Seonghwa wasted time while getting dressed and washing his face. Usually, he should have been outside in the nave before long to prepare for tomorrow's service, since his unforeseen illness had exempted him from any work on Saturday.

For the longest time, Seonghwa doubted he could return to work the next day without falling victim to hysteria. His prayers to ease the pain in his chest went unheard and while the suffering could easily be forgotten, he couldn't help but question its impact on his mind. No natural trial the Lord would allow on earth would be as vicious and deadly. The monster that cursed Seonghwa had been sent from the depths of Hell, as was the white-haired demon in the church. They were to break his spirit and distract him, but he gathered his strength to stay strong. He would prove his worth to the Lord and accept this challenge.

Perhaps, in asking God for an answer if this curse was truly lethal and how Seonghwa deserved it being cast upon him, he avoided the answers he had already received by his terrifying visitor. No matter the demon's rare bindings to the church, it was still a demon. Seonghwa would be a fool to trust it.

His heart throbbed in his chest as a reminder that no matter the answer, this matter needed to be dealt with. Right after the service, he would pay a visit to the village healer and ask for a remedy.

When Seonghwa emerged from his room after many minutes of stalling, the demon sat on the carpeted ground in front of the altar. Its wings unfolded as it spotted Seonghwa and got to its feet. Looming as the evil come to earth it was, it stared at the apprehensive priest.

"Why are you still here?" Seonghwa gritted out between his teeth. This chapel was a place of empathy and kindness, but as he faced the grotesque creature sullying the sacred ground, he couldn't muster any of that.

"Do you not recognise me? Or does fear cloud your mind?" The demon stalked a step closer and Seonghwa stumbled back as if hit by a wall. His fingers flew to the cross dangling around his neck for protection and clutched it tightly. Only when the demon stilled, Seonghwa relaxed his shoulders.

"I don't have ties to creatures such as you," Seonghwa spat. Confusion and rage drew his brows into a dark line when the suggestion insulted him.

The demon regarded Seonghwa, unimpressed. Its lingering stare made Seonghwa's skin crawl as if infested with a thousand bugs. Horrifying, sharp fangs appeared when the creature's lips coiled into a smirk.

"It's not as if your senses are very keen, that much is true. Your ignorance towards the forces around you has shown." Its claw tapped its own chest, but its cruel smirk mocked only Seonghwa.

The priest exhaled. He picked up his steps and rounded the demon in a careful distance to light the candles around the walls. His shaking fingers couldn't be distracted from the evil in the same room. Though, if it had ties to the Lord, was this demon as villainous as the others of its kin? Perhaps God's grace had forgiven its vile existence and thus allowed it inside.

From everything Seonghwa had learned about the supernatural creatures among humans, he had never heard of an exception that allowed them to near places or items purified by sacred energy. This poltergeist was supposed to be a pile of ashes, its spirit released from sin as it finally joined God's side.

"Where do you suggest I know you from?"

The demon stood at the altar with its arms crossed in front of its chest. Seonghwa avoided looking at it for the indecent amount of skin it showed. From his peripherals, he monitored the looming presence that seemed to suck in all light in an aura of shadows.

He still waited for it to pounce on him and rip his heart from his chest. The sole protection he had was the assumption that they couldn't harm each other. While it had proved correct for the demon, Seonghwa didn't want to challenge fate by trying it out.

"The roof."

Incredulous, Seonghwa dug through his mind. The attic had never been haunted, nor had the bell tower. His father hadn't mentioned a demonic spirit there either, for the same reasons as anything else. The chapel was sacred ground. No evil could fester here.

"Even if you resist the holiness of this place, you couldn't have escaped my gaze if I ever laid eyes upon you."

"You must be blind then. You have studied my countenance before and you forget all you saw."

Seonghwa straightened his back where he had hunched over the candles. He hoped his pique overshadowed his bewilderment. Never he had felt more helpless and needy about his father's guidance than with the deft demon trying to trick him.

"What game is this? One to agree to a hidden contract? I shan't fall for your vile tricks."

The demon's mocking smirk broadened. Seonghwa froze in his step, apprehensive of its intentions.

"May I show you, cursed one? Since my explanations merely rouse suspicion in you, you can prove your eyesight by watching."

Seonghwa swallowed his anger. He didn't wish to fall for impish ploys when their sole purpose was to mislead him. His vulnerability was hidden behind an iron cage of caution when he narrowed his eyes at the demon.

"What is there to show?"

"Accompany me." With that, it turned on the spot to stalk down the nave. Its horns and wings threw warped shadows that seemed to shiver in fear of its appearance.

Seonghwa followed at a wary distance. His pride to triumph over this argument had him comply with what could be another trap, but this time, he kept an eye on his surroundings. They left the church into the dark of night and the door remained wide open to invite them back in with its comforting glow as they found themselves on the road.

Under the open sky, the demon looked less horrifying and, at the same time, uncomfortably real. While inside, Seonghwa had blamed its presence on a waking dream or a phantom haunting him. Here, with the night wind brushing his nape and jostling the demon's wings, its presence was tolerated by nature.

What a cruel joke.

The demon pointed at the roof of the church with a gruesome claw. When Seonghwa followed its direction, he saw nothing.

Confused, he blinked.

He wasn't nearsighted; he was sure he was supposed to see something at the very tip of the peaked roof. An empty pedestal reminded of something that had once been there but got lost.

"I must be blind, for I cannot see what you point at." Seonghwa squinted in the dark, but nothing. Not for human eyes.

"It is not about what you can see, it's about its absence," the demon drawled. Seonghwa startled when a rush of wind hit him and the flap of massive wings in the air disrupted the tranquil night. Breathless, he watched how the demon swung himself up the side of the roof and settled on the pedestal. It assumed a hunched position, its hands clawed to the stone beneath while its knees framed its body. The horned head ducked, and the wings folded as the long tail loosely wrapped around its frame.

Once it stilled in the crouched position and its grey skin melted into the darkness of the night, Seonghwa's eyes widened. When he realised, his hand slapped over his mouth and his heart gave a throb of fear that resonated in pain.

The demon descended, beating its powerful wings once to whirl up dust before it landed on its feet. Like a cat, it stalked closer. And satisfied like a cat, the smirk on its lips spread.

"You can see now."

"How can you be alive?! This statue-"

The statue was a gargoyle. An architectural choice invented to rid the roof of excess water, but a spiritual charm since a while ago. The ancient chapel was old enough that the gargoyle couldn't have been there when it had been built. Once they assumed a protective function, however, it was added.

The demon grinned as understanding slacked Seonghwa's fatigued features.

"Do you understand now how I can be bound to the church? I am a demon constrained by sacred spells to protect this church and its patrons. For I am pardoned by them, your crosses and prayers can't harm me."

Seonghwa wrapped his arms around himself with a shiver. Tall with his horns, the demon stood by his side in triumph.

"You protect the church. So you came to protect me when I got attacked?"

The gargoyle nodded.

"I had assumed you knew who the lady was, so I was late at aiding you. By the time I fended her off, you had collapsed with the curse and I could not heal you. However, my protection of this church extends to you. To fulfil my purpose and to make up for my mistake, I am to help you recover." Its golden eyes glinted in the dark of the night. Under the surface of an aiding gargoyle lurked the restless hunger of a demon.

Seonghwa's stomach dropped further. Another proof that the creature spoke the truth. Another hint at how big the danger had to be that the gargoyle exposed itself. However, there was something else in that message.

"I can be healed? So it is not lethal?"

The demon beckoned him to come back inside. Seonghwa followed and pulled the door shut behind them. His eyes were stuck to the demon's disfigured feet that effortlessly traversed the threshold.

"It is lethal if not cured, and no human remedy can treat you. I am unsure how to help you, but all curses can be reversed. We can cleanse the taint that touched your pure heart. My duty is to offer any knowledge to you that may aid."

Wary not to be fooled by the demon's compassionate words, Seonghwa wandered to his bookshelf. The worn leather of a thick tome was cool against his fingers as he flipped it open. In the chapter titled 'Gargoyles', he read exactly what the demon had told him, what his father had told him. Gargoyles were beasts bound by sacred chains to uphold a church's peace. They were to be loyal servants to the ruling member of the chantry in that church and defended them against common evils.

For a long while, they were cast in silence as Seonghwa read the same lines again and again. He couldn't believe them, but he couldn't believe the demon's wicked intelligence, either.

What he could believe, however, was the dull pain in his chest. The White Lady and her curse had been very real.

"What do I have to do to break the curse?" Seonghwa snapped the book shut and put it back into its place between the two others. The shelf needed dusting, and since he needed a distraction, he got a rag to wipe it down.

The gargoyle stood behind him and watched as Seonghwa scurried about.

"You cannot break it here. For I lack the knowledge about this matter, we will have to search for one who does. The journey is far. None of their kin lives nearby or I would feel their power."

"Who is it?"

"A witch."

Before Seonghwa could grimace, the demon beckoned its jaw to the shelf.

"They might use hellish magic, but they bleed and die as humans do. They can break a demonic curse. If they can't, they know where to find the solution." Its ominous voice echoed in the place and filled its shadow with dreadful whispers.

Seonghwa shook off his goosebumps to reply.

"I would prefer not to mingle with any more demons or witches. A sole priest can't cleanse all that evil."

"Since it was a witch that cursed you, you will have to deal with them again to fix it. You can't expect a wound to heal if an infection festers."

The rag slowed on its arduous task at the furious wiping. Unsure, Seonghwa glanced over his shoulder at the demon. Its joking demeanour had dropped as persistence remained.

"How long will the journey be?"

"Several weeks, so long as the nearest witch doesn't move. You will have to leave this place and we must hurry so the curse won't reap your life before we arrive."

That was a long time. Seonghwa had never left the village before, and he would hate to discard his duties. With no one here but him, who would convey the Lord's words to the people? They would be worried sick.

Seonghwa gulped. The demon pushed off the pillar it had leaned against and turned to walk down the aisle.

"You know where to find me once you made up your mind, but don't take too long. I will accompany you, so you don't have to fear facing evil by yourself." It stressed the word 'evil' as if sarcastic about it, but its promise sounded determined.

Even if the demon terrified Seonghwa, the priest would much rather have it with him than travelling into an unknown distance alone. He doubted he could convince any witch to heed his call.

The demon was almost at the door when Seonghwa rose his voice to call through the chapel.

"Do you fancy a name, forsaken one?"

The demon turned its head just enough that Seonghwa could see its broad grin contorting its features. Cast in shadows by his horns, it was a petrifying sight.

"I call myself Hongjoong."

"I'm Seonghwa," Seonghwa breathed, glad that this conversation was almost human.

The demon pushed the door open and his wings flared as he stepped into the night.

"I know."