The Artist Who Paints Dungeons [Novel] Chapter 317

Chapter 317

It might have sounded like a deliberately casual joke, but why were the words telling her she didn’t have to be an adult so comforting? She thought that perhaps she had even been waiting to hear something like that.

She cried because it felt a little unfair.

“…….”

Because she hadn’t wanted to act like this.

Like a habit, she mimicked ‘herself’.

***

Cha Eun-hye had always been prone to tears.

“Teacheeeeer….”

But it was a bit surprising to see her cry this much even after growing up.

“Didn’t you say you were the president?”

Seeing her on TV, she seemed to manage her image well. Looking at her now, it seemed she was embarrassed about crying and deliberately whimpering more like a puppy caught in the rain; she truly hadn’t changed from the old days.

At that, the president whimpered.

“I don’t want to be president….”

“Your Excellency, please maintain your dignity.”

“I don’t know, I’m going to quit everything…!”

“I only said a few words, and now you’re talking about quitting being the president.”

“You’re so cold-hearted, Teacher. How can you do this to me…! I’m super pitiful right now, so hurry up and comfort me warmly, softly, and gently!”

“…….”

…Even so, it had been 32 years, yet she hasn’t changed this much?

‘Strange. I definitely heard she was over 50.’

However, that fact did not lessen Seo Ji-oh’s surprise.

‘Isn’t she definitely older than me right now?’

I’m 29, but you’re 51.

He hadn’t run into Hae-ra yet so he didn’t know, but he had met Seo-hee and Hae-woon. Even though they all still had the appearances of people in their 20s, perhaps they couldn’t beat the passage of time as they had changed to some extent, but Cha Eun-hye’s personality was exactly the same.

He felt bewildered, but his body was diligently comforting his immature student.

“There, there, stop crying. This makes it look like I made you cry.”

“You did make me cry…!!”

“If this keeps up, the parents are going to beat me up, drag me away, and get me fired.”

“Ah.”

At those words, for some reason, Cha Eun-hye abruptly stopped crying and put on a serious face.

“Stop.”

“Oh, right, I see. I have a lot I want to say, but I’m curious, so let me ask. What exactly are you telling me to stop?”

“Banned. I’m banning it right now. I forbid any and all negative assumptions directed at yourself.”

“Oh… Are there perhaps still parents out for my neck? Even after 32 years?”

“Ah, seriously, Teacher, please don’t. It’s not funny at all. I mean it.”

“It’s truly surprising how your speech and behavior remain exactly the same even after 32 years.”

To call him ‘Teacher’ with that mature appearance. It seemed that because all her friends lived youthfully, Cha Eun-hye’s attitude towards life had also remained the same. Her exact personality from when she was a high school student, that is.

Understanding it on his own without needing to be told, Seo Ji-oh nodded.

“I can at least understand why you’re being like this.”

It was understandable why Cha Eun-hye was making such a fuss.

“Something must have happened to me 32 years ago.”

“…You don’t remember?”

“…Do I have a reason to remember that day?”

He asked because he truly didn’t know.

“I was trapped in a burning school and became a haunted portrait. That is the last thing I remember from 32 years ago. But as I’ve been wandering around lately, I started to think that memory might not be the truth.”

“…….”

“Then why was the memory of that day changed? Or was it erased? It’s probably related to Hae-ra’s ability. It must be tied to that promise of yours, too. But I still don’t really know what I did or how I ended up swept up in some promise….”

“…….”

“It seems my memory being completely blank wasn’t something you all agreed upon?”

Then again, the very fact that he had returned as a haunted portrait might have been an unpredictable situation, but it still felt a bit unfair.

‘…Why does even Eun-hye seem like she doesn’t know much? It might just be a side effect unique to me, but anyway… didn’t they say that so-called promise is usually made by mutual agreement?’

Of course, there was a condition attached. The condition was predicated on the other party being alive. If so, Seo Ji-oh could only think of two scenarios. It was a natural deduction that didn’t even require much thought.

Either he had truly died, or it was too urgent a situation to reach an agreement.

‘And neither option paints a hopeful picture.’

He understood.

“That could happen.”

They called that time period he didn’t know about the Great Cataclysm. It would be horrific even if the story was confined to a single small village, but this was an event where the entire world changed. Tragedies could easily occur in the midst of all that.

Besides, when did tragedy ever discriminate between people? Seo Ji-oh always made choices he wouldn’t regret. Without agonizing for long, his judgment was quick, and his ability to take action was even better.

That kind of Seo Ji-oh might have been at a higher risk of getting hurt or dying than others.

‘Even back then, I would have been a teacher with students to protect.’

He probably had priorities that superseded his own safety.

“I’m curious what kind of promise it was.”

“…I’m not going to tell you.”

“Why is that?”

“…….”

“…….”

Seo Ji-oh shrugged.

“Let’s move on.”

It didn’t seem like the atmosphere for jokes.

‘I at least have that much tact.’

If he didn’t, he wouldn’t have been able to cut it as a teacher.

She didn’t seem to have any intention of telling him anyway. Seo Ji-oh didn’t particularly want to know, either. As he had always said, he was perfectly satisfied with his current situation. He didn’t want to dig into the past while prodding a crying child.

Though he wondered if she had cried so much just to achieve this outcome.

“Judging by your reaction, it feels like there would be some unknown side effect if you told me the truth.”

“…Yes. You know well, considering you say you don’t remember.”

“It’s not like I’ve just been locked in a gallery after becoming a haunted portrait.”

“A haunted portrait….”

Cha Eun-hye looked as if she wanted to say something. However, that look quickly passed. It seemed this, too, was part of the ‘promise’ she wasn’t supposed to speak of. That was also a bit surprising.

‘Is there a reason I specifically became a portrait?’

He wasn’t particularly curious about it.

“Now, that’s enough crying. How about a citron-flavored macaron?”

“…You remembered that I like citron macarons?”

“Do you not remember coming to the faculty office nearly every day to rob me blind?”

At that point, it was harder not to remember. The kid who barely even ate school lunches because she was managing her weight would religiously drop by the faculty office like that. He had felt proud, yet at the same time, his feelings were always slightly complicated. She was a truly contradictory student.

Handing her a round, yellowish macaron, Seo Ji-oh spoke proudly.

“I made this.”

“You really don’t look like it, Teacher, but you’re surprisingly good at cooking….”

“What’s with you starting to cry again while eating the macaron I gave you?”

“…Ah, I really tried not to cry, but you…!”

“You’re blaming this on me? How absurd.”

Heavens above.

‘I’m being wrongfully accused.’

What did I do wrong for her to be like this.

***

Just because she ate a sweet citron macaron that didn’t suit the situation and acted as lighthearted as possible didn’t mean the situation actually became lighthearted.

‘…My mind is a bit hazy.’

Her head was ringing after crying for so long for the first time in a while. Her nose was stuffed up, making her ears feel muffled, and the corners of her eyes stung. Just a moment ago, she had been drowning in all sorts of emotions, but now only their remnants remained. It gave her a strange sense of emptiness.

Sitting across from each other on creaky, dust-covered chairs. In this unrealistic situation, Cha Eun-hye unconsciously grasped her Teacher’s hand sitting opposite her.

“…….”

“What is it?”

“…No, it’s nothing.”

It was cold.

“I just wondered how something like this could have happened.”

She wanted to try holding it, but she was startled by the cold temperature and involuntarily flinched. She pulled her hand away as naturally as possible. But the Teacher would surely know. Cha Eun-hye cursed her own stupidity internally.

‘What am I even doing?’

It wasn’t like she had ever held the Teacher’s hand in the past either. It was a bit cringeworthy, for one, but it also just wasn’t a common occurrence, was it? But right now, she just wanted to try holding it. It was an action driven entirely by instinct.

‘Did my brain leak out along with my tears while I was crying?’

As she quietly clasped her own hands together, the Teacher asked.

“Do you want to hold it?”

“…Is that okay?”

“It’s gotten a bit cold, but it’s not like holding it will hurt you or make you sick.”

“You’re really calling me out just because I hesitated for a second….”

“I said that to tell you not to worry, but you’re being quite sharp. I wasn’t trying to force you or anything.”

“I never said I wouldn’t hold it.”

The Teacher’s hand, which she was holding for the first time, was incredibly cold—so much so that the thought suddenly occurred to her that she should have tried holding it at least once in the past.

“…….”

So it was almost like.

“…It’s like a dead person’s.”

“Is that so?”

“What else did you think it would feel like?”

“Portraits originally don’t have body heat, you know.”

“Ah, I suppose that’s true….”

He was right. Because of that, a hollow laugh escaped her. Thinking of him as a portrait rather than a corpse made her feel much more at ease. The bizarre fear and sorrow, the resignation and misery that had been tightly packed inside her, eased a little.

So she squeezed his hand with a little more force. Then, she gently shook it, though awkwardly, like a child playing hand games with their parent. The large hand swayed to her movements without resistance.

“…Haha….”

She laughed for no reason.

“It feels kind of strange because there’s no body heat. Is this what it feels like to touch an undead?”

“Are you comparing me to an undead right now when I’m perfectly alive in front of you?”

“To be honest, I’ve never directly touched or dealt with monsters myself. At most, maybe just the indigenous monsters that ended up staying on Earth. For everything else, all our other friends handled them for me.”

“Not your subordinates?”

“Well, you could call them that too, anyway.”

It was pointless chitchat. Because if she didn’t babble such nonsense, she felt like she wouldn’t be able to endure the current situation. Should she start whining again like when she was young? Even knowing that wouldn’t make the situation any lighter….

“…Mmm, maybe this is what it feels like to touch a living statue. There’s no body heat, but the hand is definitely as soft as a human’s and it moves. It’s very contradictory, so it’s fascinating.”

“Even so, you can’t chop it off and take it. It’s a hand I need to draw and cook with.”

“Do you know that when you say things like that, it really doesn’t sound like a joke, Teacher? Making eerie jokes that fit you surprisingly well is the exact same now as it was then. You really are a strange Teacher.”

“That’s why it was fun. I know you all share that taste. You enjoyed it together with me, and now you’re trying to back out?”

“I suppose it might have been like that….”

Should she really just burst into tears? Hide this awkwardness and anxiety by crying? She thought that several times, but in the end, she couldn’t. That kind of foolishness was satisfied enough with her stubborn, childlike crying earlier.

“…Teacher, can I ask you something?”

“What do you want to ask that you’re setting such a serious mood?”

“There must be a reason I came all the way to Gangwon-do at this hour. I have things I want to ask about that.”

“By the looks of it, it might turn into a long Q&A. Will you buy me breakfast, Eun-hye?”

“…….”

Was this a ‘condition’ or a ‘price’ for him no longer being human? Or perhaps a ‘trade’? With those thoughts, she hesitated a bit and let go of his hand.

“…Of course.”

“Alright, what are you curious about?”

“Who are you?”

She finally asked it.

‘…Let’s muster some courage, please. I’ve been bawling my eyes out until now, so let’s finally do what I need to do… Cha Eun-hye.’

Even if she was teased as being a figurehead, she was the president of a country. Having taken the position half-forced during a highly chaotic period, many people cursed her, and many found her unreliable. But in the end, she had pulled it off.

The reason she, who possessed no special abilities, was able to endure until now was her sense of responsibility. Yes, she had to take responsibility. This position was established for that very purpose. Cha Eun-hye was facing a dangerous entity capable of shaking not just a single nation, but the entire dimension known as Earth.

She had to grasp the other party’s intentions. She must find out his reason for existing. Thus, she had to figure out what he ultimately intended to accomplish, and why he had to do so.

‘So stay calm, be careful not to approach too quickly and raise his guard….’

The hands she had pulled back were trembling, so she clasped them together to try and hide it. Even so, they still trembled slightly, but it was better than doing nothing. It felt as if she were holding onto a lifeline, which made her feel much more stable.

“As far as I, as I remember… you shouldn’t be here like this, Teacher.”

Exactly how much was she allowed to say? How much must she reveal, and what must she hide, in order to maintain this precarious peace? Cha Eun-hye prayed that this pitch-black Teacher, whose inner thoughts were impossible to read, would refrain from thinking too deeply about it.

Just like he had always done in the past.

“Actually, it’s impossible. For you to exist like this right now, Teacher. Yes, it goes beyond the level of simple resurrection… How should I say it… It’s just something that truly makes no sense. Honestly, I still don’t really understand it myself.”

“What is it you don’t understand?”

“Are you, standing right in front of me, truly my Teacher? I mean, sure, I feel like you are. I think so. But it’s because when I think about it rationally, it’s impossible. It just doesn’t make sense.”

“What doesn’t make sense? That someone you thought was dead has returned? And that the person is a haunted portrait?”

“I’m sorry, I can’t say. I’m really weird, aren’t I? I must have changed a lot. But you’ve changed a lot too, Teacher. Your lowered body temperature, that black cloak, the fact that you have no shadow….”

“Oh.”

In that moment, a shadow appeared beneath his feet.

“I forgot again.”

“…That’s seriously ridiculous. What am I supposed to do if it just disappears because you forgot.”

“My friend this time is capricious, making it difficult to receive their help sometimes. The moment I let my guard down, they try to mess with me like this. It could genuinely be a mistake, but I don’t think they’re that kind of friend.”

“That’s hard to understand, but a friend?”

“A friend who helps me navigate social life with the body of a haunted portrait. It’s not that important; in the end, I’ll be exactly as you remember me. Nothing has changed.”

“To me, it seems like you’ve changed quite a bit, but well… maybe you’re right, Teacher.”

“I don’t know why I ended up like this either. You said my existence is an impossibility, but in the end, it has become a possibility. So it seems I can’t give you any answers to your questions.”

“…You’re right about that too, Teacher.”

What a pity. She had mustered up her courage, but her questions were ones that could not be answered.

Then what should I ask? Cha Eun-hye rolled her eyes toward the empty air before soon tossing out a question in a similar vein.

“Then are you really my Teacher?”

“At least as far as I remember, I am.”

“It’s truly chilling to hear the word ‘remember’ come out of your mouth, Teacher.”

“Did you perhaps develop some trauma?”

“Something similar, but, mmm, I don’t really know.”

A word that should have held the memories of someday was no longer one with a pleasant meaning.

To her and her friends, it was now a form of restraint. It was a shackle that prevented them from even going mad, and their single remaining pillar. It was truly contradictory.

“What is it you want to do, Teacher?”

“Rural living?”

“…Ah, um, is that so?”

“I don’t really have anything I specifically want to do.”

“For you to say that, tales about you have reached all the way to the presidential office.”

“If rumors about me simply running a food stall a bit have spread all the way to the presidential office, wouldn’t that mean there’s a serious problem with our country’s welfare, Eun-hye? I was so scared when I first stepped out into the world with this fragile portrait body. There were barely any restaurants.”

“Hah, when you put it like that, I feel a sense of responsibility again.”

She managed to force an awkward smile.

“So it sounds like you’re saying you didn’t have any grand intentions. Is that right?”

“I’m just trying to pay attention to the welfare of the new friends I’ve made. It’s nothing much. Just running a food stall and filling the bellies of hungry people, that’s all.”

“Have you… not considered that the scale is a bit large?”

“It just ended up that way. You, being tender-hearted Eun-hye, will just have to understand.”

“I don’t know if this is a matter to understand out of having a tender heart, rather than a broad one.”

“Are you saying the Gardeners aren’t pitiful, then? I didn’t raise you to be so cold-hearted.”

“This is truly absurd….”

Hesitating, Cha Eun-hye asked.

“Can I trust you?”

“I’d appreciate it if you were a bit more specific.”

“I don’t know if I can trust that you are my Teacher. I don’t know if I can trust your words that you don’t have any grand intentions. I’m saying I don’t really know if you’re a truly harmless existence, Teacher.”

“Mmm… first of all, a human basically can’t be completely harmless, all things considered.”

The Teacher spoke nonchalantly.

“In other words, you’re saying we need a new layer of trust between us, right?”

“…Probably?”

“It’s a simple issue. Seo-hee and Hae-woon treat me that way too. Trust isn’t something that can be built overnight.”

“…That’s true, but….”

“Then there’s ultimately nothing we can do right this moment. Since it’s a situation where we have to build trust again from the beginning.”

“…I suppose so.”

“I know you’re a smart student. You could have come up with this level of Q&A just by sitting in one spot. If so, the real reason you came here is because you wanted to see me.”

“…….”

“Maybe it was a bit of both. Did it feel like overdue homework?”

He hit the nail on the head, leaving her speechless.

Cha Eun-hye felt slightly sheepish. Though her chest felt empty, she ironically felt more at peace. A situation where there was ultimately nothing Cha Eun-hye could do except sit back and watch. She had merely been plagued by a sense of responsibility and longing.

She simply opened her mouth.

“…I thought that if I, who remembers everything, came here, a lot of things would change.”

“I don’t have the confidence to meet those expectations, seeing as I’m not a very interesting person.”

“I’m telling you, you’re the only one who doesn’t know you’re a fun person, Teacher.”

The conclusion came easily.

‘Nothing will change.’

As long as Cha Eun-hye kept her mouth shut, this state of affairs would be maintained. Earth would remain precarious yet peaceful, and Black Cloak, who is favorable toward humans, would make the Earth a better place even as he caused trouble.

There were many things to worry about. She still wasn’t sure if he was truly her Teacher. Even if he was, she didn’t know why these things had happened. It also wasn’t clear how long Black Cloak would remain favorable to humans. Moreover, the position of the president shouldn’t be so easily swayed.

‘…But if I feel the desire to rely on him, does that make me too weak?’

Still, as long as it wasn’t in a public capacity, that much might be fine. After a long pause, Cha Eun-hye asked.

“…If I trust you, Teacher, will a disaster befall the world?”

“There’s no way that would happen.”

“I’d really appreciate it if you answered with a yes or no.”

“No.”

“Are you the Teacher I know?”

“I must have changed a little, since the Teacher in your memories definitely wasn’t a painting. So, no.”

“You won’t betray me… betray us, right?”

She asked, even though she naturally thought he wouldn’t. What was important wasn’t Cha Eun-hye’s own thoughts or trust, but objective proof. She needed the ‘promise’ of her Teacher, who had become a being of Mystery.

“You said you’d always be here….”

“Did I?”

“…You did.”

Merely speaking out loud anew about the existence of the void made her chest ache so much that she momentarily couldn’t breathe, but even if he couldn’t remember, he said exactly that.

“That was you saying you’d stay by our side. Right?”

“…It feels like I’m solving a Korean reading comprehension question. But if we consider the context, that meaning would be correct. If that was the message I wanted to leave you all with, I would have wanted to give you a sense of stability somehow. So, yes.”

“So you are saying that you *are* the Teacher we know, and even if it might be dangerous for a moment, in the end, you’ll objectively do good things for the Earth that anyone can see, and you won’t suddenly disappear or anything. Am I right?”

“Probably…? Yes. But you never know what the future holds, so don’t put too much faith in it.”

“Then I’ll trust you.”

It was fine even if people called her irresponsible. But this was enough observing. Having seated herself at the center of a nation where all information flows in, she had continuously monitored ‘Black Cloak’s’ movements.

And now, she had even seen his face. There were so many things that had changed, yet the most important thing remained exactly the same. Seo Ji-oh was still their Teacher. They needed someone like him.

‘That’s what it all comes down to, isn’t it.’

It was a simple logic.

‘The Teacher has no memories of that day. So he has no choice but to be the completely kind person from our memories. Without a single potential risk factor… that Teacher, whom we could fully rely on and trust.’

She still didn’t really know how this was possible. She couldn’t tell if it was the influence of the ‘Promise of Eternity’ or if her Teacher had played yet another trick.

But the part she had been most worried about ever since noticing his appearance—truly apologetic as it may be—had completely vanished, just as he said. Assuming the being in front of her was indeed ‘our kind Teacher who returned as a portrait’, that is.

And if that truly was the case.

“…I don’t care even if you’re a copycat mimicking my Teacher. If you think of yourself as Seo Ji-oh, if you look and speak like our Teacher, and if you won’t commit evil acts with that changed appearance of yours despite having changed a lot, then none of it matters. That makes you our Teacher, how is it any different.”

Only after rationalizing to that extent was she finally able to face her honest, true feelings.

“…So, can I finally feel a bit more at ease and be happy now?”

“…….”

“B-Because the person who left… has returned again, even though it should have been impossible….”

She thought it would be impossible.

She hadn’t even dared to expect it. After what we did to you, how could you return? He had departed on such a long journey. He was a person who had become a scar, a reminiscence, and a miserable memory.

Yes, it was better that he didn’t remember what happened that day. If he were to recall it, her Teacher might end up hating them. She knew he wasn’t the type to do so, but how could one know for sure about a situation that hadn’t yet come to pass?

Therefore, this might just be the best outcome—the absolute best situation being that you couldn’t remember that day. Although lingering anxieties remained and it was truly a sorry affair due to the sins they had committed… it was all the more reason for this to be so.

“Is it okay if I’m happy?”

“If that’s what you want, then you should.”

“…Could you tell me that this isn’t a dream?”

“No matter how I look at it, this doesn’t seem like a dream, Eun-hye.”

“…I think I’m going to cry again….”

“I’ll wait until you’re all done crying.”

“…….”

And so, she cried.

“…I’m sorry.”

Because she was happy, yet miserable.

***

“…Is this right?”

Jung Hae-woon asked.

“Hey, I’m asking if this is right. If this, doing it like this, is….”

“…Then what else are we supposed to do.”

“Seo Seo-hee, you….”

“We don’t have time, Jung Hae-woon.”

“…Hah, fuck, I know we don’t have any other countermeasures!!”

It was a story from a very long time ago, over 30 years in the past.

“But I’m asking because no matter how I think about it, this is fucking awful! I’m asking if this is right! Seo Seo-hee, seriously, why are you being like this! Dan Hae-ra, do you really think this is the right thing to do?! Cha Eun-hye, hey! Cha Eun-hye…!”

“…….”

“Don’t just fucking cry and say something! Say something, anything…!!”

“…B-But….”

The crybaby, Cha Eun-hye, was crying that day too.

“Then, then what do we do? T-The Teacher… If this happens, really, truly… if we leave it like this…!”

“Does it have to be this method? No, this, this… is insane, do you know that? It’s absolute fucking madness…! You guys know it too. If it fails, it’s not just one person who goes down! Several people will go down, how are you going to take responsibility for all of that!”

“I, I know, but….”

“And even if it succeeds, the Teacher is…!!”

Jung Hae-woon had raged like a fire. He hadn’t wanted to believe in his friends’ choice. However, Jung Hae-woon himself had also felt an irrational temptation in that situation. That was likely why he became even angrier as a reaction against it.

“What the fuck are we going to do about our Teacher? Even if it succeeds, the Teacher will forever…!!”

“Forever. I like the sound of that.”

“…….”

“…I think I like it.”

Dan Hae-ra muttered blankly.

“I like it.”

“…Hey, come on. Hae-ra….”

“The Teacher said it too, right? To live while relying on each other.”

“…You know we’re all out of our minds right now.”

“So let’s all live forever.”

“Dan Hae-ra.”

“We’ll live while atoning forever for the sins we’ve committed.”

And then she let out a hollow chuckle while staring into the empty air.

“Even without knowing what exactly we did wrong….”

It was a self-deprecating laugh.

– To be continued in the next chapter –