Chapter 29
They traveled by boat for dinner.
“This is the boat we’ll be taking.”
“Oh.”
Romantic young man Jio’s heart raced.
'Traveling to a restaurant by waterway...'
It felt just like he had come to Venice.
“It is an unusual sight, with roads and waterways together.”
“Is it? Come to think of it, I did hear there were hardly any waterways in South Korea before the Cataclysm.”
“Why did they appear?”
THUD.
Jio asked as he followed Yu Seongun onto the water taxi.
“You would need a huge amount of water to make waterways.”
“It’s the opposite to begin with. They didn’t bring in water to make waterways. They say there was simply too much water, so they made waterways to control it.”
“Are you saying there was that much water?”
“The water level is considerably high compared to the elevation of the land.”
To think it had been at a level they couldn’t endure without making waterways. Just how far was this Hell Korea going to go?
Yu Seongun continued his explanation.
“Humans still haven’t explored most of the areas, but there are so many dungeons that formed under the sea, and so many monsters that came out of them. I’ve heard the water level rose because the volume inside the sea physically increased.”
“At that scale, one or two monsters wouldn’t be enough.”
Just how many monsters, and how large, had settled on Earth for them to be unable to endure it without building waterways?
Yu Seongun, understanding Jio’s question, opened his mouth.
“There are plenty of aquatic monsters easily bigger than a building.”
“I see.”
“And not just one of those monsters, either. There are several individuals and several species, so naturally the water level would have risen compared to before the Cataclysm. I heard our country originally wasn’t a place where seawater came in this much...”
“How are the provinces managing the seawater that has come in?”
“As far as I know, they’ve opened waterways to the extent that it doesn’t have a major negative effect on farming and daily life. They say they made channels in various ways to keep the salt in the seawater from pushing into the soil, but since they don’t have as much capital as the cities... I suppose they can’t farm near the waterways.”
“...”
“So I heard regions where excessive seawater comes in have gone into fishing from the start instead of farming. Fish from some fairly famous regions are also being imported into the cities.”
Even in this situation, it seemed everyone had found their own way to live.
'Human adaptability really is incredible.'
In any case, Jio was intimidated.
'I should shut myself up in the portrait.'
Earth had now become a world where it was hard to survive on romance, passion, and hope alone without any real force.
How tough would one have to become to pay monthly rent on time and live in this rough world? It was surely a realm Jio could not even dream of.
“I think you said the restaurant itself was floating on the water.”
“Actually, rather than floating, I suppose it’s just a restaurant built on a small island...”
“I heard it was located inside the Han River.”
Jio asked as he sat down in the taxi seat.
“Was there originally an island there?”
He knew that thirty-one years ago there had been small islands like Nodeul Island.
But according to Yu Seongun, there was nothing but a single restaurant standing there without any other grounds, so he had grown curious about how such a location had come about.
Yu Seongun answered easily.
“That’s because it was originally the site of a Fixed Dungeon.”
“... A Fixed Dungeon?”
“... Ah, you don’t know much about dungeons, do you?”
Judging from his flustered face, he seemed to have assumed Jio would naturally know.
Unfortunately, reality was not like that.
In the blink of an eye, Jio had become an ancestor from thirty-one years ago, and he had been left behind because he could not develop in step with the changing times.
'How did I, who used to instill social skills into the sprouts of South Korea, end up like this?'
Kids, your teacher misses you.
Fortunately, Yu Seongun quickly returned to his usual calm expression and began explaining.
“Dungeons are usually divided into fixed types and mobile types. Just as the names say, they’re dungeons fixed in one place and dungeons that move according to their own rules. In the case of Fixed Dungeons, they sometimes create terrain that wasn’t originally there.”
“Then was the restaurant we are going to now built on terrain made that way?”
“Yeah, that’s the restaurant’s theme to begin with. The dungeon that was there was related to cooking, and the clear was completed when it was moved by the food of an ordinary chef who wasn’t even a Hunter but got dragged in by chance... That kind of dungeon.”
“Ah.”
The story was deeply moving.
“A grand restaurant remained at the place where the clear was completed, and they say the chef who participated in that clear took over that restaurant as it was and is running it. He’s already ninety-two now, but he’s still active on-site.”
“Ninety-two?”
“It sounds long-lived for a human, doesn’t it?”
Yu Seongun laughed once and continued.
“To begin with, he’s someone who Awakened as a chef after the dungeon clear, so he would be less affected by age. Besides that, he probably has support from skills or items. If you see him in person, he’ll probably look like he’s in his fifties.”
“...”
“He often participates in national-level dungeon clears and takes charge of the team members’ meals. So that means his basic combat ability isn’t bad either. I’ve never seen him personally, but I heard his main weapon is a nail-studded baseball bat.”
“A baseball bat...”
“Unexpected, right? I thought he would use a kitchen knife. But in an interview, he said, how could he use a knife he cooks with to cut up monsters? I suppose chefs really are different from the mindset up.”
“Oh.”
He felt like he understood the sentiment, but in any case, Jio was intimidated. Humanity had become strong.
“Do Awakened age more slowly?”
“Most of them do, as far as I know. At least if they’re C-class or higher Hunters.”
“So the standard for a good Hunter begins at C-class...”
“That’s how it tends to be in average reality and perception.”
It was truly a terrifying world.
'Grandmother never said a single wrong thing. Always live humbly and politely.'
He did not want to be exorcised as a haunted portrait while perfectly alive.
Jio thought.
'I need to work out my survival strategy properly too. If the portrait burns, I don’t know what will happen to my cabin, and it’s not as though I can prevent every misfortune just by behaving diligently on my own...'
That did not mean he wanted to be approved as human and live on Earth again, either.
“What are you thinking about?”
“I was thinking that Earth is a scary place.”
“Uh...?”
It really was too scary.
“Why are you suddenly scared? You’re not even a target for subjugation.”
“That is true.”
But saying that in reverse meant that if he did become a target for subjugation, his limbs might be torn off.
'I like things as they are now.'
Was there a way to maintain being treated as a haunted portrait while still not being criticized and attacked by people?
Jio decided to think about it for the sake of his comfortable survival.
“...”
But first, food.
“... It smells good.”
“It does. Even though we can’t even see the restaurant yet. Isn’t it fascinating?”
“Is this smell only in this waterway?”
“I think I’ve heard it’s a kind of promotional strategy.”
“I understand.”
A waterway that gave off an ecstatic scent from far away, at a level that was not unpleasant, was fascinating enough, but what was even more fascinating was that he could distinguish the scent of the sea and the scent of food separately.
'... The scent of the sea in the middle of a city like this...'
If he lowered his head a little, there was only the scent of the sea.
It was the scent given off by seawater, sharply piercing the brain.
He felt nostalgic.
“...”
Jio leaned his body close to the water’s surface.
“Jio, I think that’s dangerous.”
“I liked the scent of the sea, so I was smelling it for a moment.”
Jio’s voice, immersed in old memories, became much gentler.
“It’s strange that a waterway connected to the Han River would smell of the sea.”
“Well, unless it’s in the mountains, the streams and waterways in places like this all have a strong mix of seawater...”
“Is that so.”
Giovanni liked this kind of scent.
The scent of the sea.
“...”
The scent of mermaids.
“... Just once...”
Enough to want to fall into those depths.
It was dear to him.
“Jio, stop.”
“...”
“... The driver is startled too.”
At those words, Jio looked at the water taxi driver.
“...”
With an extremely startled face, the driver was looking at Jio as if he were a little frightened.
“... I see.”
Jio acknowledged that he had behaved rudely.
“I apologize. This is my first time on a waterway like this, so my curiosity got the better of me.”
“He was worried you might get hurt, not angry, so it’s all right.”
“Thank you for understanding.”
Yu Seongun might have been “worried,” but the driver’s face looked closer to “fear.” Still, Jio decided to let it pass without thinking much of it.
Of course it would be scary if a passenger you were carrying tried to fall into the water.
'Like a passenger suddenly opening the door and trying to jump out on the highway...'
Jio successfully understood.
'Anyway, if it isn’t that, then I probably let out some strange aura again.'
Just like he had sometimes done without realizing it at Yu Seongun’s company.
Jio sat quietly again.
He was reflecting on having caused trouble because he had been distracted by the fascinating waterway.
Yu Seongun, who had been watching him as if observing him, hesitated with a face that seemed to say, “Can I ask this?” then cautiously asked.
“Do you like the sea?”
“... Pardon?”
No? Not particularly?
“I don’t especially like it.”
“But back at Cheonggyecheon too, and here on the waterway too, you seemed to particularly like the scent of the sea. Of course, I’m sorry if I was mistaken.”
“There is nothing to apologize for. I don’t dislike the sea, but I don’t like it either...”
Jio, who had said that, soon changed his words.
“... Now that I think about it, that may be true.”
“Hm?”
“I think it is ordinary, but I also like it.”
It sounded strange, but it was not wrong either.
“Jio” had no strong feelings about the sea, but “Giovanni” was not like that.
So to the question “Do you like the sea?” Jio had no choice but to answer yes-no.
Since both were his own thoughts, it was hard to deny either side.
But suddenly, a thought occurred to him.
“Are there mermaids here too?”
“... Mermaids.”
Meanwhile, Yu Seongun sensed once more the same anomaly he had felt at Cheonggyecheon.
'He definitely said here too.'
Jio seemed to have some connection with mermaids.
“Hmm...”
After thinking for a moment, Yu Seongun slowly nodded.
“Sometimes that kind of monster pops out. Even if they’re not necessarily monsters... there are also certain beings with that sort of form.”
“...”
“Since this is a world where idol worship, legends, or myths can create real monsters, monsters related to mermaids appear here and there on Earth.”
“Is that so?”
“The story of ‘The Little Mermaid’ by a very old author is a famous fairy tale.”
The Little Mermaid.
At the appearance of those familiar words, Jio sank into thought again.
He was thinking about “Giovanni’s” request.
'Come to think of it, I think one of the quests had something to do with The Little Mermaid.'
But for now, he decided to leave it buried.
“I think we’re almost there. What a splendid restaurant.”
“Oh, we are.”
“It is an even more wonderful building than I imagined, so I’m looking forward to it.”
People said you weren’t supposed to worry at the dinner table.
* * *
A luxurious restaurant that looked as if it had been made by mixing ivory and marble.
It was beautifully decorated like a castle, but the structure was so inefficient, with several rooms, stairways, and lobbies mixed together, that it felt as though it had not been made by humans.
Ironically, however, that strangeness firmly established the restaurant’s concept.
“...”
White, pink, light green, and sky blue.
The soft pastel colors scattered here and there like a patchwork cloth over an ivory base made people feel dazed, as if they had entered a dream.
It was dizzyingly beautiful.
“There is something I didn’t get to ask earlier...”
And meanwhile, Yu Seongun and Jio’s party had taken over a cream-colored table.
Jio, seated at the table, asked.
“Didn’t you say this place was made from the remains of a Fixed Dungeon?”
“Hm? That’s right.”
“Then do Fixed Dungeons usually leave terrain or buildings behind like this even after they are cleared? And that dungeon left behind this land and restaurant?”
“Ahhh... Uh, yes. That’s more or less how it feels.”
Perhaps thinking it would be best to clear up all his questions before the actual meal came out, Yu Seongun explained with his characteristic calm smile.
“Dungeons come in various types, regardless of whether they are fixed or mobile. They’re usually divided into Virtual Dungeons, Villa Dungeons, and Entry Dungeons.”
“There are as many as three?”
“There are actually more than that, but these three are the representative dungeons.”
Yu Seongun continued his explanation, folding his fingers one by one.
“In the case of a Virtual Dungeon, it devours people who meet arbitrary conditions without any clear boundary, and a game proceeds in a virtual world. For example, under the condition of ten men in their thirties entering a convenience store at exactly nine p.m., the clear proceeds on a game board implemented to resemble a convenience store.”
“That sounds extremely unfair.”
“That’s right. Other Hunters also find this part extremely troublesome. How many of those men in their thirties would be Hunters suited to clearing a dungeon? Virtual Dungeons appear fairly rarely, but they’re hard to identify and cause a lot of damage, so they’re one of the worries of modern people.”
He thought a world where something like this was called “a worry of modern people” was a little chilling.
Unaware of Jio, who was freely horrified thanks to his degenerated facial muscles, Yu Seongun calmly continued explaining.
“Next are Villa Dungeons. Some arbitrary terrain and rules newly appear on Earth.”
“Is that the case with this restaurant?”
“You seem to have understood well. As you said, this restaurant building appeared as part of a Villa Dungeon. A single restaurant suddenly appeared in the middle of the Han River, where there had originally been nothing.”
Yu Seongun rolled his eyes as if recalling his memories.
“As far as I know, this restaurant didn’t just appear by itself on newly created terrain. It’s an excessively long restaurant with a basement deep enough to reach the riverbed. It’s just that the only part visible above the water is the restaurant, so it was named the ‘restaurant floating on the water’...”
He nodded and continued.
“In this way, Villa Dungeons are basically alien-dimensional villas suddenly being built on Earth. Since the place has already been replaced with that kind of terrain, it can’t be restored either. So when most Villa Dungeons appear once, even after the clear is completed, only the rules disappear and the place remains as it is. How to handle and use it is up to the people of Earth.”
“...”
“The last one is Entry Dungeons, I suppose? This is similar to games. Though I do wonder what kind of games you know and what games there were...”
Yu Seongun wiggled his last finger and spoke.
“They’re a little different from Virtual Dungeons, which have no physical boundary at all, and Villa Dungeons, where the boundary itself exists but the line is vague. In these cases, only an entry passage appears, and if you go inside, you can proceed with clearing an otherworldly dimension.”
“Ah...”
It really did seem like the dimensional gates commonly seen in games.
Those games where there was only a gate, but if you entered, you could move to another map.
Jio understood completely.
As always, Yu Seongun continued speaking calmly and kindly.
“But cases where the remains of a dungeon are used as a restaurant like this one are almost nonexistent.”
“It seems unique and nice, so that is surprising. Why don’t people use them this way?”
“Humans are fearful beings, after all.”
'Bro, are you going to keep treating me like a haunted portrait?'
“There could be problems when ordinary people are brought in, there aren’t many people brave enough to live there and make use of the dungeon’s remains, and above all, the remains left behind like that are also quite picky about people... Usually, people try to demolish them somehow.”
“They are picky about people?”
“They might make a guy they don’t like feel chills, for instance?”
“It sounds like a haunted house.”
Said the haunted portrait.
“...”
Yes, Jio was in fact inwardly acknowledging his own identity.
'Because ordinary humans don’t build cabins inside portraits and live there getting healed.'
Jio, who had no intention of strongly insisting he was human anyway, made a quiet excuse.
“... I do not make people feel chills.”
“Sure, sure. Jio is a person. Right?”
“That is correct.”
He was so grateful he could cry at being indulged like a four-year-old cousin.
