Chapter 10

Order of the Golden Bull (2)

As the believer approached the entrance where they were hiding...

"H-Hello! My name is Yu Sia."

Sia suddenly stood up and greeted him awkwardly.

"...What brings you here?"

Startled by her sudden appearance, the believer kept his distance and watched her cautiously from behind the wrought-iron gate.

Sia hesitated.

"Um, I... well..."

Then her eyes lit up.

"Ah!"

She hurriedly came up with an excuse.

"I came here because I wanted to find a new faith."

The believer frowned.

Sia's nervous behavior only made her look more suspicious.

"I'm sorry, but we aren't accepting new believers at the moment."

He gestured politely toward the road.

"I think it would be better for you to look elsewhere."

Even after being clearly told to leave, Sia refused to back down.

"I mean..."

She desperately searched for another excuse.

"Ah!"

"Someone I know recommended this place to me."

Despite making everything up on the spot, Sia somehow managed to produce another answer.

Unfortunately, the believer wasn't going to accept it so easily.

"A recommendation?"

He looked at her carefully.

"Then could you show me your letter of introduction?"

Sia froze.

"A-A letter of introduction?"

The believer's eyes narrowed.

"You don't have one?"

Seeing Sia stammer only made him more suspicious.

"If there's nothing else to discuss..."

"I-I left it at home! I'm sorry!"

The believer stared at her.

Silence.

Then his expression turned incredulous.

"You left it at home?"

His eyebrows rose.

"You expect me to accept that as an excuse?"

Sia immediately protested.

"I really was introduced to this place!"

Desperate to erase his suspicions, she put everything she had into looking innocent.

Her eyes shone brightly.

Her expression practically screamed that she was determined to get inside no matter what.

The believer sighed.

"Haah..."

Perhaps her acting had worked at least a little, because his guard lowered slightly.

"Then could you at least tell me the name of the person who introduced you?"

Sia froze again.

"Who was it...?"

She desperately searched her memory for a random name.

"Um..."

"Was it Youngsoo?"

She tilted her head.

"Or Jungsoo?"

Then she gave him an awkward smile.

"I think it was something like that. Hehe."

Any trust she had managed to build disappeared instantly.

The believer stared at her in disbelief.

"You claim someone introduced you here, yet you don't even know his name?"

Sia's smile stiffened.

The reason she was trying this hard to get inside had begun only one minute earlier.

When the believer first started approaching the entrance where they were hiding...

Michael looked at Sia.

"How did you even get here?"

Sia stiffened.

"W-Well..."

She avoided his eyes.

"There's a reason."

She couldn't exactly admit that she'd secretly tracked him.

In the modern world, secretly attaching a tracking device to someone could easily become a legal problem.

Michael narrowed his eyes.

Then he suddenly said,

"Hey. I'm giving you an order."

Sia blinked.

"What kind of order, all of a sudden?"

Michael pointed toward the believer approaching them.

His voice dropped.

"We're about to get caught because of you."

He looked at her coldly.

"You caused the problem, so you clean it up."

Sia's eyebrow twitched.

She had been keeping her voice low, but Michael's accusation immediately irritated her.

Then she remembered that she had been assigned to assist him.

She forced herself to calm down.

"I don't even know what's happening."

Her eyes narrowed.

"How exactly did I cause a problem?"

She had simply followed Michael here without knowing anything.

And now, somehow, she was being blamed for everything.

Sia felt completely wronged.

Michael answered without hesitation.

"If you don't like being blamed, don't cause trouble."

Sia stared at him.

Then she realized there was absolutely no point continuing the argument.

She gave in first.

"Haah..."

"Fine."

She pointed at him.

"But if you ask me to do something weird..."

Michael cut her off immediately.

"This place is a den of heretics."

Sia froze.

Michael pointed toward the gate.

"So go find out some information."

Then...

"Now."

Push!

Before Sia could respond, Michael shoved her forward by the back.

And that was how she ended up standing directly in front of the believer.

"Youngsoo? Jungsoo?"

The believer frowned deeply.

"You claim someone introduced you, yet you don't even know his name?"

Sia gave another awkward smile.

"I'm sorry."

She bowed slightly.

"Next time I see him, I'll definitely remember."

The believer stared at her hopelessly.

Then he let out a long sigh.

"Haah..."

"I'll go inside and inform them."

He turned toward the monastery.

"Please wait here for a moment."

Sia's eyes brightened.

"Oh!"

She immediately bowed.

"Yes! Thank you very much."

The moment the believer turned away, Sia glanced toward where Michael had been hiding.

Then her eyes widened.

Michael was already gone.

No.

Not gone.

He was halfway over the monastery wall.

Sia stared at him.

Michael completely avoided the believer's line of sight and climbed over without hesitation.

Watching him disappear over the wall, Sia felt a strange sense of guilt.

"Haah..."

She rubbed her forehead.

"I must be crazy."

Before long, Michael disappeared from view.

Still...

If what he had said was true...

If heretics really are involved, then this place deserves investigation.

And perhaps...

This could even become a chance to deal with the concern that had weighed on Sia ever since she became a priest.

Rustle, rustle.

Leaving Sia behind, the priest and demon who had entered the monastery first moved through the bushes, keeping themselves hidden.

Balephor, still transformed into a rat, sat on top of Michael's head.

He sniffed anxiously.

"Can we really trust her, Michael?"

His tiny ears twitched.

"She looks completely clueless. Squeak."

Michael clicked his tongue.

"Tsk."

He glanced back toward the entrance.

"The way she acts makes her look exactly like one of those bluffers."

Michael thought for a moment.

Then he nodded in satisfaction.

"Hmm."

"Not bad."

Balephor looked suspiciously at him.

Michael continued.

"Bluffer."

He seemed pleased with the nickname he'd just invented.

Balephor stared at him with complete disappointment.

"...I've thought this for a long time."

His whiskers twitched.

"Your naming sense is seriously terrible. Squeak."

Michael nodded proudly.

"No need to praise me."

Balephor fell silent.

Michael ignored him and looked around.

Then his expression changed.

"Anyway..."

He narrowed his eyes.

"Now that we're inside, I can tell for sure."

The inside and outside of the Golden Bull Monastery felt like entirely different worlds.

Michael slowly examined the grounds.

"It's not a normal barrier."

He frowned.

"Did they install some kind of device into the monastery itself?"

The instant he crossed the wall and entered the courtyard, a sensation he'd been unable to feel outside struck his senses sharply.

Michael's face twisted.

"It reeks of cow shit."

He clicked his tongue.

"These really are that bastard's followers."

But there was a problem.

I can't even tell how many of them there are.

Michael focused.

Demons and humans are mixed together too.

Whatever was preventing the monastery's energy from leaking outside was also distorting everything inside.

Because of that...

Michael couldn't accurately count how many enemies were present.

Worse...

He couldn't even reliably distinguish demons from humans.

Michael frowned.

If I'm careless, I could mistake a human for a demon and hurt them.

Of course...

Everyone inside this place was already a suspected demon worshipper.

Part of Michael still wanted to simply smash every suspicious person's head in and sort things out afterward.

But then...

One particular presence irritated his senses.

Michael stopped walking.

Even inside the distorted energy filling the monastery...

He could sense it clearly.

Almost as if whoever possessed that power was deliberately showing it off.

Michael narrowed his eyes.

Is that a high-ranking demon?

Then he shook his head.

No...

It feels different.

It felt far too human to belong to a demon.

Yet at the same time...

It was stronger and far more unpleasant than the presence of a middle-rank demon.

Michael frowned.

What is that?

Sniff. Sniff.

Balephor suddenly lifted his tiny nose and sniffed the air.

Then he spoke.

"This is a modified barrier created by Hagenti. Squeak."

Michael glanced upward.

"A modified barrier?"

Balephor nodded.

"It's a barrier created by altering an existing one and embedding it directly into a building."

His tail twitched.

"That sly bastard Hagenti usually installs them whenever he wants to hide something important."

Balephor looked around.

"It scrambles the energy inside and prevents outsiders from identifying the true location of anything. Squeak."

That explained the monastery's strange atmosphere.

If Hagenti had gone this far to hide something...

Then whatever was hidden inside had to be important.

At the moment, there was only one obvious possibility.

The Divine Beast.

Balephor continued.

"Hmm."

His voice became thoughtful.

"Then they may have already started the ritual using the Divine Beast as a sacrifice. Squeak."

Michael's expression hardened.

If Balephor was right...

Then they needed to find it as quickly as possible.

Michael looked at him.

"Is there any way to figure out where it is?"

Balephor immediately shook his head.

"I don't know that much."

Then he added bitterly,

"If I did, I would've robbed every one of Hagenti's warehouses already. Squeak."

Michael looked disappointed.

Then...

He sensed something.

His eyes narrowed.

Below us?

He focused.

Underground?

The scattered energies throughout the monastery seemed to converge somewhere beneath the ground.

There was only one problem.

Michael couldn't see any entrance leading downward.

In that case...

There was only one thing to do.

"Let's search around, Balephor."

Balephor blinked.

"Search?"

Michael pointed toward the long cloister stretching through the monastery.

From outside, the cloister windows beneath the arched cross-vaults had looked like rows of dark holes.

Michael narrowed his eyes.

If this place was designed after Le Thoronet Abbey, then its internal layout should be similar too.

The structure wouldn't be identical.

Hagenti had obviously modified the original design.

Still...

If Michael's memory was correct, the cloister should connect most areas of the monastery.

That would make it the fastest route for searching.

Michael grabbed Balephor from the top of his head and placed him on his shoulder.

Then he spoke quietly.

"From now on, we're looking for an entrance underground."

He glanced at Balephor.

"Keep your eyes open."

Avoiding the believers wandering around the grounds, Michael moved toward the cloister.

Not even a trace of light entered through the pitch-black openings.

They looked like the open jaws of some enormous beast...

Ready to swallow the priest and demon whole.

Creeeeak.

The wrought-iron gate at the monastery entrance opened.

The believer who had gone inside returned.

His entire attitude had changed.

"The abbot has granted permission."

He smiled warmly at Sia.

"Sister, welcome to the Golden Bull Monastery."

Sia instinctively bowed politely.

That actually worked?

Even Sia herself knew that every excuse she had given was painfully forced.

The fact that they were still allowing her inside wasn't simply surprising.

It was suspicious.

Before Sia could think further, the believer spoke again.

"Before entering, could you hand me your mobile phone?"

Sia froze.

"M-My phone?"

He nodded.

"Unauthorized electronic devices are not permitted within these sacred grounds."

His smile remained polite.

"It is one of the monastery's rules, so I would appreciate your cooperation."

Sia felt uneasy.

Still...

She slowly approached and handed him her phone.

The believer turned it off.

Then he placed it inside his pocket.

A moment later, he suddenly remembered something.

"Ah!"

He looked at Sia.

"I looked into the Jungsoo you mentioned earlier."

Sia's heart sank.

The believer smiled.

"It turns out there really is a believer with that name registered in the Order."

Sia blinked.

He continued.

"I was even able to contact him."

Sia's stomach dropped.

Had her ridiculous lie finally been exposed?

The believer continued without noticing her panic.

"He said that whenever someone was going through a difficult time, he often recommended this place to them."

Then he gave her a mildly reproachful smile.

"When I told him you didn't have an invitation, he sounded disappointed."

"He said you should have contacted him beforehand."

Sia immediately laughed awkwardly.

"Ahaha..."

She secretly wiped away the cold sweat forming on her palm.

"I've been having a difficult time lately, so I ended up coming here without telling him first."

The believer nodded sympathetically.

Apparently...

Heaven had helped her.

By pure coincidence, there really was someone here with a similar name.

The believer gestured toward the monastery.

"Then allow me to show you around."

His smile widened.

"Please follow me."

Sia nodded.

She followed him inside.

The moment she passed through the gate...

The sight before her left her speechless.

A tall clock tower rose sharply into the sky.

The surrounding buildings looked as though they had been carved from stone and light itself.

Even in Korea, the only famous Romanesque-style structure Sia knew well was Seoul Anglican Cathedral.

This is supposed to belong to heretics?

From the outside...

The Golden Bull Monastery looked remarkably sacred.

But the moment Sia remembered what Michael had told her...

That sacred feeling changed.

It became oppressive.

Heavy.

Almost suffocating.

The believer spread one hand toward the fountain at the center of the plaza.

"First, this is the Fountain of Improvement."

His expression became proud.

"It is one of the greatest treasures of the Golden Bull Monastery."

Then he immediately launched into an explanation.

"As for the history of this fountain..."

Sia barely heard him.

She was too busy observing everything around her.

The buildings.

The people.

The entrances.

The windows.

Every possible escape route.

The believer suddenly stopped.

"Sister?"

Sia flinched.

"Yes?"

He looked concerned.

"Are you all right?"

Sia quickly recovered.

"Ah!"

She smiled.

"The building is so beautiful that I ended up spacing out while looking at it."

The believer laughed.

"Haha."

His suspicions disappeared.

"Everyone says that."

He gestured forward.

"Let us continue."

After passing the Fountain of Improvement, they reached the main monastery building.

The structure surrounded the courtyard in a broad U-shape.

On either side of its enormous entrance stood golden statues of winged bulls.

The statues gleamed strangely beneath the light.

The believer stopped.

"Please wait for a moment while I pray."

Then he knelt before one of the statues.

Sia took a small step back and examined it.

Her expression immediately soured.

That's seriously creepy.

That was her first impression.

The wings on the bull's back were difficult to interpret.

Were they supposed to be angelic?

Or demonic?

Its two horns stretched unnaturally far upward.

They were so long and sharp that Sia would've believed it without hesitation if someone told her the statue depicted a transformed demon.

And these people...

Were praying to it.

That's more than enough proof that they're heretics.

The believer soon finished his prayer.

He stood and smiled.

"Shall we head to the chapel now?"

Sia nodded.

Following his guidance, she entered the cloister.

Contrary to what she had expected...

The interior looked surprisingly ordinary.

Aside from the light entering through the windows, there were barely any decorations.

Every corridor connected to the cloister felt quiet.

Solemn.

Almost monastic.

Step.

Step.

Their footsteps echoed like they were walking through a cave.

The cloister appeared to connect almost every room within the monastery.

The corridors turned and branched repeatedly.

Then...

A voice came from somewhere nearby.

"Even today, we must live improved lives through the grace of our Father."

Sia's eyes narrowed.

The deeper they walked through the cloister...

The louder the voice became.

She turned toward her guide.

"Is that coming from the chapel?"

The believer smiled.

"Oh."

"Exactly right."

Then his expression became almost reverent.

"It is something you should hear as well, Sister."

He stopped before a room.

The preaching was coming from inside.

The believer carefully opened the door without making the slightest sound.

Immediately...

A powerful voice filled the space.

"We must change!"

Sia looked toward the front.

"I am not saying that you need some completely new revelation!"

The speaker's voice thundered through the chapel.

"Start with the small things!"

"Change one thing at a time from the person you are right now!"

At the main altar stood an elderly, wrinkled man.

He was passionately preaching to the congregation.

Unlike the other believers...

He wore a pure white suit decorated with deep gold.

The clothing alone gave him an imposing presence.

Across his chest was embroidered a large bull-skull crest.

Hagenti's symbol.

His status was obvious.

He was the abbot of the Golden Bull Monastery.

Then...

The abbot's eyes shifted toward the entrance.

Toward Sia.

A smile slowly spread across his face.

"Today..."

He opened his arms.

"A new change has come to us."

Sia froze.

The abbot continued.

"Someone has personally traveled all the way here in order to learn our faith!"

He extended one hand toward Sia and the believer who had brought her inside.

Every member of the congregation turned toward her at once.

Dozens of eyes focused on Sia.

The abbot smiled brightly.

"Let us welcome her with all our hearts."

Then he spoke her name.

"Sister Yu Sia!"