Ch.7676. Apostle

“In the last hundred years or so, nine Apostles have been known to the continent.”

Berger said with a serious face as he sheathed his longsword.

Death Cult, Apostle of Void, Absian.

Chaos Cult, Apostle of Abyss, Shaharon.

Pleasure Cult, Apostle of Delight, Lidia.

“These three are known to operate in Lornarok, the lawless zone of the Alteria Kingdom. They’re the most dangerous and unpredictable of the Apostles. You probably won’t cross paths with them in your lifetime, but if you do, you must avoid them at all costs.”

Rex silently listened to Berger’s explanation. He didn’t bother to respond because he lacked even the energy to speak. The three-hour sparring session had completely drained his physical strength.

Berger continued speaking as he looked at Rex lying on the ground, breathing heavily.

“The other Apostles aren’t necessarily safe either. Every Apostle is essentially a monster.”

Elisia, the Goddess of Life, is the mother of all elves. The great forest where the World Tree—Yggdrasil—stands is called Alfheim, one of the holy nations granted autonomy by the Empire.

The Apostle of Regeneration, Elandir, has secluded himself in Alfheim for hundreds of years, protecting the World Tree. Since elves are inherently reclusive by nature, not much information about him is known despite his long existence.

“If anyone remembers Elandir’s activities, it would probably be the Apostle of the Time Cult.”

True to her epithet of “Eternity,” Chrona is a great figure who has lived beyond human limitations. Her name appears even in historical records of war eras that can now only be found in history books.

“These five tend to keep a low profile, but the other four are different. They’ve been quite active until recently.”

Mercy Cult, Apostle of Silence, Clemence.

“She’s a person of integrity. As long as you don’t commit evil acts, you won’t come to harm. She usually stays at the cult headquarters in the Holy Nation of Cernos, but they say she travels to places plagued by serious epidemics or bandits, no matter how far.”

Berger muttered, looking up at the sky.

“The remaining three belong to the Wealth Cult, Order Cult, and Sword Cult respectively. They all serve as the backbone of the Empire.”

After saying that, he closed his mouth with a strangely bitter expression. His brow furrowed as if something was bothering him.

Rex struggled to his feet, dusting off his clothes.

Indeed, Berger’s explanation was informative. Previously, Chloe had explained how the stages of Sacred Awakeners were classified, but ultimately there were limits to what adventurers could discover. Up to Radiance, ordinary people could witness such beings directly through knights and similar figures. However, Apostles were legendary superhumans, and unless one was of high social standing, one couldn’t even learn their names, let alone their origins.

“But why suddenly talk about Apostles?”

That was the question. He had always been curious. Even Berger, who stood at a level far beyond Rex’s reach, would have absolutely no chance of winning against an Apostle. Since Berger himself called them monstrous beings, it was only natural to be interested in how powerful they truly were.

However, the answer was quite far from the question he had asked.

“I asked about your master’s master.”

As he spoke, the wording felt a bit awkward, so Rex sheepishly scratched his cheek. In any case, Rex’s question wasn’t about the Apostles.

Two months had passed since he was summoned to the lord’s castle regarding the Underhand Clan incident. The appointment ceremony was now exactly one month away, and as planned, once he became a free knight, he would have to leave Lindvale. Berger’s master had taken an interest in Rex and invited him to where he resided.

To the reply that he would visit in three months, no response had come.

He would go anyway, but he wanted to know what kind of person he would be meeting. After all, Berger’s master would be his master too. Berger had promised to tell him after their sparring session, and Rex had patiently waited, but what he got instead was this unexpected story about Apostles.

“You lack patience. Do you think I would explain all this without reason? I told you this because it’s necessary background knowledge to understand my master.”

Berger clicked his tongue with an irritated expression. Rex wasn’t stupid enough not to understand what that meant.

“No way…”

“Yes.”

Berger nodded calmly in affirmation.

“My master is an Apostle.”

Rex had expected someone remarkable, but never dreamed it would be an Apostle, considered the pinnacle of current Sacred Awakeners.

“Who is it?”

Rex asked, calming his surprised heart. Strangely, however, Berger responded with an awkward expression, as if he felt discomfort rather than pride about his master being an Apostle.

“The Apostle of the Sword, Charlotte von Edenhart. She is my master.”

“If it’s the Sword Cult, you mentioned they’re in the Empire…”

“The cult headquarters is in the holy city of Elysium. However, she is also the head of the Edenhart Marquis family and holds the position of Margrave guarding the border, so unless there’s an important event, she usually stays at her family estate. That’s where you’ll be going—the Edenhart Marquis estate.”

A marquis was among the highest noble ranks, far above those who merely owned territories. Raimund, who owned Lindvale, was only a baron, and Rex couldn’t even imagine how much greater the status of a marquis would be.

In the current era, all kingdoms are vassal states of the Empire. More precisely, like the relationship between monarchs and vassals, kings pledge loyalty to the Emperor.

Considering that, Berger’s master—Charlotte—was undoubtedly a powerful figure, even setting aside the fact that she was an Apostle.

Berger stroked his chin and murmured softly.

“I learned both the Heavenly Descent Technique and the Kaiserion Style from my master. Since she favors those with talent, you might receive her teachings if luck is on your side. It’s a good opportunity.”

Rex tilted his head with a puzzled expression. Contrary to his words, Berger’s expression remained consistently uncomfortable, as if he had tasted something foul. Noticing this, Berger smiled bitterly and blurted out:

“You’ll understand when you meet her.”

His tone was strangely ominous. When Rex looked at him with a dubious expression, Berger cleared his throat and changed the subject.

“So, you want to challenge the Trial?”

“Yes.”

Although the topic had briefly drifted, Rex actually had a different purpose for visiting the knights’ hall today.

The Trial.

Typically, when adventurers reach the 10th floor, commonly known as the end of a dungeon, they are given two choices:

Either continue exploring the deep layers to accumulate karma, or step into the Temple prepared by the dungeon’s deity for greater rewards.

Over the past two months, Harald’s party had consistently conquered the 10th floor. And four days ago, they finally concluded that they had made the minimum preparations necessary to challenge the Trial.

“You seem too hasty.”

Berger shook his head without much deliberation.

“The Trial is dangerous. If everyone were at your level, it wouldn’t be unreasonable, but your companions haven’t even reached Sacred Flame, have they? The Trial isn’t a place to challenge with mere Revelation-level abilities.”

In the Trial, powerful monsters like the Minotaur summoned by the Seeds of Chaos appear. I can’t say for certain. The content of the Trial changes each time according to the deity’s preference. Perhaps it could be conquered without much difficulty.

In other words, there’s also a possibility of facing hordes of monsters even more dangerous than the Minotaur.

“I know.”

He had already discussed this with his companions.

“I don’t intend to proceed all the way to the end of the Trial right away. First, I plan to get a feel for how it progresses.”

Berger sighed and stared at Rex.

Half a year. A long time or a short time, depending on how you look at it. But it was dense with experience. Having watched him every day, Berger could read what those blue eyes revealed about Rex’s state of mind. In this state, Rex was like a stubborn bull who wouldn’t listen to anything anyone said.

In the end, as a master cannot break his disciple’s resolve, Berger sighed deeply and nodded.

“If you’re determined to go, I won’t stop you. Boreas is a gentle deity, so if you wish to retreat, he will let you leave without issue. As long as you don’t display an arrogant attitude, that is.”

“Don’t worry. I’ll be as careful as possible.”

“I see you’re aware that you’re making your master worry. Well done.”

Rex smiled at Berger’s grumbling.

***

The next day.

“Everyone’s here.”

Harald said, looking at each member of the party.

“Let’s go in.”

Rex gripped the handle of his zweihander.