Resurrection Chapter 121 - I Don’t Know If He’s Alive

Kim Piljoong lay in his hospital bed, fiddling with his phone. Everywhere he looked, it was abuzz with talk about Kim Yitae and his Resurrection.

And for good reason. The scene of Kim Yitae using Resurrection on Seo Heesoo had been filmed and widely circulated online. It seemed the IAC was trying to crack down on it, but it was all for naught as major news outlets had joined hands to make it a headline story.

But there was an advantage to this. With the public eye focused on the revival skill, there was relatively less interest in the collapse of the Grand Temple. Because the surrounding area had been sealed off and all available personnel had been dispatched to prepare for the worst-case scenario, the incident ended with minimal damage. That didn’t mean he could console himself by thinking it was no big deal, though.

Yaksha had sealed off the Grand Temple and taken many hostages, resulting in dozens of casualties. Fortunately, many of those present were priests with healing skills, which kept the death toll low. The fact that the Grand Temple itself had been built not long ago and had air-raid shelters scattered throughout also played a part in reducing casualties.

As Kim Piljoong was thinking that it was a silver lining, he was startled by the sudden whoosh of his hospital room door opening and hid his phone. When he looked toward the entrance with wide, startled eyes, he saw Go Jaeyi staring at him with a pathetic look. Kim Piljoong grinned sheepishly and made an excuse.

“Oh, I thought it was the Saintess.”

Go Jaeyi stepped into the rather spacious private room and replied.

“The Saintess went to look after Moon Yiseon. As you know, Moon Yiseon is in and out of it.”

Moon Yiseon, who had fought Yaksha, was in a terrible state, for whatever reason. As the First Apostle of the White Goddess, he hadn’t reached the point of having his soul extracted like Hwang Chi-hong or being possessed by a vengeful spirit, but he couldn’t regain his senses. Even when he occasionally came to, he would spout nonsense, have a seizure, and pass out again, so it seemed best to administer sedatives until the cause was found.

“The Order of the White Goddess has been hit by a string of bad luck. As if the collapse of the Grand Temple wasn’t enough, Moon Yiseon is in that state. Is the Saintess the only First Apostle left now?”

At Kim Piljoong’s words, Go Jaeyi stroked his chin and continued.

“As a matter of fact, the Order seems to be hoping for Seo Heesoo’s return. They say Seo Heesoo was wearing the Gemma when he fought Yaksha.”

“They gave a holy relic to Seo Heesoo, who isn’t even a Holy Knight? Hmm.”

“They probably want to leave the door open, even if they can’t bring Seo Heesoo back as a Holy Knight right away. Given Seo Heesoo’s personality, he won’t be able to turn his back on the Order completely. Just look at how he showed up before Yaksha, who was holding hostages at the Grand Temple this time.”

“Didn’t he show up only after Kim Yitae appeared first?”

“Yes? Yes. It seems it was because he had to infiltrate the Grand Temple to receive the Gemma.”

“Or maybe he had no choice but to follow because of Kim Yitae.”

At Kim Piljoong’s point, Go Jaeyi tilted his head.

“What do you mean by that…”

“I’m saying we can’t necessarily assume that Seo Heesoo is attached to the White Goddess. In fact, he disappeared instead of helping with the aftermath of the incident.”

The old Seo Heesoo would have remained at the collapse site to help rescue people. But right after being revived by Kim Yitae, Seo Heesoo vanished amidst the chaos. As if he had come to talk about just that, Go Jaeyi took out his phone from his pocket and said.

“About Seo Heesoo’s whereabouts. Okjamhwa found out where he went.”

“Really?”

Go Jaeyi displayed a hologram and played a video. It was footage of Seo Heesoo captured by a security camera. But he was not alone. Kim Piljoong pointed at the other person and asked.

“Wait a minute, who is that? Isn’t that Park Sikyung?”

“Yes. According to what Okjamhwa found out, Park Sikyung was at the Grand Temple to borrow the Gemma on behalf of Seo Heesoo. That’s when Yaksha attacked and took hostages. It turns out Park Sikyung was the one who live-streamed the scene online. It seems he did it under Yaksha’s threat, but fortunately, Yaksha didn’t seem to know he had the Gemma. Thanks to that, it looks like he was able to hold onto the Gemma and hand it over to Seo Heesoo when he arrived.”

“Park Sikyung also followed when Kim Yitae and Seo Heesoo disappeared from Dungeon 77, right?”

“Yes. For some reason, he’s acting with them.”

“Well, maybe they made him a companion thinking he’d be helpful, since Park Sikyung is a Second Apostle of the White Goddess and has excellent holy power. The fact that he followed Seo Heesoo makes that highly likely. Where was this filmed?”

At the question about the video’s source, Go Jaeyi quickly explained.

“It’s near Dungeon 288, one of the S-rank dungeons. Seo Heesoo entered here with Park Sikyung and vanished.”

“An S-rank dungeon…”

“Do you think he went after Kim Yitae, thinking he went there?”

Instead of answering, Kim Piljoong stared at the paused hologram of Seo Heesoo.

After reviving Seo Heesoo, who had been in a state of death from his battle with Yaksha, Kim Yitae teleported away alone. It was strange, considering Kim Yitae and Seo Heesoo had been inseparable, like a needle and thread. It was just as puzzling that Kim Yitae had appeared before Yaksha first, as if to lure Seo Heesoo.

‘Did Kim Yitae and Seo Heesoo have a falling out?’

Right now, Seo Heesoo was Kim Yitae’s partner, but there was no guarantee it would stay that way. A partnership had no significant differences other than allowing them to share each other’s Awakened systems. Since it wasn’t binding in any way, it would end if even one of them canceled it.

If there had been some change of heart for Kim Yitae, who had chosen Seo Heesoo as the beneficiary of Resurrection, he might have gone into hiding to avoid Seo Heesoo, of all people.

After a moment of thought, Kim Piljoong inwardly shook his head. Just because Kim Yitae was acting separately from Seo Heesoo didn’t necessarily mean the two had fallen out. It was also quite possible that Kim Yitae and Seo Heesoo had disappeared to avoid the IAC.

Now that Yaksha had caused an unprecedented incident by collapsing the Grand Temple in pursuit of Resurrection, the IAC could no longer overlook his existence. An order to secure his person was sure to be issued.

Kim Yitae must have guessed this and revealed his Resurrection. With public attention focused on him, it became difficult for the IAC to secure him. For starters, the large assault squads who coveted his ability would not stand idly by.

“Whether Seo Heesoo went after Kim Yitae or not, what’s important right now is Kim Yitae’s whereabouts. And we’re bound to hear about that naturally without even trying. Since every assault squad with any power will be chasing after Kim Yitae, it’s only a matter of time before his location is revealed.”

Of course, that didn’t mean they could just sit on their hands and wait for Kim Yitae to show up. He had entrusted Kim Yitae’s case to Kang Cheoljun, so he would continue to track Kim Yitae.

Putting that matter aside for now, Kim Piljoong asked about Yaksha.

“What about Yaksha? What happened to him?”

Go Jaeyi frowned, as if the explanation was awkward.

“Well, his body was recovered, but I heard it was moved to a classified location under the Chief’s special orders.”

“What?”

At the unexpected words, Kim Piljoong, who had been half-lying down, sat up. According to the report Kim Piljoong had received, when Yaksha was cornered by the combined attack of Kim Yitae, Seo Heesoo, and the Magic King Imae, he had invoked a descent. But something went wrong, and Shinrion’s patron god appeared, not Yaksha’s.

Shinrion’s patron god was the shining lady, Aglaia.

「I shall now release my apostle from his suffering!」

Her cry was heard clearly by all, even amidst that chaos. She must have despaired over the fact that Shinrion was being used by Yaksha and decided to self-destruct.

Aglaia’s Oblation was literally a self-destruct skill that put the caster in a blackout state. The Oblation, which had unleashed immense power when Shinrion defeated Leviathan, had torn apart not only Leviathan but also Shinrion’s own body.

This time, when Aglaia used Oblation, Yaksha was in a debuffed state and the area was sealed, so the nullification magic used by Kim Yitae and Imae was somewhat effective. Thanks to that, the disaster of the entire city of Yongin being blown away did not occur. Nevertheless, the damage to those caught in the blast was substantial.

Seo Heesoo’s limbs were blown off as he shielded Kim Yitae, and Yaksha’s body—that is, Shinrion’s body—was torn apart like a piece of paper, just as it had been when he defeated Leviathan. Since they had to gather the pieces of his corpse, Shinrion, who had been in a coma, and Yaksha, who had possessed him, had to be considered dead as well.

Still, Kim Piljoong confirmed again.

“Are you sure he’s dead for certain?”

Go Jaeyi sighed as if he didn’t know what was what either.

“From what I saw at the scene, yes. Shinrion’s body was torn into nine pieces. It was obviously a state in which he could not have survived.”

“But that doesn’t mean we can be certain that Yaksha, a necromancer, is dead, right?”

“That’s true.”

They had presumed Yaksha was dead when he vanished from Dungeon 77 as well. But since he had come back to life in Shinrion’s body, there was no guarantee it wouldn’t happen again this time.

On the other hand, the fact that the IAC Chief had personally collected Yaksha’s body was extremely concerning. He couldn’t just assume the IAC had been holding onto Shinrion simply because he was in a coma. He had a gut feeling that something was going on, but it wasn’t a matter to be dug into rashly. After all, he had to protect his own life and pension, didn’t he?

Thinking it was a headache, Kim Piljoong lay back down on the bed. Seeing this, Go Jaeyi remarked.

“Aren’t you all better? Shouldn’t you be returning to the field soon?”

Kim Piljoong feigned being hurt.

“No? I’m still in pain.”

“You’re perfectly fine.”

“The emotional scars I got from being kicked by Yaksha haven’t healed yet. If Yaksha is dead, doesn’t that mean it ends as an unrequited love?”

“I don’t know why someone who’s a Special Ops Commander is talking such nonsense. This isn’t the first time you’ve lost to Yaksha. It’s the second time, so what’s the big deal?”