Chapter 121
When Do-Jin arrived at the restroom, he smelled the strong scent of blood wafting from the hallway. There was also the faint smell of harsh chemicals. A female student lay flat on the floor. She reached out with her trembling hands and desperately crawled toward him.
"T-Teacher... my head... my head...!"
"Oh, shit... What happened?!"
Do-Jin hurriedly approached the student. At a glance, he could tell that her condition looked serious. Her right ankle was torn and jagged, and there was a hole in the side of her body. There were bite marks from a demonic beast all over her body. Her entire body was covered in blood, especially her head which was spewing out a lot of blood.
Thankfully, the other vital areas, excluding her head, had not been attacked. If he could get her to the hospital right away, she might be able to survive. Do-Jin put away his sword and tried to lift the student.
"T-Teacher, wait a moment. My head... my head...! Please look at my head first..."
At that moment, the student used her arms to push aside her hair and showed Do-Jin her forehead. Do-Jin unleashed divine power with the intention of healing the student. Although he wasn’t confident in his healing abilities, he thought he could at least draw an emergency healing array to stop the immediate bleeding.
"What’s wrong with your head?! Just calm down a bit and tell me accurately. That's the only way for me to heal you... quick!"
"H-here. Teacher, my head is turning white. What should I do... my mind is completely..."
"Stay calm. You can survive. If you go to the hospital right away, you will survive. So..."
He couldn't locate the injury on the head. If only Ye-Jin were here at a time like this. She probably would have been able to accurately pinpoint the injured area and heal the student's wounds without even looking.
‘Damn it, why did it have to be me and not Ye-Jin at a time like this...’
"It’s over here, here..."
"Don't just say here. Stay calm, and let's go to the hospital first—"
"Here, ugh. T-teacher, my mind is completely..."
Crack...
At that moment, the girl's head split open. The girl split open her own head with both hands, revealing the inside. The skin was torn off and ripped apart, revealing a pristine white skull.
No, it wasn't a skull. It was cotton. The girl's head was filled with cotton.
"It’s completely... white, isn't it? Wow!"
"...Huh?"
Boom—!
The taxidermied creature exploded. Bone fragments and flesh flew and pierced Do-Jin’s body. Do-Jin tried to draw his sword to defend himself, but it was futile. Tingling pain radiated out from his arms and legs, which the bone fragments had struck. However, now was not the time to wallow in pain.
"Ah, fuck..."
He had to immediately go outside the sacred training ground and assess the situation. There must have been a reason why he was lured here. It was clear that they were trying to cause trouble elsewhere by diverting his attention. After all, from the Satanist’s perspective, he would have been a thorn in their side.
Do-Jin bit his lip and ignored the pain spreading through his body before he quickly stepped outside the sacred training ground. He planned to go to the broadcasting room and broadcast an evacuation order to the entire school.
"..."
However, when he left the sacred training ground, he was back inside another sacred training ground. Do-Jin tried to go outside through the back door. Yet, even after he went through the back door, he was still on another sacred training ground. It was the same if he went through the window or broke through the wall. No matter what he tried, Do-Jin couldn't get his body out of the sacred training ground.
His expression darkened.
Apollyon[1].
It was the name of a technique that the Satanists from the Pride Branch used frequently. The group had been active in the United States until a few years ago. It was a black magic spell that blurred the boundaries between places, making it impossible to leave a specific place.
Thump, thud, thud...
The black magic didn't end there. Demonic beasts and taxidermied creatures were pouring down from the sky like rain. Do-Jin looked up at the ceiling.
There were five giant Pentagrams drawn on top of the ceiling of the sacred training ground. Demonic beasts and taxidermied creatures poured out from the Pentagrams and made squelching and splattering sounds as they collided with the ground.
Growl...
Thud, thud, thud...
The demonic beasts bared their huge fangs and made threatening sounds, while the grotesque, taxidermied creatures made by haphazardly stitching corpses and leather together also emitted eerie noises as they fell and approached Do-Jin.
"This is Do-Jin. Anyone, please respond."
Do-Jin took out the Branch of the Burning Bush from his pocket and infused it with divine power. Then, he brought his mouth close to the branch and started contacting the other teachers.
"Black magic spells suspected to be Apollyon and Summoning have been activated on the sacred training ground. Requesting immediate evacuation and support from exorcist priests. I repeat, black magic suspected to be...”
Slash!
Do-Jin swung his sword. As a result, the body of a demonic beast charging toward him was cut in half. The two halves writhed on the ground like worms before finally collapsing. Almost as if that was a signal, three more demonic beasts immediately rushed toward him.
Do-Jin assumed a stance after spreading the light of blessing throughout his entire body. He held the sword in his right hand and tightly gripped the Branch of the Burning Bush in his left hand.
Stab.
He pierced the forehead of a demonic beast with his sword. As he withdrew the sword, the body of the demonic beast collapsed to the ground. Blood and brain matter poured out from the pierced forehead.
Two down.
Do-Jin gathered the light of blessing into his legs. Then, he struck the head of a demonic beast charging at him from the right using the back of his foot.
Crack!
The demonic beast’s skull shattered. Its eyeballs popped out and rolled on the ground. Without stopping, Do-Jin moved the light of blessing to his left hand. He threw the Branch of the Burning Bush he was holding in his left hand upward and transferred the sword from his right hand to his left hand.
Slash.
He swung the sword with his left hand. A long, horizontal line was drawn across the head of the demonic beast. Along the line, the body of the demonic beast was split in half.
The Branch of the Burning Bush that had been soaring into the sky began to plummet to the ground. Do-Jin aggressively caught the falling branch and brought it to his mouth. He then repeated the words he had said earlier.
"...Requesting immediate evacuation and support from exorcist priests. I repeat, black magic spells suspected to be Apollyon and Summoning have been activated... "
Swish, splurt, swoosh...
"I repeat, any teacher listening, anyone, please respond..."
The sound of slashing, stabbing, splattering blood, and Do-Jin asking for help echoed repeatedly from the Branch of the Burning Bush. However, there was no sign of the number of demonic beasts and taxidermied creatures falling from the ceiling decreasing, and there was no response from the branch either.
In the midst of such a desperate situation, Do-Jin continued to silently stab his sword into the foreheads of the demonic beasts, slashed through the skins of the taxidermied creatures, and sought help from the Branch of the Burning Bush.
An unknown period of time passed. Eventually, the corpses of the demonic beasts formed a mountain, and the smell of chemicals emanating from the taxidermied creatures’ leather had long since permeated his body. Not only was there no response, but not even the slightest noise was heard from the Branch of the Burning Bush.
All of a sudden, a voice came from the branch.
—Ah, ah.
Splurt!
Do-Jin swung the sword he had thrust into the approaching body of the taxidermied creature upward and tore its leather apart. Fluff and sawdust shot up into the sky and then poured down like rain. Do-Jin’s head was covered in sawdust soaked in pungent-smelling chemicals, and he pressed his lips against the Branch of the Burning Bush.
"This is Do-Jin...! Black magic is being activated at the sacred training ground. Please broadcast an evacuation message to the students and request support from exorcist priests. If you understand, please respond!"
—Understood. I instructed the students to sit in the classroom and proceed with classes as normal. I also asked the exorcist priests how they were doing. Over and out.
"...Who the hell are you? Does it look like I’m fooling around here—"
—Alright, keep hustling. Good luck.
Click.
The fire attached to the Branch of the Burning Bush went out. Even though he poured divine power into it, the fire that went out did not ignite again. This meant that all the other connected branches were damaged, or it meant that his branch was malfunctioning. Do-Jin scowled.
"This damn bastard—!"
Crunch!
At that moment, a demonic beast lurking behind Do-Jin bit his right hand. It was the demonic beast that he had failed to deal with because he was focusing on the voice coming from the Branch of the Burning Bush. He pulled his hand out of the demonic beast's mouth.
Splurt.
Along with blood, the fingers in the demonic beast's mouth fell to the ground. What was torn off were the index and middle fingers. Only the ring finger, pinky, and thumb remained attached to the palm of his hand.
The sword in his right hand clattered onto the ground. It was too heavy to lift with his remaining three fingers.
Splurt!
Do-Jin stabbed the eye of the demonic beast with the Branch of the Burning Bush, which had become useless. Then, he picked up his index and middle fingers that had fallen to the ground and put them in his pocket. The demonic beast staggered back in fear, blinded by the pain of being stabbed in the eye.
Rip.
Do-Jin bit his sleeve with his teeth and tore it apart. He barely managed to hold onto the sword using his ring finger, pinky finger, and thumb before tightly wrapping his hand and the sword with the torn cloth.
Slice.
He swung the sword and severed the neck of the demonic beast that had taken away his fingers. It wasn't as good as when his fingers were attached, but it seemed sufficient for the battle.
"Phew."
Do-Jin took a deep breath and stared at the taxidermied creatures and demonic beasts rushing toward him. It appeared as though they were arriving incessantly, yet there had to be a conclusion to it. Do-Jin did not have the ability to dismantle the Pentagram engraved on the ceiling of the sacred training ground. However, he was confident in his ability to wield the sword accurately and skillfully.
If that was the case, he simply had to cut down all the taxidermied creatures and demonic beasts until they no longer appeared. By doing so, the Pentagram would also cease to function. After all, a gun without bullets was nothing more than a pretty-looking piece of metal.
Thud!
At that moment, something huge fell from the sky. It was not a demonic beast. It wasn’t a grotesque-looking taxidermied creature either. It was a person. No, it was a taxidermied creature that perfectly replicated the form of a person. Do-Jin did not know how to distinguish between a taxidermied creature imitating a person and an actual person. Nevertheless, he could still recognize that it was a taxidermied creature.
"Bok-Dong."
Bok-Dong briskly approached Do-Jin. He had a bulky physique with bulging, grotesque muscles. In contrast to that, he had an innocent face. There was no way Do-Jin wouldn’t recognize this person. It was undoubtedly his long-time friend, Bok-Dong.
"Haha..." Do-Jin let out a hollow laugh.
His right arm dropped while holding his sword. The tip of the blade scraped against the ground.
‘Now that’s what I’m talking about. There’s no way a few demonic beasts or taxidermied creatures can tie me down. It looks like that bastard really thought things through...’
It was a thought he wanted to express out loud, but he no longer had the energy to speak. Thus, he kept his mouth shut.
Thump, thump...
He glared at the approaching taxidermied creature and pondered about the voice that had come from beyond the Branch of the Burning Bush. It sounded somewhat familiar. However, he couldn't remember whose voice it was. But he would definitely remember. And he would find them, no matter what it took. He would find them, and then he would kill them... without fail.
Do-Jin raised his sword.
1. Apollyon (??? - 無底坑) refers to a bottomless pit that you can’t escape from. ?
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