Building the Burning Association Korean Branch supposedly cost a fortune.
According to Hwang In-goo’s testimony, Haoran said to bring in whatever money was needed to make it appealing to people with impressive facilities and appearances.
Honestly, it was quite a clever directive.
The steady seller in the con artist religion world is the assurance of an afterlife, but the extravagant welfare for members is fairly effective.
Anyway, under the command of the leader, Hwang In-goo invested a lot of money into constructing the headquarters of the Korean branch.
As a result, it turned into quite a convincing place, equipped with a member accommodation identical to Haoran Hotel.
Except for the photo of Haoran plastered on the wall, it was a perfect retreat.
The beds and sofas were plush enough that I wanted to take them home, and the bathroom and terrace were absolutely splendid.
Surprisingly… there were condoms. Stacked in boxes and even sorted by type and function.
Why, though? Were they trying to ensure members would engage in romance and marriage, keeping them tied to the Burning Association forever?
The exact intention was unclear, but anyway, the abundance of contraceptive tools was enough to pique the interest of some unfortunate soul using the ‘Eluke Body Free Usage Rights’.
It was problematic how much interest it stirred.
“Want to stop?”
In the most luxurious member accommodation’s bedroom, Liam asked with a bright smile next to me.
With eyes and a smile that looked incredibly innocent and pure. I really wanted to smack him. Seriously.
However, domestic violence is one of the sins that must never be committed as a pope, so I decided to take a milder approach.
I opted to speak sarcastically.
“So… did you want to do it again, huh…”
As I caught my breath, glancing at him, Liam promptly nodded. It was a heavy gesture filled with sincerity, matching the speed of his response.
I momentarily locked eyes with that troublesome guy, wondering if he was joking.
Yet, no matter how long I waited, the playful glint and mischievous smile never appeared, and my head began to throb as a result.
It was driving me insane.
“Please, let’s take it easy. Didn’t we do it all day yesterday!”
It was now two days since the ‘Burning Association Punishment Incident’ occurred.
If everything had gone according to plan, I would have returned home and rested thoroughly.
But thanks to Liam’s whining, I ended up spending a whole day here. A whole day doing that.
“My back is aching; I can’t take it anymore. Look at that.”
I pointed at the trash bin next to the bed.
The trash bin, which was unnecessarily high-end, was overflowing with used contraceptives. It reeked terribly, and the sight was so awful that I had to quickly avert my gaze.
“At this rate, I’m basically cramming months’ worth of activities into one go.”
“That may be true.”
Liam acknowledged it easily but provided a different counterargument.
“But you’re a transcendent and I’m a demigod. Isn’t this the least I should do?”
“…Let’s not talk about it.”
We were simply not on the same wavelength.
At this rate, no matter what I said, he wouldn’t comprehend. He was pretending not to understand.
Eventually, I gave up on persuasion and pulled the blanket over myself. It was a form of protest.
Thereupon, Liam snuggled close and whispered softly.
“But you didn’t dislike it, did you? Right?”
“…….”
That was a foul move. It was a question with an already predetermined answer.
I didn’t want to be dragged along according to that guy’s whims in this situation, but having nothing to say, I reluctantly opened my mouth.
“…I didn’t dislike it.”
Honestly, it felt fabulously good.
With his skills and stamina being extraordinary, he knew me too well, making it impossible for my body not to heat up.
The insane pleasure that one who hasn’t experienced it would never understand. Once you get a taste, you turn into a fool.
That was the reason I ended up having three kids.
“See?”
Liam, who managed to elicit the answer he desired, started patting my body triumphantly.
His gestures seemed to urge something. Annoyed, I tried to ignore him but ultimately uncovered the blanket.
“Just this last time.”
It wasn’t that I accepted out of enjoyment at all.
I was merely obliged to comply since I had used the ‘Eluke Body Free Usage Rights’. Truly.
“Why didn’t you say so earlier?”
Liam chuckled and leaned closer to my face. Slowly, at a pace that wasn’t overwhelming.
‘He did it like this back then too.’
Staring at that annoying yet handsome face, I suddenly recalled an old memory.
A story from at least fifteen years ago. Back when I was still known as the ‘Weakest Saint’.
The day I resolved to completely abandon my identity as ‘Park Si-woo’.
*
The Four Heavenly Kings Raiaride.
The battle with that annoying and filthy tactics-wielding strong enemy had ended. After what felt like a year-long struggle, we achieved victory.
However, the joy of winning didn’t last long.
“Ugh…”
In a small to mid-size city inn, somewhat distant from the frontlines of the Demon King’s Army and the Imperial Army, I lay groaning on a shabby bed. It was due to the aftermath of the recent battle.
‘…I’m dying.’
The Four Heavenly Kings Raiaride swallowed the enemies and trapped them in its alternate space.
A small realm, reminiscent of a snowy land, where I and Liam found ourselves in a life-or-death situation.
If our comrades hadn’t arrived just in time to rescue us, we might truly have met our end.
We barely survived, but my condition wasn’t good at all.
My body was filled with frostbite, and my hands and feet trembled incessantly.
My stamina was down to almost nothing, and my Sacred Power was nearly depleted.
There wasn’t any part of me that was alright. It was utter chaos, a total mess, a state of being riddled with injuries. No expression could aptly describe the horrific condition I was in.
“Saint, where hurts the most?”
As I struggled to breathe and groan, a girl sitting by my bedside cautiously asked.
She was still so young, not even having hit puberty, a gifted sorceress. Among my comrades, the most reliable ‘Wise One’, Erin.
With moist eyes, Erin grasped my hand tightly.
“I’m sorry. I didn’t go to rescue you sooner…”
Is she blaming herself again? This was a constant problem with our wise one.
She was always too kind, feeling sorry for everyone around her.
She would constantly berate herself, thinking that if she had just tried a little harder, she could have saved everyone.
It was probably due to the mental strain of being part of the Hero party at such a young age.
I wished she could at least be a bit more relaxed and confident, though not as carefree as that reckless Hero.
With a bittersweet heart, I forced a smile.
“Erin, you didn’t do anything wrong. You eventually came to help in time.”
“But….”
“Enough. Let’s stop talking about that.”
I spoke firmly, and only then did Erin nod her head. She was still sniffling.
I found that sight unpleasant and raised my not-so-mobile hand to wipe her tears away.
I accompanied it with a bright show to make it look like I was in my usual state.
“I’m really okay, you know?”
“Liar….”
“It’s not a lie. In fact, I feel fine.”
“Why?”
“Because Liam followed my instructions.”
Back when we were trapped inside Raiaride’s body.
Liam promised that he would follow my lead without any rebellion. It was something to be immensely grateful for.
‘…Did we actually reach such a day?’
That troublesome guy was closer to a third-rate punk than a Hero.
He always behaved arrogantly and moved on his own during battles without cooperating.
He would only speak when he felt like it, and when everyone else was laughing, he would sulk for no reason. Sometimes he even had quarrels with comrades.
A Hero who couldn’t be controlled by anyone.
At least, he somewhat pretended to listen to my words that had always helped him out, but he wouldn’t heed any controls.
But.
This time, while we fought inside the body of the Four Heavenly Kings Raiaride, he perfectly followed my instructions.
Even now, it was moving enough to bring me to tears.
“Really?”
It seemed difficult to believe, as Erin’s eyes widened in surprise.
The cute wise one blinked a few times before asking.
“What kind of instructions was it?”
I replied lightly, as if it wasn’t a big deal.
“I told him to kill me.”
“…What?”
However, the news didn’t seem light at all, and Erin was unable to hide her shock.
Thinking it might lead to misunderstandings, I quickly elaborated on my explanation.
“Raiaride sent a monster troops living in his alternate space towards us, right? Since I was in no condition to protect myself, I asked him to kill me before the monsters could painfully devour me.”
“…….”
“How about it? Isn’t it more reasonable than you think?”
I asked, but Erin had no answer.
She just gazed at me with sorrowful eyes, then buried her face in my body. Then, with a weak voice, she began to speak.
“Is it true that the Hero looks better than the Saint…?”
“Oh, that’s because I blocked the cold with my whole body. I was going to die anyway.”
“…….”
I tried to put on a bright front, but it didn’t have much effect.
Erin remained quiet for a long time, then tightened her grip on my hands.
“Why do you always fight without taking care of your body…? Why…?”
“It’s unavoidable.”
I gently stroked Erin’s hair and smiled bitterly.
“I’m the ‘Weakest Saint’, after all.”
The Weakest Saint.
This has been the nickname that has followed me since I first became a saint.
“Erin, you heard last time, right? The Imperial Army was whispering about how I only burdened my comrades.”
It was frustrating, but it was a slander that couldn’t be refuted.
How could I endure such insults being a weak saint who couldn’t wield Sacred Power correctly? If the roles were reversed, I would probably have been the one badmouthing me.
“All I can do is throw my body into danger. I have to do that, don’t I?”
“…Saint.”
Erin neither agreed nor disagreed, merely shuddering her shoulders.
I wanted to cry too, but I held it in. I was too pathetic of a saint to waste tears.
Instead of shedding useless tears, I began to pray.
“Oh, gracious Sun. Please melt away this chilling pain that envelops me now with your warm sunlight.”
I prayed desperately, but there was no response. It was a common occurrence.
‘I’m so tired.’
As I began to struggle with the unbearable discomfort, I told Erin I was going to take a nap.
Upon which, our cute wise one pulled the blanket over me snugly and even conjured five fire orbs around me. A warm, magical gesture indeed.
“Well, I’ll be going out now. Please rest easy.”
“Sure.”
After Erin left the room, I closed my eyes, trying to sleep.
However, sleep wouldn’t come easily. The conversations I shared with Liam while trapped in Raiaride’s alternate space kept floating in my mind.
– Do you like me?
– Just realized? I’ve been trying to show it since we got trapped here.
The question thrown just before death and the deep feelings expressed in his affirmative.
At that time, Liam had shyly offered a smile that was totally out of character.
Honestly, it was cute.
“Ughhh.”
I buried my face into the pillow, kicking my legs.
Did I think he was cute? Have I gone mad?
Lost in such nonsensical thoughts only added to my mental anguish, which continued to linger in my head.
So, perhaps inevitably, I even recalled the following exchange.
– Liam, you only get one chance, so answer well. Should I kiss you?
“Ahh!”
A proposal thrown to awaken Liam in a desperate moment. It felt extremely serious back then, but now, it seemed utterly insane.
In the end, we didn’t actually kiss, but the aftermath and shock left over were beyond imagination. Just recalling that moment made my face flush.
“Oh, Sun…”
Eventually, after agonizing for quite some time, I finally fell asleep.
Yet even in dreams, I couldn’t rest comfortably.
‘Clitia, kiss me.’
Liam appeared in my dreams.
That alone was driving me crazy, but the reaction I showed in the dream made me want to pull my hair out.
‘I want to.’
Want? What do I want? Am I crazy?
Fortunately, I woke up just before anything calamitous could occur, but the dream had already imprinted vividly in my mind. Unlike usual, I couldn’t forget it.
So, I lay there on the bed absently, admitting one fact.
‘…I am definitely conscious of him as a man.’
It seems that I had begun to harbor feelings for Liam as a male.
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