Chapter 130

“Brother Cha Isold.”

In the end, Cha Isold was called over by Kang Seo-dam.

“I will ask you directly.”

“Yep.”

“Have you ever been in contact with an evil god?”

“…Yep!”

“I appreciate your honesty.”

“But just a moment, teacher.”

“Please speak, I will listen attentively.”

“Thank you…!”

After taking a deep breath, Cha Isold spoke with grim determination.

“It might not be an evil god!”

“…….”

Kang Seo-dam did not bother to deny it.

“It is certainly a ridiculous act to separately classify evil gods from a human perspective.”

“He might actually be kind.”

“What I can tell you is that most gods are quite evil from a human standpoint.”

“That… yes, I remember.”

“You are a diligent student. I am also in a position of serving a god, and for that reason, I can say this clearly.”

He shook his head.

“A god is not a being to be trusted and relied upon.”

“I’ve been curious for a while now, but does the God of the Sun not get angry or sulk when you speak like that?”

“What is important to a god is not words, but actions and results. As long as one does not commit acts that have a substantially negative influence, they do not hand down punishment.”

“Surprisingly, those beings called gods are somewhat… um….”

“Indifferent, aren’t they? That is indeed the case. It is due to their low understanding of the individual entity known as a human.”

Kang Seo-dam rummaged through the files in his counseling office drawer.

“That is why there are some prospective priests who deliberately hope for an evil god with a high understanding of humans. Once they become official priests and actually serve a god, they won’t be able to say such things, but… here it is.”

He placed a few documents in front of Cha Isold.

“These are materials on the evil gods recognized domestically. You may take them with you.”

“Th-thank you…?”

“However, seeing your reaction, Brother Cha Isold, it seems you already have a god in mind.”

“Is it okay to say?”

“Do you know the god’s name? That is a very rare case.”

Kang Seo-dam stroked his chin.

“Most evil gods probably have a separate name so that humans can call upon them without feeling burdened. Is there no alias that separately refers to the evil god that Brother Cha Isold knows? In the case of our Seoul branch’s Solar Cult, we have a second name, the ‘Light of Fairness’….”

At that, Cha Isold gestured to Kang Seo-dam.

When Kang Seo-dam obediently leaned his ear toward Cha Isold, the child whispered.

“The Black Cape.”

“…Oh….”

Kang Seo-dam, slowly returning to his original position, nodded his head.

“I see.”

“Yes.”

“…….”

“Did I do something wrong…?”

“…I think I will need to think about that a little more to know.”

Kang Seo-dam, after some thought, asked again.

“You said you still don’t know if he is an evil god or a traditional god, Brother Cha Isold.”

“Yes, how can you distinguish between them?”

“You can tell by looking at whether the claims and powers the god puts forth are harmful to humans or not.”

“Then he must not be an evil god!”

“However, most evil gods often make false claims.”

Kang Seo-dam called for prospective priest Iruda, who was likely waiting outside.

Iruda, who had been about to return to the break room with her partner Cha Isold, quickly came inside and looked at Kang Seo-dam.

“We met several times today, Sister Iruda.”

“It seems so.”

“I believe it was you, Sister Iruda, who informed Brother Cha Isold that he is an evil god.”

“…That is correct.”

“I would like to hear the reason why you thought so, if that is possible.”

“Yes, I will do so.”

Iruda, while wearing a face that seemed to feel disillusioned with everything in the world, explained diligently.

“I saw a picture that Brother Cha Isold drew of something. A black….”

“I have just heard from Brother Cha Isold which subject we are talking about.”

“That is a relief. When I saw the drawing of that black figure, I felt a chill and an eeriness.”

“Are you not simply mistaking God's intimidation?”

“As far as I know, although it was not blatant, it was indeed the wicked divinity of an evil god.”

“Not blatant….”

Soon, Kang Seo-dam asked.

“Did you not feel a warm energy?”

“Pardon? Yes. Brother Cha Isold did mention that it was warm, so it would be fine.”

At that, Cha Isold muttered.

“It really is warm.”

“I am not optimized for feeling a god’s temperature.”

“A god’s temperature?”

“…….”

As Iruda hesitated, Kang Seo-dam explained in her stead.

“Do you remember when I said that a god is nature and fate with a will?”

“Yes, I remember.”

“The range of what humans can perceive is very narrow.

So much so that an ordinary person, unless they become a very faithful follower, will not be able to feel a god even if they live their whole life.”

“Ah….”

“Thanks to having awakened as priests, we can feel the gods more easily.

That is why each priest has a different way of accepting and interpreting a god.”

Kang Seo-dam pointed at Iruda.

“In Sister Iruda’s case, she feels a god’s volume.”

“Volume?”

“How big the god is, where on me they are stroking, how loud their voice is. To put it simply, you could say she can feel the entire size of a god.”

“I see….”

“In Brother Cha Isold’s case, he seems to be sensitive to a god’s temperature. Compared to Sister Iruda, who can easily perceive a god’s intimidation and violence, Brother Cha Isold can easily feel the affection or mercy a god sends.”

Kang Seo-dam, having explained the cases of the two priests, pointed to himself.

“However, most priests, including myself, find it not easy to feel a god, so we receive orders from the religious order. After all, the longer one stays in the temple, the more convenient it becomes to grasp the god’s will.”

“…….”

“This means that Brother Cha Isold and Sister Iruda have very great capabilities as priests. Other priests will develop their own ways of serving a god when they reach that age, but as of now.”

Kang Seo-dam looked at Cha Isold.

“That is why I am all the more concerned about which god Brother Cha Isold will form a contract with. Especially when combined with Brother Cha Isold’s personality… there are some unsettling points.”

“Am I that much of an unsettling type?”

“To be frank, yes, you are. I know that Brother Cha Isold has a surprisingly seasoned and brilliant side to him, but children of that age are especially prone to being swayed by affection.”

“…Uuumm….”

After some thought, Cha Isold asked.

“What should I do?”

“Has that being ever directly suggested a contract to you, brother?”

“No, it was just a few private meetings.”

“I, too, do not yet know if that being is an evil god or a traditional one.”

He wouldn't say it, but the Black Cape was a being upon whom the fair light he revered had once shone.

As a being affirmed by the traditional Goddess of Providence, it was difficult to simply dismiss it as an evil god.

In the first place, even among gods of death, there were traditional gods who respected human providence depending on their dimension of origin, and there were evil gods who broke the natural order and spread the pain of death throughout the world. It was a truly difficult task to classify gods by human standards.

“As I said in class today, evil gods easily see through human desires and anger. They can turn even a person who was initially rational into an incarnation of greed, or a berserker of rage.”

They break humans easily. It was the evil gods who could turn even a hero with conviction into a miserable murderer in an instant.

“There is a subtlety to it that cannot be found in traditional gods. It happens without you knowing, very naturally. This is because evil gods are also a type of nature and fate.”

“…….”

“Even in our Solar Cult, there have already been several… priests who were bewitched by an evil god and ruined their lives and their surroundings. Even though they made the contract with altruism like a saint or saintess, not selfishness, it ended up that way in the end.”

Kang Seo-dam emphasized.

“Do not trust the gods.”

“…But then why make a contract?”

“I misspoke. I mean, do not treat a god with human emotions.”

“Yes.”

“You may believe in and rely on a god as much as you want, but you must not expect humanity from them.”

“…….”

“Evil gods are especially subtle in that aspect…”

Kang Seo-dam, who was about to say something more, soon closed his mouth.

“…….”

“…Teacher?”

“…No, it’s just….”

He continued speaking again.

“I would like you to be cautious.”

“Yes, yes.”

“The subject you mentioned is not a being that has been observed on Earth for very long.”

“So I’ve heard.”

“So there isn’t much data… hmm.”

Kang Seo-dam nodded his head.

“I do not yet feel any negative energy from you, Brother Cha Isold.”

“Ah, then is it okay for me to keep meeting him?”

“I would like to tell you to just not be hasty in making a contract. Not doing just that is half the battle.”

“Why the contract?”

“No god can make a follower without a contract. That is also the reason why a faithful follower who can use holy power can never be considered a priest.”

“Ah….”

“For various reasons, the gods do not influence the human world without a contract. A contract is a kind of Maginot Line.”

“So as long as I don’t make a contract, it’s fine?”

“We’ll have to observe the situation more, but for now, that alone is enough.”

Iruda interjected into their conversation.

“Is it alright to leave things as they are? Perhaps, he could have been brainwashed so that the evil god wouldn’t notice….”

“I was not a genius like you, Sister Iruda, but I have much more experience.”

“But even so….”

“My partner was bewitched by an evil god and was executed. I led it myself.”

“…….”

“I am the person who can recognize the omens of an evil god better than anyone.”

He smiled faintly.

“Do not worry, Brother Cha Isold is under the protection of the Sun.”

“I was rude, I apologize.”

“How could I not know the heart of worrying for one’s brother.”

“Thank you.”

“However, if any unusual event occurs, I ask that you tell me at any time.”

“I will do so.”

Iruda, who had come out of the counseling office, buried her face in her hands.

“…….”

“Ruda-ya?”

“I made a mistake.”

“It’s because you like me too much.”

“The fact that you’re not wrong is what makes me angry.”

“Thanks to you, I feel super reassured, you know?”

“…If you know, then treat me well.”

“How?”

“Let me know every time he makes contact….”

“I will.”

The two of them walked towards their assigned room, talking in low tones.

“By the way, the teacher said in class today that scholars summoned evil gods.”

“He did.”

“So in the end, it means that even non-priests can summon gods? Even if we’re ordinary people and not Awakeners like us?”

“Since even ordinary followers who aren’t priests can use holy power, it’s a natural thing in a way.”

“But most people don’t even think about summoning a god.”

“That’s… because knowledge related to the gods hasn’t been popularized.”

Above all, the civil consciousness of the current chaotic world was too low to handle knowledge about the gods as well.

“Fearing that someone might do something crazy rashly, the government and the Association tend to control knowledge related to the call of the gods. If there are people who know in detail, wouldn’t it be the 3 Great Guilds?”

“The Guilds….”

“As long as you don’t serve a god of the same lineage, if you come to serve a different god, you can enter a private guild after becoming an official priest. For your personality, Cha Isold, this kind of free-spirited side might be better.”

“Then what happens to our partnership?”

“I heard they usually move together. It’s not a strict rule, but I heard it’s no easy task to find a fellow priest who you’re that in sync with.”

“Ooh….”

Cha Isold did not say anything to confirm.

“Well, you never know what the future holds.”

“That kind of mindset is wise.”

“Then is the knowledge related to the gods only known by… um… the higher-ups?”

“Rather than known, you should see it as there being a group that controls some of the knowledge.”

“What if a person from that group has bad intentions?”

“…That’s….”

Iruda let out a sigh.

“…the sin of a human who trusted a human.”

That is why, in the end, we come to rely on the gods.

Because humans are not eternal and immortal, and they are not strong enough for other humans to lean on.

***

He had sinned for the reason that he had believed.

“…….”

The diligent man had only hoped that the tragedy would not be repeated.

He loved his family, respected his friends, and was with his colleagues.

The man did not doubt for a moment that the work he was doing would be a help to this precarious world.

But in the end, because of it, the man was left alone.

“…I….”

It was miserably unreal.

“What did I do wrong?”

He had not believed in a god, but in the end, he cried out to one.

There is a person here.

Please listen to me.

Without knowing, I have crawled into the mud. Please save me. Please save me.

But there was no one by his side. There was only the thick smell of burning.

“What did I….”

How long must I endure?

“What should I do?”

He could not endure it.

He had already realized that he was in a deep pit of blood.

“…….”

The god did not answer.

“…….”

He had already created the mark of the evil god and was holding it tightly in his hand.

This was before a crossroads.

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