The Cult Leader in the Clergy Academy

Chapter 273

When the demon’s roar spread through the speakers, Jin-Seo once again experienced a hallucination, but she snapped out of it shortly afterward. Since she had been subjected to the same black magic twice before, she instinctively knew how to quickly break free from the hallucination.

However, this was not the case for the other clergymen. Non-clergymen participating in the promotion ceremony due to their close ties to the Romanican Church and some of the prelates unfamiliar with black magic heard the screams and lost their minds. The clergymen were lying down and shedding black tears with their eyes wide open.

Swoosh!

The demon that suddenly appeared on stage swung its long and sinister arms and instantly tore four of the twelve promotion candidates in half, killing them. The remaining eight also suffered deep wounds on their bodies. They didn't even have a chance to resist, as they didn't even have weapons.

The blood that was scattered on the stage reflected the cathedral's magnificent and brilliant lighting, casting an eerie glow.

"Ah, what is this...."

"Move, get out of the way! Don't just stand there, move!"

"Huh? Oh, why is there a demon here..."

Even those not affected by black magic were thrown into panic by the sudden commotion. Half of the people quickly assessed the situation and fled the cathedral in a hurry, while the other half still did not grasp the situation as they stared blankly at the demon causing a ruckus on the stage.

At that moment, a voice broke through the chaos in the cathedral.

"Northern Crusader Order—!"

The deep and resonant voice belonged to the director of the Northern Crusader Order.

The members of the Northern Crusader Order, who were momentarily confused, straightened up at the sound of that voice.

"Everyone, gear up and prepare for battle against the demon—!"

Crack!

But the voice was abruptly cut off by a sinister and ominous sound. It was the sound of the demon's fist striking the Northern Crusader Order director’s head.

The Northern Crusader Order director seemed to have saved his life by narrowly blocking the attack, but the impact was so severe that he was no longer able to move.

Despite this, he continued to shout out orders to his comrades until the end. “Prepare... for battle...!”

Even with potentially fatal injuries, he fulfilled his role as a director to the end, truly embodying the spirit of a 'crusader.' It was all thanks to him that light returned in the eyes of the Northern Crusader Order members.

"Save, save me. Save, save me..."

At that moment, a sharp scream came from somewhere.

"Kyaahhh!"

It was Ha-Yeon.

Some of the clergymen who fell after shedding black tears were now spilling blood from every orifice and grabbing anyone they could find to beg for their lives.

Ha-Yeon had a weak stomach, and she screamed at the sight. Her phone, which was currently in a phone call with Sung Yu-Da, fell to the ground and shattered.

"Immediately... immediately head to the cathedral affiliated with the Central Priesthood. Hurry!" Han Dae-Ho ordered.

He was urgently ordering Sun-Woo to mobilize to the cathedral affiliated with the Central Priesthood over the phone. Oh Hee-Jin had come to attend the promotion ceremony together with him, and he hastily dashed out of the cathedral upon receiving Han Dae-Ho's instructions.

"Hur-ry...?"

At that moment, the mobile phone that Han Dae-Ho was holding fell to the ground. He was trembling and staring blankly at something. His gaze was fixated on the members of the Eastern Paladin Order who had been on the stage in preparation for their promotion.

They had smiled brightly while awaiting their promotion, but they had already fully embraced death. They died without even realizing that they had died.

Saliva dripped down Han Dae-Ho's open mouth. His gaze shifted from the lifeless members to a man walking up to the stage.

Clack, clack.

The man confidently walked up to the stage with loud footsteps. Then he shot a disgusted look at the face and body of the Northern Crusader Order director who had collapsed after losing consciousness.

After staring at the director of the Northern Crusader Order for a while, the man slowly nodded with a smile and said, "You have quite a superior body."

Whoosh!

Along with the man's words, a fire ignited on the body of the Northern Crusader Order director. It was not a fire that emitted light, but a dark and ominous flame that absorbed light from all directions. It clung to the director's body and flickered as if it was dancing.

The director’s body, which had fallen into a state of unconsciousness after stuffing the demon’s attacks, was being restored by the flames. No, restoration was not the right term. The Northern Crusader Order director’s body was being reborn in a new form.

When the flames subsided and eventually went out completely, the director's body had changed. They no longer had a human body, but the body of a demon.

No traces of human rationality could be found within his eyes which scanned the area. His eyes were filled with killing intent.

"It looks like an astonishingly superior being has been born."

Clap, clap, clap.

The man clapped his hands as he watched the scene. Then, he approached the clergymen who had died or had been injured on the stage.

He carefully examined their faces, and instead of showing a bright smile, his face hardened.

"The rest are all inferior beings. Pathetic."

Krrk, crack, squish...

The demon appeared on the stage and began to crush the bodies of the surviving clergymen and the deceased ones one by one.

The injured clergymen who were trembling and begging for their lives met a brutal death, and those who were already dead now no longer had a complete corpse.

The man who mercilessly killed the twelve clergymen in an instant looked down at the audience from the stage and smirked.

"Looks like there are many superior beings here. I did well in listening to that guy."

Han Dae-Ho stared blankly at the vile and dreadful smile. He hesitantly stepped forward and approached the man standing on the stage.

His lips were dry. Like a madman with a vacant expression, he muttered, "Because you all were promoted..."

At first glance, it seemed as if he was under the influence of black magic. However, the tears flowing from his eyes were not dark, but rather clear and pure. He was not under the influence of black magic.

"We were really, really proud. Both me and you guys...."

He approached the man alone without any equipment. The light of blessing was flowing from his body.

Han Dae-Ho himself was not casting the blessing. The director of the Southern priesthood had drawn a blessing array while she was vomiting out blood and had transmitted the light to Han Dae-Ho.

Like Han Dae-Ho, the director of the Southern priesthood had also lost members of her branch to the demon that had just appeared. She shed tears of blood as she drew several blessing arrays. All the light of blessing poured into Han Dae-Ho's body.

Finally, Han Dae-Ho's body was enveloped in a brilliant light that was brighter than the purest of lights.

"Director, your equipment...!"

At that moment, Oh Hee-Jin returned to the cathedral after following Han Dae-Ho's instructions and hastily gathering the equipment in the Central priesthood armory.

However, he soon lost grip of the equipment he was holding and spilled it all on the floor. It was due to the horrifying scene that unfolded before his eyes.

On the stage, he saw a bunch of squashed clergymen who had died in a gruesome manner. He saw priests drawing blessing arrays while shedding tears of blood, and he saw Han Dae-Ho approaching a man step by step while receiving the light of blessing.

He also saw clergymen wandering the cathedral like zombies while shedding black tears, and people fleeing in confusion and fear. Finally, he saw a mysterious man who, despite witnessing all the carnage, seemed to be leisurely smiling.

"It's a banquet."

Click.

All the lights in the cathedral went out. To be precise, everyone in the cathedral had been invited to a different place that was not the cathedral.

It was a 'Banquet,’ the name of the black magic spell that the Satanist named Lust used. The spell would turn the nearby area into a place for Satanists filled with madness and chaos.

Upon realizing this, Oh Hee-Jin slumped down. There was a clear sense of despair on his face.

There were only two ways to escape from the Banquet. One would either have to die or become a demon that submitted to Lust’s black magic spell. Whichever method they chose, there was no way to survive. He trembled and cowered in fear. He closed his eyes.

A woman's voice echoed in the darkness.

—How long will you just be the director’s lackey?

Tap tap.

At that moment, someone tapped on the shoulder of Oh Hee-Jin, who was crouching down.

Startled, Oh Hee-Jin let out a crude scream. "Aaahhh...!"

The Banquet was literally a place for Satanists, demonic beasts, and all other creatures created by Satanists. It was a space where death could suddenly come at any time from anywhere without notice. Therefore, when someone tapped on Oh Hee-Jin's shoulder, he thought that his life was already over.

However, strangely enough, Oh Hee-Jin was still alive. He raised his head. Beyond the darkness, a familiar face appeared.

"I always seem to receive help from you. Thank you," Joseph said as he picked up a mace and a sword from the weapons Oh Hee-Jin had brought.

Oh Hee-Jin blinked and looked at Joseph who turned around and surveyed the scenery of the Banquet. The glowing eyes of the demons floated around like stars in the darkness.

Clench.

Suddenly, Joseph clenched his teeth. The sight of Joseph walking alone into the darkness with only a mace and a sword in hand was truly an exemplar for Oh Hee-Jin as a paladin.

Although he felt respect for Joseph, he also felt deep despair and disgust toward himself for trembling in fear and his inability to do anything.

At that moment, he heard a woman's voice again, urging Oh Hee-Jin to make a choice.

—You can also do it.

***

“Kyaaaah—!”

“Help, please save me! Please, save me—!”

Along with a man's voice, the cathedral was suddenly engulfed in darkness. A desperate voice begging for life and screams of people could be heard within the darkness.

Ha-Yeon stood still in the darkness and felt an instinctual urge not to move hastily.

Thump, thump, thump.

As Ha-Yeon stood still, she heard something approaching her.

It was definitely not the sound of human footsteps—the sound was too heavy and menacing.

Two red lights appeared in the darkness. Those were the eyes of a demon. The demon that appeared in front of Ha-Yeon scanned her body with its red eyes in a way that felt uncomfortable to her.

The demon muttered incomprehensible words to Ha-Yeon. "It’s not you. It’s... not you."

Ha-Yeon was overwhelmed by fear and tried to step back, but her feet wouldn't move. For some reason, she felt like she might stumble and fall if she moved her legs. She was scared of the dark and was terrified of demons, but she was even more terrified by demons in the darkness.

Swish!

The demon swung its sharp nails toward Ha-Yeon. She tightly shut her eyes.

Ha-Yeon felt her body float in that moment of impending death. Someone was embracing her and shielding her from the demon's attack.

“...”

Ha-Yeon looked to see who had saved her. It was Jin-Seo. She gently placed Ha-Yeon back on the ground. Then, she looked at the demon.

The demon spotted Jin-Seo and glared at her with red eyes.

"I found you. Jin-Seo, Kim Jin-Seo...!"

"Ha."

Despite facing a life or death situation, Jin-Seo let out a bitter laugh. This was the demon she had encountered at the practical examination site.

Back then, the demon had repeatedly called out Jin-Seo's name, and they were continuing to do so even now. She was completely flabbergasted. Jin-Seo saw the demon approaching her. The demon caught her eye as it was now larger and more sinister than what she had seen at the practical examination site.

She clenched and unclenched her hands. If only she had a sword, she would have been able to fight back. But let alone a sword, she didn’t even have a crude weapon like a wooden stick.

There was no chance of winning against the demon with just her bare fists. No, this was not a matter of possibility. Without a weapon, she would face a brutal death without even putting up a fight. Nevertheless, Jin-Seo clenched her fists and kept her gaze fixed on the demon.

"Ha-Yeon, you can use blessings, right?"

"...Yes."

Ha-Yeon nodded and immediately unleashed divine power. A blessing array was drawn, and the light of blessing enveloped Jin-Seo's body.

Divine power slowly flowed out from Jin-Seo's body. It was a precursor to miracle replication.

The divine power flowing from Jin-Seo's body soared into the sky and turned into a massive flame.

"If I lose, it’s your fault."

"Huh?"

Whoosh!

The flame created by Jin-Seo's miracle replication quickly turned into a towering pillar of fire and poured down onto the demon.

With Ha-Yeon's blessing still on her body, Jin-Seo leaped into the flame.