The Cult Leader in the Clergy Academy

Chapter 236

Thud. Thud.

The crusaders advanced with caution. They moved toward the forest where the Cult Leader might be hiding, and they occasionally glanced back. The snake watched them from behind.

After overpowering the rifle squad, the snake simply coiled up in place without doing anything. It neither approached the crusaders in front nor attacked them. This sight terrified the crusaders even more. The snake seemed to be taunting them, flicking its tongue as it stared at the crusaders.

The Cult Leader's intentions were clear. He was waiting for the crusaders to be lured into the massive forest that he had created.

Drip, drip.

The crusaders looked up at the sky at the sudden raindrops. The once sunny sky was now covered in dark clouds.

Swaaaah...

The raindrops, falling one by one, quickly grew heavier and more abundant. Soon, a downpour followed by thunder and gusts of wind was upon them.

The crusaders gulped nervously, looking at the rapidly changing weather. They were beginning to realize who they were up against. Their opponent was none other than the Cult Leader of the Voodoo Cult who had once gone against the Romanican Church and fought during the war.

“...”

The crusaders advanced to the edge of the forest and came to a halt. Silence filled the air. The forest was dark and eerie, its roots and foliage densely knit together. Nothing could be heard or seen.

A deep darkness sent shivers down their spines and greeted the crusaders. No one dared to step into the forest first, as they had no idea what awaited them. Moreover, the forest was so dark that they couldn't see an inch ahead of them. In such a place, combat utilizing divine power and blessings would be impossible.

In the darkness, the light of divine power would be the only visible thing and expose one's position to the Cult Leader.

"...I'll go first."

Amongst the hesitation, the first one to raise her sword was none other than a woman in the forefront. She was the woman who held the position of director, and she had given orders to the crusaders terrified by the snake’s sudden appearance.

She unleashed divine power and drew a blessing array, infusing the light of blessing into her body and sword. In the darkness overshadowed by the dark clouds and forest, only her body shone brightly.

"When I find the Cult Leader, I will use divine power to signal their location. Attack in unison once you receive the signal," she said, putting on her anti-Voodoo mask.

"..."

"We only have one enemy. There’s nothing to be afraid of..." the director muttered as she moved forward.

It seemed like she was speaking not to others but to herself for reassurance.

The crusaders watched as the director, gripping her weapon tightly, disappeared into the darkness as if being sucked in. Swallowing her saliva, the director slowly walked through the darkness.

Pssss...

Drip, drip.

When the wind blew, and the giant leaves rustled. Raindrops fell occasionally. The forest was filled with boundless silence, making even the slightest sound thunderous.

The director flinched at every sound she heard. She tightened her grip on her sword, and she scowled as she glared into the darkness.

"..."

She knew that proud crusaders of the Romanican Church should not fear mere darkness. Crusaders were the swords and spears that slashed the darkness.

Yet, her body trembled and her spine shivered. She didn't know when or where the Cult Leader, hiding in the darkness, would appear and what they would do to her.

She wouldn’t fall victim to a spell because she was wearing an anti-Voodoo mask. However, it wasn't just about guarding against spells. She had to calculate and be cautious of every possibility, as no one knew the extent of power the Cult Leader possessed.

Pssk!

Right then, she heard the sound of rustling leaves. At the same time, a faint light emerged from the darkness. The light was feeble, gloomy, and clearly present but lacked the power to dispel the darkness. It was the light emitted by Voodoo magic.

The director aimed her sword in the direction of the sound. Concealed within the darkness, the purple mist crept closer to the director. She gazed in the direction of the Cult Leader, who would surely be looking at her from across the darkness.

"..."

"..."

The mist reached the director. However, the director didn't lose consciousness thanks to the anti-Voodoo mask. Rather, she felt slight dizziness even through the mask; it wasn’t possible to completely block the spell, but it was bearable.

The director instinctively felt that the Cult Leader was watching her. She also gazed back at them.

Crunch.

The director clenched their teeth. The light of blessing she had bestowed on her sword still glowed faintly.

Swoosh–!

The director swung her sword forcefully. The light of blessing on the sword scattered like dust and headed toward the Cult Leader. For a split second, the darkness parted to reveal a person-like figure. In the darkness, it was impossible to distinguish whether it was the Cult Leader or someone else. However, there was no time to hesitate. This was perhaps the last opportunity to see the Cult Leader. In that fleeting moment, hesitation could lead to the death of all the members. The director rushed toward the Cult Leader with her sword secured tightly in her hands.

Slash!

She swung her sword down. It was a precise attack aimed straight at the Cult Leader's neck. She felt the sensation of cutting into something, but it wasn't the eerie sensation of cutting into flesh. It was the sensation of cutting something like a bundle of dry hay or a scarecrow.

Thud!

The Cult Leader's ‘head’ fell to the ground. But there was no face on the head. What the director had beheaded was not the Cult Leader, but a doll intricately woven with thin plant stems. The director swallowed hard and looked around, but she had lost all sense of direction due to the darkness. No matter where she turned, she was met with the same suffocating scenery.

Slam.

At that moment, a familiar heavy and solid sound reverberated from the ground. It was the sound of the Cult Leader striking the ground with their staff.

Staff?

The Cult Leader had thrown the staff toward the snipers behind them. The staff had transformed into a snake and wiped out the snipers. If that were the case, the Cult Leader shouldn't have the staff in their hands. So why did it sound like they had just hit the earth with their staff?

The director tried to turn her body in the direction of the sound, but her body wouldn't move. Hundreds, thousands of threads as thin as fishing lines, were tightly entwined around the director's body. Although it seemed like she could easily break free with her strength alone, no matter how much she struggled, she couldn’t break free from its grasp.

A low, deep voice came from behind her. "An interesting contraption you’re wearing."

The director tried to turn her head to catch a glimpse of the Cult Leader's face, but her head didn’t move an inch; the tiny vines had made their way to her neck.

The Cult Leader stood behind the director and reached out his hand. He removed the anti-Voodoo mask that covered the director's face, and she squeezed her eyes shut in response. She couldn’t move an inch and was now without the protection of the mask. She wouldn’t even be able to take a last stand against the Cult Leader.

"Why did you come here alone?" the Cult Leader asked.

His voice was low, with a hint of wrath.

"...Kill me. I won't say a thing," the director said, opening her eyes.

Her voice was filled with determination. She didn't want to cause harm to her colleagues as a hostage of the Voodoo Cult. She would rather have the Cult Leader kill her right there.

The Cult Leader let out a hollow laugh. "Why would I?"

"You. You’re disguised as a member of the Romanican Church, aren't you?" the director said, feigning composure with a smile.

Just by looking at how he used a mask and poncho to hide his face and body, the Cult Leader had clearly infiltrated the ranks of the Romanican Church's clergymen. The fact that he had summoned dark clouds and a forest further supported her suspicion.

The director spoke in a calm but threatening voice. "If you don't kill me here, I will remember your voice."

"..."

"The Paladin Order, Crusader Order, priesthood, apprentice clergymen, F.A... I will scour every nook and cranny until I find you. And I’ll put you on the chopping block," the director said.

She was bluffing. Even if the Cult Leader didn't kill her, there was no way she would return unscathed. She would either be used as a hostage for negotiation or suffer terrible torture. The director knew that but deliberately provoked the Cult Leader in order to make sure the Cult Leader couldn't resist killing her.

However, instead of showing wrath, the Cult Leader stood calmly in front of the director. She glared at the Cult Leader, her eyes dripping with killing intent. Beyond the mask, she could vaguely make out his eyes. The Cult Leader's eyes that stared into the director were empty and unfocused.

"The rest of the members will enter and attack simultaneously when you reveal your location with divine power, right?"

The director frowned at the Cult Leader's words. "How did you..."

"Plants have good hearing, you know," the Cult Leader said.

Before she could process what the Cult Leader had said, the Cult Leader's hand was clasped around the director's head. His hand was as cold as a corpse. Violet Voodoo magic flowed from his fingertips.

In an instant, a spell array was engraved on the director's head.

"Did you say you’d remember my voice?" the Cult Leader said.

Mist flowed from the activated spell array. It entered through the director's eyes, nose, mouth, and ears.

"Try to. I dare you."

"...Ah."

At first, the director tried to resist the spell with sheer mental strength. However, she couldn't bear it.

Pssk, pssk. The sound of ants gnawing on flesh echoed throughout her head. The ants crawled through the holes on her face and feasted on her brain. She tasted a bitterness in her mouth.

Her sense of touch, hearing, and taste had turned incredibly sharp and then were violated by the spell from the Cult Leader. The director couldn't even scream—not even a small sound could escape her lips.

Amidst her fading consciousness, the director was relieved that she hadn’t brought the other members here.

Entering the forest was the equivalent of willingly falling into the clutches of the Cult Leader. He controlled all the plants and was the master of the darkness here. That was why the director didn’t unleash her divine power even when facing the Cult Leader. She believed that her dying at the hands of the Cult Leader alone was enough.

"..."

The director's vision suddenly brightened. A brilliant light pushed away the darkness and flowed from the Cult Leader's fingertips. It was the light of blessing.

* * *

Do-Jin stopped in his tracks while preparing to leap toward the Cult Leader. He then watched the battle between the crusaders and the Cult Leader.

Merciless gunfire. A forest that appeared out of nowhere on barren land. A staff and a snake.

The snake had attacked the rear ranks where Do-Jin's comrade John had been. All the snipers, including John, were rendered unable to fight. He couldn’t say for sure, but there were definitely casualties.

Dark clouds soon covered the sky and rain began to fall, casting a gloomy and ominous darkness over the battlefield. The director of the Crusader Order that fell directly under the Holy See entered the forest but never came out.

Soon, the hesitating members entered the forest one by one. They didn't come out either.

"..."

It was dead silent. No sound could be heard other than the clear sound of rain and wind. The snipers in the rear didn't move, and the snake that had wreaked havoc in the back remained coiled up. It waited there without moving an inch.

The crusaders in the front had disappeared. It was as if the forest had swallowed them whole.

"W-we need to run. Request support..." Ye-Jin said.

She was in a state of shock. She had stopped drawing blessings, and instead, her body had stiffened from the sight of carnage.

Rationally speaking, Ye-Jin was right. The Cult Leader seemed unaware that Do-Jin and Ye-Jin were still alive. They should utilize this opportunity to escape by any means, whether it be through the mountain path or the seashore route, and request support as Do-Jin and Ye-Jin alone couldn't possibly subdue the Cult Leader.

"...Alright."

Do-Jin finally nodded after a long period of contemplation, his eyes tightly closed.

He didn't want to run away, but it was also impossible for him to fight against the Cult Leader. Ye-Jin was practically powerless. She hardly participated in battles even when she was in the priesthood and devoted her time to research, inventing blessings, and discovering miracles.

They had no chance of winning this fight. It would be a wise choice to run. Do-Jin put his blade onto his waist and turned his back on the Cult Leader.

"Do you need some support?"

Do-Jin waved her off.

"It's fine,” he said.

Although it felt like his insides were twisting with every step he took, he didn't want to rely on Ye-Jin for support because it was the last bit of dignity he had. Do-Jin lifted his face up to the clouds. The dark clouds gradually disappeared, revealing a blue sky.

"If we take the coastal road, we can avoid the Cult Leader's gaze and make it to the nearby Crusader Order. From there..." Ye-Jin said something as they ran away.

But Do-Jin couldn't hear her voice. He had to endure the pain of his muscles twisting and tearing with every step. Cold sweat dripped down, and his heart pounded heavily. Had he really planned to fight the Cult Leader in his current state? Looking back, he had been crazy. Do-Jin twisted his lips and smiled.

"..."

John was a skilled sniper. The number of demons and demonic beasts he single-handedly defeated was easily in the hundreds. He was also a crusader who possessed both skill and character and was the only person Do-Jin truly respected and admired. Even someone like John couldn't stand against the Cult Leader. Do-Jin, who was injured, wouldn’t stand a chance.

‘Yeah, picking a fight would be suicide.’

Do-Jin had fought countless battles and lost numerous comrades. At first, he had been sad about the deaths, but later on, he no longer found it as depressing. Deaths could be forgotten as death.

Was John dead? Even if he was, it didn't matter. His death would be forgotten amidst the deaths of other comrades. Through countless deaths, Do-Jin learned the famous yet simple truth: it was not the strong who survived, but the ones who survived were strong.

"...Ah."

Do-Jin stopped walking and let out a sigh. He had learned from surviving numerous battles not how to get used to deaths but rather how to skillfully forget about them.

He had always been afraid and hated seeing his colleagues die. Therefore, the thought that it didn't matter if John was dead was a lie. He was only rationalizing his actions and beliefs in a vile manner, trying to justify them when on the inside, he was merely afraid of the Cult Leader and didn't want to fight.

As soon as he realized that, the pain in his twisted and severed abdomen subsided. His steps became lighter, and the cold sweat stopped. His restless heart beat regularly once more.

"If I go to the Crusader Order, we should contact the Central... Do-Jin, are you listening to me?" Ye-Jin asked Do-Jin, who had remained silent during their walk.

However, Do-Jin did not respond. She had a bad feeling. When she turned her head, Do-Jin was nowhere to be seen.

"...Do-Jin?"

Ye-Jin searched for Do-Jin but had no success. Ye-Jin stared blankly at Do-Jin's empty spot and then turned her head in the direction where the Cult Leader was. Do-Jin had his sword in his hands and ran toward them.

At that moment, the Cult Leader emerged from his hiding spot in the forest. There wasn't even a scratch on his poncho and mask. He looked perfectly fine. Had a battle really taken place?

Countless crusaders had tried to kill the Cult Leader, but none of them managed to land a single blow. No matter how one looked at it, the odds were stacked against their favor.

Do-Jin knew this very well. Nevertheless, he ran toward the Cult Leader. He had made a choice: not to survive until he forgot about his colleague's deaths, but to die before he forgot.

He gripped the sword. The radiant light of blessing enveloped his body.

Kaang─!

He swung his sword. The Cult Leader raised his staff and blocked it. Do-Jin stared intently at the Cult Leader's eyes glimpsed behind his mask.

When Do-Jin swung his sword earlier, the Cult Leader had punched him in the abdomen without hesitation. But now, he blocked the sword with his staff. The reason was clear. Do-Jin had aimed for the Cult Leader’s mask, while before, he had aimed for the Cult Leader's neck.

The Cult Leader was overly concerned about his disguise and mask. He must be afraid of exposing his identity. A faint smile crept up on Do-Jin's lips.