Reincarnated as a Cultist Mob - Chapter 11

 The Attacking Villain Has a Psychological Advantage Over the Righteous Side

One day, late at night. We began our march toward the Metasim region.

It was a night where autumn was ending, and the harsh winter was finally about to arrive. The cold air dominated the surroundings to the extent that if you weren't wearing cold-weather gear, you felt like you were going to lose sensation in your fingertips.

Aros's handmade robes were enchanted with a stealth-granting perception magic, but up until now, we had rarely felt its benefits. Most of the cultists didn't even complain, but cultists like me and Steve probably wished we had better equipment. When it comes to direct combat, stealth effects are practically useless, after all.

During the march, I lent a hand to Steve, who had tripped over a puddle, pulling him up to his feet.

 "Steve, take my hand...!" 

"......Thanks."

 (His hand is freezing cold. Is this guy going to be okay?)

Feeling worried about Steve's ice-cold hand, we resumed our march.

According to information extracted from an Orthodox spy by the torturer Huankilu, the defenses of the Metasim region were going to be lax for the next few days. Because Orthodox executives were located elsewhere or busy with other tasks, a golden opportunity that would never come again had arrived.

However, the total number of the Aros Temple Cultist army assembled was not very large. Even in what would likely become a "Holy War," it was around five hundred or so. Young male cultists within the base had been gathered, and everyone else was left behind to watch the base.

However, the cult leader himself was heading out on this battle, accompanied by two executives. Since three executives taking the field constituted far more combat power than a bunch of random mobs, I could somewhat understand the leadership's thinking of keeping the mob headcounts low to curb attrition.

The two executives were Ioanne (Rank 6) and Pork (Rank 5). Huankilu (Rank 7) stayed behind to watch the base. The remaining three executives planned to launch guerrilla-style battles in other regions to draw enemy executives even further away from Metasim.

According to the original plotline, this battle would end in a sweeping victory for the Aros Temple Cult. The town in the Metasim region—in other words, the protagonist's hometown—would fall into the hands of the evil cult, plunging them into the depths of despair.

The Orthodox army garrisoned in the town should have also been trampled without a trace by the three executives, suffering devastating damage and retreating before the Orthodox executives could rush to their aid.

...If things go according to true history, the probability of me dying here is low.

But, will things really go that smoothly?

After walking for a full day amidst these feelings of anxiety, we arrived at the Metasim region.

Looking down at the fertile land from the middle of a mountain slope, we spotted the lights of the town.

This was a peaceful region located in a corner of the "Holy Nation of Geluid," which would serve as the stage for this religious war. Fortunately, the land of Metasim was rarely hit by demonic beasts, disasters, or plagues, and it flourished as a region of agriculture as a land of abundance.

To begin with, this world incorporated typical fantasy elements such as demonic beasts, dragons, and magic/supernatural powers (usable only by the chosen). From a systemic perspective of the original work, concepts like levels and skills existed, but they didn't seem to exist here. Thanks to that, the disparity between mobs and named characters was absurd.

As its name suggested, the Holy Nation of Geluid was a religious state topped by the Rank 1 executive who served as the supreme leader of the Kenneth Orthodoxy. Parliamentary democracy was not adopted at all, and the concepts of human rights and democracy were quite thin. The Holy Nation of Geluid was a class society where the Kenneth Orthodoxy held overwhelming power.

The reason the Kenneth Orthodoxy gained power largely stemmed from the magical powers granted to the chosen seven. In a world where creatures like demonic beasts and monsters rampaged, people could not survive without borrowing the power of the warriors of the Kenneth Orthodoxy. Moreover, the people serving those executives were monsters by general societal standards, so class consciousness and hierarchical relationships were deeply rooted psychologically.

Unlike the world where modern Japan exists, real miracles and magic happen in this world. Sometimes people are given power by gods, and sometimes they are saved. It was natural for the teachings of the church and religious domination to grow large.

The highest ruling class of the Holy Nation of Geluid consisted of seven executives.

Supporting them below were Kenneth Orthodox believers deemed candidates to become future executives, or their relatives and clansmen. Also, clergy members such as priests fell under this ruling class.

One step below the ruling class were merchants and landowners with strong ties to the Orthodoxy. Families of knights who served those great landowners were also in the upper tiers. Other than that, specialized professions like artisans held down this middle class.

The common people located at the lower layer were ordinary people such as farmers and laborers. Since people of the ruling class accounted for less than three percent of the population, and middle-class people were at most around ten percent, it could be said that about ninety percent of the citizens were concentrated in the lower layer.

Life in the lower class was frugal and required paying taxes, but most lived resiliently without losing to demonic beasts or disasters. Perhaps thanks to the ruling class protecting their lives from demonic beasts, rioters, and disasters, they couldn't raise their heads against the ruling class, as depicted everywhere in the original work. To the common people, the seven executives were heroes.

The civilization level was probably around medieval to early modern times. There were technologies that stood out partially because of magic, but you could think of the general public's standard of living as being right around that level.

By the way, the lives of us ordinary cultists were even lower than the lower-class citizens. Every day we shared narrow spaces in groups and slept in a jumble. There was no privacy, and we were forced to provide unpaid, uncompensated service. But since most cultists didn't know the outside world, they didn't complain. Isn't that great?

Aros, leading the group, looked up at the night sky and signaled the entire group to stop. The other three executives were probably attacking other regions around now; he seemed to be holding his hand to his ear and engaging in telepathic communication with someone.

Kenneth Orthodox executives were constantly chased by internal affairs, commanding subordinates, and responding to demonic beasts and disasters, never having a moment to rest 365 days a year. Responses to depopulated frontier areas tended to be put on the back burner, and they were prone to suffering damage from demonic beasts and cultists compared to densely populated zones. In other words, a shortage of executive manpower. The Orthodox side should have wanted to focus on eliminating the visible threat of cultists, but they had unavoidable circumstances.

Every time this happens, I always think: the side doing the destroying and taking is way more advantageous than the side defending, isn't it? Because you have nothing to protect, you can become desperate. While the Orthodox side had to run around preventing civilian casualties due to their large organization and face as a nation, Aros and his cultists could brazenly launch an aggressive offensive while accepting a certain amount of casualties thanks to convenient brainwashing education.

Because of that nature, during my playthrough of the original work, how many times did I scream like an in-game character: "You damned cultists!!" or "I'll kill you!!" At times, I even slammed my desk over their cunningness and infuriating nature. When it came to dragging down the enemy, they had no equals.

Having finished his conversation, Aros turned to us and gave a clear cough. ‘Kill everyone except children and women. However, try not to touch the farmland or livestock as much as possible. Because they will become important food sources.’

Though aloof, this masked bastard really says unbelievable things. What does he think human life is? If you had even a shred of empathy for people, a massive amount of deaths wouldn't happen from here on out. I suppressed my anger by gripping the hilt of my longsword so hard it felt like it would crush.

In this world, those without power are trampled. It's my fault for being powerless. Ah, damn God. (If I had the power to kill Aros... No, even if I get rid of the cult leader, someone to inherit his will will definitely appear. It won't work unless I have the power to eliminate all seven executives at once, re-brainwash all the cultists, and convert them to the Kenneth Orthodoxy...)

Religion is hard to sum up in a word; because claims differ and values differ, conflicts easily arise. Therefore, once a religious war breaks out, fighting often continues until one side is destroyed. What's even more troublesome is that if you tell a cultist, "You're being deceived," they won't just say "Oh, is that so?" and convert.

Really—what an outrageous thing they've done to us. ‘Well everyone, shall we get going soon?’

Ioanne and Pork got down from the carriage and stood next to Aros, who had set foot on the mountain slope.

We were looking down at the town we were about to trample. The flames of life were burning. In every single building, in every single streetlamp, resided the lives of completely innocent people. The ups and downs of the lives of people who had lived earnestly—...

"Okly, I'm going~!" Against the backdrop of the fantastical town lights, Ioanne showed a bright smile revealing white teeth. After reluctantly reaching out toward me, who was acting as the "marker," her expression transformed into one of madness. I exchanged a glance with Steve, whose eyes were wide open, and swallowed hard.

What sways the battle situation is not the strength of magic, but the strength of malice and murderous intent.

I knew all too well the viciousness of the abilities possessed by the executives of the Aros Temple Cult.

When Rank 6 "Ioanne Sagamix" and Rank 5 "Pork Tedlotus" joined forces, their vicious abilities truly shined.

The range of Ioanne's specialty, "Throwing," boasted dozens of kilometers, and her accuracy was abnormally high. Anyone near the point of impact would likely die instantly from the shockwave and aftermath.

And Pork Tedlotus—her magic was infamous. Pork could manipulate an infinite number of thorns emerging from the gaps in her clothing, but an extension of her ability included the fact that she "could freely manipulate corpses infected by the poison of the thorns"—

—Can you understand if I explain this much? The brutal strategy we were about to carry out.

"Lord Cult Leader, that building where the Orthodox soldiers are stationed is definitely that one, right!?" 

‘Yeah. Please go ahead and do as much as you like.’

"Understood—!"

Ioanne picked up a boulder over two meters in radius and held it above her head. Pork's thorns pierced into it, causing tiny cracks to appear on the rock. In the blink of an eye, the surface of the rock turned purple, visibly changing to a toxic appearance.

Aros's devised anti-civilian invasion strategy— Original fans called the demonic strategy that drove the protagonist's town to destruction: The "Zombie Bomb."

"Haa—!!"

The thorn-polluted boulder drew an arch of dust and smoke across the night sky. A rock cannonball soaring high in a gentle parabola. The ominous rock rapidly shrank in size and flew in a straight line toward the town spreading a few kilometers below.

Waiting at the destination was a garrison engraved with the symbol of the Kenneth Orthodoxy. The only base in the town where Orthodox soldiers dispatched to protect the Metasim region gathered—

After a terrifying sound of cutting wind—impact.

A moment later, a heavy sound of destruction reached us.

Deep within the field of vision, a tragic sight unfolded as the Orthodox soldiers' base collapsed without a trace.

Boulders scattered, buildings completely collapsed, and ten seconds passed. The cross-dressing beauty standing next to Ioanne twisted her plump cherry-pink lips.

‘Aros-sama, I have confirmed the startup of the automated driving type .....’ 

‘Splendid.’

I deduced everything from that report.

Every soldier in the garrison had died and been infected by Pork's thorn poison. And in less than a minute, they transformed into "zombies," the puppets of the evil cult.

Not a mere raid, but an attack method that inflicted the maximum damage on the Orthodox side. An inhumane tactic that provided an overwhelming tactical and psychological advantage.

This was the secret weapon Pork and Ioanne had kept hidden—the "Zombie Bomb."

‘Now—it begins!!’

What was about to start was not a battle. It was a one-sided slaughter and trampling.

However, amidst this tragedy—I will— (I'll go meet the protagonist and grab hold of it!! That thing called hope in this world!)

I slid down the mountain slope as if rolling. Swallowed up by the screams and roars of the cultists, I began my march.

The "Battle of Metasim," a battle corresponding to the prequel of the original work, begins.

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