The Cult Leader in the Clergy Academy

Chapter 341

Yuk Eun-Hyung had overlooked one fact.

He hated crusaders. Hate was not enough to describe his feelings toward them. They disgusted him. The Central Crusader Order had attacked the headquarters of Yuk Eun-Hyung's mercenary corps, and he had seen his members die in their hands.

He considered all crusaders as enemies and felt animosity toward all of them. Therefore, he believed that all crusaders viewed him in the same light. He thought that all crusaders would feel animosity toward him, a member of the Voodoo Cult.

However, the special forces had only one purpose: to rescue the hostages. They had no reason to engage in unnecessary battles. There was even less reason to battle with Yuk Eun-Hyung when their victory was unlikely.

"Heo Woo-Hee, throw it!" Simon shouted.

Heo Woo-Hee quickly reached into her pocket. But Yuk Eun-Hyung was not just going to stand there. However, Yuk Eun-Hyung's reaction was slower than usual because Simon’s hand was on his blade handle.

Simon was the strongest clergyman in the special forces. The other clergymen, including Heo Woo-Hee, were different from Yuk Eun-Hyung. Yuk Eun-Hyung knew that Simon was the only one he needed to be wary of. Naturally, Yuk Eun-Hyung's gaze was fixed on Simon's movements, thinking that Simon would attack him. That very thought slowed him down.

Bang!

Heo Woo-Hee pulled something out of her pocket and threw it. The object was a grenade containing divine power. Upon exploding, it emitted a flash of light to blind the enemy.

Yuk Eun-Hyung was startled by the sudden flash and took a step back. Simon didn't miss the opportunity.

"Bless me!" Simon said.

Heo Woo-Hee quickly drew a blessing array. The other priests in the squad also drew blessing arrays. All the light of blessing they invoked focused on Simon, and he raised his sword. Then, he ran toward the guards in front of the building where the hostages were kept.

Swish!

Simon swung his sword. He didn't swing it to kill the enemy but to buy time to enter the building. Although the guards did not suffer fatal blows, they sustained injuries to their sides and legs.

Simon swiftly entered the building.

Swish!

As he entered the building, he unleashed divine power and infused it into Baal’s Maw. Baal’s Maw opened its mouth with its characteristic grotesque movement. Now, all Simon had to do was find the hostages inside the building and put them into the holy artifact.

Bang!

Driving his legs into the ground, Simon sprinted forward. He had to move quickly. Time was of the essence. He didn’t, no, he couldn’t subdue Yuk Eun-Hyung. When the effect of the flash wore off and Yuk Eun-Hyung's vision returned, there was no guarantee for the squad members or Simon's life. He had to rescue the hostages as quickly as possible.

"Priest Ha-Yeon!" Simon exclaimed.

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The first person Simon discovered was Ha-Yeon.

"Ah, you―!"

Simon roughly shoved her into Baal’s Maw before Ha-Yeon could respond.

"I'm sorry!" he apologized.

Ha-Yeon's short scream echoed through Baal’s Maw, but there was no time to think about that. There wasn’t any time for courtesy or leisurely conversation. He then rescued the priests of the Central Priesthood. The priests were initially startled by Simon's sudden appearance but later cheered.

One by one, Simon put everyone dressed as Romanican Church clergymen into Baal’s Maw. He was quick. He had almost rescued all the hostages except for two: Jin-Seo and the Pope’s Proxy. No matter how much he searched the building, those two were nowhere to be seen.

Could they be in another building? It was possible but unlikely. There were no guards in the other buildings except those with the hostages. They had to be there. They had to. Simon repeated that to himself over and over. His feet never stopped moving.

"Deputy Director Jin-Seo."

He only stopped when he finally stood in front of Jin-Seo. She was tied up in a cruel manner by plant stems.

Simon's expression hardened, but there was no time for anger or to mourn.

Simon gripped his sword. "I’m going to cut through it.”

Swish!

Simon precisely cut the plant stems around Jin-Seo's limbs. It took him many strikes to cut through, as the plant stems were very tough. Simon barely managed to pull Jin-Seo out of the vegetation and shoved her into Baal’s Maw. All that was left was the Pope’s Proxy, the priest in charge of the inquisitor appointment ceremony.

“Arggghh!”

The problem was the roar coming from outside the building.

Simon froze. The roar was hardly human and sounded more like that of a wild beast such as a lion or a tiger. The roar clearly belonged to Yuk Eun-Hyung.

He could also easily guess that Yuk Eun-Hyung's vision was returning. Simon hesitated for a moment, lost in his thoughts.

The Pope’s Proxy had to be rescued at all costs. If he failed to rescue him, the special forces' mission would essentially be a failure. However, if he spent time trying to retrieve the Pope’s Proxy, Yuk Eun-Hyung could kill other clergymen of the special forces outside.

Simon knew that Yuk Eun-Hyung was strong. He was probably a formidable figure even within the Voodoo Cult. Simon was not confident that he would emerge victorious from their fight. Other clergymen wouldn’t even stand a chance. If they were lucky, they might be able to buy some time through their resistance.

Would he abandon his comrades and retrieve the Pope’s Proxy, or would he abandon the Pope’s Proxy and save his comrades?

Shiing!

There was no need to hesitate. Simon drew his sword and headed in the direction of Yuk Eun-Hyung's roar. Even if he managed to find the Pope’s Proxy and somehow put him into Baal’s Maw, it would be impossible to return safely without his comrades. The right choice to safely return with the hostages he had rescued so far was to choose his comrades.

Yuk Eun-Hyung slowly regained his sight, and Simon’s men scattered to avoid the attacks from Yuk Eun-Hyung and the other Voodoo Cult members.

Simon charged at Yuk Eun-Hyung, his sword drawn. He swung the sword down toward Yuk Eun-Hyung's neck, intending to slice it right then and there. However, his sword did not even touch Yuk Eun-Hyung's neck.

Tak!

Yuk Eun-Hyung grabbed Simon’s sword.

"Got you now, bastard!" he exclaimed.

Yuk Eun-Hyung was unarmed. Blood was flowing profusely from his hand, but he showed no signs of pain. Did his anger paralyze his sense of touch?

In that fleeting moment, Simon felt fear. Was this man a monster?

Clang!

Yuk Eun-Hyung exerted force with his hand, breaking Simon's sword. Simon could not block the blow, as his sword was stuck in Yuk Eun-Hyung’s grasp.

Thud!

Simon managed to twist his body, and Yuk Eun-Hyung's fist struck Simon's side. If Simon hadn't dodged, the blow to his jaw would have knocked him unconscious. Despite feeling pain so strong that he could barely breathe properly, Simon quickly regained his composure. Now was not the time to wallow in pain. To survive, he would have to endure the suffering somehow.

"Run–!!" Simon shouted toward the clergymen of the special forces.

His squad had been watching the battle between Simon and Yuk Eun-Hyung with shocked expressions. They all snapped out of their trance and put on their Gown of the Shem Brothers. Simon quickly put on his own gown and unleashed his divine power. With that, they erased their presence.

As long as they entered the forest and scattered, the enemies would not be able to locate them. After that, they just needed to cautiously return to their base camp using the Gown of the Shem Brothers. This way, they could complete half of their mission even though they hadn’t been able to rescue the Pope's Proxy.

Simon and the others quickly entered the forest equipped with their gowns and dispersed. It didn’t matter that the Voodoo Cultists were on their tails. With the Gown of the Shem Brothers, the squad could easily escape by shaking off the enemies.

"Huff, huff, gasp!"

Simon unexpectedly faced a problem.

"Huff, huff. Huff, huff. Huff!”

He couldn't shake off Yuk Eun-Hyung. While Simon struggled heavily due to tension and fear, Yuk Eun-Hyung calmly pursued him, breathing in and out regularly as if he were out for a run.

***

Sun-Woo and Dae-Man were at a standoff. Neither approached the other first.

Dae-Man did not approach Sun-Woo because there were no openings in his defense. Sun-Woo could use spells. It didn’t matter if Dae-Man wore his anti-Voodoo mask—Sun Woo’s spells were dangerous.

Moreover, Sun-Woo’s staff was a nuisance. Dae-Man didn't know what power Sun-Woo would use with his staff. Lightning? Wind? Fire? What kind of attack would come? He had practiced dealing with the Loa's power through training sessions. However, since he couldn't predict which attack would strike, Dae-Man couldn't rush forward.

If so, then why didn't Sun-Woo approach Dae-Man? What was he thinking? Perhaps he hesitated to move forward because he couldn't find any weaknesses in Dae-Man’s defense too.

Dae-Man thought it would be nice if Sun-Woo weren’t pretending to be relaxed because he had underestimated Dae-Man’s abilities.

"Should we engage in another fistfight? It’s your favorite, after all."

Was he provoking Dae-Man, or was he genuinely underestimating him? Either way, Dae-Man had no intention of being swayed by Sun-Woo's facade.

"This time, come at me with everything you got," Dae-Man said, staring at Sun-Woo. "And I will do the same."

Sun-Woo nodded as if he had expected such a response. He gripped his staff and lightly tapped the ground with it. The staff stood upright, firmly planted in the ground. Sun-Woo clenched his fist and approached Dae-Man.

"Bossou," Sun-Woo said under his breath.

As soon as Sun-Woo muttered ‘Bossou,’ Dae-Man broke into a cold sweat. Sun-Woo's aura shifted completely, and the magnitude of power radiating from his body had become overwhelmingly immense.

However, Dae-Man did not falter. Instead, he smiled. Sun-Woo was prepared to kill Dae-Man and had no intention of showing mercy.

Dae-Man clenched his fist and reached out toward Sun-Woo, who also extended his fist. Their fists crossed.

Bang!

But Sun-Woo's blow had been faster. His fist struck Dae-Man squarely in the jaw. Dae-Man's eyes lost focus. His body stiffened as he flew through the air and rolled on the wet, muddy ground. It seemed as if the fight was over.

Thud, thud.

That was when the fallen Dae-Man started to warm up as he got up from his spot.

"Alright, that was worth a hit!" he said as he approached Sun-Woo again.

He threw a punch. Sun-Woo also threw a punch back, and once again, Sun-Woo's punch was faster. With a bone-chilling crack, Dae-Man staggered and fell back.

However, Dae-Man got up again. Somehow, he managed to stand up, and with a confident smile as always, he clenched his fist and approached Sun-Woo once more.

"..."

His actions brought about a change in the Holy War Knight Order.

His men, running away in fear of the enemy's overwhelming presence, stopped in their tracks. Priests unable to unleash their divine power due to anxiety and fear began drawing blessing arrays again. Clergymen who had lost their morale and put down their guns picked up their guns once more. Dae-Man's strong mental fortitude made them consider the possibility of what if.

Shaaa!

The priests used their blessings. The light of blessing they conjured shone only for one person: Dae-Man.

"This time, I'll be faster."

Dae-Man clenched his fist with their blessings surrounding his body. His fist blazed brightly—its overwhelmingly bright light easily surpassed all the blessings the priests had bestowed.

There was the Berakah bestowed upon the Guard Captain of Diligence, 'Well.'

Dae-Man planned to use it in his next strike.