Chapter 309

Chapter 309

"It’s coffee."

Ji-Ah brought out coffee for Jin-Sung, who had just finished work outside and returned to the underground chapel. He accepted the coffee she handed to him.

"Thank you," Jin-Sung said to Ji-Ah as he took a sip.

The coffee was just the right temperature.

Sitting in front of Jin-Sung was Gyeonggi Branch Executive Anna. Anna was sitting cross-legged and staring blankly at Jin-Sung's face.

Jin-Sung habitually checked the charts on his phone and then glanced at Anna.

He asked, "Why are you staring at me like that?"

"Oh, it's nothing."

"Is it because I’m good-looking?" Jin-Sung joked with a smile.

Anna raised the corner of her mouth and nodded. "You're decent-looking. At the very least, you’re not ugly."

Jin-Sung chuckled and replied, "You have a good eye."

The two of them went out because of the Voodoo Cult members' identities. The executives of Voodoo Cult had to frequently launder their identities because if they didn’t, the Holy See would be able to easily catch them through an investigation.

Thanks to spending her life running away from the Holy See, Anna had her own tricks for identity forgery. Thus, Anna also went with Jin-Sung to offer her help.

While laundering the identities of the Voodoo Cult members, Jin-Sung and Anna also created another forged identity: Lee Seol. She was a character set up as a retired, recuperating Romanican Church clergyman.

She was not a real person; she existed only as a fake identity, kind of like a ghost of sorts.

"When is Sun-Woo coming back? Did he say he won’t be able to contact us?” Anna asked.

If Sun-Woo had entered the underground prison and successfully rescued Lee Seh-Hwa, then Lee Seh-Hwa would start a new life under the name Lee Seol. Jin-Sung and Anna created a forged identity to prepare for Lee Seh-Hwa’s rescue.

Jin-Sung did not respond to Anna's question. He simply stared blankly somewhere with unfocused eyes.

He raised his coffee cup and took another sip.

"Sun-Woo told me not to contact him. Just in case."

"But it’d be nice if he had at least told us when he would be back."

"He has always been independent. That's just his nature. You don't have to worry about it," Jin-Sung said as if it wasn’t a big deal.

Then the desk shook slightly. Anna felt something was off and looked at Jin-Sung.

Jin-Sung had been sitting calmly and pretending like nothing was wrong, but he was shaking like crazy.

Anna let out a laugh. "You act all tough but look at you shaking like a leaf. Are you a jackhammer?"

"Shaking my leg has been a habit of mine since a long time ago."

"Nonsense. This is the first time I've seen you shake like this."

"..."

Jin-Sung remained silent, but he stopped shaking his leg.

Anna smiled and looked at Jin-Sung as if he was cute.

Feeling uncomfortable with her gaze on him, Jin-Sung turned his head away. Anna chuckled.

Ji-Ah watched the secret exchange of glances between the two.

"Should I leave?" Ji-Ah asked.

Anna had her gaze fixed on Jin-Sung, but she quickly shook her head.

'Do I call her Mother? Or do I call her Mom? I think I called her Mom when I was young, but I feel like I called her 'Mother' at some point.

'No, what I called her when I was young isn't important. What should I call her now?'

“Mother, I’m here.”

I had grown up during the eight years when my mother was not with me. At least, I had grown a lot physically.

Therefore, I decided to call her ‘Mother.’

I had grown up... I had grown enough to finally come and save her. I called out to my mother, but she didn’t respond. My mother seemed very weak and frail, and she lacked strength.

I grabbed my mother's arm. Her arm felt thin and frail, like a dry twig. Some skin peeled off her arm.

"Oh, I can... I can heal you. Just wait a little."

I used a restoration spell—a superior restoration spell. The mist flowing from the spell array spread out densely.

"I... I was so tired. Really, just a bit. But I think I can endure it now."

The mist flowing from the spell array wandered off and just spread in all directions. The thick fog lay on the ground.

"The Loa really listen to me now. But sometimes, there are those who don't listen, and every time, I can’t help but think that you were amazing. How did you control all these troublemakers?" I said with a smile. "It hurts a little less now, right?"

I gently touched the exposed skin on my mother's arm. It was sticky.

"I... I..."

I had a lot to say.

I wanted to tell her that I knew how to cook alone. Even though my tongue could no longer taste anything, I could still make delicious food. I took care of my meals and exercised regularly to maintain my health.

When I was young, I hated reading books so much that I even whined to my mother a few times. But now, I actively sought out books to read. I studied diligently and had many friends. Unbeknownst to me, I had become quite famous at school. I handled Voodoo spells well enough now to heal my mother's wounds.

I grew up and became strong enough to meet my mother who was trapped in the underground prison and save her. I once lived like a mental health patient with nothing to rely on, but I've since become someone others could rely on.

‘And, and... So, you know, I was still... I was still...’

"It’s just... You don't have to worry about me anymore."

I swallowed all those words because I knew they were meaningless.

"You can sleep now."

The stench that wafted from the underground prison was coming from my mother. She was sleeping... with her eyes open.

She probably could not sleep deeply like that. I gently closed my mother's eyes. Finally, she seemed to sleep a little more comfortably.

"Mom."

I embraced my mother leaning against the wall, and I cried in her arms. My mother's embrace was cold.

I called upon Marinette's flames, which enveloped my mother and me. Finally, my mother's embrace warmed up, and I continued to cry in her arms.

The heat of the flames evaporated my tears. I felt warmth. However, the warmth I felt was not from my mother's embrace but from Marinette's flames.

My mother was dead, and I knew that as a fact. I had no doubt about it—she was dead.

I had imagined my mother's death several times before so that I wouldn’t be disappointed even if she died. So, I thought I would be okay even if I found that my mother had died in the underground prison. I thought I would be able to live on.

I firmly believed that I would still be alright and that I would be able to continue living.

However, I had been deceiving myself the entire time. The belief that I would be fine despite my mother dying had been wrong. After all, it was a belief riddled with lies.

"Mom, Mom..."

I cried as I endlessly called for my mother, hoping that I would somehow be able to deliver the words that I hadn't been able to deliver to my mother by shedding tears.

At some point, the tears stopped, and Marinette’s flames went out. I remained in that spot without shedding or burning anything.