Lowly Ascent

After entering the city, Cain walked along the cobblestone road, his puppet faithfully trailing behind. His destination was the church located in the common areas of the city.

Along the way, he couldn't help but notice the faces of many upset souls, their thoughts consumed by dreams of insurrection. Their country has been going hungry, hundreds of thousands who haven't already starved lean against walls in the slums clutching their stomachs. Upset wasn't enough to describe how furious these people were.

He laughed to himself as he entered the church. Numerous believers were praying in the pews. He saw them clasp their hands and lower their heads, saying some prayer he probably hadn't even heard of.

Cain didn't know much about his own religion other than his believers thought he was a God who would destroy Netherane, and those who didn't believe in him would never go to the afterlife or something.

It didn't matter; he cared not for any of it. Religion was just a way to get weak-willed people to become zealots. It was one of the easiest ways to get people to give up their lives.

In this case, they believed in a god who didn't even care for them at all.

Life long began to hold little value in Cain's eyes. He observed how easily people could be killed, and how frail and vulnerable humans seemed...

Humans were so weak, not just physically but mentally too. They were also so especially weak mentally; humans couldn't accept if they were wrong. Their egos were as fragile as glass. People could turn into hateful monsters if you insulted anything about them: their looks, worldview, and beliefs.

The funniest thing was that when such insults happened, when a group was against an individual, the individual would believe the group and no longer stand up for themselves.

Humans had a group mentality that could be easily manipulated.

Everyone believed the majority unconsciously. The only people with power in society were those in groups, while individuals were used as scapegoats and targets. And the individuals didn't do anything in turn! They just accepted these blatant attacks!

Luna was one such individual who was treated like that. She was preyed upon by the upper class because of her family status. In light of their bullying, she began to believe it, lose her self-confidence, and hate herself.

'The scariest part was I never knew how deteriorated her mental state had become....'

Cain walked up to the altar and stared at the priest. The man looked at Cain with anger, but after a few moments, his eyes widened, and he began to sweat. He took Cain to a back room immediately and bowed.

"M-My Lord. I have sinned for not realizing."

"It doesn't matter. Get some people to see if the Emperor is in the city. Also, get me an audience with the Rebellion leader."

"I shall do it immediately."

Cain went back into the hall, took a seat, and began to pray, trying to resemble the rest of the believers. He prayed until sunset, and only then did the priest return.

Cain followed him to a deep underground basement, where they walked through a false wall and headed to a dimly lit room.

The room was dry and smelt odd, reminiscent of aged parchment and stale air. It carried a hint of the same peculiar aroma he had encountered once before. Cain remembered a time he went into an antique shop run by an old man looking for bacteria. The smell was similar.

In the middle of the room, there was a table with chairs on either side. Across from him, Cain saw a man sitting in the opposite seat with his arms crossed.

"So, this is the God of the Church of Pestilence. You're nothing to look at; you look like a noble who's drunk on power."

Cain chuckled, "You shouldn't say such things when I have more believers than you rebels, at least 100 times over."

Grinding his teeth, the man spoke but was cut off mid-sentence. "I am the leader of th-"

"I think I've seen enough."

"What?"

The leader started in confusion and annoyance. However, he couldn't do anything as he found his body wouldn't listen to him. He tried to move, but he couldn't. He tried to use his virus, but he found his mind couldn't reach out to them.

"Goodbye, Resistance leader. It was a fun chat."

"Wait!"

Before he could plead, his consciousness was gone, replaced by 'God's' Puppet.

"Contact the King of Puffrid and help him with his plans. I expect chaos in the next few months."

"Yes, my Lord."

Cain got up and left. Outside was the priest.

"So, is the Emperor in the city?"

Nervous, the priest responded, "Uh, no. We have information that he is in the Palace for some ceremony restricted to the royal family."

"Alright, I will be leaving tomorrow. Prepare a place for me and my companion to rest."

"Of course, Lord."

Cain spent that night in one of the church's rooms where the priests sleep. The next morning, he came into the hall to find an unfortunate situation.

"This building is believed to hold the criminal Defiant Slave! I am using my authority as the headhunter of the Emperor to search this place." A man with brown hair and eyes held up a document, surprising many of the believers and breaking this place's holy silence.

'I should have entered the city more secretly. Well, I can't do anything about it now.'

But Cain was happy enough about this scenario. He gets to see his old apprentice once again!

'Perhaps I should teach him a lesson?'

Cain walked down the aisle, walking towards the one holding the document, the so-called headhunter of the Emperor.

'He looks to be more of a dog than a hunter, hehe.' Cain stood in front of the man, glaring at his face.

The man began to uncontrollably shake as he gritted his teeth, and his eyes became bloodshot. The document was crushed in his hands.

With gnashed teeth, he seethed with a mixture of hatred and killing intent that radiated into his surroundings. Many around him shuddered looking at him, their faces turning dark.

"Cain! You monster!" Anders spat out, his voice trembling with a mix of anger and fear. "A mass murderer who has taken up the mantle of a false God! Receive the Emperor's punishment for misleading his citizens away from his bright light, for he is the sun of the Empire!"

'Phh! The Sun is only in ancient texts. What's with that wording, haha!'

Anders's veins writhed beneath his skin, resembling worms crawling beneath the surface. His face flushed crimson, his hand instinctively reaching for the hilt of his sheathed weapon.

"Well, I guess I need to punish an old apprentice before I kill a fool huh?"