Chapter 91: The Cult (3)
Translator: RaidenTL
Chapter 91: The Cult (3)
[0:01]
I activated Stealth right before warping.
The scenery changed, and I found myself deep in the mountains.
I deactivated Stealth and started moving, checking the GPS location on my phone. The direction seemed slightly off.
I quickly climbed to a higher elevation and looked toward the indicated location.
‘…Is that it?’
Something immediately caught my eye.
A clearing in the middle of the mountains, connected by a dirt road. In the center of that clearing stood a building that resembled a church.
Cars were parked around it, and people were walking about.
That had to be the headquarters of the Cheonin Cult.
I made my way down the mountain path and approached the building. People who looked like guards were standing watch at the entrance.
As I watched, I saw believers signing some kind of ledger and handing over their phones to the guards before being allowed inside.
I observed for a bit longer before entering the building myself—in Stealth, of course.
Was Ji-woo noona really here?
It was time to find out.
Inside was a large space resembling a chapel. All the believers who had entered the building were gathered in one place. There was a podium at the front, but with no chairs, everyone was standing.
What shocked me was the sheer number of people, far more than I had expected.
Did all these people actually believe in this cult?
It was a pathetic sight.
I weaved through the crowd, checking each face. Everyone was laughing and chatting. Judging by the atmosphere alone, it could have been an ordinary church.
‘Ah.’
It didn't take long.
I soon spotted the face I was looking for. A woman laughing and chatting with the person next to her.
…It was Ji-woo noona.
I had wondered if she was being blackmailed by the cultists or trapped in some awful situation. Seeing her look perfectly fine, it seemed that fortunately wasn't the case.
Hmm… No, wait. Maybe ‘fortunately’ wasn’t the right word.
Ultimately, this meant Ji-woo noona had really fallen head over heels for a cult and cut off contact with everyone she knew.
Well, at least I’d confirmed she wasn't in any immediate danger.
I deactivated my Stealth in a corner, away from prying eyes. With so many people around and everyone in regular clothes, I wouldn’t stand out if I blended into the crowd.
‘What should I do now?’
The question was how to deal with this cult. Exposing them as frauds wouldn't be difficult. I figured that might also be enough to snap Ji-woo noona out of it.
Creak— Thud.
While I was lost in thought, the entrance to the chapel closed. The guards who had shut the doors now stood watch on either side.
The surroundings grew quiet.
Looking toward the front, I saw a person stepping onto the podium. He was a middle-aged man draped in a flashy cape that dragged across the floor.
‘That’s the guy.’
It was obvious he was the one in charge.
The cult leader grabbed the microphone.
“Welcome. Thank you all for coming such a long way.”
His amplified voice echoed through the room.
“There must be many prospective believers here who are seeing me for the first time. I am Saram123’s proxy, Leader Shin Doo-rang.”
Clap, clap, clap, clap…
People began to applaud.
I clapped along with them while glancing over at Ji-woo noona.
She was staring at the podium with mesmerized eyes.
Seeing someone I knew acting like that was deeply unsettling. How did she end up like this?
“Before we begin the Chancheon Rite, let us all offer a prayer to Saram123.”
The cult leader suddenly dropped to his knees and clasped his hands.
“O our Savior. The light, the hope, and the guide of this world that is soon to collapse. Your servants have gathered here today…”
The crowd also dropped to their knees and began to pray.
I had no choice but to play along for now.
How should I put this… an indescribable wave of sheer absurdity washed over me.
Fuck, what the hell is this?
The prayer dragged on for several minutes before finally ending. The cult leader stood up and launched into a long-winded speech.
“…He has recently bestowed a revelation upon me once again. ‘As my proxy, you must strive so that more people may receive salvation. There is still a long way to go.’ Ah, I was deeply moved! I was in awe! The end is already set in stone, yet He is delaying the hour of destruction to save even one more person. The role given to this old body is simply to follow His will…”
The crowd listened intently to the cult leader’s bullshit. Some were even sniffling back tears.
Besides the cult leader, a few others in ridiculous outfits stood on the podium. They seemed to be the High Priests, the ones next in rank.
‘Those guys…’
That was one thing, but…
The leader, as well as a few of the others—were they Climbers?
Just as Sixth Sense could be used to gauge an opponent's strength, there was a subtle difference between ordinary humans and Climbers that I could perceive.
The cult leader and two of the High Priests were definitely Climbers. Of course, they weren't high-leveled. Level 10 at most, and probably not even that.
“Haaah!”
The cult leader, still in the middle of his speech, suddenly pulled another stunt. He threw his hands into the air with a shout and stood frozen for a long moment.
Flash!
A bright light flashed above his head.
The crowd let out gasps of awe.
I was left dumbfounded.
‘Bullshit.’
That was a Magic-Type skill. It was a pathetic farce, yet the crowd was going wild over it.
But right then…
“Wh-Why? Let go of me!”
A sudden commotion broke out on one side, and everyone’s attention snapped toward it.
The guards were detaining a man. When they searched his struggling body, a small camera fell out.
Who’s that guy?
It looked like he’d been caught secretly filming.
The cult leader’s brow furrowed slightly as he spoke.
“It seems a non-believer has snuck in to disrupt our sacred ceremony. Please escort him out.”
One of the High Priests on the podium—one of the Climbers—dragged the man away with the guards.
“Wake up, people! Do you seriously believe that bullshit about him being Saram123’s proxy?! You cultist bastards…!”
The man screamed desperately, but his cries did little to faze the crowd. The believers quickly turned their attention back to the cult leader.
Hmm…
I watched the man being dragged away before re-entering Stealth.
“Huh?”
“What’s wrong?”
“No, it’s just… I thought I saw someone… Did I see it wrong?”
While cloaked in Stealth, I followed them.
* * *
Lee Tae-sung was a prosecutor.
He had discovered the Cheonin Cult by pure coincidence. While investigating corruption in a mid-sized company, he noticed a strange flow of funds. It wasn't directly related to the case, but it bothered him enough to dig deeper, which eventually led him straight to this cult.
“Whatever you’re doing right now, drop it and close the file.”
“What do you mean, sir? This is clearly…”
“I’m telling you to do your assigned work, Tae-sung. Stop poking your nose where it doesn’t belong.”
His superior, the chief prosecutor, had hushed him, quietly advising him not to dig any further. Lee Tae-sung wasn’t so oblivious that he couldn’t tell pressure was being applied from above.
Yet, he ignored the warning and continued his investigation.
The deeper he dug, the more he realized just how deeply this Cheonin Cult was entangled with everything.
“Didn’t I tell you to stop digging into this?”
“Isn’t this enough evidence? We need to request a warrant immediately and launch a proper investigation…”
“Hey, you crazy bastard, I’m telling you this is way above our pay grade! Are you trying to get me fired?!”
But no matter how many leads he found, every attempt to launch an official investigation was blocked.
Even so, Lee Tae-sung didn’t give up.
Frustrated by the roadblocks, he infiltrated the Cheonin Cult himself to find more concrete evidence. He had waited months, posing as a prospective believer, just to attend this Chancheon Rite where all the cult’s key figures were supposedly gathering.
“Let go! Let go of me!”
But he had been caught red-handed.
Dragged into a dark, warehouse-like room, Lee Tae-sung was forced to his knees, his arms pinned by the guards. Not only his camera but also his hidden phone had been confiscated.
The High Priest grabbed Lee Tae-sung’s wrist and forced his finger onto the phone’s fingerprint scanner. Lee Tae-sung tried to resist, but against a grip of inhuman strength, he couldn’t budge an inch.
After unlocking the phone and scrolling through it, the High Priest spoke.
“Well, look at this. A prosecutor? Prosecutor Lee Tae-sung of the Seoul Southern District Prosecutors’ Office.”
Lee Tae-sung didn’t shrink back. He glared and spat.
“…You bastard. You’re a Climber, aren’t you?”
While digging into the Cheonin Cult, he had found shocking evidence that even the Climber Association was entangled with them. Seeing Climbers acting as the cult leader and enforcers confirmed his suspicions.
“I wonder what you thought you’d accomplish, sneaking in here like a rat. How annoying.”
Realizing he might actually be killed, Lee Tae-sung spoke urgently.
“I-If you kill me, you won’t get away with it. I told all my colleagues I was coming here.”
The High Priest burst into laughter.
“Did you think we’d actually kill you? Of course, we’ll send you back with all your limbs intact.”
He crouched down to meet Lee Tae-sung’s eye level.
“Still, I’ll give you a first and final warning, Prosecutor.”
“…”
“This is out of your league, so just drop it and go back to your life. If you try to pull another stupid stunt, who knows what might happen? To you… and to your family.”
Lee Tae-sung’s eyes shook at the threat.
The High Priest smirked.
“You can’t even imagine how many high-ranking people are tied to us. Getting rid of a single prosecutor is nothing. If you’re curious, by all means, keep trying.”
Suddenly, a voice interjected.
“Which high-ranking people?”
Startled, the High Priest and the guards snapped their heads around.
A figure was standing right behind them, unnoticed.
A man wearing a hoodie and a mask.
* * *
I had followed the man they dragged off and found him being threatened in a warehouse-like room next to the chapel.
He turned out to be a prosecutor.
I listened to their conversation in silence before dropping my Stealth and revealing myself.
“Which high-ranking people?”
They all stared at me in shock.
The High Priest demanded, “…Who the hell are you?”
I didn’t answer.
The panicked guards lunged at me. I lightly swatted them away, subduing them instantly.
The moment the guards fell, the High Priest charged, looking like he used the Leap skill.
Smash!
I grabbed him by the forehead and slammed him into the wall. Gently enough not to kill him, of course.
“Guh…!”
Subjugation complete.
I turned my gaze to the prosecutor. He was staring at me, his eyes wide.
“Are you a prosecutor?”
“…Y-Yes, I am.”
“I’m on your side, so you can relax.”
The prosecutor gave a bewildered nod.
I shifted my attention back to the High Priest, who was writhing in pain on the floor. Judging by what he’d said, this wasn’t just a simple cult; something much bigger was involved.
Whatever.
There was nothing more to see here.
I’d just clean up this mess and get the details straight from the cult leader—find out exactly who and what was involved.
I pulled a mask out of my Subspace. It was equipped with a built-in voice modulator, something I’d kept in my Subspace just in case ever since the Wang Kai Incident.
I took off my hoodie and hat, pulling the mask completely over my head.
“Follow me.”
With that, I left the warehouse and headed back into the chapel.
Bang!
I threw the doors open, drawing every single gaze in the room.
I walked straight toward the podium where the cult leader stood, casually swatting aside any guards that tried to stop me.
“Wh-What the? Stop him!” the cult leader pointed a trembling finger at me.
The other Climber High Priest rushed at me. I grabbed him and tossed him aside just like the last one.
With the guards out cold and no one left to stop me, the cult leader looked thoroughly flustered.
I approached him.
“Wh-Who are you?! What is the meaning of this?!” he stammered, stumbling backward. “D-Do you know who I am?! I am Saram123’s proxy! What are you believers doing?! Hurry and stop this man…!”
I raised my hand and fired a Destruction Ray.
A massive hole blasted straight through the ceiling of the chapel.
Crumble…
The commotion that had filled the room vanished, replaced by a dead, absolute silence.
The cult leader, who had just been screaming his lungs out, stared back at me with a face that had seen a ghost.
I heard someone mutter.
“S-Saram123…?”
One person suddenly dropped to their knees and began to bow. Following suit, the rest of the crowd frantically threw themselves to the floor, bowing their heads.
I let out a low chuckle and turned my gaze back to the cult leader.
“H-Hiiiek…!”
The cult leader, completely drained of color, plopped down onto his backside.
Looking down at the man whose soul seemed to have left his body, I spoke.
“I never appointed a bastard like you to be my proxy.”