Chapter 36
"Oh, you look so good in it!" the clerk said, smiling softly.
In-Ah looked at herself in the mirror and smiled shyly.
"Then I'll buy this, too!"
“Sure~ Would you like to look around more?”
“No! This is enough.” In-Ah shook her head.
She thought that buying this much would be more than enough.
"Alright, then I'll help you with the bill."
The clerk headed to the counter with the clothes that In-Ah chose. The barcode scanner continuously beeped with each item.
"The total is 456,100 won. Would you like to earn points for your purchase?”
“No, no, thank you.”
“Would you like a receipt?”
"Just throw it away, please!"
"Yes~"
The clerk put the clothes in a bag, and In-Ah picked it up.
For In-Ah, 450,000 won was quite a big expense, but she didn't think it was a waste at all. All the clothes she bought were gifts for her younger sister. After completing her shopping, In-Ah left the department store. A breeze carried over the fresh smell of grass, and she could smell the scent of flowers here and there.
The street was crowded with people. There were lovers holding hands and looking at each other with lovey-dovey eyes and families who were on an outing. There were also friends looking for fun places to hang out.
Everyone's face was full of laughter. Everyone looked happy. In-Ah also laughed profusely because she was happy.
Ring—
In-Ah's next stop was the ice cream shop. Her younger sister liked cakes very much, and her favorite cake was an ice cream cake.
"Give me this one please."
In-Ah pointed to the biggest and most delicious-looking cake on display.
"Yes, please wait a moment."
While the clerk wrapped the cake, Jung In-Ah fiddled with her cell phone. She had received a few text messages from Jun-Hyuk. Other than that, she also received a few meaningless greetings from her other friends. Sun-Woo had not sent her anything. She had no idea what he was doing, but during the weekends, it would normally be difficult to get in touch with Sun-Woo.
"Here is your ice cream cake."
While scrolling up and down meaninglessly and looking through the text messages shared with Sun-Woo, the cake came out. In-Ah thanked the clerk and left the store after waving goodbye.
Ring.
The bell on the door made a refreshing sound. She waddled home with her hands filled with cake, clothes, and various miscellaneous gifts. As she walked, her shoulders gradually hurt, so she decided to take a break at a nearby park.
“Ah.”
In-Ah plopped down on the bench after leaving her bag on the floor. Even though she hadn’t walked that much, she had sweat a lot. It was because the weather had suddenly gotten warmer. The cold breeze was refreshing, and the sunlight was warm. It was clear that spring had arrived. She sat on the bench for a while and dried her body in the sunlight.
She suddenly raised her head. She noticed that the flower buds, which had been tightly closed up until recently, were now opening shyly. The petals that protruded out of the opening were a clear pink color. Come to think of it, it would soon be time for cherry blossoms to bloom. It reminded her of early spring last year.
Last year, she had gone to Seokchon Lake with her younger sister. She recalled the cherry blossoms that had bloomed brilliantly there. The cherry blossom leaves poured out every time the wind blew.
She remembered eating a lot of different things while wandering around, but she couldn’t remember exactly what she had eaten. While reminiscing about the past, she couldn’t help but grin. The memories she was reflecting on felt even more beautiful since they were blurred. At the time, it didn’t feel like such a happy moment, but looking back, it was one of the happiest days of her life.
"What a relief,” In-Ah said to herself in a low voice. It was a little difficult to explain, but she just felt relieved about everything.
"Heehee."
On her way home, In-Ah needlessly laughed. It was because there were spots of clouds that resembled footsteps that dotted the clear blue skies.
The scenery she was used to seeing every day felt unfamiliar yet fun, and it also felt somewhat beautiful today.
* * *
Beyond the door, there was an endlessly long corridor. There was no light to speak of—it was only filled with darkness.
Ji-Ah and I walked cautiously down the hall. Occasionally, the silence was broken by the sound of ringing bells. There was also a rustling sound. It sounded like insects or rats crawling around. Whenever there was a sound, Ji-Ah trembled.
"Mr. Cult Leader, I think it’d be better if we go back and fetch something to light up the darkness with a flashlight or a candle,” she said in a trembling voice. The hallway was dark, but it wasn't to the point where I couldn't see.
"Since we've come this far, let's just keep going. "
I was too lazy to turn back now, and above all, I felt that it would be a waste of time. Ji-Ah chased me with somewhat uncomfortable steps and an expression of disapproval. Her shoulders were trembling slightly. After walking for a long time, Ji-Ah suggested, "Um, why don't we at least light up the front with a cell phone flashlight?"
I turned on my cell phone. There was only two percent battery left.
"I don't have any battery."
"Oh."
Ji-Ah lowered her head as if she had become overwhelmed by despair.
"Can't you do it yourself?"
"I left my cell phone earlier, you see..."
"Then let's just go."
We resumed walking again. Ji-Ah followed right behind me while clinging to my back. Even though we had walked quite a bit, I couldn't see the end of the hallway. I felt like we still had a long way to go. My legs were slowly starting to hurt.
It didn’t take long for Ji-Ah to speak again. "Mr. Cult Leader, as I said earlier, wouldn’t it be better if we came back after bringing something to light up the front?”
"Even if it's dark, you can see ahead. I don't think it's necessary."
"But it's too dark. I think it's too dangerous." Ji-Ah's voice was still trembling.
"Are you scared?"
"No, sir.”
"Tell me the truth. Then I'll go back."
"I’m not scared at all. I just thought it could be dangerous–"
Rattle!
"Heeek...!"
A loud, dry sound resounded through the darkness and echoed through the corridor. Ji-Ah flopped down on the spot without even getting a chance to scream. I could see tears at the edges of her eyes glistening through the darkness.
"So you are scared."
"...No, I’m not."
Ji-Ah continued to remain in denial, but no matter how I looked at it, she was obviously scared. It looked like I had no choice, so I drew a spell array by expelling Voodoo magic power. From the freshly drawn spell array, purple candles sprang out. The purple light from the candles extinguished the darkness of the hallway and revealed the scenery beyond.
Lesser replication spell, candle of consciousness.
Since it was a lesser replication spell, the light was not that strong. That said, it was still better than nothing. I trudged forward with the candle in hand. Ji-Ah stared at me with a dumbfounded expression from her seated position.
"Why didn’t you use that from the start...?”
“Because your reaction was funny. I’m sorry.”
“...”
Ji-Ah opened her mouth as if she was about to say something but soon closed it and followed behind me in resignation.
"Mr. Cult Leader and Teacher share a lot of similarities."
"That's the first time I've heard anyone say something like that. In what way are we similar?”
“You're both playful.”
“No way, I can’t compare to Uncle. I’m not even on the same tier as him.”
"No... The way I see it, there is not much difference between the two of you.”
We had a meaningless conversation as we strode through the hall. It was definitely easier to walk with the light. When we reached the end of the hallway, I saw a tightly closed iron door. There were three latches that sealed the door, and each grate was tightly locked with a padlock.
"I'll open it."
Rustle.
Ji-Ah took out a pile of keys from her pocket. She unlocked the latches by inserting the keys one by one. I stood by her side and lit up the area with the candle.
Click.
It was not long before all the locks were released. While calming down my trembling heart, I pulled the door handle.
Creak.
The rigid door opened with an eerie, grating sound. It almost sounded like the floor was getting scraped apart. Beyond the door was a vast room. Just like the corridor that we had walked through thus far, the room did not have a single ray of light and was completely filled with darkness.
I could hear a clanging and creaking sound continuously resounding through the hallway. The room was filled with a putrid odor—it was a sour smell mixed with filth and sweat. Occasionally, I could sense a presence, but it was unclear whether it belonged to Ji-Ah or someone else.
"Please be careful. There may be something like a demonic beast," Ji-Ah cautioned. I lit up the front with a candle while moving slowly and examining every corner of the room.
The first thing I saw was a vault. It was a vault that looked very large and sturdy. After locating the vault, Ji-Ah ran over to it and began to open it.
Rustle–!
In less than three minutes, the vault’s door cracked open with a crisp sound. The inside of the vault was filled with bundles of fifty-thousand won bills, gold bars, and jewels. It looked like the money that had been accumulated through all the religious services Han Su-Yeop had done so far. There was so much cash and commodities that it was difficult to estimate the total value contained within the vault.
"Let's take it all," Ji-Ah said.
I injected divine power into Baal's Maw.
Rip–
Baal’s Maw opened with a tearing sound. Ji-Ah shoved all the bundles of money, gold bars, and jewelry into Baal's Maw. She looked just like a bank robber. Seeing her like this, it was clear that she was my uncle’s disciple.
"Then let’s go back—"
Rattle.
"Aaaaargh! Aargh!"
"Kyaaaaa!"
Ji-Ah was just about to stand up and go back when her foot kicked something. The sound of rattling metal bars resounded, and at the same, an unidentified creature began to scream like mad. Ji-Ah was surprised by the noise and also screamed in return.
After screaming and shaking for a while, Ji-Ah eventually muttered in confusion, "Aggghhh... Agh... Ah... Huh?"
Her face, which had always been expressionless up until now, formed an expression for the first time. It sort of looked like she was embarrassed, or stricken with fear, and it also kind of looked like she was revolted.
"Mr. Cult... Leader. This."
Ji-Ah pointed her finger beyond the metal bars. I approached her and turned the candle in the direction she indicated. The purple light illuminated the area behind the bars.
"Aaaaaaaaaargh! Aaaaargh!"
When the light illuminated the area, 'it' began to scream like crazy again. The screams didn't stop. Even as its voice went hoarse and its voice cracked, it continued to roar. It felt like it was completely out of control. I slowly examined whatever it was that resided beyond the bars.
Its brown hair was curly, and its limbs were thin. Its pale skin with visible blue veins was exposed through the cracks in its torn clothes, and bruises were scattered all over its body. Its brown eyes, which had a similar hue to its hair, had no focus.
It was a zombie.
"Aaaargh! Aaargh!"
Rattle. Rattle, rattle, rattle.
The zombie grabbed the iron bars and shook them—a terrible sound that resembled scraping metal came out of its screaming mouth. Transparent saliva dripped from its wide-open mouth. It had a collar around its neck with a bell and a name tag attached to it.
Rattle, rattle, rattle, rattle.
The zombie went on a rampage. As a result, the bell shook and made a dry, raspy sound.
The name tag had a name on it. After confirming the name, I was so dumbfounded that I couldn’t help but laugh.
"I found her..."
While staring blankly at the name on the name tag, I slumped down and laughed like a lunatic. Every time I laughed, my stomach churned as if the gastric acid contained inside was going through an upheaval, and my intestines twisted with pain as if they had been torn apart.
"But why are you here..."
Jung In-Ah's missing sister, Jung Yoon-Ah. She was right in front of me right now. Trapped in a cage as a zombie.
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