Chapter 348

Chapter 348

“So you’re saying you were driven out without gaining anything?”

“I apologize.”

At Johan’s anger, Rubo lowered his head.

Even if he had ten mouths, he had no excuse to offer.

After barely suppressing his anger, Johan asked,

“Only nine returned? You couldn’t determine Chensi’s whereabouts until the end?”

“No!”

“In the end, you wasted an entire month and failed to discover even a single clue about the Saintess. On top of that, contact with Chensi was completely cut off……”

“I have no excuse.”

“Are you certain Zeon didn’t do something to Chensi?”

“That is not the case. I know because I was watching him.”

“What are the chances he deceived you?”

“I watched him with Clairvoyance twenty-four hours a day.”

With those words, Rubo pressed his lips tightly shut.

His pride had been wounded.

Clairvoyance was everything to him.

Even if it was Johan, if he said something that questioned Clairvoyance, Rubo had no choice but to feel offended.

Johan also realized Rubo was displeased. But he had no intention of apologizing.

“Then why was contact with Chensi cut off?”

“Could she perhaps have discovered a clue?”

“Discovered a clue?”

“Yes! The situation may have been too urgent for her to leave a message.”

“That could be the case.”

Johan nodded.

Dark Saints basically carried out individual missions.

Even when they were assigned a joint mission, each of them moved separately.

Because of that, if they moved without making contact, there was no way for this side to know their whereabouts.

“Where was the last place Chensi contacted us from?”

“Near Shinchon’s northern boundary.”

“Did she say anything special?”

“She said she would investigate around that area for the time being, and then contact was cut off.”

“North of Shinchon…….”

Johan stroked the cross in his hand and fell briefly into thought.

At present, Johan and Dongdaemun were isolated.

Inside Neo Seoul, they were clashing with each district, and searching the slums was not easy either.

Especially after the rumor spread that the Saintess’s true identity was a Grade A Healer, the clashes had grown even worse. Not only the districts of Neo Seoul, but even the organizations in the slums had begun coveting her.

Naturally, they did not cooperate with Dongdaemun’s operation. Instead, they often interfered or picked fights.

Because of that, the work of finding the Saintess was being delayed.

At this rate, there was a high chance the Saintess would be taken by another district or faction.

They had to find some kind of breakthrough.

“The causes of death for the other casualties are clear. Only Chensi vanished without any contact. There must be a reason.”

His instincts whispered to him.

Chensi’s disappearance was connected to the Saintess.

Johan felt an impulse so powerful he could not control it.

“Joshua!”

“Yes!”

At that moment, Joshua appeared inside the room without a sound.

“Gather all the Dark Saints and Paladins. I will personally go to Shinchon.”

“If you do that, there will certainly be a clash with Zeon. Did he not drive out all the Dark Saints because the month had passed?”

“Then are we to give up like this?”

“No.”

“He was an existence we would have had to collide with and remove someday anyway. Now that things have come to this, we will use this chance to eliminate Zeon and seize Shinchon as well.”

“Understood.”

Joshua lowered his head and answered.

Johan looked up at the massive cross and said,

“For Dongdaemun to survive, we absolutely need the Saintess. No matter what sacrifice it takes, we must secure her. The Saintess must be wherever Chensi disappeared.”

---

“Hah! Hah!”

Remura gasped roughly for breath.

She had temporarily collapsed from exhaustion after consuming too much mana while using her Skill.

Bakum, who was beside her, looked at Remura with pity. But that was all.

Because Heather was beside Remura, he could neither speak nor act.

Heather patted Remura’s shoulder and said,

“You worked hard. Rest a little, then let’s treat more people.”

“Mom! Can’t we do it tomorrow?”

“What are you saying? So many people are waiting for you. Are you going to ignore their expectations?”

“That’s not it. I’m just tired……”

“That’s why I’m letting you rest a little. If you can’t even endure this much, how are you supposed to do great things?”

At Heather’s words, Remura lowered her head.

‘I don’t want to do great things, Mom!’

Her words merely circled inside her mouth.

Under the pretext of saving the people of the Crocodile den, Heather worked Remura harshly.

She lined up people who needed treatment and made Remura use her Skill on them.

In that way, Remura healed countless people.

Up to that point, Remura had no complaints.

If her power helped sick people recover, she was willing to use it as much as needed.

The problem was that Heather was trying to use Remura to satisfy her own greed.

She made the people treated by Remura swear loyalty. Only those who swore loyalty were allowed to receive the Cure Skill.

Countless people swore loyalty to receive Remura’s treatment. There were already more than a hundred of them.

And all of them were Awakened.

The Awakened who had been healed all became Remura’s personal guard.

Bakum was the representative example.

Before she knew it, the area around Remura was crawling with Awakened who had sworn loyalty. But the one giving them orders was not Remura, but Heather.

The Awakened did not dare defy Heather’s orders.

Heather’s eyes as she looked at them were filled with enormous ambition.

‘I will build my kingdom here.’

If she were alone, it would be impossible, but with her daughter, it was more than possible.

Already, a hundred Awakened were following her.

With them, conquering the Crocodile den was not just a dream.

‘After I conquer the entire Crocodile den, I’ll go up to the surface. There’s no law saying we have to keep living in this stinking, filthy place.’

To achieve her ambition, Remura needed to work harder.

There were still many people lined up to receive her treatment.

This place was so dirty and damp that there were many people suffering from illness. All of them were targets for Heather’s work.

Of course, the one using her power was not Heather, but her daughter. But that did not matter.

Everything her daughter possessed belonged to her as well.

“Hah! Hah!”

Remura leaned against the wall, gasping for breath.

After being pushed through forced marches for days on end, all the mana in her body had been depleted.

This was not something that could be resolved by resting for an hour or two.

She needed at least several days of rest to recover her body. But Heather did not give her time to rest.

“If you’ve rested enough, let’s hurry and heal the people. There are still so many waiting for your help.”

Heather pointed at the people waiting in line as she spoke.

“Mom, can’t I rest just a little longer?”

“What will you do if they die while you’re resting? It won’t be too late to rest after you heal them all.”

“But……”

“Listen to your mother. That’s what makes you a good daughter.”

“Yes!”

In the end, Remura forced herself to stand.

She drew on her strength because she did not want to disappoint her mother.

Heather introduced the first patient to Remura.

“This man is a Grade E magic-type Awakened. He can use rare ice Magic, so pay special attention and treat him well.”

“Yes!”

The first patient’s lungs were completely ruined.

His lungs had lost function in childhood, so even after Awakening, he had been unable to properly display his ability.

Normally, after Awakening, most illnesses or wounds healed in an instant. But illnesses caused by the harsh environment of the Crocodile den did not heal easily even after Awakening.

That was why there were so many Awakened patients like this.

All of them were targets for Heather’s recruitment.

Remura gathered her strength and used the Cure Skill.

Flash!

With an intense light, the first patient was healed.

“Ahhh!”

The first patient shed tears.

Because the pain in the lungs that had tormented him for his entire life had completely vanished.

He held Remura’s hands and said,

“Thank you. I will repay this grace with my life.”

“Ah, yes!”

Remura could not hide her flustered expression as her hands were held.

It was then.

“Hah! So you were here. Healing such a severe patient in one breath…… you really are the Saintess.”

A woman’s voice came from the entrance.

“Who are you?”

Bakum stepped in front of Remura and shouted.

“There is no need to be so wary, brother! I am not your enemy. I came to escort the Saintess.”

The one approaching with a smile on her lips was Chensi.

Chensi’s face as she looked at Remura was filled with joy.

It had been five minutes since she arrived here after following Remura’s traces. That was why she had seen it.

Remura healing an Awakened.

Seeing someone who had been near death regain color in an instant and heal completely left her unable to hide her shock.

No Healer on the surface could cure a patient suffering from such a serious illness in one breath.

At that level, it would not be lacking at all to present her as a Saintess of the Church.

If she brought Remura to Dongdaemun, the Church’s influence would undoubtedly expand explosively.

“Hah! Hah!”

She was so happy that she could barely breathe.

At that moment, Heather stepped forward.

“What does that mean? Saintess?”

“Our Church received a divine revelation. It told us to find and bring back the Saintess.”

“So you’re saying a divine revelation came down telling you to find my daughter Remura?”

“That is correct. God personally gave the command to Lord Johan.”

“Hoho! I knew it. My daughter Remura isn’t an ordinary Awakened. She’s a child chosen by God.”

Heather burst into tinkling laughter.

Chensi quietly looked at Heather.

Instinctively, she realized Heather was controlling Remura.

Chensi said to Heather,

“Come with me. If she becomes Dongdaemun’s Saintess, she may even rule Neo Seoul.”

“Why should I?”

“What?”

“I’m asking why I should enter Dongdaemun. My daughter is the Saintess. Naturally, Johan should come under me.”

“That is……”

Chensi looked dumbfounded.

Overwhelmed by Heather’s forcefulness, Remura could not say a word.

Just from that, it was clear who was the master and who was the servant.

Heather, the mother, was clearly mentally dominating her daughter Remura.

In general, in a case like this, negotiating with Heather, the mother, would be proper. But if she did that, she would clearly be dragged around endlessly by Heather.

‘What should I do?’

Even while Chensi was thinking, Heather continued speaking.

“We will build a kingdom here. Johan will have to come to my kingdom and kiss my feet.”

Heather’s words, which crossed the line, became the trigger.

Chensi made her decision.

At that instant, her eyes gleamed coldly.

Her gaze turned to the man standing behind Heather. He was the Grade E magic-type Awakened who had just been treated by Remura. The moment his eyes met Chensi’s, the Grade E magic-type Awakened’s eyes lost focus.

―Eliminate the devil trying to stain the Saintess with evil.

A secret whisper reached the Grade E Awakened’s ears.

At that moment, the Grade E Awakened saw a hallucination.

In his eyes, Heather looked like a massive snake.

But the Grade E Awakened did not even realize that what he was seeing was an illusion.

“Devil, return to hell.”

He unleashed ice Magic toward Heather.

BOOM!

“Aaaah!”

With a scream, Heather toppled forward. There was a large hole pierced through her back.

“M-Mom!”

Remura, startled, tried to hold Heather. But Chensi embraced her first and shouted,

“Ah! The Saintess is in danger. Everyone, protect her!”

At Chensi’s cry, the Awakened surrounded Remura.

Meanwhile, Bakum attacked the Grade E Awakened who had attacked Heather.

“How dare you repay grace with enmity?”

“No, I……”

The Grade E Awakened, who had regained his senses, was flustered by what he had done.

That was because his memory had vanished completely for that moment.

That was one of Chensi’s abilities.

Mental domination through hypnosis.

For Chensi, dominating the mind of a novice who had just been treated after suffering from illness for a long time, like the Grade E Awakened, was not particularly difficult.

Smack!

Before the Grade E Awakened could even make an excuse, Bakum’s attack landed. The Grade E Awakened had one arm broken and bled, but he barely managed to save his life.

“I cannot forgive anyone who targets the Saintess.”

Bakum raised his bloodstained fist and shouted.

All the other Awakened responded to him.

“Protect the Saintess.”

“Woooo!”

It was precisely then that Levin, Jetoya, and the others appeared.

Sensing the madness-filled atmosphere, Levin muttered,

“Tsk! Looks like we’re fucked, doesn’t it?”