9 Cult

"Your dyes" Chuckling, Sujin took her son in her arms and continued "All pagodas are divided by color. The brown pagodas are for the management of the army, the orange pagodas are for the management of the believers, and the gray pagodas are for the general management of the entire cult."

'Archaic but useful' Nodding with compression, Seojun continued to look at his surroundings, suddenly noticing a certain pagoda in particular.

Although all the surrounding pagodas are dozens of meters tall, in the center of the entire area is a majestic and imposing pagoda of a pale golden color that would be able to put several old world buildings to shame just by its height and design alone.

From a quick glance Seojun guessed that it is around 150 to 200 meters tall, maybe more.

"That pagoda is the most special" Instantly noticing where her son's vision was, Sujin continued "In that pagoda is my throne and it is where all the important decisions of the cult are usually made."

"Your throne?"

"It's an idea we stole from the empire" Chuckling, Sujin continued "Would you like to go inside and see the inside of the pagodas?"

"May I?"

"Of course you can, no one would dare deny my little one anything" With a smile softly, Sujin shook Seojun's hair affectionately.

"Mmmm..." Looking at the numerous pagodas surrounding him for a few seconds, Seojun lowered his gaze and squinted at the ground 'While they have the architecture quite advanced, their grounds leave much to be desired...'

Unlike their imposing and exquisite pagodas, the ground surrounding the area has nothing to give the slightest support to human beings and keep them away from the mud or dirt, causing Seojun to feel uncomfortably as the mud came to cover his little feet.

'I understand that in the old days they used to place large stones to firm the ground, but it seems they haven't bothered to think about it yet' Shaking his head, Seojun thought for a few seconds and spoke "I don't want to see the pagodas."

"Why?" Raising her eyebrows in surprise, Sujin continued "Do you want to go back home?"

"No... I want to go that way" Pointing to his back, Seojun continued "From above I saw more structures!"

"..." Frowning slightly, Sujin was silent for a few seconds and spoke "There's nothing interesting over there."

"Never mind, I want to go!"

"In that place only people live, there's nothing interesting there."

"I want to see where they live!"

"..." Frowning even more, Sujin stared at her son's face for a few seconds, then sighed "We'll be only half shichen at the place, then we'll go back home."

"Shichen?"

"A day is divided into 24 shichen, I thought I taught you that" Rubbing her chin, Sujin shrugged her shoulders with disinterest and continued "Do you accept?"

[A/N: In the ancient East, the day used to be divided into twelve units called "shichen", corresponding to two hours each. Each "shichen" was associated with an animal and was used to indicate the hours of the day and night. Yes, I put 24 shichen per day, more about that in the future].

"Do I have any other choice?"

"No."

"Then why do you ask?"

"To give you the illusion that it was your decision."

"..."

"Then let's go" Smiling brightly, Sujin bent down slightly and spoke carefully "I recommend you close your eyes and prepare yourself, mom will jump very high"

"*Gulp* H-how high?" Quickly clinging to his mother's neck, Seojun asked nervously.

"In two jumps we'll get to where you want to go."

"W-well" Gritting his teeth, Seojun inhaled deeply and nodded nervously.

With a light chuckle, Sujin gathered much of her strength in her legs and jumped, creating a small crater where she used to be as her body quickly rose into the sky.

10 meters, 20 meters, 30 meters, 40 meters, 50 meters, maybe more.

In a single leap this woman easily reached the roof of a pagoda and without losing her balance in the slightest, she took a second leap and propelled herself forward.

Feeling a strong breeze hitting his body, Seojun clung with all his strength to his mother's body and slowly turned his gaze to the front, then opened his eyes slightly and closed them again instantly as his face deformed from the pain.

'The wind won't let me see anything' Frowning deeply, Seojun looked up and half-opened his eyes, noting with interest how his mother seems to be unaffected by the strong wind around them.

After a few seconds, Sujin finally landed softly on a rooftop and spoke "Ready."

Pulling his face from his mother's chest, Seojun turned his gaze back and his eyes glistened again as he looked around.

Unlike the giant pagodas he saw, this area was certainly something closer to what he expected from a bronze age city, noting several houses made of what appeared to be adobe with some wooden supports.

There were even beautiful tiles of a material that Seojun failed to identify on the roofs of the homes.

But while the materials used were archaic, it is impossible to deny the beauty that surrounds it, causing Seojun to feel somehow in the ancient China he saw so much of in the books he studied.

Unlike the pagoda area, the streets below him were completely crowded, seeing everything from adults selling things on the side of the road, to oxen hauling carts with what seems to be some sort of merchandise.

"I hate this damn smell" Wrinkling her nose in disgust, Sujin muttered.

"Mn" Without losing the smile on his face, Seojun nodded.

The smell of the area really was peculiar, being a rare mixture of dampness, smoke and finally manure.

Not unusual when you consider that there was no sewerage or toilets in this era.

"Mother, what is that?" looking with interest at what appears to be a large piece of wood burning slowly in the distance, Seojun asked.

"It's an incense."

"Incense?"

"It's aromatic."

"What do they have it out for?" Strangely, Seojun continued, "There's no way that could cover up the bad smell."

"It's not for that use" Shaking her head, Sujin continued "When that incense runs out, it means the day is over and the night has come."

"Oh" With understanding on his face, Seojun stared at the half-burned incense and muttered "Interesting"

"Do you want me to buy some for you?"

"Mmmmm, I'm not interested" Shaking his head, Seojun continued to look around carefully and asked "Mother, why were there no people at the pagodas?"

"I gave them the day off today so they wouldn't bother us while we were touring the place, I never thought you wouldn't even be interested in looking at the interiors" Snorting with annoyance, Sujin continued "I don't know why you want to see this place, but enjoy it while you can, I don't plan to go back."

"You're cantankerous" Rolling his eyes, Seojun continued "I want to go see what those people are selling."

"No way" Instantly shaking her head as her grip on Seojun increased, Sujin continued "It's dangerous for you to prowl around people"

"But I'm with you" Pouting, Seojun blinked tenderly at his mother's face and continued "I know mom will protect me!"

"That won't work twice" Snorting with disdain, Sujin continued "I won't change my mind, be content with watching them from here"

"*Sigh*" Knowing instantly that this was as far as this irrational woman's goodwill went, Seojun just settled into his mother's embrace and quietly observed the bustling city in front of him while thinking 'Let's let everything flow slowly...'

***

"..." Staring at the sleeping child in her arms, Sujin looked up and watched the people passing by on the street below, then turned her gaze to her right and spoke to her towards nothingness "Come closer if that's what you want."

"I thought you'd never say" Suddenly appearing sitting next to Sujin, Dokuma smiled broadly and squinted her one eye towards the peacefully sleeping boy "He looks quite like his father, but he has your eyes, and from what I saw, your temper as well."

"I thought you wanted to talk to him."

"I intended to, but then I thought of the blows I would have to endure from you and refrained"

"You're smart"

"It's my gift" Without taking her eyes off the duo at her side, Dokuma sighed and shook her head "Who knew that one day I would see you showing affection so openly... I wouldn't be surprised if tomorrow humanity would become extinct"

Snorting, Sujin replied "You wouldn't understand."

"Maybe" Yawning lazily, Dokuma turned her gaze to the street and muttered "You made me empty all the pagodas so she wouldn't even take the time to look at them."

"I never thought he'd want to go any further" With a bitter face, Sujin looked down at Seojun and stared at her peaceful smile as she slept "That curiosity of his is a damn pain in the ass"

"Weren't we the same?" Chuckling, Dokuma continued "When we were in those caves while training, don't you remember how much we used to look up at the little ray of light that used to filter through in the mornings? Always thinking about what opened up beyond that dark, horrible place?"

"He's not in a horrible place" Frowning instantly, Sujin continued "It's totally different from what we lived through".

"For us maybe, but for him it won't be" Shaking her head, Dokuma continued "He will only know that you are limiting his world, you are the one who locked him in a cave and forbade him to see that ray of light he so longs for"

"Today I took him out for a walk, it's not that I forbid him".

"And didn't you see the expectation in his eyes when he looked at those people below? The child desires that, and you know it."

"It's dangerous-"

"Don't make those excuses to me" Snorting with disdain, Dokuma continued "We know perfectly well that you could slaughter the entire cult if you wanted to and at the same time make sure they don't touch a single hair on your son's head. The skills you have, you simply refuse to part with him."

"..." Frowning even more, Sujin snorted with disinterest and asked "I felt those flies hovering around the pagodas on our way here, did they give you any trouble?"

"They didn't dare" Sighing while shaking her head, Dokuma continued "But they watched you from a distance."

"Why are they so insistent? They're so annoying" With irritation, Sujin grumbled "It's not like my son is going to cause them any trouble."

"You really don't understand?"

"What do you mean?"

"..." Noticing Sujin's confused face, Dokuma sighed and shook her head "You have muscles in your brain."

"Just talk."

"Your son is a variable that they never expected and that in a way could become the key to dominate the cult" Turning her gaze to Seojun, Dokuma continued "Everyone already knows that your son is the most important thing to you, and that caused everyone to instantly understand that whoever controls your son, will control you"

"..."

"Just think about it" Laughing, Dokuma continued "You are the youngest heavenly demon in history after the founder. It is believed that your rule will last for much longer, and obviously for now it is not a good idea to start supporting so openly the possible future heirs to that position... what do you think is the best way to have more power?"