Gio returned to the hut.

“......”

Now, he was checking the rewards he had received from the system after assessing the danger level of the young man he had encountered at Gyeongbokgung.

“I was busy.”

Reward: Seal.

“I was busy eating.”

He knew the system didn't have a sense of self, but the excuse slipped out anyway.

"So, this seal...?”

Gio gazed at the marble-like stamp.

“......”

He placed the stamp against his glowing back. It shone clearly, like sunlight filtering through a thin blanket, and it was beautiful.

Though it looked like marble, the luster was different. Looking down at the small pillar that faintly pulsed as if alive, Gio muttered.

“Where have I seen this?”

“Gururuk?”

“Don’t look at it with greedy eyes, honey. Even if you like jewels, this is too much. If you're really desperate for marble, go to the spring where trees of similar stone texture grow.”

“Gunggung...”

“You can’t act cute, either.”

Gio had evolved into a portrait whose personality changed in a flash, thanks to a system that had been created by a very ordinary human. There was no way that a seal given by such a system would be ordinary, so he couldn't just let Honey swallow it whole.

“Hmm...”

After looking around, Gio came to a conclusion.

“It was a sealing wax stamp.”

A sentimental item used to seal letter paper, sealing wax. After melting the wax and pressing it, it creates pretty and stylish patterns, essentially a seal.

In the era Gio lived in, it was an item chosen for its sensitivity rather than its practicality, but that wasn’t the point...

“I don’t have any wax.”

“Gguk?”

“I don’t have anyone to send a carefully crafted letter to.”

"...Gurr..."

“Can’t see for the tears.”

I am a firefly.

“I don’t have any friends.”

“......”

“...Was it a suggestion to make a pen-pal?”

Although Gio didn’t know why he had received the seal, he interpreted it the way he wanted, since he didn’t understand anything about it.

This must be the system’s way of suggesting that Gio make new connections since he had no friends.

“Well then, let’s try sending a letter to Yoo Seong-Woon.”

The easiest target, Yoo Seong-Woon.

Thus, the weary modern man, Yoo Seong-Woon, was once again inconvenienced without any warning.

“......”

After work, Yoo Seong-Woon returned home and almost had a heart attack.

“…What’s this, a letter...?”

A letter he hadn’t seen before was placed on the living room table.

“......”

He looked around and muttered.

“There’s no sign of a break-in.”

Thanks to the help of Bisa Beul, the Guild Master of the Bisa Beul Guild, the security of the place where Yoo Seong-Woon stayed was so thorough that no one except an S-rank hunter could enter. So, it was a shock to see such a strange letter just sitting there.

After a brief sigh, Yoo Seong-Woon calmed his emotions and sat down on the table sofa.

“Let’s see.”

Rustle.

The letter made a sound that was almost like dried grass.

“......”

Dried grass, huh.

“…Gio?”

For some reason, Yoo Seong-Woon had a strong feeling that he knew who had sent the letter.

“I’m not sure, but the feeling is there.”

The envelope felt similar to hanji paper, but it was drier and much softer. His eyes, which had been on the pitch-black envelope as dark as Gio’s eyes, soon fell on the wax sealing the letter.

It sparkled like a jewel.

“Oh...”

It was definitely Gio’s work.

“It looks like he melted the jewel’s crystal structure and stamped it like wax. I don’t know how such a thing could happen, but it’s dreamy and beautiful, like something out of a fairy tale.”

This strange presence was something Gio had in abundance. It was oddly emotional, one might say.

“A seal...”

It was a pattern he had never seen before.

“…A portrait... does it resemble one, a little?”

The pattern of plants spreading from a rectangular border and the design inside that seemed to abstract stars. It reminded him of the “portrait of Gio” hanging in the Bisa Beul gallery.

“Such a strong sense of taste.”

The way he acted, Gio strongly resembled a medieval noble from a fantasy setting.

“A fairy tale-like sensibility,” one might say.

He had heard Gio lived in a hut, which seemed so peaceful for someone like him.

“Well then, let’s look at the contents.”

Carefully peeling the seal so as not to damage it, Yoo Seong-Woon revealed the white paper inside. He took it out and slowly read the black characters.

“......”

Then he let out a deep sigh.

“…I can’t understand it...”

If he was going to send a letter, wouldn’t it be better to write it in a language of Earth?

‘...I thought Gio would at least write it in Korean, since I thought he had some understanding of Korean culture, but I guess I shouldn’t have expected that. After all, Gio isn’t even Korean.’

He struggled to see if he could understand it, but it was a completely unfamiliar language. He even couldn’t sense any patterns like a proper language, making Yoo Seong-Woon feel troubled.

“If this is a curse letter, things could get troublesome.”

Though he didn’t think Gio would send something dangerous outright, those who were the source of such things weren’t ones to make assumptions lightly. If the item was something that cast a curse when not interpreted properly, it would become quite a problem.

“......”

He didn’t feel any ominous energy, so Yoo Seong-Woon relaxed a bit.

“…Since I was planning to visit tomorrow, maybe I’ll ask about it.”

As long as it wasn’t an immediate bomb, it didn’t matter too much.

He carefully resealed the letter, making sure it wouldn’t get crumpled. The blue gemstone seal, which felt completely smooth with no adhesive properties, was cold but firmly pressed the opening shut, thanks to its weight.

“Anyway, I can’t figure out what it is.”

Should he consider it a "piece of artwork?"

“Such a talent to give me a scare...”

He wondered when he would truly understand Gio’s nature.

That thought was a little far off.

“Gio.”

The next morning, Yoo Seong-Woon sought out Gio.

“This, did you send this letter?”

“Yes, that’s correct.”

“I knew it was you.”

“......”

The portrait still had a blank expression, but it asked with a hint of curiosity.

“You wrote my name on the letter, didn’t you check it?”

“Oh, that...”

With an embarrassed expression, Yoo Seong-Woon pulled out the letter.

“I’m sorry, but how am I supposed to read a letter in a language I don’t understand? If it’s not in a language of Earth, I can’t read it.”

“…I see.”

After a brief pause, Gio continued.

“But from my memory, I believe I sent you a letter in Korean.”

“Huh? Really?”

“Yes. I believe there was an issue during the delivery process, much like how you might feel the resolution of this portrait is off.”

“Oh… well, that’s...”

That could certainly happen.

‘The language of the letter had no discernible rules.’

Gio’s letter looked as though it had been typed on a broken typewriter, with the outer format neat, but the intricate language and rules were a confusing mess.

This part might very well be true, as Gio said.

‘Resolution, probably referring to the status of the portrait we talked about earlier...’

It felt much like the overwhelming presence and fear he had felt from Gio outside the portrait.

‘From what I thought earlier, the frame holding the portrait is likely acting as a filter... a filter to contain the existence of Gio, which humans cannot handle.’

If the language had been distorted in the filtering process, then the current confusion made sense. The frame, which contained Gio’s overwhelming nature, was likely preventing the breakdown of reality. If such a filter could alter the language, then it would naturally make sense that it got scrambled.

“It must be a little unfortunate for the person sending the letter.”

“I'm sorry it was so confusing.”

“It’s fine, but what did the letter say?”

“It was just a simple thank you and a greeting.”

“…But you had your own rules, didn’t you?”

With a sudden question, Yoo Seong-Woon continued.

“When you take something out of the portrait, someone has to pay a price. But I don’t remember paying a price.”

“I thought the same, but it seems the seal allowed me to bypass the rules.”

“The seal?”

“It’s a seal I accidentally acquired. When I marked it with that, it seems I didn’t need to pay a price.”

“Huh, really?”

It seemed the 1:1 rules weren’t something Gio had intended to create.

‘To think he found a way to bypass them.’

Considering this, it was clear that Gio’s rules were a defense to prevent his overwhelming nature from distorting reality. It was probably the result of the filter from the frame, as I thought earlier.

‘But if he’s figured out how to bypass such suppression...’

It would be a little chilling from a human standpoint.

‘Even though Gio doesn’t seem to enjoy tormenting people, beings of such magnitude can unintentionally destroy others. If these rules exist to protect humans, then this tendency to bypass the rules should be watched closely.’

Anyway, he felt a little reassured. He had slept poorly after receiving the eerie letter, but it seemed there wasn’t any immediate danger after all.

“I was surprised. When I got home after work, there was suddenly an unknown letter.”

“I’m sorry. I didn’t expect the letter to be delivered that way.”

“You don’t send letters often, do you?”

“Yes, but...”

Gio hesitated at the end of his sentence.

“I wanted to try making a new friend.”

“......”

Yoo Seong-Woon let out a slow breath and asked with his usual tone.

“…A new friend?”

“I’m embarrassed to say it, but the only one I converse with is you, Yoo Seong-Woon. Before making a new connection, I thought I’d first send you a letter.”

“Well... that was a good thing to do.”

Although Yoo Seong-Woon usually took it easy with the origin's existence, that didn’t mean he was unaware of how dangerous Gio could be.

If it had been an ordinary person, they would have been shocked by such an odd letter. Especially since he wasn’t even a hunter but a civilian.

“Others would be startled, so I think you should be a little more careful with that part.”

“I’ll be more careful next time.”

“I’d appreciate that.”

Yoo Seong-Woon then asked, scratching the back of his neck.

“So, how are you going to find this ‘new friend’?”

How would Gio, who only existed in the portrait, manage to ‘make a new friend’?

An ordinary person would try to move around or make friends through the internet, but that didn’t apply to Gio.

“Would the letter be delivered to anyone, randomly?”

“No, the recipient must be precise for the letter to be # Nоvеlight # delivered.”

“I guess it was meant for someone like me.”

“I’ll have to think more about how to make a new friend.”

“Hmm...”

Perfect timing, it seemed.

Recalling the conversation he had with Bisa Beul, Yoo Seong-Woon asked Gio.

“Gio, is it possible to move to other dungeons?”

“You mean not just outside the portrait, but to a dungeon?”

“Yeah.”

“......”

Gio blinked twice, as if thinking, then answered.

“If it's a world I’ve drawn...”

“Huh?”

“A world I drew...”

“Yes, it’s not hard to move in the world I’ve created.”

“Uh?”

“But the dungeon you’re referring to doesn’t seem like the one I’ve drawn. Are you talking about a dungeon with an entrance on Earth that Earthlings can visit?”

“…Oh...”

Though his mind was a bit confused, Yoo Seong-Woon kept his composure and answered.

“Right. A dungeon where even hunters like me can visit, one that already has an entrance on Earth.”

Thinking that he should raise Gio’s risk level, Yoo Seong-Woon continued.

“You made portraits all over the place and wandered through the company with them, right? So, I wondered if you could find your portrait in another dungeon. That means you could visit that dungeon as well.”

“I haven’t tried that yet.”

Gio added after a brief pause.

“But it sounds interesting.”

Gio seemed intrigued.

‘It’s a good thing I had this in mind.’

It seemed Gio’s portrait, surprisingly, pursued a life driven by curiosity.

If I asked something like this, Gio might have immediately tried it, so I had already prepared for this possibility.

‘Though Gio’s intelligence is either human or beyond, it’s hard to pinpoint his behavioral patterns. But since he showed interest, it’s better to propose something within a manageable scope.’

As Bisa Beul said, some humans like Yoo Seong-Woon couldn’t control Gio’s actions. Even without selfish motives.

There was objectively no way to stop Gio from going into society. He could go anywhere and create anything just by painting.

‘Then, it’s better to at least guide his direction. I can’t stop his movements, but I can recommend a place.’

Yoo Seong-Woon took a paper from his briefcase.

“How about these places?”

“What’s this?”

“I’ve picked out dungeons where you wouldn’t cause too much of a stir even if you visit.”

He had chosen places with the least risk of human casualties.

“They’re low-reward and not well-known, so even hunters don’t visit them often. They’re not places that would make you in danger...”

“......”

“If you want to experience the environment outside your portrait, I thought maybe you’d like these. If you move around like this, you might run into other hunters in the dungeon. That way, your chances of making new friends increase.”

Did Gio find the suggestion acceptable? He nodded.

“Thank you.”

“I hope it helps.”

“Yes, I’ll give you something in return as a sign of my gratitude.”

“A gift?”

“The jerky I made earlier has been well dried.”

“…Really…”

He never imagined Gio would make jerky.

‘It’s probably not ordinary jerky.’

At this rate, he thought Gio might live longer than usual and turn into an immortal.