WeTried Translations

Translator/Editor: ZERO_SUGAR

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Chapter 106: Conversion (2)

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After the subjugation of the Mountain Lord, we stayed on Taebaeksan for a while.

All we should've needed to do was clean up the shrine where the Mountain Lord had been sealed and tie up loose ends, but something unexpected happened.

"Where the hell did all those bastards go?"

"Where did those North Korean bastards disappear to?!"

The North Korean sorcerers, including Ri Gicheol and Cha Hyeran, had suddenly vanished.

"No, did you seriously not see them? You said they were staying at the same hotel until yesterday!"

"I told you, I didn't see them!"

"How is that even possible?!"

"Why are you interrogating me?! Wasn't it your job to keep an eye on those commies? People living off government money, how can you dump your work on civilians?!"

Team Leader Kang Gihan, who had been pressing them in frustration, fell silent.

Watching the North Korean sorcerers had been their responsibility, after all.

"Where do you think they ran off to? It doesn't look like they quietly went back north."

"Haa... That's the problem."

Apparently, they had planned to return in the submarine they arrived in.

But they disappeared without a word and never showed up where the submarine was waiting, so of course there was an uproar.

"Did you have any conflict with the North Korean sorcerers?"

"I can't say we didn't."

We explained everything that had happened with the North Korean sorcerers to Gihan.

How I took their familiar, the fire snake, during our spar.

How the North Korean sorcerers had actually intended to subdue the Mountain Lord and take the Mountain Lord to North Korea.

Even how that scheme had fallen apart because of me.

"So they offered to help with the subjugation while hiding an ulterior motive."

"Will this be okay?"

"Well... it's North Korea."

That explained a lot.

Since it was North Korea, nothing they did would be surprising.

"The question is what kind of trick they're trying to pull..."

"I just hope those North Korean bastards don't cause some huge disaster."

This wasn't our problem anymore.

The Mystic Association was a government agency. They could handle it themselves.

"Still, be careful. They're people with spiritual abilities. That means most things they do won't leave evidence behind."

South Korea itself had benefited greatly from using people with spiritual abilities.

When ghosts and supernatural creatures were involved, it was hard to officially demand answers from anyone.

Whatever the case, I could only hope the North Korean sorcerers wouldn't make a foolish choice.

* * *

On weekends, Gangnam Holy Temple Church was packed with worshippers coming for Sunday service.

Even before Holy Temple Church was built, there had been so many congregants that the old church could no longer accommodate them.

Even after constructing a new building, they were still running out of space.

The main sanctuary's ceiling was nearly as high as a seven-story building, with upper seating arranged in balcony tiers.

A weekend service at a church this large.

Leading the main eleven o'clock service meant being one of the church's most essential figures.

Whenever Pastor Go was assigned the main service, Pastor Go put in more effort and felt more nervous than usual.

"Hoo... This isn't easy."

Even so, the sight of a church filled to the brim with worshippers could be overwhelming.

One word would command the attention of thousands.

More than ten thousand people had reportedly gathered here in its heyday. How had Senior Pastor Park and Pastor Kim managed their ministries?

Just as the hymns before the main service ended and Pastor Go was about to step onto the pulpit...

"Hm?"

Pastor Go rubbed his eyes after spotting them in a corner of the second-floor balcony.

Hm, the Eight-Foot Sister. Yohan's here.

Baek Yohan bringing his familiars to church was nothing unusual anymore.

There were birds too.

Pigeons, sparrows, crows, magpies, and kestrels.

Thank goodness they were spirit bodies. If they were real, the church would've been covered in bird droppings.

Angel Gari...

That appearance was still terrifying.

Those demons trapped in the brass rings were there too. Did that mean demons were coming to church to worship?

There was something ironic about demons being forced to attend worship.

Pastor Go had even grown used to the sight of the fox spirit and the other Eight-Foot Sisters sitting demurely in their seats.

Today, though, there was one addition that was hard to ignore.

"A tiger?"

And it was a tiger as big as a house.

Pastor Go had lived long enough to see a tiger come to church.

* * *

"So... you converted?"

"Yes, well... the Mountain Lord says that's what it wants."

"I sent you to subjugate the Mountain Lord, and you brought the Mountain Lord back after converting it."

"It just kind of happened."

Pastor Go rested a hand against his forehead.

"I thought you'd make use of the dead Mountain Lord with Marchosias's magic, but a living Mountain Lord..."

【Isn't the living one better than the dead one?】

"...If it's a great spirit that killed a lot of people, I'm not so sure."

Pastor Go didn't seem pleased that the Mountain Lord had come to church.

I couldn't blame Pastor Go.

"What do you think, Pastor? The Mountain Lord says it wants conversion."

"The Mountain Lord's intentions are impure and obvious. It's an excuse hastily brought up to escape the immediate situation."

【...Ahem.】

Pastor Go looked back at the Mountain Lord, which cleared its throat as if that hit a nerve.

"But we're Christians. Even if sinners only pay lip service to repentance, if we can save even one soul, we should do so."

Just as I expected.

The pastor's conclusion wasn't much different from mine.

"Then it's okay if I keep bringing the Mountain Lord to church?"

"...Yes, but are you really going to keep bringing the Mountain Lord like that?"

"What do you mean?"

"Try to consider that I have to face a tiger as big as a house from the pulpit. It gives me a fright every time."

"You see Gari all the time. Why act surprised now?"

Clack, clack?

"Angel Gari is different. Gari is an angel, so faith helps me overcome that. More importantly, even if the Mountain Lord is a familiar, it's a living creature. It can't turn into a spirit body, so how did it get in?"

【Sorcery.】

"Ah, sorcery..."

Anyway, Pastor Go's point was that the tiger stood out too much.

【Then I'll take human form when I come here.】

A cloud of threadlike smoke poured out around the Mountain Lord.

It was similar to when Kohaku transformed. The difference was that Kohaku's transformation felt like billowing clouds rising around her, while the Mountain Lord's looked like mysterious smoke flowing downward.

When the smoke cleared, the figure revealed beneath it was shocking.

"Oh..."

Long black hair cascaded to her waist. Her pale, smooth face possessed a refined beauty that seemed untouched by time.

Her calm eyes and relaxed expression carried the grace of a mature woman.

Only her golden irises and narrow vertical pupils made her seem inhuman.

"Wait, you were female?!"

"Have I ever said I was male?"

"I just assumed you were a man because you're the Mountain Lord."

"My lord, you're quite prejudiced for someone living in an age of gender equality."

What was this?

I never expected a tiger spirit over five hundred years old to tell me I lacked gender sensitivity.

"Roar. Back in my day, I had every male tiger in Joseon pining for me."

"That means you're an old granny, my lord~"

"You...!"

The Mountain Lord's face twisted at Kohaku's interruption.

Kohaku jumped and hid behind me.

"Look at those tiger eyes! That conversion stuff is a complete lie!"

"O-oh hoho... Of course not. My lord, please don't misunderstand."

This wasn't a fox borrowing a tiger's authority.

Was it a person borrowing another person's authority?

"Don't forget, tiger woman! In this sanctuary, first comes my lord, the Kirishitan Daimyo, second comes Angel Gari, and third comes me! You're at the bottom! The bottom!!"

【Po?】

The Eight-Foot Sister pointed at herself with an unhappy look and held up three fingers.

"You're ranked third, Sister?"

【Po!】

Why was everyone making such a fuss over something so unimportant?

Through it all, Gari simply watched with a relaxed yawn.

Gari was the unshakable number two, apparently.

"Enough, enough! Don't fight in church! Anyway, Sister Mountain Lord, I look forward to working with you."

"Fine, I'll look forward to working with you."

Everyone turned to stare at the Mountain Lord.

"???"

"???"

【Po?】

Clack?

"W-what?"

"You're speaking casually to the pastor?"

"That tiger still hasn't come to her senses. Even if a pastor were your own child, a Kirishitan should still use honorifics."

"I-I see. Please guide me well, Pastor."

"Is that how you speak to a pastor?"

"Please guide me well, Pastor..."

Much better.

Mountain Lord, let's get along from here on out.

"By the way, what do you think Pastor Park would've said?"

"Well, he probably wouldn't have complained about something that's already happened. He would've respected your choice."

That was probably right.

Then I suddenly wondered.

What would Pastor Kim have done?

.........

.........

.........

"The Enemy Solterans who defile this land are trying to test our faith! Do not waver before these filthy monstrosities, like phlegm spat from a demon's mouth! Let us burn every worm and piece of trash that betrayed Lord Soltera!"

"Waaaaaah!!"

"Death to evil! Long live Soltera!!"

Heretics! Heretics!!

You're the heretic!!

The former pastor from another world was declaring a war against heretics.

* * *

The reward for subjugating the Mountain Lord came to around 1.2 billion won.

It felt a little low for taking down someone as formidable as the Mountain Lord, but there had been so many exorcists involved.

At least two hundred exorcists had been mobilized, so after the money was divided, I still received the largest share proportionally.

Besides, the biggest gain from this subjugation was obtaining the Mountain Lord outright, so I didn't have much to complain about.

Once the settlement was complete, Bang Seoryeong and I headed straight for Jinju.

Jinju Museum.

It was normally a dinosaur museum open to the public, earning money through ticket sales, but a sign announcing its closure hung outside today.

"This is the place, Brother."

"Wow, this dinosaur museum belongs to the Black Lotus Society?"

"Yes. There are quite a few bones imported from the United States as well."

The Black Lotus Society's main force was dinosaur ghosts invoked through the Dragon God Festival.

That was why acquiring new dinosaur bones was considered a necessary expense for strengthening the entire society.

"You don't display them at the Black Lotus Society headquarters?"

"Importing properly assembled skeletons costs anywhere from several million to tens of millions of dollars. We've also taken out a lot of loans. We have to earn money for maintenance, don't we?"

That was an incredibly realistic reason.

Come to think of it, tax-related work was the Mystic Association's biggest responsibility, so it made sense.

"Did you finish excavating it this time?"

"The excavation itself started long ago, but it took some time to uncover all of it."

The fully excavated pterosaur fossil this time was worth nearly thirty million dollars.

A complete Tyrannosaurus had once sold for over forty million dollars at auction, so its estimated value was close to that.

Before long, we saw the enormous pterosaur fossil displayed in the Jinju Museum storage room.

"This is... my pterosaur."

"The altar is ready. Brother, please take this first."

Bang Seoryeong handed me a seal and a bridle.

The spiritual energy contained within them was extraordinary. They weren't ordinary objects, but enchanted artifacts.

"Even if you succeed in making it your familiar, you'll need these to control it. It took quite a bit of effort to make them."

"Oh, thanks."

"And... Mountain Lord, could you come out as well?"

Bang Seoryeong looked toward our companion.

"Me?"

"We need an offering to suppress the Dragon God's energy. Something from a being as powerful as the Mountain Lord would be perfect. Usually, we use hide, but..."

"Y-you wretch! I belong to my lord! I have no intention whatsoever of dying and leaving behind my hide!"

They said tigers left their hide behind after death.

Since she wasn't dead, we couldn't take her hide.

"Please pull out one of your molars. You're a spiritual creature, so it should grow back, shouldn't it?"

"I-if that's all..."

The Mountain Lord pulled out one of her molars and handed it to Bang Seoryeong.

Soon, the Mountain Lord's molar was placed on the altar. Bang Seoryeong lit incense and scattered salt.

We used holy water as purifying water, and the clear ringing of silver bells echoed through the exhibition hall.

Jingle! Jingle!

"Brother. Please pray."

"At a shamanic rite? I'm the one praying?"

"That's because you're the one carrying out the spirit possession, not me. You need to be the one who completes this spirit possession."

Though I was receiving support from the spirit possession rite, it was Decarabia's magic that would summon the soul of a dinosaur dead for ages.

I scattered holy water in a circle over the altar and began reciting a prayer.

"Lord God, who governs the breath of life. Lord, who breathed life into dry bones."

I'd been praying so often lately that putting together a prayer wasn't difficult anymore.

At this rate, I might end up attending seminary and getting ordained as a pastor.

"If You permit it, raise these sleeping wings, awaken these silent footsteps, and return the glory of living souls to this age."

The more I recited the prayer, the more I felt a massive amount of spiritual power being drawn into the pterosaur fossil.

It was an enormous amount of spiritual power.

Enough that it would take around fifteen ordinary exorcists working together to handle it.

They said the Dragon God Festival for a Greater Dragon distributed the burden through all sorts of enchanted artifacts, but I had no need for that.

"All authority belongs to You, all life came from You and returns to You. For the glory of God the Father, call this ancient spirit into this land."

Ah...

I couldn't get the words out.

Prayer... prayer was a conversation with God.

Had I truly been sincere in this conversation?

Was this really enough?

There was something I wanted to say.

"Knock, and it shall be opened unto you! Seek, and you shall find! Ask, and you shall receive, You said! Lord! Father!"

I shouted with all my heart.

"King Dino! Give me a King Dino!!"

That was my true feeling.

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