The Cult Leader in the Clergy Academy

Chapter 252

After receiving a call from Oh Hee-Jin, Han Dae-Ho quickly got up from his seat. He then heard Oh Hee-Jin babble on about unbelievable things through the phone.

He talked about how they succeeded in finding the long-term missing person and how they spotted a person that they suspected to be the leader of the Voodoo Cult in the abandoned building where they had found the missing person. Apparently, they had chased the woman but failed to catch her.

But there was something that shocked him more than anything else.

"Sun-Woo hit the director of the Northern Branch? By mistake? Ah, so you’re saying that he didn't just hit him—he also broke his nose and even kicked his stomach?" Han Dae-Ho said.

At first, he thought he was joking, but Oh Hee-Jin was not the type to joke around. Furthermore, his tone sounded too urgent.

He was curious about how a search mission for a long-term missing person had led to such a situation, but now was not the time to ask about that.

"Alright, return to the office with Sun-Woo for now. I’ll try my best to deal with the incident regarding the director of the Northern Branch,” Han Dae-Ho said.

—The Paladin Order Northern Branch Director insists that we come to their office, so returning will be difficult.

"Is that so? Fine, then. Let me try talking to him," Han Dae-Ho said with a frown.

After a moment of silence on the phone, someone spoke. It was the voice of the Paladin Order Northern Branch Director.

"Uh, director. I heard that my subordinate beat you up?”

—That’s right! Sun-Woo, that crazy son of a bitch, I will definitely discipline him, so keep that in mind. How dare an apprentice beat up a director? Does he even know how many levels of hierarchy I am above him within the church?!"

“I was also shocked by the news. This truly is a terrible incident,” Han Dae-Ho said.

—...

After hearing Han Dae-Ho's sarcastic remark, the Paladin Order Northern Branch Director finally realized something was amiss and closed his mouth.

Han Dae-Ho smiled faintly and continued, "Since we’re the ones in the wrong, it’s a bit much for us to ask for leniency. And even if we ask for leniency, you’re not going to listen to us anyway... So, let’s just resolve this issue according to the rules. Let’s bring in the reporters and publicize this incident too.”

—There’s no need to go so far as publicizing it...

"Of course, we have to make it public. If an apprentice paladin struck the head of the Paladin Order Northern Branch Director, it's not just a minor issue, but a huge one, isn't it?"

—...

"An ordinary apprentice paladin beat up a director. It wasn't a surprise attack on a director who was alone. Instead, he charged in and one-sidedly beat up the director while he was with his subordinates. He broke his nose and kicked his abdomen.”

—It wasn't a one-sided beatdown...

"Sun-Woo’s such a horrible person, don’t you think? The whole world should know that he's a horrible person, isn’t that right? Yeah?"

The Paladin Order Northern Branch Director did not respond. Han Dae-Ho waited for him to speak. There was a brief silence. Eventually, the Paladin Order Northern Branch Director answered Han Dae-Ho’s questions.

—It doesn’t seem necessary to make this public. I’m just asking that we discipline him according to the regulations...

“No, I want to make the incident public. I heard you only focused on extinguishing the fire because you thought no one was in the abandoned building.”

—...

"My subordinate was the one who found a long-term missing person there. You guys tried to chase a woman who might have been a member of the Voodoo Cult, but you ended up fainting on the street.”

If they decided to make the incident public, criticism would obviously be directed toward Sun-Woo and the Eastern Paladin Order. But, at the same time, the incompetence of the Northern Paladin Order would surely come to light.

The Paladin Order Northern Branch Director did not want that to happen. If the fact that he had failed to subdue an apprentice paladin and had gotten beaten up were to be revealed, and the Northern Paladin Order’s incompetence was exposed to the world, the director's reputation would plummet.

“So what I’m saying is, do we really need to press such serious charges such as mutiny and obstruction of official duties? If we just handle it as an incident of minor disobedience, we won't have to deal with all this headache, and your pride won’t be so hurt. Isn’t this a win for both of us?"

—...I understand what you mean. As you said, it will be better to talk about the details face to face.

"Alright, let's talk about the details later. Anyway, thanks for your hard work."

Beep.

Han Dae-Ho immediately hung up the phone after saying his final words to the director. Then, he put his hand on his waist and sighed several times.

After calming down his anger to some extent, Han Dae-Ho muttered, "It wasn’t even a sneak attack. If you got wasted by an apprentice paladin in a direct confrontation, then you should know how to be ashamed. Tsk.”

He was more irritated by the Paladin Order Northern Branch director’s pettiness than Sun-Woo.

Not long after, Sun-Woo and Oh Hee-Jin returned. Oh Hee-Jin was hunching his shoulders as he entered, expecting Han Dae-Ho to reprimand him.

Han Dae-Ho approached them with large strides. Oh Hee-Jin's body shrank even more.

However, Han Dae-Ho grinned widely and lightly patted Sun-Woo's head.

Pat!

"Hey, why’d you have to beat up the Northern Branch director of all people? Tone down your ego a little. If you go to Central and do that, I can't cover for you."

Han Dae-Ho decided not to get angry with Sun-Woo. He often thought about punching the Northern Branch director’s face.

And since Sun-Woo fulfilled that wish for him, he wasn't angry. Above all, Sun-Woo had found the long-term missing person. Thinking about the scale of that achievement, he couldn't bring himself to be angry.

"But where is the long-term missing person you found?" Han Dae-Ho asked, looking around.

Oh Hee-Jin finally straightened his shoulders and said, "She was unconscious, so we escorted her to the infirmary. They said that there didn’t seem to be any major issues."

"I see... Thank you. You really worked hard. Her name was Yoon-Ah, right?" Han Dae-Ho asked.

Han Dae-Ho searched the list of long-term missing persons and found the name 'Yoon-Ah.’ He then nodded slowly and said, "I remember. It has been quite a while since that child went missing. Good job finding her.”

Han Dae-Ho recalled the not-too-distant past. Her parents came to the Paladin Order and cried for days, saying that their child was missing. They even said they wouldn't leave the Paladin Order until the child was found.

The child's sister also came to ask about the child's whereabouts. Han Dae-Ho promised to find her and return the child to the family.

However, days, weeks, and months passed without any sign of her. The incident had weighed heavily on Han Dae-Ho's heart as well. Not only Yoon-Ah, but thinking of the many missing people he couldn't find always made his heart heavy.

That was why Han Dae-Ho was even more grateful to Sun-Woo.

"Contact the families of the missing person. Let them know that we found her," Han Dae-Ho said with a small smile, instructing Oh Hee-Jin.

At that moment, Sun-Woo raised his hand and said, "Oh, I'll just go and bring them myself."

“Do you know the missing person’s family? Ah, come to think of it, the missing person’s sister is a Florence Academy student as well,” Han Dae-Ho said.

Sun-Woo nodded. "We are friends."

***

In-Ah went for dispatch training at the priesthood today as usual. She was training inside a building with a hospital and cathedral, which belonged to a fairly large priesthood.

On the day of the practical exam, she received a business card from one of the priests. Using that connection, she was introduced to a fairly prestigious priesthood. The competition was tough, but she excelled academically and performed well in the interview, so she joined the priesthood without much difficulty.

In-Ah bowed her head to her supervisor after finishing her day's work at the priesthood and said, "Thank you for your hard work."

Without even glancing in In-Ah's direction, the supervisor tapped on the keyboard and said, "When’s the next time you're coming?"

"Um, probably... As far as I know, it should be on Thursday.”

"Right, Thursday. That's two days from now. Make sure to fully understand what we discussed today before coming. It will be a problem if you still don't know by then."

"Yes, understood."

In-Ah nodded once again in acknowledgment, then left the priesthood. Even then, her supervisor didn't even spare her a glance. He simply continued silently typing on his keyboard, focusing on his work.

When she stepped outside, it was already nighttime. Autumn had deepened, and the night air was chilly. In-Ah let out a deep sigh.

Despite the cold, her breath didn't show. How much colder would it be in winter? She shivered and adjusted her coat. Then, she briefly glanced back at the priesthood she had been assigned to for dispatch training.

"..."

The priesthood she was assigned to was quite large. With many priests in the organization, she could build relationships with many competent and excellent priests.

There was also an affiliated hospital where she could learn about the duties of priests specializing in healing. It was a perfect opportunity for someone like her, as she had been nurturing her dream of becoming a priest specializing in healing.

Everything was going well. Students who failed due to poor grades or missed interviews would have been extremely envious of In-Ah.

In-Ah was also satisfied. She was satisfied, but then...

Vroom—!

At that moment, a motorcycle roared past her loudly. If she had taken one more step forward, she would have been hit.

In-Ah stepped back, sweating coldly. She realized she was walking on the road, not the sidewalk, and seemed to be out of her mind. She waited for the signal at the crosswalk. When it turned green, she didn't want to move at all and just stood still.

She waited for the next signal. It turned green. She stood still. After waiting for the signal three times, she finally crossed the crosswalk after it turned green for the fourth time.

—The exit will open on the right...

She finished work when it was dark and spent over an hour commuting on the subway. By the time she finally exited the subway, the sky was pitch black.

When she looked up at the pitch-black night sky, where not even a single star could be seen, the tiny slithers of her remaining strength seemed to disappear. Nevertheless, she forced herself to walk home. When she thought she was almost there, she lifted her head.

She thought she had walked quite a lot, but there was still a long way to go. Taking a deep breath, she continued to walk. Even taking a single step felt too heavy, so she had to stop and rest intermittently.

When she got home, she studied. Exams were over, but she didn't stop studying. It was more accurate to say that she couldn’t stop studying. That was the only thing she could hold onto.

"I feel a little tired,” In-Ah muttered as she lay on her desk.

She startled herself. She hadn't intended to speak to herself, but the words had come out on their own.

Her eyes widened, then she resigned herself and closed her eyes. And then she thought about why she had uttered that she was a little tired.

A little. Was she a little tired right now?

"No, I guess I’m fairly tired? I don't know."

She couldn’t tell the difference between 'a little' and ‘fairly.' In-Ah tried to clear her mind and refocus on studying after shaking her head.

However, when she saw a single raven outside the window, she couldn't help but be distracted by it. The raven was perched on the windowsill, staring intently in her direction with its eerie eyes. It seemed as if it was staring right at In-Ah.

‘I will come back. Wait for me.’

Suddenly, an unwelcome voice that she didn't want to remember echoed in her ear.

‘Have you forgotten about me?’

The dreadful voice, which she didn't want to remember, began to speak new words instead of repeating past ones. Even words that the voice had never said before echoed in her ear.

The raven was still gazing at her. Its eerie eyes sent shivers down her spine. It felt as if the raven was looking directly at her.

‘I feel hurt. Have you forgotten? Do you want to forget?’

"Shut up. You never said such things," In-Ah muttered, trying to push the voice out of her ear.

The voice didn't say anything more, but instead, it laughed. It was a disturbing laugh.

Even when she covered her ears, she could still hear the voice. Even when she closed her eyes, it was the same. If anything, when she closed her eyes, the voices seemed louder in the darkness.

Cold sweat dripped down and fell onto the textbook. In-Ah tried to grab her pen in a hurry. However, she couldn't figure out where her pen was.

Her hand only fumbled on her desk without grasping her pen. Cold sweat continued to flow out. She struggled to breathe.

Knock knock.

Then, she heard a knocking sound. In-Ah's heart sank for a moment, and she looked at the clock. There was no reason for anyone to come.

Her parents wouldn't have arrived already. Besides, if it was her parents, they had no reason to knock. She looked out the window. The raven that had been staring in her direction had disappeared.

She shivered.

Knock knock.

The knocking sound continued persistently. She deliberately didn't respond. She thought they would leave if she didn't respond. However, the person on the other side of the door stubbornly continued to knock.

Knock knock...

With each knock that echoed throughout the house, cold sweat dripped onto the floor. Her heart beat roughly.

In-Ah picked up her phone and found Sun-Woo's contact information. In this situation, there was no one else she could call immediately besides Sun-Woo.

Knock, knock, knock.

"Who is it?"

She immediately prepared to call Sun-Woo and spoke to the person on the other side of the door. The person on the other side did not respond. They didn't even knock.

Within the deep silence, In-Ah heard her own heartbeat. Her whole body trembled in sync with her heartbeat.

Buzz—! Buzz—!

Then, her phone vibrated.

Startled, she almost dropped the phone. In-Ah picked up her phone and looked at it. A call was coming from Sun-Woo. She answered the call.

However, Sun-Woo didn't say anything. Silence lingered. In-Ah wanted to say something to Sun-Woo. She wanted to tell him that it seemed like a strange person had come to her house and she wanted to ask if he could come over.

But due to nervousness or fear, her voice wouldn't come out.

—It's me.

The first to break the silence was Sun-Woo. His voice could be heard simultaneously from both the other side of the door and the phone.

In-Ah opened the door as soon as she heard the voice. Sun-Woo was standing in front of the door, holding his phone and smiling mischievously at her.

Upon seeing him, her pounding heart calmed down. Seeing his mischievous smile, she couldn't help but laugh.

Wiping the cold sweat on her forehead with her sleeve, In-Ah said, "What's so funny?"

"I thought you weren't here, but you were. Why didn't you answer?"

"I didn't know it was you. If you were coming, you should have contacted me first," In-Ah said.

In-Ah looked at Sun-Woo quietly and continued, "Why did you suddenly come?"

Sun-Woo didn't answer her question for a while. Instead, he silently stared at her, as if choosing his words carefully. In-Ah waited patiently for him to speak. Finally, Sun-Woo smiled faintly and said, "To apologize."