Chapter 175
Yu-Hyun allied with a total of five different groups. One of the groups included In-Ah.
Yu-Hyun instructed members who were relatively physically fit or had exceptional abilities to meet clergymen and obtain tokens. He also told them that if they encountered groups with members from the Department of Paladins or the Department of Crusaders, they should immediately run away without hesitation and rejoin the main group.
On the other hand, the relatively less skilled members were instructed to draw a blessing array with Yu-Hyun. When they unleashed divine power, Yu-Hyun drew a blessing array by manipulating their divine power as if it were his own. It was a fusion blessing array that combined various blessing arrays into a single array, which was incredibly complex and large. Even those somewhat knowledgeable about blessings didn't know what blessing array Yu-Hyun was drawing.
There was no hesitation in Yu-Hyun’s voice as he handed down a slew of orders to his teammates. His eyes sparkled with certainty. No one could tell what Yu-Hyun was doing, but everyone obeyed Yu-Hyun as if they were enchanted.
"...You, what was your name again?"
"Uh, it's In-Ah."
In-Ah had been assigned to the unit that wandered around and collected tokens. She met some clergymen and obtained tokens. She avoided tasks that required the use of blessings or physical effort and only chose tasks that required thinking. She primarily completed tasks that involved analyzing blessing arrays or interpreting codes.
Priests sometimes assisted in battles, but they mostly spent their time researching blessing arrays or deciphering ancient documents, holy books, and the like. The analysis and interpretation tasks were tested in the exam to evaluate such abilities.
The clergymen took an interest in In-Ah, who effortlessly solved even relatively difficult problems. Quite a number of people asked for her name or handed out their business cards. They were proposals to join their own priest group in practical mission training and dispatch training that would happen in the future.
"Yes... you."
She met Sun-Woo on her way back to her group after obtaining some tokens. According to Yu-Hyun's instructions, she was supposed to run away without looking back. However, instead of running away, In-Ah approached Sun-Woo. She walked toward him as if she was possessed.
The thought of running away never occurred to her because Sun-Woo's condition was so miserable. It looked as if he was searching for an escape route, but he soon approached In-Ah as if he had given up. And then he leaned his head on her shoulder.
At first, she was dumbfounded. She wondered what happened for him to end up in such a desperate situation, and why he was alone instead of being with the team members. When she asked about the circumstances, Sun-Woo answered that Dae-Man had hit him.
"What?"
It was an unbelievable statement, but looking at Sun-Woo's condition, she had no choice but to believe it. If the members had a falling out and ended up fighting, and Sun-Woo got hit by Dae-Man in the process, then the situation was roughly understandable.
In-Ah felt Sun-Woo's warmth on her shoulder and said, "Did you fight?"
"There was a clash of opinions."
"Even so, it’s too harsh to do something like this!" In-Ah shouted and then abruptly stopped talking.
"...It’s not alright for people to hit each other. So, did you just sit around while getting hit?"
"Since I’m injured to this degree... Dae-Man should already be dead."
"You're joking! It seems like it’s obvious that only you got hit."
Even while getting angry, In-Ah smirked. It was both amusing and unbelievable that Sun-Woo was casually joking around although he had been beaten to a pulp. His face remained hidden, but it seemed like he was smiling too.
Every time Sun-Woo exhaled, his breath touched the back of In-Ah's neck and ears. There was the faint scent of blood in his breath.
"What are we going to do about the exam? Give up halfway?"
"Yeah, probably..." Sun-Woo said with a nod.
His voice, which cracked from exhaustion, was weak and lacking in strength. It was to the extent that it was difficult to hear him unless she concentrated. Perhaps Sun-Woo was aware of this, as he brought his mouth closer to her ear every time he spoke. It felt a little strange whenever his breath touched her ear.
"Why are you sticking so close? Are you a leech?" In-Ah said while pulling Sun-Woo away in an irritated manner.
But the more she did that, the closer Sun-Woo came.
"Can't I stick close to you?"
"It's not that you can't... You’re heavy! And I caught a cold. You shouldn't catch it too."
“It’s because I’m tired. Let me just lean on you a little."
"Well, then lean on the wall instead of me. Or you can lie down on the floor...!"
In-Ah tried to pull Sun-Woo away while saying that, but he seemed to have no intention of listening.
"The wall is cold and the floor is dirty, so I don't want to lean or lie down on them," Sun-Woo said before bringing In-Ah's head into his arms with his right hand.
"..."
If she pushed with all her strength, she could have easily pushed him away, but In-Ah didn't bother to do so. Her heart was not firm enough to push away someone who was resting in order to recuperate from their injuries.
"Sorry," Sun-Woo said while lightly brushing In-Ah's hair off her face as he held her in his arms.
His voice still sounded tired. After receiving his apology, she felt sorry and remorseful for no reason. Sun-Woo was injured, and if he gave up on the exam, he wouldn't be a competitor either. It seemed like she had been too cold toward him. In-Ah lowered her head slightly in his embrace.
"Sheesh... whether you want to lean on me or hug me, do as you please—”
Snap.
At that moment, a sound like that of a branch breaking came from behind In-Ah's head. It also sounded like boots were hitting the ground.
Along with the sound, her consciousness became blurry, and she was unable to form any coherent words. Without knowing what was happening, In-Ah lost consciousness and collapsed to the ground.
"I'm really sorry..."
Clank.
Sun-Woo repeatedly apologized and handcuffed In-Ah's wrist while she was unconscious. His right index finger was broken.
The message that In-Ah had been captured as a hostage appeared on the digital watch.
*
During the school break, I repeatedly practiced acquiring spells. I wasn’t sure if I could call it practice. It was closer to training or cultivation.
At first, I would draw spell arrays and control Voodoo mist in an unsophisticated manner. I thought that by doing so, I would eventually be able to “acquire” the spells. I believed that if I quietly worked hard, I would eventually reach the level my father had achieved.
However, several days, weeks, and eventually even months passed without any progress, I finally realized that I could not become like my father. Even walking the path he had paved was difficult for me. I had to walk a different path from my father, and that meant forging a new path at the same time.
[I guess you could say that you succeeded in your own way.]
I touched my broken finger and nodded at Legba's words. I could feel a faint tingling sensation as if electricity was flowing through my finger, but it didn't hurt.
While residing in the underground chapel, I carved out the flesh of my finger with Dawn's Blade and engraved spells onto the wounds every single night. It was a crude method.
At first, doing this didn't yield any results. However, as I continuously engraved layers of spells onto my body, my efforts finally bore fruit. It wasn't the way my father did it, but I “acquired” the spells. The spells I engraved on my hand would activate when I broke my finger. I subdued In-Ah and captured her as a hostage using that method.
I betrayed In-Ah, who had sympathized with and trusted me. I walked toward Dae-Man while carrying In-Ah on my back. In-Ah was light, but due to my own physical condition not being very good, she felt incredibly heavy. After walking with labored breaths for a few minutes, I heard the voices of Baron Samedi and Bossou.
[Did you deceive the child that you previously deceived again? You’ve completely become a piece of trash now.]
[I didn't see you that way... Bossou is disappointed in the Prophet.]
Legba defended me.
[You’re supposed to use a little bit of trickery in tests. In this case, it was her fault for being deceived.]
[Still, that was a bit harsh. Even considering that it’s a test,] Granbwa criticized.
[The kid will no longer be a kid...] Damballa muttered.
It sounded like some random nonsense. Their voices fused together and became noise in my head. It felt like my thoughts were disappearing and their voices were filling up and shaking up my mind. I felt dizzy. Whether it was because of the voices or the bleeding, I couldn't tell.
"Ah, damn... No, just... please be quiet."
[I was quiet. It was the others who were noisy. Especially Baron Samedi.]
[No, Legba was the loudest. Honestly, I didn’t say much, right?]
[Bossou, is sorry!]
[It’s true that it was a little too harsh! ...Just a little bit.]
[Kid... you've become quite jaded while I wasn't looking.]
It seemed like none of the Loa had any intention of being quiet. Since I was carrying In-Ah, I couldn’t cover my ears with my hands, and even if I covered my ears, it wouldn't block the noise whatsoever. My head felt heavy due to the voices. Was this the weight of being a Prophet? If so, it was lighter than I thought.
Even while such pointless thoughts were going through my head, I didn't forget the fact that I was in the middle of a test. First, I contacted Dae-Man via my digital watch in order to determine a meeting point, and then headed in the direction of the meeting point.
Dae-Man and the other team members chose a suitable building located between the area where the teams from the Department of Priests and the teams from the Department of Paladins were located and were currently resting there.
Dae-Man's body was covered in mud as if he had just finished a fierce battle. It seemed like there were several more hostages besides Ha-Yeon and Su-Ryeon. It was a harvest that I didn't expect.
"Oh, Sun... Why are you like this?" Dae-Man said.
Dae-Man roughly wiped off the mud on his face with his hand and then had a surprised expression on his face after seeing me.
I laid the unconscious In-Ah next to the other hostages. Then, I covered her with the coat that I used to smuggle in the holy artifacts and said, "I had a fight. I was up against seventeen members from the Department of Priests."
"Did you win?"
I pointed to the fallen In-Ah with my chin and said, "I won so that’s why I was able to bring her back."
"Um, can you give me the key to these handcuffs?"
I pretended not to hear what Ha-Yeon said.
Dae-Man nodded, but his expression seemed uncertain as he mumbled, "Hmm... But you got so injured just fighting against a mere seventeen priests? I can’t believe that!"
"Oh, I misspoke. It wasn't seventeen, it was seventy-one."
Dae-Man furrowed his brow and lowered his gaze to the ground as if he were imagining the battle with the seventy-one people in his mind.
Soon, Dae-Man nodded with an impressed expression on his face.
"Incredible. That must have been a fierce fight."
"It was indeed fierce."
So he believed me...
Dae-Man seemed to believe everything I said. I deceived In-Ah by framing such a great guy as a villain. The pang I felt in my conscience doubled.
Su-Ryeon, who was held hostage, was sitting while leaning against the wall and looking at us in disbelief while we conversed.
"We also fought several battles while you weren’t here. We mostly won against the priests, but the crusaders..."
"You must have lost. But the losses seem to be minimal."
I glanced at the faces and bodies of the team members either sitting or lying down while resting. They all had signs of fatigue from the battles, and they seemed a bit fewer in number.
Apart from me and Dae-Man, there should have been eight other team members, but now there were only five. It seemed that we had lost three team members in the battles against students from the Department of Crusaders.
"I'm sorry. I used up too much stamina in the fight against Min-Seo. Above all, I lack the ability to lead the team."
"No... it’s fine," I said while counting the number of hostages we had captured.
Su-Ryeon, Ha-Yeon, In-Ah, and two unfamiliar faces. There were a total of five hostages. If it was this much, then it really was enough. Su-Ryeon and Ha-Yeon’s presence especially stood out. Both of them had skills that could be called essential in their respective departments.
"Let’s rest for now. Our team members’ condition is important."
Rather than the condition of my team members, I was the one who wanted a break for myself. Dae-Man nodded.
"That's right. So, what's the plan after we rest?" Dae-Man asked.
"After you rest, please release the handcuffs..." Ha-Yeon said.
Before answering Dae-Man's question, I checked the time. There was still quite a bit of time left until the exam was over. If we negotiated and exchanged the hostages with tokens, we would be able to obtain a considerable amount of tokens.
"We gotta go do some hostage negotiations."
"Oh... It felt like you were playing the role of a villain slave trader in a movie just now. It's really cool."
"Uh, thank you."
I wasn't sure if that was a compliment or criticism, but I thanked him anyway. I didn't have much time to think right now. The first priority was to recover stamina while resting. I didn’t know how much stamina I would be able to recover just by resting for a few minutes, but it was still better than not resting at all.
I dragged an old chair lying around in the building and sat down. The backrest made a creaking sound, but it was still usable. At least it met the basic requirements of a chair. I sat down, and repeatedly breathed in and out heavily.
"Urgh..."
When I no longer smelled the metallic scent that lingered in my throat and nostrils, she woke up. With sleepy eyes, In-Ah looked around and found me. She blinked her blurry eyes slowly and stared at me. I didn’t know if it was fortunate or unfortunate, but she still hadn’t grasped the situation.
I avoided her gaze.
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