Mythology: Ragnarok

Chapter 311 Stokoff

Xuanyuan Muze then joined their conversation and interrupted, saying, "Excuse me for asking, but is the name Ethan yours...?" As he spoke, Xuanyuan Muze pointed to Agreed and asked cautiously.

Agreed quickly replied, "Stage name, stage name, you need a catchy name to be successful in the art world."

Upon hearing this, Stukov immediately grabbed Agreed and punched him in the head, demanding, "Damn it, is that your stage name?! Ethan, that's not fair of you! You know how many memorial tablets I have in my house, and you're telling me I don't even know your real name? You old man, what else are you hiding from me? Just tell me everything!"

Agreed quickly begged for mercy, "I was wrong, I was wrong, my real name is 'Reller,' now you know, right? Let me go right now, I'm not a pen, you big brute, if you don't stop, you'll break me!"

Stokoff then released his grip, and after Agreed broke free, he punched Stokoff in the chest. The two exchanged a knowing smile, a gesture that suggested they were old friends.

Xuanyuan Muze looked at Agreed and asked, "You're an artist? What kind of works do you mainly create?"

Hearing this, Agreed said somewhat ashamedly, "Um... I've learned a little bit of everything, but I'm not good at anything. Over the years, I've written calligraphy, painted, played music, fought, practiced acrobatics, performed for a living, learned opera singing, acted in plays, tried stunt driving and bungee jumping, written scripts and plays, written literature to criticize society, edited newspapers and dabbled in the arts. Although I don't have any special skills, I'm still somewhat famous in the industry."

Stokoff laughed loudly, "Old man, you're quite modest, aren't you? Everyone knows how capable you are as the head of this art gallery. You're not modest when you should be, and you're putting on airs when you shouldn't be. Tsk tsk tsk, you're really despicable. You only show off in front of people in the industry."

Agred retorted unhappily, "Oh right, you're so great. People who know you think you're a literary giant who writes novels about people's lives, but people who don't know you think you're a gladiator who escaped from some arena! You're always swearing. Look at you, how do you resemble a literary master who has been famous for many years and has written about 'all aspects of life'?"

Stokoff retorted, "What the hell? Who told you that being a writer means you have to be eloquent and full of pretentious language? Besides, where did I swear? Did I insult your family? Did I specifically target anyone? What you call swearing was just an interjection to emphasize my surprise; it has nothing to do with my upbringing."

Agreed laughed and scolded, "You idiot, you always have a bunch of excuses. Fine, fine, let's not talk about it anymore. Let's not insult each other. Show my friend around. You know this area best. Be my guide this time."

"Well, you've been waiting for me here, haven't you? Fine, I'll give you face. Young man, come with me and see the art and culture of us old folks."

Hearing this, Xuan Yuan Mu Ze asked, puzzled, "Old man? Weren't you still young and carefree? Why are you saying you're old now?"

Stokoff looked at Xuan Yuan Muze with some surprise upon hearing this, and after sizing him up, he suddenly realized and confirmed with Agreed, "He's a traveler?! Goodness, no wonder he doesn't know anything. Wait, Ethan, why didn't you teach this guest the common knowledge that you can't judge a book by its cover in the Kingdom of Ten Thousand Races? You've made a fool of yourself!"

Xuanyuan Muze asked with a puzzled look, "What do you mean?"

Stokoff asked helplessly, "Don't you feel anything? Have you seen any old people these days? Or have you seen any elderly people who look like they're about to die?"

Xuanyuan Muze shook his head as if sensing something and said, "You mean..."

Stokoff pointed to himself and said, "Don't let my appearance fool you, I'm actually seventy-two years old. This might be the last arts festival I attend."

"You're all so old?! How come you all look so...youthful?"

Stokoff explained, "Because of the 'anti-aging injection,' which is a welfare policy for the elderly in the Kingdom of All Races. We can inject ourselves with anti-aging injections to keep ourselves young forever, but we will still die. Moreover, most of the elderly who have injected anti-aging injections do not live past seventy. Although I am like this, I am actually considered one of the longest-lived among the common people in the Kingdom of All Races. However... whether I can make it to the next art festival is hard to say."

Xuanyuan Muze exclaimed in surprise, "An anti-aging needle? There's such a magical thing?"

Agreed snorted coldly and said with disgust, "It's just a drug, a filthy thing that the Kingdom of All Races uses to persecute the common people."

Stokkov frowned slightly, then questioned, "Why are you still so reactionary? The longevity needle isn't a forced injection, and besides, didn't you get it yourself? I just don't understand why you're always nitpicking the system of the Kingdom of All Races."

"I nitpick to make it better. If everyone flatters it like you, how can it improve?"

"What kind of nonsense are you spouting? You're nitpicking and you think you're right?"

Seeing that the two were about to start arguing, Xuan Yuan Mu Ze quickly spoke up to interrupt, saying, "Gentlemen! Let's continue browsing the exhibition. Arguing here might disturb other visitors."

Stokoff and Agreed turned around and stopped arguing after being reminded, clearly showing that the two had completely different ideas about the Kingdom of All Races.

The two then led Xuanyuan Muze on a tour of the area. Stokoff explained that the main exhibits here were antiques, calligraphy and paintings, and literary works. Basically, only older people like them would stay in this area, since young people generally couldn't calm down and therefore couldn't understand or appreciate these things.

"Don't young people like these things?" Xuan Yuan Muze asked, looking at the calligraphy and paintings in front of him.

Agreed then explained, “That’s normal. Not many people can calm down and appreciate static beauty when they’re at the age where they love to play. I loved to play when I was young too. That’s how art is. You’ll have new understandings and perspectives on it at every age. Your liking for something actually comes entirely from whether you can understand it and bring your own feelings into it.”

It's like asking someone who's never been in love to understand the subtlety, restraint, regret, and melancholy in love songs; to those who don't understand, these songs are just pointless whining. It's like a play where a thousand people have a thousand different interpretations and understandings of the protagonist; how can you say that one interpretation is wrong and yours is right? I think that as long as it's not something deliberately meant to disgust others, the only truly fair thing to do with many works of art is to think, 'I don't like it, but I won't criticize it.'

As I've said before, art is a very subjective thing. If you promote what you like by putting down one thing to praise another, then... isn't that a bit too impolite?

Art and beauty are definitive, my friend. When you start trying to categorize things as superior or inferior, noble or base, aren't you already the most vulgar person around?