The Function Church (1)
Choi Junseok found it absurd that the rumors weren't coming from players alone.
After several hectic days passed and things finally settled down, he belatedly checked on his family.
“Hey. Mom. How are you holding up?”
“I'm doing fine. This new apartment is so nice I keep wondering if I deserve to live like this.”
Her genuinely happy voice brought a faint smile to Choi Junseok's face.
“That's a relief. Does Hye-ri like it too?”
“Like it? She loves it. The Player Management Agency even told us we can treat the place like our own home and not worry about security, so she invited friends over.”
It seemed they had decided separating him from his parents was the safest option. Choi Junseok understood the logic, yet it also drove home how deeply entangled he had become with the Agency's support. His family was now essentially half-hostages.
“Oh, really? Glad she likes it.”
“She does. How about you? Are you doing all right?”
“Because of the additional terror threats against players, they've moved us into a facility. It's nicer than a five-star hotel.”
“Sounds fancy.”
“It is.”
“I'm glad you're safe. Junseok, by the way…”
His mother hesitated, something she rarely did.
“Junseok, have you been involved in any religious activities lately?”
“…What? Religious activities?”
The question came out of nowhere.
“It's all over the news. Something called the Function Church. They're even building a temple near Suseo Magic Tower.”
“Excuse me?”
“The Function Church temple. You really didn't know?”
“Mom, do I look crazy enough to do something like that?”
“Really…? So it's not you? They say the founder is you…”
“Mom, it's a cult. Straight-up cult.”
A cult had actually formed. He had assumed it was just idle talk among players.
“It's been on TV a lot. How could you not know? You should look into it later. I don't want you getting dragged into trouble.”
“How would I get in trouble when I have nothing to do with it? …Understood.”
“Still, the fact that you're called Function… Never mind. As long as you're safe, that's what matters.”
“Yeah. Get some rest.”
Click.
The moment the call ended, an uneasy feeling crept over Choi Junseok.
“Even Mom's talking about the Function Church now. This is beyond just players.”
He turned to Lee Nayeon, who was almost always watching TV.
“Do you know anything about the Function Church?”
“You really don't watch television, do you?”
“……”
“It's quite famous. It appears to be a rapidly growing movement after the recent player terror incidents.”
Lee Nayeon turned her gaze from the screen toward him, tilting her head.
“You weren't aware?”
“I didn't realize it had gotten this big.”
“I actually assumed you were involved with them from the start.”
“Why would I be? There's no benefit.”
“…Perhaps as buildup before revealing themselves?”
“That kind of approach would only backfire.”
Only then did Lee Nayeon look genuinely puzzled.
“Then why is the government leaving them alone? They are heretics who wouldn't be out of place being burned at the stake.”
She immediately switched channels with the remote, her fingers moving with practiced certainty.
— We are live at the construction site of the Function Church chapel in front of Suseo Magic Tower. The crowd of believers is packed densely…
— Roughly thirty thousand Function Church followers are estimated to have attended today's gathering alone. Local police are maintaining order…
Whistles blew from every direction. Two opposing crowds faced each other across a police barricade: the Function Church members and the protesters denouncing them as heretics.
“Whoa… Where did they get the money to buy that plot?”
The site was only one block from Suseo Magic Tower—the closest land still available for purchase. The construction area hidden behind tall panels looked enormous.
Then again, land prices around Suseo Magic Tower had already plummeted. The tower's emergence had destroyed or damaged surrounding buildings, rendering the area uninhabitable. With 183 days left until potential collapse, the land itself would cease to exist afterward. Even if the tower were cleared, structures built this close would likely be destroyed when the tower sank back into the ground.
“The city actually approved this kind of money-burning project?”
“Word is that city officials and the construction company are all Function Church members,” Lee Nayeon said matter-of-factly.
“The Function Church… Are they doing anything illegal?”
“Depends on how you define illegal.”
“Antisocial behavior, for example.”
“If building on land that will collapse counts as antisocial, then yes, they are.”
“And the leader publicly claimed he is Function?”
“Correct.”
Choi Junseok had thought it was just another minor cult circulating among players. Now he wondered if the situation was more serious than he realized. He dialed Kang Jinsu.
— Yes, Junseok. I got your call.
“What's the status on the Function Church?”
— …Ah. So you finally saw it.
Choi Junseok let out a dry laugh.
“This is only going to damage public perception of Function.”
— I understand your surprise. We're in a difficult position ourselves. Surprisingly, there is no legal procedure to arrest or disperse them.
“What?”
— They filed proper assembly permits and are gathering openly. The building has official permits, and their funding sources are clean. We have no grounds for arrest.
“Isn't there a law against cults?”
— Apparently not. I only learned that recently myself. We tried charging them under organized crime statutes, but the situation doesn't easily qualify. We've been stuck.
“What about impersonating a player?”
— We can't arrest them for defamation. We're simply waiting for them to reveal themselves as a criminal organization.
At that moment, the cult leader appeared on the live broadcast, stepping onto a small stage while wearing a wooden mask. The followers raised their hands in unison, cheering wildly.
“I will challenge the twenty-third and twenty-fourth floors of Suseo Magic Tower right here before all of you!”
Even Choi Junseok found the declaration intriguing. The man had just announced, in front of the public, that he would climb the tower at record speed.
“What's his angle?”
The followers chanted “Function” repeatedly. Just as the leader raised both arms and declared he would enter the tower—
Bang!
A single gunshot rang out above the crowd. The bullet struck the cult leader squarely in the forehead. Blood and brain matter splattered across the stage wall as he collapsed.
Screams erupted. The broadcast camera jerked away, but the chaos was unmistakable.
Lee Nayeon and Choi Junseok stared in shock. On the other end of the line, Kang Jinsu exhaled heavily.
— …I'll call you back.
Choi Junseok could only nod.
“That was a sniper rifle taking out the guy claiming to be Function in the middle of downtown Seoul, right?”
Song Hana, who had just walked in hugging Kkamdori, stood frozen.
“Maybe… I should wait before revealing I'm Function.”
“That would be the wise choice.”
Lee Nayeon tilted her head.
“I don't think he actually died.”
“…What?”
“The Function Church leader. He isn't dead. In fact, he is very much alive.”
She had sensed something with her heightened perception.
“You're certain?”
“Yes. When I replayed the scene, the sensation was completely different from death.”
Choi Junseok immediately understood the scheme.
‘They were planning a resurrection narrative.’
The fake leader declares he is Function and will climb the tower publicly, only to be “killed” by an outside force. When the real Function climbs, the cult can claim their leader has resurrected. It would perfectly establish a divine resurrection story while also explaining why the fake never actually climbed.
Choi Junseok immediately texted Kang Jinsu.
— The cult leader isn't dead. He faked it. Find him and bring him to me.
“More headaches keep piling up…”
The Function Church might have been useful for stepping out of the shadows, but after staging a public death, it had to be stopped.
— …You always seem to be one step ahead. We are already surrounding the area under that exact assumption.
— We'll have both of them in custody by tonight.
“Both” presumably meant the fake sniper and the cult leader.
“What do you plan to do once you catch them?” Lee Nayeon asked.
Choi Junseok stared calmly at the chaotic scene still playing on the television.
“How did you know I was going to catch them?”
“…It seems the most reasonable course. No matter how much they impersonated you, you wouldn't actually kill the man yourself.”
“True enough.”
“I've been with you long enough to read your intentions at a glance.”
It wasn't her perception skill at work—just the result of nearly a month living together.
“They need to pay for dragging Function's image into the gutter.”
“Hm?”
“The first Function Church leader is dead. What if the second leader, granted authority by the first, decides to transform the group into something other than a cult?”