Chapter 77: The Reward for a Diligent Worshiper

Pantheon had begun preparing for their full-length album.

However, there was one thing the Demon God had to deal with before that.

[Zion.]

[Sun-woo!]

[How was the abandoned performance hall?]

[Actually, I saw Mystery Horror Commando!]

[It came out so well!]

[Sun-woo, you probably had fun too, right?]

[You remember our promise, right?]

[You’re contacting me because you remembered, right?]

The Demon God closed the chat with a weary face….

“No. Zion is a fan too.”

He was well-accustomed to the exhaustion of being worshipped.

Even if a person was somewhat clingy, they were still a believer.

He reopened the closed chat.

[Restrain yourself.]

[Refrain from chatter unless I have granted permission.]

[Okay, okay.]

[(≧∀≦)ゞ]

He had heard that people often used image emoticons.

Therefore, Zion’s use of character-based emoticons seemed to be a personal preference.

Furthermore, his proficiency was so high that they strangely managed to convey his mood quite well.

“Should I forbid it?”

After a moment of contemplation, the Demon God shook his head.

After all, he had contacted him today to reward a diligent believer.

He would let him use whatever emoticons he preferred.

[It was so.]

[It was entertaining.]

[I also remember the promise.]

[!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!]

[Enough.]

[!]

[Cease this.]

[Shh.]

[(￣x￣;)]

The Demon God closed the chat for a second time….

A moment later, his phone buzzed.

He read the contents appearing on the screen.

[I was wrong!]

[Forgive me!]

[Demon God Descends, Ten Thousand Fans Surrender!]

The Demon God decided to give him one last chance.

[Zion, you said you wanted a reward.]

[What is it that you desire?]

It didn’t matter if it was an expensive item.

He wasn’t in a position where it was difficult to request funds from the company. Even before the settlement, they would provide as much as needed.

It would be easier if he could handle this without meeting in person—

[Do you have any days off in your schedule?]

“Sigh.”

It seemed he wouldn’t be let off that easily.

It was the same in the past.

Worshipers would flock to him using all sorts of excuses, just to try and touch even the hem of the Demon God’s garment.

[I have no free days.]

[But it’s your off-season?]

[I have one….]

[I knew it!]

[When is it?]

The Demon God listed the days.

[Hang out with me for one of those free days!]

[This day!]

Zion made an incredibly insolent request, asking for an entire day of his time.

[That is excessive.]

[Oh, come on!]

However, it was a fact that Zion had rendered great service.

If the Demon God hadn’t gone to the abandoned performance hall, Lucio Moreira would have been ruined by the evil spirit.

Had that happened, there wouldn’t even be songs for the album.

[Choose between the morning or the afternoon.]

This was a suitable reward in the Demon God’s eyes.

[Really?]

[Should I start the day refreshingly with Sun-woo in the morning?]

[Or should I wrap up the day’s work with Sun-woo in the afternoon?]

[Do not share the process of your internal struggle.]

[Message me once you have decided.]

Zion’s deliberation didn’t last long.

Conveniently, the day they could match schedules was close, and there weren’t many places two idols could go together.

Even so, the meeting place he suggested via chat was quite unexpected.

“A healing center?”

[I don’t know if Sun-woo has heard of it.]

[It’s a place many celebrities visit.]

[It really lightens the mood.]

[I thought it would be good for Sun-woo to know about it too.]

The Demon God reached back into his stored memories.

Certainly, Lua, the solo singer from Izm whom he had met at the Novior concert, had mentioned using a healing center.

[Is that place not an affiliate of Izm?]

[No.]

[I think they’ve signed MOUs with quite a few companies.]

As it turned out, it wasn’t just Izm using it.

“Hmm. I have heard there are many artists who suffer from stress due to their activities in the entertainment industry. Their scope of operations must be wide.”

[What do you think, Sun-woo?]

The healing center was also where Lua had obtained the cursed bracelet. Had she said she received an item a counselor had bought by chance?

Surely they hadn’t found something like that again.

The Demon God felt a small spark of curiosity.

[Let us go.]

[Ｏ(≧∇≦)Ｏ]

“…….”

***

It was early March, so the weather was still chilly in the mornings and evenings.

Of course, the Demon God’s body was hardly affected by the temperature.

However, wearing clothes that were out of season was bound to draw unnecessary attention.

The Demon God wore black slacks with a striped T-shirt neatly tucked in, and draped a light gray cardigan over it.

His shoes were comfortable white sneakers.

“Zion.”

“Worship!”

“Shut up.”

“Yes, sir.”

Actually, there was no real need to tell him to shut up.

For some reason, the Demon God found himself saying those words anyway.

“Ahem.”

The Demon God glanced down at the word he had searched for on his phone.

Healing.

Restoring and curing a human’s exhausted mental and physical state.

He could only find it puzzling.

“Why did you want to introduce a healing center to me?”

“Huh? Well, anyone living as a celebrity needs healing at some point.”

Zion looked even more puzzled by the question.

“Sun-woo, didn’t you join the group in a huge rush and have been running ever since? Don’t you need healing?”

“No? I do not.”

“?”

He had never been exhausted.

Even in the past, it was only his subordinates who needed mental and physical recovery.

Ah, he had been fatigued by Zion’s recent messages, but that probably wasn’t what he meant.

“It matters not. I wish to visit for other reasons.”

The place where the Demon God and Zion met was the ground-level parking lot of the healing center.

Thanks to that, the center was visible right in front of them.

It was as large as a shopping mall for a large apartment complex; they said it actually housed various healing facilities inside.

The pure white walls were impressive, and tulip-shaped decorations rose from each corner of the building, making it look somewhat like a temple.

“It is surely not a religious facility?”

“Is it because of the flowers? Some people mistake it for a mosque, but they say it’s completely unrelated.”

In the spacious lobby, there was no one other than the desk staff.

“This is unexpected. I thought there would be many users?”

“That’s because I made a reservation in advance. This place prioritizes privacy, so they make sure users don’t bump into each other while entering or leaving.”

They were thorough, to say the least.

They were even handed masks at the desk after completing the entry procedure.

The one the Demon God received was a white mask with a sun pattern engraved on the forehead.

“I dislike this.”

“Pardon?”

“Not the sun. Give me something dark.”

“Something dark? Would you like a cloud or a moon?”

Pitch-black night was not a type that could be engraved on a mask.

The Demon God settled for a mask with a crescent moon pattern.

Zion took the sun pattern mask the Demon God had rejected and put it on instead.

“Item acquired!”

“What nonsense are you speaking.”

The Demon God shook his head.

“Where should we go now?”

“Umm…. We can decide that ourselves. I was planning to visit the Oriental Medicine Clinic.”

“An Oriental Medicine Clinic. Now that I think about it, fans have asked me if I studied oriental medicine before.”

It was related to his Authorities, [Deep Sleep Inducement] and [Appetite Control].

The fans had found it so fascinating that they had created several rumors, one of which was the ‘Sun-woo, the genius of oriental medicine’ rumor.

“Puhuhu. That was a rumor I didn’t push for.”

“…You knew about it.”

“Of course!”

Suddenly, he wondered what kind of rumors Zion had pushed for, but after a moment’s thought, the Demon God shook his head.

Never mind.

He should stop giving him more openings.

“Lead the way. I shall experience this oriental medicine.”

“Great.”

He followed behind Zion, who was walking with somewhat excited steps, up to the second floor.

Perhaps also for privacy, they followed a quite complicated, winding hallway until the Oriental Medicine Clinic soon appeared.

The difference from a regular clinic was that it didn’t have a specific name.

It was simply labeled ‘Oriental Medicine Clinic.’

“Welcome. If this is your first visit, please come this way.”

They entered the director’s consultation room and took their seats.

“I see it’s your first time here.”

“It is so.”

“?”

The director flinched momentarily at the Demon God’s way of speaking.

“This friend of mine grew up abroad.”

“Ah, I see.”

It was soon brushed over.

“How is your sleep?”

“I am sleeping exceedingly well.”

“And your meals?”

“I am also eating exceedingly well.”

“Your activity level—.”

“It is vigorous.”

After a medical inquiry that made him wonder if it had any meaning at all.

“Hmm…. Then shall we check your pulse first?”

They reached the pulse diagnosis.

In truth, the director was already certain during the inquiry stage that there would be no health issues with the visitor.

He didn’t think he would feel anything special from checking the pulse—

“Huh?!”

The director pulled his hand away in sudden shock.

“Director, what’s wrong?”

Not the stoic Demon God, but Zion asked in surprise.

“No, wait. Was it an illusion?”

“An illusion?”

The director said so, but Zion became worried for no reason.

“Sun-woo, have you been feeling unwell lately?”

“Ah, the chat was unwell.”

“…Your stomach?”

“The chat.”

The conversation ended, and the director grabbed the Demon God’s wrist again.

He focused, breathing quietly.

Thinking that what he heard earlier must have been a mistake and that he would hear it properly this time, he felt for the pulse—

“Is this…, a beat?”

“Pardon?”

He could hear a beat.

A human’s pulse was increasing its BPM.

Was it even okay to hear something like this?

First of all,

Dooooooooom—

Like the first synth note of a song, a long, long pulse could be heard from far away.

“No way…. This is….”

While the director was in denial because he couldn’t accept it.

Thump— Thump— Thump—

Boom-boom-boom-boom—

Gradually, the demonic heartbeat began to resonate.

The beat of worship resonated.

“No, wait.”

The director tried to pull his hand away.

But it was too late.

His hand wouldn’t come off.

Cold sweat broke out on his back, his lips grew parched, and his heart beat faster.

Yet, he did not want to ignore this beat.

He didn’t feel like letting go.

“Ah, ah….”

“Worship.”

The Demon God, noticing the phenomenon, offered a simple and clear solution.

“Wor…ship… gurgle.”

He should have just answered that he would worship.

But the director, who was ignorant of idols, simply fainted on the spot.

“Director!”

Zion was so shocked that he stood up and threw open the consultation room door.

“Help! Someone has collapsed!”

At his shout, the staff came running.

“Did the patient receiving treatment collapse?”

“No! The director did!”

“What?”

The staff found the director.

“Oh my, Director!”

“Did he faint?”

“W-what is it! Is it a myocardial infarction?”

One of the staff members approached the director to perform first aid.

However.

“Huh? The director is smiling?”

The director was wearing an extremely blissful smile.

“Wor… wor… worship….”

“What’s going on? Did he take the wrong medicine?”

The Demon God shook his head.

“Do not worry. He has simply fallen asleep. He will feel quite refreshed when he wakes.”

No one is harmed without the Demon God’s intent.

Even if they are not a believer, he does not allow them to be harmed recklessly.

Zion realized that this situation was merely a sudden sleep, just as the Demon God had said.

“Sun-woo, let’s get out of here for now.”

He grabbed the Demon God’s hand and escaped into the hallway.

Even so, he was in a slight panic as his first program had gone awry.

The Demon God did not leave his fan’s distress unaddressed.

“Zion, it would be best if the next one involves no actual contact.”

Providing a hint helped Zion regain his composure.

“Y-yes! No contact. Sun-woo, shall we do yoga? The instructor only guides with words without touching you.”

“Yoga? What is that?”

The Demon God didn’t wait for Zion’s words and searched for it.

Yoga.

A discipline of mind and body passed down from ancient India.

It aims to develop supernatural abilities and gain freedom from the bonds of matter through meditation and training to refine posture and breathing.

“I was already in such a state…?”

The Demon God remained stoic.

It seemed humans were always trying various things amongst themselves.

“Well, very well.”

I shall humor you.

Since this is a reward.

Seeing Zion look so incredibly flustered, the Demon God finally started to find this slightly amusing.