#3 Zone of ‘Spirit’ (Wol-ryeong – Wedding Dress Illustration) (1)

* * *

To reach the Zone of ‘Spirit’, one must cross through the Zone of ‘Sin’.

Although the Zone of ‘Sin’ is vast, means of transportation such as buses, motorcycles, or even bicycles exist there.

Though they were mirage-like objects that would return to their original places after a single night, there was no problem using them immediately.

Daom, by some means, had prepared a passenger car that they could all ride in.

Since Daom and I didn’t have licenses, Jahyeon-ssi, the only one with a license, naturally took on the driving.

Thus, by evening, they were able to reach near the boundary line leading into the Zone of ‘Spirit’.

“For now, we’ll rest here for the night. It’s better to enter in the morning.”

At night, the power of demonic beings grows stronger.

Considering all possibilities, it was wise to spend the night in a safe place.

Just in time, Daom had also prepared accommodations in advance.

Both the car and the lodging were prepared so meticulously. I knew it already, but Daom truly is capable.

‘But strangely, I don’t feel grateful.’

It was truly strange.

Daom was polite, kind, and even capable, yet feeling grateful to Daom somehow left me with a very unpleasant feeling.

I think about it every time, but why is that…?

The lodging Daom chose was a motel.

It was a motel run by people. But if you spoke to them, they would answer.

When Daom paid, they handed over the key.

They decided to use one room.

It was a twin room with two beds. It was too small for three people, meaning two people would have to sleep in one bed.

“I don’t think it’s good to split up, since we don’t know what might happen. And I want to save money since we don’t know when we’ll need it again. For those reasons, let’s all sleep here together.”

“…Your real intention?”

“I’m going to hug Ryeongi super tight and cuddle and nuzzle them all night long.”

“Get lost.”

I really didn’t like it, but there was nothing I could do.

It didn’t seem like there was a triple room, and Daom was paying anyway.

However, sharing a room with two beautiful women… and even having to share a bed with one of them, that was something I definitely wanted to avoid.

In that case, it would be best if Daom and Jahyeon-ssi slept in the same bed, but Daom wouldn’t leave my side. It was truly troublesome.

* * *

They decided to think about how they would sleep later.

In the meantime, Daom, perhaps bored, went out for a walk.

I sat cross-legged in a corner of the room, stabilizing my spiritual energy through meditation and breathing.

As I was getting my body and spiritual power into top condition in preparation for the mission that would truly begin tomorrow, Jahyeon-ssi suddenly spoke to me.

“Wol-ryeong-nim. Excuse me for interrupting your meditation. Is it alright for a moment?”

“…? Yes, it’s no problem, Jahyeon-ssi.”

It was rare for Jahyeon-ssi to speak to me first.

It wasn’t that they had a bad relationship, but they were a bit awkward with each other, so they rarely spoke.

I sat on the edge of the bed, and Jahyeon-ssi pulled up a chair and sat down.

Then Jahyeon-ssi immediately bowed their head to me.

“First, I don’t think I’ve properly thanked you yet. Thank you for saving me and my teammates.”

Unsure how to respond to such a polite greeting, I vaguely replied, “Uh, um, yes.”

From the start, I felt uncomfortable receiving such thanks.

Initially, when Jahyeon-ssi and their colleagues were being harassed by those trashy demonic beings, I had simply watched and passed by.

Moreover, I myself had been captured by them and ended up in the same predicament.

It was only through a series of miracles that things were somehow resolved, so receiving such a polite thank you felt a bit uncomfortable.

More than empty thanks, money was more important.

“Don’t worry about that. When we return to the Exorcist Association, I’ll write and submit the report in a way that gives you maximum credit. I can’t help you more than that, but your evaluation and compensation should improve a bit.”

“I’d be grateful for that. I’m in urgent need of achievements and money right now.”

Jahyeon-ssi didn’t ask for the detailed circumstances.

“More than that,” they said, moving on to the next topic.

“This is a different matter… How much do you remember about what happened while we were at that mansion?”

The ten days they had spent at the mansion.

It was an ordinary, uneventful time, nothing worth asking about.

Waking up in the morning, washing, eating, meditating and training, then eating again in the afternoon, helping the Chairman with his work, taking walks, having tea time… and so on.

There was nothing strange, and nothing happened.

─I knew well that was a lie.

“Not everything. But I remember a little.”

How the Chairman had pretended to be my father and defiled me, how he had tried to make Jahyeon-ssi and me submit by forcing us to make shameful confessions… and how he had harassed us in various other ways.

Not everything, but fragments remained in my memory, scattered here and there.

However, those memories weren’t vivid; they were merely faint, like a dream lingering in my head after waking up.

I didn’t know what was real. Rather, everything I was thinking now might have been my own delusion and fantasy, and perhaps the reality was that truly nothing had happened at all.

I couldn’t be certain.

But my intuition insisted that my thoughts weren’t wrong.

How dare he do such things to me, to us.

I was indignant and angry, but it was frustrating that there was no evidence and no immediate effective measures.

Jahyeon-ssi nodded in agreement with my thoughts.

“I thought I should tell you first. In that mansion, who knows where eyes and ears might be, so there was no chance to speak at all.”

Next, Jahyeon-ssi recounted the circumstances of how she was captured.

Although she had fallen into a trap, she was an A-rank Exorcist. Moreover, her teammates were also seasoned veterans.

There was no way they would lose to ordinary people who knew nothing about sorcery and merely underwent mediocre demonization.

Of course, the Vice-Bishops were a considerable threat, but as long as they weren’t gathered in one place, they weren’t at a level that couldn’t be dealt with at that point.

They only truly became strong after absorbing power from exorcists, who were high-quality sacrifices. Up until that moment, it was a level Jahyeon-ssi’s team could sufficiently handle.

“We were defeated because of Vice-Bishop Gwi. I can’t even clearly remember how we were defeated in the first place.”

Before they knew it, they found themselves neutralized, and when they regained consciousness again, they were unable to resist the hypnosis spell they used.

And later, they learned that Vice-Bishop Gwi’s true identity was an associate dispatched by the Chairman.

Jahyeon-ssi’s team had been neutralized by the Chairman’s hand and sold off to the enemy.

And he himself was able to be promoted to Vice-Bishop for that achievement.

In terms of results, one could say it was helpful, but I still felt like wondering if it really had to be that way.

“What do you think that man’s objective is? Do you have any guesses?”

“If it’s the objective of a dick-wielding bastard, wouldn’t there only be one?”

He probably intends to turn us into convenient sex holes to satisfy his dick.

When it comes to young, fresh women, that’s the only thought a man would have.

Other than that, he might be trying to steal spiritual power from excellent exorcists.

Exorcists’ spiritual power has many uses. In the case of demonic beings, they can grow and power up with exorcists’ spiritual power. If that man is also a mimicked demonic being, then it’s not strange for him to covet spiritual power in such a way.

As my tone became a little rough due to anger, Jahyeon-ssi gave a wry smile.

But it seemed they agreed with the thought itself.

“For now, that man also seems to be aiming to conquer this ‘City of Fog’, so we’ll pretend to follow him for now─”

“You’re trying to say we shouldn’t trust him, aren’t you, Jahyeon-ssi?”

“Exactly.”

Even so, we couldn’t show it.

If he noticed, our memories would simply be manipulated again by the hypnosis he wields, or a similar ability.

This time, for sure, the seeds of rebellion would be removed, and we’d be reduced to fawning dolls for that bastard. I’d rather die than let that happen.

To prevent such a thing from happening, we couldn’t show any rebellious intent until a concrete plan emerged.

It seemed Jahyeon-ssi had approached me with the same thought.

For now, we didn’t know how the situation would unfold.

So, until proper means were prepared, we should avoid futile resistance and follow his orders.

Then, if an opportunity arose, we would bring that man down together.

“Yes, I understand. Thank you for telling me.”

“Mm. Thank you. If we can combine our strengths, it will definitely be reassuring.”

That was what I should be saying.

I felt reassured by the fact that I had an ally.

With that, their conversation ended.

As for the Chairman, it didn’t seem like they would find any answers by discussing it among themselves like this.

For now, they concluded that they would observe the situation and put it on hold.

‘It will absolutely not go according to that man’s will.’

Don’t underestimate an exorcist.

There was absolutely no way they would submit to that man’s wishes.

After finishing their discussion, they decided to sleep.

Because they planned to depart early in the morning tomorrow.

However, even when they turned off the lights and lay down in bed, Daom had not returned.

How far had Daom gone for a walk?

Would Daom just return on their own when the time was right?

Thinking that, they fell asleep.

And even when morning came, Daom had not returned.

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