Chapter 75

Chapter 75. Ha Mina (1)

Ha Mina.

One of the Eight Guardians who controlled the eastern Capital Region...

Centered around Hanam.

She was also an SS-rank Contractor...

Contracted with the S-rank Constellation "Prophetic Magician."

Ha Mina was a special ability-type Contractor.

Unlike the other Eight Guardians...

She had no combat ability.

Instead...

She possessed something that could be called supernatural insight or intuition.

She could predict future events...

Or perceive conspiracies someone was planning.

Of course...

It was nowhere near omniscience.

The information her ability could reveal...

Was always extremely vague.

But Ha Mina claimed that power was revelation from Heaven.

For the last ten years...

She had gone around declaring that she had received revelations from Heaven.

She had once been considered part of the so-called "Joan of Arc Syndrome" trend.

But unlike the other frauds...

Ha Mina possessed genuine supernatural ability.

She actually made predictions.

Naturally...

People began worshiping her.

Eventually...

Ha Mina and the countless people who followed her formed a religious organization.

That organization...

Was the Church of the Morning Star.

Ha Mina constantly preached that the current chaotic era would soon end...

And that a new age governed by a new order would arrive.

People exhausted by the chaos of the world listened.

The Church steadily expanded.

Especially in the Capital Region...

It held enormous influence around Hanam, where its headquarters was located.

The eastern Capital Region...

Including Hanam...

Could practically be considered territory controlled by the Church headquarters.

That was also why Ha Mina had been recognized as one of the Eight Guardians.

But...

I manipulated the observation device...

And looked over the Hanam area.

The eastern Capital Region is extremely stable.

Hanam was peaceful.

The streets were clean.

The people walking around generally looked cheerful.

Unlike other areas...

There were hardly any collapsed buildings.

The policy here was to demolish ugly ruins whenever possible...

For the sake of the residents.

If you look only at Hanam...

You could call this a golden age.

The Church of the Morning Star provided enormous support to civilians in Hanam and throughout the eastern Capital Region.

Because of that...

The locals trusted the Church.

And its leader...

Ha Mina...

Was extremely popular.

The problem is...

This same Church commits all kinds of atrocities in the south.

In the Capital Region...

The Church looked like a genuinely benevolent religious organization.

But farther south...

It committed kidnappings, imprisonment, human experimentation...

And all kinds of other crimes.

Whenever something goes wrong...

The headquarters claims the local manager acted alone and cuts them off.

But did the headquarters really know nothing?

Even the things Bishop Baek Yunho had done in Cheonan...

Were treated as Baek Yunho's personal crimes.

The Church headquarters accepted no responsibility.

And now...

That Church invited Kang Yujin.

Kang Yujin had previously stormed the Central Sanctuary in Cheonan...

And defeated Baek Yunho.

There was no way the Church headquarters didn't know.

Ha Mina...

What are you thinking by calling Kang Yujin?

I bit my lip...

Remembering Ha Mina's face from my past life.

"You must be wondering why the Eight Guardians leave the Church of the Morning Star alone."

Inside a van heading toward the Church headquarters in Hanam...

Lee Hyeonje spoke to Kang Yujin...

Who sat in the very back seat.

"We already know the Church has been involved in suspicious activity all over the country."

"And recently..."

"Kang Yujin."

"You exposed a great deal of it by destroying the Central Sanctuary in Cheonan."

"..."

"But..."

"The Church headquarters claims they knew nothing."

"And the other Eight Guardians just believe that?"

Kang Yujin asked.

Lee Hyeonje looked outside the window.

"Kang Yujin."

"Look around."

"..."

Kang Yujin did as he said.

"The streets are clean, aren't they?"

"No collapsed buildings either."

"..."

"This Hanam area..."

"Controlled by the Church headquarters..."

"Is practically a golden age."

"If you only compare ordinary people's living standards..."

"It's probably number one in the entire Capital Region."

Just as Lee Hyeonje said...

The scenery outside the window was remarkably clean.

"Many people support the Church."

"If we pressured Ha Mina and demanded she take responsibility for the crimes committed in the south..."

"Civilians would rise against us."

"They'd say we were slandering their leader without evidence."

"Without evidence..."

"Unfortunately..."

Lee Hyeonje sighed quietly.

"There is no physical evidence linking the Church headquarters to those crimes."

"None."

"We searched the entire Central Sanctuary."

"In the end..."

"Everything was concluded to be Bishop Baek Yunho's personal crime."

"..."

Bishop Baek Yunho.

By defeating that man...

Kang Yujin had settled what happened to him long ago.

But hearing that everything had been dismissed as one man's personal crime...

Was difficult to accept.

"Couldn't you search the Church headquarters?"

"Who would do it?"

"I don't know..."

"Police and prosecutors don't exist anymore."

"The Eight Guardians perform those roles now."

Only then...

Kang Yujin understood.

The only Eight Guardian with authority to investigate the Church headquarters in Hanam...

Was Ha Mina.

There was no way a proper investigation would happen.

If other Eight Guardians tried to search the Church headquarters...

It would become interference in Ha Mina's internal affairs.

Her side would strongly resist.

It could even trigger a war between the Eight Guardians.

"So..."

Kang Yujin understood the situation.

But he didn't accept it.

"Are you Eight Guardians planning to leave the Church alone forever?"

"No."

Lee Hyeonje lowered his voice.

"We're investigating in secret."

"If we obtain even the smallest piece of evidence..."

"We plan to use it to unite with the other Eight Guardians and pressure Ha Mina."

"..."

"Jegal Geum and Shin Minyu are working with me on this too."

Then...

Lee Hyeonje smiled faintly.

"Actually..."

"The fact that you overturned the Central Sanctuary in Cheonan helped us make some progress."

"Without that incident..."

"We might've eventually given up."

"Really?"

"Yes."

"But..."

Lee Hyeonje's expression darkened.

"Even if we find more evidence..."

"It may still be difficult to hold Ha Mina responsible."

"What?"

"Why?"

"Because there's a possibility..."

"That Ha Mina truly knows nothing."

"That makes no sense."

Kang Yujin couldn't understand.

How could the leader know nothing?

"That..."

Lee Hyeonje started explaining...

Then stopped.

"You'll understand once you meet her."

"...?"

Leaving Kang Yujin confused...

Lee Hyeonje turned toward the window.

The Church headquarters was larger than the Central Sanctuary in Cheonan.

Originally...

It had been an old cathedral building.

But it kept being expanded over time...

Until it reached its current size.

From outside...

It looked almost like a gigantic temple.

"Let's go."

Lee Hyeonje entered first.

The inside was crowded.

There were many people who looked like ordinary believers...

And many others who seemed to be Church members.

"Our destination is deep inside."

"We just need to keep going."

"Got it."

Kang Yujin walked with Lee Hyeonje.

At one point...

They passed a group of children happily chatting.

Eventually...

They entered a quieter corridor.

There...

They found something resembling a hospital reception desk.

Lee Hyeonje gave his name.

"When you appeared at the Hwaseong Sect..."

"Everyone went crazy."

"But nobody cares here."

"I told you."

"This place is peaceful."

Was this really the headquarters of the Church that had imprisoned innocent children...

And conducted human experiments?

Kang Yujin felt increasingly confused.

"Lee Hyeonje."

"Kang Yujin."

"Please enter Corridor Number Three."

Following the employee's instructions...

They entered a dark corridor.

They walked for quite a while...

Until they reached a wooden door.

"The Church Leader is inside."

"Please enter."

Lee Hyeonje opened the door.

Inside...

Was a modest room.

It was clean and neatly organized...

But for the room of someone leading a massive religious organization...

It looked surprisingly plain.

There was a bed inside.

But curtains surrounded it...

So Kang Yujin couldn't see who was lying there.

"Nice to meet you, Kang Yujin."

A voice came from inside.

A calm...

Quiet woman's voice.

"Lee Hyeonje."

"Thank you for coming such a long way as well."

"It wasn't particularly difficult."

Lee Hyeonje sat in a chair beside the bed.

Kang Yujin sat in the chair next to him.

"Kang Yujin."

"Lee Hyeonje."

"First..."

"I'd like to apologize."

"Apologize?"

"The Jiaolong that appeared in the Han River recently..."

"Our side bears some responsibility."

Ha Mina spoke in a dark voice...

Still hidden behind the curtain.

"I heard that Jiaolong most likely came downstream from the upper Han River."

"If so..."

"We should have detected it in advance."

"The eastern Capital Region..."

"Including Hanam..."

"Is under our management."

"..."

"But we noticed nothing."

"As a result..."

"The Jiaolong reached the heart of Seoul."

"A major disaster nearly occurred."

"That was clearly our fault."

A quiet sigh came from behind the curtain.

"I wanted to apologize personally."

"And..."

"I sincerely thank both of you for defeating the Jiaolong without causing civilian casualties."

"..."

Kang Yujin was genuinely confused.

It didn't even seem like Ha Mina's fault...

Yet she was apologizing as though she were personally responsible.

Is this really...

The leader of that Church?

Without realizing it...

Kang Yujin glanced toward Lee Hyeonje.

Lee Hyeonje met his gaze...

And gave a small nod.

At that moment...

Kang Yujin understood what Lee Hyeonje had meant inside the van.

Don't tell me...

Ha Mina is actually just a good person?

Of course...

This could all be an act.

She might only be pretending to be kind...

While secretly controlling every crime from the shadows.

"Lee Hyeonje."

"I'm sorry after asking you to come all this way..."

"But could you leave us alone for a moment?"

"Right."

"You only invited Kang Yujin."

"I apologize."

"When our conversation is finished..."

"I'll arrange time to speak with you too."

"For now..."

"I'd appreciate it if you gave us some privacy."

"Fine."

Lee Hyeonje stood up without protest.

"Kang Yujin."

"I'll wait nearby."

"Talk with her for now."

"Got it."

Lee Hyeonje left the room.

Now...

Only Kang Yujin and Ha Mina remained.

"Kang Yujin."

"I'm sorry, but..."

"Could I ask you one favor?"

"What?"

"Please open the curtain."

Hadn't she wanted to hide her face?

"Fine."

Kang Yujin stood up...

And opened the curtain.

Then...

He saw the woman lying on the bed.

"I'm sorry."

"It's difficult for me to move my body."

She had an ordinary appearance.

Rather than the leader of a suspicious cult...

She looked more like a gentle schoolteacher.

"Are you sick?"

"I've always been physically weak."

"When I'm in good condition..."

"I can move on my own."

"But on days like this..."

"I need help from others."

Ha Mina looked apologetic.

"I'm sorry, Kang Yujin."

"But could I ask one more favor?"

"What?"

"It's a little awkward talking while lying down like this..."

"Could you help me sit up?"

Kang Yujin didn't think much of it.

He supported Ha Mina's upper body and helped her sit upright.

She was much lighter than expected.

"Is this enough?"

As Kang Yujin started to pull his hands away...

Ha Mina grabbed his arm.

"Please wait."

"Could you stay like this for a moment?"

Was she really that weak?

Kang Yujin remained still.

Then...

"..."

Ha Mina's other hand touched Kang Yujin's thigh.

Confused...

He looked down.

And saw a small note hidden inside Ha Mina's hand.

[Everything we say in this room is being monitored.]

[Right now, I cannot trust anyone.]

[That includes the other Eight Guardians.]

[Please.]

[Take me away from here.]