NOVEL NEXT Chapter 21 - How to Distinguish Between Fortune-Telling and Fraud (2)
Chapter 21
How to Distinguish Between Fortune-Telling and Fraud (2)
『 Translator – Divinity 』
Crack!
“You are a pitiful person.”
“……….”
The Saint, who had plunged his mace into the center of the table covered with a purple tablecloth, dusted off his hands.
The table, almost split in two, was still standing precariously.
“Repent.”
“…That’s a nasty hobby you have, Saint.”
No. This wasn’t a nasty hobby, a threat, or anything of the sort.
I truly felt that the Saint in front of me could kill me. The fear I felt the moment the mace was embedded in the table was chilling.
…I hope the reason there wasn’t a single Fortune Teller in the game wasn’t because this fanatic broke all their heads.
While unconsciously straightening his posture, Namgung Min looked at the Saint.
“Was there really a need for a show of force?”
“This is not a show of force. I am following the Lord’s will.”
“……….”
What nonsense is this?
…But it’s not like I have no clue at all.
“Is this… because I dislike fortune-telling?”
“That is correct. A Fortune Teller who hates fortune-telling. That is a punishment from God, not a wicked heretic.”
The Saint, saying this, had gentle eyes as if he had done nothing wrong. In fact, his eyes even held a hint of pity for Namgung Min.
Actually, despite all the paranoia, the ‘strong against the weak, weak against the strong’ complex, the violence, and so on,
I could clearly see that a fanatic immersed in religion was the true madness.
“Do you know? Everyone in the world commits sins. Even I cannot avoid that.”
Well, that seems accurate.
“But humans cannot judge all of them. That is because we live under the justice of law and morality. We can only judge when those are violated.”
“…Are you saying there are others?”
“Of course. There are sins from past lives.”
Oh dear.
This fanatic.
“Who can know the sins of past lives? What law defines past lives, and what morality judges them? It’s impossible. It’s impossible for humans.”
“………….”
“But the great Lord in heaven is different.”
The Saint was still radiating a bright light from his entire body.
As if his thoughts weren’t wrong, as if they were infinitely correct.
He was a
“You are being punished. You were born as a
“…Are you saying this is punishment?”
“Indeed. You are already receiving divine punishment, so a mere human like myself cannot judge you.”
Honestly, what this fanatic was saying… I understood it, but it gave me a headache.
So he was saying that my current situation was divine punishment, and since I was already being punished, he, the Saint, wouldn’t interfere.
Namgung Min frowned.
“I don’t believe in God.”
“Even so, God exists.”
“I don’t believe in fate either.”
“Even so, fate exists.”
“My life is not some divine punishment.”
“It is punishment.”
There was no communication at all.
The Saint’s mind was already firmly established with his own beliefs, justice, and worldview, and he was following them faithfully. Any attempt to change that would likely fail to even scratch his rigid mentality.
No matter how much I spoke of atheism and disbelief, the Saint didn’t waver in the slightest.
Was it because religion had become not just a part of his life, but his life itself?
“………….”
Regardless of your thoughts, it was more unpleasant than I expected to talk to a fanatic who defined you as such and such.
…Was it because his words, arbitrarily deciding my life so far and saying I was destined to be punished in the future, resembled that cult bastard?
It was similar to what that bastard said to my parents.
‘…Damn it.’
But this was also an opportunity.
This fanatic could actually kill me. Knowing that, my top priority was to survive the Saint’s clutches.
And if the conversation ended like this, the Saint wouldn’t touch Namgung Min. He would think I was already receiving divine punishment.
Thinking that,
“But Saint, this is a bit strange.”
“What do you mean?”
…Let’s provoke the Saint to a slightly dangerous extent.
You said my life was divine punishment.
But is your life any different?
“I don’t just do tarot readings. I can also read the Four Pillars of Destiny, Tojeongbigyeol,* the Eight Trigrams, and physiognomy.”
[TL/N: Tojeongbigyeol is a traditional Korean form of fortune-telling based on the lunar calendar. It’s a book that predicts the fortunes of individuals for the year ahead, offering guidance on various aspects of life like health, relationships, and career.]
“You are learning all those things while despising them. What a severe punishment this must be.”
“I have seen your physiognomy, Saint.”
“Oh, and how is it? An ordinary Fortune Teller wouldn’t even listen, but the words of an agonizing sinner might be worth hearing.”
“You do not believe in fate.”
“……….”
With the same gaze as before, the Saint looked down at Namgung Min.
Was it my imagination that his actions seemed like the epitome of patience?
“I see the place where you were born, Saint. I see a baby born in the dirtiest place, in the shadows of a glamorous city.”
“………….”
You spoke as if you knew and understood everything about me, but I also know you.
How much of this ‘fortune-telling’, which is digging into your past that you want to forget, will you tolerate?
“The baby was born in a filthy place, but it emits light. I can see it. I can see people adorned with splendid decorations approaching and taking you away. I can clearly see the woman who gave birth to you screaming and fainting.”
“…………….”
“The baby is revered and raised as the only Saint in the world. Five years after the baby is born, I see a child being pushed by people to go on a pilgrimage.”
“………….”
“The child is crying. The child, suddenly thrown to the ground from a life of worship, cries sorrowfully. Even with blistered feet, a body covered in wounds, and a hoarse voice, the child cries.”
“…………….”
“Because the child knows that if he cries, people will come running. But no one comes now. The child spends a day on the street like that.”
“…Stop.”
“Eventually, after five days, the child is forced to go on a pilgrimage. And in the first city, the child—”
Crash!!
“—Stop it.”
This time, the table was completely shattered.
I could see the Saint, holding his mace as if he would break my head at any moment.
But unlike before, he didn’t look scary to me.
“Why are you telling me to stop? I was just telling your fortune.”
“Don’t lie. I know about physiognomy. And that it’s impossible to tell such detailed stories with it.”
“What does physiognomy matter?”
“…What?”
“Regardless of how I found out, in the end, isn’t it important whether what I said is true or not?”
The
He was merely a human who happened to be born with the job of
That was the story of the Saint’s character event, the only hidden event in Romance Academy.
“Saint, do you believe in fate?”
“………”
“You said to me earlier, ‘Even so, fate exists’.”
“…I did say that.”
“You believe in the existence of fate, Saint, yet you are trying to defy it, are you not?”
“…………Ha, haha.”
The Saint laughed. And as soon as he heard it, Namgung Min could sense it.
That wasn’t the laughter of a
“Those are insightful words. Truly.”
“You flatter me.”
“It’s been a while since I heard about the past…”
Raphael Martina sat down on the chair in front of him.
With the shattered table between them, the Fortune Teller and Raphael faced each other.
Honestly, I didn’t expect the Saint to react like this… I’m a bit embarrassed about how emotional I got.
“I apologize for earlier. The memories of that city are extremely unpleasant and disgusting.”
“It’s alright.”
“You were offended by my words.”
“……….”
“I’m not a fool either. How could I not be offended when you arbitrarily declared someone’s life as divine punishment?”
Raphael, who was spinning his mace, chuckled.
Unlike a moment ago, he seemed quite frivolous.
But as if he didn’t care, Raphael continued,
“Even so, I believe you are receiving divine punishment.”
“…Why is that?”
“Because I’ve experienced it myself.”
It was closer to a confession than a story.
A confession of sins by the human named Raphael Martina.
“Did you know? 538 people lost their lives to this mere lump of steel.”
“They were heretics, swindlers, criminals, and scum… but they were also human.”
“I told you earlier. Everyone commits sins, and so do I.”
“Then.”
Raphael bowed his head with his hands clasped together.
It was like a solemn prayer.
“Who will judge me, who has committed the sin of murder?”
“…Are you saying that’s not human?”
“Haha. You already know the answer, don’t you? I’ve become quite talkative after seeing a fellow sinner receiving the same punishment after so long…”
Raphael, who had regained his smile, got up from his seat, the solemnity from a moment ago gone.
He was looking down at Namgung Min with the same gaze as before.
“But this has given me certainty.”
“…Certainty?”
“Do not approach Eileen Teddybear.”
The Saint muttered quietly.
It was like returning to the initial conclusion, nullifying all the conversations they had so far.
But his words weren’t over yet.
“This is for your sake, even more than for that girl’s.”
“For me?”
“God is perfect, but the humans who serve Him are not. They are the kind who take babies away from their parents.”
The Saint, who was fiddling with the cross hanging from his neck, gripped his mace tightly once again.
Creak.
This time, instead of striking down, he simply crushed the steel mace bit by bit with his grip strength alone.
“I do not wish to show you, who may be closer to God than those receiving divine punishment, the disgrace of the Church.”
“The disgrace of the Church.”
“It is also the fate I am trying to defy.”
…Namgung Min recalled the Saint’s character event from his memory.
That event, which took place in the Vatican, was quite a special event, befitting its status as a hidden event.
It was an extra route that could lead directly to the ‘ending’.
“I will tell Instructor Charles Teddybear myself, so please leave for today.”
The Saint pulled back the blackout curtain.
As if he knew how to get out from the beginning.
“Ah, I will tell you one last thing.”
“…What is it?”
“Please, keep that heart that despises fortune-telling… intact.”
“Otherwise.”
“I will have no choice but to come and kill you myself. My fellow sinner.”
Flutter.
“………….”
Leaving behind words that weighed heavily on his mind, the Saint disappeared beyond the curtain.
He must be by Eileen Teddybear’s side now, protecting her.
‘The disgrace of the Church.’
…The ‘illness’ Eileen Teddybear suffered from was randomly determined each playthrough.
Sometimes it was just a simple cold, sometimes it was a rare disease that required all sorts of rare items to cure, and sometimes it was an incurable disease that couldn’t be cured at all.
And among them, there was one case where the
In this case, Eileen—wasn’t sick.
‘Job.’
The reason Eileen was suffering when the Saint was involved was because of her job.
“It was ominous from the moment the Saint was in Eileen’s room…”
Unlike when she was simply sick, if the Saint was involved, a long event had to be played out for Eileen to be saved.
Since it was an event that occurred early on, it wasn’t difficult if you cooperated with the Saint, but…
“That’s my fate.”
Everything was messed up because my job was
If my job wasn’t ‘Fortune Teller’, the Saint wouldn’t have swung his mace at me upon meeting me, but would have asked for help after a brief conversation, and I could have cleared it by following his instructions.
But what should I do now?
“…First.”
I need help.
Someone who would help me but would never side with the Saint. Someone with outstanding individual abilities and good at fighting would be even better. And someone who wouldn’t pry into my relationship with the Saint.
…Only one person met all the conditions.
***
“…Yes?”
“Help me out, Rain.”
“…Hiccup!”
Seeing ‘the strong one’, Namgung Min, who suddenly visited the infirmary and gave an order with serious eyes and voice,
Rain started to hiccup.