chapter 193

Chapter 193

Cha Isol’s divine contract made the Sun Church elders stir.

“Are you saying the Black Cloak was a divinity?”

“No, but the Association said...”

“Well, those guys aren’t exactly trustworthy.”

“How on earth did this happen...?”

The play of a divinity disguised as a monster had already been reported many times. And since Cha Isol herself had shown the connection line with a divinity, they could not deny the proposition, “The Black Cloak is a divinity.”

But the questions only grew.

“Then what exactly is the Black Cloak?”

“Shouldn’t we investigate that apprentice priest named Cha Isol a bit more?”

“She’s a child who just now made a contract with a divinity. If we’re careless, the connection could get tangled or be cut and she could take a hit, so it’s right to let her stabilize.”

“But if the Black Cloak is an evil divinity, it’s right to cut the connection in advance.”

“But that hasn’t even been firmly decided yet, has it?”

And most priests, though confused, weren’t that worried.

“More than anything, Student Cha Isol’s position has become a healer...”

“If it were truly an evil divinity, would it have given the power of recovery and regeneration?”

“Evil gods hate providence. There’s no way the divinity that contracted with Cha Isol is evil.”

“We tested it over and over, but we couldn’t sense any dangerous energy.”

In the first place, why are healers treated like nobles? Because they are that few, and because learning is difficult. And why is that? Most of their power of recovery and regeneration came from the miracle of providence.

“A rebel cannot give the power of healing.”

“Rebel? No matter how evil the target divinity is, please restrain such reckless remarks.”

“I only mean the context is like that.”

What evil god would help with human healing?

“We checked whether it was an evil god’s deception, but there were no flaws at all in Student Lee Ruda, whom Student Cha Isol healed. There’s no mental confusion and no physical problems, so isn’t it a complete recovery?”

It was right to think there was no malice in the power the Black Cloak had lent.

“And an evil divinity is bound to show its malice somehow. The fact that we’ve examined it this much and there are no particular abnormalities means it proves the goodwill of the existence called the Black Cloak.”

“That makes sense, but we still can’t be certain of anything. It would be safest to spend more time watching the situation. For the time being, let’s exclude Student Cha Isol and Student Lee Ruda from practice.”

“If we keep them locked only inside the order, the divinity contracted with Cha Isol might be displeased.”

“But we can’t help it either. If by any chance the Black Cloak is an evil divinity, how will we handle the aftermath? You all know how it ends for a priest bewitched by an evil god, don’t you?”

“Hey, what if Priest Kang hears...”

Their confusion gradually settled down.

“If we only confirm that the divinity embracing Student Cha Isol truly is the Black Cloak, and that its mystery is not evil, there will be no problem. There’s no need for us to tremble in anxiety among ourselves.”

“That is true.”

An apprentice priest was only an apprentice, not a formal priest of the sun. Apprentice priests who had not yet made a contract could serve other divinities at any time. That was the custom of the current religious world.

“This is something I heard separately, but they say they can feel the energy of the sun from Cha Isol...”

“...The sun? Isn’t that a mistaken reading?”

“It’s not just one person saying it. They said they felt warmth.”

“It could simply be a divinity related to heat, but...”

“Come to think of it, isn’t there no one who knows the Black Cloak’s true name?”

“What divinity of what name did Student Cha Isol end up contracting with?”

The Black Cloak had already become practically no different from a native Korean monster. He was famous for denying evil and affirming good, and for bestowing gifts upon admirable humans. The number of priests who thought that might be an evil god gradually decreased.

In the end, the priests gently coaxed Cha Isol and found out that small trace of identity.

“Uh, um... I’m not sure either.”

“We want to obtain even an unclear clue. It could be a dangerous divinity...”

“I don’t think it’s dangerous. So, the sun... I know it’s something similar.”

“...Something similar to the sun?”

“He said he gave me sunshine.”

“Ah-ha, I see.”

Hearing that news, the priests were very happy.

“Even if it isn’t the goddess we serve, another sun—doesn’t that mean our family is growing?”

“No, but if you think about the Black Cloak’s image, no matter what, it doesn’t feel like the sun...”

“Isn’t it literally an existence wrapped in a black cloak? No one knows what’s inside.”

“There are suspicious parts, but it’s certain it’s an existence deeply related to the sun. Even Ms. Lee Ruda, who’s famous for sensing divine pressure well, did not deny the fact of warmth.”

“Then it would be unreasonable to judge it as an evil divinity.”

Around then, there were priests who held another question.

“I heard that right before contracting, Student Cha Isol called someone named ‘Gio.’”

“...Gio? Do you mean Hunter Seo Gio?”

“One of the apprentice priests in the same infirmary said they heard it half-asleep, but they aren’t sure...”

“I think we should confirm this.”

And Cha Isol readily affirmed it.

“I called for Hyung Gio.”

“You mean Hunter Seo Gio?”

“Yes, I asked him to help...”

It was already a fact everyone knew that one of the evil gods sealed in the Association’s research institute, Sancalut, had reached toward the Sun Church while things were in chaos. A Sun Church priest, in the middle of taking measures about it, cleared his throat awkwardly.

“Ahem, um... about that part, I would like to apologize once again.”

“But I already got an apology?”

“Because due to our poor management, an evil divinity reached out to Student Cha Isol.”

“It’s okay because Hyung Gio helped!”

“...Wasn’t it the Black Cloak who helped drive off that evil god?”

“Uh, that’s true, but...”

As if her thoughts weren’t quite organized, Cha Isol, after thinking, answered with difficulty.

“Both of them helped.”

“Then that means...”

The priest reached a conclusion.

“...It means the power Hunter Seo Gio holds and Student Cha Isol’s are the same.”

The Sun Church priests realized that astonishing non-fact.

“Ha, honestly, to think the divinity Hunter Seo Gio served was the Black Cloak...”

“I think I understand why he didn’t notify us of the divinity’s existence until now.”

“Saying you serve a divinity being treated as a monster would be difficult, wouldn’t it.”

“Even aside from that, isn’t it possible that acting as a monster is the Black Cloak’s play?”

“Was it that the divinity itself didn’t want it revealed and so kept it hidden...”

“I don’t know if it’s a coincidence, but wasn’t Hunter Seo Gio’s position also a healer?”

“Now I feel like it all makes sense.”

The priests each nodded.

“In clearing that previous dungeon, I’m sure Hunter Seo Gio received medicinal herbs from the divinity...”

“Isn’t the Black Cloak famous for giving gifts to good people he likes?”

“Then is giving gifts simply the Black Cloak’s trait? Since even ordinary citizens can receive gifts, the hypothesis that Hunter Seo Gio is a saint...”

“Even taking that into account, I think Hunter Seo Gio’s vessel cannot be compared to an ordinary person’s.”

“Right. Isn’t the size of the gifts received different? From what I hear, he even directly heard the intention of the god he serves...”

“If this is true, then it will be the Sun Church’s fortune.”

It was extremely difficult to witness the power of providence in this world. Traditional gods, to speak kindly, loved nature as it was; to speak badly, they were very lazy. They seldom intervened in human society.

“I kept thinking Hunter Seo Gio and the Black Cloak behaved similarly, and now...”

“Huh? Were the two that similar?”

“I thought they were oddly alike. Hunter Seo Gio also especially likes giving gifts to other people, and I heard those gifts are particularly full of things to eat.”

“Ahaha, I guess he really cares about filling others up.”

“They say he can’t just stand by and watch starving people.”

“And they say the Black Cloak’s gifts also often include edible snacks. Seeing how similar they are, you might think it really is a saint’s vessel...”

And the Sun Church reached a new conclusion.

“Then shouldn’t we build a closer relationship with Hunter Seo Gio?”

“Ahem, even if he awakened differently, with a vessel like that he is surely a person befitting a priest...”

“Among Koreans, there isn’t a single person who serves a divinity related to the sun who doesn’t come to our church.”

“It won’t be a displeasing story for Hunter Seo Gio either.”

“Of course. It’s about being close with the Sun Church. Wouldn’t he be happy instead?”

Only Kang Seodam was troubled by that murmuring.

“...”

A religious circle like worms.

‘There really is no other nest of bugs like this.’

It was disgusting to the point of being nauseating.

Before they even recovered from the blow they took last winter because of the ‘Nation of the Deep Sea’ incident, they went out to explore an A-rank dungeon; an evil god seeped in while they were developing the conquered dungeon; and even now, while they were dealing with the aftermath, they were busy being greedy—it all filled him with revulsion.

‘How can they be this greedy.’

Even though they should have been focusing on reflecting on their mistakes and recovering, they were only making the situation bigger. The only reason it ended amicably without becoming a big problem was because the results happened to be good by a hair’s breadth; if not, they would have just been red-faced at one another.

Kang Seodam had no face to show his students. Even as he let out a deep sigh, he eventually went to find Cha Isol and Lee Ruda.

“Student Cha Isol.”

“Yes, teacher!”

“And Student Lee Ruda.”

“Yes, I am listening.”

“To the two of you, I can only... be sorry.”

Kang Seodam was only one of the teachers who educated apprentice priests, but even so, he had plenty of responsibility to bear. He had failed to properly protect his students and let things become like this.

“Have you had sufficient conversation with your guardians?”

Cha Isol nodded.

“Hyung and noona said it would be good if I do what I want.”

“My mother said the same. And that she looks forward to how we respond going forward...”

Kang Seodam also nodded.

“Of course. This incident is a great mistake of us adults, so you have no need to worry. Please recover like this and then walk the path you want.”

“What kind of path can it be?”

“Since both of you are serving divinities different from our goddess of the sun, you can stop your education right away and seek another path. We can also help you graduate early.”

Before Cha Isol could ask anything else, Lee Ruda took her partner’s hand and said,

“Even if you want to look for another order or guild, it’s better to receive your formal priest ID. Of course, I respect your opinion, but now that things have become like this, the ones who were bothering us will quiet down too.”

“There’s merit in Sister Lee Ruda’s words. The main students who were making the atmosphere harsh have already been expelled from the order, and the priests here have no choice but to watch your mood since they know you did nothing wrong.”

“As Teacher Kang Seodam said, um, you might have fallen out of affection for this place, but... now we have the advantage. Our peers will watch our mood too, and we have grounds to demand more benefits from the order.”

Cha Isol said to that,

“Summarize it...”

“When we stay here, there’s more to squeeze out.”

“Am I the only one who’s stupid? I’m not, right...?”

“...I, I originally, um, get told I’m precocious a lot. It’s not that you’re strange.”

Maybe because she came up from the provinces, Cha Isol had a strong innocent side, but Lee Ruda hoped Cha Isol wouldn’t see that trait as a flaw.

With Lee Ruda’s reassurance, Cha Isol recovered quickly.

“Then that’s fine.”

“This is only my thought, and I want to hear what you want to do.”

“I want to keep being with Ruda. And I like teacher too.”

“Then let’s aim for early graduation. For us, it won’t be difficult.”

“If we graduate early, how old will we be when we become formal priests?”

Kang Seodam answered that part.

“It depends on the situation, but if you’re fast, it’s possible to complete it within three years.”

“Huh, really?”

“It will increase the number of practices and you’ll become busy in many ways... but if you can handle it, probably.”

“Then I want to graduate early!”

Just as the two young priests dreamed of early graduation—

Earth’s sea, from deep within, began to ripple.

* * *

“Let’s start with the point.”

Aria asked politely.

“Won’t you let yourself be kidnapped?”

“Oh.”

At the novel invitation, Gio couldn’t help but admire it.

(To be continued in the next episode)