Rise of the OtherGod Apostle: Not a Cult Leader, but a Serf?!

#137Reader Mode

#137

I flinched, my fingers freezing mid-keystroke.

The God of Records?

My gaze flicked to my left hand. Smooth, unscarred, just… normal. Still, I balled it into a fist so tight it ached.

I really don’t want to think about what happened back then…

But my brain didn’t care. Memories flooded back—dark and damp, dragging me straight back to that basement under the Main Building. My skin crawled, and the urge to scratch… it was unbearable. Before I could stop myself, my nails dug in, scratching my hand until it bled. I tried so hard to shove that memory away, but…

…I can’t keep avoiding it forever.

I forced myself to take a few deep, calming breaths.

This wasn’t just about digging into the past. It was about finding a way to escape the System, and about uncovering the truth behind the God of Records.

Those two keywords together triggered a memory, something odd I noticed when I first received the Blessing of Records.

The system description for it had changed.

It wasn’t some routine update with a neat little [Updated] tag, either. No, this was different. There was a single line that would’ve seemed completely out of place to anyone else.

It said something along the lines of, “I am not an error,” right?

At the time, it felt unsettling—creepy, even—but looking back now, it feels more like a clue. A subtle hint that the System isn’t some infallible, all-knowing entity.

After all, I saw the System fix that “error” almost immediately afterward.

And the phrase “Sharp-eyed Watcher”? It’s got to be referring to the System itself.

Even the word Watcher feels loaded, like a clue hidden in plain sight.

If the System were as absolute as, say, the laws of physics, an “error” showing up should be impossible. Something so fundamental to reality shouldn’t just glitch.

But glitches do happen. And when they do, the Watcher is right there, fixing them before anyone notices.

What if there was a way to slip past that ever-watchful eye?

The thought lingered, both tempting and terrifying. If I could somehow escape its control, maybe I could even survive a Game Over.

Of course, that would mean losing all the System’s benefits too.

And then there’s the 24th floor… Did I possibly meet Rider of Civilization’s player there?

Or maybe the “me” on the 24th floor wasn’t me at all. What if those memos weren’t even mine, but something the Rider’s player wrote?

If so, how he figured out my trait remains a mystery…

And that ability to send messages back through time? It doesn’t make sense at all.

Still, one thing was clear.

Whatever’s hiding in the Main Building’s basement is connected to a crack in the System. A loophole.

And just knowing that might be the most dangerous thing of all.

Why else would information be delivered in such a strange, cryptic, and heavily censored way?

The moment I finally uncover the truth, I might not be able to re-enter the System’s sphere of influence for good.

The thought sent a shiver down my spine. Not because I’d miss the perks, but because I had no idea what the Watcher would do to me then.

How does the System deal with its mistakes? Does it just overwrite them, like rolling back to an old save file?

If that’s true…

Then the version of me standing here right now would simply vanish. Poof. Gone.

Everything I’ve learned, all the progress I’ve made… erased like it never even happened.

And if it really was Rider’s player behind those memos…

Why put me through all of it?

What was the point of all that pain? Why make me suffer like that?

Was it meant to scare me off?

Was there truly no other way?

Why…?

I shook my head sharply, forcing the thoughts away.

I need to stop thinking about it.

My gaze dropped, catching on the back of my hand. The fresh wound from my scratching was writhing, slowly knitting itself back together.

No matter how many times I saw it, the sight made my stomach churn. A sanity-eroding reminder of just how far I’d strayed from anything resembling normal.

>>[Fabio?]

>>[……]

>>[Fabio… did you fall asleep or something?]

I snapped back to reality and started typing, making sure to avoid looking at the squirming of my healing flesh.

[Sorry. I was lost in thought for a moment.]

[Did the God of Records say anything else about me?]

>>[They said They miss you, Fabio.]

Yeah, well, I don’t miss them.

>>[Oh, Records from Level 4 wanted me to tell you that They don’t know what Their other self did down below, but even if you hate that one, don’t hate all of Them, okay?]

So, the one from the 4th basement floor…

That’s the idiot who kept going on and on about how dumb Oblivion was.

[How are you communicating with the God of Records? Through a book?]

>>[Yeah. I kept banging my head against the wall after I woke up here, saying that I wanted to see you. So I wrote down my feelings in a book about it. Apparently writing about stuff that hurts helps make it better…]

My fingers hovered over the keys as I took a moment to think.

What was the right thing to say here?

Yeah, writing can be pretty therapeutic, I guess.

Good to hear it’s helping, at least.

Or maybe…

…Maybe it’s better to just not say anything.

[So you’re using that book to chat with the God of Records?]

>>[Yup! I was writing about you in it when Records wrote back, saying They knew you too, Fabio. While we were talking about you, it hit me that you hadn’t just abandoned me here. That this was actually a chance you gave me to gather some intel. Once I figured that out, it snapped me out of it. Honestly, I probably would’ve killed myself if I hadn’t realized the truth.]

[Hmm… I see. Did Records mention anything about the Rider of Civilization?]

>>[When I told Them I was an existence outside of Order, Records said it was the third time They’d encountered one.]

I bet I was number two. Was the Rider number one?

[Do you know anything about the Rider of Civilization’s player unit?]

>>[The God of War’s player told me his name and what he looks like. Apparently, the two had crossed paths a few times. After the Rider of Civilization’s group chat got deactivated, he vanished too. The God of War’s player described him to me in case I ever ran into him and could let him know.]

[Describe him to me too.]

>>[Francesco Horeum is his name. A 32-year-old guy, kind of on the short side, with gray hair and blue eyes.]

Horeum… that’s the family known for those inventory relics you can loot.

Don’t tell me that strategy game nerd went there hunting for an inventory…

[So? Why did the Rider’s player visit the God of Records?]

>>[They said They don’t know.]

[What?]

>>[They said important conversations only happen on the lower floors, so They can’t remember anything.]

[Then what do They know?]

>>[Apparently, whenever Francesco visited the basement, he’d bring snacks like grapes or apples in his pockets to share with the Records’ turtles. Oh, and They said his handwriting was very neat and pretty.]

That’s totally useless information.

Come on, give me something I can actually use.

>>[Then They said he just stopped showing up one day. No idea what happened to him after that.]

[When was the last time They saw him? Exactly?]

>>[They couldn’t give me a specific date. Said it’s hard to keep track of time when you’re stuck in a basement.]

Well that’s just f*cking unhelpful.

At least now I know Rider’s player hung around the Main Building for a while.

[Did you ask the Director if he knew anyone named Francesco?]

>>[He said if I was curious about the tabernacle, I should go see it myself. Creepy thing is, he was right behind me, watching everything I wrote…]

Wait… does this mean Rider’s player is still somewhere in the building?

If so, where exactly?

The research lab? Or… maybe even deeper in that basement?

>>[I told him I’d go later. What if I meet up with Rider but the system disappears? I might not be able to talk to you anymore, Fabio. Maybe Rider’s player didn’t escape at all. Maybe he just… gave up on the game. What if he really is still here somewhere, just a hollowed-out, crazy shell of a person?]

If Reyes ends up going deeper into that basement…

I paused, wondering if I should briefly explain everything that happened to me down there, but decided against it.

[…Hey, just let me know before you head down there, okay? I want to hear about it.]

>>[Okay!]

I tilted my head back, staring at the ceiling, trying to calm the knot of anxiety twisting in my gut. I took a deep breath, then decided to switch gears.

Let’s change the subject for now.

[Why are we having this conversation over chat anyway? This isn’t something you could say with Callister around?]

>>[I actually asked if it was cool to tell you about this. He said yeah, but… there’s a catch. Once you know all this, you’ll have to join the research lab too, Fabio.]

F*ck.

>>[Callister said if you refuse to become a researcher, they’ll stick you in here as a test subject instead.]

Reading Reyes’s message, I had to admit, I was grateful for his heads-up.

Between Napoleon, who’s god-knows-where, and Callister, who’s probably still lurking around here to watch me… the latter feels infinitely more terrifying.

If Napoleon kidnapped me, maybe the Saint would swoop in and save the day. But if I got trapped in the Director’s lab? Yeah, I doubt anyone would even bat an eye.

Sure, that heretic bastard might be an existence outside of Order, but the Director? He’s still technically part of it. And that, somehow, makes it even worse.

[Do you know what the Director is researching?]

>>[Lately, he’s been obsessed with finding a way to express all information using only two numbers…]

[Not that. I mean his original research. What he was working on before.]

>> [His life’s goal is to uncover the details of the first contract made between Lady Ledeia and Order.]

The first contract?

The contracts made by subordinate gods with the God of Order aren’t particularly complicated.

Sure, they can be long-winded, but they all boil down to three main points:

1. Serve Order.
2. Do what Order commands.
3. Don’t do what Order forbids.

With so many subordinate gods under Order’s domain, the concept of ‘first contracts’ is pretty much common knowledge.

Each god’s essence is different, so the list of do’s and don’ts varies a bit, but the gist is always the same.

So why is the Director so fixated on this?

[Isn’t the content of Her first contract written at the very beginning of Ledeia’s scriptures? I’ve seen other subordinate gods’ first contracts written in Their scriptures.]

>>[That’s Her second contract. Callister said Her actual first contract with Order isn’t recorded anywhere.]

…Huh. That’s strange.

Where did Ledeia fall in the hierarchy of subordinate gods? If I could figure out which god joined right before or after Her, maybe I’d find a clue.

>>[Callister said they don’t even know when Ledeia started serving Order.]

So, She’d been serving Order since His humble beginnings?

But if She has powers like healing, why would She need to serve anyone?

Healing is basically a cheat code when it comes to divine domains. Who hasn’t been sick at least once in their life? When humans are suffering, their first instinct is to turn to a god for help.

But Order?

Who would willingly turn to something as weak as the power of Order? It’s almost laughable to think of it as essential. How did Roklem even survive in the early days?

…Could it be that Order used to serve the Goddess of Healing, and then the roles got reversed?

If that were true, it would explain why the earlier records were wiped clean.

Order would’ve wanted to erase the humiliating history of ever serving someone else.

The scriptures written by subordinate gods before they served under Order are called the “Scriptures of the Blind”—essentially, texts written in ignorance, before they saw the light of Order.

>>[…That’s what Callister said.]

[But he’s an Apostle, right? Can’t he just ask his god directly?]

>>[Callister said it was Ledeia who ordered them to figure out what the first contract was.]

Why on earth?

Why would Ledeia need someone else to find that out?

Does She not remember it Herself? Or is there some kind of restriction preventing Her from talking about it?

Either way, it’s a huge f*cking deal.

Now I understand why the Research Director insisted that anyone who learns about this has to be dragged in as a test subject.

If Ledeia—one of the most powerful subordinate gods under Order—is bound by ‘oblivion’ or some restriction so severe that She can’t even remember Her first contract…

This kind of revelation could shatter the entire foundation of the religious order.

If it’s just a restriction, that’s bad enough. But if She’s actually fallen victim to oblivion…

Then it’s possible that there are contracts that She doesn’t remember.

[Does this have anything to do with investigating deities outside of Order?]

>>[Yeah. Callister said they believe an entity outside of Order wouldn’t be affected. To uncover the true history of Order, they had to look beyond its reach.]

The true history of Order…

What could be so damning that it needed to be completely erased?

Is there some forbidden secret so devastating that no one can ever be allowed to know it?

…Could the God of Order actually be an Othergod?

What if the God of Order wasn’t a deity born from the Dark Realm at all, but something that came from somewhere alien?

It’s not impossible.

It would explain why Conclude frames the conflict not as [All the gods of the Dark Realm vs. the Othergods] but specifically [Order vs. the Othergods.]

And it’s beyond suspicious how determined Order is to bury any information about the Othergods.

If it were just a straightforward battle between native gods and alien gods, wouldn’t Order spread the details far and wide, rallying everyone to His side? Instead, it’s all about secrecy and suppression….

I froze.

Wait a second… why is Reyes even talking about this?

My eyes narrowed.

Is he planning to do something to me?

The fact that Reyes knew where my room was suddenly felt a lot more menacing. If he decided to use Andrea or any other unit he had at his disposal to attack me…

>>[If you can talk to me like this, I’m guessing Athanas isn’t around?]

…Should I call Callister just in case?

I don’t know exactly where he is, but if I step outside and yell, he’ll probably show up.

He did say he’s been tailing me.

I doubt he’d be much help, but it’s better than nothing.

>>[No Athanas around? Perfect. You’re still in your room, right?]

[Why? Does it matter if I’m alone or not?]

>>[Oh, it’s nothing serious. He’s just a little shy around new people.]

Who’s shy?

Click.

The sound of the door unlocking by itself sent my heart racing.

What the—?!

The door creaked open, and a figure filled the doorway. He was massive, tall enough that his head nearly brushed the frame, his silhouette blotting out the faint light from the hall.

“Who…”

“So this is where you had me sent?” His voice boomed, a low rumble that made his presence feel overwhelming.

Who the hell is this bastard?

The man stepped inside, and with a casual snap of his fingers, the door swung shut behind him, clicking softly into place.

…Telekinesis?

I barely had time to process this when he ran a hand through a mop of messy sky-blue hair, clearly irritated, before leveling his gaze at me.

“People already won’t stop nagging me about getting married,” he grumbled. “That’s already a f*cking pain, but then I start asking for directions to this place, and suddenly everyone thinks I’m into some kind of kinky shit. Now they’re all avoiding me like I’m carrying the plague!”

“Um…”

“And then I hear you’ve ditched everything to become some kind of ‘Reader’ or whatever. What’s up with that? And why’d you block me, huh??”

“Excuse me….”

“And another thing, you crazy bastard—when someone visits, isn’t it basic courtesy to drop the door distortion? Huh?? And seriously, what’s going on with your face? You look like an NPC from a low-budget mobile game. No wonder no one recognizes you.”

This motherf*cker…