On a sunny day, everyone was at the secret base.
Under the sunlight streaming from the open ceiling, everyone was engaged in a special game.
The children had sticks in their small mouths.
At the signal, they exhaled, and bubbles emerged from the ends of the sticks.
They were the bubble toys that Red had brought.
But they were not just ordinary toys.
They changed shape according to the imagination of the person blowing them.
Indeed, various shapes of bubbles, large and small, spread out thanks to the children’s imaginations.
Shapes of rabbits, tigers, bears, cakes, bread, stars, and more decorated the sky.
“What’s that?”
When Lena pointed with her finger, there was a bubble that resembled my face.
What indeed was that?
I could roughly guess who did it and, looking towards the boys, I saw one of them proudly rubbing his nose.
Ugh.
I took the stick and blew.
A pointed bubble reflecting my imagination burst with a pop.
“Ahhhhh… I worked so hard to make it.”
A cheer erupted from the boys over there.
The girls giggled.
At that moment, a strong, fierce wind rushed in.
The bubbles soared high towards the open ceiling, riding the wind.
The children blankly gazed at the many bubbles sparkling in the sunlight.
As I blew a new bubble, the other children also began to blow bubbles with even more excitement.
Bop, sparkle.
Bop, sparkle.
In the beautiful sight that captivated both eyes and hearts, everyone smiled joyfully.
The warm laughter spread into the clear sky along with the bubbles.
“I wish days like this would continue forever.”
Indeed.
I hoped along with Lena’s mutterings.
I wished for this leisurely time to last long.
A strange, tightly wound atmosphere hung between the two men.
Gray, the leader and high priest of the Cult of the Grim Reaper, gazed at the one who had come to see him.
With black hair and slitted eyes like a snake.
His handsome face was very gentle. A kind smile appeared, giving him a soft impression, but at the same time, a peculiar chill emanated from him.
A serpentine man whose inner thoughts were impossible to discern.
Because of that, Gray could not let his guard down, maintaining a heavy demeanor unlike the lively man giving greetings.
Despite the grave and dignified atmosphere, the man seemed unbothered.
The gentle smile remained on his lips.
Still smiling, he shook his head slightly.
“Aren’t we too stiff for friends? Try to relax a bit.”
“Friends… I don’t think the concept of friendship fits between us…”
“Well, even if there isn’t friendship between us, we are still on the same page, right?”
“On the same page?”
“Yeah, you and I both desire the advent of the Grim Reaper.”
“…”
Gray lowered his eyes slightly.
Lost in thought, he recalled his first meeting with the man.
When the Cult of the Grim Reaper had just emerged, the man approached, introducing himself as ‘The Prophet.’
The Prophet claimed he would lend his wisdom so that the Cult could fulfill its great cause.
Since the Cult of the Grim Reaper needed people, they accepted the Prophet.
Since then, the Prophet had shown wisdom for the Cult’s growth.
Thanks to the Prophet’s timely advice, the Cult had been able to grow remarkably.
According to him, the Prophet could read the flow of the world.
In other words, he could see the future.
In fact, the world unfolded just as he said.
It was too accurate to dismiss as mere coincidence.
The Cult recognized the Prophet’s abilities and contributions, bestowing the title “The One with True Wisdom.”
In essence, the Prophet was practically a benefactor of the Cult of the Grim Reaper.
The reason the Cult could grow as it is now was largely due to the Prophet’s influence.
However, as the leader, Gray did not wholly trust the Prophet.
Gray raised his gaze and met the Prophet’s eyes.
“Certainly, our hopes are the same. However, just because we hope for the same thing does not mean our desires are identical. Our Cult wishes to bring rest and peace to this land through death, but you desire destruction, do you not?”
While their purposes were the same, their directions were different.
There was an unease that that small difference might lead to a fracture in the end.
They were not friends.
Their relationship was merely one of mutual necessity and use for their respective purposes.
In other words, a fragile relationship where betrayal could occur if the perceived value of using one another disappeared, or once the objectives were achieved.
They acknowledged the Prophet’s devotion, but it was hard to trust someone who hides their true intentions, so Gray maintained his caution.
With a warning tone, Gray’s words made the Prophet shrug lightly.
“Isn’t it all the same? After all, we’re aiming for the same finish line.”
“Anyway, in response to your question, it has come to pass as you said. Isaac has fallen into the hands of the Crime Killer.”
“False wisdom spills blood across the vast land, allowing death to take root. Fulfilled, false wisdom will be pierced by the fist of the one who advocates justice. Uhohoho… he was a man with enough value to use.”
A grim smile appeared on the Prophet’s lips.
Gray nodded, agreeing with those words.
“He was a foolish man. Thanks to that, he was easy to use.”
“He probably believed he was using us, but in reality, he was completely dancing in our hands; he probably had no idea until his dying moment.”
Isaac was quite a useful pawn.
Isaac’s power, wealth, various information, and so forth.
By thoroughly utilizing what he possessed, the plans could be prepared smoothly.
And after his death, the world became even more chaotic.
He was a man who continued to be useful even after death.
“Now, the only prophecy left for us is to break the faith of the one who advocates justice and direct the fist toward the city.”
“Right, then the Grim Reaper will descend upon this land as we wished.”
The Prophet sat down on a shabby chair.
He casually stretched both arms up to turn on a device.
Letting out a groan.
“I’m going to be busy from now on.”
“But it won’t be as easy as you say. His mental strength is very robust, and his fist may very well bring us down first.”
Red is strong both physically and mentally.
Her strength is destructive, and many of her family have fallen to her hands.
Even at this very moment.
Of course, it’s true that the more Red gets involved here, the more favorable it is.
That means there will be more opportunities to confuse her mind through increased interactions.
However, Red’s mind is as solid as a fortress, so there are difficulties.
Seeing Gray’s concerns, the Prophet smiled and waved his hand dismissively.
“Hahaha, don’t worry.”
So saying, the Prophet slightly opened one eye.
A red pupil was revealed.
In the blood-stained dark eye, Gray involuntarily furrowed his brow slightly.
It was chillingly red.
The Prophet smiled gently. The smile appeared incredibly wicked when combined with his terrifying eyes.
“Corruption is simply a matter of giving a gentle push from behind. Then, they will fall on their own.”
“You underestimate his mental strength too much. Such complacency and arrogance in thinking may bring failure.”
“Do you really think so? In this world, it’s difficult to maintain goodwill. Such people tend to crumble easily.”
At the moment those words were spoken, the atmosphere was much more serious than usual, so Gray asked.
“Is that an experience you’ve had…?”
“…Well.”
The Prophet shrugged again, closing his eyes.
“Anyway, set your worries aside. Besides, we have reliable friends too, right?”
The Prophet turned his head to the side.
Gray moved his gaze toward where the Prophet was looking.
From the darkness where the candlelight did not reach, two figures emerged.
Recognizing the faces of the two, Gray narrowed his eyes.
“Are they the remaining Seven Great Transgressions…?”
The Seven Great Transgressions.
A term referring to criminals with influence second only to the Four Great Organizations in the underworld.
Five out of the seven had already been eradicated by Red’s hands.
Only now did Gray understand the reason the Prophet hadn’t attended the meeting from before.
The Prophet cheerfully introduced the two.
“Meet Mr. Greed and Mr. Wrath. I really struggled to befriend those people.”
“If those two join us, they would definitely bolster our strength. But… can we trust them? Their mindset is completely different from ours.”
Wanting to be the best, wanting power, wanting to sit in a high position, etc.
Generally, people are faithful to their desires.
Just like someone in the darkness yearns for the light.
The people of the underworld have such tendencies very strongly.
Among them, the Seven Transgressions can be said to be the peak of desire.
They are honest with their desires and strive to reach their dreams.
In other words, it means that they have a great obsession with life.
It is the exact opposite of the Cult of the Grim Reaper, which seeks an end.
Will they indeed lend their strength to the resurrection of the Grim Reaper?
Understanding the worries, the Prophet waved his hands lightly.
“It’s fine. We have a common enemy between us. There’s a saying; the enemy of my enemy is my friend.”
“If you say so…”
Gray set aside his unease.
Since it’s his doing, he trusts that he will handle it well.
Having finished his prayers, Gray walked toward the door of the cathedral.
Then, as if he remembered something, he stopped abruptly and turned his head to speak.
“By the way, what will happen to the list of people Isaac wanted to keep an eye on?”
“Oh, about that. Isn’t it fine to dispose of it? After all, it was just a list made to deceive Isaac by superficially getting along with him.”
“Is that so…?”
Gray fell deep into thought as he recalled one girl that Isaac had focused on.
The Prophet tilted his head at that strange attitude.
“Did you discover something unusual?”
“No. There’s someone who might be helpful for our plans, so I thought about using her a little. I asked beforehand because this action might skew the Prophecy.”
“Really? There’s no problem. If you find it useful, then do as you wish.”
“Understood.”
With that, Gray left the place.
Remaining in the cathedral, the Prophet sent the other two outdoors.
Inside the quiet cathedral.
The Prophet, now all alone, stood up from the chair and faced the statue of the Grim Reaper.
─Just because our desires are the same doesn’t mean we yearn for the same things. Our Cult wants to bring rest and peace to this land through death, but you desire destruction, do you not?
Recalling Gray’s recent words, a faint chuckle emerged at the corners of his mouth.
The Prophet deeply bowed his head.
One hand pressed against the statue, while the other covered his mouth.
A quietly leaking, ominous laughter broke the silence.
The Prophet’s hands and shoulders trembled slightly.
The more he laughed, a black aura began to seep from his entire body.
The chilling energy made the already cold building feel even heavier and more desolate.
Only after quite a while did the energy dissipate, allowing him to remove his hands and gaze at the statue of the Grim Reaper.
The tightly closed slitted eyes slowly opened.
The red pupils were icy cold.
“Hahaha, truly pathetic. Even if you attribute meaning to death, the fact remains that it is death. Do you think the Grim Reaper will also attribute meaning to death?”
The doctrine of the Cult of the Grim Reaper is truly absurd.
Death is simply death.
Nothing more, nothing less.
“Hey, Grim Reaper. If you’re a god, can you tell me why I fell into this world?”
The Prophet recalled the past.
While walking and reading a webtoon on his phone, suddenly, a noise pierced through, and his vision went white.
When he opened his eyes, it was a new world.
He had been transported.
Into the world of the comic he had been reading.
In response to the Prophet’s cold question, there was no answer.
The mouth of the statue did not move.
Having never expected a response, he closed his eyes again.
Indifferently turning his back.
“It’s fortunate that a troublesome guy died.”
Isaac was the protagonist’s helper in the webtoon.
Though his arrogant personality was a flaw, he was knowledgeable due to the possession setting, and equipped with certain abilities that helped the protagonist.
He was one among several troublesome nuisances that obstructed the Prophet’s plans.
The Prophet smiled genuinely.
Footsteps echoed loudly in the cathedral.
As he approached the door, he felt closer to his goal.
‘Everything is for one thing.’
The Prophet vaguely remembered the content of the webtoon.
In a dystopian world, the protagonist works hard to help the religious Gray spread hope.
Typically, one would use knowledge and strength to occupy the protagonist’s position or assist him materially and spiritually.
But the Prophet took a different path.
He tore apart the protagonist for his own purposes.
He stained Gray with madness.
He twisted the original work.
‘I will never forgive this city that discarded me.’
Behind the cheerful impression, with a heart filled with vengeful wrath.
The Prophet kicked the door open and stepped outside.
