The Heretic of Cleric Academy-Chapter 82

[Baron Samedi is grinning widely thinking about taking your soul. Still, will you really go?]

"I won’t die anyway."

[Those who showed such complacent attitudes saying ’anyway’ all died without exception. Your father was like that. You too will soon die the same way.]

I ignored him and moved forward. I naturally mixed in among the Holy Knights and picked up one of the firefighting suits spread on the ground. 𝕗𝐫𝐞𝕖𝕨𝐞𝗯𝚗𝕠𝘃𝐞𝚕.𝐜𝗼𝚖

I watched the other Holy Knights putting on their firefighting suits over their shoulders and followed suit, barely managing to get dressed. Just as I was about to move after putting on the smoke mask last.

Grab.

Someone grabbed my wrist.

Tremendous grip strength that could be felt clearly even through the clothing. It wasn’t easy to shake off even with Bosu’s power.

"Why is some non-Holy Knight wearing that? What are you doing?"

The one asking in a low, threatening voice was Han Dae-ho, the commander of the Eastern Holy Knight Order. Wearing a firefighting suit, he was carrying someone draped over his massive shoulders. It seemed like he had gone into the building to rescue people and had just come out.

"Hey, when someone asks you something, you should answer... Huh? ...You, you bastard."

Han Dae-ho’s face turned coldly stiff as he looked me up and down while gripping my wrist.

"...Hey! Rescue team! Bring a stretcher! This bastard’s condition is abnormal!"

"Ah, yes sir!"

Han Dae-ho gave orders to the rescue team standing by at a distance. The rescue worker hurriedly replied and tried to take out a stretcher from the vehicle.

But that wouldn’t do. I shook off Han Dae-ho’s arm that was gripping my wrist. Han Dae-ho looked at me with a bewildered expression.

"You, what..."

"I’m a 2nd year from Florence Holy Knight Department. I came on dispatch as a trainee Holy Knight. Please let me enter."

The dizzying pleasure of intoxication sorcery was flowing through my heart to my fingertips. My mind was hazy and my tongue was heavy.

Nevertheless, the lie came out smoothly. It was such a plausible lie that even I was surprised.

Han Dae-ho stared at me blankly, then looked toward the rescue team members and gestured. The rescue workers who had been trying to bring out a stretcher stopped.

"Right. Florence Holy Knight Department 2nd year, trainee Holy Knight... So what? Are you a trainee or official then?"

"..."

"I’ve seen dozens of times where trainee bastards try to show off and just become burdens. Do you think you’ll be any different? Take off the equipment and just stand there watching what I do. Don’t do something you’ll regret."

While adjusting the smoke mask he had lifted to his forehead back to his mouth, Han Dae-ho drew a blessing circle. A custom blessing perfectly fitted to his body, created through millions of repetitions, wrapped around Han Dae-ho’s body.

Just before entering the building, he glanced at me.

"If they’re sending someone on dispatch, they should send someone smart. What’s the point of sending some bastard who doesn’t know shit..."

Whoosh!

Han Dae-ho clicked his tongue and entered the building. Movement as threatening and fast as a bull’s charge.

Unlike Han Dae-ho who entered the building without a moment’s hesitation to save people, the other Holy Knights were hesitating to enter before the massive flames.

"Make choices you won’t regret."

"Don’t do something you’ll regret."

[Today, you will stand at a crossroads of choice.]

The words of Father, Han Dae-ho, and Baron Samedi flashed through my mind.

Choices without regret.

I finished putting on the half-worn firefighting suit. I picked up equipment and strode into the building.

The flames had grown stronger and the smoke had become thicker and denser. A despairing scene that made me wonder if this was what hell or the abyss would feel like.

But I couldn’t stop walking. The moment I stopped walking, I had the conviction that I would regret today for the rest of my life.

Enter the building and save people.

Even if I died doing so, I would not regret this choice.

* * *

Crash!

"Ah! Ugh..."

Kim Jin-seo bolted upright and rolled on the bed while holding her head. She had hit her forehead on the phone stand while getting up.

When the pain subsided a little, she rubbed her forehead and got up from the bed. Then she threw herself onto the chair right next to the bed. The backrest tilted back with a thud. In that position, Kim Jin-seo stared at the ceiling for quite a while. She was dazed. It was because of a dream.

"Am I crazy."

The dream she had today was, strictly speaking, a nightmare. A dream where Do Seon-woo was flirting with some female student.

Then when he encountered her, he scratched his head as if embarrassed, then ignored her and passed by. It was a dream that seemed entirely plausible, which made her feel even worse.

The reason she, who usually didn’t dream, had a dream today was probably because today was the Charity Holy Name appointment ceremony, and Do Seon-woo was among the likely candidates for the Charity Holy Name.

"Crazy, I’m crazy..."

Kim Jin-seo shook her head back and forth, brushing away the lingering traces of the dream before her eyes.

The clock was pointing to 10 o’clock. The appointment ceremony was at 1 o’clock, so there was still time to spare, but Kim Jin-seo immediately got up and prepared to go out.

She was thinking of going to the gym. There was nothing better than exercise to soothe a complicated mind.

"...Am I not crazy?"

She muttered to herself while washing up and changing into workout clothes. It was unclear whether she was talking to herself or to Do Seon-woo who had been playing with another woman in her dream.

Arriving at the gym with a sullen face, she immediately wrapped her hands and started exercising. Since it was morning, there weren’t many people. Most were aspiring professionals.

"Oh! Jin-seo came early today... Wow, your face looks fierce today. Someone’s going to die, huh?"

The gym owner approached Kim Jin-seo, who was stretching, and joked around. She looked at the mirror with a puzzled expression. As the owner said, her face was full of spite. It was because of the dream.

"Did something happen? Come to think of it, you’re exercising early, what, did your boyfriend dump you?"

The gym owner asked cheekily. The gazes of the men in the gym turned toward Kim Jin-seo at once. She looked at the owner with disgust.

"It’s not like that."

"If it’s not, then it’s not. Why are you making such a serious face? Oh, but aren’t you going to school?"

"...Just, I said I was sick."

"Huh, you skip school saying you’re sick but come to the gym?"

Kim Jin-seo turned her gaze away and hung her head as if she had nothing to say. She had been frequently skipping school using the hospital as an excuse and coming to the gym recently. There were various reasons.

"This is totally delinquent behavior. Come to think of it, you smoke too, you’re completely..."

"Ah, gym owner. Really."

"What? Look me in the eye. Are you trying to hit the owner now because you have no one else to hit?"

When Kim Jin-seo showed a troubled reaction, the owner seemed to enjoy teasing her even more.

Kim Jin-seo finished stretching without answering, jumped rope, then began her full-scale workout. The sounds of hitting sandbags and mitts rang out loudly.

Crack!

When the mitt broke, Kim Jin-seo took a break. Her strikes were sharper and heavier than usual today. It seemed like her punches were filled with emotion.

The owner wrapped blue tape around the broken part of the mitt and approached Kim Jin-seo.

"Jin-seo. No matter how I think about it, you need to pay more membership fees. How many mitts have been broken because of you? The losses are severe, really."

"Ah... How much more should I pay?"

"Oh my? Never mind, never mind. It’s a joke, man."

The owner let out a helpless laugh. Seeing Kim Jin-seo’s innocent reaction to his joke made him feel deflated.

The owner was newly amazed by the fact that a girl with such a personality had broken dozens of mitts and burst several sandbags.

"By the way, how’s the tournament? Are you preparing well for the weigh-in?"

The owner asked. Kim Jin-seo drank water without answering, then suddenly got up from her seat.

"I’m going to get some air."

"Huh? Not answering? This tournament is important. You need to make weight strictly. You know that, right?"

"..."

Kim Jin-seo quickly ignored the owner’s words and left the gym. Her steps headed to the rooftop. Kim Jin-seo stood on the open rooftop, enjoyed the breeze for a moment, then looked around and took out a cigarette from her pocket. The series of actions of putting it in her mouth and lighting it was all too natural.

Puff.

The exhaled smoke rose to the sky, hit the wind, and disappeared. It seemed like she had barely put it to her mouth, but the cigarette had already shortened to about one finger joint. It burned quickly because of the strong wind.

"...Mm."

She let out a light sigh while looking at the cigarette butt whose ember had been blown away by the wind. She had been thinking of quitting for a long time, but it wasn’t easy. She should never have started in the first place, she thought with brief regret.

The beginning was curiosity, as it is for everyone. When she first smoked, her head spun so much she wondered why people smoked this, but now she had reached the point where her head would spin if she didn’t smoke.

This was why addiction was scary. While addiction seeps into life, you don’t realize it, and by the time you realize you’re addicted, it’s already too late.

Brushing away the sudden distracting thoughts, Kim Jin-seo headed back to the gym. Maybe it was her imagination, but the building seemed to be swaying. She wondered if there was an earthquake.

"Ah, Jin-seo! Pack up your stuff quickly and get out, hurry!"

What greeted her was the gym owner. The gym was strangely empty. The members who had been exercising hard just a while ago were nowhere to be seen. Mitts and jump ropes were scattered messily on the floor.

"What? Suddenly, what’s wrong."

"Don’t you feel the building shaking? Damn, I wondered why the rent was so cheap, was this a poorly constructed building? Anyway, quickly! Let’s get out quickly. This seems like it’s going to collapse soon..."

Crash!!!

An explosion shook the earth. At the sudden explosion, Kim Jin-seo and the owner lost their balance and tumbled to the spot. To be precise, they hadn’t lost their balance. The building had tilted.

"...!, ...!!"

Beeeep...

The owner shouted something but it couldn’t be heard. Only a sharp ringing filled her ears. Black smoke was rising gracefully to the sky through the broken window. Even the strong wind couldn’t break that smoke.

In her blurry vision, the owner was grabbing Kim Jin-seo and shouting something. Kim Jin-seo couldn’t feel reality in the sudden commotion. Her consciousness was floating like a dream. She might have preferred it to be a dream.

"...mental, mental management. Did I say that was important or not...!"

Thud!

The owner’s words, which had begun to take shape as the ringing ended, were cut off without finishing.

At the ominous sound that suddenly came, Kim Jin-seo opened her eyes.

The ceiling was collapsing. The owner was lying on the floor with his eyes open. A tile that had fallen from the ceiling had struck the owner’s head hard.

"Ah...?"

Kim Jin-seo let out a questioning sigh and approached the owner. Thick blood was flowing from his broken head. The blood was as thick and black as the smoke rising through the window. It was closer to purple than red.

Rumble rumble rumble...

An ominous sound like the building collapsing echoed from all directions.

Kim Jin-seo crawled toward the owner. She tried to stop the bleeding with her hands, but it was meaningless. No matter how much she tried to stop it, the blood kept gushing out.

"...Gym owner?"

Kim Jin-seo called the owner in a weak voice. There was no answer. The owner’s pupils were unfocused and blank.

"Gym owner, gym owner. Don’t, don’t joke around. Gym owner..."

She felt the owner’s pulse with her blood-soaked hand. The pulse was faint. Breathing was similarly barely perceptible. The owner’s body lay there limply without any sign of movement.

Kim Jin-seo drew healing circles. She drew blessing circles. The light of healing and blessing headed toward the owner’s head. But there was no sign of him getting up.

No, this can’t happen, this shouldn’t...

Crash!

"Kyah...!"

Tiles and materials poured down from the collapsed and pierced ceiling. Kim Jin-seo instinctively stepped back. The fallen materials covered the owner’s body. Only the owner’s limp arm stuck out through the piled materials.

"Ah, ah..."

She stared blankly at that sight and let out a sigh.

Heat was surging from her back. The fire caused by the explosion had already reached the 2nd floor where the gym was located. But she couldn’t bring herself to turn around.

Her consciousness was melting. Sounds that couldn’t become words kept flowing from her mouth. She tried to get up but her body wouldn’t listen. Her legs seemed to have given out.

It’s my fault.

If she had come to her senses earlier and left the gym, the owner wouldn’t have died either. No, if she hadn’t gone to the rooftop to smoke in the first place.

It was the same when Mother died. Mother’s death was my fault for going out that day. Before that, if I hadn’t shown off knowing how to use miracle reproduction, the demon species wouldn’t have come to the house.

Mother, and the gym owner. All the people I relied on ended up dying.

Maybe causality had been reversed. It wasn’t that those she relied on died, but because she relied on them, they had to die.

Kim Jin-seo squeezed her eyes shut. She gave herself over to the approaching heat and rising smoke. It had been a life where she worried more about how to die than how to live. Feeling fear now was something new.

"Cough, ugh..."

The smoke approached. The rough sensation entered through her throat into her lungs. She coughed and got a headache.

Her vision darkened with smoke and her head began to sink heavily. Her legs had long since lost strength, and now her arms were also drooping. It felt like someone had taken the batteries out of her body.

Rumble rumble rumble!

"Cough, cough. Hack, uwaaah...!"

Along with the collapsing sound, nausea suddenly surged. Kim Jin-seo dry-heaved with her head almost touching the ground. Only the feeling of nausea was severe, but nothing came out. Only tears dripped down, wetting the floor.

Death wasn’t as comfortable as she had expected. Kim Jin-seo pushed the floor with her thin arms and forced herself up.

"Ha, haa. Cough, ugh... Kyah!"

Thud!

She who had barely gotten up collapsed back down like she was crumbling. There was no strength in her legs.

The occasional dizziness was constantly kicking at her legs. It was because she had inhaled too much smoke and overused her divine power.

"Huk, huuu..."

Getting up and sitting down, then getting up again and sitting down again several times. Realizing she didn’t even have the strength to crawl anymore, Kim Jin-seo began crying endlessly in that spot.

She hadn’t wanted to die.

She just wanted to escape from her painful life. After running away and running away until there was nowhere left to run, death remained as the only refuge.

But it was too late now to wish for life. The gym was full of smoke and flames were flickering as if they would swallow her at any moment.

Her consciousness was cutting in and out, gradually fading away.

Splash!

It was then that a stream of water shot out from the air and extinguished the rising flames.

"It’s okay."

Someone walked through the thick smoke. He was wearing a smoke mask and firefighting suit. A rescue worker? Without time to wonder, he lifted Kim Jin-seo’s body and carried her on his back, then strode out of the gym.

"Huk, hu, uuu..."

Kim Jin-seo let her body go limp on the rescue worker’s back while crying and coughing harshly.

As the rescue worker approached the outside of the building, the air gradually became clearer. Her consciousness, which had become hazy and distant from the smoke, was slowly returning.

"It’s okay. You’re not dead yet, so it’s okay..."

The rescue worker muttered. Whether it was directed at Kim Jin-seo or at the rescue worker himself was unclear. That soliloquy contained an inexplicable obsession.

Wail!

"Put her on the stretcher, quickly!"

"This is the Seoul Eastern Holy Knight Order firefighting team, requesting support from the Central Holy Knight Order. As fast as possible, please!"

"Damn it, why is one firefighting suit missing! Which bastard managed equipment like this!"

Outside was chaotic. The Holy Knights’ irritated shouts were everywhere. The rescue worker moved without hesitation and laid Kim Jin-seo on a stretcher. Then he went into the building and rescued one more person. It was the gym owner.

Finally, the rescue worker took off his smoke mask, revealing his previously hidden face.

Kim Jin-seo barely opened her eyes in her fading consciousness. Her unfocused, blurry pupils were fixed on the revealed face of the rescue worker. The scene before her eyes felt unreal. It was just dreamlike and fantastic.

"2nd floor fire suppressed, and. All visible people... have been rescued."

He said. His voice was trembling.

When her finger was cut off by a demon beast bite, when a classmate became a demon species and attacked her, when she was surrounded by bird demon beasts and had no choice but to become bait, and now when she had resolved to die in the flames from the explosion.

In those harsh moments that she would rather have been nightmares, he was always by her side. And he slowly seeped into her life. By the time she realized it belatedly, her life had already been colored by him.

"Thank you for the equipment. I’ll be going now..."

"What? Where are you going when you came on dispatch... Hey, where are you going! Hey!"

Kim Jin-seo watched his retreating figure.

Sometimes, she thinks all these moments might be a dream.

Before facing the harsh and painful reality, might this be a happy dream that passes by fleetingly? When she opens her eyes, might she wake from the dream to find miserable reality greeting her?

In her consciousness that was becoming blurry and spreading, she briefly wished. If this moment was all a dream, she hoped she could never wake up. She hoped she could live her whole life in the dream without ever waking up.