Chapter 100
"You know, about the Altar... Looking back now, isn't it a bit strange?" my uncle said.
The day when the Voodoo Revival Church was destroyed, the Altar was recovered. When we went out to eat as a way of celebrating, Uncle revealed his suspicions about the disappearance of Altar. Uncle was wondering how Han Su-Yeop was able to steal the Altar while knowing the location of our underground chapel, where the Altar was placed, and when we happened not to be present at the underground chapel.
"Perhaps there was an informant that leaked the information?" Ji-Ah asked.
My uncle shook his head.
"Only Sun-Woo and I knew the location of the Altar. There couldn't have been an informant. Obviously, it couldn’t have been Sun-Woo, and it’s also quite a problem for me if the Altar goes missing, you see.”
“Come to think of it, that does seem strange. Although we did just roughly leave it in the warehouse, there was no one besides me and Uncle who knew the location of the Altar."
"Hmm."
Uncle stopped grilling the meat midway and sighed. The sound of sizzling oil could be heard from the grill. Thick smoke billowed out. With tongs and scissors in hand, a strange sense of anxiety could be seen on my uncle's face as he stared blankly into the air.
"...Is it that bastard?"
"That bastard? How am I supposed to know who it is if you don’t say the name?"
"You know him too. Among the executives, there's a pretentious airhead that acts sophisticated. His name was Ha, Ha..."
Ha Pan-Seok.
At the time, my uncle was unable to recall his name. It was because Uncle only ever remembered the names of a few people that were important to him. Uncle was similar to me in that sense. Come to think of it, my mother had also been like that. Perhaps there was a gene that made people indifferent to other people’s names.
Anyway, Ha Pan-Seok was now right in front of me. He was trying his hardest not to reveal any fear on his face. There was a wary expression on his face.
"Is Soo-Yeong doing well?"
It was a question to ease the tension, but it seemed to have the opposite effect. For a while, he stared at me with a frown on his face and eventually managed to open his mouth.
"She's doing well. Thanks to you."
"Is she sleeping now?"
"Yes. In that room over there..."
Ha Pan-Seok pointed to the tightly closed door with his finger. I nodded.
"That's a relief. Because it won’t be good if your daughter hears what we’re about to discuss."
“What exactly are you going to talk about...”
“I’ll ask you a question. I’d like you to answer honestly,” I said. While speaking, I peered into the emotions contained in Ha Pan-Seok’s eyes. He was clearly afraid of me, but he didn't show it.
"Did Executive Ha Pan-Seok make Han Su-Yeop steal the Altar?"
Yeom Man-Gun knew that I had lost the Altar. When I asked him who told him about this, he admitted that he simply relayed what he had heard from Ha Pan-Seok. If Yeom Man-Gun's words were true, it meant that Ha Pan-Seok had known all along that I had lost the Altar. If that was the case, then that raised another question. How did Ha Pan-Seok know about this?
According to what Uncle said, he had never revealed the fact that he had lost the Altar to any of the executives. If Ha Pan-Seok didn’t get this information from Uncle, how on earth did he obtain this information? If Ha Pan-Seok had a connection with Han Su-Yeop, the perpetrator who stole the Altar, and if the one who instigated Han Su-Yeop to steal the Altar was Ha Pan-Seok, then everything would make sense.
With a pale face, Ha Pan-Seok forced a smile and said, "Why would I do such a thing? Moreover, I don't even know the location of the headquarters’ underground chapel. How would I be able to give instructions to Han Su-Yeop?"
"You don't know the location of the headquarters' underground chapel?"
“Yes. I don’t know.”
“Is there not even a hint of falsehood in what you're saying?”
Ha Pan-Seok briefly closed his mouth. There was a short silence.
"...Yes, there really isn’t a hint of falsehood."
"Really?"
It seemed like he had no intention of obediently confessing. I played a video on my phone and showed it to him. On the screen, there was a man lying on the floor, trembling and drooling. Saliva dripped from his wide-opened mouth, and his eyes were completely bloodshot.
The man struggled to lift his head before opening his mouth.
- Ha Pan-Seok! It's Ha Pan-Seok. Ha Pan-Seok is the one who ordered the Cult Leader’s assassination! What I'm saying is true. It’s really true. Just once, just cast the spell on me one more time...!
- I can’t do that.
- Ah, ahhhhh... Please show mercy just once. Just once, just once should be fine. Is asking for a spell such a difficult request? Ah? You bastard, use it again, please! ...No, it was a slip of the tongue. Please cut off my tongue. Please cut off my tongue! No, I will cut it myself, so please...
The man raised a blade and placed it on his own tongue. Blood flowed out from the man's tongue, sliding down the blade and dripping down onto the floor. I turned off the video.
"It’s a mercenary. He came to me after being ordered by someone.”
“...”
"As I mentioned in the meeting, I can control the intensity of the intoxication spell."
Ha Pan-Seok's gaze was fixated beyond the phone. His half-opened lips were dry. I continued speaking.
"First, I will make you addicted to the intoxication spell, and then I will stop using it on you. Then you will suffer from withdrawal symptoms. Do you know about the withdrawal symptoms of the intoxication spell?"
Ha Pan-Seok silently shook his head.
“They say that there is a pain that feels like ants are digging into your veins and crawling in toward your heart. It’s a phantom pain created by extreme amounts of anxiety and depression.”
“...”
“The only method of escaping such pain is to once again sniff the mist from the curse of intoxication. At that point, one becomes completely dependent on the intoxication spell.”
"...What are you trying to say?"
"Through that method, the mercenary opened their mouth. They claimed that it was all orchestrated by executive Ha Pan-Seok. What do you think?"
The mercenary came to assassinate me as instructed by Executive Ha Pan-Seok. It meant that Ha Pan-Seok knew the location of the underground chapel. If that were the case, it would have been possible for him to discreetly leak information and instruct Han Su-Yeop to steal the Altar from the underground chapel.
Ha Pan-Seok remained silent with his mouth closed for a long period of time. It looked like he was thinking deeply about something.
“I don’t know anything.”
He was looking at me with a puzzled expression. I couldn't tell if he was just prepared to accept whatever punishment I was about to give him or if he was just continuing to feign ignorance until the end. I couldn't know for sure. All I could vaguely see in his gaze was a hint of resolute determination. If he has no intention of confessing even after coming this far... Then I had no other choice.
"Understood."
I called for the Loa.
[I am steel.]
His sharp and chilling voice filled my mind—the Loa of iron and war, Ogun. Iron and war were somewhat intense, but they never lied. That's why Ogun despised those who lied. Anyone who lied in front of Ogun had their heart pierced by pieces of iron. Even I, the Prophet, was not an exception. Regardless of whether it was a religious person, a cult leader, or a prophet, everyone had to be honest in front of him.
[I am covered in iron.]
Clang!
As Ogun finished speaking, vibrations began to resonate. The trembling of the nearby pieces of iron produced a chilling sound. The sound came from forks and knives on the table to hiking poles and even cell phones. Anything made of iron trembled.
"Executive Ha Pan-Seok, do you know about the Loa called Ogun?” I asked.
“...I only vaguely know that it’s a Loa that dislikes lies.”
“Looks like I don’t have to explain further.”
If he knew about Ogun, that made things easier.
“Do you really not know anything?” I continued.
“...”
Ha Pan-Seok glared at me with his mouth shut. He could lie in front of Ogun, so it looked like he planned to maintain his silence. It was a relatively wise decision. After all, what Ogun disliked were lies, not silence. I had already anticipated that Ha Pan-Seok, who was clever, would keep his mouth shut and exercise his right to remain silent. I had also thought of a countermeasure for this. I took out my phone and showed him a photo.
"Can you see this?"
Ha Pan-Seok's face hardened. His lips trembled, and his eyes were bloodshot. His eyes which were previously filled with a resolute determination, were now filled with distinct fear.
What I showed him was a picture of Ha Soo-Yeong.
"The Voodoo Cult administers zombification as punishment for the crime of rebellion. If Executive Ha Pan-Seok refuses to speak, I will have no choice but to turn your child into a zombie as per protocol."
"What nonsense! ...That's completely absurd. How can you accuse Soo-Yeong of committing the crime of rebellion?"
His voice trembled noticeably as he could barely contain his anger. Ha Pan-Seok glared at me with bloodshot eyes—it looked like he wanted to kill me. When the topic of his daughter came up, his reaction was clearly intense. I looked at his fist that was trembling above my knee and smiled, feigning composure.
"She said things like 'I should have been the Cult Leader' as if it were natural. If another person didn’t influence her and she said that through her own intentions, then I’m afraid that must mean that there is something wrong with her ideology."
“...”
Ha Pan-Seok swallowed some air with a completely terrified expression on his face. His partially open lips trembled. His unfocused pupils were chasing after empty space. It was clear evidence that he was agitated.
"Do you feel like answering now?"
"I, I..."
Ha Pan-Seok finally opened his mouth. Fear could be seen in his eyes which were filled with all sorts of emotions. The sound of dishes vibrating on the table continued without stopping. The sound irregularly grew louder and softer.
"I, I don't know any..."
[Lie.]
Clank.
As soon as Ha Pan-Seok opened his mouth, Ogun’s voice could be heard, and a knife simultaneously floated above the dining table. The knife wandered through the air and eventually aimed its blade at Ha Pan-Seok's forehead.
Splinter!
The knife seemed to be heading toward Ha Pan-Seok's forehead, but it passed by and got stuck in the wall. A drop of blood splattered on the floor from a cut that was made when the knife grazed his ear.
"Now, again."
I stared at his pale face, which was in stark contrast to the bloodstain on the floor.
"Executive Ha Pan-Seok, do you have no involvement in everything I mentioned earlier?"
*
"I..." As soon as he spoke, the fork on the table rose and pointed toward Ha Pan-Seok. Although it seemed impossible for the fork to have eyes, Ha Pan-Seok felt that it was clearly staring at him. It was because the fork tip was precisely aimed at his eyes. There would be no next time.
If he told one more lie, then he might really die. Even if he were lucky enough to survive, he wouldn’t be able to avoid becoming a cripple for life.
"Keep talking," I said.
However, the Cult Leader immediately asked for a response. He couldn't defy the words of the Cult Leader, who held his daughter's life in his hands. He couldn't lie, nor could he simply keep his mouth shut in this situation. This sort of situation was called a zug-zugzwang... Or something. His mind was completely blank.
"It's me."
If he lied, he would die. If he kept his mouth shut, his daughter would die. This situation where he had to pick between one of these two choices had pushed him to the edge of a cliff. He barely managed to maintain the tightly strung strings of reason that still remained in his mind as he finally came to a conclusion.
"It was me. I did it. I planned the rebellion and implanted false ideas in Soo-Yeong's mind. Everything is my fault...”
He was prepared to face the consequences and spoke the truth. Based on the cult rules, those plotting a rebellion would go through the zombification process. That meant that he would become a mere piece of meat that would lose all freedom and only follow the orders of others. Naturally, Ha Pan-Seok also did not want to become a zombie. However, rather than seeing his daughter turned into a zombie, he preferred to become a zombie himself.
The Cult Leader coldly examined Ha Pan-Seok's face.
"What is your relationship with Han Su-Yeop?"
"That bastard, we’re not really close to each other. I just used him because I needed a chess piece that could steal the Cult Leader’s Altar."
“Why did you order him to steal the Altar?”
“...The plan was to wait for the Cult Leader’s strength to weaken and then send a mercenary to assassinate you.”
After Ha Pan-Seok completed his sentence, no pieces of metal flew in his direction. It meant that he was telling the truth.
“Then, what about after that? What were you planning to do after you assassinated me?”
"Uh, I-I was going to make my daughter the Cult Leader..."
At that moment, the Cult Leader suddenly stood up from his seat. Ha Pan-Seok, taken aback, looked at the Cult Leader with a puzzled expression. The Cult Leader's gaze was directed toward the room where Ha Soo-Yeong was sleeping. A foreboding feeling swept over him. From Cult Leader’s perspective, there was no reason to spare Ha Soo-Yeong, who was aiming for the Cult Leader's position.
Thud!
Ha Pan-Seok grabbed the Cult Leader's pants and lay on the floor. He didn’t know when he started crying, but tears were streaming down his cheeks.
“No, my daughter has no connection at all! It was me! I wanted to become the Cult Leader. My daughter is not—!"
Stab!
"-Aaaagh! Aaagh, aaaaagh......!"
At that moment, a fork that was floating in the air stabbed Ha Pan-Seok's thigh. He screamed and writhed on the floor. Even in the midst of writhing due to the pain, his gaze remained fixed on the Cult Leader.
However, no matter how much he reached out with his hands, he couldn't stop the Cult Leader from stepping toward Ha Soo-Yeong's room. His arms, which were weakened and limp due to the pain, could only flail in the air without being able to grasp the hem of his pants.
"If you want me to die...! If you want me to die, then I’ll die! If you want me to become a zombie, then I will become a zombie. But my daughter has nothing to do with it...!”
It was more of a scream than a plea. Ha Pan-Seok floundered his arms and begged the Cult Leader. He vividly remembered when he lost his first son seven years ago. If he were to lose his only remaining daughter, he couldn't imagine living in this world with a clear mind.
As if reading Ha Pan-Seok's thoughts, the Cult Leader stopped in his tracks and turned to face Ha Pan-Seok.
"It will hurt a bit."
Splurt!
"Argh...!"
The Cult Leader nonchalantly pulled out the fork stuck in Ha Pan-Seok's leg. Ha Pan-Seok just barely managed to suppress the pain. The purple mist flowing from the Cult Leader's fingertips enveloped the wounded area, gradually filling the hole in his thigh.
It was a restoration spell. It was a restoration unlike any that he had seen before. The spell was so perfect that it was beautiful. However, there was no time for him to be surprised.
"I am lying right now."
Thud.
The Cult Leader blurted out a bewildering statement. It was neither true nor false. The chopsticks that were in the sink stabbed his back. The Cult Leader didn't even flinch in pain and continued speaking. "No one can lie in front of Ogun, and I am no exception. Everyone should be honest in front of him."
"...Huh?"
"From now on, it means that everything I say will be the truth."
The Cult Leader pulled out the chopstick that was stuck in his back and used a restoration spell to heal the hole. Then, as if trying to suppress the urge to suppress the pain, he collected his breathing and added, "I am currently attending Florence Academy. I am going to become a cardinal of the Romanican Church, and I’m going to reach the underground prison that is located in the Holy See.”
There were no longer any metal objects that were flying toward the Cult Leader. It meant that everything he said was true. So Ha Pan-Seok was even more dumbfounded. He vaguely knew that the Cult Leader knew how to manipulate divine power, but he never imagined that he would infiltrate Florence Academy. It was as dangerous as jumping into a tiger's den while naked.
However, the Cult Leader casually continued to speak as if it wasn’t a big deal.
"The reason the Voodoo Cult lost in the Holy War is because of division. Many of the most competent executives betrayed the previous Cult Leader and ran away. As a result, the war immediately shifted in the Romanicans’ favor."
“...”
“Executive Ha Pan-Seok also didn’t run away and loyally stayed by my father’s side until the end.”
A brief silence filled the room, and the last remaining sensations of pain that Ha Pan-Seok had felt on his thigh where the fork had penetrated started to fade away. Ha Pan-Seok looked up at the Cult Leader. His eyes were cold, without the slightest hint of warmth. His eyes contained conviction.
"The reason I'm telling you this... is because what I desire is Executive Ha Pan-Seok’s unwavering loyalty."
Pieces of metal did not fly toward the Cult Leader. It meant that everything he had said was the truth.
"If the plan succeeds... We will be able to find executive Ha Pan-Seok’s son, who was imprisoned in the underground prison by the Holy Army during The Starless Night," the Cult Leader said resolutely.
"No, we will find him. Even if I have to die in order to do so," the Cult Leader said.
As he said that, he gazed up into the air. It was unknown what he was gazing at. Suddenly, realization flashed through Ha Pan-Seok's mind. At the same time, he felt a sense of relief as the weight of the world was lifted off his shoulders. The cold gaze of the Cult Leader, which was filled with enmity, was not directed at him but toward the enemy.
The Cult Leader then said, "Now, I will ask again. Who is your loyalty directed towards now?"
Ha Pan-Seok bent one knee and bowed his head. The reason he had planned the rebellion in the first place was because he was frustrated with the Cult Leader's lack of resistance against the Romanican Church. He was afraid and anxious that he would never find his son.
However, the Cult Leader had not given up on resistance. He had risked his life by storming into the enemy's lair. There was no reason not to follow the Third Cult Leader.
"I will be loyal to the Third Cult Leader. I swear on the iron."
Swearing on the iron in front of Ogun meant that he would keep his current promise for the rest of his life. If Ha Pan-Seok were to plot another rebellion, the enraged Ogun would pierce his heart with iron in an instant.
The Cult Leader smiled in contentment and extended his hand to Ha Pan-Seok.
"Let's revive the Voodoo Cult together," the Cult Leader said.
The moment Ha Pan-Seok shook his hand, he was propelled by the Cult Leader's strength and stood up from his seat. It was long since the pain had faded away from his thigh that the fork had penetrated. The blood that had been shed became a stain and remained on top of the clothes.
On the Cult Leader’s back, there were the same traces of blood. Ha Pan-Seok watched the dark, hardened stain and bid farewell to the Cult Leader as he moved away.
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