Chapter 135.2
"A dice game?" I asked, not understanding.
Although the Crossroads was a place where anything could happen, why were we suddenly playing a dice game? Even though I acknowledged that it was something that Baron Samedi would say, I was dumbfounded. Baron Samedi smiled and pointed to the two dice on my palm.
"Yeah, a dice game. You just need to roll those dice."
"Don't people usually bet on something on this? Are there any rules?"
"The bet has already been placed. There are no rules. You just have to roll the dice."
Clap.
Baron Samedi clapped his hands. An iron table and chairs suddenly appeared as if they had been there all along. Baron Samedi nonchalantly pulled a chair and sat down, crossing his legs.
"Sit. Isn't your back hurting from walking for so long?"
Without hesitation, I sat across from him.
Clink.
I placed the dice on the iron table and rolled them around, checking the markings. Instead of having numbers from 1 to 6 like ordinary dice, they were engraved with numbers from 0 to 5.
The other dice had letters instead of markings. It was writing from a language that I had never seen before.
"...What kind of dice is this?"
"It's a very special dice for the Contract of the Dead. It's very expensive, and can only be bought at the Crossroads."
"How much is it?"
"Whatever the highest bid is, that’s the price."
"Oh..."
I wasn’t sure whether or not it was true, but I pretended to be surprised. Baron Samedi chuckled.
"You're good at pretending to be surprised. It's not your first time here, is it?"
"It is."
"Ah, I guess it wasn’t you back then? Well, anyway. That's not important."
I couldn’t understand what he meant. He smiled as if he was embarrassed and continued speaking.
"Now, it's time to roll the dice. Should I roll, or do you want to?"
Baron Samedi tapped the wrought iron desk with his fingertips. The table sparkled in the red moonlight. I picked up the dice that I had placed on the table.
"I'll roll. You might cheat."
"Haha! How could I cheat when my hands are like this?”
Baron Samedi raised his severed right arm. However, it seemed like Baron Samedi could still cheat with just one hand. Not that I couldn't trust Baron Samedi, but there was reason to be wary of “Baron Samedi with the dice.”
One could see that just by looking at Ogun.
"But you never know."
"Alright. Go ahead and roll. This isn’t about who throws the dice."
"...Are you going to be determining the price of the Contract of the Dead?"
"Something like that."
He was no longer smiling. Baron Samedi looked at the red moon floating in the sky. He seemed to be looking at something beyond the scenery. I followed Baron Samedi's gaze and looked up at the sky, but I couldn't tell what he was exactly looking at.
The red moon was blinking its eyes.
"Come on, we don't have time! It's time to roll the dice."
"Ah, okay.
I rolled the dice, still not quite grasping what was going on.
Drrrrk—
The dice spun loudly like a top, spinning around the table, and soon came to a stop.
Two pips.
I rolled a two.
I couldn’t read the letters on the other dice.
Baron Samedi looked at the dice with an expression I couldn't understand—he seemed surprised, happy, and sad all at once. It was a strange expression.
"Is that it?"
"...Yes. This will do. Now you just have to follow me."
Baron Samedi stood up from his seat. As I stood up, the table and chair disappeared as if they had never been there from the beginning.
I followed Baron Samedi.
There was nothing to call landscape at the Crossroads. It was all darkness. Where Baron Samedi went, that was the road. Where the red moonlight shined, that was the road.
Baron Samedi walked silently and stopped abruptly at a certain point. The red moonlight no longer illuminated the path ahead, alluding to the end of the journey. Baron Samedi gestured across the road with his chin.
"If you go forward, you will return to the kingdom of matter."
"Is it really that simple? It’s called the Contract of the Dead, after all."
"Death is not as complicated as you think. The same goes for resurrection." Baron Samedi laughed. "Well, speaking of resurrection, your wounds won't heal instantly. You'll probably have to lie in the hospital for a few weeks."
"..."
"Wouldn’t it be strange for someone on the verge of death to suddenly come back to life? I was being considerate on my end."
That was true. If my body suddenly reverted back to its perfect state, it could raise unnecessary suspicion. Of course, the devil's flames burned half my body, and my stomach had a hole in it. Just surviving with these injuries was enough reason to raise some eyebrows, but I couldn't just die like this.
"Well then. According to the Contract of the Dead, Prophet Sun-Woo paid the price and twisted death. With this, Sun-Woo has cheated death twice," Baron Samedi said.
Twice?
"Wait a minute. What do you mean by twice?"
"Until now, haven't you ever questioned your body’s extraordinary regeneration? Did you really think it was because you were inherently healthy?"
"What? What does that mean─!"
Thud.
Baron Samedi gently pushed my back. Even though the force of the push was weak, my body flew toward the end of the Crossroads.
Far away, Baron Samedi's red eyes stared at me. Legba approached next to him with a limp. The two Loa, Baron Samedi and Legba, were watching me.
"I’ll let you know the next time you come over,” Baron Samedi said with a smile.
His voice gradually faded away. As Baron Samedi, Legba, and the Crossroads grew distant, my heart grew empty and lonely. My steps were heavy, like the steps of a journeyer traveling through a foreign land where he knew no one. My chest felt tight.
I opened my eyes. My blurry vision gradually returned to normal. I was at Eiden Hill. Paladins were busy moving around where Jun-Hyuk and I had fought. Jin-Seo, Ha-Yeon, Min-Seo, Yu-Hyun, Do-Jin... and many others were looking at me.
"...Ah."
I barely managed to speak. My voice cracked, unable to form into words. Jin-Seo's dull eyes lit up. She looked at me with her watery eyes and gently touched my face as if she couldn’t believe that I was awake. I couldn't feel any sensation from her touch on my cheek.
"...."
She leaned her head against my chest and silently wept. Ha-Yeon looked down at the scene with a rigid expression, while Yu-Hyun and Do-Jin looked surprised. The paladins were bustling around.
However, I didn't feel anything. Every touch on my skin felt faint. There was blood in my mouth, but it had no taste. Only a bitter scent lingered in my nostrils.
"Ah..."
I had lost too much to stay happy in the moment. The students around me saw me and shouted something. Their voices and footsteps intertwined and echoed in my ears. Feeling drowsy, tired, and overwhelmed by the noise, I closed my eyes.
The large, red moon was looking at me from within the darkness. The moonlight was the only thing that provided warmth and comfort.
* * *
The first ones to come and visit me when I opened my eyes were three clergymen from the Romanican Church.
One had a very rough appearance, while the other two had sharp, snake-like eyes that made them look like they would be good at lying. They all wore strange clothes that I had never seen before. Although it wasn’t my place to say anything, they looked nothing like clergymen. They gave off a strong impression that they were charlatans.
"I apologize for suddenly coming even when you’re clearly dazed. I have something to ask. If you could answer us quickly, we’ll be on our way immediately," the clergyman with the rough appearance said.
"..."
Only the rough clergymen spoke while the other two hurriedly took notes. I had a rough idea of who they were.
The rough-looking clergymen continued to speak.
"Were you acquainted with a student named Jun-Hyuk?"
A student named Jun-Hyuk? There was something strange in that statement. I cleared my throat and opened my mouth, loosening my dry throat.
“We were in the same class."
"Oh? Were you close?"
I observed the facial expressions of the clergymen. Although they were hiding it, I could see the tension in their eyes. I found their efforts so amusing that I couldn't help but chuckle.
The clergymen looked at me with confusion. I nodded slightly, looking at the branches swaying outside the window.
"Of course. We were in the same class, after all."
“...Oh? In that case, you must be very devastated."
The clergymen seemed concerned. Contrary to their worried words, their expression showed they were openly interrogating me.
"I mean, because of what happened to your school... Anyone would be worried sick. Don’t mind me."
“Aha, I see.”
“Then, I have one more thing to ask you...”
The clergymen asked me a few more questions, although they said they had only one question earlier. It seemed that lying was a basic skill for clergymen. All the questions they proceeded to ask were about Satanists and Jun-Hyuk's usual behavior. The questions were awkward and vague, so I answered in the same awkward and vague manner.
"Okay, thank you for answering everything sincerely. Take care..."
The clergymen glanced at my arm for a moment. He looked at my left arm, half-rotten from being burned by the devilish flames.
"...Is the arm getting better?"
"Yes, miraculously. It's slowly getting better."
"Really? That's truly miraculous. Well, this whole incident itself... No, never mind. Thanks to Adonai."
The clergymen abruptly stopped talking and hurriedly bowed their heads, ending the conversation with thanks to Adonai. I smiled faintly and nodded.
"Yes, I am very thankful."
"Yes, what a grateful thing..."
The clergymen scanned my face with their lowered eyes. There was still a lingering suspicion in their gaze.
"I'm sorry for coming so suddenly. Next time, I'll contact you in advance. Could I have your contact information?"
"...Yes, of course."
I nonchalantly recited my phone number to them. The clergymen, with the sly impressions behind them, wrote it down.
"I wish for the blessing of Adonai. ..."
With those last words, the clergymen hurriedly left the hospital room. The next day, I watched the news on the TV while hanging out in the corner of the hospital room. Even though two weeks had passed since the incident, the news was still covering the incident. Through the news, I saw the incident. No, I saw how the incident was wrapped up.
The Satanists had appeared at F.A., and at the same time, devils emerged throughout Seoul, causing dozens of paladin casualties. Two F.A. students and one teacher were also missing. However, the damage was relatively small compared to the incident, so it wasn't heavily reported. The fact that there were no additional casualties at the epicenter of the incident, Florence Academy, was truly a miracle. Reports like these continued to stream out.
Knock, knock.
At that moment, the sound of someone knocking on the door broke my concentration.
Ji-Ah entered after opening the door. My uncle wasn't with her. She glared at me with a stern face, then sighed deeply and sat down.
"Cu... hm. What were you doing? How did you get hurt like this? How are you feeling?"
"One question at a time, please."
"...How are you feeling?"
"I'm doing somewhat okay."
I smiled faintly and continued watching the news. There were varying testimonies about the deaths of the devils that appeared throughout Seoul. Some said that a red hand came down from the sky and tore the devils apart, while others said a divine light descended from the sky and crushed the devils. Since most of the survivors at the scene were experiencing mental confusion, none of the testimonies were truly credible.
The speculation that the phenomenon was a “miracle” seemed likely, but this later led to the question of who had been the embodiment of the miracle. Since Kalfu’s spells had laid waste to the demons, it was understandable that the Romanican Church was confused.
I clenched my left finger, which I had sacrificed for Kalfu’s spell. The decayed parts of my body were gradually getting better, but my finger showed no signs of improvement. The same could probably be said for my lung.
"Were you watching the news?"
"Yes."
"Wouldn’t it be better to use that time to focus on getting better?"
"Well, I'm just lying down anyway."
Ji-Ah didn't say anything more, and we watched the news together.
F.A. imposed a long school closure. Although it was originally supposed to be one month, it was extended to two months. I thought that there was a probability that the break could be extended to three or four months, at least until the physical and mental injuries of the students were treated.
"Do you think it really was a miracle?" Ji-Ah asked while watching the news with me.
Some of those who suffered fatal injuries at F.A. and where the devils appeared miraculously survived. I was one of them.
Due to the continuous horrifying incidents and supernatural events that were difficult to understand with the human mind, there was also the appearance of doomsday believers protesting throughout the streets.
"I don't know."
The reason why I survived was because of the Contract of the Dead. However, others besides me miraculously survived. There were cases where black magic had purified itself, or some people temporarily paralyzed by injuries quickly regained the ability to walk.
I couldn't distinguish whether it was a true "miracle" or a fabrication by the Romanican Church. While I was still confused and uneasy and continued to watch the news, Ji-Ah took out a tumbler from her bag and handed it to me.
When I opened the lid, a strong stench greeted me. Just like last time, It seemed like the water was infused with herbs.
“Is it really poison this time?"
"Yes. It's a poison that is especially good for recovery. Drink it quickly."
"Oh... It must be delicious."
I slowly drank the water infused with herbs, savoring it. Ji-Ah silently watched me from the side.
"It’s not it too bitter? I used a slightly stronger herb than last time..."
"It is really bitter. Are you sure this is drinkable?" I said playfully.
"...Good medicine is bitter to the tongue," Ji-Ah retorted, seeming a bit annoyed.
I just smiled, taking small sips of the medicine she gave me. The concoction had a strong scent but almost no taste, and it was steaming but felt lukewarm.
I had sacrificed my senses of taste and touch as part of the Contract of the Dead. Although my senses weren't all gone, that didn’t mean they were perfectly intact, either. I was in this state because I had rolled a two on the dice. I wondered if I would have lost all my senses if I had rolled a five. Who knows?
The news channel was still airing on the TV. This time, it was a report on the identity of the Satanist.
—The Satanist apprehended by F.A. was identified as a middle-aged bum who had a lot of complaints about society...
The Satanist was a bum with an unclear identity who had been charmed by Satan to attack F.A.
The Romanican Church declared Jun-Hyuk as one of the missing students. It seemed like they didn't want to acknowledge the fact that the renowned Florence Academy had allowed a Satanist disguised as a student to slip past their admission screening.
The clergyman who visited me yesterday asked if I was close to Jun-Hyuk and if I knew where he had vanished. He also asked if I knew of the identity of the Satanist. These questions were to test if I knew the truth.
They had gone back yesterday simply because they had judged that I hadn’t known that Jun-Hyuk was a Satanist and had taken my contact information because they weren’t confident in their judgment. I was receiving unnecessary suspicion for no reason. This wasn’t good news.
Apparently, the Satanists were executed in a private execution ceremony on the same day they were captured.
"..."
Although I knew things would turn out like this, my heart still felt uneasy. The ancient spell was a Hail Mary, and it had been a double-edged sword. Even after using it, I wasn’t able to put an end to Jun-Hyuk’s life.
This was because I lacked the qualities of being the Prophet and the Cult Leader. At this rate, I wouldn’t be able to save my mother, nor would I be able to rebuild the Voodoo Cult. There was a possibility that I would be killed either by the Romanicans or the Satanists.
I had to become stronger as the Cult Leader and the Prophet, no matter what. Right then, I heard laughter from somewhere. The only people in the room were Ji-Ah and me, but Ji-Ah was focused on the news and wasn’t laughing. In fact, there was not even any expression on her face, let alone a trace of a smile.
I finally realized who the owner of that laughter was.
[Didn’t I tell you? Don't trust the head.]
Baron Samedi was sitting under the TV with his legs crossed, laughing at me.
* * *
Because the underground prison of the Holy See Headquarters had no windows, no one could see the sky. If one couldn’t see the sky, then one couldn’t tell the time. Additionally, because it was dark all around, it was difficult to have a sense of space.
The prisoners who spent decades here often let their sanity drift away, blurring alongside their hazy sense of time and space.
Ah, ah, arggghhh—!
The only thing to stimulate the senses here were the screams coming from the torture room installed in the middle of the underground prison. The prisoners woke up from their sleep upon hearing those screams, trembling in fear. All of them had experienced letting out agonizing screams of their own in the torture room.
"Ah, aaah. Ah, ugh......" Jun-Hyuk had been screaming in the torture room, and he closed his eyes as if he was going to faint.
The inquisitor interrogating him splashed water on Jun-Hyuk's face. The water shone in the darkness. It was holy water.
Shhhh...
"Ah, aaah! What the fuck! Can't you just let me sleep? Where are my rights?"
Jun-Hyuk opened his eyes to what felt like his face was melting away from his skull.
The inquisitor looked down at Jun-Hyuk expressionlessly and clicked his tongue.
"Only those who act like humans deserve human rights."
"I am a human."
"How can you be considered human when only your head remains? You people are devils. Don't you dare pretend to be human.”
"Devil? You know, that’s a big compliment from where I’m from.”
Drip, drip, drip...
"Ah, aaah! I'm sorry. You son of a bitch, I said I’m sorry!"
The inquisitor poured holy water on Jun-Hyuk’s face when he showed a sense of ease and smiled. The inquisitor threw the empty holy water bottle on the floor and stabbed Jun-Hyuk’s tongue with a needle connected to a wire. Other needles proceeded to pierce Jun-Hyuk’s ear, tongue, and eyeball.
Immediately after, the inquisitor raised his hand to the switch and asked, "I'll ask again. Who is the Cult Leader of the Voodoo Cult?"
"..."
"Don't you think about keeping your mouth shut. Evidence of the Voodoo Cult was found in your hideout. You know who the Cult Leader is, don’t you?"
Jun-Hyuk simply remained silent. The inquisitor, seeming displeased, angrily flicked a switch. With a click, sparks flew as the wires were ignited.
PZZZZZK–!
Crackling sounds filled the air as Jun-Hyuk's head shook violently. His hair stood on end. The torture chamber was filled with hazy smoke.
Here, the torturers were not considerate about keeping the interrogated alive. If they lived, they lived. If they didn’t, they died. All the prisoners brought here were already declared dead to the outside world anyway.
Click.
The inquisitor raised the switch, stopping the torture. Jun-Hyuk's head was charred black. The damaged tentacles that had come out from his eyes restored his injuries. Jun-Hyuk basically had an immortal body.
He finally opened his eyes.
"Now, let's do it again. Answer the two questions. First, what are the other Satanists doing besides Envy and Wrath? Two, who is the Cult Leader of the Voodoo Cult?"
"...I don't know about the other Satanists. We're not close like a family."
"Is that so? Then that must mean you know who the Cult Leader of the Voodoo Cult is."
"I don't know. Why are you asking me? You should pray to your almighty god and ask him. It's not my fault that Adonai is clamping his precious mouth shu─"
PZZZZK–!
Crackling sounds filled the air.
"Agggggggk, Ah, gk...!"
"How convenient. Since you won't die, there's no need to control the intensity," the inquisitor laughed.
After the end of the torture, the tentacles crawled out again, restoring the damaged parts of Jun-Hyuk's head. However, it could not restore the mind broken from the immense amount of pain. Fear was being injected into Jun-Hyuk's mind.
The inquisitor raised his finger threateningly and said, "Alright. If you don't answer this time, I'll lower the switch and go grab something to eat."
The inquisitor chuckled menacingly.
Jun-Hyuk's lips trembled.
"I-I'll talk. It's the Voodoo Cult, uh, what, whatever it was called, I’d tell, tell you. H-Ha..."
"Alright. Who is it?"
"The Third Cult Leader of the Voodoo Cult, Cult Leader is..." Jun-Hyuk trailed off and held his breath.
The inquisitor waited for him to continue speaking.
"Your mom! Hahaha, then you'll become the Fourth Cult Leader of the Voodoo Cult. Oh, what a bright future you have ahead of you!"
"H-how dare you, you devil!"
PZZZZK–!
"Arrrrgh, aak...!" Jun-Hyuk let out a weak scream amid the pain of his brain getting fried.
The torture continued for a while.
"Aaah..."
The inquisitor watched with satisfaction as Jun-Hyuk shook with pain. He reveled in the thought of Adonai watching him as he prosecuted the heretics. Jun-Hyuk's head convulsed relentlessly as his eyes rolled back, and then he rolled off the electric chair.
Thud.
As it rolled along the floor, it touched someone’s foot. The ankle of the owner of the foot was covered in wounds.
Jun-Hyuk forced his head to turn with his tongue and saw the face of the woman chained against the wall of the torture chamber. It was too dark to see clearly. The only thing he could slightly make out was the slight rise and fall of her shoulders when she took a breath.
Click, clack.
With ominous-sounding footsteps, the inquisitor approached Jun-Hyuk, who was staring at her in a daze.
“It’s not easy to pin you down when you have nothing but your head. And there aren't many places to torture..."
With that, the inquisitor grabbed Jun-Hyuk by the hair and forced him into a chair. Then, he inserted a needle connected to a wire into the same spots he had put in before.
Jun-Hyuk pointed to the wall where a woman was hanging with his tongue.
"Who is that woman? Is she your wife?"
PZZZK–!
"Aaarrgghhh!"
Without even giving Jun-Hyuk a proper response, the inquisitor immediately flipped the switch. The sound of Jun-Hyuk’s screams billowed out along with smoke. The interrogator raised the switch and waited until Jun-Hyuk's head was healed again.
With a sinister glint in his black eyes, the inquisitor shifted his gaze between Jun-Hyuk and the woman, his lips curling into a smile.
"She's the former Prophet of the Voodoo Cult. She's seven years your senior, so treat her with respect."
The inquisitor laughed, his white teeth gleaming in the darkness.
Sliver...
While the inquisitor was busy laughing, a tentacle emerged from Jun-Hyuk's eyes and swallowed a fallen strand of hair.
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