Chapter 63
A single text message, short yet long.
Its contents were something some might like, and others might dislike.
"Hey! Awesome! This is awesome!!"
Lee Arin, who had been chatting while drinking beer with a bear, rushed to Lee Serin in one breath as soon as she received the message. And not by taking the elevator normally, but through the window.
"Ah, you startled me!"
Because of this, Lee Serin, who had been quietly reading a book, thought her heart would drop.
Lee Serin slightly frowned at Lee Arin who was making all sorts of fuss.
It was a silent pressure that she wouldn't let it go if it wasn't something important.
"Our brother is coming to Russia?!"
But at Lee Arin's next words, Lee Serin's eyes widened.
She checked the message to confirm if it was true, and when she realized it was, her pupils shook slightly.
"That brother of ours, finally we'll get to see his face. Well, he should come visit at least once like this~ right?"
Lee Arin grinned, seemingly pleased that Jinseong was coming to visit.
She approached Lee Serin and kept asking if she wasn't happy that their brother was coming, but Lee Serin only broke out in a cold sweat instead of answering.
Uh... I was caught peeking not too long ago...?
Lee Serin wasn't happy about Jinseong's visit.
No, she was happy.
She was happy, but...
It's a bit... a bit awkward to face him...?
How should this be described?
Happy but not happy?
Welcoming the visit itself but not wanting to see his face or talk to him?
The feeling that a teenager might feel after being caught doing something they shouldn't have?
Maybe after some time has passed, but now is... a bit...
It wasn’t that she didn't want to see him.
But she didn't particularly want to see him right now.
However, seemingly oblivious to her feelings, Lee Arin chattered on for a while about Jinseong's visit. She talked about what he might have done in Japan, what gifts he might bring, and how they should tell him to do some sightseeing while he's here.
Of course, Lee Serin let these words go in one ear and out the other.
Rather than that, she was only thinking about how to change the image of being 'someone who likes to peek'.
And the demon was quietly watching this scene.
[ Coming to visit... huh. ]
The demon's face wasn't particularly bright. That face was full of uneasiness, and there was confusion created by a mix of not-so-good feelings and not-so-bad feelings.
However, what was certain was that the demon, like its contractor Lee Serin, wasn't particularly happy about Jinseong's visit.
Jinseong, who had tried to call Lee Arin and Lee Serin to Japan several times.
What on earth did he do in Japan that made him want to call them?
What did he want to give them that made him invite them so many times?
The demon stared blankly at Lee Serin, who was breaking out in a cold sweat.
In her hand was a smartphone.
『 While I'm at it, I'll make the spirit vision blocker I mentioned before. But it needs ingredients, and while I'll bring most of them, I'd like you to prepare a few. First, I need 30kg of birch firewood, one goat not older than 10 months, 300mL of blood from a predator, and 1kg of snow that's over 20 years old. The type of predator doesn't matter much, but the fresher the blood, the better. Also, it must be a carnivore, and one that hasn't harmed humans. 』
The demon felt something strange while reading the ingredients Jinseong had requested.
[ Judging by the use of firewood and a young goat, it seems to be a burnt offering (קָרְבַּן עוֹלָה), but I don't understand why it needs predator blood and snow. ]
A burnt offering was an ancient sorcery ritual.
This ritual of burning a young animal whole was so simple yet effective that it has existed regardless of region.
In Greece and Rome, they gained sorcerous protection in all fields by burning animals, and in Christianity and Islam, they obtained animal skins with special powers through burnt offerings and used them in various fields.
In Hinduism, they made food with special effects through burnt offerings, and in China, they created treasures through burnt offerings to accumulate wealth and store power.
These burnt offerings had slight differences in procedures or methods, but they all shared the commonality of 'burning the sacrifice'. The commonality of burning young animals untainted by the world.
But the ingredients Jinseong was requesting now were somewhat strange.
[ The firewood and goat are pure, but what on earth are the predator blood and 20-year-old snow for? ]
Predator blood was an important ingredient used in sorcery.
Predators were beings at the top of the food chain.
In other words, it could mean tyrants who suppress and oppress beings lower in rank than themselves and eat them, or beings who live with the karma of killing and eating life. Therefore, what it symbolized were very aggressive things like 'powerful authority', 'tyrant', 'unapproachable being', 'fear', etc.
And snow that had been piled up for 20 years?
This was completely opposite to young animals.
Things that have just been born symbolize purity.
And snow that just fell also symbolized purity, and as time passed, this symbolism began to fade. This was true even if it hadn't been dirtied, and even if not a speck of dust had touched it, the evaporated purity couldn’t be restored.
Because of this, sorcerers seeking 'pure snow' lived with weather forecasts and moved from one snowy area to another. Especially when gathering materials for major sorcery rituals, they even lay lightweight magic-enchanted cloths right under the clouds to immediately procure materials.
It was common sense to use 'freshly fallen snow' when using snow in sorcery...
[ 20-year-old snow... Snow that's as tainted as it can be, without even a speck of purity to be found... ]
But Jinseong demanded the opposite.
He requested an item full of impurities, with its symbolism reversed.
With the first two and the last two being in completely opposite positions, could this be proper sorcery?
If it wasn't Jinseong who requested it, the demon would have concluded it was the nonsense of a pseudo-sorcerer.
But considering how he had easily blocked spirit vision imbued with the power of divine authority not long ago, the sorcery Jinseong would use must surely be proper.
Then what on earth could this sorcery be?
The demon turned its gaze to Lee Arin, feeling uneasy.
『 What I was going to give you in Japan, I've given to someone else, but I'll give you something similar instead. From now on, gather what I tell you. One predator alive and without injuries, 1kg of mistletoe untouched by human hands, 500g of fish scales, 500g of raptor feathers, 5 blood packs of the same blood type as you, 5L of alcohol over 80 proof, a wooden stick over 80cm made from English oak, 1kg of first harvest grain or fruit, one first-born rodent. 』
『 The predator can be herbivorous, omnivorous, or carnivorous. And the mistletoe must absolutely be untouched by human hands, and even during the collection process, it must not be touched by human hands at all. If it's difficult to obtain, I'll collect it myself, so just find out where mistletoe grows. And for the fish, the type doesn't matter, but the more beautiful the scales, the better, and for the raptor, try to get eagle or hawk feathers. And the stick made from English oak must, absolutely must be from English oak. Not just any oak or white oak, but 'English oak'. 』
『 You don't need to go out of your way to gather the fish scales and raptor feathers yourself. You should be able to buy them from a nearby sorcery supply department store or online shopping mall, but avoid low-quality or fake items, so buy from places with good reviews. 』
『 It's fine to catch the predator yourself, but it would be easier to request it from the Russian Hunters' Cooperative or the Mercenary Association. Also, I'll pay for the necessary funds. I've earned a lot of money, so don't worry no matter how much it costs. 』
Unlike the message to Lee Serin, the one to Lee Arin was long.
It was written in long and detailed content, like a parent nagging a child while sending them on an errand.
The demon smirked at the content of the message.
[ He must have thought she would gather things carelessly if he didn't write in detail. ]
And as if to prove that his and the demon's thoughts were correct, Lee Arin shouted in an annoyed voice.
"Ah, why are there so many things to consider~ I don't really understand these things even if you explain... Serin! Serin! Let's gather these together!"
"No, wait... Huh? But... Why, when it's written in such detail...?"
"Why~ It's good if we do it together! I'll help gather too!"
"I only have to gather 4 things, but you have 9! I'm at a disadvantage...!"
"Huh?! A young goat?! I'll help with this! I have a friend who raises goats!"
Lee Arin naturally passed her share to Lee Serin and jumped out the window.
"Ah..."
Suddenly finding herself in a situation where she had to gather a total of 13 items including Lee Arin's share, she could only blankly stare at Lee Arin excitedly running around outside the window.