rank, would Bi Sa-beol casually selected employees, especially for those to manage his beloved gallery? They were all strong and capable individuals.

“And yet, they felt frightened and pressured upon encountering Gio.”

Yoo Sung-woon had never directly encountered Gio.

The last time he went outside, all Yoo Sung-woon did was follow him and keep watch. Therefore, what those who had directly encountered Gio felt… he couldn't figure it out.

He could only vaguely guess.

If merely existing could put pressure on humans, it indicated the immense quality of that soul.

'… Thinking about it that way, shouldn't we be grateful that he is quietly sleeping inside the portrait?'

Yoo Sung-woon sighed deeply with a troubled expression on his face.

“This guy Bi Sa-beol, what on earth did he bring here ….”

Are you finally planning to destroy the Earth?

It was the kind of day that made him want to smoke, despite how he had quit five years ago.

¹: 먹지 말고 피부에 양보하세요 is a famous cosmetic ad line, 'Do not eat and give it to your skin' (https://youtu.be/NBb-abkg3N8?si=gzGXhTwWVZ51V6C0). now in this line, Gio reverses it 피부 말고 위장에 양보하세요, so I wrote it as 'Give it to your stomach, not your skin.'

²: nurungji.

³: nurungji porridge.

THIS CHAPTER UPLOAD FIRST AT NOVELBIN.COM