The Cult Leader in the Clergy Academy

Chapter 359

Chapter 359

The emergence of the new Holy See, recovery of damages from the Holy War, and declaration of the end of the conflict with the Voodoo Cult happened over a long period of time.

The new Holy See appeared right after the Second Holy War. Six months later, the Holy See finally decided to resolve the damages from the Holy War and to punish participating clergymen. The official proclamation from the Holy See that the conflict with the Voodoo Cult had ended came one year and six months after the Second Holy War.

However, one year and six months was not a long time. One and a half years was short, considering each event's ripple effects and influence on the Romanican Church members.

Despite the grace period to make the proclamation, the Romanican Church’s conservative faction vehemently opposed the idea. Their main argument was that the conflict with the Voodoo Cult could never end, as they believed that the Voodoo Cult would eventually attack the Romanican Church and ultimately try to seize all of its power.

Most moderate factions of the Romanican Church supported ending the conflict with the Voodoo Cult. They saw no reason to label them as heretics, especially after effectively eliminating their greatest enemy, the Satanists. However, as the opposition voices from the Romanican Church’s conservative faction persisted, Ha-Yeon called together a council.

"This is the current Cult Leader of the Voodoo Cult, Soo-Yeong."

Ha-Yeon invited Soo-Yeong, the Cult Leader of the Voodoo Cult, to the council. This was shocking not only to the conservatives but also to the moderates.

There would undoubtedly be resistance, but Ha-Yeon had her reasons. Without the Cult Leader of the Voodoo Cult, the Pope could not talk very convincingly about reconciliation and coexistence alone. The conflict with the Voodoo Cult could only subside when the Cult Leader of the Voodoo Cult and the Pope of the Romanican Church met, had a direct conversation, and signed a peace treaty of sorts.

“Our stance is no different from before. Leave us be, and we will leave you be as well,” Soo-Yeong said.

The stance conveyed through Soo-Yeong's words on behalf of the Voodoo Cult was not much different from before.

Leave us alone.

It was simple. Unless the Romanican Church showed hostility toward the Voodoo Cult first, the Voodoo Cult would not be hostile toward the Romanican Church.

"We made that decision when we declared that we would end the conflict between us. Wouldn’t you say that the Romanican Church does not have any reason to provoke the Voodoo Cult?" Ha-Yeon said.

Everyone had already seen the consequences of the Romanican Church taking a hostile stance toward the Voodoo Cult and starting the Second Holy War. With the Pope dead and the status of the Romanican Church greatly diminished after the Second Holy War, there was no reason for them to provoke the Voodoo Cult again. No, it’d be correct to say they couldn’t touch them.

"Then there's nothing more to discuss. With this, I declare a complete end to the conflict with the Voodoo Cult once again," Ha-Yeon said.

Some of the cardinals and archbishops who participated in the council were not pleased with Ha-Yeon’s declaration but did not show it. The faction supporting Ha-Yeon had overwhelmingly more power than the opposing faction.

At that moment, someone asked, "Out of personal curiosity, is the Loa's power with you, Cult Leader Soo-Yeong?"

The question was unexpected, and it captured the attention of the participating cardinals and the archbishops. Even in a situation where the conflict had ended, knowing who possessed the power of Loa was important. The Voodoo Cult primarily derived its power, firepower, authority, and prestige from the power of Loa.

"I will not answer."

However, Soo-Yeong did not answer. Ha-Yeon nodded upon hearing the response. It was a wise answer not to speak about it at the moment.

Yeon furrowed his brows slightly, but not enough for Soo-Yeong to notice. He didn’t seem convinced.

Yeon asked, "I would also like to ask about the life and death of the Third Cult Leader, Sun-Woo. Would this question also be difficult to answer? This is not a question based on personal curiosity, but one closely related to the purpose of this council."

Soo-Yeong shook her head.

"No. It is still difficult to say who possesses the power of Loa, that is, who the Prophet is. I can say that part for sure."

"Does the Voodoo Cult consider him dead? Or do you see a possibility that he is alive?"

"The Third Cult Leader, Sun-Woo, is dead. Absolutely. We are sure of it."

"Absolutely..." Yeon nodded his head, repeating Soo-Yeong's words.

‘Absolutely.’ It wasn’t necessary for her to emphasize that statement. However, Soo-Yeong had emphasized those words. There were various meanings behind that emphasis. Yeon thought that Soo-Yeong, the Fourth Cult Leader of the Voodoo Cult, was not as easygoing as she seemed.

"If you say so, then there's no need to ask further."

Ha-Yeon nodded, ending the uncomfortable Q&A session.

The council continued. There were discussions about the relationship with the Voodoo Cult. However, the majority of the time was devoted to proposing enhancements for both the Holy See of the Romanican Church and the Romanican Church itself.

Ha-Yeon and Yeon presented various measures to prevent corruption, abuse, and the instrumentalization of religion for secular purposes. Among them was a decree against marriage for the Pope and some prelates. The positions of the Pope and prelates should not be hereditary but given to qualified individuals, which was the reason for the decree. While the external justification was clear, Pope Ha-Yeon’s true intentions were unknown.

"And with that, I conclude this council."

Ha-Yeon's final words marked the end of the council. It took some time for the clergymen to disperse, as there were many of them, and they showed interest in Soo-Yeong, the Fourth Cult Leader of the Voodoo Cult.

***

"And study hard during the vacation. You know that right now is the most important time for you all, right?" In-Ah said.

The students were just waiting for In-Ah to finish. Their eyes twinkled brightly. Although she found it reprehensible that their dead eyes, staring into space, were all lit up, In-Ah understood. She felt the same way when she attended Florence Academy too.

"Anyway, have a good vacation, everyone. Don't go to strange places and get hurt. Dismissed!"

With those words from In-Ah, Florence Academy began its vacation. The students happily rushed out of the classroom and went home.

In-Ah was still a teacher. Florence Academy still stood where it had been. Due to the Holy War, there were many changes, and Florence Academy naturally had to change.

In-Ah had changed a bit, too. First, she became a homeroom teacher and also led the teaching of blessings in the Department of Priests. Students used to tease her due to her impulsive nature and many mistakes, but she felt more relaxed now, thanks to adapting to the life of a teacher. It was a significant change.

After the vacation ceremony, In-Ah went to the teacher's office. There was still work to be done.

"So, have you reflected on your actions?" In-Ah said to the student standing in the teacher's office.

He was a student from the Class of Charity, where In-Ah was the homeroom teacher. The student excelled in academics and practical skills. One of his parents was a prelate, so he also had a deep faith. He had also consulted about his future career path, aspiring to join the Department of Priests. In many ways, he was a student with high expectations.

"...”

"You still haven't come to your senses."

Such an outstanding student was in the teacher's office on a day like this, of all days, because of school violence. Florence Academy was still an academy for Romanican Church clergymen under Her Holiness. Therefore, students had to know how to use divine power and at least have some faith in the Romanican Church.

However, unlike in the past, the presence of a Voodooist in a student's family no longer resulted in admission rejection. The Voodooists were no longer considered heretics after all. But the student standing in front of In-Ah had been continuously hurling insults like 'heretic' and 'spawn of evil' at another student in a Voodooist family.

"The Voodooists are no longer considered heretical. They aren’t heretics. They are just from a different religion," In-Ah said.

The student bowed their head deeply and fell silent. In-Ah waited for the student to respond. The student raised their head and looked at In-Ah. Their eyes were red, and tears welled up.

"That's just what the Holy See decided," the student said boldly, looking In-Ah straight in the eye.

Much had changed, but some things remained the same. Just as the clergy academy, Florence Academy, still existed, some considered the Voodooists as heretical, criticized them, and bullied students in the family who were part of the Voodooists.

Despite the official proclamation by the Holy See that the 'Voodooists were not heretical,' such people still existed on Earth.

"Who decided that they were heretics? Did you decide that?"

However, things were better than they were for the Holy See, In-Ah, and Florence Academy. Now, anyone could enter Florence Academy even if they had relatives in the Voodoo Church or even if their siblings and parents were Voodooists. Anyone was welcome to attend Florence Academy if they had the qualifications and sincerely desired to become a Romanican Church clergyman.

"The only reason we won’t escalate further is because the wronged student showed mercy. You should be thankful."

"Yes, ma’am."

After giving the student a proper scolding, In-Ah instructed them to go home. Even though she had held back, she had detained the student for thirty minutes, so the student must have realized something.

After seeing the student off, In-Ah let out a deep sigh. Some groups still rejected the Voodooists, but on the other hand, some groups embraced and supported them. In-Ah thought that both the world and the students would gradually change for the better in the future. It would be nice if it were so.

"Um, Teacher."

While finishing up urgent matters and preparing to leave work, a student she had never seen approached In-Ah. No, they were one of those students she recognized by face but didn't know their name because they lacked characteristics.

"Yes. What is it?"

"Someone asked me to give this to you earlier..."

The student handed a letter to her and then left.

In-Ah stared at the letter the student had given her in silence. She felt strange about it. There were a few cases where people conveyed their thoughts through letters.

Was it a lucky letter or something like that? In-Ah felt uneasy and hesitantly took out the letter and unfolded it.

Her eyes widened the moment she read the first sentence.

To Unnie.