I Got an Omnipotent Angel - Chapter 108

WeTried Translations

Translator/Editor: ZERO_SUGAR

Chapter 108: Newbie Believer

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A shabby restaurant in Seoul.

Late at night, after business had closed and closing was nearly finished, people with their hats pulled low entered one after another.

"Comrade Lieutenant Colonel."

"Shh! Didn't I tell you to watch that Republic way of speaking?"

"S-sorry, comra... I mean, sorry."

Cha Hyeran poured water for Ri Gicheol as he sat down.

All they had for side dishes were tofu and a few pieces of stir-fried kimchi.

"Th-this, this is all?"

"It seems the owner comrade here, I mean, the owner is having a hard time."

"Still, for warriors standing at the very front of the Fatherland's reunification front..."

Cha Hyeran didn't mention that, considering they had been eating and sleeping there for free for days, they should be grateful for even this much.

They were agents sent south by the same Republic, but the Party couldn't even properly fund their operations. Their presence only meant more mouths to feed.

"We changed the operation in a hurry, so we have no money. Shouldn't we do something and earn some first?"

"Hoo... Just wait. Park Cheol and Kim Miryeong are securing operating funds."

Cha Hyeran didn't bother mentioning that "securing operating funds" meant doing day labor at construction sites.

"So, what do you think? Did you find out much about Gari Bodhisattva?"

"Yes... I gathered information near South Korea... no, near the Association."

Cha Hyeran laid out everything she had learned about Gari Bodhisattva.

"Mid-twenties. He only revealed himself as an exorcist less than a year ago. But he received a Black Knot from Mrs. Park of the Association."

"A Black Knot? That's what the Mystic Association uses to judge a sorcerer's rank, right?"

"Yes. Unless you're the head of one of the Five Great Lineages or an Association executive, it's essentially the highest rank a sorcerer can attain."

"That young, already?"

Ri Gicheol mulled over the fact that Gari Bodhisattva was a far more powerful sorcerer than expected.

"Come to think of it, the Society Head of the Black Lotus Society always spoke to him so respectfully, calling him older brother..."

"The other heads of the Five Great Lineages didn't underestimate him either. He's affiliated with Holy Temple Church?"

"Yes..."

Ri Gicheol sank into thought.

Gangnam Holy Temple Church had a long and bitter history with North Korea's Paranormal Military Force Management Bureau.

It was top secret, but a demon had once possessed someone of the Baekdu Bloodline.

They could neither kill nor save the person, so they had to invite exorcists from Holy Temple Church.

「I'm kind of expensive, you know?」

Just getting hold of the man said to be the greatest exorcist of that era required an enormous advance payment.

And Pastor Kim's crimes didn't end there.

「Wow, this looks nice. Mind if I use it?」

「T-that is a precious treasure from the Goguryeo era...」

「Damn it! Do you not want to save the Baekdu Bloodline?! I'm saying I need all of this!」

In the end, the exorcism ritual for the Baekdu Bloodline was a success.

No matter what, he had been worth the money.

The problem was...

"That bastard... He casually made off with national treasures."

And was that all?

While traveling all over the place for the Baekdu Bloodline's exorcism ritual, he had identified dozens of Christians and successfully helped them defect from North Korea.

North Korea had raged, but there was nothing they could do to a man who had already flown the coop.

Retaliation was difficult, too.

At the time, North Korea didn't have a single exorcist. If something similar happened again, they would need Holy Temple Church's help.

Having realized that limitation, the Supreme Commander Comrade established the Paranormal Military Force Management Bureau and made an exception to train exorcists. You could call it a lesson painfully learned.

"Holy Temple Church again. What a vicious connection."

"Comrade Lieutenant Colonel... Do we really have to do this?"

"What are you saying, Comrade Cha Hyeran?"

Cha Hyeran shrank beneath Ri Gicheol's sharp gaze, but soon gathered her courage and spoke.

"No matter how I think about it, he's a figure we can't handle. And didn't he recently subdue the Mountain Lord? What about that monster he pulled around with a chariot, and the Eight-Foot Sister?"

She was right.

Ri Gicheol wasn't stupid enough to ignore reality.

But he had no other choice.

"What happens if we go back like this? Do you think the Republic will give us a second chance?"

"..."

"Comrade Cha Hyeran. Did you think you'd get another chance because you're young and exceptionally talented?"

"N-no."

"Don't fool yourself. You're in the most dangerous position of all."

"W-why?"

Cha Hyeran flinched at Ri Gicheol's words.

Deep down, she had expected the Republic wouldn't be able to abandon her.

"You're too young to know, but the Republic sees exorcists as seeds of counterrevolution it can't control. If it weren't for the humiliation it suffered at that pastor's hands, it would never have considered training exorcists in the first place."

Exorcists wielded powers beyond common sense.

Their power differed from the military's physical force, and the People's Army alone might not be able to deal with it.

What if the exorcists they had worked so hard to raise committed treason?

Even if it meant depending on South Korea, which they had always fought against, they would rather do that than nurture seeds of rebellion within their own country.

That was the kind of country North Korea was.

A country that knew political officers and collective farms were inefficient, yet had no choice but to keep them.

"Do you think only one or two Party officials want to get rid of the Paranormal Military Force Management Bureau? And do you think they'll leave the daughter of Jesus-loving counterrevolutionaries alone?"

"B-but my parents gave up their faith, and they've been reeducated in Aoji..."

"Don't be naive. I'm only filing reports saying I'll earn merit for the Republic, so they're waiting. Under normal circumstances, your whole family would have been executed long ago."

Cha Hyeran swallowed hard.

She knew her family was being held hostage, but she hadn't expected the regime to be this resolute.

Thinking about it, though, it wasn't an unfounded claim.

"Then the other comrades, too..."

"Most of the families of the Bureau's sorcerers are being housed in one place. They're pleased because they consider it living in Pyongyang."

Then they had even more reason to earn merit before returning.

Now, there truly was no way out.

"But how... can we do it? If we face him head-on, we can't possibly win. Killing Gari Bodhisattva is close to impossib-"

"Who said anything about killing him?"

"What?"

Cha Hyeran stared blankly, and Ri Gicheol grinned as he pulled a talisman from his coat.

"A-a Soul-Ensnaring Talisman!"

"It's a talisman issued as a safety measure in case the tiger's resistance becomes too fierce."

It bewitched whoever it was attached to and interfered with their mind.

It contained hundreds of evil spirits, allowing its user to turn the target into a puppet through a horrific mental assault.

"You said Gari Bodhisattva's subordinates are powerful? Good. If we secure the general, won't the horse follow?"

"W-with this..."

"So first, find out where Gari Bodhisattva is. He's affiliated with Holy Temple Church, so he must attend church."

Cha Hyeran bowed her head, struggling to hide her grimace.

Church...

It had been a long time since she had heard that word.

"...Yes. I'll find him."

Cha Hyeran clenched her teeth.

* * *

I could use Spatial Leap without limits as long as I was within a sanctuary.

I could somehow handle even a mass teleport with hundreds of ghosts in tow, but that didn't mean there were no restrictions.

Outside a sanctuary, its efficiency increased more than tenfold. And if I hadn't personally set foot somewhere, Spatial Leap was impossible.

I could leap to the sanctuary in Kyoto right now, but I couldn't go to Kobe next door.

You could call them leap points.

I needed to secure a lot more of them.

Normally, I'd have to travel around often, but I didn't think I'd need to worry about that anymore.

"Because I can fly around on a pterosaur!!"

Kieeeeeek!

Jinju's wings flapped as Jinju landed on the church rooftop.

I quickly jumped down and took off my goggles first.

Flying through the air was great and all, but it was cold, and without goggles, I couldn't see a thing.

"Did everyone enjoy a safe flight?"

【Kweeeeeek...!】

【I never thought I'd experience T Express on a pterosaur in my life...】

Today, I brought the ghost believers who would be attending church again.

"How about you, Judge Kim? Riding a pterosaur isn't an everyday experience, you know?"

【...Once was enough, I think.】

Maybe Judge Kim had spent too much time studying indoors, because Judge Kim didn't seem to be into activities.

"Jinju, rest here."

Flap!

Even though Jinju had materialized, people couldn't see Jinju because of the saddle.

It seemed Bang Seoryeong had ordered it made in case I ever needed to command a pterosaur.

"My lord, worship will begin soon."

"Right, right. Let's hurry."

Gari, Eight-Foot Sister, Kohaku, the Mountain Lord, and even the converted ghosts led by Kim Panyeong.

I'd done so much evangelizing.

Christians were supposed to spread the faith far and wide. At this point, hadn't I done enough evangelizing for a lifetime?

Pastor Go led the service again today.

Pastor Park still hadn't returned from Eastern Europe. He must've been busy.

"Yaaawn."

"You tiger! How dare you yawn during sacred worship!"

"Come on, I can yawn. You little fox, are you looking to start something again?"

"Cut the side chatter~"

The Mountain Lord and Kohaku clamped their mouths shut.

You people should be reverent during worship.

「And so, Esther-」

Compared to Pastor Park, Pastor Go's lack of skill as a minister was obvious.

First of all, Pastor Go's sermons were too long.

When Pastor Park started at eleven, he wrapped up right at twelve on the dot.

Pastor Go, on the other hand, always went past twelve thirty.

It wasn't a matter of having more or less to say. Pastor Go's sermon topics and pacing just weren't balanced.

Maybe I wouldn't have noticed if Pastor Go always finished at twelve thirty, but our church normally ended exactly at twelve, so it stood out even more.

"Pastor Go still has a long way to go."

After the service, people began leaving the main sanctuary one by one when I sensed someone behind me.

"Yohan."

"Deaconess Park?"

She was the deaconess who had been close with my mom and helped with my parents' funeral arrangements.

She was also the person who had handed me an entire tithe envelope when I came to church after a long absence, telling me to use it as I needed.

"Is something wrong?"

She usually sat in the front, so if she had come all the way to the balcony seats, she must have been looking for me.

"I was wondering if you had time lately."

"Time? Is something going on?"

"The Bible Camp is coming up soon, remember? The one for the elementary kids. I heard they're short on young adult volunteers."

So that was why she came.

Our church held a fall Bible Camp when the weather got cooler.

"If you have time, how about lending a hand at the Bible Camp? You don't have to, so don't feel pressured."

She said that, but the fact that she was asking me meant they must really be short on volunteers.

Come to think of it, Deaconess Park's youngest was in the elementary ministry, right?

"I'll do it."

"Oh my, you will? You're so dependable~"

Deaconess Park had helped me a lot.

I could think of it as going to look after some kids.

"Oh, right. There's someone I wanted to introduce you to. She's a nice young woman who's new here. How about you show her around, Yohan?"

Hmm, judging by the atmosphere, was she trying to set me up with someone?

Church ladies loved playing matchmaker whenever there were young men and women around, so I should probably just go along with it.

"She's a North Korean defector, so please look after her. Imagine that, she escaped from North Korea and still thought to come to church. They say she held on to her faith in the North, too. Isn't that admirable?"

"A North Korean defector?"

That was interesting.

It wasn't impossible, but it was my first time seeing one.

Near the church lobby, I spotted a young female believer being held up by several other deaconesses.

Hmm, the deaconesses must have surrounded the new newbie and kept her there.

Seriously, church social life could be so shameless.

But I could be pretty shameless too!!

"Is this her? The new sister? Wow, welcome-"

"...!"

Her hood was pulled up, but I knew.

Everyone had their own distinct scent, and I had an incredible sense for spiritual scent, so I could pick up those smells with uncanny accuracy.

And the face that met mine for a moment looked familiar.