The Apostles' Oath
Yoahim let out a long sigh.
His level had shot up by five at once. That meant Delion was a formidable foe, but he'd beaten him far more easily than expected. It was all thanks to Leon and Sasha. They'd stabbed Delion in the shoulder and gouged out his eye, making the victory possible. He'd known they were at his back the whole time. Now, he had to turn around and face them.
With another habitual sigh, he spun on his heel.
"Yoahim."
Leon no longer used honorifics with him. He knew the truth now.
"You're not Bellrallion."
Figured that out now, huh? Yoahim nodded.
"Yeah, I'm not Bellrallion. Not a dragon either. Never meant to deceive you guys."
It was the truth. He'd explicitly said he wasn't Bellrallion. The problem was these pointy-eared idiots hadn't listened. But that was just his side of things. From Leon and Sasha's perspective, the misunderstanding was plenty understandable.
Yoahim eyed them warily. They wouldn't suddenly snap and attack, would they? It wasn't impossible. If they did, he wasn't planning to hold back. You're the ones who jumped to conclusions—why the fuck are you pissed at me?
He shook his left hand, the one with the ring, while gripping the sword in his right even tighter.
Leon moved, and Yoahim reacted on instinct.
"Apostle. Take us in."
The charging sword halted inches from Leon's throat. Yoahim, who'd swung assuming an attack, stared at him in shock.
Leon's voice was its usual flat tone, but his face was dead serious. He was genuinely pleading. To take them under his wing.
Yoahim wasn't dumb enough to miss the meaning. They wanted to be his subordinates, plain and simple.
"Wait, hold up. What? You want me to take you in?"
"Yeah. We want to join your journey, Apostle."
Apostle? What the hell kind of title is that? Yoahim furrowed his brow and pointed at himself.
"You calling me Apostle?"
"Who else? You're the Apostle. The emissary of the gods fighting for Kakali's return."
"...You really believe I'm an Apostle? Could be another lie."
Were these guys pure-hearted or just idiots? They'd swallowed the Bellrallion bit hook, line, and sinker, and now this Apostle crap too.
As Yoahim gawked in disbelief, Sasha stepped forward.
"Apostle, we already knew you were extraordinary. We mistook you for Bellrallion because your soul's dignity matched his. Our perception was off-target, but not wrong in essence."
In simple terms: We knew you were a big deal—just got the details wrong.
Meaning they truly believed Yoahim was Kakali's Apostle. Without a shred of proof. Or maybe his mere existence was proof enough.
But Yoahim didn't see himself as that impressive. Haellagos himself had said he was too weak for an Apostle of an evil god—hadn't even recognized him.
No, things are different now. My power's on another level.
He was strong now. Not hero-level, maybe, but enough to brag about anywhere.
Leon and Sasha would've sensed it. And he'd slain Delion—the enemy they couldn't.
Proof of power.
"...Why follow me?"
Sasha lowered her eyes, her voice heavy with gloom.
"Leon and I are warriors of the Black Root tribe. The last survivors. Our tribe was wiped out by Raello's holy knights just for worshiping Kakali."
A single tear rolled down her cheek.
"We were out on a mission and survived. Seeing our village in flames, we swallowed our tears and vowed revenge. To repay our pain tenfold—no, a hundredfold. If they burn one village, we'll burn ten."
She bit her lip, spitting the words.
"Please let us have our revenge. Let us fight for Kakali's return, Apostle."
Leon bowed his head too.
"We beg you, Apostle."
Yoahim was stumped. His primary goal was surviving this shitty world; secondary was getting back home. Even as Kakali's "Apostle," helping with village revenge was a tall order. Their targets? Raello's holy knights. Worshiped as gods of light—that meant war with the whole damn world.
"...Your story's tragic, but my power's still weak. Not even sure if the god's coming back."
"If you step forward, Kakali's followers will rally under one banner. Declare a holy war for Kakali, and the god will surely return."
Leon's voice brimmed with conviction.
Yoahim bit his lip.
"But is that right? Your pain's real. But summoning an evil god for revenge and sparking war again—is that just? Isn't worshiping an evil god a sin itself?"
Yoahim might be Kakali's Apostle, but he had no sense of duty or faith. He was human; pointless slaughter didn't interest him.
"People call white good and black evil. But how can we judge gods by good and evil? Gods have no benevolence or malice. They simply are."
Sasha choked back sobs.
"Kakali's called evil only because Raello's followers won the war. Good and evil are decided that way. Raello's the god of light and good—does that make his followers good? Humans deceive humans, kill humans, torment humans. Is Raello evil? No. Faith isn't about good and evil."
"But Kakali's followers have plenty of villains. Like Bellrallion or Haellagos."
Raello's did sins too, but Kakali's were bigger.
Sasha shook her head.
"They're the misguided. Kakali is the god of death, but death isn't sin. All living things die. Kakali merely reaps those fated to. But wretches like the Ashen Dragon Bellrallion and Demon Haellagos twist Kakali's will for their own ends. They start wars, steal countless lives. That's not Kakali's intent."
Yoahim fell silent. It wasn't entirely wrong. And if Raello was truly good, why hadn't war and poverty vanished? Why wasn't everyone happy? Because of Kakali? But she'd been sealed ages ago. Did that make Raello evil? No. Gods had no good or evil. That was on the believers.
Yoahim knew Leon and Sasha weren't pure good or evil. And faith didn't equate to deathly sin.
"...Do whatever. Follow if you want."
His sighed words lit up their faces. They bowed deeply, pledging loyalty.
"I'll be your sword, Apostle. I'll follow anywhere."
"Sasha will be your eyes and ears, Apostle. Command me in anything."
This is getting heavy. Yoahim scratched his chin.
Still, useful subordinates were a win.
"Alright then."
Yoahim pulled a crystal from his inventory and held it to Delion's severed neck.
The crystal has absorbed a soul! (Souls absorbed: 135/500)
Delion's soul was worth about 50. Stronger than Veros, so double the value.
"Grab the relic and head back."
Soul secured—now for the relic. Yoahim sensed intense energy pouring from Delion's corpse. No luck rummaging pockets. Patting down the body, something solid near the chest.
He tore open Delion's shirt.
"This is..."
Yoahim gagged at the sight. No heart—instead, veins like ancient roots clutched a golden chalice.
Averting his eyes from the nauseating scene, he yanked the chalice free. Dark red blood spurted from severed vessels.
Yoahim shielded his face and stood.
"...The relic?"
A powerful aura hummed from the golden chalice. He flicked off the blood, inspecting it.
◈ The holy relic recognizes you, Kakali's Apostle, as its master!
You can now command more undead at once! Summonable undead types have increased!
Current summonable undead: Skeleton Swordsman, Skeleton Archer, Skeleton Mage, Zombie, Ghoul.
"Oh?"
Not just any relic—a holy artifact? Necromancy jumped two levels instantly. From Lv.2 to Lv.4. With a max of 10, that was huge progress.
With this, I could impersonate a necromancer.
Dark Knights could use Necromancy like necromancers, but capped at Lv.5 for class distinction. Items like this bypassed limits.
Meaning Yoahim could hit Lv.7 with the relic.
Lv.7 summons Death Knights.
Black-armored, loyally mowing down foes. Solid just thinking about it.
Great haul today.
Yoahim nodded to himself and turned.
Leon and Sasha gazed at him in awe.
"As expected of the Apostle. Absorbing the relic's power."
"Our eyes didn't deceive us. Sasha will follow you till death!"
Why so intense? Yoahim cleared his throat and asked Leon,
"How do we get back? Walk?"
"Scroll again, Apostle."
Why honorifics for Bellrallion but casual with me? Dragon scarier than Apostle?
As Yoahim grumbled inwardly, Leon handed over a scroll.
"Let's go."
The three tore theirs simultaneously. Second teleport—still sucked.
Yoahim shook his dizzy head and took in Barakan once more.
"Oh my, what a coincidence? Hehe."
A familiar, chilling voice. No way.
Yoahim turned slowly.
There she was.
"Stepped out for air after the meeting. What are the odds?"
Lilith in uniform, smiling with her eyes. Her narrowed gaze swept over Yoahim's group.
"New friends?"
It lingered on Sasha. Yoahim broke into a cold sweat, innocent as he was.
Suddenly, Leon stepped forward.
"A mere spell-slinger dares address the Apostle? Insolent wretch—back off."
What the hell's with this guy? Yoahim stared wide-eyed.
Leon nodded to himself.
"Kill her, Apostle? Just say the word. I can take them all."
Charge in and you'll die, idiot.
Yoahim sighed, shaking his head.
Too loyal was a problem too.