Holy Idol [EN]: Chapter 660

◈ 660. What Are You Thinking?

“What method are you talking about?”

Nineng’s voice echoed loudly, and everyone else who had been talking looked at Rembrary.

Shin Jo-woon also tilted his head and asked,

“Method?”

Instead of answering, Rembrary placed his hand on his stomach and asked,

“Aren’t you all hungry?”

Shin Jo-woon narrowed his eyes.

“Sounds like you’re avoiding the question.”

“I’m a little hungry.”

Even when Rembrary kept talking about food, Woo Yeon-woo frowned and pointed at Rembrary’s hand.

“Isn’t that a snack in your hand right now?”

As the group crowded around, asking questions, Rembrary finally stopped dodging and reluctantly confessed.

“You’re being annoying. I was talking about a way to save those who want to get out of the Demon Realm but can’t.”

Ardor grumbled, unable to hide his displeasure.

“I don’t understand why Rembrary-nim would bother trying to find those who went there willingly. But I won’t oppose it.”

Shin Jo-woon paused for a moment, deep in thought, before asking.

“Are you perhaps going to find the Black Dragon?”

At those words, everyone looked at Rembrary with truly astonished expressions.

Rembrary firmly denied it.

“No.”

This time, Hwasa Ja, who had been spacing out with a ‘Why am I here?’ expression, asked.

“You told me to take you back to where the first dungeon was, saying you had something to check. Is that it?”

At this unexpected story, the gazes of everyone in the conference room turned back to Rembrary.

Rembrary immediately denied it again.

“No. And we don’t need to go for that matter.”

At this point, everyone became curious about what Rembrary’s method was.

If he had said anything at all, they would have just accepted it and moved on.

But because he stubbornly refused to tell them, it only stimulated the curiosity of those watching.

However, Rembrary didn’t easily reveal it.

In the end, Rembrary’s ‘method’ remained a mystery to everyone for several days.

* * *

“That hunter who turned into a jellyfish, you know. Isn’t he taking longer to catch than expected?”

Rembrary hesitated between a golden tree and a red tree before looking to the side.

Next to a large deer decoration, children who looked to be in their teens were eating snowman-shaped snacks and talking.

“Yeah. I thought he’d be caught quickly.”

“That hunter, the one who isn’t getting caught, I heard Rembrary’s division deliberately ordered them to let him go. That’s why they can’t catch him because of the lack of manpower.”

“Rembrary’s division? The Redrin side?”

“Yeah, and Worldboom, Aegis too. And that hunter research lab. I heard the director there is also a Redrin follower?”

“Woo Sung-woo too.”

“Woo Sung-woo is Nakru.”

“No, he’s out.”

“Really?”

“Yeah. But even after leaving Nakru, he still hangs out with Rembrary’s gang. I heard it’s because Woo Yeon-woo is best friends with Rembrary.”

Rembrary tilted his head. They all came to the mart [large retail store] together to prepare for Christmas.

It was amusing to hear the children talking about him, telling stories that even he was hearing for the first time.

Perhaps because he had his face completely covered, the children didn’t recognize Rembrary, even though he was grabbing a small tree right next to them, and were too busy talking among themselves.

“But neglecting a dangerous Awakened because of friendship is abandoning the duty of an Awakened. I heard they write some kind of oath when they become hunters.”

“It’s not like they’re not working, they’re just changing priorities.”

“Still.”

“What are you doing?”

Mulu came to Rembrary’s side and asked, and the children inadvertently shut their mouths and looked this way.

But Mulu was also wearing a wool hat, completely covering his noticeable green hair, so the children still didn’t recognize Rembrary and Mulu.

Still, perhaps they were bothered by having people nearby while they were talking, the children quickly went to another area.

Once the children were gone, Rembrary finally answered.

“They were talking about me.”

Thinking that the story was slanderous, Mulu lowered the ends of his eyebrows and sighed.

“Why are you listening to such things?”

“No. The atmosphere is more moderate than I thought.”

“Is that so?”

The answer was replaced by Nineng, who came over pulling a cart piled high with luggage.

“Oh, I’ve been feeling that lately too.”

When Mulu blinked, Nineng added again.

“Woo Yeon-woo said that too. At first, it was all insults… harsh; but as time went on, more and more people were defending High Priest-nim in anonymous places.”

Rembrary became suspicious and asked.

“Those anonymous people, aren’t they Ardor and Worldboom employees?”

Nineng smiled awkwardly and muttered in a barely audible voice.

“Ah… of course, their stake is also high.”

“But why are you avoiding my eyes, Nineng-ah?”

“Christmas… is a Earth religious event. Is it okay for us to enjoy it?”

‘That’s probably not why your voice is so low,’ Rembrary thought, but decided to let it go for now.

“It’s good to celebrate with many people.”

Nineng sighed briefly and took the pre-made tree that Rembrary was holding.

“I’ll take it, High Priest-nim.”

However, the small tree that Nineng took had to be returned to its place by Shin Jo-woon, who had come to pick out light bulbs.

“Where are you going to put that small thing in that big house? You won’t even see it. Put it back.”

“I didn’t pick it out…”

Nineng glanced at Rembrary, signaling who had chosen the tree, but Shin Jo-woon didn’t care and pointed to the Christmas corner again with his hand.

“Whoever picked it, put it back.”

* * *

“We only bought decorations and didn’t buy a tree. Is that okay?”

After dividing the materials they bought into two cars, Rembrary asked sullenly while closing the trunk door.

However, what came back was an answer that implied ‘it’s all too obvious’.

“It’s okay. The butler will bring the tree separately.”

“The butler? Alone?”

“He won’t carry it himself.”

Rembrary still seemed to regret not getting a mini tree, as he looked around the mart again and asked.

“Then is there anything else to prepare now?”

“We have to decorate the house with the decorations we bought today.”

“That’s not my job. What do I do? If there was a small tree, I could just look at it. What should I do if it’s not there?”

Shin Jo-woon pushed Rembrary into the passenger seat and replied as if it were obvious.

“You have to decorate the house.”

“Why me?”

“Then what are you going to do?”

“Admire.”

“…….”

“Are you seriously asking me to do that?”

Shin Jo-woon couldn’t answer right away, unsure whether Rembrary was acting like this because he didn’t buy him a mini tree, or whether he was being serious.

But soon, Shin Jo-woon remembered that Rembrary was a High Priest from a powerful empire in a hierarchical world, and reluctantly convinced himself.

“Yeah. He must have grown up like that.”

“?”

* * *

In the end, that evening.

While other people were carrying around golden balls, red gift decorations, and glowing wreaths to decorate for Christmas, Rembrary simply admired the house as it gradually changed into a lively atmosphere.

Mulu and Nineng were worried that Rembrary might be upset about having his mini tree taken away, but Rembrary was already in a good mood after seeing the huge tree that Shin Jo-woon had his secretary bring.

“I had them leave the small one behind to decorate such a big one. You should have said so sooner.”

Rembrary happily watched the sharp green tree transform into something splendid.

Then, after seeing the deer that Woo Yeon-woo was setting up next to the tree, the voices of the children from the mart earlier and what Nineng had said came to mind again.

‘Is public opinion really changing?’

Rembrary took out his phone and went to a site where hunters were active anonymously.

‘They gather and talk a lot around here.’

He hadn’t searched for long before an article appeared where people were gossiping about Rembrary.

The atmosphere was overheated, with too many comments and everyone pouring out what they wanted to say, so it was difficult to grasp public opinion at a glance, but Rembrary steadily scrolled down from top to bottom, reading people’s words.

―Honestly, lol, wasn’t it triggered by them going where they were told not to go?

―Exactly. They went there thinking they would live well.

―Didn’t they go prepared? lololol

―What’s the deal with people who lived diligently without going where they were told not to go suffering because of the people who went?

‘What Nineng and Yeon-woo said wasn’t just empty words. They’ve become dissatisfied in this way.’

It seemed that although it was difficult to openly say in real life, ‘Those people need to be sealed so that we can live,’ related complaints were steadily accumulating.

‘What is the ratio of those who criticize versus those who defend?’

Curious, Rembrary searched the site a little more and counted the number of people’s opinions.

‘It seems almost equal? But I have to remember that this is an anonymous hunter site.’

* * *

However, although the opinion that people in the Demon Realm should just be sealed together increased over time, it did not quell the protesters.

It was difficult to openly say that someone should be sealed so that they could live.

On the other hand, the opposing opinion had the moral righteousness to voice their opinions, so the protests became more intense and the number of protesters increased over time.

―Rembrary-nimㅠㅠ Can’t we get outㅠㅠ?

Rembrary could only appease those who were trapped in the Demon Realm and sending him messages.

―Wait a little longer

* * *

Rembrary’s party wasn’t the only one frustrated by what Rembrary was thinking.

“What the hell is he thinking?”

Cloth muttered, staring at the protesters through the glass windows of a cafe where the Redrin headquarters building was clearly visible.

Noir looked distastefully at the drawing of a bearded old man that the cafe employee had drawn on his cup and asked.

“The humans? Or the High Priest? But why did this employee draw a bearded old man on the surface of my coffee?”

“They drew a really cute deer for me. I guess I look cooler in this person’s eyes.”

“?”

Noir looked back and forth between Cloth and the deer, making a distasteful expression.

But soon, thinking that this wasn’t important, he answered the original question.

“The humans protesting are probably trying to prevent the High Priest from doing anything. It’s obvious. Although there are other people with different intentions mixed in.”

“I’m curious about what the High Priest is thinking.”

“Ah. Is that so?”

“Aren’t you curious? I honestly thought the High Priest would go to Yongyi. Yongyi is cute and friendly to the High Priest.”

‘Isn’t that just because you like animals?’ Noir thought to himself and answered casually.

“Who knows what the High Priest is thinking.”

“I guess so. Well. If Rembrary doesn’t collapse the pillar, that’s good for us in its own way.”

Cloth paused for a moment at the sound of bells mixed with music suddenly ringing in the cafe. Then, when the music stopped, he continued.

“The one Binak gave you. There were three bottles, right? Have you thought about where to use the remaining bottle?”