Chapter 338

“No need to fret,” Sun-Woo replied as if it wasn’t a big deal.

"..."

Ha-Yeon closed her mouth and looked at him. The Voodoo Cult would not survive in the future where Sun-Woo survived. Religion was not something that would easily crumble or disappear. The Romanican Church could not be destroyed, and the same could be said about the Voodoo Cult. Moreover, the much larger Romanican Church outlasting the Voodoo Cult made more sense.

Even if the current Holy See was burned to the ground and a new one took its place, the church would still be an eyesore to Sun-Woo. Even the Romanican Church in its prime could not completely eradicate the Voodoo Cult.

After the beginning of a new era, Sun-Woo's existence would not only be an eyesore but a threat to the weakened Romanican Church’s Holy See. The persistent fear of the churchgoers toward the Voodoo Cult would eventually reignite the conflict between the Romanican Church and the Voodoo Cult.

However, if Sun-Woo died, or more precisely, if he became the foundation of a revolution, then the fear of the Voodoo Cult, the public opinion that rejected other religions, would disappear. Only then would the coexistence between the Romanican Church and the Voodoo Cult become fathomable.

"What are you fighting for?"

𝓯𝙧𝓮𝓮𝒘𝓮𝙗𝙣𝒐𝒗𝒆𝓵.𝓬𝓸𝒎

However, what meaning would that have? Ha-Yeon imagined the world Sun-Woo desired. He dreamed of a world where the Romanican Church, the Voodoo Cult, and everyone with different ideologies could live freely—a world where no one had to hide, no one had to lose their parents, and no one had to fight.

If everything went according to plan, that kind of world could exist, but Sun-Woo would not be a part of it. He wouldn’t belong in the world he longed for, so what exactly was he fighting for?

"I don’t know," Sun-Woo said, staring blankly into space. "Sometimes, I think of what it would be like if I weren’t the Cult Leader.”

"What?" Ha-Yeon asked, not understanding his words.

"I don’t anymore, but I used to think about it," Sun-Woo continued.

"..."

"That's probably why I'm doing this.”

Ha-Yeon still couldn't quite understand what he was saying. Sun-Woo was looking out into the distance, but she couldn’t make out where he was looking.

Ha-Yeon then realized that Sun-Woo probably hadn't told her everything. He must have been hiding something from her too.

"I see. I understand what you mean," Ha-Yeon said as if she understood him.

Sun-Woo looked at Ha-Yeon with an expressionless face, then chuckled.

***

Rescue our heroes from the clutches of the wicked devil's minions.

The Holy See spread that slogan as propaganda. Active clergymen and those unrelated to the clergy but capable of combat, such as mercenaries, were conscripted into the Holy Army. While the mercenaries fought for money and freedom, the active clergymen fought for honor.

The active clergymen were displeased with being treated the same way as the unestablished mercenaries in the Holy Army, but they couldn't express their dissatisfaction. It was better to have them on their side than others who had decided to take the other side.

The mercenary corps that didn’t respond to the call from the Holy Army or the mercenary corps that were not friendly to the Romanican Church’s Holy See all sided with the Voodoo Cult. Despite the summons from the Holy Army, their power did not overwhelm Voodoo Cult’s.

"Therefore, we bestow the Holy Name of Head Guardian of Diligence to Paladin Dae-Man."

Dae-Man received the Holy Name of Head Guardian of Diligence. He was also named head of the Holy War Knight Order, one of the forces to be deployed into the hostage situation to save Ha-Yeon. The Holy War Knight Order comprised members of the Holy Army recruited solely for the Holy War.

"..."

The Holy War Knight Order entered a training session to eliminate the Voodoo Cult. The training session was conducted for mercenaries with relatively little combat experience, as the active clergymen recruits did not need further training to join the Holy Army.

Methods such as using anti-Voodoo masks, dealing with the power of Loa, and utilizing terrain features were taught quickly, along with various strategies and tactics. Due to the short duration of the training session, most mercenaries failed to grasp the content fully. But deployment was imminent, so spending several days on training was impossible.

The day before the deployment, a man went to find Dae-Man.

"Director Dae-Man," he said.

Dae-Man looked at the man's clothes and recognized that he was from the Northern Crusader Order. It was Simon. Simon and Dae-Man silently stared into each other's eyes for a while. They sensed strong determination and wrath in each other's eyes.

"What's going on?" Dae-Man said in a low voice.

Simon was not a member of the Holy War Knight Order. He was still affiliated with the Northern Crusader Order, but he had been assigned to a special unit for hostage rescue operations. His job was to rescue Voodoo Cult’s hostages.

"I have a favor to ask. I want to be the one to end the Cult Leader's life."

"..."

Simon trembled. "The one to put an end to his life... I-I need to be the one to do it."

Although they belonged to different factions, Simon and Dae-Man were comrades who would be involved in the same operation and battlefield. They shared a desire for revenge against the Voodoo Cult. Dae-Man could understand Simon's feelings, and his burning hatred to personally kill the Cult Leader.

Dae-Man refused. "No.”

He could not comply with Simon’s request.

"May I ask why?" Simon asked.

"If I comply, would you be able to do it?" Dae-Man asked.

Simon hesitated but nodded his head. "I would."

"You hesitated. You’re not sure of yourself. And your answer was wrong," Dae-Man said. “You should have answered that it needed to be done."

"..."

"Be faithful to the role you've been given. Fighting is my duty."

With that, Dae-Man walked past Simon.

Simon stood still in his place. Simon couldn't kill Sun-Woo—he was too strong. Could Dae-Man kill Sun-Woo? Could he overpower him? Could he even lay a finger on him? Dae-Man wasn’t sure.

Sun-Woo was powerful. He had been powerful in Florence Academy and now even more so. Dae-Man still couldn't defeat Sun-Woo, but it was something he had to do. No, that was the reason why he had to do it.

Simon's hatred toward Sun-Woo was simple and blind. But Dae-Man's hatred was different. Even though he wanted to kill Sun-Woo with his own hands, he also wished to die by Sun-Woo's hand. It was a complex feeling.

"It's sad. I wanted to work out together with him sometime," Dae-Man muttered.

He was sad, but he didn't shed tears. Instead, he clenched his fist.

***

Jin-Seo hung unconscious due to a spell. When she opened her eyes, she realized her limbs were bound by plant stems. Although she could have easily broken free with her strength if they had been ordinary plants, these stems had been summoned by Sun-Woo's power. No matter how much she struggled, the stems didn't budge.

"..."

By the time she began to feel the pain in her arms, Sun-Woo arrived.

"Untie me," Jin-Seo said sharply as soon as he approached.

Sun-Woo didn't respond and stared at Jin-Seo intently.

He leaned in closer to Jin-Seo's face and looked into her eyes, which were filled with venom. "You won't run if I untie you, right?"

"I won’t."

"You're so honest, it's unsettling," Sun-Woo said and raised his staff, pointing it at the plant stems binding Jin-Seo.

The plant stems loosened a bit. Her hand hurt less thanks to that, but Jin-Seo was still bound, unable to escape. Sun-Woo gently touched the plant and said, "Don't be so impatient. You'll end up going back to the Romanican Church anyway."

"Does that mean you're letting me go?"

"It's complicated, but that's roughly what it means. There's no point in keeping you captive."

"Didn't you say your goal was to hold me hostage?"

"That was a lie," Sun-Woo said with a chuckle.

Jin-Seo recalled their conversation. He had said that the purpose of the battle was to hold Jin-Seo hostage, but that statement was a lie. Jin-Seo felt strangely relieved, even though she shouldn’t have been in her situation.

"I just said that, hoping you wouldn't come. But you didn't listen to me."

"..."

Jin-Seo didn't respond to his statement. She had no more words to say. A silence hung in the air for a while. Feeling uncomfortable, Jin-Seo shifted her body a few times before finding a comfortable position and looked at Sun-Woo. He looked at Jin-Seo with an inscrutable expression.

"Are you going to let me go?" Jin-Seo asked.

Sun-Woo nodded and answered, "Yes. This time, it's not a lie."

"Why?" Jin-Seo asked again.

"Like I said, there's no point in keeping you captive for long."

Sun-Woo glanced around as if looking for something before speaking again.

"Some of my followers are already questioning my decision to kidnap you. They don’t understand my judgment.”

Jin-Seo understood. Sun-Woo was the leader of the Voodoo Cult. All his actions needed to benefit the Voodoo Cult. Since they were amidst a Holy War, his actions should be for the victory of the Voodoo Cult, resisting the Romanican Church that oppressed the Voodoo Cult, and protecting the Voodoo Cult members. That was all the Cult Leader of the Voodoo Cult could do. His actions were restricted by the cult, and so was his life. Ultimately, even his death would be restricted by the cult.

"If I go back, I will probably lead the Holy Army from the front ranks. I have to fight even if I don't want to," Jin-Seo said.

She also suffered the same fate.

"Because you’d be branded as a heretic if you don’t?" Sun-Woo said.

Jin-Seo nodded. "If I fight, I'll have to kill you. Or I’ll have to die trying."

In response, Sun-Woo remained silent.

"People will celebrate your death. There might be a festival, or it could become a holiday to commemorate the victory," Jin-Seo said.

"..."

"If I kill you, I'll become a hero," she continued.

Sun-Woo frowned. "What are you trying to achieve by saying that?"

"I’m not quite fond of the idea," she answered. "You know, why don’t we..."

Boom!

At that moment, a loud noise erupted, cutting Jin-Seo off. A sound echoed not too far from where Sun-Woo stood. It marked the beginning of the Holy Army's preemptive strike.