The Cult Leader in the Clergy Academy

Chapter 284

"Ah, long time no see?" I said to Yoon-Ah, not quite understanding what she was saying.

This was my first time facing Yoon-Ah after completely curing her from her zombie state. Technically, I really hadn’t seen her in a long time.

But was it correct for Yoon-Ah to say ‘long time no see’ to me? The memories of her time as a zombie erased, so from her perspective, I would just appear to be In-Ah's friend. If it were not for my friendship with In-Ah, Yoon-Ah and I would basically just be strangers to each other.

The fact that she was saying ‘long time no see,” and going so far as to follow me here meant that...

“You didn’t lose your memories?” I said as I looked around my surroundings.

There were no people on the streets, and the few streetlights that existed were emitting a dim light, perhaps due to malfunctioning.

Although CCTVs and black boxes caught my eye, I knew I would be able to immediately neutralize them with Ogun's power.

Even if there were witnesses, with Sung Yu-Da's help, it would be possible for me to adequately cover up any incidents.

I unleashed Voodoo magic. The spell I was going to use was Memory Annihilation and the Curse of Fainting.

First, I would make Yoon-Ah fall unconscious using the Curse of Fainting, and then take advantage of that moment to meticulously erase her memories of me by using Memory Annihilation on her. If I did that, there would be no problems.

"Yes, I remember," Yoon-Ah said.

I stopped drawing the spell array. I don't know why I stopped. My hand just instinctively stopped moving upon hearing her voice.

Perhaps it was because there was no sign of hostility or intent to manipulate me in Yoon-Ah's voice. Or maybe it was because she was looking straight into my eyes with strong determination.

“I don’t remember everything. I just remember fragments of memories from the underground chapel.”

"..."

Yoon-Ah continued, "And I saw some of your memories as well."

I quickly understood what she meant. Back when the Staff of Reversal had an outburst, I caught a glimpse of Yoon-Ah's memories. It was during that time that she must have also caught a glimpse of my memories.

It was just like how my father had passed on his memories to me and Sung Yu-Da via Noah's Ark.

Despite glancing at the purple Voodoo magic flowing from my hands, Yoon-Ah didn’t show any signs of hesitation. She only lowered her head to the ground as if she was bitter about something.

"Are you going to erase my memories? I don't know very well, but isn't it possible to erase someone’s memories using Voodoo magic?”

I responded with a nod. "Yes.”

I had not yet retrieved the Voodoo Magic power that I had unleashed. The spell array that I drew only required one more stroke to complete. Once I drew the final stroke, the spell would activate, and Yoon-Ah would lose consciousness and forget about me. The reason why I had not yet completed the spell yet was simply due to curiosity.

Why was she so calm? Which of my memories did she see? And why did she go out of her way to tell me this?

"Why did you follow me? Nothing would have happened if you just stayed quiet," I said.

Yoon-Ah answered calmly and confidently, "Because this would be the most convenient way to deal with the situation for both the Cult Leader and me. I don't mind if you erase my memories."

It was strange that she said that she didn’t mind if her memories were erased. A typical person would feel fear or feel cautious and run away if they heard that they were getting their memories erased.

I dispelled the incomplete spell array. It turned into ashes and disappeared, and the Voodoo magic flowing from my fingertips soon lost its brilliance and faded away.

Instead of finishing the spell array, I observed her expression and gaze. Her gaze still contained a strong determination.

"You don’t mind? Why?"

"I don't like it, but... if it's safer for you, Cult Leader, then I think it's best if we erase my memories."

"Why do you call me Cult Leader?"

"Because everyone in the underground chapel called you that," Yoon-Ah answered my question without any hesitation.

“...”

Instead, I was the one feeling flustered by the situation.

Her personality was a little different from In-Ah. She was calmer and had more courage, so much so that her courage crossed into the boundary of recklessness.

I stared intently into her eyes, and she didn't avoid my gaze.

"I thought about it a lot,” she said.

"About what?"

“About whether I should tell you the truth or not. The reason why I was locked up in my room for so long was because I didn’t know how to bring it up...”

"But then why did you decide to tell me?"

"Because I saw your memories," Yoon-Ah said.

Although she said that she saw my memories, it was difficult to gauge the scope of the memories that she had seen. I needed to identify how much of my memories she had read.

"How much of my memories did you read?"

"I don't know exactly. It started with memories of hearing hallucinations, losing consciousness a few times and collapsing, and then all the way to..."

"..."

Those memories were probably from seven years ago.

It was right after the end of the Holy War. My father and mother had disappeared and I was left alone, and I had accepted the Loa without any proper preparation. As a result, I was driven half-crazy.

If the memories that Yoon-Ah saw started from that time, she practically knew everything about me.

"I want to be on the side of the Voodoo Cult... or more precisely, I want to be on the Cult Leader’s side," she said.

She raised her bowed head, looked straight at me again, and continued, "If you can't trust me, you can erase my memories right now."

"..."

[Kid, how do we know whether that child is working for Joseph or not? She could just be testing you. It's better to eliminate risk factors in advance,] Damballa said.

[I wonder who’s testing who. Choose wisely,] Legba said.

Who was testing who at the moment? Was Yoon-Ah testing me, or was it Damballa? Or was Legba testing me?

My mind was in turmoil. This was something I had never expected.

Back when I visited Noah's Ark and saw my father's memories, I began to suspect that there was a possibility that Yoon-Ah might have seen into my memories as well... But I didn’t expect her to end up learning everything about me.

"Ogun."

Blink, blink, blink...

I activated Ogun's power and the streetlights that illuminated the alleyway began to flicker off one by one, causing the surroundings to be plunged into darkness. Devices such as CCTV cameras also stopped functioning altogether.

I walked inside the pitch-black darkness and approached Yoon-Ah. Her silhouette trembled slightly.

"What can you do?"

"Me?"

"I'm asking what I can gain by trusting you."

Within the darkness, I stared into Yoon-Ah's eyes.

Up until a moment ago, her eyes had been unclear and unfocused, making it difficult to determine where she was looking. However, now, her gaze contained strength that was distinct and powerful.

Her eyes were clearly staring at me. They seemed to tremble with a bit of fear and tension, but the determination inside did not waver.

"Whatever I can do... I want to help in any way I can," Yoon-Ah said.

I didn’t understand what she was saying. To be exact, I couldn’t figure out why she was so determined to help me.

"Why are you going so far to help me?"

If I were her, I would have run away. I wouldn't even attempt to associate with someone like me.

If she had seen my memories, she would have seen what kind of treatment the Voodoo Cult had received so far. She would know what risks she would have to take by siding with the Voodoo Cult.

She would have seen what kind of things that I had done, back when I was in a half-crazed state.

And yet, Yoon-Ah was still saying that she wanted to help me. I couldn’t tell whether she was foolish or bold, but she was distinctly staring at me with eyes filled with conviction.

I wanted to know the basis of her conviction. I wanted to know for sure if she was testing me, or whether she genuinely wanted to help me.

"Then why did you go that far to help me?" Yoon-Ah asked, raising her head.

Within the darkness, I looked into her brown eyes which resembled In-Ah's. Her gaze was similar to the fierce and cold gaze that In-Ah often showed when she was in a bad mood or angry.

I unconsciously took a step back.

Yoon-Ah continued without hesitation, "I saw you vomit blood and collapse. And yet you would come to me every day and continue to cast spells, only to collapse again and vomit more blood. All I could do was watch you do this because my body didn't move as I wanted."

"..."

"Now that my body moves properly, although it’s late, I want to repay you. Is that a bad thing?"

I was rendered speechless by her bold question.

I shook my head and let out a sigh. "Just go back home for now. I'll come... come back to see you next time."

Yoon-Ah looked at me blankly, then nodded slightly and started heading back home.

I watched her figure for a while. It was when her figure started to disappear into the darkness that I started walking toward the underground chapel.

[Too many people have found out the truth,] Legba said.

[Kid, you were too easily swayed by personal feelings. It's not a bad thing, but...] Damballa said.

[At this rate, everyone in the world will find out. It's not necessarily a bad thing.] Baron Samedi finished the sentence.

Their voices blended together and filled my mind. I closed my eyes tightly. My head spun and I was filled with confusion. In the end, I did not erase Yoon-Ah's memories. I decided to trust her.

It wasn't because there was enough evidence to trust her. I just wanted to believe that everything she said to me was true. I didn't want to think that her words were lies.

Buzz buzz—!

At that moment, a vibrating sound echoed through the silent street. Sung Yu-Da was calling. I stopped walking and answered the phone.

"..."

Click.

I hung up the phone without bothering to respond to Sung Yu-Da's words. Then, I turned my steps in a different direction from the underground chapel.

***

The teacher’s office at Florence Academy was bustling in the morning. The time for the entrance exam was approaching.

It was rare for students to pass the entrance exam and become official clergymen in their first year. However, many students submitted applications to get a sense of the atmosphere for the entrance exam.

The numerous students who flocked to the teacher's office were all there to receive recommendation letters from teachers to submit their entrance exam applications.

"Your performance is not bad... The problem is the entrance exam, but since it’s you Ha-Yeon..."

Ha-Yeon was also one of the students among them. She was collecting recommendation letters from teachers to apply for the Central Priesthood entrance exam.

While the homeroom teacher often advised other students with words such as, “think of it as gaining experience and don’t have high expectations,” he earnestly wrote Ha-Yeon’s recommendation letter.

“Although it’s still a miracle for you to pass at this point, you still have a chance especially since you are a member of the purification clan..."

Ha-Yeon underwent dispatch training at the Central Priesthood, and her performance during her dispatch training was also not bad. More importantly, she was a member of the clan of purification. Considering her clan’s influence, the teacher determined that there was a chance she would make it even if her grades or performance were lacking.

It was a rather hopeful statement compared to the other students, but it did not sit well with Ha-Yeon. Her entrance into to the Central Priesthood seemed to depend more on the influence of her clan rather than her own abilities.

"..."

Would the teacher have said the same thing if she were not a member of the clan of purification? Ha-Yeon thought about this and shook her head. Such assumptions were meaningless.

With a somewhat bitter feeling, Ha-Yeon left the teacher's office and came across a familiar face.

"Ah, Do Sun...!"

It was Sun-Woo. He also seemed to be collecting recommendation letters to submit his application for the entrance exam. He was holding the teachers' recommendation letters in both hands.

Ha-Yeon tried to call out to him, but soon gave up and closed her mouth. These days, not only did Sun-Woo avoid talking to her, he didn’t even greet her.

He often even showed an awkward demeanor as if he was trying to deliberately avoid her. Despite making eye contact with Ha-Yeon, Sun-Woo turned his back and left the teacher's office without a word of greeting.

"..."

Ha-Yeon furrowed her brows, feeling a mixture of discomfort and misery that was difficult to describe.

At some point in time, no matter how many times Ha-Yeon greeted him, he did not respond, and he would ignore her whenever she tried to talk to him.

He used to communicate daily with her and even met her when needed, suddenly treated her with a cold attitude as if she was a sworn enemy.

It was such a severe change in attitude that she couldn’t help but feel emotions that were stronger than discomfort. They were emotions that were approaching misery.

If it were someone else, she would have just thought, ‘Oh well.’ But strangely, because it was Sun-Woo, she felt even worse.

Sometimes, it felt like she couldn't breathe. Ha-Yeon wanted to know the reason for his strange behavior, but because he would run away whenever she tried to ask him, she felt so frustrated that it drove her crazy.

After aimlessly attending classes, Ha-Yeon returned home. She had to get some documents from Sung Yu-Da in order to submit her application for the entrance exam.

Among all the rooms in the mansion, she headed toward the only one where the light was on - the research lab. As she approached, she suddenly felt an unfamiliar presence.

There was a stranger in the hallway.

"Huh?"

He was not someone employed by Sung Yu-Da. All the employees wore designated uniforms, so Ha-Yeon could easily recognize them.

However, the man in front of her was not wearing a uniform. He was a complete outsider.

The outsider noticed Ha-Yeon, stopped in his tracks, and stared at her with a puzzled expression. Startled, Ha-Yeon stood frozen in place before slowly taking a step back. Her eyes were filled with fear and confusion as she belatedly recognized who the man in front of her was.

A man who was more terrifying than a stranger, an outsider, or an uninvited guest, stood before her.

"Why are you here? What are you doing...?"

"Wait a moment. Don’t be flustered, and listen," Sun-Woo said, extending his hands as if to calm her down.

Ha-Yeon continued to step back.

It was Sun-Woo. The person who had no reason to be in her home was there. This fact made Ha-Yeon even more terrified.

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