I Became God of War’s Youngest Disciple - Chapter 371



Only Krnovel

Episode 371

Black cult leader.

The greatest enemy of the Empire, the one who stands at the top of the Dark Cult. The charisma of evil. Followed by hundreds of thousands of followers.

I’ve heard that too.

For the followers, the status of the black cult leader is said to be comparable to that of the six gods they serve.

One of the titles used to refer to the cult leader is “Hyuninshin.”

In fact, if you just look at his actions, it’s understandable why he’s supported by fanatics.

To put it simply, if it weren’t for that bastard leader, the Dark Church wouldn’t have become such a huge force as it is today.

The six largest factions of devil worshippers have had bitter feuds in the past.

There are still records in literature of them fighting each other to the point of extinction.

The one who united such people is the black cult leader.

A force that unites the power of six factions that were virtually no different from individual forces, with overwhelming charisma, politics, and an unparalleled aptitude for the gods.

But despite such feats, little is known about this cult leader.

The same goes for me, who is deeply entangled with the religious sect.

Now, somehow, I have become acquainted with five of the six Demon Lords… … .

Even I, who have never even seen the shadow of the black cult leader, have said everything.

“Is this information certain?”

“Why would you lie about something like this?”

“Black cult leader… …. What does he look like? What is his gender? Where is he currently? Is he alone?”

Seren asked in a somewhat impatient voice.

It’s not that the guy is weird, but if anyone in the empire heard this story, they would have a similar reaction.

Black cult leader.

No one knows his appearance or characteristics, let alone his race, age, gender, or even his name.

This means that even though he is the de facto leader of the Dark Cult, the continent’s greatest enemy, nothing is known about his true identity.

So, the Empire must be looking for clues day and night, even at this very moment, to find even the slightest trait about the cult leader.

But Ozma’s response was somewhat vain.

“I don’t know.”

“yes?”

“It wasn’t me who negotiated with the leader. It was Dorothy. She was the one who first brought up the idea of ??negotiating with the cult.”

“ah…….”

While Seren felt sorry, I also thought I understood why Dorothy was able to negotiate with the leader.

Her other identity is that of a colorless believer… … .

But does Ozma know that fact?

‘I can’t ask here.’

The Witch’s Covenant is currently showing signs of being cautious and cautious towards Lise, but that’s all.

They are not yet completely trustworthy.

I asked, as if I was floating a little.

“Did you contact the church without your permission?”

“I’m just a representative of the witches’ coven, not their leader. I don’t have the authority to give orders. And Dorothy… … .”

Ozma sighed with a somewhat tired expression.

“…Because he is a difficult person to control in many ways.”

“… … .”

I guess so.

Because she was the woman who kidnapped me impulsively without even consulting them in the first place.

The important thing is that the information that this unruly and incompetent woman is holding is so important.

Maybe Dorothy saw the leader herself.

In the meantime, I also suddenly thought about Dorothy’s skills that had disappeared.

A power that cannot be traced once activated. A life-saving elixir that can save your life in any situation.

‘To your ears.’

I shook my head at the thought that occurred to me in the moment.

This is a wild guess.

“… But is it okay for you to tell us this information? If they find out that the information has been leaked, the religious order won’t stay still.”

“What if we don’t stay still? If we hide on purpose, no one will be able to find us. Except in one-sided cases.”

Ozma’s gaze turned to Lise.

Somehow, it seemed like a light of respect was flickering in his eyes… … .

However, when he received that gaze, Lise responded with an indifferent face.

“It’s a fun space. I built a straight line in the [gap space] between dimensions, and created a different environment on each floor. This seems to be the top.”

“… Right. Hmm.”

Ozma glanced at him and said.

“So, from now on, we will not completely cut ties with the religious order, but will keep in contact and try to get as much information as possible, so could you do us a favor?”

“ask?”

“I wish you would teach me black magic.”

There was a rare hint of heat and impatience in his indifferent voice.

It looks like he’s made up his mind.

Rather than relying on the religious order, you would make much more progress if you received teachings directly from Lise.

“hmm…….”

Since it wasn’t my decision, I glanced at Reese and asked.

“What do you want to do?”

“What should I do? I am in no position to teach anyone else right now.”

That’s true.

Even though I am out like this now, I am destined to be dragged to the underground library soon.

but…….

If we can just bring the Witch’s Covenant to our side, it will give us an overwhelming advantage in the upcoming fight against the cult.

It means that this is a waste of an opportunity to just blow it.

After much thought, I opened my mouth.

“Can I have it once every two months, even if it’s only for a short period of time?”

“… … .”

It may not be of any use to Lee Se, but I gave it another try anyway.

Lise thought with an unexpectedly serious expression on her face, then looked at Ozma and said.

“Rather than teaching one-sidedly, let’s have a Q&A about black magic. I’m also interested in the black magic of this era.”

“Yeah. Okay.”

Ozma nodded with a brightened face, and Lise looked at me again.

“This body will not come out to the surface unless absolutely necessary. So, please take care of that… guy named Ru. If something happens to that kid, this body will also not be able to see you.”

Then, the witches’ coven’s gaze naturally turned to me.

Ozma nodded with a stern face.

“Keep that in mind.”

* * *

How did the story with the witches end, and how did we finally escape from [Emerald Tower]?

Standing in an alley where there was no sign of life, I glanced at Seren and spoke.

“I really endured it for ten years. I’m glad it worked out well. Right?”

Seren narrowed her eyes at my tone and spoke carefully.

“You know, do you… … .”

I’m still half-hearted about it.

Since I felt like there would be no further progress in the hidden story, I took off my mask and returned to my original body for the first time in a long time.

Serene let out a gasp.

“… As expected, it was you.”

“Wait a minute. Oh man, seriously, I’m dying from pain.”

When I returned to Luan after a long time, my whole body was so stiff that I thought I would die.

I spent some time stretching in a dark alley, loosening up my stiff muscles and joints.

Seren, who was looking at the sight with a complicated expression, said with a serious face.

“… For now, I’ll pretend I never saw you have such a hobby-.”

“No. That appearance is just the default for magic tools, so there was nothing I could do about it.”

“I see. Anyway, it’s been a while.”

“I know.”

Seren finally let out a sigh of relief.

Although we were happy to see each other, neither of us were the type to be overly cheerful and warm at a long-awaited reunion, so our greetings were somewhat dry.

Seren’s gaze turned to Lise.

“But that person… … .”

“Did you hear that before? Lissera Digos Ol High Mood. You can roughly think of him as the elder of the Badniker family.”

I’m afraid that if I talk about this and that about Lise, it will become too long, so I’ll give a brief explanation.

“Really? As expected.”

Seren seemed to accept it without much doubt.

It seems like it might be because of Lise’s appearance, but since she has all the Badnikker’s characteristics of black hair and purple eyes, it doesn’t seem like there was much suspicion.

“Do we have much to talk about? But I have to take care of Lady Lise today… that is, until tomorrow afternoon. So let’s talk later and come back later tonight.”

“Okay. Oh, before that, I have something to ask you.”

“say.”

“Does the fact that Iron Blood came to the South have anything to do with you?”

“Okay, for now.”

“I see, that’s what happened.”

Of course, I plan to hide Delak’s amnesia from this guy too.

Regardless of one’s trust in Seren, it’s not exactly a good thing to spread widely.

“Then, when you have time in the evening, come to a bar called [Gloomy Sunday].”

“okay.”

Seren left first, leaving Lise and I alone again.

Despite the commotion, Lise’s expression didn’t change much.

“I almost got into big trouble, but thanks to you, I survived.”

“It was fun. It was a fun experience for me after a long time.”

“Was it a fun experience?”

Lee Se said with a smirk.

“Yeah. It’s been a while since I’ve directly wielded magic against someone, so I guess it was a good stimulus. I still feel a bit sluggish, though.”

Even without the power being sealed away to less than half, this means that Rise was still not at full power.

At this point, it’s become difficult for even I to predict how much effort Lise will put into it.

At the same time, I also wondered how powerful the seal that imprisoned such a person in the underground library would be.

“By the way, it seems like you’re deeply involved with the religious sect.”

“It just so happened that way.”

“Hmm… okay.”

“Should we wander around a bit more? I haven’t even seen half of Airuga yet.”

I nodded and took Lise out into the street.

I stopped by the dessert shop again, bought a bunch of desserts, and walked around the street while eating.

Reese wasn’t as picky as I thought.

Although he was a bit of a glutton, he didn’t seem to be very interested in expensive clothes or accessories.

Rather, what interested him was the alley where there were street vendors selling odds and ends, and Lise spent a very long time looking around even though she wasn’t going to buy anything.

As time went by, the sun naturally set, and after having a quick meal, I returned to my lodgings.

“Didn’t you say you have no intention of sleeping? There are only 24 hours left… … .”

Lise grumbled while lying on the bed, covering herself with the blanket.

You shouldn’t think like that, like a nephew who whines that he doesn’t want to sleep, right?

“Just wake up early. The quality of life comes from sleep. You have until tomorrow afternoon, so get some sleep.”

“Umm… … .”

Lise looked dissatisfied, but eventually accepted what I said.

In fact, it was because he had been rubbing his eyes and looking strangely half-asleep since a while ago.

It seems like you’ve used up quite a bit of energy competing with the witches and magic.

I was more healthy than I thought.

Strangely, ever since I came to the South, I’ve always been full of energy and I don’t sleep much.

Isn’t it because this region has good synergy with Yeomhwa Jeilgong?

[Thanks to the grace of Vulcan!]

‘It’s a surprise.’

Vulcan showed his presence without warning.

I thought you were being a bit quiet lately.

‘Can’t you not come out when you’re not in Luzard form?’

[That can’t be! From the moment you took hold of the Myungryong-ah, we became a community of shared destiny!]

‘What kind of community of destiny is this?’

After leaving the inn while chatting, we arrived at a bar called [Gloomy Sunday] that I had heard about before.

Any Southern bar during dinner time is bound to be a bustling place… … .

This bar had a very quiet and calm atmosphere.

Wouldn’t business have been much better if the store name had been Happy Sunday?

That’s why you have to name your store well.

‘hmm.’

By the way, Seren was nowhere to be seen.

I went to the counter and threw a silver coin at the person who appeared to be the owner and said.

“Master, I’ll eat what I always eat… … .”

“Stop being a jerk and come inside.”

Seren’s voice was heard from inside the counter.

Even though it’s been a while since I’ve seen you, you’re still grumpy.

I took a quick look around and only then realized that most of the people here were under Seren’s command.

Probably a member of the Power Information Guild [Bastard].

‘It’s pretty good, isn’t it?’

They are not all at an easy level.

Skills are one thing, but their true value is something else.

When establishing an information guild, the most important thing is securing talent, and among those talents, the most valuable are those who are trustworthy.

That’s because they live off trust.

In other words, everyone present here is prepared to throw away their lives without hesitation if it is the order of their Master, Seren.

If it was accomplished in a short period of time, it would be a great achievement.

Well, if I didn’t have that level of ability, I wouldn’t have been able to settle down in this big city called Airugar.

As I went inside, a shabby food warehouse appeared. Seren was nowhere to be seen.

“Come down.”

“huh?”

When I looked around, I saw a staircase leading down behind the stack of boxes.

‘oh…….’

This is what an information guild is like.

I laughed heartily and went down the stairs.

After going down a few dark stairs, a fairly large space with dim lighting was revealed.

One wall was entirely made up of bookshelves, filled with old books and documents haphazardly placed there.

On the other wall was a large map.

I took a quick look and it was a map of the South.

There were countless traces of handwriting and patterns on the map, but honestly, I couldn’t tell even if I looked at it.

I wonder if the information is encrypted.

Of course, what was most surprising was that there was one more person in this space besides Seren.

“hi.”

“… See you soon.”

It was Ozma.

What is this woman doing here?

Feeling a bit puzzled, I sat down next to him.

Seren said.

“I have something to say.”

“What do you want to say?”

“Yeah. I thought we were still talking earlier. I came here to tell you a few more things.”

“What is it like?”

“First of all, your goal is to thwart the sect’s plans and prevent the Demon King’s descent, right?”

“Yes.”

“But the church has been preparing for this for at least ten years, maybe even longer. A tower that has been built with so much effort won’t collapse if you remove a few cornerstones. And since it’s almost finished, even if you impurities get in, nothing will change.”

I thought for a moment and then said.

“The one who actually manages the workhouse is the lord of Airuga, the Golden Duke. Wouldn’t that level of impurity be enough to collapse the tower?”

“That’s going to be difficult.”

This time it was Seren who responded.

“For the Golden Duke, the most important thing is not the peace of the city or the lives of its citizens. Nor is she completely loyal to the empire. The only thing that moves her is money.”

“…If the country falls, gold will just become a yellow, shiny metal, and that’s how it is?”

Seren sighed.

“Money makes fools of people. I wasn’t the one who just ignored it. I didn’t know the details of the sect’s plans, but I knew they were up to something in the labor camp. I intentionally leaked that information to Golden Duke, but there was no response. On the contrary, the number of prisoners only increased.”

“Are you so blinded by the relics that you’re pretending not to see the sect’s tricks?”

But, he’s one of the five Grand Dukes of the Empire, so how can he be so stupid?

As I was laughing out loud, Ozma opened his mouth.

“It’s not like the Golden Duke has no thoughts. Rather, it seems like he’s come up with a plan that can definitely stop the Demon King’s descent.”

“yes?”

“What is that… … Didn’t you say that the Demon King’s descent has already progressed to a point where it would be difficult to stop it?”

“Yes. That’s right. For example, if the leader of the cult were to come out and recite the scriptures of evil right now, the Green Tongue Demon King would descend to this land, albeit in an imperfect form. The reason he doesn’t do that is because the cult wants to finish the ritual more reliably.”

“Then how are you going to stop it? There have already been enough sacrifices, and there is no clue as to the identity of the cult leader.”

“It’s simple. Just mix turbid blood into the cup of pure blood.”

“Blood… … . Dirty blood?”

“Did you know? Recently, the Golden Duke has been imprisoning many prisoners of different races in the Rahild Force. He is also lobbying his sponsors to focus on prisoners of different races.”

“That’s… true.”

Seren, who knew the details, nodded.

“Hearing this, doesn’t something make sense?”

Seren still looked puzzled, but I hardened my expression.

Because what Verita had said in the past flashed through my mind.

“… Only seven races can be sacrificed to the sect.”

“Yes. The bloodshed of the other race actually makes their god angry.”

The reason why the religious order is so deeply intertwined with the empire… … .

This is because only the seven races that contributed to the founding of the Nameless Empire can be offered as sacrifices to summon demons.

Humans, fairies, dwarves, giants, water people, celestials, and lastly, dragons.

Conversely, other races, that is, races that the world calls heterodox, have no value as sacrificial offerings.

“The Golden Duke intends to kill all the half-race prisoners in the Rahild Force. The minimum number is five thousand. If that happens, the pureblood cup will be tainted, and the ritual will fail.”

Ozma said with a relaxed expression.

“Even if it rots, it’s still one of the five great princes. If the Golden Prince’s plan goes as planned, the sect’s plans will fall apart and they will only suffer huge losses. Even if it’s a replica, giving away the holy relics won’t be a profitable business.”

“… … .”

“So you guys just watch without getting involved and look for clues about the cult leader. That would be much more efficient.”

Ozma’s words are impeccable.

That’s probably true.

If that’s true, then it makes sense why Iron Blood and Delak are cooperating with the Golden Duke.

Even for that gentleman, the lives of other races probably aren’t that important.

If you ask a hundred citizens of the empire, they will all give the same answer.

however…….

‘Plague.’

Why am I so pissed?