Chapter 103
As the sorcery progressed, the demon's questions grew stronger.
[ Looking at how he's building the altar right under the Ferris wheel, it seems like a Greek-style burnt offering... ]
"G-Greek style...?"
[ It's called holocautein (ὁλοκαυτεῖν). But given that he asked for a young goat and didn't care about the color of the goat's hair, it seems he's mixed something... It appears to be a modified version. ]
The demon tilted its head at Jinseong's ritual, which was subtly different from what it knew.
But this was unavoidable.
Originally, sorcery was something that could be derived and altered.
Just as the Japanese Kokkuri-san sorcery crossed over to Korea and changed its rules to become spirit summoning, rituals could also undergo processes of transformation or reversal over time in people's memories and records.
The sorcery Jinseong was using was also an altered version.
The sorcery used in ancient Greece had crossed over to other regions and changed to fit the environment and customs of those places. Moreover, in most cases when such alterations occur, they didn't work properly, but this one had become effective through chance and the power of a skilled sorcerer.
Perhaps this could be seen as a subspecies of holocautein.
And just as biological subspecies varied greatly, so did sorcery subspecies.
Just as animals in cold regions changed their fur color to white for camouflage, grew larger in size, and filled their bodies with fat instead of muscle, sorcery also changed bit by bit. Some had similar effects but required completely different prices to pay, while others showed entirely different effects.
It was like how fish came onto land and became beasts, showing a completely different appearance.
Depending on the circumstances, a subspecies could even devour the original form and gain greater recognition.
[ But if it's Greek style... Hmm. ]
The demon licked its lips.
It had thought of something suspicious but immediately dismissed it, thinking it wouldn't make its younger sibling do such a thing.
"A-ancient G-Greece?"
But Lee Serin, who had heard the demon's muttering, blushed as if remembering something.
"Gy-gymnos..."
She recalled what she had heard in the 'History and Life of Ancient Europe' lecture.
The culture of ancient Greece that encouraged exercising naked and didn't hesitate to reveal their bodies.
The lecture had explained their culture in detail, using numerous paintings and statues as examples.
It contained content more shocking and explicit than the perfunctory sex education taught in schools. Of course, there were complaint calls from parents, but the teacher responded by raising the level even more, conducting lessons of shock and horror.
At that time, Lee Serin had no choice but to understand ancient Greece.
"S-surely not. Do we have to perform the ritual n-naked...?"
Lee Serin blushed and glanced at Jinseong, who was sprinkling some unknown liquid on the Ferris wheel.
But the demon next to her spoke as if to reassure her.
[ Probably not. ]
"Uh, huh?"
Lee Serin turned her head sharply towards the demon and asked back.
The demon looked at Lee Serin once as if she was cute and then opened its mouth.
[ Originally, holocautein is performed in the dark of night. Moreover, the offering is also used in a color similar to the night so as not to be noticeable. But on the contrary, nudity is for showing off. In other words, it's closer to virtue, which is opposite to the nature of the ritual. My contractor, my contractor whose thoughts I cannot fathom. You will probably wrap yourself up more tightly rather than strip naked. ]
"Sh-showing off..."
[ In ancient Greece, nudity was civilization, comfortable freedom, and a way of revealing one's charm. Of course, for it to be charming, the body had to be mathematically perfect, but even if it wasn't, a well-trained body was beautiful and valuable in itself. Also, while the nudity of barbarians they despised was uncivilized and barbaric, it was also to show off one's bravery to the enemy. ]
The demon said while lightly scratching the ground with its hoof.
[ At least if this is derived from ancient Greece, it probably won't deviate much from this. In other words, there's no need to worry. ]
The demon licked its tongue as it watched Jinseong, who had finished preparations and was approaching them.
Jinseong approached Lee Serin without hesitation and said expressionlessly.
"The preparations are complete. You need to go first."
"M-me first..."
"You just need to come with your body."
At Jinseong's words, Lee Serin followed behind him and looked at Lee Arin, who was sitting on a sleeping bag spread out like a mat in a suitable place. Lee Arin slightly raised her hand and waved when her eyes met her twin sister's.
It meant 'have a good trip'.
At the same time, it also meant 'I'll watch well'.
Lee Serin felt her burden and tension somehow dissipate upon receiving her blood mate's send-off.
"H-hic."
But the disappearance of tension was short-lived.
As she reached right in front of the altar, her tension, which had been subsiding, suddenly shot up as if it would pierce the sky.
"Th-this. This..."
The first thing that greeted her was the pungent smell of blood.
It was as if the essence of blood had been collected and sprinkled everywhere, with a fishy smell that pierced directly into the brain beyond the nose. It was so strong that it seemed to linger not only in her nose but also on her tongue and in her throat.
And the next thing that greeted her was the altar.
Unlike ordinary altars, the birch firewood was made low. It was so low that it didn't even reach a person's waist height, looking almost like a low bench at first glance. Moreover, even though it hadn't rained, the surface was damp, as if the snow she had brought had been rubbed on the firewood.
In the center of the altar was the goat that had defecated and urinated on her, now awake and looking around with wide-open eyes.
Strangely, unlike earlier when it had caused all sorts of trouble seeking freedom, the goat was standing still as if its feet were glued to the ground.
Despite the strong smell of blood permeating the surroundings.
Jinseong closed his eyes for a moment in front of the goat and then took out a small bell from his bosom. As soon as it was taken out, the small bell swelled up as if inhaling fresh air, and Jinseong lightly tapped the balloon-like bell with his pinky nail.
Ding-
Then, with a sound like ringing a bell, vibrations spread, and the noise of insects and beasts around the amusement park suddenly stopped.
And in the silence, as if swimming, something flew silently towards Jinseong.
It was shining its eyes brightly like flames, and its wingspan was so large that it seemed to be about the size of a person. Even its sharp claws were revealing their sharpness, reflecting light slightly even in the dark, reminiscent of hooks for catching people.
[ It's an eagle owl. ]
The owl puffed up its body while staring directly at Jinseong as if asking if he had called it.
Jinseong smirked at the owl's behavior and snapped his fingers.
Snap!
With a sound that tore through the silence, the eagle owl startled and raised its head, then lowered it again. It nodded its head up and down as if drunk with sleep, and its round eyes became half-open.
Eventually, the eagle owl planted its head on the ground as if collapsing.
Jinseong approached the sleep-drunk eagle owl and smelled it.
"Excellent."
Jinseong muttered this and then levitated the eagle owl to bring it to the front of the altar.
Then he ignited fire in his hand.
"F-fire?"
[ It's not flame sorcery but Samadhi fire. Huh. Using that at that age? ]
Jinseong set fire to the goat using Samadhi fire. The flames engulfed the goat, emitting a vivid light, but the goat, which should have felt the pain of burning alive, felt no pain at all, and without feeling any threat to its life, it just looked around blankly in the fire as before.
This was possible because Jinseong wanted to burn only the non-material.
But fire can only exist by burning something.
In this world, fire cannot exist purely on its own, but manifests its form by burning something.
Fire that burns non-material things must have firewood made of non-material things as well.
And that firewood was scattered here.
Ding-
The small bell in Jinseong's hand rang softly this time.
With an incredibly eerie sound that seemed to seduce the soul rather than vibrate the body.
Then all the evil spirits caught in the barrier turned their heads towards the bell at once.
"It's truly a good thing to have so many materials."
Jinseong released the barrier to allow the evil spirits to run towards the flames.
But he didn't release the entire barrier.
Also, he didn't release the guard evil spirits crushed under the truck.
This was not because they were unnecessary for the sorcery, but for the guests who would come later.
Giving gifts and building connections. It's all good.
Jinseong smiled.