The Artist Who Paints Dungeon-Chapter 91

“It reminded me of the old days, I’ve always done that, but it’s a very unfamiliar experience to feel this peaceful.”

Suddenly, Aria was struck by the delusion that she was dreaming.

A cold-blooded sage. The embodiment of the sea. The judge of all sea creatures. The master of the world and game board called the deep sea could never create such a small and insignificant bonfire again.

Repeating the most peaceful actions of my life with these bloody hands... .

“It doesn’t feel real.”

She never imagined that this would be possible. There was no reason for it to be.

“It does seem strange.”

In fact, all of this might have been the creation of a mermaid who had not been able to shake off her old habits and fell into a deep sleep. She had such dreams sometimes, so it wasn’t all that strange.

Aria, who was looking at the flickering fire, muttered.

“Well, it doesn’t matter....”

She didn’t try to tell what was true and what was false in the current situation. It was an unusual behavior for Aria, who had always faced reality without placing value on vain things.

However, if it was a dream like this, the delusion was worth enjoying as a delusion.

“Geo.”

Aria headed to the kitchen of the cabin, dragging the hem of her dress that didn’t really fit in here.

“The place to grill the clams is ready. I just need to put the wire mesh on top.”

“The preparation is all done. The stew is almost done.”

“Then are you planning to eat outside?”

“There’s a bonfire and the weather is nice. Wouldn’t that be much more enjoyable?”

“You’re right.”

There were many times like this.

They went to the bustling market, picked out the ingredients that appealed to them the most that day, and Geo cooked the food that the mermaids liked. He was the only adult and cook in that small house.

Aria and Isser would look up at their tall teacher next to them, learning human wisdom or chatting about trivial things. The atmosphere was disorganized.

At such times, their teacher would ask for help.

“Would you help Aria? I’m short on hands....”

“Give me the clams.”

Aria continued, receiving a tray full of cleaned clams from Geo.

“This is my job.”

Grilling clams was always Aria’s job.

“I’ll be grilling them well, so don’t worry.”

“It’s reassuring to have Aria here.”

“...Is that so?”

“I’ll look forward to some delicious grilled clams.”

“.......”

Aria opened her mouth slightly and went outside again.

At that time, Aria was weak and physically unstable, but she was more greedy than that. He had been insisting on me to play the role because the cooking that Geo did felt like the essence of wisdom that humans can show.

‘At that time, I tried hard to get the role of lighting the campfire from the teacher. Even if I helped with the cooking, he would rarely give me anything that would be dangerous...’

I felt angry because I thought he didn’t trust my ability. Giovanni tried to take on all the dangerous tasks, big and small. It seemed like evidence of distrust.

In the end, I realized after he died. The teacher didn’t want his young mermaid disciples to get hurt because they were too precious. That was a separate issue from trust.

“.......”

The young mermaid, who didn’t know that, ended up getting the role of lighting the campfire.

“That’s funny.”

I felt like I was floating, disconnected from reality, because I still had that kind of role left. It was an unfamiliar feeling.

Although I never abandoned myself, I thought I would never take on this role again even after death... .

“.......”

“Kuu?”

“...I told you not to act friendly, gentleman.”

“Kukuku.”

“Are you indifferent?”

A teddy bear sitting by a campfire and clapping its hands is truly insignificant.

It was a question with a tone of indifference that carried no particular emotion, but Aria’s feelings as she looked at the old, dull-colored doll were different.

“Are you really indifferent?”

Aria covered the sun with the sea.

“I put in a lot of effort. You hated the sun so much that you drowned all your children in the sea. I couldn’t even bring myself to touch Geo, who had melted away like water....”

“.......”

“Yes, I didn’t have the courage. I felt anger for the first time in my life, and I was not in my right mind, so I was just cautious because I could have destroyed his remains in some way.”

“.......”

“You were the one who lost your warmth in the rage of a mermaid who couldn’t even live on land, and you lost all your children... It’s so absurd and funny to see you so peaceful now.”

Everything was like that.

“Why is it so peaceful?”

This forest, Geo, the owner of this place, and even the small creatures and giant beings that he kept by his side as if playing house, were helplessly peaceful.

Aria looked down at the fluffy doll that contained the gigantic figure.

“Don’t you resent me?”

“Kkuu.”

“That’s why the gods are so disgusting.”

You shouldn’t expect emotions and communication from them.

The priest’s offering to the god was almost the only way humans could communicate with the god. To that extent, they could not talk to the god, could not face him, could not understand each other, and could not share emotions.

That’s why they would not hold grudges against mere mermaids.

“They are empty, even more so than monsters like me.”

How difficult were these writers to get along with, talking about mercy and love on such a topic.

“Troubling the sun isn’t something that just anyone can do, so why can’t they show some rewarding reactions? Feeling sad, resentful, annoyed... there are many reactions you can have.”

“Kuk-kuk-kuk....”

“Are you laughing?”

She was annoyed.

“.......”

It was quite different from her younger brother’s, which even felt noble, but Aria muttered with a gentlemanly smile.

“I didn’t resent you either.”

It was true.

The clever mermaid clearly knew who was at fault. The fools blinded by greed and honor caused the accident, and the siblings and Giovanni were just unlucky enough to get caught up in it.

So if they were angry, the only target would be the easily corrupted and betraying nature of humans.

“That world was too horrible.”

No human could see eternity. Even I, ❀ Nоvеlігht ❀ (Don’t copy, read here) who had turned into anger, hated it.

“It was so bearable that the sky had to be covered by the sea to the end...”

That’s why it was like that.

“.......”

“Yes, father.”

Even as a mermaid, it was a fact that I learned much later.

“The god of the sun and the god of the deep were one body, right? In the end, you were also my father.”

“Kuu-ku.”

“No, since they are divided beings, I guess I should call you uncle. What do you want me to call you?”

“Ku-ku.”

“Uncle? Oh my gosh, that’s creepy. That was just a thought.”

It was a dirty peaceful word.

“I’m out of my mind at this point.”

It was a rare occurrence.

Having lived her whole life with a clear mind, there were only two times when she became confused.

The first was when Geo took Aria’s side instead of being human, and the second was when she confirmed Geo’s body, which was unrecognizable.

And in this dreamlike situation, Aria was once again confused.

“I don’t think I’m supposed to be there....”

She laughed involuntarily.

“.......”

The soft spring breeze was gentle.

“...Tickling.”

“Aria, are you ready?”

“Yes.”

This was the belly of their kind teacher.

That fact seemed a little distant.

“How is it?”

“Is it cooked well?”

Geo continued after looking at the stew.

“It’s a bit bland for my taste.”

“The teacher liked spicy food....”

“I just eat it without any problems, but it’s embarrassing to say I like it.”

It had a bland side, perhaps because it was much sweeter than the tomatoes he usually used.

Geo took out the Milky Way Mary that had been dried in the cupboard and sprinkled it on top of the stew that he had ground finely.

“It’s just right.”

It was moderately spicy and moderately stimulating. It was sweet as if it was savory, and the saltiness from the aged ham was also felt, and the luxurious bitterness was added thanks to the vegetables that came out of the carrots and other vegetables.

“Ah.”

Crunch.

Crackle, crackle.

Pashuk... .

“I guess you like it.”

Maybe because the Milky Way Mary was shining, or maybe because it was also a fruit. A few water birds that flew out of the nest snatched a few Milky Way Mary eggs.

Geo turned a blind eye to his friends’ petty embezzlement.

‘They’re cute, so that’s fine.’

As long as they didn’t steal from other houses, that was all that mattered. Geo patted the water birds who were greeting him and opened his mouth.

“I was a little anxious because it had been a while since I had cooked it, but the stew turned out to be quite satisfactory.”

“Have you ever cooked it separately before? You enjoy cooking, sir.”

“Since you’re dead, you don’t really...?”

It was quite recently that ‘Giovanni’ had been placed over Sergio.

“.......”

“I made a slip of the tongue, Isser. Please calm down.”

“No, I was the one....”

“Calm down.”

There was a bit of a commotion, but anyway, the stew was really satisfying.

“I like the one with clams, and the one with meat. I think Isser likes the one with seafood more?”

“...Now I don’t really have an appetite, so it’s hard to say, but yes. If I had to pick, I think I’m much more used to the one with seafood.”

“I don’t have an appetite."

“I heard you eat tomatoes the size of pumpkins.”

“That’s... .”

Isser, who had nothing to say, thought seriously for a moment before answering shamelessly.

“The tomatoes were delicious.”

“I grew them.”

“As expected, you are a teacher.”

“That’s right.”

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Whatever the general taste of mermaids, Geo liked the meat a little better.

‘It was definitely hard to get meat when I lived in the village.’

Because it was a seaside village located on the coast, meat was much more expensive than seafood.

Even though he was a noble, he was the youngest who didn’t receive support, and even though he had enough to buy medical equipment or donate everything, he couldn’t live lavishly, so he was quite happy about this meat.

The contents of the sausage with the casing removed were cooked in the stew and the texture became appropriately soft, but if he boiled it for a longer time at a low temperature, the meat would be much softer.

“I guess dried meat doesn’t go soft easily because it’s dried meat.”

“I like this as is, but....”

“I think I’m ready for dinner.”

Geo, with Isser’s help, carried two large pots out into the yard. The atmosphere was lively thanks to the wooden chairs and table that he had prepared from somewhere.

“Okay.”

The stew pot settled down next to the campfire.

“Here you go.”

“Kuruk.”

“Honey, don’t even think about getting in the pot.”

“Kungkungkung...”

“I don’t think you’ll drink the water.”

Geo scooped up the stew with Honey, who had fallen into the pot, and placed it in a bowl near the campfire. Honey began to absorb the stew while still in the bowl. It was so thick that it was hard to tell what was stew and what was honey.

“Dana, don’t steal my brother’s stew, let’s eat something new.”

“Ryujon ... Dana, who had been rummaging around the bowl with melted honey, walked briskly to Geo’s call and sat down in front of his bowl. The stew was slowly decreasing in quantity, as if the two animals were eating it well.

“If you want to add more flavor, I’ll put some pepper here, so add as you wish.”

Aria tilted her head as she placed the finely ground Milky Way Mary on the table.

“Pepper?”

“Yes, pepper.”

“Isn’t it completely different?”

“The taste is similar.”

“It’s edible, right?”

“Would you recommend something I wouldn’t eat?”

“.......”

“Aria?”

After a brief silence, Aria nodded.

“I’m not the type to joke around with food, but....”

“Why are you taking such obvious things so seriously?”

“Sometimes, you can’t predict your actions.”

And it wasn’t because of Geo’s plump charm that I was wondering.

‘It doesn’t look like food.’

It’s not that it looks inedible, but it gave off the vibe that it would be used as a precious medicine rather than a food that would be used for small purposes.

In some dimension, people call this kind of thing an elixir.

“...You’re really good at finding things like this.”

“There are a lot of them in the forest.”

“Oh, a lot?”

“Is there a problem?”

“.......”

Aria looked around and shook her head.

“No, what’s the problem?”

It was a world filled with precious things that would make the eyes of humans, who were not generous by nature and were extremely greedy, turn their backs on it. If anyone were allowed to enter this place, there would definitely be problems.

However, even if humans had no limits to evolution, they would not be able to crawl into this terrifying dimension with only shallow greed.

‘You wouldn’t be able to approach this dimension unless you had greed that bordered on belief. Just imagining humans targeting your treasure makes me sick... but it’s unlikely to happen.’

Aria accepted the stew her mentor gave her, predicting the possibility that Giovanni would be persecuted by humans again.

The wooden bowl was really warm. Warmth spread to the tips of her fingers that held the bowl, and a faint ticklishness sprouted like a bud.

“.......”

“Is seafood stew okay?”

“Yes, I like this better than meat.”

A scent that stimulated my appetite.

I didn’t think I was that hungry, but when I smelled the stimulating scent of tomato stew, I felt empty inside. I wanted to fill this empty inside with the stew in front of me.

It had been a really long time since I felt like eating something. My complicated brain slowly began to unravel.

‘... Strangely, I don’t dislike Geo’s cooking even though it has a strong scent. Now, even my taste has faded, but why is that...?’

The sound of the dishes clanking, soaked in a soft warmth that warmed my fingertips. That peaceful and simple murmur tickled my heart strangely and cautiously.

‘Is it because I’m back home?’

Strictly speaking, this place, which is not a deep sea, was not my hometown, but I felt a strange sense of nostalgia and sentimentality because of Giovanni. It was a feeling that was hard to define.

It felt like I was a step away from the place I belonged to, and that I was spending time with him. Even though it was time, it felt empty and I missed it. Even in that deep, dark sea, the feeling I hadn’t felt was truly unfamiliar.

‘... This person probably wouldn’t have forgiven us. On that subject, how can he be so affectionate? Giovanni... was already such a strange author, if only because he had acquired divinity and become twisted.’

I felt a tingling sensation from the unfamiliar sensation, so much so that I had to clench and unclench my fists a few times.

“.......”

It shouldn’t be this comfortable.

I felt so helpless that I couldn’t escape this comfortable atmosphere.

A painter drawing dungeons