The gray cult of John Gruï

Tanasake point of view

We stopped after finishing with the Slimes to wait for one of the members of our team, a cat girl named Shizuca, she was surprised by the attack of some slimes and for some reason that I cannot understand, no one tried to save her, it is possible That they saw the same as me but I doubt it, I don't think they possess any ability like demon eyes, this ability is the one that prevented me from helping her, rather thanks to this ability I saved myself from danger ... [demon eyes- they can access the database on anything that is in their range of vision, limit of 10 per day]

As I said after overcoming that incident we decided to rest, curiously when we decided to rest the sun began to rise over the horizon, dimly illuminating our camp, inside the carriage only 4 people could sleep comfortably, five if we count the idiot who goes with luggage, so the Three people who stayed to sleep outside were, Makasu, Scar and Fun, Makasu does not need to sleep so he had no problem, Scar was a very resistant human, despite his serious face Fun fell asleep in the driver's seat.

Scar woke us up 5 hours later, when the sun was at its highest point, although I was a bit annoyed by the lack of sleep I have to admit that the sooner we get to a town the sooner I will get a bed of my own, we got on the carriage / prison again after breakfast and we started the trip again, it took us 3 hours to get out of the forest, in this section we stopped thirteen times in total to take care of monsters that got in our way, an hour after leaving the Forest Scar made an announcement.

Scar- if we continue at this rate we will reach the town of Brances in another hour.

After saying that, the cat ears covered by Shizuca's cape jumped, something in that sentence caught his attention.

Shizuca- the city of Brances?

Scar- yes, the city of Brances

Shizuca took a quick look at everyone in the carriage before questioning Scar.

Shizuca- Do you want to go to Brances city with an undead, two demons, a cat girl and a monster?

Fany's tail swayed at this sentence and Fany frowned.

Take- Is there a problem with that?

Shizuca- let's see ... the demons are at war with all species, the undead are usually hunted by the church and to finish all that the gray cult whose headquarters is established in the city of Brance, discriminates against all non- Humans who see ... and of course they will hunt Fany for her materials, it is even possible that they will put a monster subjugation mission.

Then it started.

Fany- <glances at Shizuca> if I put my tail in another dimension, I only look like a human with white hair.

Makasu - I have an ability that allows me to disguise my appearance completely.

Kuroro- I can change my race

Take- I no longer have characteristic demon features other than my red eyes.

Shizuca was silenced.

An hour later we reached the entrance to the city.

Inside the carriage you could see Fun, a fany without a tail, a human Kuroro, a Makasu that after so many changes was unrecognizable, (to be more precise Makasu was now a thirty-year-old man with Western features with short hair and coffee, blue eyes and a bright smile also his armor had been disguised in an unrealistic way to a clothing merchant) Scar also changed a lot, change your clothes king for a common clothes, pulled a stick not know where and started to walk stooped and lame.

Before arriving in the city, we agreed to enter through the adventurer's entrance, since they do not usually ask for identification in this line, to be able to form in this line we had to go on foot.

Makasu took charge of the carriage in a place out of curious eyes, we all carried few things and only a couple of us carried weapons (Makasu and Shizuca) despite that the only one who looked like a normal person or non-combatant was Scar .

So you can already give you an idea of how we were dressed, Makasu had his common merchant clothes, but his sword screamed I am not a normal sword, Fany used extremely rare clothes and with dark but striking colors, accompanied by his white hair, The color hair Fun is also unusual and clothes is similar to the that would use a noble, Kuroro change but not much is now an attractive man with black hair semi-nude, going barefoot, nails of his feet and hands are colored black and they are sharp and a little long but they do not reach a non-human point, she has several tattoos on her body that look like war paintings all over her body, Edi disappeared her ears but she only did that, she remained with that mystical aura, I am wearing my favorite dress that is also very striking [chapter 1] is not what you would see in a princess pear has the same air of greatness.

I thought we would be one of the most striking, but within the row we were average, that is, the group in front of them was much stranger, they all wore similar armor, all of jet black color, the one who was at the head walked from rhythmic shape as if it were a robot and her face was painted like that of a harlequin behind him there is a girl who was looking intensely at her partner while her eyes were shining and leaving a trail of light, behind her two colleagues are talking, the The man carries on his shoulder an ax three times bigger than him and the girl has red eyes and a reddish aura surrounds her entire body, behind them is a trio, in the center there is a blond boy whose armor is lit in blue flames , a girl is roasting some meat on it but the girl is not normal, I think I just saw how her hand goes through the shoulder of her other partner, who also has red eyes but they have a different charm than Of the woman in front, her armor is more opaque than that of the rest, in addition, her armor is more robust and its design is more complicated, unlike the rest, he does not have any visible weapon, the only thing he carries in his hands is a Cup of coffee. I think he turned around and winked at me ... I'd better stay away from them.

Shortly after winking at me that man turned pale, it is impossible to look in my direction and not notice Shizuca and that is because ...

Do you remember that Shizuca was attacked by slimes? As a result of that his clothes were replaced by living clothes, and ... well ...

Right now Shizuca is the most prominent in the row, poor Shizuca it is noticeable that she did not look at herself in a mirror after her "change of clothes", and as if not to be, right now anyone who saw her would feel that she was seeing herself death, her black cloak, covers her entire body, spreading and lengthening as if she were alive [it is ] giving the impression that anyone who approached would be engulfed by that dark cloak in the embrace of death, her cloak being so dark that he absorbed the light around him, his face was totally hidden but no one would be surprised if a skull peeked out from under that cloak.

Of course Shizuca never realized that.

We spent half an hour in line and almost everyone made it through smoothly upon reaching the entrance to the city, a pale guard stopped Shizuca for being extremely suspicious.

We walked around the city for a while to find where to stay, a city that was incredibly interesting, I really can't believe all this exists.

Take-Scar, Scar, what's that over there?

I pointed to a rough looking building that had a stained glass window where many weapons were displayed while smoke came from a chimney, it was something I had never seen before.

Scar- that's a smithy

A smithy! but what about that, another one also has a display case with weapons in it

Take- and that? What is that over there?

Scar- that's another smithy but it's closed

Another smithy! Or how about another building, it also has a showcase but those things don't look like weapons, it has different shapes, is it another smithy?

Take- what about that? Cast? Is it also a smithy?

Fany- don't look at that! It is an adult store, you will understand when you are older.

He! But if I am already an adult, I turned 10 years 4 months ago.

Take- I'm the princess of black demons, there's nothing that surprises me ... Hey, don't look away, don't treat me like a girl!

Scar - if you want to know so much, I'll tell you when you grow up.

Take- but I'm older, I'll be 13 in 2 months! [ Lie ]

They all looked away and that made me very angry, I did not speak to Scar for the next hour, I did not say a word to him when we ate at the restaurant, or when we rented rooms at the inn. At the inn we divided into two groups ... one of 6 people who stayed at the inn and another group of 2 (Scar and I) who went out for a walk together, before leaving for contract reasons I had to ask Makasu for permission and promise to return before dark.

5:06 pm Plaza Isabela 3 hours until dusk

That building is strange ... That other building is also strange ... I do not know that building ... That building has something very strange ... Damn it.

Take- Scar, will I forgive you if you tell me what building is that?

Point out a building that looked more strange than usual, it was larger than the rest of the buildings, in addition its design and architecture is very different, it is full of sharp shapes that give the sensation of stabbing the sky, in addition , which makes it highlighting is that gray tone that covers the entire building.

SCAR indeed have not the slightest idea, for any reason is that architecture is Gothic style but more than that do not know anything ... Are we going to investigate?

That Scar didn't know the function of this building, either, only increased my interest.

Take- Let's go! o ( > ▽ < ) o

After crossing the first door we found a wall that blocked our way, in which there was an inscription, I could not read it, however Scar yes, it is quite obvious that he can read it, since his monologue gives him away.

Scar- "after entering the unknown building with a church atmosphere, we came face to face with a mysterious wall on it you can see a poem, or maybe something else, however my bad mania has come to light again while the little girl Take looks at me with pleading eyes "Do you want me to read the poem to you?

I nodded excitedly, I have never heard any poem, although several poems are mentioned in my books I have never read them, the closest thing I can find in my memory is when my dad used to visit me at night to read a fairy tale, but since mother's death he stopped doing it.

Scar- Alright, here I go, ahem, ahem:

"Dancing and singing

On the endless stage

That being without light or grace

God could tell.

One step two steps

They have to deceive you

The gray tone of voice lacks

And death's wait's.

Listen gray tone

That being without light or grace

That God could distinguish

His name was John Gruï ... "

Take- is it over?

Scar- I'm sorry I thought I remembered something, where was I going? ...

John Gruï

"With poison in the veins

And a dagger in the heart

He directed his prayer to heaven

And took the stage without end

One step two steps

One splinter two splinters

Poor John Gruï, fool John Gruï

Now dance on the endless stage

Without light or grace

No voice or color

Or John Gruï

To who are you going to scare?

A requiem is sung

On the endless stage

The Eternal Peace Queen

Those who have been fooled

John Gruï

Even without light or grace

Today is the happiest

Sleeps 4 meters underground

He will wait for death "

Scar- that's it.

Take- I see ...

What the hell! I didn't understand anything. Who is this John Gruï?

Scar- I don't think there will be a problem if we enter

I nodded again and then we skirted the wall on which the poem was inscribed, there we found two doors with a sign in the middle, again I couldn't read what he had written on the sign, so I followed Scar through the door right.

The interior of the building was smaller than it appeared from the outside, inside there were several benches lined up in 10 rows, leaving a space in the center that led to an altar, the evening light filtered through a window the place was almost empty , an atmosphere of stillness and peace similar to that of a library spread throughout the building.

Scar and I walked on the red carpet that adorned the hallway that divided the benches, the benches were occupied by two types of people, most of them were normal people but they all wore a strange pendant around their neck, a small percentage of those present wore a strange tunic: it was loose and gray in color, it completely covered their body including the head, this tunic had a couple of holes so they could see, instead of wearing the pendant on the neck they wore it as an insignia on their chest, if you look a little you can see that the insignia was different, more detailed and larger.

Scar sat on the left bench in the third row and I sat next to him, we were silent, while the tranquility of the place invaded us, it was a nice feeling.

I decided to close my eyes, I was not sleepy or anything, I was just relaxed, with a beautiful feeling of happiness, then I understood why everyone was so calm, we have only been in this strange building for a while, however I feel like the weight of my shoulders has been lightened, the atmosphere tells me that there is nothing to worry about, in a few minutes the chimes of 6 o'clock will sound.

When I open my eyes I find several eyes looking at me, these eyes are calm and are accompanied by a kind smile that reassures me, a badge stands up and walks slowly towards me , when he stands next to me he raises his hand and caresses my head, his touch was very gentle and kind, I closed my eyes to enjoy the kind feeling. When I stopped I opened my eyes and saw the same person, but this time he was offering me his hand and I took it.

His hand had a gray glove but it conveyed the quality of his hand, I pulled my hand slightly and I stopped, he began to walk and I followed him, the few people in the place followed us with their eyes, I had some doubts but after look at everyone's kind smiles and feel the trust and kindness of the hand of the insignia I followed him, the seconds we spent walking towards the altar seemed like hours, and finally we climbed the stairs that raised the altar.

There was a table and another insignia standing next to it, he carefully prepared some things on the table. There were three cups, the cups were lined up forming a triangle, a rice ball was placed on a plate, and said plate was later placed in the center of the triangle, then the insignia poured a small amount of a transparent liquid into the cup of the On the right, I fill the left glass halfway with a transparent amber liquid and at the end I fill the bottom glass with a blood-thick liquid of an opaque red hue.

All the preparations were finished, the insignia that guided me released my hand for the first time since I took it, took off the glove from the hand with which it guided me and in a blink I transformed it into a cape, a cape of a gray color flat, he put it on me and then moved behind the altar.

The insignia that guided me made a movement with its hand pointing to the cup on the right, then the one on the left, and finally the one at the bottom, and I understood.

I took the glass on the right and I drank the liquid in one gulp after which I left it on the table, the liquid had a too liquid texture, as if it were sliding on my tongue and its taste was a bit bitter, a sudden dizziness I was assaulted but nothing else, the contents of the glass reappeared in it, as if it had never been drunk.

The insignia on the right emptied the contents of the cup onto the rice ball and returned the cup to its place, the cup remaining empty this time.

I was a little dizzy but I firmly grasped the glass on the left, I brought the glass to my lips and drank all its contents in one gulp and then put the glass on the table, its flavor was sweet and intoxicating, its thick texture clung to my tongue, the dizziness was replaced by a feeling of unreality, I felt that my body was lighter than usual, the abnormality of the cup suffered by the previous one, was repeated and the insignia on the left emptied the cup on the ball of rice.

There was only one glass left.

Firmly grasp the glass from the bottom and repeat the process as with the previous ones, drinking the contents in a single gulp, the thick liquid was difficult to swallow and it had a metallic taste, once I finished drinking the effects caused by the previous drinks they disappeared without a trace.

Both insignia took the cup and poured it over the rice ball.

The bell began to ring as the thick liquid began to dilute the rice ball.

Ton, Ton, TON!

A sudden headache hit me as the three liquids began to bubble.

The pain was so strong that I could not contain a cry, my head was spinning and everything around me was blinking with intermittent colors that pumped my senses.

From the bubbling liquids a piece of metal began to come out but I could not pay attention to it at the moment, I closed my eyes and covered my ears but the sound of the bell still pierced my eardrums.

Everything was very intense ...

It was too much for me ...

And in a second ...

Everything is over.

A muffled silence reigned in the building, the insignia on the left scooped out what had been created and announced in a deep, penetrating voice.

Insignia- THE LAST CULTIST HAS APPEARED, PRAISE YURA THE PROUD.

What came out of the liquid was a badge, it had a silver glitter and a unique design, and in the center of it was the twisted face of my father, a representation made up entirely of curved lines , an abstract representation, a representation that nobody more than I could see, because in reality, those lines lack shape.

The insignia took the insignia and placed it on my gray cloak, and a new event was unleashed, on the gray cloak a black engraving appeared, a branch of the insignia whose design had been enlarged and engraved in the section of the back of said cloak. .

A new feeling flooded me and I got drunk, I turned around to be greeted by a wave of applause.

Everyone present was applauding me.

Everyone except Scar.

---It's night in the depths of the central church of Brances, Perspective of a rookie Insignia

Everyone was very moved, the appearance of the last cultist was on everyone's lips, not only that, a rumor began to circulate, many people claiming to have seen death around the city of Brances in the last afternoon.

Badge rookie Meri, Yael are prepared

Meri / Yael- yes

Ino- then let's do it.

The veteran badges began to move and prepare something in the forbidden room, I'm not sure what their goal is but I'm not stupid either, I know that something very big is being cooked and we are not going to miss it.

Yael- Meri you can repeat me because we cannot attend whatever they are doing.

Meri, Yael and I became insignia in the last few weeks, we've learned a few things, but Yael is ... Yael.

Meri- you asked for it so don't regret it, ahem, ahem.

Meri is very intelligent and has a very good memory, but besides that she loves to give long and tedious explanations instead of concise answers, she says as much or more than our teacher.

Meri- "our cult has a pyramidal scheme that is defined by the initiation rite, most people can only take the first drink and the pendant they receive comes out of the rice ball, these are the lowest, the followers, these receive the lowest blessing offered by the cult, a small percentage of people do not faint from drinking the first cup, after drinking the second it becomes a badge receiving the average blessing of the cult but you are only considered to be a true badge when you master magic Gray, finally there are the cultitas , these are those who manage to drink from the third cup, the cultists are a mystery, there are only ten of them per era and today is the first time in 300 years that there are 10, the cultists do not they are forced to do anything related to the cult, but no insignia is allowed to deny their orders "

Yael- we already know but that does not answer my question in more minimal.

Meri-Look what happens is that our cult has a pyramid scheme that is defined by the initiation rite ...

And Meri repeated her explanation, there are several secrets related to the cult that are not revealed to the novice insignia, so it is obvious that we do not have the necessary pieces to put this puzzle together.

Innovate the plan.

Yael- there is nothing to review, once we enter the boxes the only thing left is to trust him .

Although that attitude is annoying, our plan is extremely simple, we bribed someone to put three extra boxes in that place ... that's it.

We walked a bit and we found who is going to put us in, a corrupted insignia called Oda, everything happened normally, once inside we left the boxes and hid in a corner, the room was simple but strange, it seemed a kind of crypt The floor was made of earth and there were three objects on a table, I'm not sure what they did with the rest of the things they moved.

The veteran badges arrived 20 minutes after us, they placed themselves in a circle and began the strange ritual, the leader took the bottle with the poisonous-looking purple liquid and spilled it on the ground, it was quickly absorbed.

Then take a bottle and bag this a heart canned, put it in the same place made the liquid , to take then a knife from the table and stuck it in the heart, these two began to sink into the ground in a way unnatural.

The leader withdrew and when the earth finished swallowing the heart and the dagger, the insignia took each other's hands, they looked at the ceiling and began to pray.

When they finished praying everything went silent and then it rang.

Pam, Pam, Pam .

Someone was knocking on wood the sound was very muffled but the extreme silence allowed us to hear it.

Two insignia took shovels and began to dig at the point where all the ingredients of the ritual disappeared.

They dug and dug to a depth of four meters, then stopped and with the help of more badges pulled out a coffin.

The pounding stopped for a second and then a louder than usual thump sounded and the coffin broke.

Inside the coffin there was a person with nothing special, a person as ordinary as air itself and that person was our founder. All the insignia raised their voices in unison and screamed.

-Welcome back John Gruï-

.

.

.

________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________

Explanation of the gray blessing: Followers of the gray cult will calm down and relax the moment they touch their pendant, regardless of what happens.

Insignias: they can use gray magic and must remain in a gray cult church until they master their magic where they are educated, Insignias lead a normal life but when they put on their full robe they change completely, the insignia usually have a great political weight and their authority is even greater, but they move in the gray that is to say neither good nor bad, they can incline dangerously towards either side of this scale but they will never be completely black or white, they all treat non-humans badly because their prophecy dictates that death is non-human.

Behavioral badges : a badge can accept bribes and pass up very bad things and then donate that money to some orphanage in secret, but it can also donate the money that it earns for itself in a pleasant way and then accept bribes.

Gray Magic: A magic that combines the attribute of light and darkness, however this has been classified as a failure by the magical community.

Gray cultists: a mystery to develop, what we know at the moment is:

Without them John Gruï cannot revive but they are not tied to the cult you can recognize them by their unique mantle, their unique insignia is different in each cultist and serves as an official identification, no one within the gray cult can disobey them.