Chapter 374: Hongcheon (2)

“Aigoo, those bastards again.”

The old man who was quietly eating the egg got angry.

The yolk popped out of his mouth and got stuck on the back of Hochi’s hand

‘Uh…….’

Hochi wiped the back of his hand and looked up, following the gaze of the old man.

While the train had not yet started, a man came into the train car and made a ruckus.

“Please believe! Come and find the light before the coming end! Enjoy eternal life!”

It was a believer from the pseudo-religion.

The people on the train frowned because of the man’s loud voice.

Aside from spouting nonsense, the passengers were displeased because the man was talking in a loud voice.

The man who had been preaching about the “Hell of Disbelief” a moment ago suddenly lowered his voice when he spotted a female student sitting in front of him.

“Hey, are you a student?”

“Y-yes…?”

“Hmm, just by looking at you, I could tell that you are blessed with good fortune.”

What the hell is that?

Hochi was worried for a moment.

“But I could feel that your energy is under pressure. Things aren’t going well for you these days, right? That’s because your energy’s compressed. If you have time, come have a little chat with me once we arrive at the station.”

That man must be a pseudo.

The girl, whose arm was held by the man, was confused and could not push him away.

The man began to explain to the girl and sat beside her as if she were expecting him to sit with him from the start.

“Now, look at this brochure. This is our church in Hongcheon…….”

The girl couldn’t say anything as the man carried on.

Is she just scared, or is she embarrassed?

Probably fed up with what they were hearing, several passengers suddenly started talking aloud,

“That’s a load of shit! F*** you!”

“Girl, don’t follow him. If you follow that, then you’ll end up throwing away your money.”

The passengers’ angry voices poured out from around them.

Embarrassed at being called out, the man who was talking while holding onto the girl escaped with a dejected expression.

Hochi thought about it for a moment.

People around her helped her on the train, but what if it were a place with few people?

Would that girl be able to get rid of the pseudo?

It might be a more dangerous pseudo than I thought.

The pseudo-man moved toward the back of the car, avoiding the glares of the people around him.

Hochi made eye contact with the man as he walked down the alley.

[Lee Deoksam]

Age: 37

Status: Lee Ho-jae Faith (tentative name), 4th degree priest

– Produces 0pt of faith every month.

– Does not have any faith.

-Contributes greatly to the recruitment of new members of the denomination.

-One of the causes that is degrading the church’s reputation.

-One of the pillars of the Church’s business.

-A multi-level operator.

-Recommended to be expelled from the denomination or punished as an example.

‘… Was it the Lee Ho-jae Faith?’

He was wondering if it was a pseudo he ran into on the way to Gangwon-do.

He didn’t know it was really the Lee Ho Jae Faith.

“Excuse me…….”

The man named Lee Deok-sam suddenly lowered his posture and spoke.

Hochi looked at him surprised to see if he had recognized him, but the person Lee Deok-sam was talking to was not Hochi.

“Your mouth is so plump. You have a blessed face. By the way…”

He was talking to the mantis who was eating a peanut in the seat next to Hochi.

The mantis looked at Lee Deok-sam with wide, open eyes.

At that time, an egg shell flew onto Lee Deok-sam’s face.

“Go away!”

The old man sitting next to Hochi threw the remainder of the egg shells in his hand.

Lee Deok-sam, who was struck by an egg shell to his face, shook off the shell on his face with a harsh expression, and then fled.

“Ah-hyo, those rotten bastards.”

When the man went to the next car at the back of the train, the old man cursed again.

Hochi was speechless for a while.

Then he asked the old man a question.

“Did you know about that pseudo?”

“Everybody knows. They’re famous these days. Those guys are very dramatic.”

Hochi wanted to sigh.

Somehow, things might be more troublesome than he thought.

He asked the old man again.

“It’s not about taking innocent kids like before, joining the denomination and asking for money. The problem is that some people really believe their words and become believers.”

“Is there anyone who really believes in that?”

Of course, through the Faith Window, he could check the number of faith and believers received by the Lee Ho-jae Faith.

However, he didn’t think that there would be anyone who wanted to become a believer from what the man was talking about earlier.

“It’s what people in the countryside believe. When the monsters appeared, people became isolated.”

After the appearance of the monsters, the rural people were cut off from civilization for many years without knowing the cause of the sudden appearance of monsters or the many things happening in the world.

They just gathered in the countryside and lived in hiding.

After the Awakened appeared, the situation gradually calmed down, and only after the contact network was restored were the people able to hear detailed explanations.

The explanation they heard at that time was so absurd.

The strange world of Tutorials, the ordeal of the gods, and the unknown monsters.

When the confusion was aggravated by the unorganized information, a person appeared to stir up their confusion.

Those who show the power of the Awakened introduced them as guides from heaven.

The people in the countryside were infatuated with their mysterious abilities, hoping for safety from monsters that they promised.

“… Yes, well, that’s plausible.”

From Hochi’s point of view, it wasn’t a story that deeply resonated with him.

Humans would be able to do that.

“I don’t believe it. Do you know how many Awakened I saw in Seoul? They eat, they poop, they’re scared of monsters just like us.”

The old man responded with a snort.

Then he lowered his voice and whispered.

“And by the way, one of my friends joined that pseudo.”

“That pseudo?”

“Yes, do you know what that cult worships?”

“What do they worship?”

Hochi asked.

“There’s an Awakened named Lee Ho-jae who came out a while ago, and they worship that Awakened like a god. They display his pictures and pray and bow before it. My friend didn’t say it was weird. Aish, crazy guys.”

“Ah…… .”

He’s right.

“They’re serving the Awakened who is doing well in Seoul. That Awakened probably doesn’t even know that there is such a cult.”

No.

He knows there is a pseudo.

Hochi wanted to tell him the truth.

However, it was difficult to explain anything, and he quit because he thought he would be treated as a pseudo too.

Hochi tried to organize his thoughts for a moment.

To the rural people who had been isolated for many years, the Awakened would certainly seem like divine beings.

Even after finding out about the Tutorial and the Hundred Gods, they still will.

It would sound like a story of a warrior who had been chosen by God to be tested and returned to Earth to save them.

It wasn’t really far from the truth.

Even if the Lee Ho-jae Faith continues to operate that way, there will be no major problems.

Rather, it would be easier to understand that Lee Ho-jae is a guide or a revelator than to say that he is really a god.

It will be easy to accept.

However, it was said that scammers ran the faith.

The scammers are people who will sell anything if it makes them money.

Unsurprisingly, they seemed to run a faith without considering Lee Ho-jae at all.

And perhaps because of that, people’s perception of the Lee Ho-jae Faith became bad.

‘This is going to be troublesome.’

People’s perceptions are solid.

Their impression of the pseudo believers as idiots will not change easily.

Those who believe this are unlikely to become believers.

The image of the Faith needs to be renewed.

The best way to change people’s perceptions is for Lee Ho-jae to work miracles as a god.

But that was Lee Ho-jae’s job, and it wasn’t the job entrusted to Hochi.

How can we change their perception of the denomination?

Is it possible to change their perception while maintaining the framework of the religion that idolizes the Awakened?

He was skeptical.

* * *

“Now, the Revelator’s agent is visiting the church for the first time. Let’s show him our sincerity!”

“Yes!”

Im Seong-hyun smiled as he saw the believers responding to him with a loud voice.

The congregation gathered here were all second degree or higher.

So a friendly smile was bound to come out.

In order to become a member of the second level or higher, they had to make a substantial donation to the denomination or devote themselves to the priesthood.

“Okay then, let’s get ready to welcome him!”

“Yes!”

The believers replied, singing in a chorus.

Lim Seong-hyun kept himself from snickering.

It was disgusting that old people responded with bright voices like kindergarteners.

He sent out the members and sat on his chair.

All of the members were in the midst of preparing for the welcoming event, but it was not something he should help with.

He leaned against the back of his chair and closed his eyes for a short nap.

“Hyung.”

As the surroundings became quiet, a subordinate priest approached.

He was wondering what kind of grievance the guy who had been talking about being anxious or scared a few days ago would be complaining about this time.

It was annoying, but he couldn’t completely ignore it.

Lim Seong-hyun asked with his eyes closed.

“What?”

“Let’s just run away.”

“Do you want to get your ass kicked?”

Lim Seong-hyun got up from his seat, feeling the momentary rush of anger.

He just couldn’t understand.

Life has finally come to an end, but what kind of escape is running away?

“Hey, do you know how much money we’re making? If you keep going for 3 years like this, we will be playing and eating forever. You can live while pretending to be the head of the church for the rest of your life.”

“No… Brother, it’s not that I don’t know that.”

“Then what is it?”

The subordinate priest hesitated and said,

“I looked into it, but there are some rumors of the person named Lee Ho-jae… Strange. I think he is a little different from what is known.”

He knows about Lee Ho-jae.

In fact, any Korean knows.

In the past, Lee Hojae’s documentary was always shown when you turned on the TV.

In times of despair, the media and the government tried to give people hope by selling Lee Ho-jae’s name.

Thanks to that, his religion had grown this much, so of course he knew a lot about Lee Ho-Jae.

“What is it?”

“He’s kind of… an asshole. But just a bit.”

Lim Seong-hyun smiled.

None of the Awakened he met were not a fool.

“There is also a story that he killed a lot of people……”

Lim Seong-hyun put his arm around the shoulders of the subordinate priest.

So what if he killed people?

All the Awakened he had met so far were criminals.

“Hey, it’s fine. What do you think those crazy guys want?”

“Hyung…”

“Power? Money? What?”

Lim Seong-hyun crossed his hands and clapped loudly.

“You think that crazy guy would hate selling his name?”

Bam bam!

A rough knock sounded.

Soon a member of the congregation entered.

“Guardian! He has arrived! But…… !”

The believer’s face was white as a sheet.