Chapter 142

Due to the school closure, I spent my time conducting experiments while trapped inside the underground chapel. First, I summoned two Loa with possibly good compatibility. They were Marinette, the Loa of Fire, and Bade, the Loa of Wind. I was inspired by the idea of combining fire and wind to increase the efficiency of the power of the Loa. Thus, I tried to combine the powers of these two Loa.

To cut to the chase, it was a failure.

[You expect me to collaborate with this incompetent fool? Absolutely not! That idiot can't even pronounce words that are longer than three syllables!]

[Me too. I. Dislike. Bade. Very. Much!]

[Besides, she has a history of betrayal. I have no intention of cooperating with such a traitor!]

It was because they had a very bad relationship. I tried to encourage them to reconcile, but it was to no avail. Bade strongly expressed that he had no intention of reconciling with an incompetent Loa like Marinette, let alone cooperating with them.

"Can't you just reconcile? You're being unnecessarily stubborn."

[I’m not being stubborn! I feel ashamed to be a Loa because of Marinette!]

[I, very, hurt...]

Bade really disliked Marinette. The truth was, besides Bade, lots of Loa also disliked Marinette. It was because of the past incident where she betrayed the Loa and sided with Han Su-Yeop.

It was safe to say that almost all the Loa disliked Marinette. I also didn't really like her. In any case, it didn’t seem like I would be able to combine Bade and Marinette’s powers.

Whenever I had free time, I experimented with Voodoo spells in order to “acquire” them. I tried various methods and tricks to successfully acquire the curse of fainting spell, but I wasn't sure if it was really a success since I hadn't used it in a real situation yet.

When I practiced spells alone, I often doubted whether what I was doing was right.

It was much easier and more comfortable to practice spells when my father was around because the path to follow had been clearly laid out. I suddenly remembered the time when I practiced spells with my father.

- "Here, this one is called Memory Annihilation. It is a very difficult spell...”

- "Wow, how do you do that?"

- "Just watch and follow. My son is a genius, so you can do it."

- "Really? I don’t think I can do it, though?"

- "Really? Well... it seems like you're not my son after all."

Upon further reflection, it didn't seem like such a pleasant memory. Anyway, I practiced the spell and meticulously recorded my process in a notebook. I also recorded conversations with my father and mother that occasionally came to mind. Memories that were not recorded would eventually fade away, just like how I could no longer recall my mother’s face, which I had previously been able to easily recall at any time. I was afraid of losing my memories.

Eventually, the school closure approached its end, and announcements of extending closure ceased to arrive. I was looking at the bathroom mirror with my shirt off. Now that I thought about it, it had been a long time since I closely examined my face with a mirror.

"Who is this hobo...?"

I had grown a beard, and my face looked much thinner than before. Perhaps due to my irregular sleep schedule, dark circles that stretched all the way down to my cheeks could be seen under my eyes. My hair was long and messy, and my eyes seemed listless.

Overall, my face lacked vitality. The scars on my stomach were still gruesome and prominent. I wondered how I ended up in this state. I occasionally exercised at home, but still, my overall body shape had become thinner. I lost weight and a lot of muscle as well. Perhaps it was because I often skipped meals due to being so focused on my experiments.

Through the mirror, I saw Ji-Ah approaching from behind.

"Cult Leader," she said in a composed manner.

She had opened the door and entered without knocking, and she scanned my haggard face and the scar on my stomach unabashedly.

"You’re much skinnier than I thought.”

"It’s because I haven't been exercising."

"Isn’t it because you're not eating?"

"That could also be a factor."

"You also don't drink enough water. And you don't get much sunlight. And sometimes I even see bloodstains in your room. What exactly are you doing inside your room?"

"I was practicing spells... And then, well, that’s what happened."

Those bloodstains were a result of the process of acquiring spells.

After hearing my response, Ji-Ah blankly stared at my face for a while. As usual, there wasn’t any emotion on her face, but I sensed faint resentment. She lowered her gaze and looked at the scar on my stomach.

"Will the scar never disappear?" she asked.

"It might fade a bit over time, but the doctor doesn’t think it will disappear."

"That just shows how reckless you were.”

"You're being a bit harsh with your words..."

"It’s time to eat. Your meal is ready," Ji-Ah said before storming out of the bathroom without looking back.

Left alone, I watched her back as she headed toward the kitchen. Then I turned on the water and quickly washed my face, shaved, and tidied up my hair. Finally, I looked somewhat presentable, albeit still frail. I dried off the remaining moisture and went to the dining table.

On top of the table, Ji-Ah had prepared a feast. There was just way too much food. There was no way I would be able to eat it all by myself.

"There's too much for me to eat alone."

"If there's any left, Teacher will eat it."

"Uncle always ends up eating leftover food."

"Since he rarely stays inside the underground chapel, there's nothing we can do about it," Ji-Ah said in a composed manner as if she was stating the obvious.

Uncle often wandered around, and as a result, he wouldn’t eat on time, or he would eat out. Uncle wasn’t in the underground chapel at the moment—he left the chapel after saying that he had things to take care of.

I started eating. I could hardly taste anything, and the texture was blurry and dull. The only thing I could properly sense was the smell.

"Does it taste alright?" Ji-Ah asked.

I swallowed without even fully chewing all the food in my mouth before nodding my head.

"It's delicious."

"That's a relief."

"But you don't have to cook for me next time."

"Why?"

"I think it would be better if I just prepared the food by myself. Isn't it tiring for you to cook all the time, too?"

After barely surviving, thanks to the Contract of the Dead, I had lost my sense of taste. I didn’t completely lose my sense of taste, though. It would be more appropriate to say that the range of flavors I could perceive had greatly been reduced. In other words, whether Ji-Ah cooked for me with care or whether I cooked the food myself and ate it, there was no significant difference.

After listening to my words, Ji-Ah looked at me with a cold and stiff expression.

"...But if I don't prepare meals, I have nothing else to do here. Don’t you do everything else? For example, the laundry or the dishes."

"I’m doing all that because nuna can't do it."

"I know how to do all that."

"You broke a plate while doing dishes last time."

"That's because my hands are small."

"Whenever nuna does the laundry, the clothes smell weird."

"That's because we're underground. And it's summer right now."

"It's fine if I do all those chores."

"Well..." Ji-Ah trailed off before glaring at me.

"Anyway, that’s why I’ll continue cooking. Because I can't do anything else."

"Then just prepare something simple. Like chicken breasts or something like that."

"Do you really need to eat something so tasteless?"

"It’s because I still haven't fully recovered. I have to eat healthy things to recover more quickly," I said before finishing my meal.

Since I couldn't really taste anything properly, I just ate an appropriate amount. The fact that I wouldn’t be able to taste Ji-Ah’s excellent cooking anymore made me feel a little sad.

Ji-Ah looked at me silently. Then, as if reluctant, she slowly nodded and said, "Then I'll prepare healthy meals from now on."

"Thank you. Actually, I’d feel more comfortable if I prepared the meals myself."

"But then I would feel uncomfortable. Is it fine as long as only the Cult Leader is comfortable?”

Feeling slightly upset, I said, "No, that's not what I meant... But you've been speaking a bit harshly since earlier. Did I do something wrong?"

Lately, Ji-Ah was openly revealing her bad mood toward me. I tried to recall if I had done anything to deserve this treatment, but I couldn't think of anything. Still, I might have unintentionally done something to hurt her feelings, so I asked just in case.

As if surprised, Ji-Ah's eyes widened slightly. It was as if she belatedly realized that her tone had been a bit harsh.

She cautiously apologized while lowering her gaze. "I'm sorry. It wasn't intentional..."

“Why have you been so moody lately?” I asked.

In response, Ji-Ah hesitated and nervously picked up her phone. After checking the time, she absentmindedly fiddled with her phone before finally speaking up.

"I heard that Soo-Yeong has been chosen as the next Cult Leader."

"...It's not confirmed. She has just been temporarily assigned as the next Cult Leader. Where did you hear that from?"

"She said it herself."

Ji-Ah handed me her phone as she said that. On the screen, I could see the exchange of messages between Ji-Ah and Soo-Yeong.

[I’m the Fourth Cult Leader. Treat me with respect from now on.]

[Nonsense.]

[Sun-Woo said it to me directly just now.]

[Sun-Woo? Is the Cult Leader your friend?]

Because Soo-Yeong didn't reply to Ji-Ah's message, that was the end of the exchange. I scrolled up to examine the conversation between the two a little more. Most of the conversations started with Soo-Yeong teasing Ji-Ah, and the conversations typically ended with Ji-Ah ignoring Soo-Yeong.

"Are you two close?" I asked.

I was a little curious to see two people who didn't seem like they would be close getting along and contacting each other like this.

Ji-Ah's face hardened. "No, we're not close."

"You seem close to me."

𝓯𝙧𝙚𝒆𝙬𝙚𝒃𝙣𝙤𝒗𝓮𝓵.𝙘𝙤𝙢

"Not at all."

She firmly denied my words and snatched the phone away from my hand. I had no idea when they exchanged contact information, but they seemed quite close. Since there was a chance that they might work together someday, I thought about forcing them to get along even if their relationship was bad, but seeing the messages that they exchanged with each other, it didn’t seem necessary.

"Anyway, is this why you're upset?"

"I'm not upset... I'm not upset at all."

"Then?"

Ji-Ah hesitated and was unable to answer. Just as I was wondering whether my inquisitive tone had gone overboard, Ji-Ah looked up and answered me before I could correct my question. "I didn’t think we needed to rush in choosing the next Cult Leader like this."

"What? So you were upset over this."

"That's not what I meant. I..." Ji-Ah trailed off.

A faint, confused expression appeared on her face. As if trying to hide the expression, she hurriedly cleared the dishes that were spread out on the table. Her movements were unusually restless.

After neatly tidying up the table, she sat down in a vacant seat across from me and said, "Cult Leader, when are you planning to die?"