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

#104Reader Mode

#104

“…Are you really going to kill Athanas?”

“He’s a threat to the entire world, Fabio. A terrifying murderer who must be stopped before he destroys more lives. Eliminating him before he commits any further atrocities is the only path to preserving order.”

“No, but…”

“Why are you making that expression?”

Oops.

I mentally kicked myself. As a double agent, I was walking a tightrope here. One wrong move, one hint that I might sympathize with Athanas, and Andrea would jump all over me, assuming I’d been brainwashed or something.

Schooling my face into a mask of anxious concern, I scrambled for a plausible excuse. “It’s just… I hate the thought of you having to dirty your hands with his blood. How can I be okay with that? I’m worried about what it might do to you, having that on your conscience, Bishop.”

Andrea chuckled darkly. “Fabio, you don’t know me as well as you think. I possess more strength than you realize. To protect the world and preserve order, I’m willing to do far worse things than this.”

What did he mean, I didn’t know him as well as I thought?

I knew exactly what Bishop Andrea was capable of. He was the kind of man who could massacre innocent people without a shred of remorse. For someone like him, killing Athanas, a person he saw as pure evil, would be all too easy.

Not that Athanas would go down without a fight though…

Athanas. Just thinking about him made my palms slick with sweat.

Shouldn’t I do something to stop this bastard before it’s too late?

I could feel the urgency building up inside me. I had to take action against Andrea before I walked away from this whole mess.

…Maybe I should just report him to the Inquisition right now?

An inquisitor can’t turn a blind eye to sin. If there’s no evidence, no proof of wrongdoing, that’s one thing. But if there’s undeniable evidence of a crime and the guilty bastard gets off scot-free, then it becomes the inquisitor’s sin too.

The creature was all the proof I needed of an Othergod’s involvement, and as long as I could capture the snake, it wouldn’t be hard to build a case against Andrea.

There was just one problem…

…I still have to save Adelaide.

She was the entire reason why I hadn’t reported Andrea yet, the reason I kept trying to curry favor with him. I had no idea how the ‘Distorted One’ would react if Andrea was taken down, so I couldn’t risk provoking him until I knew Adelaide was safe.

…If I give up now, I’d be abandoning Adelaide and that’s not an option.

The second I committed to rescuing her, there was no turning back. I was in this mess until the bitter end.

But what about after I save Adelaide? Can I really just sit back and watch the world burn? If I’m okay with that, then why am I even stressing about Adelaide? I should just turn Andrea in now and be done with it…

Damn it, how could I ever make that kind of choice?

It’s not like someone’s gonna drop dead if I don’t report him this second. I never want to be in a position where I have to play God and choose who lives and who dies, no matter the circumstances.

It’s basically the classic trolley problem, right? Having to decide if it’s morally okay to sacrifice one life to save five others. In that situation, my choice is always to never pull that lever.

If five people die because I don’t pull it, I can tell myself it’s not my fault. I didn’t tie them to those tracks, and I’m not the one driving the trolley. Most importantly, I don’t have some moral duty to swoop in and minimize the loss of life. So if I don’t pull it, I’m not guilty of murder by doing nothing. If anyone tries to point fingers, I can argue that I was too shocked to think clearly in the moment. Who could make such a horrific, split-second decision under that kind of pressure?

But what if I do pull the lever, and one person dies because of it?

Then their blood is on my hands. If I hadn’t pulled it, they’d still be breathing. I knew that, but I still chose to yank the lever and change the trolley’s course. I looked at the situation, did the math on the value of human lives, and deliberately decided to sacrifice that one person. There’s no excuse for that, no way to justify it.

Even if I try to convince myself that not choosing is still a choice, my conscience won’t let me off the hook that easily.

Should I just bail on this whole mess without reporting it and get out of here?

Athanas already knows Andrea is plotting to kill him. Haven’t I done my part at that point? I could just give Athanas a heads-up about the danger and then leave. Whatever happens after that wouldn’t be my problem.

If Andrea succeeds or fails in his attempt to kill Athanas, it’s not my concern…

…F*ck.

Even trying to fool myself is incredibly difficult.

“Bishop Andrea, please hear me out for a moment.”

In the end, I decided to use ‘forced persuasion’ to maintain the status quo. If I was totally clueless about the situation, maybe I’d choose differently, but this time, my conscience won’t let me run away.

Since I can use my skill on Andrea, I might be able to dig up more intel about his plan to kill Athanas and prevent it from happening. I’m the only one who can accomplish that.

So, if Athanas is in danger because of Andrea, it’s my responsibility to step in and do something about it.

As I activated ‘forced persuasion’, Andrea resisted it more strongly than last time.

“Didn’t you declare that you’d reached your limit? What makes you think I’ll let you try again after hearing that?”

“After thinking it over, I realized giving up now would be far more painful,” I replied firmly.

“Even if you say that….”

It’s useless to argue when you can’t poke holes in my logic anyway.

Finally, Andrea, drenched in cold sweat, grudgingly gave in. “…Very well. If you insist so adamantly, I have no choice.”

Forceful persuasion for the win!

It’s a shame that the success notification only pops up the first time I persuade him. It’d be useful if it also displayed how many times I’ve used it on him.

“I’m truly grateful for your permission!”

“I’m only allowing it because you promised not to push yourself too hard.” Andrea reminded me.

“Of course! Thanks to your kind concern, I’m already feeling much better. I should go and check on the children now. They’re probably waiting…”

“…Didn’t you mention having a prior commitment today?”

Did I?

I searched my memory, trying to recall.

Right, I was supposed to swing by the Inquisition today to report that tablet.

The memory of my choice to report the God of Records came rushing back. I had even asked Andrea’s permission to leave during work hours in case Casimir had already left by the time I got there.

…That already feels like a lifetime ago.

Facing ‘Oblivion’ had been so overwhelming that I had completely forgotten about it.

“Thanks for reminding me. I nearly made a terrible mistake.”

“…May I inquire about the nature of this engagement?”

“It’s nothing you need to worry about, Bishop Andrea. It’s a personal matter.”

“It doesn’t involve Athanas, does it?” Andrea asked, his eyes narrowing with suspicion.

“Absolutely not!” I declared, my voice ringing with conviction. “If it were something of that magnitude, you would have been the first to know, Andrea. I promise, it has no connection to Athanas whatsoever.”

Since Athanas doesn’t know about the second wax tablet, it really has nothing to do with him.

Assured that the matter didn’t involve Athanas, Andrea didn’t inquire further and bid me farewell.

I can’t believe I totally spaced on the main issue that needs to be dealt with.

This treacherous bastard needs to be reported immediately! He needs to face punishment for what he’s done.

I rushed to my room to grab the wax tablet as evidence before heading to the Inquisition.

But as I pulled the tablet from the chest, I started having second thoughts. Was reporting the God of Records really the move right now?

…What was his goal with all this?

Why did he want me looking into Oblivion’s name?

Was he trying to force me to experience Oblivion’s horrors firsthand?

Trying to make me see that the Order wasn’t as trustworthy as I’d believed?

…Well, the bastard definitely succeeded on that front.

The problem was, the blow from this incident was so brutal that it almost crushed my will to live.

Did he even consider that Oblivion could’ve killed me?

Evidence doesn’t mean squat if I’m not alive to use it.

He must have thought this through, right?

…Was he really that confident Oblivion wouldn’t “process” me?

Because of my holy relic?

Or did he know I wasn’t on the “target list”?

…If I turn him in now, I’ll never get the answers I need.

I fidgeted with the wax tablet in my hands, lost in thought.

Wouldn’t it be smarter to learn everything I can about Oblivion from ‘Records’ first?

That seemed way better than just recklessly testing Oblivion myself and hoping for the best.

If ‘Records’ knew how much control Oblivion had over people during its intrusions, I wouldn’t have to stress every time I met up with Athanas.

But the real problem is… can I actually trust Records?

Even if I took the risk and faced Oblivion head-on, I couldn’t be 100% sure about what I discovered.

Like, could I be certain Oblivion wasn’t listening in just because it didn’t show up when I talked to Athanas after he woke up? Maybe Oblivion was eavesdropping, but just didn’t feel like gracing us with its presence. Who knows?

And there were a countless other variables I couldn’t solve by testing it myself.

Who exactly were Oblivion’s ‘targets’? Who was suffering the consequences of Oblivion’s blessings? How the hell did Oblivion get so insanely powerful?

To get answers from Records, I’d have to go to the main building.

The main building…

Yeah, the main building.

Looking back, I realize I’ve been avoiding that place just so I wouldn’t have to see the Research Director.

That writhing, wriggling mass of bugs in human form.

Even imagining facing something like that made my skin crawl.

…But if there’s one major takeaway from all this, it’s that horror is a matter of perspective.

I hate cockroaches with a burning passion.

But if I had to choose between being locked in a room with a viper, a starving bear, or a cockroach, I’d be begging for that roach.

Because as gross as roaches are, at least they won’t kill you.

It’s the same deal with the Research Director.

At least he’s still human. Mostly.

Plus, he’s under my influence after being deeply moved by me.

So, perhaps I could attempt to persuade him when we run into each other.

…Maybe I’ll get used to his appearance? If I keep seeing him around?

It’s not like anyone’s ever gone blind from seeing something super horrifying.

Us humans can adapt to just about anything.

No matter how insanely bizarre something is, we eventually become desensitized.

And since he’s an Apostle, Oblivion’s blessing will have less of an impact too…

Even the ‘God of Oblivion’ can’t directly mess with the memories of an Apostle connected to other deities.

So, in this absolutely crazy situation, the Research Director might actually be the person I can rely on the most.

…But that doesn’t mean I’m eager to reach out to him first.

I took off the reliquary I was wearing and hid it under the pillow.

No matter what happens to me, I didn’t want Athanas to get wrapped up in this mess.

I have to go back to the main building. Like it or not.

⋆⁺₊⋆ ☾⋆⁺₊⋆

The main building was still bustling with activity.

I pulled the hood of my cloak down low and quietly slipped inside.

Maybe I should flag down a passing turtle and see if that gets me somewhere…

Luckily, as soon as I set foot in the main building, words materialized on the wax tablet.

‘Basement 4th floor, 32nd bookshelf, 4th row, 9th book.’

Is it telling me to find a specific book?

Following the tablet’s instructions, I made my way down to the basement. The air was crisp and damp, heavy with the scent of dust.

The further down I went, the fewer people I saw.

…It’s not leading me into some kind of trap, right?

I kept a death grip on the holy relic and kept going.

Finding the right book on the shelf was straightforward enough.

[Fabio! Over here!]

The book practically shouted at me from its spine.

I snatched it off the shelf quick, hoping nobody noticed.

…Why this random book though?

Was there something special about it?

The second I cracked it open, the words inside melted away and vanished.

Aw, I wanted to see what it was about….

[Hello, Fabio! This book is under my influence, so we can talk more freely! It’s been frustrating, hasn’t it?]

…It’s weird hearing this guy, who usually spoke in clipped sentences, suddenly being so articulate.

[If there’s anything you want to ask, go ahead! Just use this quill pen.]

The ink on the page swirled, taking the shape of a long quill pen.

Are you serious?

Feeling a bit skeptical, I scratched at the ink-drawn quill with my fingernail and realized I could actually pick the thing up.

…It looks flat, but it feels exactly like a real pen.

When I touched it to the book, it didn’t feel like writing on parchment at all, but the ink just glided smoothly as I moved the pen.

It was pretty mind-blowing, but that wasn’t important right now.

What do I actually want to ask?

A metric shit ton, honestly.

[Why did you ask me to find Oblivion’s name? I nearly died because of that!]

[…You nearly died? Did you actually find Oblivion’s name?]

…What?

[I told you so that you would realize it can’t be found anywhere and sense that something was strange….]

So the answer to my question was that he wasn’t thinking at all, got it…

…Should I just leave now?

Talking to this bastard felt like a massive waste of time.

[Who told you Oblivion’s name? Did you ask an Apostle?]

[Athanas investigated it, so I don’t know.]

[Athanas….]

[The one with the tangled records?]

…Tangled records?

[What do you mean by tangled records?]

[Curious? If you receive my blessing, you’ll naturally understand what it means.]

Yeah, right. Not a chance.