It felt so natural.
It felt like Abel's original combat skills and experience were naturally incorporated into my possessed soul.
It was my first time killing someone, but I didn't feel a lot of guilt. They were people who deserved to die in the first place, and I was prepared to do anything to survive in this world.
And you have to do this much for them to believe you. You must be confident from start to finish.
"Who is the manager here?" I demanded.
The old man wearing the owl skin answered, "It is I, Apostle."
"How did you know that I was an apostle?" I said sternly.
"That… ." His mouth was dry, but I carefully looked around without showing it at all. Fortunately, there have been no significant signs so far.
72nd denomination. As the name of the denomination suggests, there are 72 precepts.
It was a religious group of followers who worshiped the demon god Andromalius.
There are many demon worshipers in this world, but among them, this is the group with the largest number of followers.
The Heresy Inquisitors who worship the main god are having a hard time hunting down these people who have spread like tumors within the empire, but at least for me right now, they were absolutely necessary.
'There is no choice. I have to somehow make them mine.'
The corpses seen in the cave were probably traces of human sacrifice.
Since they are people who worship demon gods, they treat human life like flies. It was clear that if it were discovered that I was merely a contractor and not an apostle of the Demon God, I would be lying next to those corpses.
'I think this old man is the leader of a cult... .' When I looked closely at his hand, I saw a large snake wrapped around it. The snake is one of Andromalius' representative symbols.
"It's because of the noble stigmata in my left eye. If my eyes are not mistaken, are they not stigmata from the demon of lust?"
Fortunately, the old man's reaction was within the expected range.
'Stigmata...'
To be precise, this is not a stigmata or anything like that, but a kind of stigma.
When black magic is used, a six-pointed star appears automatically regardless of will.
It was nothing more than a useless restraint that advertised that I was a demon worshiper and used black magic.
The stigma of being a terminally ill slave whose soul is mortgaged due to an unfair contract.
It was one of the reasons why I cursed when I first found out that I had been possessed by this body.
"Unlike other bugs, you still have eyes to see. Yes, I am the apostle of the demon 'Asmodeus'."
Of course, I was neither an apostle nor a messenger. I was just a fool who sold his soul in exchange for very little power.
The old man answered in a soft tone.
"Oh, I guess my eyes weren't wrong. But how could such a noble person come to this squalid place alone and without an escort?"
The words sounded plausible, but I got the feeling that they were hiding a thorn in them.
"Do I have to tell you every little thing like that?"
Despite my firm tone, the old man continued speaking calmly.
"I'm sorry if I offended you. This old man is naturally curious, so he has a disease where he must find out what he is curious about. We are currently preparing for a very important ceremony, so I would like to ask you at the risk of being rude. Could you tell us why the Apostle of the Demon God of Lust visited our church?"
It wasn't an illusion.
He was clearly suspicious of me.
It was clear that as time passed, the suspicion would only grow.
What should I say? Should I just say I stopped by by chance?
No. Then, it was obvious that he would grab the pod again and bite on it persistently.
"…It is to meet Andromalius."
The old man raised his head and looked at me. It was a dark look, like a snake stalking its prey.
"You mean Andromalius…?"
"Exactly. I received an oracle from Asmodeus. Andromalius will descend here today through a ritual. Am I wrong?"
The old man answered in a slightly embarrassed tone. "Yes, that's right. However… ."
The old man seemed to want to say more, but I had no intention of listening any further. I spoke coldly, boiling the demonic energy of my whole body.
"Asmodeus' other name is the Demon God of Fury."
Asmodeus, the demon god of lust and rage. His fame was widespread even in hell.
'It is also one of the few demon gods that is not restricted by rank.'
The old man lowered his head and spoke carefully. "… Sorry."
"I'm the one who came in on my own without asking for permission, so I won't make any more noise, but keep in mind that this was my last warning."
"… All right."
"Stop procrastinating and start the ritual."
"Please come this way."
As we headed inside under the guidance of the old man, a huge foundation appeared.
A mountain of corpses.
There were as many as 1,000 corpses piled up. I was disgusted, but I couldn't show it in front of them.
"… That's a lot."
The old man spoke as if he was quite proud of their achievements.
"These are the offerings that were painstakingly prepared for this ceremony. As the numbers are just numbers, I had a lot of trouble preparing, but seeing it in person was a refreshing experience. My heart cannot stop pounding at the thought that I will soon be able to see our god, Andromalius."
Looking at those crazy eyes gave me goosebumps on the back of my neck.
"It is a very honorable thing to be able to see the god you worship in person. Is this just the beginning?"
"That's right."
The old man kneeling in front of the altar began muttering something incomprehensible with his hands clasped together.