In the dark, sparsely furnished underground space that was the conference room, Lord Mors sat among his loyal subjects in order to hear their mission report.
The two—Luca and Legion—had arrived the previous day, but not only was it late, but since they had been journeying the whole day, it was only imperative that the meeting be delayed until the next morning.
As a result, the two of them—alongside Cult Leader Lili—made themselves known in his magnificent presence, telling him in great detail what happened with the Cathars and how eventful their journey back was. They spared no detail in their report, and by the end of it, their supreme leader was silent.
The Lord of the Dead… was quiet.
No one could fathom what was going on in the depths of his mind. The three subordinates could only stare at him with awe, curiosity, and dread as they observed his unchanging facade.
Then—
"So… you mean to tell me that you killed a few hundred of their forces—including a high-ranking official called a Deacon. But this was only because they were sent after you… after the proselytisation went wrong."
"That is precisely so, my Lord!"
"Y-yes, Lord Mors!"
Legion and Luca responded, the confidence and caution in their respective voices evident from how eagerly they spoke.
Luca had the more apologetic expression on his face. He seemed to recognize the gravity of the situation, but was also well aware that they had no choice in the matter when it came to the slaughter of their pursuers.
Legion, on the other hand, had a different expression.
They looked pleased with themselves regarding the demise of the heathen scum that dared challenge them and insult the power of the Lord of the Dead. Lili was nodding her head silently, the broad smile on her face making it clear that she was of the same disposition as Legion.
'As expected… Luca is the only sane person here.' Lucius thought to himself in a sigh as he observed the expression of the three people before him.
He admired their loyalty and confidence in his power, but… wasn't this a very dire situation?
'A much larger Cult than ours has now set their sights on us due to this incident. It definitely won't end well…'
Still, despite having these worries, Lucius ensured not to make any of his thoughts obvious to the ones who looked up to him. Not only was it because he was their literal god—which meant he wasn't allowed to act too human—but also because, despite the trouble that their action brought, they acted in line with the Cult's standard.
In essence—
"The two of you did well."
—Lucius still had to praise them.
Legion and Luca brightened up instantly, but the mind of their Lord only darkened even further.
'I shouldn't have expected reaching out to other Cults to be that easy.' He sighed internally. 'If I consider how the Heresy Cult acts to outsiders and other faiths, then it should have been obvious that other Cults would think the same of us."
The fact that the Cathars were much larger than the Heresy Cult also made it all the more obvious that they wouldn't just accept the latter's fringe beliefs.
Truthfully, Lucius had only expected the total number of the Cathars to be a few hundred, considering how Lili mentioned that they were a relatively small organization, but were larger than the Heresy Cult.
However, based on the descriptions of their base and the fact that they could send a few hundred soldiers to capture Legion and Luca drastically changed his perspective on them.
'They're definitely more than a thousand—at the very least.' Lucius couldn't really sweat, but if he could, he would be leaking buckets at this point. 'Everything that happened is practically a declaration of war.'
He couldn't blame his subordinates, though.
In the end, the Cathars struck first, which meant they had justifiably now become his enemies.
'Even if Legion and Luca had been responsible for the first move that blew this whole thing to the point of war… I would still have no choice but to take the side of the Heresy Cult.' He smiled at the three who watched him keenly.
It was his duty to take the side of his group without negotiation, and in return, they would unquestionably follow him.
'I'm glad that the two had enough sense to avoid direct conflict until it was inevitable, though. I'm glad I have reasonable subordinates.' With that thought out of his mind, he promptly decided to address the matter in full swing.
"Since it has come to this, we need to prepare." He said, turning to the Cult Leader. "What are your thoughts on this, Lili?"
For a moment, the young lady paused—clearly in thought—then she spoke with full enthusiasm.
"It was optimistic to think they would join our ranks so easily. Since they've chosen the path of damnation, I believe we ought to eradicate them for rejecting your kindness, Lord Mors."
"I see…" Lucius remained calm as he rubbed his chin.
After hearing Lili's words, he became convinced that she must have already known something like this would happen, which was why she recommended the Cathars to be their first target. She must have had some vendetta against them, or maybe wanted them to be an example for the other Cults.
Regardless, there was never going to be any real negotiation, to begin with.
—Just conflict.
"I agree with Lili. They all deserve just retribution for spitting in the face of your kindness and disrespecting your greatness." Legion broke through Lucius' thoughts with his deep, confident voice.
"I also agree." Luca quickly chipped in. "Conflict is inevitable at this point, so we shouldn't hesitate and quickly snuff out the enemies so they don't cause us more trouble…"
Lucius nodded upon hearing all of their thoughts on the matter.
'Looks like we are all on the same page.'
"Also, Lord Mors… I have something for you." At this point, Lili rose to her feet and went to kneel right beside Lucius' seat, bringing out something from her pockets.
He watched all of this curiously, maintaining his aura as Lord Mors as he spotted the quartz ruby that she delicately held with both of her hands.
'T-that is…!' His eyes nearly widened in surprise.
This was his first time seeing something like this, but he could instantly recognize what the stone was—or rather, what was stored inside its gleaming shell.
"I gave this to Luca when they began their journey… in case some bloodshed happened." Lili began, not even bothering to hide her clear intent for the Heresy Cult's conflict with the Cathars anymore. "This enchanted stone harvested the souls of everyone that was killed in the skirmish… and now, they are yours."
Lucius smiled.
Despite the fact that she put the Cult in their current mess, he couldn't get mad at her even if he wanted to.
'After going out of her way to provide me with such nourishment… how could I possibly refuse?'
His grin grew broader. 'You did it for the sake of the Cult, didn't you? For my sake…'
That brought him great satisfaction, which he displayed by promptly taking the stone off her hands as she bowed her head in reverence.
"You did well." He also made sure to utter words of praise. Her blushing face told him that she received it well.
"A few hundred Souls… that should be sufficient for now." He muttered, closing his eyes and clasping his fingers around the stone as he felt it pulsate.
All of a sudden, he felt a jolt—like energy was streaming through his body at a rapid pace. It was instant, yet the process seemed to have lasted longer. By the end of it, Lucius was brimming with energy and had emptied the power within the stone—causing the thing to break apart.
"Haaa…" He opened his eyes and smiled. "... Good stuff."
Before having such a good meal, he had been worried about the numbers of the Cathars, and he still had slight reservations about all-out war. However, once he could feel the power of death swell within his chest… those worries vanished.
In fact, they transformed into anticipation.
'Let's say they're a few thousand as an estimate… just going off the number of soldiers they were able to send after Legion and Luca so readily.'
Normally, the number would have scared him since the Heresy Cult was only a little over a hundred in population.
But—
"Perfect!"
Rising to his feet, Lucius offered his followers a bright smile, eliciting the same reaction from them. "This is perfect!"
"Now that we've reached the point of no return, we might as well focus our attention on the potential resources that we can reap from the Cathars once this conflict is over."
The land, money, furniture, and most importantly… the SOULS.
The Heresy Cult was still outnumbered, but Lucius felt confident that they weren't outmatched.
"Let us begin our preparations."
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[A/N]
Sorry I haven't posted in days. There was a blackout in my country for days, and I am just getting electricity.
Thanks for reading, and I hope you enjoyed the chapter.