I Became the Apostle of an Evil God Chapter 49

The snake tribe elder, who had prostrated himself flat and listened to the conversation between Orma and Van without understanding what on earth was happening, subtly raised his head and read the room. So does this mean they are helping us now? Are they going to save us? Or did he just mean he is forgiving us for kidnapping his believer?

Caught in complete limbo, he could only flick his tongue in a half-hovering posture.

As if noticing the chaos, the beautiful man who claimed to be the apostle of the evil god slowly approached him.

“May I use the brazier containing the embers of the holy fire?”

“…Pardon?”

“Um, that is to say… may I extinguish the flame of the god Muhwi?”

Despite the polite inquiry, the elder merely stared up at Van with a blank face.

So right now, he’s saying he will extinguish the god’s fire? There’s no way a mere human could be capable of such a thing… Ah, no. Since the evil god was manifested right here, perhaps it meant the evil god would extinguish the fire for them.

The elder hastily closed his eyes tightly, brought his hands together, and pleaded.

“Yes, yes! If only you can extinguish the fire, we will do anything…!”

Having managed to secure permission, Van smiled subtly.

From the beginning, the tragedy that occurred in the Black Field Wood was a regional quest that had also appeared in the game. Granted, it hadn’t been a situation right after the holy fire spread into a sea of fire like now, but rather a point in time after they had all burned to death. Regardless, it was clear that it was a situation even a player character—a mere human, not a god—could resolve. If it was possible, Van wanted to resolve this matter on his own if he could help it.

The faith points gained from executing this hidden quest amounted to a whopping 15. Since his current faith stood at 45, it would pass 50, which was half of 100. Recalling Orma’s changes according to faith, the number ’50’ was a figure he couldn’t help but be wary of.

However, the point to be cautious about here was that this was simply the quest reward. Since faith was a numerical representation of the believers’ trust, the faith might rise even further if the snake tribe became believers of Orma after being deeply moved by witnessing the divine authority he manifested.

Wary of Orma’s changes, Van had ultimately concluded that if he stepped forward as a human and an apostle rather than a god, that trust metric might not rise as much as one would think.

‘To do that, the things I need first are…’

A brazier containing the embers of the holy fire, a bottle of water, and a sword imbued with a god’s power. Everything was prepared. In particular, this sword Van was currently gripping was actually a gift from Orma.

When they purchased Jaena’s training spear, Orma had repaired and additionally engraved a sword—though no one knew when he had fetched it from the Celestial Island—and then infused it with a fraction of his own power, faint as it might be. Moved by that sincerity, Van’s eyes had sparkled, but Orma had merely muttered with a hesitant face, “It really suits you…”

Though it was an ornamental sword crafted for ritual ceremonies that had been newly repaired and engraved, Van was far too busy being moved to ever dream that his god had simply given a pretty accessory suitable for his pretty apostle.

At any rate, since a god’s power was imbued within it, it was an undeniable fact that it possessed a power far mightier than ordinary weapons.

‘And finally…’

To extinguish a god’s fire, one must possess a god’s water. Van recalled an item he had purchased while browsing the faith shop a few days ago, thinking it might come in handy someday.

[Ocean’s Brew / Rare Item

A liquor brewed by Banan, the god of water, using ingredients from the four legendary seas.

Using seeds of the Ice Sea, meteor fragments of the Star Sea, jade powder of the Mist Sea, and ash of the Milk Sea, its tart taste and sweet aroma are truly exquisite.

Holding this liquor in your mouth mixed with water manifests the effect of holy water.]

Even reading it again, he couldn’t comprehend what kind of ingredients had been used, but he remembered buying it on impulse because it said it manifested the effect of holy water.

There were an immense number of incidents and accidents caused by the chain reaction of the solar calamity. Simply put, the world was devastated, plants withered and died, animals that found it difficult to see food and drinking water starved to death, and whenever things got quiet, massive fires like forest fires would break out. Seeing how the tragedy that just befell the snake tribe was ultimately caused by the sunlight, it went without saying.

Thinking that if he had ‘holy water’ at a time like this, he would surely use it at least once, he had purchased it after much deliberation and stored it inside his shadow.

Van slowly opened his shadow, took out a bottle of water and the Ocean’s Brew, and mixed them together into a single bottle. Then, after taking a large gulp to hold it in his mouth all at once, he took his sword and walked over to the front of the brazier containing the embers of the holy fire.

When he darted a glance signaling him to step back toward Jaena—who was staring at Van blankly with a suspenseful face, wondering what was about to happen next—Jaena led all the neighboring snake tribe members and retreated far behind Van’s back.

“….”

He could feel countless gazes pinning against his back. The Ocean’s Brew filling his mouth not only boasted a refreshing tartness but also exuded a captivating aroma, gradually making Van feel tipsy. It was disconcerting to feel the intoxication rising before he had even swallowed it, but gripping his sword and staring at the brazier, Van strained to focus.

As the area fell dead silent, the only thing audible from all directions was the sound of crackling fire burning everything it touched. The sound of continuous combustion, erasing original properties and leaving only black ash behind.

Before long, as if the liquid held in his mouth had never been an aromatic brew, it began to taste like pure water colder than an ice sheet. As it grew chilly enough to make his mouth go numb, a gut feeling told him that now was the moment.

The shadow that had been squirming beneath Van’s feet instantly revealed itself, boasting an infinite size, and was sucked into the sword Van was holding. The sword then showed off a pure black blade.

[The effect of holy water has been applied. (Banan’s Grace: 10 minutes)

While Banan’s Grace is active, you will not feel thirst.

While Banan’s Grace is active, you will not sustain burns.

While Banan’s Grace is active, water-attribute skills are enhanced.

While Banan’s Grace is active, ‘Attribute Infusion: Water’ can be used.]

Along with a clear notification chime, the system information window announced the effect of the holy water. Van immediately began infusing the attribute into the sword that held the shadow. Perhaps because it took after its master, the shadow shuddered and threw a tantrum as moisture swelled up, but Van coaxed it internally, thinking, ‘Sorry, bear with me just a bit,’ and began to swing the sword.

When he swung the sword lightly as if slicing through space horizontally, the pitch-black shadow flew out drawing a curve resembling a crescent moon, slashing and devouring everything in sight. Confirming that it gulped down the holy fire without a hitch due to holding the holy water, Van raised his sword once more and cleaved through space even wider than before.

“Look over there, Elder! The fire is out! The flame of the god Muhwi!”

“The moment the evil god’s apostle swung his sword, the holy fire was extinguished. Oh, heavens…”

“Oh, oh oh! Sir Van! Is that sword qi? They said only the warrior among warriors can unleash sword qi once they reach the pinnacle!”

“Sword qi! How—how magnificent! This is the first time in my life I have ever seen it! Only someone of our snake tribe hero Abish’s caliber would have been at such a pinnacle…”

“Ahem, did you see how cool Sir Van is? Isn’t he truly amazing?”

…Sword qi? What on earth was that? Van glanced toward Jaena, who was acting proud and bragging on his behalf. It was absurd that he was mingling among them while completely forgetting the fact that the snake tribe had kidnapped him, but fortunately, it seemed not just Jaena but the snake tribe as well didn’t think that extinguishing the holy fire was Orma’s authority.

More importantly, let’s focus on putting out the fire quickly… Because he was holding the holy water in his mouth, it was so freezing cold that it felt number than biting into a mouthful of solid ice.

Van swung his sword again, launching the shadow. As if it had been starved for a long time, the fully water-logged shadow pounced on the black grass and the holy fire, greedily swallowing up the flames. However, the moment he paused briefly, the remaining flames would spread sideways, turning it back into a sea of fire.

In that case, what if he drew a massive trajectory all at once? Van slowly pulled his arm back, adjusted his grip on the sword, and assumed a stance so that the blade was perfectly horizontal. After stopping his breath for an instant to focus, he swung the sword at the fastest speed he could muster.

“…!”

Faced with a speed that was difficult to track even with the naked eye, Jaena and the snake tribe members couldn’t say a word, merely gasping in shock.

In the meantime, the shadow flew at the speed of light, ravenously devouring everything it touched. As the gale conjured by the sword blew past refreshingly, the black grass rooted in the ground that was left about halfway created a rustling sound, and finally, the scenery beyond the Black Field Wood came into view at the edge of their vision. A space so bleak and dark that it was suffocating like hell suddenly opened up completely, boasting a vast vista, causing the snake tribe elder to let out an exclamation and fall to his knees.

“Ah, heavens!”

The Black Field Wood, akin to pitch darkness, was soon to be the future of the snake tribe. All that had been permitted to them was to live and die their entire lives in this cramped, dark place. What lay beyond the wood, what the villages of other humans looked like, what a ‘real’ verdant forest filled with crisp air looked like, or what the blue ocean with crashing waves looked like.

A sight that had never been permitted to them was visible for the first time.

Overwhelmed with emotion, the snake tribe members stared blankly at Van’s back as he stood tall against the cool wind. Before long, when Van slowly turned his head, his pure, sky-blue eyes sparkled brilliantly, catching the sunlight. At that entrancing sight, one by one followed the elder to their knees, beginning to offer their worship to the apostle of the god who had brought about a miracle.