TE 8

On the drive back to his home church, Pastor Moon Seok-ho leisurely sipped his coffee in the backseat. A new recruit who had recently joined was driving, filling in for Kang Jin-ho who was away dealing with the detective situation.

His demeanor hardly matched that of a father who had just left his beloved daughter bound to a cross.

Then again, who in their right mind would tie their daughter to a cross for alleged wrongdoing?

“You there.”

“Y-yes, sir!”

A satisfied smile crossed Pastor Moon’s face at the driver’s tense, fearful voice.

“Do you think I went too far?”

“I… I…”

“It’s fine. Speak honestly.”

Jun-hyung moistened his dry lips with his tongue.

Though told to be honest, he knew his life would be in danger if he spoke his true thoughts.

“The young lady seemed… truly wronged.”

Jun-hyung allowed just a sliver of honesty to escape. A laugh echoed from Pastor Moon behind him. Unable to determine the meaning behind that laugh, a chill ran down his spine.

“Right? She did look wronged.”

“…”

“But you know what?”

The sound of coffee being sipped filled the silence from the back seat. Jun-hyung didn’t dare look in the rearview mirror, silently waiting for what would come next.

“Sometimes you need to tighten the reins. If you’re too lenient, discipline starts to slip.”

Crazy bastard.

Although Jun-hyung hadn’t met many sane people in this line of work, Pastor Moon seemed uniquely unhinged, fitting for a cult leader.

What he was essentially saying was that although he knew nothing had happened between his daughter and Ki Tae-beom, he was torturing her preemptively to ensure she would never dare defy him.

But something seemed off.

Even for an overprotective, conservative father…

To react with such immediate fury at the slightest hint of his daughter showing interest in a man?

Pastor Moon’s bizarre obsession with his daughter led observers to contemplate deeply disturbing possibilities.

However, his emotions toward his daughter seemed too calculated for such base criminal impulses. His current treatment of her resembled less a jealous man suspecting infidelity and more someone ensuring absolute control over a well-trained creature that might try to escape.

Though Jun-hyung hadn’t yet witnessed how Pastor Moon handled traitors, he suspected it would look quite similar to this.

‘Better not analyze it too deeply.’

Jun-hyung forced himself to stop thinking about the poor woman bound to the cross.

While she appeared to be a sheltered princess to outsiders, the reality was she was an abuse victim. Though the father-daughter relationship was distinctly strange, Jun-hyung’s mission under Pastor Moon wasn’t to unravel their dynamic.

It was to find the “Chef” – the one who had elevated Pastor Moon Seok-ho to the highest position in this world.

Jun-hyung silently cursed as he thought about this Chef whose face, name, age, and background remained a complete mystery.

Where the hell was this damned Chef hiding?

***

The confessional booth was a place where all manner of emotions and stories were purged.

Seo-ha would sometimes join her father there, listening together to the confessions of the faithful.

The stories varied widely.

“The house went bankrupt, and I resent my father for his reckless business ventures. I’m horrified at myself for resenting him.”

“I secretly took out loans and sold land without telling my family.”

“When I drink, I end up beating my worthless children every day.”

The nature and magnitude of sins varied.

And her father would select certain individuals by his own criteria, holding special, sacred healing rituals for them.

Those who drank the holy water made by the Messiah’s daughter would be momentarily freed from earthly suffering, experiencing a brief taste of heaven.

But how could humans, burdened with original sin, easily open the gates of paradise?

The faithful who proved their devotion with cash elevated the Messiah’s daughter to sainthood, begging for holy water.

While it was fulfilling to see people find happiness through the remedies she made…

She felt deeply uncomfortable, like walking through thorns, when they exalted her as the Messiah’s daughter.

No matter how much she helped people, she couldn’t be called a saint.

After all, no true saint would sing hymns praising their biological father.

“The second… Jesus… to replace God…”

She was no saint as people claimed. She wasn’t the Messiah’s daughter. Her father was no Messiah.

Though she knew all this, she was just a weak coward who felt she would fall into hell if she defied her father, as if it was branded into her soul.

“Father’s arms spread wide…”

Seo-ha’s consciousness began to fade as she sang the song meant to soothe her father’s anger, her lips cracked and parched.

Ah, this wouldn’t do.

This wouldn’t be enough to satisfy father.

I want to lie in bed. I want to be freed from this cross. I want liberation.

But for that, I need to sing, need to sing for father…

The clear voices of women proclaiming obedience to her father still tortured her ears like knives through the large speakers. Seo-ha’s vision gradually blurred as she lost consciousness in agony, even without the need for a whip to tear her skin.

The lyrics hammered with words of submission, obedience, endless words…

Seo-ha sank into torment with no escape in sight.

Not daring to hope for salvation from anyone.

***

“My beloved congregation, I have kept the church doors closed for a long time by God’s command.”

Pastor Moon’s ministry had resumed.

“If the house of God is shabby, isn’t that showing disrespect to Him? But I heard some very sad news. I heard that while our church was closed, some followers attended other churches. When I heard this… my heart was torn apart.”

The reopening of Pastor Moon Seok-ho’s church signaled that after lying low to avoid police investigation under the guise of remodeling, he was ready to resume business in earnest.

From Pastor Moon’s perspective, keeping the church closed must have dealt quite a blow. The weak-minded who needed support would seek it elsewhere at the slightest temptation.

Watching Pastor Moon hunt down those who had allegedly attended other churches, Tae-beom struggled to keep his expression neutral.

The past few months had been difficult for Tae-beom as well.

Though Moon Seok-ho didn’t truly suspect anything between Tae-beom and Seo-ha, he had kept them apart for a while. Tae-beom was only allowed to return to work by his side after dealing with the detective’s family. And that process had been exhaustingly complex.

He hadn’t even touched that woman, yet thanks to Park Hee-jung’s jealous tongue, what could have been an easier path turned into needless suffering. It was only thanks to Kang Jin-ho’s high regard for Tae-beom that he was able to return to Pastor Moon’s side even this soon.

And finally, it seemed Moon Seok-ho had decided to entrust Tae-beom with a proper task.

He was to be assigned as guard to his eldest daughter, Moon Seo-ha.

Since Kang Jin-ho was the only truly trusted person in his circle, there were no other subordinates he could rely on to protect his precious daughter. It wouldn’t be an exaggeration to say that matters concerning Moon Seo-ha were the reason Tae-beom could return today from what had essentially been exile duty in the provinces.

“What did I tell you? Didn’t I say that those who tempt you to leave my church and attend others are Satan’s servants? Should I accept back someone who has been in Satan’s embrace?”

“Oh, I’m so sorry, Pastor! I thought I needed to pray to God… since the construction was taking so long…”

“God is right here! Why do you look for Him elsewhere?!”

The voice that had been feigning benevolence suddenly rose in anger. Tae-beom nearly furrowed his brow at the noise.

As Pastor Moon pressed harder, the follower could only cry out “Oh dear, oh dear” and beg for forgiveness.

“So was God there? Why don’t you listen to me! I am the Son of God! How is what you did any different from Judas?!”

“I, I was foolish… Pastor, I’m sorry. I’m so sorry…”

“I know. I know everything. Once a traitor, always a traitor! Do you truly want to repent? Then kowtow! Bang your head! Show your sincere repentance through action!”

THUD!

The follower’s head hit hard enough to echo throughout the room without need for a microphone.

As Tae-beom found himself unable to look away from the bizarre scene, someone grabbed his shoulder from behind. Turning around, he saw Kang Jin-ho, who gave his shoulder a couple of friendly pats and gestured with his chin toward the door.

Following his quiet signal, Tae-beom left the chapel with muted footsteps.

The sounds of head-banging continued behind them, but Tae-beom deliberately avoided looking back at what must now be a bloodied follower.

Closing the door somewhat muffled the noise. Tae-beom slightly furrowed his brow at the ringing in his ears after prolonged exposure to the loud sounds of what passed for ministry.

“You’ve been through a lot.”

“It was nothing.”

Kang Jin-ho, seated on a bench in the church’s small backyard garden, handed him a cold canned coffee. Despite his brief response, Tae-beom accepted the coffee respectfully and only sat down beside him at Jin-ho’s invitation.

“The Pastor doesn’t really believe you made advances toward the young lady. I’ve never seen you show interest in women either. The young lady is at that age, so she probably just playfully said she found your looks attractive, and the Pastor’s wife made a big fuss about it.”

This was all known information. However, Tae-beom maintained his usual stoic but respectful demeanor, pretending to listen attentively while hiding his familiar sense of boredom.

“Well, thanks to that, the young lady was severely punished too.”

Tae-beom had heard from Jun-hyung. News that the greenhouse flower of a young lady had been dragged to something called the disciplinary room and punished.

It was probably just meant to scare her a bit.

He honestly didn’t care.

Stories about this woman who must have lived a sheltered life getting scolded by her strict father…

“You know how sensitive the Pastor is about the young lady’s romantic matters, so you understand why he overreacted.”

“I understand. But why call me back now?”

“The young lady finds it uncomfortable having guards hanging around her. The detective situation is handled… but with our usual competition being quiet lately, that actually makes him more worried.”

Kang Jin-ho explained Seo-ha’s usual schedule.

She comes to church daily without fail following her father, and sometimes retreats to her private prayer room when she’s not feeling well, avoiding crowds.

He explained that special protection wasn’t needed inside the church, and since she rarely went out except for occasional walks, the job wouldn’t be too difficult.

“After the service ends, greet the Pastor first. The young lady will probably leave the church late in the evening.”

Private prayer room?

Tae-beom tilted his head slightly.

He hadn’t noticed any space in the remodeled church that could be called a private prayer room.

Something felt off. No need to pay attention to where the young lady goes or what she does as long as she’s in church?

In this huge church, couldn’t that precious young lady be kidnapped silently from anywhere at any time?

Though they claimed this was for Moon Seo-ha’s protection, was it really just about being a chauffeur?

Various doubts arose in Tae-beom’s mind at these suspicious instructions. However, he never showed it outwardly.

Too many questions could raise the other party’s guard.

“Is the young lady in her private prayer room now then?”

He asked just one ordinary question appropriate for someone assigned to guard her. Kang Jin-ho nodded lightly.

“The young lady is quite devout.”

Well, if believing your father is the Messiah counts as being devout, then sure.

Remembering the follower banging their head for attending another church, Tae-beom couldn’t even manage an internal laugh. The image of the bleeding face transformed from an ordinary middle-aged woman to Moon Seo-ha in his mind.

For some reason he couldn’t explain, it disturbed him deeply.