Chapter 307

It’s a very inefficient method, but Gardeners are usually created by being chosen.

The Garden literally had to select a qualified human, but there are several problems with this. For one, most qualified humans lived in hiding, not revealing themselves.

"Cha Eun-hyuk, your case is actually one of the better ones."

Jung Hae-woon feigned a sniffle and wiped his tears with a handkerchief.

"The Great Cataclysm happened only 32 years ago. As a result, various superstitions are still rampant in the world. In fact, among them, there are definite, tangible Mysteries that shouldn’t simply be called superstitions."

"Ah, um, yes. I see."

Cha Eun-hyuk nodded with a reluctant expression. Jung Hae-woon continued speaking.

"In a situation like this, how creepy must an existence that ’sees what others cannot see’ be?"

"Hmm..."

"Ah, I definitely didn’t mean to offend you, Cha Eun-hyuk. It’s just that the objective reality is like that. A person who isn’t even a Hunter but sees illusions is bound to be ostracized."

"I wasn’t offended. It’s something I fully acknowledge."

"Thank you for understanding. You really are a patient person. There was a reason why you were chosen by Teacher Seo Ji-oh."

Of course, this is an era that acknowledges the existence of souls. However, that is also limited to Hunters. An Unawakened without such skills seeing things others can’t? In the worst-case scenario, it even leads to witch hunts.

In small, self-governed villages, such incidents, big and small, had actually occurred. To people with an outdated mindset, a being with such qualities would seem like nothing more than a pawn of the Great Cataclysm.

So what could they do? They had to hide themselves on their own.

"However, when the people around them are overly provoked, it sometimes really reaches the point of killing that precious Talent. In fact, there are quite a few cases like that, especially among rural folks."

"..."

Cha Eun-hyuk’s expression turned subtle.

"...Um, then was I... in danger too?"

"Didn’t you hide those traits because you also thought it was dangerous?"

"Ah, that was just... because my younger siblings couldn’t see them..."

"In the end, I think it was one of your instincts not wanting to be alienated. And when alienation worsens, it becomes ostracization, and when ostracization worsens, it becomes hostility. Especially in harsh times like these, hostility easily turns into murderous intent."

"...I suppose that’s true."

Cha Eun-hyuk couldn’t deny it in the end. At that, Ji-oh asked.

"Have you ever seen such a case? You accepted that faster than I thought."

"Murder cases occurring among 3rd Class Citizens are... yes, quite frequent. Unlike cities, there are no Hunters or personnel to systematically manage the villages, and the number of police is extremely low. I know there are also many times when 5th Class Citizens, who are heinous criminals, sneak in."

"Then aren’t they almost in a state of isolation?"

"It’s a little better in cases like our village, which has a terminal connected to the city. But there are many completely isolated villages without even that kind of terminal. Places like that have a truly closed-off atmosphere."

Jung Hae-woon added a kind explanation for Ji-oh, who seemed to be having a hard time understanding.

"You know how there are a lot of those in old movies, villages with a closed-off culture? They ostracize outsiders, are easily tainted by cults, and have a slightly creepy vibe due to weird traditions... The kind of village that would appear in thriller or horror genres."

"I just understood."

"It’s a fragmentary example showing that the aftermath of the Great Cataclysm still remains. Of course, the Association and the government are making efforts to identify and manage them... but with the system of resident registration numbers gone, there’s a limit to finding out what kind of villages have formed and where."

Above all, such villages also hate the Association and the government. With a very high probability, that is.

"Should I say it’s a somewhat hated position?"

"What is the reason the villages ostracize the outside to that extent?"

"Well... this is actually quite a reasonable wariness."

"There’s a reason? For hating the Association and the government?"

"It’s because the government did some stupid things in the early days of the Great Cataclysm."

Joo-hyun, who had been listening quietly, nodded.

"There were a lot of incidents."

"That’s true."

Yoo Sung-woon also agreed.

"To put it directly, there were various cases of human trafficking and biological experiments. The idiots who tried to overcome their fear of the newly emerged concept of Mystery with science caused a huge mess."

"My goodness."

"The problem is that those idiots were the people in power in various countries. I think I might have mentioned it to you once before, but the heads of the higher-ups in the previous government didn’t roll for nothing."

"Are you saying they did such things even though there was an actual threat like the Awakened?"

"Ah, up until then, the Awakened were... how should I put it..."

As Yoo Sung-woon trailed off, Jung Hae-woon laughed and explained instead.

"Monsters, or at best, mere mercenaries. In other words, the situation of the Awakened was practically akin to slaves. And the way other people looked at them wasn’t very kind, either."

"But each of those individuals must have been strong. I don’t quite understand how they could ostracize the only strong people who could stop the swarming monsters instead of thanking them and clinging to them."

"That’s why it was only like that during the early and mid-stages of the Great Cataclysm. At first, even the Awakened were afraid of the power they possessed. The government also drove the atmosphere in that direction... As for the opposite case, there were people drunk on power, and they committed acts that truly warranted being called monsters."

"Ugh."

"Still, Korea was a case where things were contained quite quickly. It was worth chopping off the heads of the higher-ups several times. It was only after repeatedly going through such large and small coups, settling them, having them happen again, and settling them again that Korea became what it is today. Quite eccentric, isn’t it?"

Ji-oh looked at Jung Hae-woon with pitying eyes.

"You’ve been through a lot."

"Thank you for acknowledging it."

Jung Hae-woon gave a double thumbs-up and continued his explanation.

"Anyway, the Hunters of the past didn’t have much of a voice. And the Korean government just blindly tried to control those Hunters and all the citizens. A few incidents occurred in that process..."

"Are those the human trafficking and biological experiments that Yoo Sung-woon just mentioned?"

"There were many other things besides that. There were times when they framed innocent villages and cut off the heads of guiltless people. That was broadcast in real-time, allowing all citizens to see it."

"In short, it was a reign of terror."

"That’s right. And as history has proven, that kind of politics didn’t last very long. Especially when there was an actual threat like Hunters. The Hunters soon realized the magnitude of the power they possessed and overturned the country."

At that, Joo-hyun interjected and pointed at Jung Hae-woon.

"And one of those people is Guild Master Jung Hae-woon."

"Ah, it’s too embarrassing when you praise me like this."

"At least within Korea, there is nothing that cannot be done with the name of ’Symbols of Eternity’. Such treatment is exactly the awe and gratitude directed towards the achievements these people have established. Because they made this a somewhat livable world."

"They say it’s a rebellion if you fail, and a revolution if you succeed."

Jung Hae-woon smiled and nodded.

"In our case, it was a revolution."

"..."

"You’re looking at me with such pity."

"It breaks my heart."

"I guess it’s true that you gave birth to us after all."

"It must have been hard."

He knew that Jung Hae-woon only looked old on the outside but was still like a child on the inside. When he thought about an undergrown child wearing an adult’s mask and walking down that harsh, thorny path, his heart ached beyond mere bitterness.

Ji-oh thought he should grill a few pieces of meat for him before leaving.

"..."

"Well, um... let’s set that aside."

Jung Hae-woon naturally avoided Teacher Seo Ji-oh’s gaze. It was a somewhat awkward evasion.

"It hasn’t been that long since we replaced that crazy government. There must be very many citizens who still remember those times. The people who could hide hid themselves as tightly as possible... Thanks to that, the government can now no longer figure out how many of what kind of citizens there are in Korea."

Wasn’t this both Korea’s strength and weakness before the Great Cataclysm? Resident registration numbers for administrative convenience, and on top of that, CCTVs installed everywhere. Thanks to that, they could catch crimes for the most part.

But now, they couldn’t do that.

"Of course, we know too. That if we wanted to figure it out, we could. Our country’s Hunters are so competent; what couldn’t they do if they set their minds to it? But if we are to proceed with this task, we have to go through a lot of backlash."

"By backlash, you mean..."

"The hostility of the people who were in hiding, the worries of city dwellers who want us to focus on city management, the stress of Hunters who have to deal with people instead of monsters. And so on. Korea doesn’t quite have enough leeway to handle all of this yet."

"That makes sense."

"In the same vein, installing teleport terminals in rural villages also comes with a tremendous amount of difficulties. First of all, what to do about the villagers’ suspicion and fierce opposition, and personnel to manage them have to reside there, but it’s also a worry whether those people will be able to blend in well with the village."

"It’s a human problem, after all."

"Just as it always has been."

Jung Hae-woon laughed dejectedly.

"Because of this, most villages naturally develop a closed-off culture. Since they ostracize outside influences, they easily harbor hostility toward ’unfamiliar things.’ Therefore, if the ’Talent’ born in such a village gets their uniqueness discovered, they usually... well... inevitably end up going through a lot of bad things."

He shrugged.

"There are cases where that isn’t true, though. That is, if they are lucky enough to have a gentle village atmosphere."

"It doesn’t seem like there would be all that many cases like that."

"Usually, the villagers whose wariness has risen heavily due to the aftermath of the Great Cataclysm and the government’s stupid actions will be the elders of that village, so it can’t be helped. The person with the strongest voice in the village says they hate the outside, so everyone else has to hate it together."

Jung Hae-woon smiled brightly.

"This is also one of the reasons why I run around every day until my feet sweat."

"I think I also heard the news that every day is overtime for you, is that correct?"

"Oh, of course, absolutely. Because quite a few people will die if I don’t work."

"Hmm."

Ji-oh took out a sandwich with meat in it. Jung Hae-woon stopped him.

"Are you trying to lock me up in this cabin somewhere? I would be very grateful if you put that away."

"You won’t die from eating it."

"Come on, Teacher, please cut me some slack. I don’t want to end up living in this peaceful cabin forever."

"I do not imprison people recklessly."

"You would bewitch them, though. If it’s the you right now, maybe, but I can’t trust the pink-haired Portrait."

"You seem to know quite well how to coax people. Since you say you’ll trust the me right now, I’ll stop for the moment."

"I’m so thankful I could cry."

Anyway.

"The method by which Gardeners find Talent up until now? They just have to do the legwork entirely. They have to see them in person, test them, check their aptitude, and then stealthily approach and kidnap them."

"Kidnap? Has it finally come to that?"

"I call it kidnapping, but strictly speaking, it’s scouting. Unless we check each and every one like that, we couldn’t bribe... I mean, recruit Talent. That’s already hard enough, but they’re all living in hiding."

Cha Eun-hyuk apologized with a slightly guilty face.

"I’m sorry."

"I didn’t say it to get an apology."

It wasn’t particularly something to apologize for, either.

"If a Talent doesn’t want to work, we can’t force them. But it takes a big mental toll when talented people easily give up, disappear, and hide. It makes me wonder if the Earth is going to be ruined at this rate."

Furthermore.

"This isn’t the only problem, either."

"Right, because the Garden has to select that Talent for them to become a Gardener."

At Yoo Sung-woon’s agreement, Ji-oh asked.

"How does the Garden usually select a Gardener?"

"Uh... I think Jeorge made a similar analogy, but it’s really similar to a cat choosing its owner. You know, a can opener, that thing."

"So it’s completely arbitrary."

"I suppose so."

At that point, Jung Hae-woon chimed in.

"There is a commonality. In most cases, the Talent selected as a Gardener is usually a good match with that Garden. In other words, it chooses a ’competent slave who seems like they’ll adapt well.’"

"Slave?"

"Slave."

Jung Hae-woon didn’t correct his words.

"The Garden also appears to have an ego. Perhaps that’s true. It’s at the level where you have to agonize over whether to treat an extremely well-made artificial intelligence as a person or not. However, that’s why it is even crueler."

Usually, they had no mercy. To use a human example, they could be compared to sociopaths or psychopaths who are lacking something.

"It might be easier for you to understand if you think of it as an exploitative company."

"You mean they overwork their employees?"

"Let’s say there’s a result that would take grinding 10 people to the bone to achieve. But the truth is, you can get a similar result by grinding just 1 person. Then, will the company use 10 people, or 1 person?"

"If they had a conscience, they’d use 10."

"If they didn’t, it would be 1. The Garden is exactly that conscienceless company. Since it has no humanity, it has no mercy and no consideration. Because it’s efficient to use 1 person until they break, and then pick another 1 and run them."

Cha Eun-hyuk asked stealthily.

"But the Garden... isn’t a real company. It wouldn’t need money, either."

"Ah, good question. It is exactly in this regard that you can feel that the Garden is a truly neutral existence and a natural disaster. Cha Eun-hyuk, did you hear this explanation from Yoo Sung-woon?"

"Yes, what explanation?"

"That the world can be divided into the disciplines of Mystery and Science."

"I did hear that."

"Then where do humans belong?"

"...Science?"

"And the Garden?"

"Mystery..."

"Then where does a Gardener belong?"

"...Aren’t they humans too?"

"That’s right, they’re humans. They are people. And they exist."

Jung Hae-woon nodded as if to say he guessed right.

"The Garden demands a high-functioning computer with the delicate talents and abilities of a human, but that human is not a Mystery. They are just a human who can blend heavily into the Mystery. In other words, they are borrowing resources from another domain."

Therefore, the Garden usually only uses one Gardener. This is to not break down the boundary between Mystery and Science. Greed or issues of resources do not belong there.

It is solely an issue of balance and efficiency. And this, in other words, means the providence of nature. Just like how cold water goes down and hot water goes up. Just like how ice floats on water and air circulates.

That is simply all it is.

"Therefore, in most cases, the Garden is merciless to the Gardener."

"Hmm."

Ji-oh’s hair dyed into a pastel tone.

"So it’s trash?"

"Oh, my god. To think I’d hear this from a two-legged Garden."

"Are you openly not even treating me like a human right to my face? How sad."

"What is there to be sad about when calling a Garden a Garden?"

Certainly, by human standards, the Garden couldn’t help but be trash. Because usually, the Garden bewitches the Gardener. It makes them love it deeply, and then holds that love hostage, shaking them up. Telling them to work. To do better.

And after doing that, if the Gardener breaks down, it looks for another Gardener. It just immediately moves on to the next without any regrets. Because that’s efficient. Because they love, they are devoted, and because they are devoted, they are desperate, and that desperation is bound to manifest as maximum efficiency.

Gardeners usually got ground down like that.

"If we compare it to a person, there really is no other trash quite like it."

"I treat mine beautifully with love, so could you please not treat me the same way?"

"...Could you please return to black?"

"Sure."

"Phew."

The relieved Jung Hae-woon soon stood up from his seat.

"In that sense, our ’Portrait of Ji-oh’ has pulled off a huge task. Now, everyone, applaud."

Clap, clap, clap...

Awkward applause followed.

"Now, fuck, I! Don’t have to! Run on foot...!!"

"Whoa."

"This is mercy! This is consideration! This is love!!"

The applause from the standing Jung Hae-woon was incredibly loud and clear.

"The reason the number of Gardeners suddenly increased..."

Seo Seo-hee pointed at the landscape painting in front of her.

"Is thanks to these guys?"

"Yes, that’s how it has been figured out for now."

"In what way, exactly?"

"They say these paintings go around looking for ’Talent’."

"So what do they do."

"Apparently, they swallow them if they’re a good match, and spit them out if they aren’t."

"What kind of garbage talk is that?"

"But it’s the truth."

A total of 10,000 landscape paintings drawn by Ji-oh were picking out Gardeners.

"For some reason, the Gardeners who are successfully swallowed are reportedly spat out at Gyeongbokgung Palace or certain other landmarks. Currently, the Association is gathering those Talents and giving them detailed explanations."

"Gyeongbokgung Palace? Landmarks?"

"Well..."

The hesitating Association researcher spoke.

"According to the Gardeners, it seems they are spat out at the veins or springs of Mystery located in areas with high population flow."

"..."

Seo Seo-hee couldn’t help but think of her Portrait Teacher.

’...It is something for Jung Hae-woon to give a standing ovation out of joy for, but.’

Just what exactly does he want, that Portrait Teacher.