Reincarnated as a Cultist Mob - Chapter 2

 Throwing a Nameless Mob into an Executive Meeting Is Nothing Short of a Public Execution

In the late 2000s, back when I was alive in my previous life in Japan, an adult PC game titled Seeker of the Dusk and Dawn (幽明の求道者) was released. While it didn't generate much buzz right after launch, positive word-of-mouth steadily boosted its reputation until it became a hit.

The game was a Western dark fantasy depicting the war between the "Kenneth Orthodox Church" (the Orthodox side) and the "Arlos Temple Cult" or "Arlos Temple Teaching Group" (the Cult side).

The general flow of the story goes like this: The protagonist, whose hometown was destroyed by an attack from the Arlos Temple Cult, is saved by the Kenneth Orthodox Church. Joining the Orthodox side, the protagonist throws himself into battle to eradicate the cultists... or something along those lines.

Having lost his family and friends to slaughter, the protagonist possesses terrifying mental fortitude. In the canonical route, he slays almost all the cult executives, achieving total victory. What I want to emphasize here is that the protagonist has no special bloodline or setting, nor is there anything special about his hometown. In short, the protagonist fought through the cultists purely on willpower alone.

Well, after catching the eye of the Kenneth Orthodox God, he did awaken to magic power... but that's not super important here.

The charm of this game lies in the fact that every single character is fully prepared to go all-out. Not just the protagonist, but the heroines, friendly sidekicks, mentors, and enemies—any character with a name has zero hesitation when it comes to offering up their own life, even if they experience inner conflict. As long as there is a convincing reason for their death—namely, if it leads to "winning the holy war"—their own individual life is a cheap price to pay. That's the mindset they operate on.

Because of this, the main selling points of this work are its eroticism, gore, depression, and the sheer hype elements of the canonical route. I purchased this game after entering the 2010s, but I still remember being overwhelmed by its quality.

The illustrations felt timeless, and the characters lived fierce, intense lives. The precision and impact of the combat scenes, combined with the sweet, romantic daily life in individual character routes, were top-tier.

The best part about the heroine routes was how their inner feelings were revealed after previously seeming like passionate lunatics. Falling in love with the protagonist allowed you to smirk and realize, "Ah, they really were just girls after all~"

...Well, if it ended with just sweet romance in individual routes, it would have been a typical eroge.

The terrifying part of Seeker of the Dusk and Dawn was that even in individual routes, depending on your choices, the heroines could die or end up in a vegetative state... It shoved extreme guro and ryona elements right in your face. There were even routes where, within ten clicks after a peaceful slice-of-life segment, the allied base would be completely wiped out.

Furthermore, the depictions leading up to their deaths were horrific. Ninety percent of the time, not a trace of their original form or even a chunk of flesh remained. The main reason for this was that every named character came standard with "self-healing magic capable of full resurrection," which naturally escalated the battles to extreme brutality.

If the enemy keeps regenerating, you have no choice but to push through until every single cell is erased—it was so absurd you couldn't beat it without brute force.

Just moments ago, I witnessed a clash between two such monsters. Even after Celestia shredded Yoanne's body into microscopic dust, Yoanne immediately regenerated thanks to healing magic she had cast in advance.

According to the named characters in the original game, executing such an abnormal act requires mental preparation because "you still feel the full impact and pain." Even cutting your finger with a kitchen knife delivers an "impact"... These named characters who don't even flinch after taking an impact equivalent to death are completely insane.

Right now, I deeply regretted being on the cultist side. If I was going to be involved with a group of monsters, I should have joined the Orthodox side, where human language is actually understood.

Getting a second life in this world was great and all, but of all things, I had to become a nameless mob in the cult... the "Arlos Temple Cult." Life really is unpredictable.

(I just experienced it firsthand, but the Arlos Temple Cult works its people to the bone. Or rather, the attrition rate for nameless mobs is absurdly high. Being a mob on the Kenneth Orthodox side would have been a million times better...)

In a hideout deep in the secluded mountains, I bowed my head deeply while awaiting the arrival of the Cult Leader. Present here were me—the sole survivor among the disposable troops—Yoanne, who had fought Celestia, and two other executives. The remaining executives were probably out on business.

Anyway, for a mob like me to be present at an executive meeting was normally unthinkable.

(Why did this woman call me here...?!)

I glared at Yoanne sitting in the executive's chair... or rather, I didn't dare, keeping my eyes fixed firmly on the floor. The one who called me here was none other than Yoanne. Don't tell me she intends to pin the responsibility of losing nine cultists on me?

I wouldn't be able to escape that blame. A rank-and-file soldier's voice holds no weight against an executive's.

(So even if I survived, a different kind of hell was just waiting for me...)

While half-resigned to my fate, I shifted my attention to the other two executives.

...Rank 7 and Rank 5 executives. If I recall correctly... their names were Pork and Juanquilo? The reason their names didn't immediately come to mind was that in some routes, these two didn't even get named. They had very little presence even in the canonical route.

Now, Yoanne held the position of Rank 6, but these "Rank X" numbers didn't represent pure combat power; they were determined by combining contributions to the cult with combat strength. Depending on combat conditions, Juanquilo (Rank 7) could even surpass the Cult Leader (Rank 1)... or so I thought.

While I was pondering this, the Cult Leader literally grew out of the ground. I mean that in the literal sense. Right from the floor of the grand hall in this old castle where the executive meeting was being held, a human grew out of the earth. Describing what I saw sounds nonsensical, but it was actually happening. It was truly creepy.

"Well now, I have arrived. Shall we hear the report?"

A masked man—the Cult Leader of the Arlos Temple Cult—spoke in a muffled voice. His face was hidden behind a white mask carved with an 'X', making his expressions unreadable.

Cult Leader Arlos Hawkeye. The boss of the cult, referred to by original game players as the "Worst Person of Character."

Facing him in person, I surprisingly didn't feel an overwhelming aura or fear. However, an unshakeable feeling of an alien presence settled deep in my stomach. The unreadable face behind the mask was eerie.

(This guy is Cult Leader Arlos... the man I least wanted to meet...)

It had been a while since I reincarnated into a mob in this world and became a cultist, but this was my first time laying eyes on him.

If I remember correctly, the protagonist was also caught off guard when meeting him for the first time, thinking, Wait, isn't this guy surprisingly easy to talk to...? In terms of vibe alone, he felt like a gentle father. But in reality, he was the kingpin of a cult—a lunatic who was simply good with words.

...In fact, if you raised his affection level too high in the game, the protagonist would get brainwashed, turn to the dark side, and trigger the "Orthodox Wiped Out" ending. Not funny at all. If I say something stupid, I die; if I raise his affection, he takes a liking to me and I still die! Haha, I'm completely trapped.

"Regarding the mission to bring back the head of the woman who fled into the forest... I-I am deeply sorry. We failed...!"

My voice was fine until I started speaking, but the moment I opened my mouth, I couldn't articulate properly. Upon reporting the failure, a long silence fell among the four executives.

Hey Yoanne, you were part of that battle too! Why are you standing on that side like you had nothing to do with it...!

"...Continue."

"T-The woman's true identity was Celestia, an enemy executive. Working together with Lady Yoanne over there, we pressed the attack on Celestia, but after her right arm was cut off, she fled. We failed to capture her."

"Casualties?"

"...Nine temple cult members were killed..."

"I see... That is unfortunate."

I reported everything truthfully and accepted my fate. Arlos's tone was indifferent, like someone preparing to say a final farewell.

(H-He's going to kill me...!)

Fearfully raising my head, I saw Arlos looking back and forth between Yoanne and me.

"However, I am forgiving of my subordinates' failures. I consider you dear children to me. I shall forgive your failure to capture Celestia."

"Ah... huh? A-Ah, thank you very much!!"

The premonition of death. I had definitely felt it...

No. Arlos's forgiveness wasn't out of kindness, but indifference. I felt that intuitively. There wasn't a shred of love for a mob like me.

He probably just thought, "I'm forgiving Yoanne anyway, so I might as well spare you too."

However, things had taken a bad turn. I had drawn the attention of three executives, including Arlos. Assuming Yoanne already had her eye on me, that meant I had made a terrible impression on four executives in total.

"Yoanne, what did you feel after fighting Celestia?"

"The matchup was terrible, so I lost. I won't lose next time..."

"Didn't you say the exact same thing last time?"

"...S-Sorry."

"Being able to apologize honestly is a good trait, Yoanne."

Even the crazy Yoanne couldn't stand up to the Cult Leader. Listening to their mild conversation, cold sweat poured off me like a waterfall.

What should I do? I was planning to find a good time to slip away from the cult... but there were too many eyes watching, and I had been dragged along this far. Is escape no longer an option?

"But Cult Leader, I already know how to deal with her now. I'm confident I can crush her next time we meet. Third time's the charm."

"Oh? I shall look forward to it."

(...!? Third time's the charm...!?)

Yoanne's words snapped me back to reality.

At the start of the main story, Yoanne and Celestia had fought three times without a decisive outcome. The fact that this was only their second fight meant... naturally, I was currently in the world before the main story begins.

(...I'll keep that in mind.)

"Now then, everyone, I have duties to attend to, so excuse me."

Leaving only those words, Arlos sank back into the ground just as he had appeared. The other two executives left the grand hall as well, leaving only Yoanne and me behind.

A puddle of cold sweat had formed at my feet. Drops kept dripping from my chin even after the meeting ended.

Yoanne hopped down from her executive chair, walked past me, and told me to follow her.

"Hey, Ocree. From now on, you're coming with me. You're going to help make up for this failure."

"...As you wish."

With well-practiced movements, I shrank back, dropped to my knees, and submitted entirely, as if to say I didn't hold a single grain of rebellious intent.

Yoanne Sagamix. A girl who possesses a dedicated route only in the protagonist's dark-side branch. Her expression of love is "Obsessive Love and Surveillance." The protagonist, having all four limbs torn off, would receive her mercy for eternity...

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