In the end, only the request to wait 4 years remained.
And an unpleasant sensation of emptiness where something should be remained too.
I feel lost in a vast ocean.
Since I am that ocean, perhaps there isn’t even a path.
Even with such worries, time flows on.
When the sun sets, I cook and eat dinner with Soo-oh, and when night comes, we sleep feeling the night air on the porch.
And when morning comes again, I hold onto Soo-oh and tell stories I know. Most are stories decorated with dreams, hopes, justice, and morality, and besides those, just a few pieces of common sense.
For arithmetic, we only did the very basics.
Since she hates doing anything with numbers, there was no helping it.
Anyway, since I’m neither parent nor teacher, we didn’t do things Soo-oh didn’t want to do.
Soo-oh speaks informally and calls my name. At least it’s certain she doesn’t see me as a parent.
And as far as I know, Soo-oh’s family is alive. She wasn’t abandoned by her family either.
Because all children around the Heavenly Demon Divine Cult are forcibly taken. When they reach a certain age, they’re dragged to the Heavenly Demon Divine Cult, receive brainwashing education, and have insects injected into their bodies.
And Soo-oh knows this is beyond what parents can control.
So instead of a family-like relationship, I think she just treats me like she did at the main hall.
I don’t know if she’s thinking about returning to her family’s embrace when she grows older.
No, there’s the matter with Heavenly Demon. There’s a possibility Soo-oh isn’t thinking the way I assumed.
It wouldn’t be bad to ask once.
“Soo-oh. Do you miss your family?”
The summer room is too hot, so we spend most time on the porch.
At my question, Soo-oh, who was lying stuck to the porch complaining about the heat, raised her head.
“Why that?”
She’s making an expression asking why I’m suddenly asking such a thing.
“Don’t people’s children miss their parents?”
I know most people are like that. Even in times when family values had considerably broken down, while relationships between siblings might vary, the relationship between parents and children wasn’t one that broke easily.
So thinking generally, wouldn’t Soo-oh miss her family too?
But Soo-oh looked around once and asked me.
“What about Choseol?”
“Choseol’s parents are both already dead.”
Because the previous cult leader captured Eunjae’s descendant to unlock the secret of the Heavenly Demon Divine Technique. He actually got very close to the secret.
After all, the Heavenly Demon Divine Technique that Eunjae used was fighting using me.
And since you asked about Choseol, not me, I told you about Choseol’s situation. I don’t know what happened to the parents from when I was a man in the faded memories.
“I see. I suppose I should meet them once someday. Yeah.”
That’s a strangely cold attitude.
“You don’t really want to meet them? But you remember your parents, right?”
“I remember. That’s why I don’t want to meet them that much.”
I tried to understand Soo-oh’s answer. But I failed. If she remembers them, wouldn’t she want to meet them?
Looking at Soo-oh’s memories, her relationship with her parents wasn’t bad. Of course, her older brother and sister had disappeared, leaving only younger brother and sister, but that was normal in that village.
In every house, children of the middle age group are missing. They all go to the Heavenly Demon Divine Cult. And only half of them return alive.
Because there are many ways to die within the Heavenly Demon Divine Cult.
Of course, not everyone is like that. Looking at Gapjae’s memories, those living in villages west of the Heavenly Demon Divine Cult don’t have their children taken to the main cult.
The villages attached to the west are part of the Heavenly Demon Divine Cult, and there are other villages beyond that.
To make an easy comparison, if the main hall of the Heavenly Demon Divine Cult is the Blue House, the village attached to the west is like Seoul, and the village Soo-oh was taken from is like cities in the provinces.
“Is that so?”
“Yeah. Why are you suddenly asking such things?”
Soo-oh asks with a strangely annoyed attitude.
“I just suddenly became curious.”
Originally, I’d been thinking about it all along, and if it were yesterday, it would have been a question about whether she could live well if she became independent like this.
But now we’re bound for 4 years.
So it became a meaningless question.
Somehow Soo-oh crawled over to me, grabbed my body and buried her face. Even though I wonder if it’s not too hot, she holds on well.
While I was thinking about how long she’d stay like this, Soo-oh finally let go saying it was too hot.
And around that time, Heavenly Demon approached.
Lunch time had already passed.
I got up from my spot.
“Let’s eat lunch first.”
“Yay!”
Soo-oh got up.
And for the first time, we ate lunch together including Heavenly Demon who came before our lunch.
By the way, Heavenly Demon complained it was terribly tasteless, asking if we eat such things every day.
Well, compared to the food Heavenly Demon eats at the Heavenly Demon Divine Cult, it is tasteless.
After cleaning up, the two of them started training.
I was planning to wait until Soo-oh started training independently and then go to the village with Heavenly Demon. Then suddenly, I thought that might take too long.
So I told Heavenly Demon I would walk to the village first and left the house.
It’s time to make a harvester.
This time, I’m going to the village with Heavenly Demon.
When there’s an unknown group, it’s important to go with the highest person.
And if harvesters keep getting kidnapped, it would be easy to know too.
I headed toward the village across the ground where heat was rising. And I stood waiting for Heavenly Demon near the village entrance.
And not long after, Heavenly Demon appeared, having crossed in an instant the path that took me quite a long time to walk.
Isn’t she faster than most cars?
“Why are you so fast?”
“Because I’m Heavenly Demon.”
It’s funny how she thinks that’s an answer, but since it’s not entirely wrong, I nodded and entered the village with her.
Upon entering the village, the atmosphere is clearly different.
When I entered alone, there were gazes secretly stealing looks, but now they’re full of reverence and worship. And wherever Heavenly Demon walks, people bow instead of greeting.
That’s how it should be for a religion.
The Heavenly Demon Divine Cult is closer to a gathering of people who worship power without codified rules like doctrines. But still, a religion is a religion.
No, strictly speaking, there is exactly one place that has doctrine.
The Moon Emperor Hall.
That place alone operates distinctly differently. If the Heavenly Demon Divine Cult consists of religion and power, it alone handles the religious aspect.
Heavenly Demon is just close to being a symbol.
Of course, I didn’t tell Heavenly Demon that. Though she talked about being a sword and such, can’t people’s thoughts always change?
I have no intention of telling anyone anywhere about the fact that I’m watching through harvesters’ eyes. Because that’s one of my few weapons.
And I’m not a fool who would talk while knowing that weapon has a weakness. Not being able to know harvesters’ thoughts precisely is quite fatal.
Heavenly Demon and I moved forward through the bowing people.
“Who do you intend to give blessing to?”
When we reached the center of the village, Heavenly Demon stopped and asked me.
So I looked around.
There are many people whose faces I’ve seen before. Some of them are limping. They were originally healthy people.
I don’t intend to touch them yet.
Hmm.
Yes, I’m making plans spontaneously.
The place where Heavenly Demon’s power reaches. Perhaps this is the moment when Heavenly Demon’s favorability is highest. A situation where she might grant whatever request I make.
Let’s take a risk here.
Since the Moon Emperor Hall is hidden too secretly, it seems difficult to see unless Heavenly Demon openly destroys the Heavenly Demon Divine Cult.
Originally, I want to give power to oppressed people, but more than that, I want to obtain knowledge about how to summon me when I can get it.
“The Moon Emperor Hall Master. I’ll give it to that person.”
Heavenly Demon’s expression filled with doubt.
“The Moon Emperor Hall Master? Why him?”
I pointed at the village with my finger.
“The person with whom I shared myself disappeared here. You’ll remember. The man who kindly shared fruit with Soo-oh and me.”
I raised my voice.
“He trampled on the kindness given to me. I need to meet the Moon Emperor Hall Master.”
I package it as if I’m purely going to demand accountability. In reality, I have no intention of demanding anything. After all, I’m the most wicked one.
Because I don’t care what happens as long as I can obtain warmth.
However, the element of being someone who stands for the lowly is very important.
Appearance and justification.
I directly experienced their power in the first world.
I should make good use of what I learned.
First, let’s make it clear who is right.
“Heavenly Demon. I am the power that the Heavenly Demon Divine Cult desires, am I not?”
Heavenly Demon said something like that before.
“That’s right. You are at the end of the Heavenly Demon Divine Technique. No, perhaps you stand at the end of all destructive acts.”
Heavenly Demon agreed.
“So refusing me makes one a heretic? Is the Moon Emperor Hall Master truly a heretic? Or not? Hehe. Let’s go meet him.”
I scattered sparks.
I played word games making it seem like I’m the endpoint of the Heavenly Demon Divine Cult, and declared that those who refuse me are bad people. I handed over justification to rebel against people who helped me with goodwill.
Heavenly Lady.
They gave kindness saying I came from heaven. In return, I let them use kindness as a weapon. So come to me if you’re hurt. Come find me if your friend dies.
I will give you strength, so do what you want to do.
Arm yourself with kindness, and find the right path.
No matter how much blood flows beneath, I shall bless it.
Still swallowing words that shouldn’t be said yet, I spoke a few words criticizing the Moon Emperor Hall Master with Heavenly Demon, repeatedly saying that those who are wary of my power are enemies of the Heavenly Demon Divine Cult.
Then I went with Heavenly Demon to find the Moon Emperor Hall Master.
Now it’s time to acquire knowledge.