Chapter 2
In the chancel behind the underground chapel.
“Uncle, what did we say about handing out these things?” I asked after the service had concluded.
“If we don’t do anything, we’ll run out of money soon. Don’t you know that our numbers are going down every day?” he said.
“If you’re going to make flyers, at least make them look good. Why design them like this?”
I picked up one of the many flyers on the ground. The flyer had a gradient rainbow background with words that were painfully hard to make out. It was a devastating design.
“What about it? Isn’t it cool?”
My uncle didn’t seem to see the problem. I clenched my eyes and placed my hands on my throbbing head.
Lee Jin-Sung was my maternal uncle and the high priest of the Voodoo Cult. He was the one who handed me the microphone earlier.
He administrated most of the affairs in the cult and was also a capable information broker. However, although he was blessed with many talents, he lacked, no, he was missing any traces of talent in the field of aesthetics.
“Change the design. Maybe it’d be better to pick another person to oversee the marketing design altogether,” I said.
“Hey, who’s going to pay for these new people? What’s wrong with the rainbow background? Does it not have an elegant look?”
“You know what, never mind.”
I had a feeling that talking to him would be a losing game. I shook my head as I walked past my uncle and entered a room. The room smelled of mold. I would have ventilated it if it had any windows.
I lay down on the bed next to a corner of the room. The blanket was wet from all the built-up moisture.
“Urgh,” I groaned.
[Can’t be helped. We are underground.] The voice suddenly said as I made a complaint. It was the voice of the Loa that was residing in me.
The Loa’s name was Legba. They were the ruler of all Loa. Holding up to their name, Legba’s power and voodoo magic were capable of doing unimaginable tasks. Or at least, that’s what Legba claimed.
[I do not lie. Everything I say is true.]
“Yeah, I believe you,” I said, nodding.
Of course, it must be the truth, although I haven’t seen it.
[I just can’t show my full potential because we don’t have the Altar.]
“I didn’t say anything, did I?” I replied.
[You didn’t seem convinced. Quit complaining and bring back our Altar.]
Legba added with a displeased tone. Ignoring their complaints, I stretched out my right hand and started drawing in the air. Not long after, a purple light started seeping out my fingertips. I used the light to draw many lines and squiggles to manifest a curse array in thin air. The completed magic array spewed an ominous purple mist. It was the curse of greater enchantment, a spell that tampered with the mind.
The Romanicans used divine power, while the Voodooists used voodoo power.
It was possible to cast a curse by drawing a curse array with voodoo magic as the core.
[Spectacular.]
Legba seemed impressed. I was the Voodoo Cult Leader, so I could easily draw a curse array using voodoo essence. I was number one in this business. The problem was I had almost no chance to put this talent to use.
The world had framed the Voodooists as a harmful cult, and Voodooists could not escape immediate imprisonment upon getting found out. If this was how they treated regular attendees, imagine what they would do to me; the Romanicans would burn me alive as they had done with my father, the second Voodoo Cult Leader.
[Do not fret. You just need not get caught. And you won’t.]
“I was never worried,” I said. No one knew how I looked or my name, so I knew that my risk of getting caught was slim. That was why I couldn’t use voodoo essence—I would be immediately found out.
I used my right hand to call off the curse array and used my left hand to draw another image in the air.
My hands lit up again, but this time, with a white light. Instead of using voodoo essence, I was using divine power as I drew a lesser blessing of strength.
[Pathetic.]
Legba clicked their tongue in disappointment at my drawing.
I agreed with them. The blessing array drawn with divine power paled compared to my curse array. The difference in skill was more apparent because the curse array I had just conjured was more complex.
[Don’t be discouraged. It is a fantastic feat to harness both divine power and voodoo essence.]
Legba tried to comfort me, but it failed to lift my spirits. I plopped back onto my bed with a heavy heart.
I couldn’t utilize my strong skills in voodoo essence, yet I was talentless in using divine power. At this rate, I won’t be able to graduate, let alone become a prelate.
[I don’t think you have to become a prelate. Living as the Voodoo Cult Leader doesn’t seem bad at all.]
“But I don’t want that,” I replied.
[Plus, there’s no guarantee that your mother is still alive.]
“No, she is alive.”
My father died seven years ago during the Holy War, and my mother was thrown into the Holy See Headquarters underground prison. The only people who had access to the prisoners were prelates with the rank of cardinal or higher.
I had enrolled in F.A. to become a prelate to meet my mother.
*** Undertake a voyage to the genesis at n0v*lbin#★
I trudged to school the next day with heavy footsteps. I had taken a nap in the underground chapel and returned to my house during the night. My uncle had given me this house as a gift for successfully enrolling into F.A. It would have been suspicious for me to constantly walk back and forth between our chapel and F.A. every day to go to school.
Although the room was close to F.A., It felt hard to go to school because I found it quite lonely. I dragged on my heavy feet one step at a time and, soon after, was greeted by a mystical and magnificent scenery that never ceased to amaze me.
Green trees and lively sprouts filled the walls. Behind those walls lay the numerous buildings stretching out from the main building, built in a Gothic style. The sun was high in the sky, and its rays seemed to bless the area it kissed. I was on the F.A. campus grounds.
[Look at how good their facility looks when they’re the reason why we breathe moldy air during our services.]
I easily ignored Legba’s grumbling. I slowly walked down the luscious pathway toward the first-year building.
I finally reached my classroom. On the front of the door was a doorplate reading ‘1st year, Charity.’
Without hesitation, I opened the door and walked into the class. I sat in the empty seat in the back next to the windows.
Drrrk—!
Soon after, someone opened the door firmly. The person walked in with an attendance folder and a beaming smile that radiated happiness. She walked towards the teacher’s table at the front of the room.
“Good morning. It seems that everyone’s here.”
It looked like she was the homeroom teacher for the Class of Charity.
Tak, tak!
“It seems I have talked too much. Today we will test your strength through a general fitness test. The student who throws the weight the farthest will score the most points. The person who gets the second longest distance will score lower than the first, and so forth. You are free to use whatever blessing you want. Any questions?”
A student raised his hand. As expected, it was Bae Sung-Hyun.
“Forgive me if I’m wrong, but I heard there is a way to get full marks regardless of the distance thrown?” he asked.
“Ah yes, I forgot. There probably aren’t any of you who can accomplish it, but I guess there is no harm in explaining,” Kim Bok-Dong said as he tapped his finger on the weight he was holding.
Some students' eyes lit up at the mention of full marks.
“First, throw the weight past the fifty-meter mark. Then estimate the landing point of the weight and catch it. If you can do this, I will give you full marks regardless of the distance traveled by the weight. I guess you could call it a special case.”
The lit-up eyes of the students quickly turned to despair.
It was hard enough to throw the weight fifty meters to begin with, let alone catch it with one’s own hands. One would need the strength to throw the weight fifty meters and the agility to run at least fifty meters in two to three seconds.
I don’t know about anyone else, but I was sure I wouldn’t be able to do it. At least without ‘their’ help.
“With that said, let's start the test. First up is the holder of the Holy Name of Charity, Bae Sung-Hyun.”
Bae Sung Hyun stepped forward.
He stood in front of the start line, took some deep breaths, and expelled divine power through his fingertips.
[Moderate blessing of strength, lesser blessing of the musculoskeletal system, lesser blessing of recovery... I can’t tell the rest.]
Each one of Bae Sung-Hyun’s blessings boasted high difficulty to cast.
Channeling all his blessings into his right hand, Bae Sung-Hyun threw his weight.
Zoom—!
The weight flew into the air...
Bam—!
And it landed with a disastrous thud.
“212 meters for Bae Sung-Hyun!” Kim Bok-Dong announced. Everyone was speechless at Bae Sung-Hyun's unbelievable record.
The holder of the Holy Name of Charity received a ‘blessing of superhuman strength’ from the Pope. This unique blessing gave the blessed superhuman strength and the ability to share this strength with someone else. It was a blessing well-fitted for the holder of the Holy Name of Charity.
Bae Sung Hyun’s tremendous strength came from this blessing.
“Bae-Sung Hyun.” Kim Bok-Dong called out.
“Yes, sir.”
Kim Bok-Dong had a smile on his face.
“Not only was your basic strength admirable, but I can’t help but applaud your skillful utilization of blessings. You used the blessing of recovery to minimize the possibility of injury, allowing you to use the moderate blessing of strength to its full potential. Outstanding work. I hope you all can learn from this if you can,” he said.
Bae Sung-Hyun’s lips were shaking as if trying to stifle his happiness.
“Thank you, sir!”
“No worries, return to your position.”
Bae Sung-Hyun walked back toward the waiting group of classmates. The students gazed at him with eyes filled with jealousy and awe. Bae Sung-Hyun seemed to enjoy this attention.
“Next, Koo Jun-Hyuk.”
Kim Bok-Dong continued to call forth students.
Many students stepped up to throw their weights, only to step down with faces filled with disappointment. Most were not able to pass the fifty-meter line. However, there were a few students that showcased their talents.
Toward the end of the test, with no surprise, first place was Bae Sung-Hyun, second was Koo Jun-Hyuk at 162 meters, and third place was Jung In-Ah at 143 meters.
“Do Sun-Woo.”
I was the last student called up.
At this point, no one was paying attention to me. Instead, everyone was complaining about their injured shoulder or lying down from the drawbacks of using too much divine power.
The light seeping from my lesser blessing of strength wrapped around my arm. Then, without anybody noticing, I called forth the power of the Loa.
As I positioned myself for my throw, Kim Bok-Dong shook his head skeptically.
“Is that all you are going to do to prepare?”
“Yes, sir,” I replied.
“I said you can use any blessing you want. So why are you only using the lesser blessing of strength?”
“Uh...” I hesitate. Do I have to tell him? I was embarrassed.
“This is the only blessing I can use.”
Kim Bok-Dong gave me an understanding nod.
Pfthahah.
I heard the sounds of students making fun of me throughout the crowd. I knew this would happen!
“Alright, resume with your attempt,” Kim Bok-Dong muttered as he stared at me. His arms were across his chest, and he looked at me with low expectations.
I lifted the weight above my shoulders. The 10.25 kg weight wasn’t heavy but seemed rather light. Both the blessing and power from the Loa helped with the weight, but the Loa’s power seemed to help more.
[Loa Bossou responds to the call of the Prophet.]
Legends say Bossou killed a thousand enemies with their bare hands when they walked the earth. Their symbol was a bull, and living up to his symbol, their power was ‘superhuman strength.’ It was a miraculous strength that surpassed the mere capabilities of man.
Zoom—-!
I threw the weight. It had slipped at the tip of my fingers, so it seemed it would fall short of Bae Sung-Hyun’s record of 212 meters.
That didn’t matter because my goal wasn’t to overtake his record.
Scrruunch.
I lowered my stance and flexed my legs. Bossou’s superhuman strength coursed through my legs, eliciting an eerie sound from my knee joints.
Swoosh—!
I propelled myself forward as I broke into a run. The sound of the wind filled my ears as my body sailed through the dusty wind with explosive power. My goal had been this from the start. I would catch my weight and get full marks.
As I said earlier, Bossou’s symbol was the bull.
And charging was what bulls did best.