The Dungeon Monsters Keep Offering Sacrifices

The Dungeon Monsters Keep Offering Sacrifices – 168

EP.168 Fabricated Truth

A new religion, the Twilight Order, was born on the continent of El Dorad.

“For the time being, Sir Necros, please assist the Twilight Order. And Sharia, if you encounter any difficulties, don’t hesitate to consult Sir Necros,” Celia, the general manager, commanded.

Necros nodded vigorously, understanding the importance of this task. The more successful the Twilight Order became, the more followers it would attract. More followers meant more donations, and Necros couldn’t afford to miss such a lucrative opportunity.

On the other hand, while the birth of the Twilight Order brought joy, it also brought concerns for some, particularly Sharia.

“Lucas, how much funding do we have under the name of Eclipse?”

The organization known as Eclipse was now set to disappear into history, to be replaced by the Twilight Order. Although the members remained the same, the change in name signified many transformations. Preparations needed to be made before the transition.

One of the primary tasks was to locate the funds under the name of Eclipse. Sharia’s question prompted Lucas to adopt a serious expression. Funds were always crucial and required careful handling.

“Yes, Leader. Currently, there are two shops where we have outstanding debts, not under the name of Eclipse but under your name.”

“……”

Sharia’s expression darkened at Lucas’s words. It wasn’t that Eclipse lacked assets. What troubled her was the fact that there were two places where she personally owed debts.

“Next, I’ll detail the nature and amount of the debts. First, we purchased a basket of hard bread that was a day past its expiration date. The shopkeeper gave us a discount, so we owe 9 coins.”

Nine coins.

It was an unavoidable choice. Eclipse had always been financially strained. Typically, they managed to get by through begging. On days when begging wasn’t enough, they had no choice but to buy bread, and naturally, they couldn’t afford freshly baked bread. Instead, they bought hard bread and shared it among the members.

“And you might remember the incident when one of our members ate a field mouse and suffered from severe stomach pain,” Lucas continued.

Sharia did remember. Driven by extreme hunger, one of the members had caught and eaten a field mouse, but due to poor hygiene, he had suffered serious stomach issues. What could she do? As the leader of Eclipse, she couldn’t just watch her member suffer.

“At that time, you, Leader, had obtained medicine on credit from a herbalist.”

That too, she remembered. In a rush to treat the member, she had quickly sought out a herbalist. Being a group of dark wizards, they couldn’t expect any assistance from the religious orders. The help had come at a steep price—owing five silver coins.

“……”

Worry filled Sharia’s face. What would happen if they failed to repay the debts and had to flee? Even if they abandoned the name Eclipse, the problem wouldn’t be resolved. In the worst-case scenario, it might become known that Sharia, the leader of the Twilight Order, had defaulted on her debts.

‘If that happens…’

Future followers might become disillusioned with the Twilight Order and leave. That would mean the downfall of the Twilight Order and, more importantly, failing to fulfill the First Apostle’s command.

‘No, that must not happen!’

Settling the debts incurred under the name of Eclipse before changing its name was a crucial issue that needed to be addressed.

However, she currently lacked the means to pay off the debts. But wasn’t there an Apostle nearby whom she could ask for help?

“Um… Apostle Necros?”

Sharia approached Necros. After all, the First Apostle Celia had said to seek Necros’s help if they encountered difficulties. So, she explained the situation regarding the outstanding debts.

“So, could you possibly help me with this, Apostle?”

Sharia bowed her head in request.

Necros’s mind raced as he listened to her concerns. If rumors spread that the leader of the Twilight Order defaulted on debts, it would tarnish the Order’s reputation, reduce the number of followers, decrease donations, and ultimately result in less money.

“!”

Such a scenario was unacceptable. Necros decided he would repay the debts on Sharia’s behalf to prevent any negative rumors. He was confident that he could recoup more than his investment through the Twilight Order.

“Apostle, the amount owed is…” Sharia began, simultaneously holding up her hand with five fingers extended.

Necros nodded, interpreting the gesture. Six gold coins? No, it was more likely to be 60 or even 600 gold coins. Regardless, it was a trivial amount for Necros.

“…five silver coins!”

“?”

For the first time, Necros felt a wave of confusion regarding the amount of money.

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***

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Sharia and Lucas descended the mountain range. Armed skeleton knights followed behind them, destined to become the shield that would protect the Twilight Order and its leader. They were the so-called Twilight Knights.

Meanwhile, Necros, having just arrived from the mountain range, had immediately started looking for a building for the Twilight Order’s use. Being close to ruling the underworld, finding a building was hardly a challenge for him. And then, two days passed.

“…Is this the building we’ll be using?” Sharia couldn’t hide her astonishment as she looked at the structure.

It had only been two days since they descended from the mountain range. She had thought it would take at least a few months for the Twilight Order to start its activities in earnest, but to think it was all set up in just two days.

“There are so many people here!”

Moreover, the location of the building was in a place with a high foot traffic. Necros, wearing a white mask, surveyed the surroundings. The building for the Twilight Order was located in front of the monster arena that Necros operated. He had deliberately purchased the building in front to keep the Twilight Order close. This way, he could quickly deal with any unexpected situations.

“And there seem to be many potential followers around?”

Above all, this was the underworld. Not everyone in the underworld was involved with organized crime or was a criminal. As it was not the lawful part of society, there were many people in unfortunate circumstances.

‘The forsaken by the goddess.’

Sharia licked her lips as she looked at them. If she could draw them into the Twilight Order, the number of followers could be quickly increased. That would be tantamount to successfully carrying out the First Apostle’s command.

And Necros, quietly observing from the side, was formulating another plan.

“……”

The stage was set for the Twilight Order to rise, and with the strategic location and the Twilight Knights at their disposal, Sharia and Necros were ready to embark on their mission to expand their influence and fulfill the First Apostle’s wishes.

Most of the people in this area led bottom-tier lives. Even if many of them were converted into followers, they wouldn’t contribute much financially. Naturally, Necros was not satisfied with just this. He had grand plans to use this place as a stepping stone to expand the Twilight Order.

Necros had transferred his plans into a notebook and then showed it to Sharia.

“Uh… the Room of Truth?”

Sharia tilted her head in confusion. The notebook presented by the Apostle contained directives that Sharia needed to follow, which included:

[Any human who is hostile or distrustful towards the Twilight Order should be brought to the ‘Room of Truth.’]

[A professional counselor resides in the ‘Room of Truth.’]

‘The meaning wasn’t clear, but since it was spoken by the Apostle, it must hold a deeper significance.’

[Oh, the Room of Truth and the professional counselor are located in the building across from the arena.]

Sharia simply nodded. The mention of a counselor suggested that it might mean managing individuals who could pose potential threats. It seemed highly likely.

That’s probably why the Room of Truth was placed in a separate building. She was curious about what was inside, but she did not indulge her curiosity. As the leader of the Twilight Order, her role was to follow the Apostle’s instructions diligently.

“I will certainly meet your expectations, Apostle!”

Now, all that was left was for Lucas to bring over the former members of Eclipse. Then, they could officially commence the dawn of the Twilight Order.

Sharia immediately began preparing to operate the Twilight Order. Having a building was one thing, but efficiently running the Twilight Order required meticulous rules. Moreover, followers didn’t just appear out of nowhere. She needed to ponder how to preach people immediately and consider what teachings to impart to the followers as their leader.

Motivated by these responsibilities, Sharia decided to study. For the first time in a while, she felt a passion ignite within her.

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***

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After sending Sharia off, Necros returned to the building housing the monster arena. Today, as usual, the arena was packed with people. The fervor of the arena had spread far and wide, attracting not only those from the underworld but also individuals from more respectable circles.

Listening to the roaring cheers of the humans, Necros moved on. He had no business in the arena itself; after all, the human staff he had appointed were managing it well. As the owner, Necros’s role was to simply collect his share of the profits and ensure a steady supply of monsters for the arena.

Necros headed deeper into the building. The loud cheers from before gradually faded away. His destination was the dungeon he ruled over as master, a gift from the Great One. It was located in a corner of the arena building, guarded by skeleton knights.

Clink!

As Necros passed by, the skeleton knights saluted him with precision. After an incident where humans had trespassed, security had been tightened.

Receiving their salutes, Necros entered the dungeon. Immediately upon entering, he saw humans seated and plunged into a deep sleep. It wasn’t an actual sleep, though. Assistant Kaleido was in front of them, casting illusion magic.

Someone even talked in their sleep, caught in Kaleido’s illusions.

“Ah, no…! To think the Order was actually the villain!”

“Only He matters to me! Long live the Twilight Order!”

Necros had no interest in the illusions the humans were experiencing. When they awoke, they would be transformed into fervent followers of the Twilight Order. His plan was to expand the influence of the Twilight Order as quickly as possible. To minimize variables, he had instructed Sharia to report any subversive elements. Any such individuals would be brought here to the dungeon, also known as the Room of Truth, for re-education through brainwashing.

Besides the humans being converted into followers, there was another presence in the dungeon.

“You have arrived, Sir Necros.”

It was Holy Knight Eric—or rather, the banshee controlling the Holy Knight, who greeted Necros through Eric’s mouth. In front of Eric sat another Holy Knight, Drakon, with his eyes closed.

“Clink-Clink?”

“Yes, thanks to you and Kaleido, the brainwashing is proceeding smoothly.”

Eric had encountered Drakon in the mountain range. Drakon had claimed to have seen dark wizards from the organization Eclipse and their summoned undead army in the mountains. Originally, Eric had intended to use Drakon’s claims and the White Order to suppress Eclipse. However, through the shadows, he learned that Eclipse was actually an ally.

Thus, he changed his plan. He decided to use Drakon for other gains. Drakon’s claims about seeing dark wizards and an undead army in the mountains were extremely dangerous. If the White Order’s army were to march towards the mountains, it would pose a potential threat to the master’s dungeon.

‘Such a thing must never happen.’

To prevent such a disaster, Eric had lured Drakon here. The process of leading him was simple. He had merely lied, saying that Vice Commander Riana and the inquisitors were here. Confused by the deaths of his comrades, Drakon had believed Eric’s words without question.

The price for Drakon’s gullibility was to fall under Kaleido’s illusion magic.

“This can’t be… Eclipse was in the Free City Alliance all along! The Free City Alliance has been backing Eclipse!” Drakon mumbled in a dazed voice.

As expected, the brainwashing through illusions was working well. The process was simple: they had slightly altered Drakon’s memories. They erased his claims of seeing the undead army and inserted the false notion that Eclipse was actually located within the Free City Alliance. They also added the detail that his fellow Holy Knights were assassinated by the Free City Alliance’s guards.

In the intricate illusionary world created by Kaleido, Drakon was being slowly brainwashed without realizing it. Confirming that everything was proceeding smoothly, Eric’s expression turned solemn.

“Sir Necros, I have never forgotten the grace of the Great One,” said the banshee controlling Eric, speaking softly.

“The fact that I, an undead, can wield holy power and impersonate a Holy Knight is all thanks to the power bestowed by the Great One.”

Without that power, he would have perished long ago.

“So, I intend to do what I can. As soon as Drakon’s brainwashing is complete, I will head straight to the White Order.”

Drakon, with his false memories, would relay to the order that Eclipse had been revived and was supported by the Free City Alliance. This would naturally direct the order’s wrath towards the Free City Alliance.

Eric spoke with resolute eyes.

“When the Great One descends, the Sael Kingdom will be too small to contain His glory.”

Clenching his fist, he continued.

“I plan to use the order to absorb the Free City Alliance. I will prepare a stage befitting our master, the Great One!”

Eric’s eyes shone with unwavering conviction. From now on, the plan was to transform the Sael Kingdom into an empire.

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