After checking in with Spira, Lowell, and Shiroru, I used Shadow Leap to teleport to Allen’s side. As the scenery shifted, the bustling roar of a crowd hit my ears. Yeah, it really feels like I’m back.
"Nya!? Tort, where did you come from, nya!? Weren't you taken away to the Council, nya?"
It seemed I had teleported into the Adventurer's Guild. Come to think of it, I had instructed Allen to head here earlier. He appeared to have already explained the situation to Rache, and the two were currently deep in conversation. Since I had popped up out of nowhere right in the middle of their talk, Rache looked quite startled. Recently, Raymond of the Great Busters had been handling the paperwork on her behalf, but it seemed Rache was back on duty at the guild today.
"I got trapped in a bit of a strange space, so I had to make an escape."
"What was that, nya!? What happened to the others, nya?"
"They should be back any moment now..."
The instant I spoke, Shiroru appeared as if seeping out from the shadows. Within seconds, the rest of the party teleported in behind her.
"Looks like everyone is accounted for."
"You lot are as nonsensical as ever, nyaa..."
"No, that's just Tort."
Lowell immediately retorted to Rache's exasperated sigh. That was all well and good, but instead of just excluding me, I wished he’d tried to deny that we were nonsensical in the first place.
Regardless, sharing information was the priority. I filled Rache in on the events that had transpired in the Instruction Chamber. I addressed Rache directly, but I could tell that many of the staff and other adventurers were eavesdropping. We had no intention of keeping this a secret. In fact, I wanted the news to spread, so I made a conscious effort to speak up, ensuring my voice carried.
"So one of the Chief Mentors was being brainwashed by evil cultists, nya. Even if his brainwashing was broken, there's no guarantee there aren't others lurking, nya... And Godfee. It sounds like that guy was the puppet master after all, nya!"
Rache’s face went through a kaleidoscope of expressions—grimacing one moment and flared with indignation the next—before she finally reached her conclusion. The adventurers listening nearby shared her sentiment, their faces mirrored with concern. It was now a confirmed fact that the influence of the evil cultists had reached as far as the Gurna Council, our very governing body. Even these adventurers, who wouldn't hesitate to engage in a life-or-death struggle against monsters, clearly felt the difficulty of fighting an enemy that occupied the city's leadership.
"The question is how the Council will act now, nya."
"They summoned us quite forcibly. The members of the Guard Force seemed to be feeling some distrust as well," I noted.
"Will they brazen it out and double down on their forceful actions... or will they fabricate some convenient suspicion against us to maintain their public image?" Lowell mused.
"The fact that Godfee is acting in the shadows is a disaster for the guild, nya! We have to catch that guy no matter what, nya..."
Rache, Lowell, and I put our heads together to figure out how to handle the Council.
While the connection between the Council and the cult was certain to us, the real problem was that the general public didn't know the truth yet. If we made a scene without proof, we risked being labeled the villains. It would be ideal if we could make contact with any members of the leadership who hadn't been compromised, but we had no way of knowing how far the rot had spread. Of course, I could always just purify everyone I met, no questions asked.
As I was weighing our options, someone burst through the guild doors with a frantic clatter.
"Rache!"
"What is it, nya!? Oh, Torta, it's you, nya. Why are you in such a rush?"
It was Torta, a member of the Great Busters. She looked pale and breathless.
"A swarm of monsters is descending on Aingurna! It's not just Slimes, there are others! And I’m almost certain they’re Special Individuals!"
"What did you say, nya!?"
Normally, only Slime-type monsters appeared on Aingurna's First Floor. If Torta was right, this was a massive anomaly. Furthermore, if we were truly facing Special Individuals, we couldn't afford to kill them recklessly. The Great Busters who happened to be nearby were already assisting with the city's defense, but they were struggling because they couldn't actually thin the monsters' numbers.
"Tort! I need your help, nya!"
"Of course!"
I was the Apostle of the Destiny God, after all. Protecting the city from the Evil God's machinations was part of the job description.
"This way!"
I ran, following Torta’s lead. Battles were already breaking out at various points along the city walls. For the time being, we were heading toward Zahha, who was in charge of the defense. Several other parties joined us in the sprint, while Rache and the rest of the guild staff stayed behind to organize reinforcements.
We arrived at a section of the street leading to the main gate. It seemed the monsters had already breached the perimeter, and the defenders were holding the line behind improvised barricades. The situation looked dire. Above all else, the inability to kill the monsters was the greatest handicap. I saw several people who had likely defeated a monster by mistake; they were either curled on the ground or wandering aimlessly while muttering to themselves. They were being left where they fell simply because there weren't enough hands to move them.
I immediately began casting Clean on everyone who appeared to be under the "Voice's" influence. Each time the spell took hold, a brilliant, sparkling light erupted—proof that the malice was being purged. Just as I suspected, every one of them had been brainwashed.
I managed to purify about ten people, but the mana consumption was becoming a concern. It wasn't as draining as the massive burst I needed for the giant bird, but if I had to purify every single monster and victim one by one, I was going to run dry. There was no way I could handle this purification effort entirely on my own.