Stara kaligrafija

Wait, did I read that right? Iseul. Iseul's name is here. It's been a while since the last time I saw something related to her inside a galleria, but I didn't expect her to create a piece like this?

I grabbed my phone. I took a picture of Iseul's handwriting, as well as the note beside it. I should ask Sai to read it since she knows how to read hangul.

I shook my head, trying to focus on what was in front of me. I still have a few places to go to, I won't let this get inside my head for a bad reason again. I finished roaming around inside the place and walked towards the exit.

"Thank you for visiting, Yohan!" Dinko said when he saw me leaving.

I slightly bowed at him. "Thank you for your warm welcome, Dinko. I'll go ahead now."

"Come again next time! Stara kaligrafija is just here waiting for you," he said and waved goodbye.

I inhaled fresh air after exiting the place. I was stuck between going to my next destination or going back to Sai's place. But because of my curiosity, I found myself walking back to Brent's.

I can't believe this! Bloody hell... Iseul created calligraphy and it's casually being displayed in a gallery. I mean, does she even know about this?

"Welcome- Hey! It's you again. Why are you here? You missed me already?" Sai laughed.

She was skipping while going towards my direction. Her energy didn't change at all even though there are visitors here.

"I need you to translate something for me." I said and opened my phone. My hands were shaking.

"Oh? What is it?" she said and looked at the picture.

"I saw this at Stara kaligrafija, and Iseul made this... surprisingly," I said while waiting for her to read.

"Do... wa... ju... se... yo... je... bal. Dowajuseyo, jebal." she said.

"What does it mean?" I asked.

"I don't know!" she laughed and scratched the back of her head. "I can read their writing system but I don't know what it means! Wait, let me search for it."

She opened her phone and typed something. I patiently waited for her to translate the line. I wanted to know what it means.

"I think it means 'please help'."

My eyes widened. "Oh... damn."

I was lost for words! We both looked at each other. Sai's eyes immediately screamed concerned for Iseul.

"This makes me wonder why the calligraphy was written using red ink." she zoomed in the picture. I heard her gasp.

"I thought of that too. I wanted to ask Dinko if he knows where the owner got this from... the note just said it's from Techne Island." I said.

"Who's Dinko?"

"The caretaker of the gallery."

Her mouth formed an 'o'. "It's okay if you want to ask him, but be careful. You're just here for vacation, you should make sure nobody suspects you for investigating something."

I nodded my head. She's right. If I ask someone else about Iseul, I might ask the wrong person. Or they might even find me suspicious. I need to play safe.

"I'll probably just ask Iseul about this. She was asking for... help." I turned my phone off.

She sighed. "Poor Iseul... she must've been going through something bad when she made this."

I was bothered about that too. She wouldn't make something like this for a reason.

"This calligraphy was even displayed, how dare they," I whispered. "There are customers, I'll go ahead," I said.

She tapped my arm. "You must be worried about Iseul too. But you should take it easy."

I nodded my head. "I'm going to other galleries now." I said before heading out.

Just as I thought, there were no more traces of Iseul again. I visited three more galleries before deciding to eat lunch.

After eating in a small restaurant, I went outside again for a walk. I found myself sitting on a bench at the park near my apartment. It's sunny today, but this park has a lot of big trees. It's a perfect spot for people to relax.

"The weather is great today." A glanced at the man who was approaching me. He's the old guy who had a large painting with him last time.

What's his name again?

"Rocco, nice seeing you again." I smiled at him and he sat beside me.

"I was looking for you too, it's a good thing I went out for a walk."

"Why were you looking for me?"

"You mentioned you're an artist. I am actually looking for someone to do a commission for me and I thought you would be interested. Do you do commissions, Yohan?"

"Oh... I accept art commissions at home."

I was a bit hesitant, knowing the fact that I'm just here for vacation, and not for work. But I can also have something to do if I accept whatever it is that he needs.

"I would like you to make a realistic portrait of my friend. It's his birthday next month, and I'm planning to give him something made here before I leave. You can say 'no'." he explained.

"When are you leaving?" I asked.

"The date's still far so no need to worry about the deadline. Are you willing to do my request? Well you can think about it first then contact me about your final decision."

I think I can give enough time for it everyday. "Alright, I'll do it."

"Really? That's great to know. Here's my friend's photo," he got something from his wallet and handed it to me. "Just name your price and I'll pay higher!" he sounded so happy.

I'm glad to hear someone like him appreciates artists so much. I hid his friend's photo inside my journal. "How can I contact you, Rocco?" I asked.

"Here," he also handed me his calling card. "You can message me. I still have work to do so I'll go ahead. Thank you, again!" He stood up and waved goodbye.

I just casually received a commission after a long day. It's not a stressful thing to do, I even find it as my way of resting. Now I've got something new to do instead of visiting places and investigating. I'm not here for work, but I'll give it a try.