Chapter 14 …
Lovey-Dovey, Hip-Hip Hooray
Half-elves were a race that inherited only the worst traits of both elves and humans.
Humans. Physically weak, but a race with the potential to choose any class.
Elves. Limited in class diversity, but born with innate Mysteries.
And half-elvesâŠ
They had poor physical abilities and couldnât freely choose their classes.
A hopeless hybrid.
Still, as the ancient proverb left behind by our ancestors says:
âEven a maggot has a talent for wriggling.â
Even the most unfortunate people usually have at least one thing to be proud of.
ăItâs been ages since my eyes felt so refreshed! Pretty one, are you a half-elf?ă
âYes.â
ăI knew it. Your race is pitiful in many ways, but your appearance is precious beyond compare. Rejoice. Youâve already completely won me over!ă
The one and only advantage of half-elvesâŠ
Their exceptionally high Charm stat.
It often became a disadvantage inside labyrinthsâŠ
But when becoming one of Suâejeâs cultists, it was an overwhelming advantage.
ăPretty one, raise your chin just a little more.ă
I obediently complied.
ăHmmâŠ? Smile for me just once more. Just once.ă
âI refuse.â
ăWhat did you say?ă
âNot just once. Twice, three times⊠Iâll smile whenever you wish.â
I displayed the natural-looking smile Iâd perfected while dealing with Manager Choi, the demon from my previous company.
From somewhere unimaginably far awayâŠ
I faintly heard an odd laugh.
âHeheheâŠâ
ăYou speak just as beautifully as your face. Whatâs your name?ă
âKar.â
ăKar. Would you like to become my Apostle?ă
An ApostleâŠ
In terms of a Good Godâs church, it was equivalent to a Cardinal ranking directly beneath the Pope.
ââŠâ
If I accepted, I could become an Apostle immediately.
The price, however, would be gaining the abnormal status [Fanatic], causing me to blindly pursue the faith Suâeje desired.
Iâd experienced it before.
It wasnât particularly pleasant.
[What nonsense! If you become Suâejeâs Apostle, Lord Lidni will be deeply hurt!]
Since he lacked enough worshippers to even muster the power to curse meâŠ
Even his threats felt rather pathetic.
I shook my head and politely declined.
âI am still woefully lacking in the ability to bear such an exalted title as Apostle.â
ăThatâs not wrong.ă
âIâll climb the ranks step by step, beginning as an ordinary believer. Even if I start from the bottom, my firmly established faith will never waver.â
ăWhat an admirable child!ă
[:-(]
Lidni and Eyes That Perceive the Truth still seemed worried Iâd abandon my faith.
A pointless concern.
The Evil God I worshipped with all my heart and soul would always be Lidni alone.
That didnât mean I rejected the other Evil Gods, however.
Just because you have a favorite member in an idol group doesnât mean you hate the others.
ăBut pretty one, youâre already serving that old fossil of Twisted Truth. Will you really be alright?ă
Concern suddenly colored Suâejeâs oracle.
ăIf someone tries serving multiple Evil Gods at once, theyâll inevitably go insane. Well⊠if insanity were all that happened, itâd actually be fortunate. More often than not, their mind simply melts away.ă
ăI want you⊠But I donât want you to lose your life.ă
For an Evil GodâŠ
Those were surprisingly gentle words.
Kindness born from fear.
Fear that, with so few remaining believers, acting as demanding as before might erase every last shred of faith directed toward them.
A stark contrast to a certain deity who constantly muttered,
âThings werenât like this in the old days⊠Iâll be fine.â
I continued with what I considered a rather splendid smile.
âMy mind isnât so fragile that itâd split apart from the overwhelming honor of worshipping multiple Evil Gods at once.â
ăReally?ă
Suâejeâs presence briefly swept through my consciousness before withdrawing.
ăOhâŠ? Youâre right. There wonât be any problems.ă
ăHow should I put this⊠It doesnât feel sturdy so much as⊠it already melted once, then hardened into something that wonât change anymore.ă
I silently nodded.
âSo those Traits really carried over.â
Before waking up in this worldâŠ
Iâd been writing a strategy guide.
A comprehensive guide filled with every bit of knowledge Iâd accumulated.
Had I managed to publish itâŠ
Iâm confident it wouldâve completely overturned the common belief that the Cultist class was irredeemable garbage.
And nowâŠ
I possessed everything Iâd written into that guide.
Starting Faith: Twisted Truth.
Race: Half-Elf.
Then naturallyâŠ
The Traits should be the same as well.
ăIâve never seen such a peculiar mental structure. No matter how many Evil Gods you worship, your mind wonât break.ă
Trait [True Believer] and Trait [Rusted Mind].
The former earned the favor of every Evil God.
The latter halved your starting Sanity, but removed the penalties from worshipping multiple deities.
CombinedâŠ
Just as Suâeje saidâŠ
They allowed one to become a multi-cultist, serving numerous Evil Gods without losing oneâs mind.
âThen I can rest easy. Iâll gladly embrace Your authority, Lord Suâeje.â
ăIf you wonât break, then thereâs no reason to hesitate!ă
Crackle!
A burning pain shot through my collarbone.
Lifting my clothes to checkâŠ
A jet-black lightning tattoo had appeared there.
[Mark of the Violent Thundercloud.]
[To think I must now share you with that disgusting Suâeje. The Wise One is absolutely furiousâŠ]
HonestlyâŠ
Its design looked far cooler than Lidniâs eyeball emblem.
As I silently admired the tattoo, which radiated mysterious powerâŠ
That middle-aged-sounding chuckle echoed again.
âHeheheâŠâ
ăPretty one⊠are you already trying to seduce me with your looks?ă
ââŠâ
I lifted my shirt even higher.
A premium service for the deity Iâd just begun serving.
Apparently pleasedâŠ
Suâejeâs voice became bright and cheerful.
ăYou⊠really know how to entertain a god.ă
âI have my talents.â
ăThese days, everyoneâs faith is pitifully lacking in both quality and quantity⊠but perhaps youâll be different. Listen carefully while I explain what your religious duties will be!ă
I already knew.
StillâŠ
I pretended to listen attentively.
ăFirst, my cultists must maintain their beauty. If theyâre ugly, they wear masks. If theyâre merely average, they work hard to improve themselves. But you⊠You can just stay exactly as you are.ă
The first religious duty of a Cultist of the Filthy Skies:
Become handsome.
Already accomplished, thanks to being a half-elf.
ăNext, using that handsome face, you must spend every day playing lovey-dovey games with a different handsome man! But these days, there are so few believers that I simply count it if you chat with one for about ten minutes a day.ă
ââŠâ
The second religious duty:
Interact with handsome men.
Is this really something a deity would demand?
WellâŠ
Considering their warped way of thinking and behaviorâŠ
It was hardly surprising they were called Evil Gods.
Back when the Fire Ant Nest still existed in the real Western ContinentâŠ
The temples of the Filthy Skies held embarrassingly suggestive festivals every single day.
Compared to thatâŠ
Nowadays, with their influence diminished, merely talking was enough.
âIs that all?â
ăYou say that as though itâs nothing. Should I really place my expectations on you?ă
âOf course. I, Kar, am a half-elf capable of doing anything if it is my Evil Godâs command.â
ăOh, you adorable thing! Iâll grant you a basic Mystery as well!ă
Another sharp pain spread across my collarbone.
Below the stylish lightning tattooâŠ
A tiny baby lightning tattoo appeared.
[First-Tier Mystery â Black Lightning Blossom (Growth-Type)]
[Allows you to control pitiful black lightning. Ugh⊠how terribly unimpressive! Even the name is awful.]
The name was rather disappointing.
Suâejeâs Mysteries were all filled with childish puns that were notoriously difficult to translate.
The Korean localization team had certainly suffered.
ăIâm looking forward to seeing what you do. Goodbye!ă
With those final wordsâŠ
The prickling current throughout my body vanished as Suâejeâs presence faded away.
I straightened my clothes and stood.
[Hmph. Happy now? Go have fun with Suâeje.]
âWhat does Lord Lidni have to say?â
[The Wise One invokes the right to remain silent.]
He was definitely sulking.
But who exactly did he think I was?
Iâd spent thousands of playthroughs serving an Evil God whose temperament was even narrower than the child Marlin and Abel.
I knew exactly how to coax Lidni.
âLord Lidni. Iâll rest today, and tomorrow Iâll spend the entire day at the library devoted to my religious practice.â
Picking up Suâejeâs idol and climbing the stairsâŠ
A line of text quietly appeared before my eyes.
[The Great One smiles in satisfaction. :)]
As expected.
He really was an easy Evil God to deal with.
***
The hideout of the Stalker Ghouls.
The Fire Ant Nest.
The organization responsible for analyzing the Hidden Pieces Iâd reported from those two labyrinths was Seeking Lantern, the Harmony Churchâs labyrinth research priesthood.
It would probably take around four days to finish.
MeaningâŠ
I wouldnât receive the remainder of the payment until several days later.
But the rumors would spread long before then.
After allâŠ
A rookie explorer had discovered two Hidden Pieces in succession.
Even priests known for their discretion would inevitably whisper about something like that.
âWhich means⊠Itâs about time.â
After obtaining permission from a Holy Knight of the Spear of Order guarding the entrance to Cultist TownâŠ
I headed toward District Sixâs only library.
My only companion was Abel, whose injured ankle had mostly recovered.
Marlin had been left behind.
The muscle soreness from conquering the labyrinth had completely bedridden her.
âSponsor. Why are we going to the library?â
Abel asked in awkward honorifics that didnât quite suit his youthful appearance.
Heâd been displaying excessive loyalty ever since yesterday.
Even when I told him to stop, he wouldnât listen, so Iâd simply let him continue.
If I brought up how boldly heâd questioned me when we first metâŠ
Heâd immediately try to prostrate himself flat on the ground, making it impossible to tease him anymore.
He was desperately trying to make up for his mistake.
âSlum children really are different.â
To think even a twelve-year-old knew how to navigate social situations like this.
A neighborhood where rude people were taught manners by having their skulls cracked open.
[Just how terrible is the image of Cultists for a child like him to have picked a fight with you on sight�]
Heâd probably done it because I looked weak.
Considering physical ability aloneâŠ
I was indeed weaker than both siblings.
Resting a hand atop Abelâs head, I answered.
âTo eat books. Cultists of Twisted Truth have to eat books regularly.â
âI see.â
âI was lying.â
âI see.â
âŠThat wasnât the reaction I wanted.
His lukewarm response instantly drained my desire to joke around.
If itâd been Marlin, sheâd have shouted,
âThen hurry up and go eat one already!â
âLord Lidni constantly yearns for fresh knowledge. So He expects His believers to pursue lives of diligent study and contemplation as part of their faith.â
âHe sounds like a wonderful deity.â
âHeâs especially interested in wicked subjects. Like putting others in difficult situations⊠Driving wedges between close friends⊠Or collapsing entire social systems.
ââŠHeâs certainly⊠unique.â
[The Wise One eagerly asks: What knowledge do you intend to seek?]
After walking brisklyâŠ
We soon arrived at a shabby building near District Sixâs central plaza.
[Leaf of the World Tree]
Despite its lofty nameâŠ
The library looked rather worn down.
OldâŠ
But that simply meant it possessed history and tradition.
Ding.
The cheerful chime above the entrance rang as we stepped inside.
A musty smell immediately greeted us.
The librarian, who shouldâve been behind the reception counter, was nowhere to be seen.
Since I already knew the libraryâs layout perfectlyâŠ
I walked straight toward the back.
There was a section where books nobody ever borrowed simply gathered dust.
The Aesthetics of Rotten Meat
The Most Efficient Way to Steal Snacks from Children
Hatred of Cucumbers Is Justified
âI can see why none of these books are popular. Itâs proof the librarian has completely lost their mind.â
Even among trashâŠ
Occasionally, treasure could be found.
After searching for quite some timeâŠ
I finally discovered a book containing genuinely fresh knowledge.
[Iâll Tell You Everything About Nightmare Dungeon!]
A strategy guide for the Nightmare Dungeon.
How could that not be interesting?
At the current point in timeâŠ
Only the first four of its fifty floors had been conquered.
So, how exactly did this book plan to explain everything?
[A ridiculous source of information. Everything depends on how vivid the authorâs imagination is. It would probably serve better as firewood.]
I completely agreed with Eyes That Perceive the Truthâs sarcastic evaluation.
StillâŠ
As long as Lidni was satisfied, that was enough.
Carrying the book to the fourth floor, where the reading rooms were locatedâŠ
I entered the room furthest down the hallway.
âItâs a cozy room. Abel, go choose yourself a book too.â
ââŠIâm a little sleepy. Iâll rest first, then read.â
âGo ahead.â
Sitting beside the window at the small square tableâŠ
I began reading.
> âWhat lies at the end of the Nightmare Dungeon? Surely treasures and Mystery Books more valuable than anything else. Of course, the honor of conquering the worldâs most difficult labyrinth will accompany them.â
That part was correct.
> âAre you afraid because itâs too dangerous to challenge? Donât worry. The Nightmare Dungeon will wait forever for explorers to conquer it. Thereâs no need to rush. Good luck!â
That part was completely wrong.
It wouldnât wait at all.
If five years passedâŠ
The Great Monster on the highest floor would lead an army of monsters outâŠ
And bring about the end of the world.
Nor was that the only problem.
The Six Apostles, Great Monsters, secretly interfering with explorers on the surfaceâŠ
Were equally troublesome.
If I relaxed and took my timeâŠ
Iâd end up watching this world come to an end.
âThatâs why I have to seize this opportunity.â
Whoosh.
Without warningâŠ
The mana lamp went out, plunging the room into darkness.
When the light returnedâŠ
An elf was standing silently in the corner.
Short crimson hair matched equally crimson eyes that stared directly at me.
A mask completely covering the nose and mouth.
Light clothing that didnât hinder movement, as dark as a shadow.
Their appearance closely resembledâŠ
A certain taciturn assassin from my memories.
âYouâre here.â
The guest I absolutely needed to become friends withâŠ
Had finally arrived.
