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

#090Reader Mode

#090

Fabio’s mouth fell open, then snapped shut. He looked as though he had a thousand things to say, but didn’t know where to begin.

“Why won’t you use it?” he finally managed, his face twisted with confusion. “Was this our last chance?”

Still kneeling, Athanas replied calmly, “I won’t use it because I believe it’s for the best.”

Fabio’s face crumpled in disbelief. “…You can’t be serious. You think this is the best outcome?”

Before Athanas could respond, Fabio’s words burst forth in a furious torrent.

“This is the worst possible outcome! We’ve gained nothing and lost everything! We don’t have any information about the Distorted One, and we’ll never figure out what happened to Adelaide! To make matters worse, the Distorted One will now suspect you have Retrograde. Andrea’s dead, and you’ll be accused of murdering an innocent person. You could get the death penalty! Even if it’s just labor re-education prison, it’s over! We have less than 50 days until the stars align, and if you’re stuck in prison, the world is doomed. If this were just a game, it would be a bad ending! Not even a fancy illustration to soften the blow, just a hard cut to black with end credits rolling. At least in a game, the story would end there. But this is reality, so time will keep moving forward, no matter how catastrophic your decision is.”

Fabio’s cheeks burned with anger as he lectured Athanas, grumbling all the while.

Athanas, who had been listening quietly, asked, “What exactly do you mean by a ‘bad ending’?”

“It’s… it means there’s no hope left.”

“And what’s this ‘fancy illustration’?”

“That’s… look, that’s not important right now! Why in the hell won’t you just use Retrograde already?”

Fabio reached out, his hands shaking as he placed them on Athanas’ shoulders.

“…You’re going to use it, aren’t you? This is just some twisted joke before you… before you do what you think needs to be done. You’re just messing around, picking the weird option for fun, knowing this timeline will be erased anyway. You know the right choice for next time, don’t you? Please, tell me that’s what’s happening here. Please…”

Athanas covered Fabio’s hands with his own, a gesture of comfort and sincerity. “I swear to you, I have never taken lightly any moment that might be lost. Never.” He was prepared to swear by the Lord’s name, making an unbreakable vow that he would carry for the rest of his life if possible. “I believe this is the right course. Because you are here, safe and sound…and you are trying to trust me.”

This was the first time Fabio had shown even a glimmer of acceptance towards Athanas having Retrograde. Athanas knew he couldn’t allow this opportunity to slip away.

“If I were to use Retrograde, you would be left alone, unprotected against the servant of the Distorted One. My experience, be it a hallucination or not, showed me the danger you were in. Tell me, what would that person, filled with such hatred for me, have done if I hadn’t intervened?”

Would Andrea’s hostility toward him have lessened if he had shown vulnerability or sadness over Fabio’s death?

No. Not a chance.

Athanas was certain that Andrea was beyond reasoning with. The man’s thinking was already twisted, unable to consider that his information about the ‘Butcher never doing such a thing’ might be flawed. He didn’t question the source of his power or the implications of its origins. In Athanas’ mind, Andrea had already chosen a path of violence, and no amount of pleading or logic would sway him. And after Andrea killed him…

Athanas’ grip on Fabio’s hands tightened, his resolve strengthening.

“…I am doing my best. But if it still feels wrong, it is because I made an irreversible mistake beforehand. I allowed you to face that servant alone, gave you something that made you more vulnerable when my intention was to protect you, and kept silent about Retrograde. The blame lies with me… Fabio, please forgive me.”

Despite the weight of his words and the guilt that consumed him, Athanas also felt a sense of relief. To be able to ask for forgiveness while the other person was still alive and breathing was a privilege he now truly understood…

“Athanas,” Fabio said in a subdued voice. “I still think you should use Retrograde.”

…Athanas guessed that Fabio would still refuse, and his stomach churned.

But if I don’t use it, he’ll have no choice but to accept it.

This time, I won’t turn back time.

Athanas repeated this to himself, knowing that eventually, Fabio would come to understand. He would never use Retrograde. Never…

“If you listen, you’ll understand.”

Fabio’s voice was strangely clear.

⋆⁺₊⋆ ☾⋆⁺₊⋆

I’m so f*cked. Like, royally screwed.

I tried to move, but it was like an invisible force had me pinned down. Andrea’s hand moved in what looked almost like slow-motion to me as he opened the reliquary.

Please be empty. Please, please, please!

An empty box would’ve been all the proof I needed. It would’ve been as clear as a fake number given to a side lover.

Come on, universe, throw me a bone here!

The reliquary clicked open. Andrea reached in and grabbed something. I wanted to squeeze my eyes shut and make this all disappear.

Damn it, Athanas! What the hell did you put in there? I can’t see it.

I was getting pissed at Athanas for no good reason, obsessing over stupid details. If the box had been empty, everything would’ve been fine! No, scratch that – if he hadn’t given me that stupid reliquary in the first place…

“There’s no need to be afraid. I’ll make sure no harm comes to you.”

Andrea’s words made me pause my unfair mental tirade against Athanas.

…Wait, you’re going to test if Athanas shows up when I’m about to die?

How exactly are you planning to put me in ‘mortal danger’ without actually hurting me?

I thought you were gonna torture me or something.

The snake coiled around Andrea’s arm swiped the ‘thing’ from his hand.

“I’m going to mess with the connection and send a false signal. Athanas will think you’re on death’s door.”

“That is, assuming the connection is even there,” Andrea added, petting the snake’s head.

I was kind of stunned.

…That’s it?

Sending a fake signal using distortion?

I mean, sure, it makes sense not to make the person you’re trying to convince super suspicious right off the bat, but still…

I know there are some seriously crazy bastards in the heretical faction.

I was terrified that Andrea would start having a full-blown conversation with my corpse, saying stuff like, “See? I told you Athanas doesn’t really love you! But you can trust me now, right? Aww, poor Fabio! Don’t worry, I’ll save you!”

…Once someone hits stage 3 crazy, chatting with a corpse feels like just another Tuesday.

Even at stage 1 insanity, they don’t even flinch when it comes to torturing someone who resists their brainwashing. No matter how much the person begs or screams, they’re too far gone to snap out of it.

It’s like when your dog scarfs down a bunch of chocolate and is about to hurl everywhere. As a good pet parent, you can’t just be like, “Well, Papabio wants to keep it down, so I’ll respect his wishes,” and let him die. It’s frustrating when the dog you’re trying to help doesn’t get it, but if you really love them like family, you’ll never give up. You’ll block out their whining and make them puke it up, no matter what, even if they end up hating you for it afterwards.

That’s the headspace of someone with stage 1 insanity.

They know deep down that they’re doing something messed up that people hate, but at stage 2, they start thinking screams of agony are like joyful shouts of thanks. And stage 3? At that point, they legit believe they’re being heroes by yanking a drowning fish out of the water to ‘save’ it.

Luckily, Andrea didn’t seem to have reached that stage of madness yet, or if he did, it was only stage 1 at worst. In the Dark Realm, that level of insanity is considered pretty normal.

As soon as I realized Andrea wasn’t completely off his rocker and had no intention of harming me, I quickly composed myself. Instead, I started worrying that Athanas might come to save me now.

Isn’t there any way to let him know this is all fake?

Just as I was wondering how the reliquary detects when someone’s in crisis, Andrea conveniently started talking.

“…Valentine says there’s no such thing as eternal love, and that true love is the one that makes your heart race in the moment. That’s why Valentine’s blessing loses its effect the moment love fades. If Athanas doesn’t love you, he won’t feel a thing.”

Holy shit, Valentine! Thank you!

I was f*cking relieved.

Love? There was no way such an emotion existed between me and Athanas. We were barely even on friendly terms, let alone anything more. Sure, I had some one-sided camaraderie going on, but that was all built up while slaying heretics in Heretic Slayer. In reality, Athanas probably saw me as…

…The group project member you wouldn’t trust with the class hamster, at best.

And that was me being generous.

If I had to sum up my confessions to Athanas so far, it would go a little something like this:

“I’m the f*cker chosen to ruin this world, but I have no intention of doing so… I can’t prove it, but that’s just how it is…

I have some secret that not even the Saint could figure out… But I can’t tell you what it is… Anyway, the Saint who couldn’t see through it is suspicious…

You’re the Savior of Order… How do I know that? An Othergod showed me… Anyway, you’re our only hope…”

The more I thought about it, the more I realized there wasn’t a single thing that wasn’t sketchy from start to finish.

I’m pretty sure the only reason Athanas trusts me at all is because I’m a f*cking loser. He’s probably keeping an eye on me because he’s confident this loser can’t do much even if he tries to stir up some trouble.

If Athanas isn’t an total idiot, he wouldn’t have put his own body part in the reliquary.

There’s no need to do something that has no benefit and only risks, right?

It’s an item he specifically told me to carry around when I’m alone with an Othergod’s lackey. There’s no way he’d put something in it that could backfire and curse him instead.

So then Athanas has no reason to come…

Is pity from Andrea all I have left?

Andrea is under the misguided impression that I’m just a clueless pawn being used by Athanas. To play along with that misunderstanding and squeeze out more intel…

…I’m supposed to act all shocked that Athanas wasn’t actually in love with me.

F*cking. Difficult.

To feel shocked, I’d have to actually believe that someone out there could genuinely love me.

How am I supposed to have that kind of expectation?

When someone comes up to me out of the blue, professing their undying love, it’s only natural to suspect they’ve got some hidden agenda, right?

If you buy into the advances of someone claiming to be smitten with a charm 30, there’s something wrong with your intelligence.

Of course, Fabio’s a naïve small-village boy, so it wouldn’t be a stretch if his IQ was a bit on the “bless his heart” side.

So, if some drop-dead gorgeous city slicker he’s never laid eyes on before comes up to him, batting their eyelashes and shyly confessing their love…

…I really can’t relate.

I tried swapping out Athanas for a female character in my imagination.

A mysterious raven-haired beauty suddenly makes a move on me?

It suddenly feels like I’m trapped in a cheesy f*cking rom-com, and I can’t find the remote.