After that day, one thing changed for Ju-hyeon.

“Ju-hyeon, is that...?”

“It's a tame snake, so don't worry.”

“Oh, right. But I remember you being Unawakened... And that doesn't look like an ordinary snake, no matter how I look at it.”

“Jio tamed this little friend and assigned it to me.”

“Aha...”

A little thinner than a young child's wrist, the snake gently swished its tail, flaunting its mesmerizing red skin. Its round, sparkling eyes and catlike curved mouth looked utterly harmless and adorable.

The Collector employee nodded.

“What a gorgeous snake. Just what I'd expect from Hunter Seo Jio's tastes. It glitters like a jewel. It certainly looks like a monster that could easily bewitch someone. Did he say he created it himself?”

“Well... Something like that, I suppose.”

“So that's why you came today. Give us a general rundown of its traits and habits, like you did with the water bird, and we'll register it with the Association as a preexisting monster. That should make things less inconvenient for you.”

“I'd appreciate the help. Jio gave me some snacks. Is there anyone I could share them with? There's just so much...”

“The secretarial office would probably be your best bet for that.”

“I'll drop them off when I have time. For now, could you register this little friend first?”

The red snake coiled around Ju-hyeon's neck raised its head.

“Hello.”

“Oh! You startled me. It talks?”

“I would appreciate it if you called me San.”

“Um... Yes, nice to meet you, San.”

As an employee of Collector, where people supposedly witnessed all manner of strange things, she wasn't particularly surprised. She simply turned back to Ju-hyeon with another question.

“What can this little one do? If Hunter Seo Jio specifically assigned it to you, it must have some exceptional qualities. Is there anything you consider dangerous about it?”

“It isn't entirely harmless, but Jio keeps it under control, so it's all right. If I had to classify it, I'd call it a psychic-type monster. It has a great talent for charming and brainwashing.”

“For your safety, I'd think something capable of direct physical attacks would be better than a psychic type, but, well, I'm sure Hunter Seo Jio has his reasons. Understood.”

Their conversation left the red snake looking dejected.

“I am weak.”

It wasn't reproaching itself for being too weak to serve as a bodyguard contracted beast. It was complaining that the red snake body Jio had provided was far too weak. Understanding the gist, Ju-hyeon stroked its head.

“I'll give you a snack when we get back.”

“Oh, I like that. I like those bright red fruits from last time.”

“I'll ask Jio, so just behave for a moment...”

“Understood.”

With Collector's help, Ju-hyeon registered Jio's new contracted beast, “San,” and returned home. Jio, who had been waiting inside a frame in the house, welcomed him back.

“Did everything go well?”

“Yes, thanks to you.”

From now on, Sankalut would be confined to the body of a harmless snake and spend its time with Ju-hyeon. The agreement was that it would ordinarily stay by his side and protect him, and if it eventually earned Jio's permission, he would send it back to that “home” it kept going on about.

Sankalut was satisfied simply not to have been annihilated after being captured by a powerful Divinity. Divinities were not easily killed, but things were different when facing Jio's Portrait. Now sounding quite at ease, Sankalut made a request.

“Give me fruit. Fruit.”

“I think it means Mangdung Fruit.”

“The sweet-and-sour fruit suits my palate very well.”

“I'm glad you've found food you can enjoy.”

Yes, in the end, Jio had turned Sankalut into a pig.

“If only it would put on some more weight.”

“Uh... Wouldn't that make it rather heavy for me?”

“I understand there's such a thing as weight-reduction magic.”

“If it gets any bigger, it'll attract too much attention.”

“That would be a problem for you.”

An introvert himself, Seo Jio readily understood how burdensome Ju-hyeon would find that and abandoned the idea. In any case, Sankalut's skinny body housed divinity; merely eating a bit too much wouldn't easily fatten it up.

“You can stop by for snacks now and then.”

“I will.”

Visits to the cabin were now essential, if only to keep Sankalut in good working order.

“Speaking of which, could I visit now? San has eaten all the Mangdung Fruit, so I'd like to gather some more. It won't really listen without them...”

“Mangdung Fruit is one of the easiest things to find in my forest. Come in and gather as much as you like. The water birds will help you.”

As though they had heard Jio, transparent water birds, Honey among them, scurried over and perched on the frame. They gazed up at Ju-hyeon as if asking, “When are you coming in?” “Now?” “Are you coming in now?” He couldn't help smiling.

“Then I'll let myself in for a bit.”

Ju-hyeon entered Jio's Portrait with practiced ease.

“...”

“Are you all right?”

“... A little motion sickness...”

“I think it's because of Sankalut.”

The bright red snake raised its head indignantly.

“I am innocent.”

“Your mere presence can have an effect. Especially inside the portrait.”

“... Ju-hyeon is too weak. He needs modification.”

“Ju-hyeon will manage his own life just as he is. Don't interfere.”

“This is unfair.”

Ju-hyeon looked a little put off by their exchange.

“I really do hear an odd echo of your way of speaking, Jio.”

“The body is partly modeled after me, so it can't be helped.”

The two set off. Mangdung Fruit was the most common fruit in Jio's forest. The water birds, out of their nest for the first time in a while, hurried over to perch on his body. Jio and Ju-hyeon spent a good while engrossed in gathering fruit.

Once the basket was nearly full, they went to the stream and gave the fruit a quick rinse.

“I never imagined an evil god would like fruit.”

“I like red. Give it to me. I am waiting.”

“What will you do if you really turn into a pig at this rate...?”

“I can go on a diet. Trust me, Ju-hyeon.”

“Can snakes even diet...?”

It hadn't been long, but over those few days, Ju-hyeon and Sankalut had grown accustomed to each other.

Of course, they only seemed to get along because Ju-hyeon was determined to whip this thing into shape one way or another, while Sankalut was thinking it might eventually find an opening to exploit.

Still, from the outside, they looked perfectly natural together.

“Since you're here, would you like something to eat?”

“I was wondering when you'd say that.”

“Were you looking forward to it?”

“No, I was bracing myself.”

The meals Jio prepared still weighed strangely on Ju-hyeon. It felt as though he were consuming things no human should dare eat, in absurd forms yet by familiar means.

“What exactly is this meat?”

“Rabbit. Isn't the aroma unusual? And it has a nice, chewy texture.”

“As far as I know, the rabbits in your forest aren't this big...”

“Animals have been sneaking in through a frame lately.”

“Through a frame? Do you mean a painting?”

“Yes. It's called the Animal Kingdom.”

“That's a straightforward name.”

“Well, I wasn't the one who named it.”

It was straightforward, though.

“I tried to see if I could raise them, but most were in a frenzy. I think I'd have to visit the world beyond the frame to find out exactly why, but it sounds like a bother, so I've been diligently putting it off.”

“Diligently putting something off is a contradiction.”

“I'm glad Sankalut seems to enjoy the food too.”

“Changing the subject?”

The snake, which had been letting their conversation go in one ear and out the other, raised its head. It tilted it, chewed and swallowed its mouthful of rabbit, bones and all, then spoke.

“This is truly delicious. It's full of anger.”

Ju-hyeon looked puzzled.

“Anger? Why would a rabbit dish have anger in it?”

“I think it's describing the stinging pain on its tongue as anger.”

“But in that case, shouldn't it have called it pain...?”

“...”

“... Jio?”

Rather than answer, Jio looked back at the snake.

“I'd have expected you to enjoy fear more than anger, Sankalut. What a surprise.”

“I am not a picky eater.”

Then it chewed and swallowed a whole heap of the bright red chilies topping the dish.

“But I do like red things.”

“... If the people at the lab found out that Sankalut, evil god of pain and fear, actually just likes anything red, they'd faint.”

Ju-hyeon sounded deflated, but in truth, Sankalut wouldn't have been so satisfied if the “red food” hadn't been prepared by Jio. Ju-hyeon knew that too, of course.

'It's just absurd, watching an evil god enjoy gourmet food.'

Humans were susceptible to appearances. Even if everything laid out before them was a mass of mystery, it still took the form of food. And watching a Divinity with such a long history stuff its body full of nutrients certainly felt strange.

“Come to think of it... San, you liked the blood of children and the elderly, didn't you?”

“Yes, very much. I prefer it.”

“Looking at you now, you seem to like anything red. Was there a reason you singled out those ages?”

“They are children of the natural order who stand at the beginning and the end.”

In other words, they were something of a delicacy.

“They are also suitable beings to enter my paradise.”

“I'm well acquainted with the Sankalut cult's paradise. After offering up all their blood, pain, and fear, the sacrificial victims supposedly spend eternity in the most ideal paradise, one beyond anyone's reproach...”

“That is correct.”

“... Does that paradise really exist?”

“Of course.”

Apparently pleased with the rabbit dish and its abundance of chilies, Sankalut smacked its lips.

“It is like Jio's diary.”

“That's a little hard to believe...”

As Ju-hyeon's expression clouded, Arjio's eyes gleamed with interest.

“An afterlife created by another Divinity? Now that is something I'd love to hear about. Would you indulge me a little longer?”

“... It isn't as impressive as yours, Jio...”

“I only want something to draw on. All I did was paint a picture. I'm curious what sort of afterlife a proper Divinity creates.”

“... Ugh...”

The snake twisted sideways as though Jio's interest put it under tremendous pressure, then finally began to speak.

“... I gave them everything they valued. If they had lost family, I gave them family. If there was a mate they wanted, I gave them that mate. If there was a child they wished to carry, I allowed them to conceive its seed.”

Ju-hyeon's brows contorted.

“But all those people died, didn't they?”

“They are alive in my paradise.”

“I want to call that sophistry, but I've never died, so it's hard to argue...”

“Humans distinguish life from death and assign value based on the body's biological activity. I think it is an exceedingly foolish and inefficient method. I treated their souls very well.”

“Where are those souls now?”

“Inside my belly.”

The snake spoke as if it were obvious.

“They are parts of me that I have eaten. Where else could they be? They experience the emotion of happiness and continue their joyful stories.”

“Do you use those souls to hatch evil schemes, or...?”

“That is a difficult question. I would appreciate it if you put it more simply.”

“Are you changing the subject?”

Jio waved a hand.

“I think it genuinely doesn't understand.”

“Was what I said that difficult...?”

“To give you an analogy, it's as if someone asked you, 'Can you hatch an evil scheme with the rabbit you ate today?' Put that way, wouldn't you struggle to understand even the context of the question?”

“Uh...”

“It seems a young Divinity has trouble understanding questions that cast doubt on something so trivial and self-evident that it sees no reason to give it a second thought. As I keep saying, Sankalut doesn't seem to have been a Divinity that enjoyed communicating with humans.”

“...”

Ju-hyeon rubbed his chin.

“As I thought... The more I hear about the world after death, the more difficult it gets.”

“The living have no need to ponder the afterlife. It would have all sorts of ill effects, too.”

Arjio nodded knowingly.

“Seen from that perspective, it makes sense that most Divinities place so little value on human lives. The body is merely a shell, and human life depends on whether that shell is present.”

“Do you think that too, Jio?”

“Would I be sitting here eating like this if I did?”

“Oh, fair point...”

Once again, Ju-hyeon felt a strange mixture of emotions.

'... There really is no malice in the calamities Divinities cause.'

Evil, good—all of that was ultimately nothing more than standards humans had devised. Divinities truly were simply nature and fate endowed with will. They could never be sorted into right and wrong.

Just as there was no way to distinguish the top from the bottom of a star floating in space...

“...”

Of course, trying to spread its cruel inclinations even on Earth, where Sankalut's “right” was anything but right, was certainly wrong. Even a Divinity ought to know how to read the room and adapt.

Having reached that conclusion, Ju-hyeon turned his attention back to Jio.

“What exactly is that, um, 'diary' you made, Jio?”

“It's precisely that—a diary. It can be someone's home, a travel destination, or a stop along the way.”

It was like a vacation home with its doors thrown wide open to anyone Jio wished to befriend. They could settle there for good, or rest briefly before moving on wherever they wished. Either was perfectly fine.

At that, Sankalut tilted its head.

“You don't eat them?”

“I'm not a man so hungry that I need to devour my precious guests.”

“But they would be delicious...”

“So that's your perspective, Sankalut.”

It certainly was intriguing.

“... Fascinating.”

After all, he merely harbored divinity. He couldn't be called a proper god.

(To be continued)