Chương 87: Chapter 86 – Cultist

According to Lealia, it was probably around mid-afternoon. The rain had completely stopped and the sun had come out, making the area much brighter. If we didn't go down the mountain right now, we would likely have to spend the night here. I tried to stand up, but immediately collapsed. Thinking back, my whole body was not only infected with Miasma but also covered in a mess of cuts and wounds. Lealia using Healing Voice had kept those wounds from getting worse, but they still needed time to recover.

Kamarti helped me sit back down and asked, "Is it safe to spend the night here?" I replied, "There are at least two ghouls and thick Miasma left down in the basement..." Their faces instantly turned pale, but I continued, "But Miasma is heavier than air, so it probably won't spread up here. I also covered the opening with a tarp to block most of it. The ghouls shouldn't be able to find their way up either." They both let out a sigh of relief. Lealia said, "Then... let's stay the night here.

Asher is still very weak, he needs more rest before he can go down the mountain." This was really our only choice. Kamarti mentioned he saw a ghoul wandering around the surrounding forest. If we faced it now, I wouldn't have enough strength to fight. Lealia rummaged through the bag Jonas had told them to bring and pulled out two pieces of bread and a half-eaten apple—looking as if they had grabbed whatever was left on the dining table.

Prioritizing the patient, they gave me a piece of bread and the apple, while the two of them split the remaining bread to stave off hunger. Once I finished eating, I felt tired again and wanted to sleep. But Kamarti suddenly looked out the small window and said, "It looks like someone is coming." Lealia asked hopefully, "Is it the church people?"

"Not quite, they are wearing loose cloaks that cover their faces completely..." I instantly woke up completely, activating my left eye to get a clearer look. The newly arrived group was definitely not from the church. They walked up from the trail next to this old church, all wearing cloaks with strange symbols on them. It was the cultists. There were about ten of them. To make matters worse, I saw Nathan and Mantir being held tied up behind them.

"Nathan and Mantir have been captured," I said in a low voice. Lealia covered her mouth in horror. I continued to focus on the actions of the group below. While they were exchanging words, a ghoul suddenly rushed out from the bushes. One of them quickly threw some kind of powder at the ghoul, making its movements noticeably slower. Love this novel? Read it on Royal Road to ensure the author gets credit.

After that, another person pulled out a bell and rang it continuously to draw the ghoul's attention, while someone else rushed forward and drove a fatal stab into its chest. These heretics had actually created a mechanism to control ghouls. Next, they began entering the church. I immediately signaled Lealia and Kamarti with my hands to stay quiet. From this position, there were quite a few blind spots that I couldn't see even when using the Halunar's Eye.

Not wanting to waste mana, I only focused on what they would do with the basement. Coincidentally, the room we were staying in was located right above the basement door. The group roughly cleared away all the furniture I had used to block the door. A ghoul rushed up the moment the heaviest cabinet was pushed aside, but it was quickly brought under control. Five of the cultists put on masks and went down into the basement to scout.

They returned very quickly, probably because they knew the place was now flooded with Miasma. During that time, there was a moment when Nathan suddenly looked straight up at the ceiling. Even though we were separated by a thick layer of stone, I felt as if he was looking right at me. Did his Empathy skill help him sense something? After the five scouts returned, the group talked briefly and sent three other people down. I tried to read their lips, guessing that they were trying to recover the experimental results.

The remaining people continued to discuss something. I saw one person suggest searching inside this abandoned church building. But Nathan suddenly said something, and they dropped the idea. It looked like Nathan had just saved us from a lot of trouble. If I could, I really wanted to save him. But I couldn't, and Nathan surely understood his own situation as well. I was a bit annoyed knowing that he had left Jonas to go down alone to warn the townspeople while he tried to run away by himself.

But under those circumstances, his decision was understandable. He didn't believe that I—a kid who wasn't even chosen as a Hero candidate—could do anything to fix the urgent crisis at the time. And if I failed, Grasiva would be the next place to face disaster. So he chose the path he thought was safer. Unfortunately, it was a wrong choice. Falling into this situation was just his own bad luck. I could only hope he could avoid the worst end using his skills until rescue arrived.

For some reason, I had a hunch that he could pull it off. A while later, the three who went into the basement returned with many glass jars containing various liquids. They received basic treatment from someone with low-level healing skills, and then everyone quickly left. Now the basement door was left wide open. If we waited through the night, the Miasma would soon spread throughout the lower floor of this abandoned church.

Not to mention, there was a chance someone below might turn into a ghoul and break out of the basement.

"It looks like we can't wait through the night anymore," I told Lealia and Kamarti. They understood, so we had to quickly gather our things and leave. My entire body was limp and lacked strength, but for survival, I still had to force myself to stand up and drag my feet out of the church. During the journey after that, Kamarti was the one who struggled the most. He had to support me while also helping Lealia through the difficult, steep parts of the slope.

I could say I lost consciousness a few times for a brief minute or two. Moving was so difficult and slow that by the time we reached the trail leading down to the town, it was pitch black. And when we finally arrived at the town, the moon was already at its peak. The townspeople had all evacuated, but there was still one house with its lights on. When we knocked on the door, it turned out to be a group of church soldiers and a few young men who had volunteered to stay behind to monitor the situation.

Seeing us at the door, they looked as if they had seen ghosts. I left the explaining to Lealia and Kamarti, letting myself drift into the black once again.