How the Cult Saves the World

He was, of course, concealing his appearance. Dressed in a pitch-black robe, his hood was pulled low over his head.

Yet, Terdius recognized him as the First Apostle---he could feel it in the energy emanating from him.

'Why am I...?'

Terdius stared in confusion as the First Apostle clashed with another version of himself.

The battle was fierce. They didn't care about the means and methods. The other form of Terdius swung his sword with ferocity, while the First Apostle retaliated using the power of Diego.

'Why on earth am I...?'

Terdius was perplexed. Why was he fighting against the Diego Church? And what were these inexplicable memories?

He couldn't make sense of it at all.

A strange, warm sensation had crept into his mind, clouding his thoughts. It created memories he had never lived, memories that stirred a longing he couldn't explain as time went by.

What was it all? What was it that he was missing?

Terdius was drowning in confusion.

Thud-

Just as he was about to descend into complete chaos, someone grabbed his shoulder.

The friendly and warm presence snapped him out of his disoriented state.

He spun around in a hurry to see Leviathan, his expression deadly serious.

"Wake up. This is an illusion."

His soft yet commanding tone brought him back to his senses.

As realization dawned on Terdius that what he had seen was merely a hallucination, Leviathan further poured his holy power in Terdius and brought him out of the illusion.

Slowly, the last traces of the gray fog surrounding Terdius faded, and the magic blocking the entrance to the goblin castle was dispelled.

***

The gray fog that had shrouded the goblin castle's entrance lifted, finally revealing its true form.

The castle was old and large but significantly smaller than those of other kingdoms. 

Between the party and the castle lay a garden filled with dead plants that they'd have to cross.

"Was that illusion or magic?" Terdius asked.

I turned toward him. Though I had woken them up from the illusions, Terdius, Zain, and Troy still seemed shaken.

Of course, they were better than when they were inside the illusions. But considering the content of their illusions, it was only natural there'd be aftereffects.

Their expressions reflected the emotional weight of what they had experienced. It was only natural---hallucinations of that intensity left lasting effects.

I opened my inventory and handed them water I had prepared earlier.

"Drink. Zain, Troy."

"Thank you, Master."

"Thank you, Leader."

I offered water to Terdius as well.

"...Thanks."

Terdius stared blankly at me before he took a sip. I waited patiently, watching the three of them until their composure returned.

After escaping my own hallucination, I had immediately plunged into theirs to help them.

'Because mental magic like this typically breaks easily when someone else intervenes.'

And there I saw the trauma of these three. Troy--the incident in the forest where he lost his clan. And Zain, the incident where he lost his family.

Though painful, they were just what I expected. But what I saw in Terdius's vision was different.

'Originally...

Terdius's trauma was tied to his younger brother, Ivan. But the scene before him was something else entirely.

'That was definitely a scene from the original story.'

It was the battle between the First Apostle of the Diego Church and the protagonist, Terdius---a pivotal moment from the latter half of the HSAW.

However, since this scene wasn't part of Terdius's memories in the Hidden Route, it shouldn't have any connection to his trauma.

'This doesn't even align with the timeline. That's supposed to be in the future.'

Was it an error?

It was plausible. The scene Terdius saw wasn't his trauma but a fragment of the original story.

'In this damned world like this, yeah, errors like this could easily happen.'

Last time, the sudden spike in difficulty nearly cost me my life.

'I don't know exactly what's going on...'

Still, it'll probably be fine. Terdius likely won't dwell on what he just saw.

Seeing that the group seemed to be in slightly better shape, I finally spoke up.

"What we experienced earlier was a hallucinatory spell targeting our minds. It was just an illusion---don't let it bother you too much."

Zain and Troy readily nodded, exhaling. Terdius, on the other hand, simply stared at me, his expression unchanged.

'...I'm sure he'll be fine.'

Since this was a Hidden Route, it was difficult to predict how Terdius's mind might shift. That unpredictability was the main reason I hadn't considered taking him as a companion. His personality and circumstances were far removed from what I knew.

Even so, I didn't think this particular incident would pose any major issues.

-Child, you were hallucinating too. Are you okay?

'I'm fine.'

-But you all look exhausted... I don't know what you saw, but it really drained you.

'You're right. Mental fatigue can't be ignored after all.'

Kyros's warm voice interrupted my thoughts.

-I'm sorry there are things I can't help with. But, child, I always believe in your strength.

'Yes, Lord Kyros. Don't worry. I'm stronger than you think.'

With that brief exchange, our short break ended.

The group's expressions, though weary, had brightened somewhat. We resumed our journey.

"I don't know what lies ahead, but it's best we arm ourselves now."

Terdius said as we walked through the dead plant garden. His words mirrored what I had been about to say.

I opened my inventory and pulled out my mace. Zain and Troy followed suit, readying their weapons. Terdius walked with his hand on the hilt of his sword.

After we moved past the garden and were getting closer to the goblin castle--

Rumble.

The ground began to tremble violently. At the same time, the garden's soil where plants has died cracked open.

Snap, crack.

From the fractured earth, a hand made of soil emerged like a zombie.

"What is that...?!"

Zain sighed. From the ground rose a creature resembling a goblin, but their skin was the same color as the dirt they came from.

"Ground Goblin!"

Troy shouted, his eyes fixed on the monster. The problem was that ground goblins were popping out of the soil all over the garden.

At least 50 goblins popped out right in front of me.

'No, it's fine. We anticipated this.'

I tightened my grip on the mace as Zain drew his bowstring, Troy flexed his claws, and Terdius unsheathed his sword.

Thwack!

Without hesitation, we launched ourselves at the goblins except Zain.

Thump-!

My mace struck a goblin's head, and with a solid impact, it crumbled back into dirt.

Similar scenes unfolded around me---Terdius's sword cut through one, Zain's arrows pierced another, and Troy's claws killed another.

In mere moments, dozens of ground goblins were reduced to dust.

'...But.'

But the fight wasn't over. The ground goblins had a troublesome trait.

The dirt they returned to began to gather in one place, swirling with a pitch-black energy.

These goblins wouldn't die from simple attacks since they're made of dirt. Worse, when infused with the power of the Goblin King, they will turn back into dirt and unite as one.

'It's like clay merging together.'

I watched as the dirt began to slowly take the shape of a growing goblin.

"What in the world is that?!" 

"What is this...?"

Zayn and Troy also looked up at the growing large goblin, stunned.

The dirt, now infused with black energy, clumped together. In mere moments, it transformed into a colossal ground goblin the size of the goblin castle itself.

"What the heck is that...?"

"Is it even possible for us to take it down?"

Zain and Troy muttered in disbelief, their eyes wide with shock. Even Terdius, though less outwardly expressive, appeared somewhat taken aback.

I was the same. The truth was that the giant goblin was actually easier to deal with. 

Unlike when it was smaller and endlessly regenerating, once it merged into a single entity, the regeneration stopped.

"Let's go."

I stepped forward, speaking calmly to the two who were stunned. As if on cue, the massive goblin the size of the castle let out a roar.

"Raaaaaaawr-!"

The high-pitched sound made my ears sting, but I didn't flinch. I leapt forward.

Whoosh-!

Terdius and Troy quickly followed, launching themselves into the air.

Thud!

I struck the goblin's left leg with my mace. The impact caused its leg to buckle, sending it staggering.

After that, Zain's arrow turned the goblin's right arm into a pincushion, and Troy's claws tore into its chin.

Then there was Terdius.

"...Ho."

I couldn't help but sigh as I watched him. Light on his feet, he climbed up the goblin's massive body with ease, moving so fast that his sword strikes were nearly invisible.

"Ugh!"

The goblin howled and thrashed violently, but Terdius didn't relent. In one swift motion, he cut off the creature's rapidly growing neck.

Thump!

The giant goblin's body began to collapse. I quickly moved out of the way, followed by Troy and Terdius.

"Wow, you took it down in one go!"

Zain stared at Terdius, clearly impressed. As expected, there was a reason he had been chosen as an apostle.

'But how is he this strong when the story's different from the original story?'

Rather than weaker, Terdius felt significantly stronger than the original timeline.

"Who on earth is he?"

Zain approached me, speaking in a hushed tone. I shrugged.

"...Who knows? I'm not that close to him either."

Feigning ignorance, I walked away. If Zain ever discovered that Terdius was an apostle of the Diego Church, it wouldn't sit well with him.

"Let's go."

Terdius said as he flicked the goblin's remains off his sword. Without a word, we followed him.

With the giant goblin defeated, the gates of the goblin castle began to creak open.

The massive wooden doors groaned as they swung wide and we went inside.

Weapons at the ready, we found ourselves in an enormous hall. Strangely, the hall's size was unusually large compared to the castle's exterior.

And the space was filled with green fog.

'So, this is it...'

We had finally reached the most challenging part of the hidden dungeon.

This was why the Goblin King had earned a reputation for slaughtering countless humans.

'The Infinite Wave.'