Chapter 37

“I’m not pleased.”

Sofia Sub-priest, who was heading to the classroom with me, grumbled. Her protruding lips were quite striking.

“What do you mean?”

“Your hair. Head Priest’s hair.”

I casually brushed my hair. The usual black hair parted as my fingers ran through it.

“Are you talking about my hair?”

“Yes. Why did you go back to the way it was?”

It seemed she was unhappy that my carefully tended hair had returned to its original disarray. However, there was nothing I could do about it.

“It takes a lot of time.”

“You could just push it back.”

“I’ll try doing that starting tomorrow.”

Although Sofia Sub-priest still seemed dissatisfied, I somehow managed to convince her. I let out a shallow sigh.

The truth was that the hassle was the biggest issue. Usually, I could just go around like this and only worry about my appearance when it was an important occasion. I questioned whether I really needed to care about my looks until the class began.

“By the way, Head Priest.”

Sofia Sub-priest called out to me. I turned my gaze toward her.

“Why did you ask me to prepare this?”

What her finger was pointing at was a large object hanging by my side, covered in thick cloth, along with another round object wrapped in the same cloth. I shrugged my shoulders.

“Did you not peek under the cloth?”

“No. You told me not to look.”

“Well done.”

Sofia Sub-priest still wore a puzzled expression. Meanwhile, we had arrived in front of the classroom.

“Let’s go in.”

We entered the classroom, firmly holding onto the picture attached to my side.

It was exactly 9:30 AM.

* * * * *

The students’ eyes were fixed on Professor Antorelli, who stood at the podium. As usual, Professor Antorelli glanced at the classroom with a stiff expression.

“Then, let’s begin the theology class.”

He spoke the same as he usually did.

The students’ mouths itched to ask questions. Questions about the unexpected class cancellation from last Friday’s session with Professor Antorelli flooded their minds, but those questions evaporated with his next words.

“Today, let’s study a slightly different field.”

A slightly different. What this phrase meant to the students was unknown to Professor Antorelli.

The students, holding their writing instruments with passionate eyes, were already captivated. The looks they had when they entered the classroom, though warm, were now even more intense.

Professor Antorelli’s teaching. The growth that came from it.

Students of Class A in their first year were exceptional learners, who had relentlessly sought the pinnacle of knowledge throughout their lives, so it was not surprising that they felt as if they had found an unexpected treasure.

Professor Antorelli’s hand slowly moved, and soon he opened the Bible that was on the podium.

Rustle. Rustle.

The pages smoothly turned along with his touch until they finally came to a halt.

“Your people of Terea do not fall into temptation, nor have your righteous acts saved you, but you shall follow the Lord’s mercy with a renewed spirit.”

Professor Antorelli abruptly closed the Bible, and the expressions of the students, having suddenly heard the verse, began to change to bewilderment.

“Students. What is spirituality?”

Professor Antorelli posed a theological question. All the students in the classroom tilted their heads in confusion.

Spirituality. What is it?

It was a term they had occasionally heard before, especially when reading books, but no student knew its true meaning.

A student from the theology department raised his hand. Professor Antorelli pointed to him.

“You may speak.”

“Yes, Professor. Spirituality means the love of the Lord and the passion expressed by many of the Lord’s servants who long for the coming of the Father’s Kingdom.”

Upon hearing the response, Professor Antorelli slowly nodded, stroking his chin. All the students in the classroom looked at that student with envy and jealousy.

“Is this what sets theology apart?”

“I don’t understand it even after hearing it.”

The theology student, now beaming with pride at having answered, did not anticipate that Professor Antorelli would soon cut him down.

“Is that all there is to define spirituality? The love of the Lord, or the inner passion of devotees praying to the Lord….”

“Yes. I believe that is spirituality….”

“Student, what is your name?”

“…Louis, sir.”

“Student Louis. Let me provide a few examples.”

Professor Antorelli’s fingers slowly unfolded. The students’ eyes gathered around him.

“The dawn sunlight in May, the fresh scent of grass on a meadow, the wisdom of an old man…. What do these have in common?”

Louis hesitated, his lips quivering. The students gazed at him with intrigued eyes.

“I… I don’t know. I’m sorry.”

“There’s nothing to apologize for. It’s alright. You may take your seat.”

Louis timidly sat down, showing a different demeanor from just a moment ago when he had spoken confidently. Professor Antorelli slowly returned to the front of the podium.

“The commonality in the three examples I mentioned earlier is that they are all difficult to define precisely, as their meanings can only be vaguely inferred.”

The students nodded vigorously. The Class A students had become engrossed in the lesson, feeling as if it resembled an engaging quiz game.

As the students looked on with even more intrigued eyes, Professor Antorelli continued.

“I won’t say that the love of the Lord and the inner passion of devotees are not part of spirituality. They surely are included. However… isn’t it strange?”

All the students, particularly the theology students, wore expressions of curiosity. What seemed strange about something that was included in the meaning of spirituality? Professor Antorelli continued.

“Consider attending Sunday worship. All of you seated in this classroom have taken precious time out of your Sunday to gather together at the Seminary Main Chapel.”

The scene vividly came to life in the students’ minds. It was feasible because the classroom’s appearance would hardly differ, save for the changed location.

“Some students pray. Others seek repentance. Some students simply gaze at the podium with reverence.”

As they vividly pictured these scenes, the students became more absorbed in Professor Antorelli’s lesson.

“According to Student Louis’s earlier statement, all these actions correspond to spirituality. At this point, haven’t you noticed something strange?”

A slender hand shot up from the middle row. Professor Antorelli pointed in that direction.

“Student Chloe.”

“Yes! It’s strange that the term spirituality has become so broad and its boundaries so vague!”

“Exactly.”

Chloe beamed and sat down energetically. Professor Antorelli continued his explanation.

“Student Louis’s answer is certainly not wrong. However, if that is the case, the meaning of the term spirituality becomes exceedingly ambiguous.”

After a brief pause, Professor Antorelli lifted something resting on the podium.

“Do you know what this is?”

It was something round and covered by cloth, its identity unclear. Students began to display signs of distress in their gazes.

The classroom fell into silence as Professor Antorelli posed the answer to his own question.

“This is bread.”

After hearing Professor Antorelli’s words, the students’ expressions shifted slightly. Bread? What kind of bread was that?

As if he had read the students’ confusion, Professor Antorelli elaborated on their plight.

“There are many types of bread. Hard rye bread, coarse-textured sourdough, sweet rolls, and broadly speaking, cakes, cream bread, white bread… so many varieties exist.”

Indeed. The word bread was too vague a criterion to define that round object. The students nodded in agreement.

“Student Louis’s answer is similar.”

“Ah…!”

The expressions of the students brightened. After hearing that insight from Louis, they finally understood that it was an ambiguous explanation regarding the definition of spirituality.

“Spirituality cannot be defined by such simple and vague terms. To define it, one must employ a more sophisticated term that is not necessarily functional across all aspects of daily life.”

The students once again wore expressions of perplexity. Professor Antorelli let out a shallow sigh.

“Hmm… To understand spirituality, one must not view it through human eyes. In other words, one cannot attempt to interpret it through the functional acts performed by humans. Do you understand?”

Reactions indicating they’ve roughly grasped the idea began surfacing. Although some students were still tilting their heads in confusion, most had started picking up on thin and faint threads of understanding.

Professor Antorelli spoke.

“Spirituality in theology. Originally, I intended to lecture on that… Unfortunately, it seems there are no students who fully understand spirituality.”

The students’ expressions turned slightly somber. They were used to being treated as exceptional students in their respective fields.

However, they felt that this class approached a higher-level, more theological aspect, making it feel quite challenging.

“Therefore, before studying spirituality in theology… we need to shift our focus to a different field for a moment.”

Professor Antorelli gestured to Sofia Sub-priest, who climbed up to the podium and grabbed the edge of the large object covered in cloth.

Simultaneously, Professor Antorelli held the other side, and they struggled to lift the object on the blackboard. The rectangular object leaning against the blackboard resembled a frame of a painting.

Brushing off his hands, Professor Antorelli adjusted his glasses and said.

“Starting today, we will study demonology.”

Demonology. A field of study focusing on the evil spirits of hell or demons. It sounded like quite an intriguing topic for the students, although it also raised questions.

Demonology? Wasn’t that an incredibly abrupt topic? The idea that one needed to examine demonology before beginning studies on spirituality was lost on the students.

Sensing the confusion in the students’ minds, Professor Antorelli said.

“There may be students wondering how studying spirituality relates to studying demonology.”

All the students subconsciously nodded. None were exceptions.

“I will make you understand the reason in a very short time.”

Professor Antorelli gestured to Sofia Sub-priest again. Upon seeing the gesture, she nodded and began to turn off all the classroom lights and draw the curtains over the windows.

“What’s happening? Suddenly?”

“It’s a bit scary…”

“Is the classroom this dark?”

In the engulfing darkness, the only sounds the students could hear were the voices of other students. Even that was difficult to discern who had spoken, thanks to the surrounding darkness.

Just as the classroom was becoming increasingly chaotic.

“Everyone, can you see these demons?”

Professor Antorelli’s voice echoed. The students slowly turned their stiff bodies to look into the shadows where the podium had been visible moments ago.

What kind of ridiculous question was it to ask if they could see demons when they couldn’t see anything?

“Ah, demons…?”

“Could it be that you summoned demons?”

“Does that even make sense?”

“I’m scared….”

When no one answered, Professor Antorelli asked again.

“Can you not see the vicious forms of these demons?”

“Aah, I can’t see…!”

One student hesitantly shouted into the darkness. Then, Professor Antorelli said.

“It’s only natural that you cannot see. After all, we are in darkness where no light exists.”

Then what about this?

Whoosh—.

With Professor Antorelli’s words, light suddenly appeared from somewhere. The students’ gazes naturally turned towards it.

There stood Sofia Sub-priest, cradling a warm golden orb in her hands. Professor Antorelli, standing next to her, spoke.

“Look here.”

At the place his finger indicated, there was…

“Oh my….”

The painting that had been on the blackboard was casting off its thick covering and revealing its true form.

A bright red face. Strangely grown horns. A monster depicted with the heads of a goat, dog, and lion… a large picture drawn to represent demons.

It was a portrayal of demons. That horrifying image, reminiscent of hell, was revealing itself following the light held by Sofia Sub-priest.

“Students.”

Facing the horrifying picture, Professor Antorelli posed the question once more.

“Now, can you see these demons?”

The students nodded their heads. Professor Antorelli continued.

“If light does not exist, you cannot uncover the wicked beings hidden in darkness. In order to confront these evil entities, we need to understand and accept the light.”

“……!”

“However, this light is far too vague, and delves into complex thoughts that exceed our understanding.”

Spirituality in theology and demonology. Light and shadow. That which cannot be separated from one another.

“Thus, we must conversely examine the darkness.”

Before studying spirituality, Professor Antorelli’s intention to first explore demonology…

The students finally began to grasp that deeper meaning.