Chapter 98

Jio continued checking the situation on Earth through frames, searching for a human who could become his "new friend."

In the end, Iser asked.

"Why do you not simply pass by the humans you happen to check on, and instead speak to them or give them gifts?"

Jio answered in a gentle yet confident voice.

"If they had not seen me, that would be one thing, but they saw me too. Originally, once your eyes meet, it is a battle. I cannot help but speak to them."

"If eyes meet, you must settle things. Earthlings have a more warlike nature than I expected. Are there specific rules?"

"The longer you stare at each other, the more often it is taken as seduction or a duel."

"How very astonishing. When I disguised myself as a child of Earth before, I was in such a hurry that I could not study properly, but such a culture existed."

"Perhaps that is why this teacher, too, cannot simply let someone go after our eyes meet."

It was not that he did not think the people he met that way would be startled, but even someone like Jio might have a perfect partner in fantasy out there, might he not?

And that was something he would never know unless he spoke to them.

Of course, who knew how long it would take to find, by sheer coincidence, someone who would not be frightened by the name "Black Cloak" and would greet him cheerfully, but the young man from a mountain village in Gangwon Province, who had never dated once by that age because he insisted on chance encounters, had a strange sort of romanticism.

"If I waste time so recklessly like this, someday I will be able to find a new connection."

"Ah, yes."

"And if I speak to them like that, does it not naturally make me want to give them gifts?"

"Aha..."

"It is not as if I have nothing, nor as if I have no time, nor as if giving out a few gifts will bring in complaints from parents."

The three conditions matched exactly, so there was truly no reason not to give them.

No one could stop Jio, who was running wild with the desire to share joy, love, peace, affection, and happiness.

"Most of all, is it not admirable?"

"If they are admirable, do you give all of them gifts?"

"This is what a teacher's heart is."

"The child from just now was not Teacher's student... I see. I understand."

"Do not draw a conclusion as if you are suddenly about to kill someone. It is creepy to be hasty at your age."

"Yes, Teacher."

"Must they be my student for me to give them a gift?"

People who did adorable things always needed a sweet reward.

It was a way of thinking very much like Seo Jio, who, even when he was a high school teacher, always carried snacks in his pockets to give to his students.

"Besides, what I have an abundance of now is time."

Jio was not impatient.

"There is Honey here, and Dana, and Father, and even Iser and Aria, is there not?"

"..."

"Your face looks very satisfied while pretending not to be, which is suspicious, but do you truly dislike that I am searching for humans to become my friends?"

"Yes, I dislike it."

"I see. But no matter how admirable a student you are, Iser, you cannot stop me from making a pen pal."

Yu Seongun, who was suffocating under the overwork of modern people, was too busy for Jio to keep exchanging letters only with him.

Jio needed a new friend.

"Even if I live inside a frame, it feels as though I have too little communication with the world."

In Jio's own estimation, his current position was about that of an old man living alone in a slightly remote countryside village.

In a mere thirty-one years, he had ended up being treated like an ancestor, and even if he tried to learn about the world these days, this household gave him no way to communicate with young people at all.

"So I have no choice but to step forward and make friends myself."

"Could you not simply tell those vulgar humans who know nothing of their place to crawl here on their own?"

"Do not keep trying to lock Teacher inside this narrow cabin, Iser."

"It is not particularly narrow."

"It is infinitely small to contain a being such as myself."

"..."

Iser nodded, still wearing a benevolent smile.

"Then how long do you plan to enjoy this search for friends?"

"I imagine I will do it whenever I am bored."

"... And after you obtain this thing called a 'friend'...?"

"I will keep doing it. What good is just one friend? It would not even stick to anyone's nose."

"Ah, do you plan to stick it to your nose?"

"I meant that one friend alone is nowhere near enough."

The more friends one had, the better.

"How boring would it be if I did not spend this long stretch of time with friends?"

"We, your faithful students, will be by your side."

"Iser needs to develop some independence. How long are you going to keep protecting this useless teacher?"

No wonder the child had become this strange, shut up at home for thousands of years.

Jio would have nothing more to wish for if he made some friends somewhere and even went to karaoke now and then.

'Iser is a timid child, so I doubt he would enjoy such active hobbies, though.'

Jio nodded.

"Still, I will keep looking for friends."

"If I may speak from an objective standpoint, not out of my own selfish feelings, if you continue showing yourself like this, awareness of 'Black Cloak' on Earth will rise considerably."

"You are right, Iser. They say 'Black Cloak' is known in the world as a monster, so it will likely cause confusion in one way or another. I am aware that I am doing something to feel sorry about."

"... I do not care what happens to the humans' confusion, but I fear Teacher may receive attention of an unpleasant sort. Their nature is selfish and fickle. They cannot be trusted."

"There may be people like that. There are so many humans on Earth, so of course there can be. But to imagine such an unfortunate future, I already have many good friends. I believe all of you will protect me."

Above all, Jio planned to create an image that would keep "Black Cloak" from looking like an easy target.

'That is why I keep wandering around and openly showing myself, and why I do not bother to explain even if they misunderstand me as a frightening person.'

As a result, minor incidents related to Jio might occur from time to time, but...

"I am not a very thoughtful person."

At any rate, as long as it was fun, that was enough.

* * *

The Hunter Association conference room.

"With this, we will conclude the current discussion."

"Yes, Association President."

"And next is..."

The Association President continued with a composed smile.

"The agenda regarding 'Black Cloak.'"

The Association President's lips opened softly.

"This is the first time it has been brought up as an official agenda item, so I look forward to seeing what discussion emerges."

"..."

"Since the reason this agenda has been submitted is the stability of the city, we should hear the city's overall atmosphere regarding the topic. Team Leader Seo."

"Yes, Association President."

The team leader of the information processing team, which collected and organized the city's information, opened his mouth.

"According to our current findings, numerous citizens have witnessed Black Cloak. So far, we have secured eyewitness testimony from twenty-six people: nine Grade 1 citizens, eleven Grade 2 citizens, two Grade 3 citizens, and four Grade 4 citizens."

Grade 5 citizens, who were not treated as human, were excluded.

Even if they had come into contact with Black Cloak, the Association had no means of confirming it.

After all, they were all criminals living hidden away somewhere.

"The common testimony is that when they treated Black Cloak politely, or when they did a good deed even if it was not connected to him, he showed them kindness."

"By kindness, do you mean the snacks that were reported before?"

"What has been confirmed so far are baked sweets such as cookies, as well as snacks such as candy and chocolate. Though they appear to be handmade, their components themselves are almost identical to food from Earth, but..."

"They tasted the same as ordinary snacks, yet their effects were different, was it?"

"Yes, that is correct. They produced effects like medicine, such as nutritional supplements, anemia medication, and painkillers, tailored to the recipient of the gift."

"Side effects?"

"We confirmed that if someone other than the recipient of the gift consumed it, the effect decreased to less than half. No other side effects were detected."

At the words of the information processing team leader, another employee received permission to speak and asked a question.

"Where has he been sighted most often?"

"The only repeated sighting location is the slum in the border zone, and even there he has never been found in the exact same place."

"It sounds as though there are no restrictions on spatial movement. He seems to be on a completely different scale from an ordinary Root entity, so in that case, has he ever been discovered overseas?"

"Since the opening of the 'country of the deep sea,' the first place where 'Black Cloak' was sighted, we have been requesting cooperation from the Associations of various countries and receiving information regarding him, but there have been no reports so far."

"Is there a possibility that the overseas Associations have not shared information?"

"According to what the Korean Association branch has determined, overseas reports state that Black Cloak has not been sighted. However, considering the characteristics of 'Black Cloak,' we cannot rule out the possibility that he appeared overseas but simply was not sighted."

At that, another employee asked.

"The most important issue is whether he harms the safety of citizens. You said you obtained testimony from twenty-six witnesses. Among them, was there any case of someone being attacked by 'Black Cloak'?"

"There was one in testimony that did not come from the witness himself."

The information processing team leader displayed the compiled information on the monitors in front of each team leader.

"For all twenty-five citizens, contact ended with them receiving a gift from 'Black Cloak' and parting ways, but as you can see, there was only one. In the case of the Grade 3 citizen who encountered 'Black Cloak' in the 'Jewel Vein,' the circumstances were markedly different."

In the world at large, the dungeon known as the "Jewel Vein" was not very famous, but among black Hunters who tried to sell monsters through illegal routes, it was highly favored.

That was because it was the habitat of the "anti-cat," popular for its beautiful and dainty appearance, and in that very "Jewel Vein," "Black Cloak" was sighted.

"The witness who cooperated with the Association's questions and answers was Hunter Lee Seon-hu, identified as F-class, with the team position of porter. He was not the one attacked by 'Black Cloak.'"

"Then what is the personal information of the person attacked by 'Black Cloak'?"

"The victim attacked by 'Black Cloak' was Hunter Park Eun-gyeom, a B-class Hunter, with the team position of leader. The witness stated that Hunter Park Eun-gyeom, the victim, had tried to abandon him in the dungeon and leave."

"Cases like this really do keep coming up without end..."

Clearing a dungeon consumed considerable resources in and of itself.

In the case of porters in particular, they were of no help in combat, and if they reached a state where they could not even carry luggage, they were often abandoned easily.

Since they were not useful, but there were more mouths to feed.

"Things like this almost never happened before."

"Many things are different compared to our time, after all."

"They do not see comrades as comrades..."

Watching the elders look somewhat sick of it, the information processing team leader continued.

"... The 'Jewel Vein' is a dungeon that other Hunters do not visit often in particular, so the witness judged that if he was abandoned there, he would starve to death, and clung to Hunter Park. In the process of shaking off that witness, Hunter Park Eun-gyeom used violence."

And.

"We believe 'Black Cloak' witnessed that scene."

The witness practically worshipped Black Cloak.

"In the testimony, 'Black Cloak' is said to have existed in the form of a frame. Due to the characteristics of the dungeon 'Jewel Vein,' visibility was poor, so neither of them noticed the frame at first, but when Hunter Park Eun-gyeom, who went missing in this incident, used violence, it intervened and exerted influence."

"Wait."

An elder who was nearly an old man asked.

"A missing person? Not injured or found as a corpse, but unable to be found at all?"

"Yes, the witness testified that Hunter Park Eun-gyeom was dragged inside the frame."

"This is the first I have heard that a person can enter the inside of a frame... How was he dragged in? Did 'Black Cloak' personally grab him by the collar and pull him in?"

"He says he did not directly observe the form of 'Black Cloak.' Only that from inside the frame..."

The information processing team leader unconsciously frowned faintly.

It was because he had to report vague information, which did not suit the position he was in charge of.

"The testimony states that numerous transparent hands crawled out and abducted the missing person."

"... Numerous transparent hands?"

His voice carried puzzlement.

"If they were transparent, how does he know there were numerous of them, and how did he know they were hands? If he was F-class and in the porter position, it would have been difficult for him to grasp such forms."

"It was simply an explanation of what the witness himself felt, and he himself seemed unable to express it logically. However, he said he definitely saw that they were wearing suits."

"Suits... They were wearing clothes, yet the hands were transparent. Is he going to say he saw invisible people?"

At that, the Association President opened his mouth.

"It is not impossible. We are merely approaching the thirty-second year since the age of Hunters began, so we must not pride ourselves on knowing everything. Acknowledge the possibility and classify them as monsters."

"Yes, Association President."

"Yes, Association President."

As immediate words of acceptance came, the Association President looked at the information processing team leader again.

"Was 'Black Cloak' not sighted during that process?"

"That is correct. However, based on the frame's characteristics and the witness's strong insistence, we determined that this incident is likely related to 'Black Cloak.'"

"Is there anything further to report?"

"We have finished all reports on the phenomena shown by 'Black Cloak.' No exceptional circumstances aside from the Hunter Park Eun-gyeom incident have been identified. Please refer to the report for the details."

"I see. Good work."

The Association President nodded.

"You may present your opinions freely, without restriction."

At that, one of the employees gathered in the conference room obtained the right to speak.

"I think it would be good to discuss what exactly we should define 'Black Cloak' as."

"He does show aspects that are outside the standard in many respects."

An elder took up that opinion and continued.

"Regarding this, I would like to hear the thoughts of Kang U-ri, Gardener and research team leader of the Seoul First Branch."

"... Until I attended this meeting, I investigated and researched in various ways because I wanted to reach a conclusion, but unfortunately, I have not been able to define him yet."

"... That means he is not an easy being to handle..."

"That is correct. He is a contradictory being about whom no judgment can be made."

The research team leader displayed information on the monitors in front of each attendee.

"This is a chart organizing ordinary gods, monsters, and Root's children. As you can see, 'Black Cloak' can belong to any of these areas, and conversely may belong to none of them."

To call him a god, there were too many impurities besides divinity.

To call him a monster, he had no hatred toward humans at all, and to call him a child of the Root, he was far too interested in humans.

Even so, he contained all of those characteristics in one body.

"If there is one thing we can be certain of among them, it is only that 'Black Cloak' is likely a being that belongs to the Root. He also has rules of his own."

"Rules of his own... Is it that, after all?"

"Yes, that he affirms what is good and denies what is evil."

"The standard of that good and evil is likely decided by him."

"It certainly appears that way, but nothing is accurate yet. However, based on the circumstances so far, that standard does not seem very different from that of us humans."

However, his extremeness could indeed be evaluated as befitting a Root entity.

Just because he witnessed a scene of violence, he abducted the perpetrator somewhere.

With this, it was proven that even if "Black Cloak" was favorable toward humans, he was ultimately uninterested in the rules humans had made.

As the current condition of the missing person was unknown, it was a highly dangerous direction of action.

"What we should pay attention to here is that such actions by 'Black Cloak' do not seem to symbolize punishment."

"If granting rewards to good people and denying evil people is not punishment, then what is it?"

"It looked more like a personal preference. It means he is not authoritarian or possessed of elitism like ordinary humanoid monsters, but simply a creature made that way."

At that, the Association President added.

"Those are certainly characteristics close to a child of the Root."

"Yes, that is correct."

If "Black Cloak" had dealt with an evil person with the meaning of "punishment," he would have shown himself.

However, in the Hunter Park Eun-gyeom incident, "Black Cloak" remained a frame and did not reveal himself until the end.

As if he had simply removed an unsightly object from before his eyes.

"Among the actions of 'Black Cloak' so far, there has been no part where a clear intent was revealed. We merely presume, judging from the direction of his actions, that there is a rule affirming good and denying evil."

In fact, it was slightly different from the actual situation.

Jio did not even know in the first place that a frame like "City of Emptiness" was wandering around on its own, let alone that someone had been dragged into his frame.

It was closer to the "City of Emptiness," which had its own sense of self, removing "something" that its parent would likely dislike.

It was the same principle as when Honey, upon first emerging into modern society before, swallowed the man with an evil nature it saw at Gyeongbokgung Palace.

Jio's children wanted their parent to see only good things and always be happy.

"..."

"..."

Of course, to people who did not know those circumstances, everything only felt like the intent of "Black Cloak."

At the fact that "Black Cloak" had no malice despite making one person disappear, some of the Association's employees felt a chill and a sense of wariness.

"... There are no limits on movement either."

Considering that he had even been sighted inside a dungeon, "Black Cloak" could truly go anywhere.

"He has great interest in human lives."

"..."

"He gives blessings to the good and despair to the evil."

A cheerful-looking employee continued in a light tone.

"He is just like an Easter egg in a game."

If one compared things like life and dungeon raids to a game, that is.

An Easter egg referred to content a creator hid in various media as a joke.

Since it was "something" that a "creator" "hid" "as a joke," it could be related to the content of the game or not, and if you found it, you were lucky, but if you did not, it had no effect on game progression.

"Does he not seem like a rare and amusing event that appears now and then?"

"Now that a clear missing person has appeared, it will be difficult to call him an 'amusing event.'"

"From the looks of it, the man seems to have been quite the piece of trash... If everyone simply lives kindly, there will be no problem."

"Creating good people and punishing evil people are the work of the Association and the government, so we should not rely on an unidentified Root entity."

"Yes, I will restrain myself. I acknowledge that it was a careless remark."

"And the question that arises again at this point is..."

One of the elders continued.

"What happened to the Hunter dragged into the frame?"

They would be able to determine the danger of "Black Cloak" based on that.