I Became the Priest of Blasphemy of the Outer Gods

Chapter 127. Those Reborn (1)

The Wildlands, once the territory of the strongest nation, was vast.

However, due to the power of an Outer God, the land became contaminated, turning more than 90% of it into a barren wasteland where not even a blade of grass grew.

Wandering such a place recklessly often led to death by starvation or dehydration.

Even the believers of an Outer God were living beings, so they had established several strongholds to survive in the area.

One of these dens was successfully discovered by the Scarlet Vampire.

“It was built quite far away. No wonder it was hard to find,”

Arian remarked, observing the swarming Black Willow Cult followers.

Though the entrance wasn’t very large, the number of people coming and going was considerable, indicative of an underground den.

“It seems feasible to collapse the entire den,”

Eldritch suggested, but I shook my head in disagreement.

“That might be convenient, but we should investigate inside first. This is a good opportunity to gain information about them.”

“There might also be innocent captives to consider,”

Arian added.

“Then, should we infiltrate again using that miracle?”

Eldritch asked.

“That’s fine, but let’s try to swiftly eliminate them this time. There’s an ability I’d like to test,”

I replied, producing the Dragon Crown I had stored.

As it manifested on my head with a dreadful lament, everyone expressed their bewilderment.

“It’s unmistakably an Outer God relic, isn’t it?”

“I will enter first. I will quietly clear the way, and Ansandy will follow,”

I directed.

Since others weren’t particularly suited for infiltration, I entrusted them with monitoring the situation outside and dealing with any escapees.

“But how do you plan to enter? It seems that red crown on your head is somehow related,”

Delion inquired suspiciously. I nodded and immediately utilized the power of the Dragon Crown.

Inside the underground den, there were torches illuminating the interior. Peering in, I spotted two guards perched against the wall.

“First, these two.”

While it was possible to create a fire duplicate, being closer allowed me to perform something akin to a teleportation.

“Huh?!”

“What, what’s happening?!”

Taking advantage of the fire, I could summon myself directly from it. I launched myself out of the flames and devoured them using Gluttony without giving them a chance to react.

‘I wish I could do it faster and more smoothly.’

If I could act even quicker without allowing any reaction, it would be perfect. I peered into the area of the next torch.

‘Four this time.’

Engaged in some gambling at a table beneath the torchlight, I moved my main body swiftly and stealthily.

“Uh-!”

“……?!”

This time, I smoothly executed the action, swiftly snapping their necks and feeding the bodies to Gluttony.

『Ansandy, I’ve secured the second torch inside. You can now enter.』
『Understood.』

Exchanging messages through the ring, I began scouting the next torch’s area. Ansandy would quietly handle the ones gathered near the entrance.

‘There’s no one here, but over here… hm?’

People were considerably gathered, but they were confined inside iron bars, ropes binding them—of varied ages and genders.

‘Were they planning human sacrifices?’

Despite witnessing their trembling and sobbing, I felt indifferent.

‘I still have a long way to go in restoring my humanity. Familiar relationships seem to evoke a somewhat different feeling, but still….’

I realized I needed to recover emotions other than anger, but progress was painfully slow.

‘Anyway, freeing these people is the right thing to do. But first, I’ll inspect further inside.’

As I ventured deeper, the space widened, with more torches and candles. While confirming each area, it took a while to search through thoroughly.

Some spaces even had unlit fires. Unable to find what I was looking for, I decided to change tactics.

“Let everything be revealed by the sacred thread of your greatness. 〈White Hunting Ground〉.”

With the incantation, spider webs spread out, transmitting vibrations back to me.

‘Not only has the range widened, but now it even detects heartbeats.’

I had to reduce the sensitivity due to the overwhelming number of vibrations and sounds. Yet, with such heightened detection, I was able to locate the desired area immediately.

“Beatrice… O Saintess of countless names, my savior who became the mother of my second life,”

A woman was praying not to an Outer God but to Beatrice. In front of her, something squirmed faintly, a bound person as I observed more closely.

‘His entire face is covered in blood. Being sacrificed, his face shouldn’t be damaged like this.’

The revelation lay in the woman’s prayer.

“As per your order, I’ve found a face to offer you. It delights me beyond all else to offer you the face I’ve loved for my whole life, a face unforgettable even with eyes closed.”

‘… Offering a face?’

Upon closer inspection, it wasn’t just blood; the face skin was sliced off.

‘What kind of madness is this.’

Offering a sacrifice not as an Outer God but to some priest. Worse yet, slicing off the skin of someone you love?

‘Fanatics everywhere… Maybe I should just burn the whole place down.’

Disgust seeped into my very being.

“How beautiful. It can’t be easy, but you chose this Beatrice?” appeared in the ritual rooms, Beatrice was manifested.

Beatrice appeared not in a single room, but in all rooms where prayers were finished with the offering of face skins.

‘How many Beatrices are there? And where do they come from?’

It seemed they emerged as if summoned from somewhere, similar to how I used the Dragon Crown.

“Now give your love. From now on, I will become the one you love.”

The voice was so sweet and sickening that it stirred unease, even through vibrations alone.

“Yes! Willingly, please grant me sweet happiness……!”

“Yes, I will gift you ultimate bliss.”

In the rooms, in front of those dying, filthy rituals commenced as Beatrice transformed her entire body to resemble the one who lost their face.

‘Now I understand why Sevika was so angry.’

Even under such seductive power, to be swayed by such a vile and nauseating being—it’s shameful to recall how I reacted back then.

『Everyone, be informed. The leader of the ‘Cult of the Goddess of Darkness’, an Outer God priest of the 5th rank, is appearing here as an avatar. Be cautious of her potent seductive power.』

Acknowledgments came from everyone.

『Do we proceed further inside?』
『Please proceed, Ansandy. There’s an iron cage further in, with captives needing rescue.』
『Understood. Delion, assist at the entrance.』
『Would I hesitate, my Lady?』

After issuing the warnings, as I tried focusing on the vibrations again…

“…… Tch!”

I swiftly thrust a tentacle toward a human presence that appeared behind me. Beatrice had somehow silently approached.

‘What’s the intermediary material? There was nothing.’

As I roughly tore apart Beatrice’s duplicate, she spoke through the dying body.

“Although I’m not that weak, to be rendered this swiftly like this…”

With weakened hands touching her injuries, Beatrice eyed me, blood dripping profusely.

“Unbelievable as it is… That’s the Red Dragon Crown. No wonder Cahon is keeping an eye on you. How did you obtain it?”

“I’m not obligated to tell you.”

While I devoured the duplicate entirely with Gluttony, another soon began to form.

“You’re adorable, even when dropping your act. But your taste is too violent, isn’t it?”

“Enough with your nonsense…….”

While irritated, I didn’t neglect to warn my comrades.

『Currently confronting Beatrice. She may be aware of you all, so I advise you to withdraw for now.』
『Understo-』

Communication cut off abruptly. No further response returned from anyone.

“Shh… you should focus on me.”

“If you dare touch anything of mine, I warn you—I will burn all that is yours.”

“Aren’t you being a bit shameless? You barged into my territory uninvited.”

Beatrice laughed leisurely.

‘It doesn’t seem she’s cutting off the connection. Is she attacking with her duplicates instead? What are the conditions for forming them?’

The intermediary and limits were unknown.

“Don’t worry. Unlike fiery, young men like you, I don’t kill everything I dislike.”

“Instead, you would skin their faces.”

“Mocking me… Then again, those I truly dislike?”

Beatrice’s duplicate melted away, and a new presence was felt behind me.

“I’d love them completely as mine.”

I thrust my tentacle out once more, aiming for the heart, but Gluttony went limp just before reaching Beatrice.

“You can’t attack me. I’ve come personally.”

Upon closer inspection, Gluttony appeared dormant.

“Without declaring intent to fight, we can’t attack each other, can we?”

“Yes, that’s right. Even such a perilous toy can’t touch me.”

Though I felt an impulse to tear that head apart right there, engaging in a formal confrontation wasn’t wise either.

“Well then. I came to you because I have a grievance to discuss.”

I adopted a surprisingly bold stance after a quick contemplation.

“That’s quite rude. Isn’t it me who should be in a position to have grievances?”

“Your followers were meddling in an area I’m serving—the temple of the 【Eternal Blaze】.”

Beatrice looked somewhat startled. It seemed she wasn’t aware of which temple it was.

“The havoc you wreaked across the wasteland was for my God’s temple… for unsealing the seal, wasn’t it?”

I leveraged the disparity in information.

“Discussing impudence when you were grave-robbing the relic inside.”

“…… Claiming ignorance won’t suffice, it seems. Especially when it was the God you serve.”

“Furthermore, you even tampered with those I brought with me?”

I sensed that if she’d killed them all by now, my anger would have flared; given her manner of deeds, I doubted that was the case.

“Seeing their armor, you can’t be unaware of how much investment I’ve put in. They’re rare, valuable talents. I wonder how you intend to compensate for this.”

“You’ve grown quite confident… Ascending to the 4th rank and grasping the Dragon Crown in such a short time, I suppose you have the right to be. You truly are desirable.”

Beatrice sighed slightly.

“Certainly, attempting to rob the temple of your God was a grave mistake. I will admit it and take responsibility.”

Beatrice complained, blaming unfavorable luck.

“I’ll ensure no harm comes to your party as well. I never intended to harm them from the start.”

Suddenly, Beatrice hugged me tightly.

“But really, little one. If you and your friends willingly chose to be mine, unable to resist my allure… there wouldn’t be a problem, would there?”