Chapter 51: Mireuk Cult (1)

Did he just tell me not to say her name?

Is he saying an older brother can't even call his sister by her name?

I clenched my fist without hesitation.

I drove my fist into the gut of the man who was babbling nonsense. 

He let out a groan and crumpled to the ground again.

Then I turned my gaze back to the photograph.

This child, looking down at the people with an indifferent expression.

No matter how many times I looked, it was definitely my sister, Yoo Harin.

The Harin in the photo looked just like she did in my memories. 

The same as when she was in the sixth grade, before I left home.

That Harin was standing on a platform, receiving bows from a crowd of people.

But when did Harin take this picture?

When did she go to a place like this and get worshipped by these people?

My mind was a whirlwind of confusion.

"Where did you get this photo?"

I grabbed the man by the hair and demanded. But he just gave a slight smirk and said nothing.

"Gujeon, go get the curry we were cooking."

"Yes."

While Gujeon went to fetch the curry, I tried to organize my thoughts again. 

Harin had been known as a very powerful shaman since she was young. 

A lot of people used to come to see her.

After Mom and Grandma passed away, I stopped her from doing those things, but it was possible she had gotten involved with this kind of cult through old connections.

I had to find out more.

I took a big spoonful of the curry Gujeon had brought me.

"Are you going to talk after you eat? Or just talk now?"

"Kugh, kill me."

"Hearing crap like this from a man is seriously disgusting. Open your mouth."

Anyway, there were plenty of guys to question.

All the squirming guys here were from the Mireuk Cult.

I forced the man’s mouth open and shoved the spoon in.

"Eat up!!!"

"W-wait. That, could it be the Truth of Darkness...?"

"This stuff tastes like death!!!"

"I-I'll really die!!! Wait!!!"

A man who seemed like their leader started panicking.

Good. I set the spoon down slightly and said.

"Alright then, talk. When was this photo taken?"

"Seven years ago, when Lord Mireuk came to preach, we got permission to take a picture of Her Holiness."

"The child you call Mireuk. Is she Yoo Harin?"

"Do not speak her name lightly!!!"

The man started to throw a fit again.

But as soon as I picked up the spoon, he stopped.

"Okay. So this girl in the photo is Harin. Then the next question. Why do you call Harin 'Mireuk'?"

"Because when she returns, the world will face a great enlightenment."

"Great enlightenment? She'll return?"

The man laughed at my question.

Then he spoke loudly.

"Yes. Although she has temporarily left this world, she will descend again and bring true change to this world."

Left this world.

A phrase usually used when someone has died.

I felt my heart turn cold as I murmured.

"What was I expecting?"

Was I really expecting Harin to be alive?

That couldn't be.

If she were alive, she would have come to find me, her only family. And I had seen the photo of her charred corpse in the fire department's records. 

There's no way she could be alive.

But what if she is?

Even so, the lingering doubts didn't disappear easily.

In a world where superhumans and ghosts exist, there's a religion worshipping Harin, who was just an ordinary girl.

What on earth did they see in Harin to worship her? And what did they know to say she'd return? I was intensely curious about that.

So I picked up the spoon again.

And, forcing the man's mouth open, I said,

"Spill everything about the Mireuk Cult."

I wanted to know more about the Mireuk Cult. 

To be precise, I wanted to know more about Harin. I wanted to show that this pathetic brother, who couldn't even see ghosts, still couldn't let go of his attachment.

"Hurry up!!!"

And so, I extracted information from the man.

The information about the Mireuk Cult was as follows.

The Mireuk Cult is a vast secret religion spread across East Asia. 

The man claimed he was just a low-ranking official in the cult and nothing more.

There are three ways to join the Mireuk Cult: through family, through enlightenment, and through the third method, which was the most problematic.

The man, whining to avoid eating the curry, muttered,

"To become a true member of the Mireuk Cult, you must offer a tribute and pass a trial."

"Tribute?"

"You offer a sacred item related to Lord Mireuk. Then you earn the right to face the trial."

"And what is the trial?"

"I don't know. I've only heard that those who pass the trial become the true Arahans of our Mireuk Cult."

Arahan.

I knew it as a term for an enlightened one.

After my last fight with Cheonsu, I had looked it up.

In the Mireuk Cult, it seemed Arahan referred to their officials.

I nodded and spoke.

"So you don't know anything beyond this, and to learn the true secrets of the Mireuk Cult, you must become an Arahan?"

"Yes. If it weren't for someone like you desecrating this place, I could have accumulated enough merit to receive a sacred item soon."

"And after receiving the sacred item, you would offer it again?"

"Of course."

What a lunatic.

Well, it's impossible to understand fanatics.

Anyway, if I wanted to learn more about the Mireuk Cult, I had to become an Arahan.

"Arahan, huh."

At that moment, a voice called out from behind me.

Ah, they finally arrived.

"Yoo Hajin, we've arrived!"

The voice belonged to Lee Dok-jun, the director of the Anomaly Response Headquarters, and his subordinate civil servants. 

I had reported earlier, but I didn't expect them to arrive so quickly.

That's what you get with efficient civil servants.

I waved my hand and looked at them.

The civil servants from the Response Headquarters were silently tying up the unconscious Mireuk Cult members with red cable ties.

Seeing that, I made a comment.

"Are cable ties sufficient?"

"These are cable ties made by Omega Tech. There's nothing better for restraining these superpowered cultists."

Omega Tech?

It was a company Jamsuni occasionally mentioned.

Looks like they make good stuff.

“Still, catching the members of the Mireuk Cult is quite an achievement.”

“Is the Mireuk Cult that formidable?”

“Of course. The Mireuk Cult is a force so feared that even Cheonji hesitates to punish them. Despite suspicions that the Mireuk Cult is trying to revive the Dark Heart, Cheonji hesitates. It just shows Cheonji can't be trusted.”

“What is the Dark Heart?”

When I asked, Director Lee Dok-jun's expression hardened.

Then he slowly opened his mouth.

“It’s the title of a now-extinct malevolent spirit. It’s also known as the Dark Heart. This Mireuk Cult is suspected of trying to resurrect such a spirit.”

I had heard the term 'malevolent spirit' before.

It's said to be even stronger than a ghost king or Gwizon.

And these lunatics are trying to revive such a terrifying thing?

Maybe there was something related to the Dark Heart in the curry recipe. 

Judging by what Gujeon's sister said.

Damn it. It really had nothing to do with my spiritual eye after all.

What a disappointment.

As I grumbled, Director Lee Dok-jun spoke up.

“Are you alright?”

“What?”

“I'm sorry. Some weak spiritualists can have their minds cracked just by hearing the term 'Dark Heart.' Of course, I didn't think that would happen to someone as strong as you.”

I chuckled and shook my head.

“All it makes me think of is how it sounds like something from a teenager's fantasy.”

“Teenager's fantasy or not, even I am forced to feel a sense of awe at the term 'Dark Heart.'”

Director Lee Dok-jun then looked around awkwardly, his gaze stopping at the captured cult members being secured by his subordinates.

“Are all these your captures?”

“Yes. Most of them got wrecked during the fight, which is a shame.”

I could’ve made a nice profit selling those things.

It pained my heart.

There weren’t many intact cult belongings left.

Some were destroyed by my punches, and others were broken by the cult members themselves just before I captured them. 

Only a few remained intact.

“Still, you managed to keep a couple of high-level ones. How about Fifty for helping with their capture and the remaining items?”

“F-Fifty?”

My mind went blank.

Surely he didn’t mean Fifty thousand won?

But the stalwart Director Lee Dok-jun took out a check without hesitation.

“Fifty million won. The rewards given by our Response Headquarters are tax-free. I apologize, as a civil servant, I can't offer more than the regulations allow...”

“Wha—?”

I was so shocked I nearly fainted.

Then Director Lee Dok-jun murmured softly.

“Is it still too little?”

“F-From today.”

I stammered.

Then I sprang to my feet and shouted.

“From today, the Response Headquarters and I are one!!! Any attack on the Response Headquarters is an attack on me!!!”

The Response Headquarters is my light, the Response Headquarters is my joy!!!

Seeing me flail about, the surrounding civil servants looked at me with moved expressions.

“As expected of Yoo Hajin.”

“To react like that despite such a small reward.”

With the civil servants’ applause, the Curry Disaster was over. I proudly went home with fifty million won.

Of course, we had a meat party that day. Nayu grilled so much meat that she kept muttering, “Nayu’s belly getting round and plump.”

As I stuffed myself with meat, I could momentarily forget the sorrow of not gaining a spiritual eye.

***

And the next day, I received a text from Gujeon.

It said his sister was feeling better.

It said he was incredibly grateful for my help.

It said that if I ever needed assistance, he'd be there without hesitation.

A long, rambling text that filled up a thousand characters.

I chuckled and replied with a simple, "Take care," then set my phone down. 

Am I not just the coolest guy?

No sooner had I put down my phone than Myang-Myang started rubbing against me.

Myang-Myang had been living in my room ever since being rescued from the lab.

"Myang-Myang!"

As I petted Myang-Myang's fur, I opened the website of the Anomaly Response Headquarters. I immediately searched for information on the Mireuk Cult.

Even on the site, there wasn't much information about the Mireuk Cult. However, the controversy section was filled to the brim, confirming that they were indeed bad news.

I scrolled down the page.

"The Mireuk Cult's executive rank: Arahan."

As I continued scrolling, I found a description of Arahan. The information on Arahan included the phrase <Accessible only to Director level>.

But I was a top-tier user of this site.

There was no information I couldn’t access.

Even if it was some colossal tactical nuke.

I clicked on the information about Arahan.

<There isn't much information on the executive rank of Arahan within the Mireuk Cult. However, the system of the Mireuk Cult, which acknowledges Arahan status through the offering of tributes and passing trials regardless of faith in Mireuk, is one of the secrets of the underworld.>

<Becoming an Arahan of the Mireuk Cult grants one enlightenment, raising their status and allowing them to utilize the Mireuk Cult's global infrastructure. It is known that some leaders of sects in the underworld concurrently hold the position of Arahan and sect leader.>

I scrolled down a bit further.

<The selection of Arahan is conducted secretly. The timing for receiving tributes and the location where trials commence are all kept confidential. The next Arahan selection will begin in two days at Jeonryu Mountain Lodge.>

<Participants are to bring tributes (cash + sacred items of Mireuk) to Jeonryu Mountain Lodge, where these tributes will be evaluated. The next Arahan selection is expected to be in three years.>

"So much for secrecy."

They say it's a secret, yet I know everything.

As expected from the Response Headquarters site.

Anyway, the selection for Arahan.

I need cash and a sacred item of Mireuk.

But I had neither cash nor a sacred item. Missing this chance would mean not being able to learn about the Mireuk Cult for three years.

My mind was restless.

Then suddenly, a thought struck me.

“Wait, I do have cash.”

I thought about the fifty million won I received yesterday.

Fifty million won? That's a huge amount of money.

It should be enough.

It's really painful to part with such a large sum, but for the sake of my sister, I have no choice. 

I can't let go of my attachment to Harin. 

Alright, fifty million won. Let's use it.

“Ugh.”

To think I'd have to spend fifty million won so soon.

I shouldn't have had that meat feast yesterday.

Suddenly, the empty state of my bank account caught my eye.

Then Myang-Myang comforted me.

“Myang-Myang?”

“Myang-Myang...”

Suddenly, I felt like meowing along with Myang-Myang.

Now, I just needed to find a sacred item of Mireuk.

I glanced at a corner of my room. There was a box containing things I couldn't bring myself to throw away. 

These were Harin's keepsakes.

The house had burned down, leaving very little behind.

There were Harin's school uniform, which she never got to wear,

and some underwear and thin shirts I had washed for her.

These were the only things left.

The uniform was out, as Harin never wore it. But the underwear and shirts were things she wore often. 

If Harin is Mireuk, then these would be Mireuk's underwear.

Wouldn't these count as sacred items?

I chuckled bitterly and said,

“An older brother offering his sister's shirts and underwear.”

There's no greater trash than this.

I bit my lip in self-loathing.

Then I closed the box again.

“I really have no choice.”

I paced around the room for a bit, fed Myeong-Myeong, and then opened the box again.

– – – The End of The Chapter – – –

TL: You can support the translation and read 5 chapters ahead of the release here on Patreon: https://www.patreon.com/Bill94 

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