"WE WELCOME YOUR MAGNIFICENT PRESENCE, LORD MORS!"
The thunderous cry of his Cult Members echoed loudly in the meeting room the moment he stepped foot inside.
The place was surprisingly large, and Lucius even recognized it.
'This is… the site of my summoning.' His slightly widened eyes looked around in order to process the details while drawing from what he remembered when he first gained consciousness in this era.
The previously worn-down walls had been polished, and the crumbling ceiling seemed to be in a much better shape than he remembered. The floors were sparkly clean, and there was even a carpet line that extended from the head of the rectangular stone table to the entrance—clearly meant for him to tread on.
'How can they afford a carpet but not food?' He wanted to ask, but kept his thoughts to himself.
Overall, the conference hall impressed him.
It was certainly not as cozy as his room, and this was certainly a far cry from a proper setup, but it was clear they put a lot of effort into organizing everything as best they could. He recognized their efforts, at the very least.
"You may rise." He spoke, referring to both Legion and Luca, who knelt a couple meters in front of him, and Lili, who also took the same position behind him.
As soon as they heard his voice, they obeyed the command.
Without wasting any more time, he began to take steps—all in careful, polished strides—so he could reach the seat prepared for him.
'Looks like it's made mostly from stone… same as the table and the other seats.' Lucius observed silently. 'Mine is definitely fancier, but it's still stone in the end.'
Why?
'Why are they using stone rather than wood?' He couldn't help but wonder.
He said nothing of the matter and simply sat on his elevated seat.
'There are a total of nine seats—four to the left, four to the right… and my seat at the head of the table.' His eyes traveled to the three who were waiting for his command before they also sat down. 'Aren't there too many seats?'
He ignored the thought, though, since the rectangular table would look awkward if more chairs weren't placed next to it. Besides, having more seats in the conference room was a good thing, since it went tied in well with his vision for the Cult.
—The same vision he was about to share with everyone present.
"Have your seats."
They did as he instructed and occupied their assigned positions: Lili taking the first seat to his right, while Legion and Luca took the next set of seats that were located right and left respectively.
Only Lili occupied the seat closest to him—a clear power play on her part.
"Without wasting any time, let me begin the meeting by saying this…" Lucius arched forward and intertwined his fingers, placing his elbows on the sturdy stone slab that was the table.
"... I, Lord Mors, am genuinely pleased with the loyalty and grit you have displayed before me. The loyalty of the Cult has me touched, and it shall not go unrewarded. You have endured such hardships and persecutions, yet your faith remains unshaken… and you managed to bring me to this world by sacrificing a thousand of your members for that cause…"
Lucius paused for a moment, noting the expressions of his audience.
Lili—as expected—looked genuinely touched by his praise of the Cult. Her blushing face and sparkling eyes were practically screaming: "Kyahh! Lord Morsss!"
As for Legion, their battle-hardened face was stern, though it seemed praising the sacrifice of the thousand virgins caused them to itch their ash-colored hair a little in bashful fulfillment. Their pale face turned to the side as they leaked a small smile.
The odd one out was Luca—whom none of the praise was directed towards.
Not only was he a new member of the Cult, but he was even among the people who persecuted the Cult. As a result, he had an expression of guilt as Lucius went through everything that he said.
'Remember this feeling and make sure you work hard to redeem yourself, okay?' Lucius smiled at the young man.
"... You have all done well."
Everyone looked at him in awe, and while he allowed himself to be bathed in their reverence, he wasn't distracted by it.
That wasn't the reason behind his commendation.
'By praising them, I'm encouraging the Cult to do even more, while also making Luca feel the need to prove himself. It's necessary for growth…' Of course, Lucius also meant most of what he said, but that didn't mean he felt the same way they did.
He was simply glad to see that they were in his camp.
"Thank you for your kind words, Lord Mors! We will work even harder to make sure we do not fall short of them." Lili spoke on behalf of the three, and they nodded with bright smiles and gleaming eyes.
'Good! It looks like it worked.'
When it came to group motivation, using the carrot was always more effective than the stick.
"I look forward to more from you all." He smiled. "And now, before we discuss the pertinent matters of the Cult, including how to move forward, I would like to know if there are any questions or concerns from any of you."
"...."
Silence followed his words, clearly showing how no one was willing to say anything.
'Looks like getting feedback will be difficult from these people. Since it's a Cult, everyone is conditioned to never ask questions and to simply follow the leader as though in a herd.' This was beneficial to Lucius, since he could easily manipulate his followers, however there were times when it served as a detriment.
This was one of such moments.
"Lili?"
"Ah… no concerns here, my Lord."
"Legion?"
"Legion has no worthwhile questions or concerns, my Lord."
"Luca?" Lucius felt exasperated at this point. Even when he called them out individually, they weren't willing to contribute to his thought process.
'This means I can come up with a foolish and flawed plan, and they will blindly agree to it because of the assumption that I know better.'
That was dangerous.
'I don't know about the other two, but it's obvious Luca has something on his mind. Let's see if he's going to spit it out, or if he'll suppress it.' If he did the former, then there was still hope for the Cult, but if it was the latter… he would have to consider overhauling—or at least altering—the current system of the Cult.
"Lord Mors… there's something I do not quite understa—"
Before Luca could finish his statement, Lili and Legion turned to glare at him, the pressure of their stares instantly silencing him.
'What's wrong with you people? Let him speak his mind!' Lucius wanted to shout at them, but he remained calm.
'I understand what they're trying to do… but this isn't the right way to go about it.'
"The two of you should stop intimidating your junior." He snapped.
"Y-yes, Lord Mors!" Lili and Legion instantly responded, bowing their heads in obeisance.
'Good…' He smiled, turning his attention to Luca. "Go on."
"Erm… well… the thing is…"
It was obvious that the boy was being extremely careful of how he would phrase his words, and that stemmed from deep fear and reverence—both of which were good qualities to have as a Cult Member.
However, as much as they guided members to unquestionably obey orders, they were also supposed to allow them to speak when given permission to do so by the one whom the reverence and fear was directed.
'As long as I order them to speak their minds… they should be able to.'
That was the type of Cult Lucius wanted.
"... I don't understand why I am here." Luca finally blurted out his concerns. "I-I mean, I'm a new member, and I was also an enemy until recently… when you showed me mercy and I swore loyalty to you."
'Ah… I see what he's saying.' Lucius smiled to himself. 'I actually expected Lili to raise a concern about it when I included him in the meeting, but since she didn't say anything I assumed there was no need to explain.'
However, since it had finally been raised, this was the perfect opportunity to reveal his rationale.
"You were a soldier for the Lord who is currently the enemy of this Cult. That alone makes you valuable despite being weak… and new."
"I-I see…"
"You should have information that none of the others possess, which means you can contribute meaningfully to the conversation. Plus, since you haven't been here for so long, I'm sure you'll offer a refreshing perspective on certain matters…"
Luca was still something of an outsider, so his actions and thoughts had not been completely molded to fit the Cult's propaganda—unlike the average Member.
As a result, it could be said that he had the most common sense and bearing on reality.
'He's the most relatable person in the Cult right now, which is why I want him here. He can be a kind of anchor that grounds us in reality.' Lucius kept these thoughts to himself.
"Do you understand your purpose now?"
"Y-yes, Lord Mors!" He responded with newfound enthusiasm, a bright smile decorating his youthful face.
'Looks like he's a lot more confident now. That's good…' Lucius nodded to himself. 'Since I've somewhat achieved what I wanted with this prelude, it's time we moved on to the main event.'
"I have called you all here to discuss two major things regarding the Cult, namely: preservation and expansion."
Everyone nodded silently, their equally grim expressions evident as they listened attentively..
"Let us begin."