Chapter 24. The Young Lord of The Heavenly Demon Church (1/2)
Chapter 24. The Young Lord of The Heavenly Demon Church
“It’s raining.”
Gongson Chun Gi stared up at the sky, and muttered.
[This one will go get a coat as fast as I can.]
“Don’t. It would just be a waste of time.”
After saying that, Gongson Chun Gi began to walk amongst the silver slivers of water mindlessly. Not even the rain from the sky could wet him.
There was an invisible shell that surrounded his entire body. A person that surpassed human limits. That was the pope of the Heavenly Demon Church, Gongson Chun Gi.
“Gyum.”
[Yes, your holiness.]
“You’ll have to stay outside. No need to have you get shamed.”
Gyum couldn’t really believe the pope’s words, but who was he to disobey? Lim Hak Gyum hid himself behind a pillar, and stationed himself there. Then, Gongson Chun Gi massaged his shoulders and spoke.
“If I just walk out later without a word, just follow me and don’t ask any questions.”
[Of course.]
“Damn it, to think just getting a disciple would be this hard.”
After complaining in a small voice, Gongson Chun Gi opened the door and entered.
“You waited for me?”
Looking at all this from the back, Lim Hak Gyum smiled. His holiness always looked outgoing and relaxed.
But it seemed that when it came to mental stress people had with disciples, he was the same as everyone. This was something unfamiliar, but it was something good to see. Lim Hak Gyum always looked at Gongson Chun Gi with reverence and respect.
* * *
“That’s it? There aren’t any other conditions?”
“……..Yes.”
“That’s not very bad. Well, we’ll go with what you want.”
Cho Ryu Hyang was getting confused, because the pope agreed to this too quickly.
The Pope had an unflustered reaction. Cho Ryu Hyang put away all the plans he had in mind to persuade the pope, and stayed quiet for a while. Soon, he asked a question.
“Just what is it that you like about me?”
Gongson Chun Gi smirked at Cho Ryu Hyang’s question.
“What? You want me to confess my love to you, now? That’s embarrassing.”
Cho Ryu Hyang didn’t react to Gongson Chun Gi’s joke, and kept a straight face. That was because he couldn’t really understand this whole situation.
The Pope looked like he would agree to any condition as long as Cho Ryu Hyang became his disciple.
It wasn’t very believable.
‘No one ever does anything for someone that much without a motive.’
No, something like that did indeed happen. The love a parent shows to their child. Cho Ryu Hyang believed that nothing in the world was free, other than that.
“You weren’t very attractive to me in the beginning. But once I realized your true value, I changed my mind.”
Gongson Chun Gi stopped there. He then spoke with a serious face.
“Anyways, you were truthful about becoming my disciple?”
“……..Yes.”
It was the truth.
The Pope of the Heavenly Demon Church. This was a chance to become the heir to the church. It would be a lie if Cho Ryu Hyang said he wasn’t tempted to become the heir.
“I’ll give you one last chance. If you don’t want to do this, now’s the time to run.”
Cho Ryu Hyang looked at Gongson Chun Gi. Unlike what he had said earlier, Gongson Chun Gi’s eyes looked quite shaken. The man was regretting what he said just now quite a lot, it seemed.
Cho Ryu Hyang smiled when he saw that.
“I will never run. Neither now nor the future.”
Gongson Chun Gi took a look at Cho Ryu Hyang’s face, and made an embarrassed face/
“……..Did I look anxious, by any chance?”
“Yes…….”
“………A lot?”
“Yes……..”
“Well, shit.”
Cho Ryu Hyang stared at the complaining man in front of him.
He didn’t know if the Pope was acting all this out or not, but the Pope’s reactions still eased his mind a little.
“Hey, promise me something.”
“Okay.”
“The moment you go out, you’ll be my disciple. That means that you’ll have to start thinking highly of yourself.”
What does that mean?
“You asked me earlier, right? What I liked about you?”
“Yes.”
“To be honest, I was ready to agree to any condition that you’d throw at me. That’s how much you’re worth.”
Wasn’t the hope thinking too highly of Cho Ryu Hyang? The boy made an embarrassed face when a compliment came at him.
“You heard the rumors about me in the martial world, correct?”
“Yes.”
The strongest man under the heavens.
And the living god of the Heavenly Demon Church.
The rumors in the martial world hinted that the Pope was actually a being that resided in the heavens.
“This is a secret, but I’m actually even more amazing than the rumors. I am indeed worthy of your respect.”
It was an extremely shameless and a brazen statement, but strangely, it didn’t seem that out of place when the Pope said it.
While Cho Ryu Hyang showed a bit of a dumb face because of the previous statement. Gongson Chun Gi grabbed onto Cho Ryu Hyang’s shoulders, and spoke.
“A great person like me chose you. So it’s ok for you to be a little prideful.”
Did the Pope want to say that? Cho Ryu Hyang smiled, and nodded.
When Gongson Chun Gi saw that, he made a serious face and spoke.
“I’m not telling you this to make you feel good. Keep this in your mind. You’re a person that I recognized. So don’t go bowing down to anyone other than me. No, don’t bow down, even to me. Do you understand what I’m saying?”
Cho Ryu Hyang, at that moment, had to redetermine his impression of the Pope. The Pope wasn’t just a shameless person. He was prideful and ambitious, which was what made him say that.
Cho Ryu Hyang felt something right then. It was a feeling that implied that perhaps he might actually come to respect the person in front of him someday.
Cho Ryu Hyang stared into Gongson Chun Gi’s eyes, and spoke.
“I’ll keep teacher’s words in mind.”
After hearing that, the stiff face of the Pope turned into a grin.
“I wanted to hear that.”
Gongson Chun Gi pat the boy’s back, and spoke.
“Congratulations on becoming my disciple.”
“Thank you. Teacher.”
“The proper ceremony will take place once we get to the main church, but you will be regarded as a heir to the church from now on. Because of that, you’ll be treated accordingly.”
Be treated accordingly? What did that exactly mean?
When Cho Ryu Hyang made a curious face, Gongson Chun Gi grinned.
“You’ll see soon enough.”
It took Cho Ryu Hyang less than an hour till he understood what the Pope meant.
* * *
Gongson Chun Gi looked at the figure outside the door, and smirked.
That was because Guardian Ju was standing next to Lim Hak Gyum with an anxious face.
Guardian Ju rushed out the moment Gongson Chun Gi walked out the door.
“Is that boy……. No, is he your Holiness’s disciple?”
“Yes. He’s my disciple.”