Chapter 192
Chapter 192
-----------------------------------------------------------------
Translator: Ryuma
Chapter: 192
Chapter Title: The Cult (3)
-----------------------------------------------------------------
On the outskirts of Naju in South Jeolla Province lay an orchard called the Garden of the Lord.
In the underground prisons scattered throughout that mad place, someone resembling a jailer was swinging a club at the iron bars.
He shouted something at the two exhausted Jews.
“Mealtime, you filthy tribe of sinners!”
He tossed a few soggy chunks of bread at them like they were livestock.
But even that didn’t satisfy the fanatic. He hurled curses at the Jews as they devoured the bread greedily.
“If Prophet Mother hadn’t personally shown mercy, you wicked snake-like Jews would’ve had your limbs torn apart a hundred times over by now!”
“Hey, calm down. Let’s feed these bastards first.”
Another believer stepped in to restrain the raging fanatic. She seemed to hold a slightly higher position, speaking in a calm but firm tone that left no room for argument.
“We have orders to keep them alive for now.”
“Sigh… Still, shouldn’t we bind these sinners again, Sister? It’s horrifying just to watch them move like that.”
“Relax. Unless Prophet Mother comes to inspect, they won’t escape if we leave them be.”
“How about cutting their tendons so they can’t—!”
The fanatic’s eyes rolled back in brainwashed fury. As he reached for an axe to swing through the bars, the higher-ranking woman grabbed his arm and spoke calmly.
“Everything has its purpose. Even those horned black goats, right?”
“What do you mean…?”
“Ahem, this is something that circulates only among the senior believers.”
She glanced around and paused dramatically, then whispered into the fanatic’s ear as if revealing a grave secret.
“They say the Second Coming event is coming soon. Within this month, even.”
“The Second Coming!”
The Second Coming.
In this deranged cult, it was an event as sacred as their leader Park Geum-deok’s birthday.
Their doctrine claimed that if their faith spread across the world, the Messiah would descend and carry them away on the ark of salvation.
Of course, in reality, it was just an excuse to collect offerings disguised as donations.
“Shh, keep it down.”
“Ah… sorry.”
“It’s fine. Now, there’s a passage in Prophet Mother’s Bible appendix that goes like this.”
The Garden of the Lord even had its own cult scriptures.
The woman quoted a line from what was supposedly Park Geum-deok’s Bible appendix, clasping her hands together.
“Far in the east, where the sun rises, a voyage of faith shall set forth.”
“Ah! How could I forget such precious words.”
“That’s why we’re keeping them alive. On the day of the Second Coming, we must offer them up as sacrifices while worshiping the holy Lord.”
The prayer atmosphere ignited out of nowhere.
They struck their signature bizarre Y-shaped pose, tears streaming down their faces as they began their signature rote chants.
“O Lord! Bless Prophet Mother! Use the blood of this sinner to lay the foundation of the Millennium Kingdom!”
The two Jews watched the pair of lunatics, chewing the bread chunks down their throats.
“Crazy bastards. Or rather, crazy bitches.”
“Quiet. No point drawing attention from those fanatics.”
The Jews understood enough Korean. They might not grasp words like “blessings” or “holy,” but one thing was crystal clear.
The Second Coming. When that day came, their heads might not stay on their shoulders.
“This is driving me nuts, Boss. What the hell are those psychos planning to do with us?”
“No idea. But from all that Second Coming talk, one thing’s for sure.”
The senior engineer’s words echoed in the fanatic’s ravings near his ear.
With a grim expression, he recalled the memory. The trigger that had landed them here.
“It all started going wrong from that immigration officer we saw at Gwangju Airport that day.”
* * *
Two months earlier.
‘Boss, why fly into Gwangju Airport instead of Seoul? I thought headquarters was up there.’
‘The Ammunition Auto Research Lab’s nearby. We’re engineers—we can talk shop with the on-site folks. Finance handles Seoul.’
The two Jews who landed at Gwangju Airport.
Everything had been going smoothly. The investment deals, the tech development.
Even as low-level field staff, they could feel progress being made.
But a single unexpected immigration officer had thrown a wrench into their path.
‘David, Isaiah. Israelis, huh? Both of you.’
‘Yes, that’s right.’
And that officer was a die-hard fanatic from the Garden of the Lord.
‘Hmm… I see. Maybe this is the Lord’s will.’
The fanatic fiddled with their blue Israeli passports embroidered with silver menorahs.
After pondering for a long while, he looked so bizarre that the senior engineer cautiously asked.
‘Is there a problem?’
‘Nothing at all. Where’s your hotel?’
‘Eden Garden Hotel on Geumnam-ro, right by the subway station…’
‘Oho! Another miracle!’
The fanatic let out an inexplicable howl of joy.
Eden Garden Hotel. Of all places, it was run by the Garden of the Lord, hammering home his faith.
‘Hallelujah! Have a blessed trip. All shall be as the Lord wills.’
‘Uh, yeah… thanks.’
They got their entry stamps and walked away.
The fanatic immediately sent a text somewhere.
–Sister Believer. The Lord just sent two horned goats down to this world. Please take them alive, not dead, so they can wash away their sins.
He had abandoned his humanity to fanaticism.
* * *
And now.
Another outsider arrived at the Garden of the Lord.
“Maria? Isn’t this an orchard?”
“Isn’t it beautiful, Princess?”
Princess Hina, who had come down holding the top believer Maria’s hand tightly.
A vague unease bubbled up instinctively, but Maria’s grip wouldn’t let go.
“They say people living in the Creator’s embrace gather here.”
“Uh… Is every countryside place like this? At least the peaches look tasty.”
Waves of foreboding crashed over her.
Her instincts screamed to run. This place—this place was somewhere she should never set foot in.
“Oh, Sister Maria. We’ve been waiting.”
“It’s been too long, Prophet Mother.”
The cult leader Park Geum-deok approached silently from behind Princess Hina.
She gave Hina a quick glance, then placed her hand on Maria’s head and proclaimed loudly.
“Our Sister Maria has done a great deed. The Lord’s grace shall descend upon your shoulders, and the ark of salvation shall board the top believers first!”
The blessing prayer erupted suddenly.
And the surrounding fanatics dropped to their knees en masse.
“Amen! Amen! Amen for the day the Lord comes!”
“As Prophet Mother blesses, let light fill every corner she treads! Hallelujah!”
Princess Hina’s face drained of color at the sight.
In the chilling atmosphere, her lips trembled as she stammered at Maria.
“W-what is this? What the hell is this place? No, wait—Maria… who are you?”
Maria still hadn’t released Hina’s hand.
Standing up, she met Hina’s eyes with a chilling smile.
“Prophet Mother said, ‘Excessive knowledge is worse than ignorance.’”
“S-stay away! Get back…!”
“Only a heart of obedience can cast out the Satan lodged within.”
Men lunged from behind Princess Hina.
A white cloth gag stuffed in her mouth, and her consciousness faded.
Her vision blackened. The last thing she heard before blacking out was the icy blessing from the Maria she had trusted so deeply.
“Now you too shall become a lamb of obedience in the Lord’s embrace.”
* * *
Ammunition Group office.
A day had passed since sending Princess Hina down for rest and recuperation.
As I agonized over issues with Nuclear Weapons Entertainment and Israel Motors Eyes, something bizarre caught my eye.
Something eerily ominous, of all things.
“Funny, isn’t it? Don’t you think?”
“What’s funny? Your ex-wife nagging you after the divorce?”
Uncle Kim Won-cheol spouted another weird line.
This guy’s definitely dating his ex-wife again. Classic defensive reflex from feeling guilty.
“Just get back together with Mrs. Park Ja-ok.”
“Eek, don’t say such horrifying things. You only get it once you’ve been through it—the value of freedom.”
I shook my head at the middle-aged man’s pretentiousness.
Sensing the topic was against him, Uncle Kim Won-cheol swiftly changed the subject.
“Ahem, anyway, what’s so ‘funny’ that you’re furrowing your brows like that?”
“Here’s the thing. I hate pseudoscientific nonsense like parallel universe theories, but stuff keeps lining up.”
Pseudoscientific nonsense.
Especially parallel universe theories, the king of fake logic masquerading as reason.
I despise forcing unrelated events together based on flimsy coincidences… but this time was different.
A repulsive gut feeling crawled up my spine, sending chills down it.
I highlighted a document with a fluorescent marker and continued.
“One of the top entertainment companies that shredded Princess Hina’s mental state—Eden Garden Records headquarters location.”
A yellow line over the name Jeollanam-do, Naju.
“And the Israel Motors Eyes employees. Their last confirmed location before vanishing? Same place.”
There it was again on the police phone tracking logs: Jeollanam-do, Naju.
Uncle Kim Won-cheol gave me a dubious look, protesting it was too much of a stretch.
“Nah, you’re forcing it.”
“And finally… the place where Princess Hina went for ‘therapy’ with that woman Maria? Right there too.”
But.
“Jeollanam-do, Naju.”
“Huh…?”
The stretch suddenly felt all too plausible, stirring unease.
Uncle Kim Won-cheol’s pupils wavered as he ventured cautiously.
“Wait… Has Princess Hina been reachable since then?”
“No contact since this morning. Maria’s side claims she’s resting and refusing calls, but it feels off.”
“……!”
He peeked up with unfocused eyes, staring blankly. The anxiety was like spotting a girl-shaped doll in the dead of night—enough to raise goosebumps.
A kid would’ve wet themselves in terror.
“We need to check this out ASAP. There might be something sinister hiding in that peaceful rural village.”