Chapter 193
Translator: RaidenTL
Chapter 193
Cha Yi-sol’s divine contract sent a wave of confusion through the elders of the Sun Cult.
“Are you saying the Black Cloak was a divinity?”
“No, but the Association said…”
“Well, it’s not like those people are trustworthy anyway.”
“How on earth could this have happened…?”
There had already been several reports of divinities disguising themselves as monsters for their own amusement. And since Cha Yi-sol had personally demonstrated his connection, they could no longer deny the possibility that the Black Cloak was, in fact, a divinity.
Yet, this only led to more questions.
“Then what is the Black Cloak’s true identity?”
“Shouldn’t we investigate this novice priest, Cha Yi-sol, more thoroughly?”
“He’s just a boy who has newly contracted with a divinity. If we’re careless, we could damage or even sever that connection, which would harm him. The right thing to do is let him rest and find his stability.”
“But if the Black Cloak is a malevolent divinity, we should sever the connection before it’s too late.”
“We haven’t determined that for certain yet, have we?”
While most of the priests were confused, they weren’t overly worried.
“Most importantly, Student Cha Yi-sol’s position has become that of a healer…”
“If it were truly an Evil God, would it have granted the power of recovery and regeneration?”
“Evil Gods despise Providence. There is no way the divinity that contracted with Yi-sol is evil.”
“We’ve examined him multiple times, and we haven’t sensed any dangerous energy.”
Why were healers treated like royalty in the first place? It was because they were incredibly rare and difficult to train. And why was that? Because the power of recovery and regeneration they wielded was a miracle derived from Providence itself.
“A traitor to Providence cannot grant the power of healing.”
“A traitor? No matter how wicked the divinity might be, please refrain from such rash remarks.”
“I was only speaking hypothetically.”
What kind of Evil God would ever help heal a human?
“We checked to see if it was some kind of trick, but Student Iruda, whom Student Cha Yi-sol healed, shows no adverse effects whatsoever. No mental confusion, no physical abnormalities—it was a completely perfect recovery, was it not?”
It was only logical to assume there was no malice in the power lent by the Black Cloak.
“Besides, a malevolent divinity is bound to show its true colors one way or another. The fact that we found no anomalies despite such a thorough examination proves the goodwill of the entity known as the Black Cloak.”
“That makes sense, but we still can’t be certain of anything. It would be safer to take our time and monitor the situation. For now, let’s exclude Student Cha Yi-sol and Student Iruda from practical training.”
“If we keep them cooped up inside the order for too long, the divinity contracted with Yi-sol might take offense.”
“But we have no choice. If, on the infinitesimal chance, the Black Cloak is an Evil God, how will we handle the aftermath? Surely everyone here knows what becomes of a priest possessed by one?”
“Hey, watch your mouth. What if Priest Kang hears you…”
Gradually, their confusion began to settle into a consensus.
“As long as we can confirm that the divinity embracing Student Cha Yi-sol is indeed the Black Cloak, and that its nature is not evil, then there’s no problem. There’s no need for us to panic.”
“That’s true.”
A novice priest was, quite literally, a novice—not yet an official priest of the Sun. Novices who had not yet formed a contract were free to serve other divinities. Such was the custom in the modern religious world.
“This is just something I heard, but they say the energy of the sun can be felt from young Yi-sol…”
“…The sun? Could they have misidentified it?”
“It wasn’t just one person. Several people said they felt a warm energy.”
“It could simply be a divinity related to heat, but…”
“Come to think of it, no one knows the Black Cloak’s true name, do they?”
“I wonder what the name of the divinity Student Cha Yi-sol contracted with is.”
The Black Cloak had already established itself as what was essentially a local monster unique to Korea. It was famous for rejecting evil, championing good, and bestowing gifts upon praiseworthy humans. The number of priests who suspected it of being an Evil God gradually dwindled.
In the end, the priests gently questioned Cha Yi-sol, hoping to uncover a sliver of the truth.
“Uh, well… I’m not entirely sure either.”
“We’re only asking for any clue you can give us, no matter how small. Just in case it might be a dangerous divinity…”
“I don’t think it’s dangerous. From what I understand… it’s something like the sun.”
“…Something like the sun?”
“He told me he was giving me sunshine.”
“Ah, I see.”
Hearing this, the priests were overjoyed.
“Even if it is not the Goddess we serve, another sun deity joining the fold means our family is growing, does it not?”
“Still, considering the Black Cloak’s image, it can’t possibly be the sun…”
“It’s an entity draped in a black cloak. No one knows what lies beneath it.”
“There are some suspicious aspects, but it’s certain that it’s closely related to the sun. Even Miss Iruda, who is famous for her sensitivity to divine pressure, did not deny the warmth.”
“In that case, it would certainly be a stretch to call it an Evil God.”
Around that time, another priest voiced a different question.
“I heard that right before the contract, Student Cha Yi-sol called out to someone named ‘Gio.’”
“…Gio? Do you mean Hunter Seo Gio?”
“One of the novice priests who was in the infirmary said they overheard it while half-asleep, though they weren’t certain…”
“We should probably look into this.”
Yi-sol readily confirmed it.
“I called out to Gio-hyung.”
“You mean Hunter Seo Gio?”
“Yes, to help me…”
It was already a well-known fact that Sankalut, one of the Evil Gods sealed in the Association’s Research Institute, had taken advantage of the chaos to reach out to Cha Yi-sol. The Sun Cult priest handling the aftermath cleared his throat in embarrassment.
“Ahem, well… I must apologize once again for that matter.”
“But you already apologized, didn’t you?”
“Because of our poor management, a wicked divinity was able to reach out to you, Student Cha Yi-sol.”
“Gio-hyung helped me, so it’s okay!”
“…Wasn’t it the Black Cloak who helped you shake off that Evil God?”
“Uh, that’s true, but…”
Struggling to organize his thoughts, Yi-sol pondered for a moment before answering with difficulty.
“They both helped me.”
“Which means…”
The priest came to a conclusion.
“…It means the power Hunter Seo Gio wields is the same as yours, Student Cha Yi-sol.”
And so, the priests of the Sun Cult arrived at a startling conclusion—one that was completely wrong.
“My word, to think the divinity Hunter Seo Gio served was the Black Cloak…”
“I think I understand now why he never revealed his divinity’s identity.”
“It must have been difficult to declare that he serves a being treated as a monster.”
“Even so, isn’t it possible that acting like a monster is simply the Black Cloak’s idea of a good time?”
“Perhaps he kept it hidden because the divinity itself did not wish to be known…”
“I don’t know if it’s a coincidence, but wasn’t Hunter Seo Gio’s position also a healer?”
“It all makes sense now.”
The priests nodded in unison.
“During the last dungeon raid, Hunter Seo Gio definitely received medicinal herbs from his divinity…”
“And the Black Cloak is famous for giving gifts to good people who catch its eye, is it not?”
“Then is gift-giving simply a characteristic of the Black Cloak? Since ordinary citizens can also receive gifts, the hypothesis that Hunter Seo Gio is a saint…”
“Even taking that into account, I believe Hunter Seo Gio’s vessel cannot be compared to that of an ordinary person.”
“Indeed. The scale of the gifts he received is entirely different. From what I hear, he has even directly received his god’s will…”
“If this is true, it is a great blessing for the Sun Cult.”
Witnessing the power of Providence in this world was an exceedingly rare occurrence. Traditional gods, to put it kindly, loved nature as it was; to put it bluntly, they were incredibly lazy and rarely intervened in human affairs.
“No wonder Hunter Seo Gio and the Black Cloak seemed to act so similarly…”
“Pardon? Were the two of them really that similar?”
“I thought they were strangely alike. Hunter Seo Gio is also exceptionally fond of giving gifts to others, and apparently, those gifts are almost always food.”
“Ahaha, he must care deeply about keeping others well-fed.”
“They say he cannot stand to see anyone go hungry.”
“And the gifts the Black Cloak gives are also mostly edible snacks. Seeing how much they resemble each other, it really makes one wonder if he truly has the vessel of a saint…”
And with that, the Sun Cult reached a new conclusion.
“Should we not build a closer relationship with Hunter Seo Gio after all?”
“Ahem, though his Awakening may have been unconventional, someone of his caliber is surely a figure fit to be a priest…”
“Among Koreans who serve a sun-related divinity, there is practically no one who doesn’t join our order.”
“It’s not an offer Hunter Seo Gio is likely to refuse, either.”
“Of course not. It’s about building friendly relations with the Sun Cult. He’d be delighted, wouldn’t he?”
The only one troubled by this clamor was Kang Seo-dam.
“……”
This wretched, parasitic religious world.
It is nothing short of a den of insects.
It was utterly repulsive.
He was disillusioned by it all: embarking on an A-Rank Dungeon exploration before they had even recovered from the ‘Deep Sea Kingdom’ incident last winter; the Evil God that slipped in while they were developing the cleared dungeon; and now, their scramble to satisfy their greed while still cleaning up the aftermath.
How can they be this greedy?
Instead of reflecting on their mistakes and focusing on recovery, they were only making things worse. It was only because the outcome had narrowly turned out well that they had avoided a major disaster and were moving on in a friendly atmosphere. Had it been otherwise, they would have been at each other’s throats, red-faced with blame.
Kang Seo-dam could not bear to face his students. Letting out a heavy sigh, he went to find Cha Yi-sol and Iruda.
“Student Cha Yi-sol.”
“Yes, Teacher!”
“And Student Iruda.”
“Yes, I’m listening.”
“To both of you… I can only apologize.”
Although Kang Seo-dam was just one of the teachers, he felt a heavy weight of responsibility. He had failed to protect his students, and things had come to this.
“Have you finished speaking with your guardians?”
Cha Yi-sol nodded.
“My hyung and noona told me to do whatever I want.”
“My mother said the same,” Iruda added. “She also said she’ll be watching to see how the cult responds from now on…”
Kang Seo-dam nodded in return.
“Of course. This incident was a massive blunder on the part of us adults, so you two need not trouble yourselves over it. Please, just focus on your recovery. After that, you may walk whatever path you desire.”
“What kind of paths can we take?”
“Since you both now serve divinities other than our Goddess of the Sun, you may stop your training and seek another path. I can also help you with an early graduation.”
Before Cha Yi-sol could ask anything, Iruda took her partner’s hand and spoke.
“Even if you want to find another order or guild, it’s better to get your official priest certification first. I’ll respect your decision, of course, but now that things have turned out like this, the ones who used to bother us will have to shut up.”
“Student Iruda makes a valid point,” Kang Seo-dam agreed. “The main students who were making the atmosphere hostile have already been expelled, and since the priests here are in the wrong, they have no choice but to walk on eggshells around you.”
“Just as Teacher Kang Seo-dam said,” Iruda continued, “you might have lost all affection for this place… but now, we hold the upper hand. Our peers will be treading carefully around us, and we have the leverage to demand more benefits from the order.”
To that, Cha Yi-sol said:
“Can you summarize that for me…?”
“There’s more to gain if we stay here.”
“Am I the only one who’s lost? It’s not just me, right…?”
“…I-I’ve just always been told I’m mature for my age,” Iruda said softly. “You’re not the strange one.”
Perhaps because he had come from the countryside, Cha Yi-sol possessed a rustic innocence, but Iruda hoped he wouldn’t see that as a flaw.
Comforted by her words, Cha Yi-sol quickly cheered up.
“Then that’s fine.”
“This is just my opinion, though. I want to hear what you want to do.”
“I want to stay with you, Ruda. And I like Teacher, too.”
“In that case, let’s aim for early graduation. It shouldn’t be hard for us.”
“If we graduate early, how old will we be when we become official priests?”
Kang Seo-dam answered that question.
“It depends on the circumstances, but if you’re fast, you can complete the course within three years.”
“Whoa, really?”
“The number of practical training sessions will increase and you’ll be busy in many ways… but if you can handle it, then yes.”
“Then I want to graduate quickly!”
As the two young priests dreamed of early graduation, the oceans of Earth began to stir from their deepest depths.
*
“I’ll get straight to the point,” Aria said politely.
“Would you mind getting kidnapped for me?”
“Oh.”
Gio couldn’t help but marvel at the sheer novelty of the request.