御书房文学网

Chapter 237

In the shadow of the forest, the sounds felt loud and unsettling. Overwhelmed by fear, the crusader threw his spear to the ground and covered his ears with both hands as they ran.

How long had they been running? He lost his sense of direction as it was dark in every direction he looked, and the landscape and atmosphere were so similar no matter where they went. The screams of his comrades coming from god knows where only intensified his fear.

He recalled the time when the light of blessing had flowed from the forest. The director had said that she would send a signal using divine power once she discovered the Cult Leader. Not long after the director entered the forest, the light of blessing appeared amidst the darkness. It was the director\'s signal.

But the signal didn\'t merely mean she had found the Cult Leader. It could also be interpreted as not only had the director found the Cult Leader, but she was unharmed.

The crusaders confidently advanced into the forest toward the director’s light of blessing that signaled her location. They held their weapons and marched into the darkness, smiling because they were sure that victory was theirs.

"...Huh?"

However, the crusaders couldn’t help but question when they finally reached the light. The director was nowhere to be seen, and so was the Cult Leader. Instead, there stood a very unpleasant-looking plant statue. The statue was made of thin stems, like threads, resembling the image of a suffering savior, pained by the sins of man.

The statue had been created for a very impure purpose. It was clear that the Cult Leader had made it himself. The crusaders unleashed their divine power and used the statue as a torch to illuminate their surroundings to find the Cult Leader and the director, but the two were nowhere to be seen. At the very least, they were not in the vicinity.

Just then, a crusader standing before the statue screamed and stumbled backward, falling over.

"Aaaahhh–!!"

Thud!

The crusader was so startled that they weren’t able to calm down as they gasped for breath and trembled uncontrollably.

The crusaders, who had been searching for the Cult Leader and the director, approached them.

"What\'s wrong? Did you see a ghost or something?"

"Th-the statue. T-that\'s not a statue...!"

"What? What do you mean not a statue...?"

Someone directed their divine power toward the statue. The statue, which had only been vaguely visible in the darkness, was now truly revealed.

"Ah..."

It wasn\'t a statue. It was the director who had first entered the forest. Thin plant stems blanketed the director’s entire body. Only her face was exposed, and her expression was incredibly shocking. Her mouth was constantly moving as she was mumbling something, but no one could make out her words. Tears kept flowing from her eyes, but her breathing was steady.

She was alive, but at the same time, she didn\'t seem alive at all. Some of the crusaders screamed and stumbled backward when they saw her in her statue-like state.

"D-Director! Are you okay?"

Only a few calm crusaders approached the director and grabbed the plant stems entwined around her body, trying to break them. But the plant stems were unbelievably resilient and wouldn\'t break. It was impossible to even pull them.

The crusaders were shocked to see the director in such a state, trapped and driven mad. She was known to be a calm and composed leader who was not easily startled by anything, and so the members relied on her whenever they carried out missions. Among the male members, some secretly had feelings for her. Even for those who didn\'t share these romantic feelings, all the members respected the director.

However, she was now in a pitiful state. The members lost their composure and stared at the director who had become a statue. The loss of the director was deeply felt. Soon after, they were swept by wrath and anger toward the Cult Leader who had made the director like this. The crusaders unleashed their divine power to drive out the darkness and saw each other\'s faces revealed by the light of blessing. While their wrath transformed into determination...

Chop.

"Aah!"

Before the determination could fully take hold, the horrifying sound of cutting flesh accompanied by a scream was heard. One of the lights of blessing floating in the darkness had been snuffed out.

The crusader’s wrists had been severed, preventing them from unleashing their divine power. The crusaders all looked up in unison. Another light emerged from the darkness.

It was too dark to be called light. Rather, describing it as darkness that had seeped into another darkness would be more accurate. It had a gloomy and dull glow.

The light took the form of a sword. Somewhere, a scream rang out. It was the scream flowing from the sword made of gloomy light. The Cult Leader, holding the sword, hung from a tree branch and looked down at the crusaders.

"It’s the Cult...!"

Chop!

Before they could prepare for battle, the Cult Leader\'s sword cut another crusader\'s wrist. Another light was quenched.

Chop, chop...

"Aaah, sob. Argh, uh...”

“Ah, aaaaah!"

The chopping sounds continued endlessly, followed by the echoing screams. One by one, the lights went out until the last light disappeared. The light that had been driving away the darkness completely shriveled up, and darkness filled the space once again.

Deep darkness descended upon the crusaders. The Cult Leader had almost flown through the air, riding on tree roots and leaves, and skillfully slashed through the crusaders\' wrists. His agile movements and freely utilizing the forest and his sword resembled that of a beast.

The screams did not stop. The whispers of the deranged director and the screams of the injured members filled the darkness.

Fortunately, this crusader’s wrist had not been cut yet. They stumbled backward and whimpered.

"Ah, ah..."

The crusader retracted their divine power and ran in a random direction. Even while running, they could still hear the director’s whispers and their members’ screams. The whispers and screams chased after them.

They felt a sense of nausea overwhelm them and continued to run until they could no longer breathe.

The crusader bowed their head and threw up.

"Ugh, bwwaaak...!"

Everyone must have died. Or they must have gone insane like the director. The fact that they had survived through the sacrifices of their comrades was unbearably sad and disgusting to the crusader. Wiping away their tears, they lifted their head.

"..."

And they were at a loss for words. Emotions surged within them at the sight before their eyes. It was light. Far away, a faint but visible light could be seen. It meant they had reached the end of the forest. They could escape. They could survive... New tears flowed down at the overwhelming joy. They followed the light. It seemed that they had twisted their ankle from stumbling while running, but they were too happy to even notice the pain.

Cruuunch!

Finally, they escaped from the forest. Bright light poured into their eyes, which had been accustomed to darkness, causing a headache and disorientation. As their blurry vision gradually turned clear, their senses came back. It was only then that they realized that people were surrounding them.

"...It’s a crusader."

Yuk Eun-Hyung and his mercenary corps members blankly stared at the crusader.

* * *

Kaang!

Do-Jin swung his sword. He had aimed to tear the Cult Leader’s poncho, but the Cult Leader blocked it with his staff without fail.

Fortunately, he had discovered the fact that the Cult Leader reacted sensitively to attacks targeting his mask and poncho. However, the problem was that the Cult Leader was too fast to react to his attacks, making it difficult to even leave a scratch on said items.

Nevertheless, Do-Jin did not stop attacking. If the Cult Leader\'s reaction speed was fast, then the only solution was to attack him even faster. Moreover, the Cult Leader was currently wearing a mask and his field of vision would be restricted.

If he aimed for that weakness, then he had a chance at winning.

Krgggggk!

Do-Jin\'s sword clashed with the Cult Leader\'s staff. Do-Jin exerted force in the hand holding the sword. Both the sword and staff trembled. Do-Jin had intended to slash through the staff but failed because the staff was solid like steel.

At that moment, the Cult Leader\'s hand approached Do-Jin\'s face.

"Uk...!"

He tried to remove Do-Jin\'s anti-Voodoo mask. Do-Jin instinctively pulled his head back. Seizing that momentary opening, the Cult Leader clenched his fist. Do-Jin urgently planted his sword into the ground and swung in a heavy arc toward the Cult Leader.

Shaaak!

Wet clumps of dirt splattered onto the Cult Leader\'s mask. Taking advantage of the momentary obstruction in the Cult Leader\'s vision, Do-Jin stepped back. And then he aimed his sword at the Cult Leader once more.

The Cult Leader wiped off the dirt from his mask and tightly gripped his staff. Do-Jin and the Cult Leader stared each other down.

For a moment, silence filled the air.

Do-Jin didn\'t rush to attack. The same went for the Cult Leader. The reason Do-Jin didn\'t attack the Cult Leader was because he couldn\'t find an opening. Everyone showed momentary gaps in their defense, and Do-Jin was highly skilled at seizing those moments to attack. However, the Cult Leader didn\'t show a single opening.

"...."

It was impossible to read the Cult Leader’s gaze because he was wearing a mask. It was impossible to read into his posture because he wore a poncho. Above all, his reaction speed was incredibly fast.

The Cult Leader reacted as if he knew Do-Jin\'s swordsmanship. Do-Jin wondered if he had ever faced off against the Cult Leader in a duel if the Cult Leader was hiding among the Romanican Church clergymen.

Shwoosh!

At that moment, the Cult Leader unleashed Voodoo magic, drawing a spell array in the blink of an eye. Voodoo mist flowed out and enveloped Do-Jin. However, it was not a big problem. Do-Jin was wearing an anti-Voodoo mask, so he was immune to most spells.

Instead of avoiding the spell, Do-Jin stood his ground and faced it head-on. This was the perfect time to launch an attack when the Cult Leader was distracted from diverting his attention to draw the spell array.

Do-Jin rushed forward, his sword aimed at the Cult Leader. Swinging with his sword would be too easy to block with the staff. So, he had no choice but to strike him with a swift thrust to make blocking as difficult as possible.

Kaga-gak!

Only when he leaped from the ground did Do-Jin sense something strange. The Cult Leader had not just drawn a mere spell array. From one spell array, Voodoo mist flowed out, while a purple-colored dagger was being conjured from another hidden spell array. With a creepy and eerie sound resembling that of iron being split into two, a dagger was created, and the Cult Leader grasped it. He threw it toward Do-Jin, or more precisely, toward Do-Jin’s anti-Voodoo mask. Do-Jin stopped his attack and quickly turned his head to avoid it. The dagger grazed past Do-Jin\'s mask.

Crack!

The anti-Voodoo mask was damaged. A slight hissing sound came from the mask and left a small rift in the seal. Although it was a very small crack, even a small flaw was fatal.

Voodoo mist flowed in through the crack, filling the anti-Voodoo mask. Do-Jin\'s eyes rolled back into his head. His consciousness started to fade. He desperately tried to hold onto his consciousness, but with his anti-Voodoo mask being filled with Voodoo mist, his grip loosened every time he took another breath.

Do-Jin took off the gas mask and held his breath. He tried to overcome the spell by any means possible, but his body melted like liquid and sank to the ground. Do-Jin let go of the sword in his hands. His consciousness faded away.

Through his dimming vision, he saw the figure of the Cult Leader approaching him.

He was going to die. How futile.

He hadn’t been able to lay a single scratch on the Cult Leader’s mask or poncho, nor had he been able to lay a single hit on his body.

The Cult Leader had subdued Do-Jin with only his talent for fighting and spells. He hadn’t even used what was commonly referred to as the power of the Loa. The Cult Leader had taken Do-Jin down with the bare minimum of his strength. But even that bare minimum had been overwhelming to Do-Jin. It was humiliating.

He was furious. He wasn\'t angry because he was weak. It was because he had harbored the helpless and weak thought that he would never be able to defeat the Cult Leader even if he tried his whole life. He realized that no matter how much he swung his sword, he couldn\'t inflict a single wound on the Cult Leader\'s body.

That was when a clear and refreshing voice split the silence. It was a voice that was so inhumanely beautiful and holy.

"In the name of Adonai."

Ye-Jin clasped her hands together and prayed. Divine power trembled around her body. Soon, the divine power separated from her body and formed a massive nimbus.

"...Amen."

Kwa-gwa-gwa-gwa-gwa--!!

Ye-Jin opened her eyes and finished her prayer.

Blood-red hail engulfed in sparks poured out of the cloud and descended upon the Cult Leader’s head.