“Now! Everyone, attack!”

Hearing the words, Josh kicked a mouldering door, which easily gave in under his force.

Despite stench which assaulted his nose, he led a charge into a castle hall. They have already quietly removed sentries, all that was left was culling the beasts which occupied the insides.

The twelve years old boy fearlessly thrust his pitchfork against a goblinoid creature almost twice his height. The gobbear gave a surprised roar as it lacerated its hairy skin.

“Me. Smash. You,” the beast growled, trying to strike him with its spiked club.

A few weeks ago, he would surely die in the fight against this monster. But many things have changed since then.

His father went hunting in the woods to never return.

Later, his mother was killed by a flying monster, futilely trying to save their farm animals. She had known that without them, they would have starved to death during the winter.

After she died, the villagers offered to ‘take care’ of Josh and his sister. They took all valuables they have left, most of the food they had stored; they claimed it was to help them portion it through the following months. The amounts they gave them back over the next few days were barely sating their hunger.

Together with sister, they tried to steal back their food. It was then when the Lord gave them a sign. They were burgling to the neighbouring house when a wandering priest noticed and approached them. After he heard their story, the cleric shared some of his food with them. Over the following days, the siblings listened to his teachings. They witnessed how his followers dealt with the monsters that had earlier threatened their village, that had wounded and killed so many.

They decided to join him.

A mark with which the cleric branded Josh still felt hot. Yet it dulled the pain he had been feeling since losing his parents. He had a new family now. Along with strength and courage that he never hoped to find within himself.

Josh evaded the blow, thrusting the towering beast again. He nimbly dodged its retaliation and positioned himself behind the creature. This time he aimed for a point behind its kneecap. He felt that it would be a correct place to attack. The monsters’ leg bent. Another villager used the opening and smashed the gobbear in the head. The beast collapsed. Before it had a chance to recuperate, their flurry of strikes finished it.

All around Josh, people were fighting. Many of them used simple farming tools, but there were also hunters releasing arrows at the beasts and woodcutters, finding another use for their axes.

Suddenly a streak of energy cut through the hall. Josh looked at its source, eyeing Jane with admiration. Some of them, like his older sister, were even granted magic! Not just harmless tricks of light or tiny plumes of flames that some of the villagers he knew could sometimes create, but the real sorcery!

Josh wasn’t jealous; he never wanted to be a wizard. He always dreamed about becoming a knight! Never before he felt so close to fulfilling his dreams. The only thing stopping him now was the lack of a sword!

As he looked at Jane, he noticed that her expression changed. She became horrified.

*Clank!*

A stone hammer rebounded from a transparent shield that suddenly appeared in front of him. An angry gobbear prepared to strike him again but was pushed back by a beam of light his sister sent against the beast. It fell lifelessly when two more streaks, more powerful than Jane's, pierced its chest.

“You can’t let your attention slip like this in the middle of a fight, Josh,” a man, clad in ornate dark-red robes kindly said, moving the shield which protected the teenager to another combatant.

“Yes, Father Friedrich!” feeling his ears reddening in shame, Josh re-joined the fight, helping the villager surrounded by three goblins. The vicious creatures, even if small and not very strong, were very adept at exploiting weaknesses of their opponents.

However, despite their viciousness, the beasts were slowly losing. Even if some unfortunate villager was to slow to dodge a heavy strike of one of the gobbears, his wounds were quickly healed by prayers of the cleric or one of his apprentices.

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With each second that passed, a monster was slain.

A goblin.

A gobbear.

Two more goblins.

The beasts were getting tired, accumulated wounds over time, lacking someone to heal them.

As more of them succumbed to their wounds, the creatures understood they had no chance to win.

A cowardly nature of those that still lived took over. They started to flee, leaving on the mercy of humans those that were too weak to follow.

“With Sudomeas’ support, we can achieve everything!” Friedrich called, frying with a spell an unlucky goblin who run too slowly.

“Sudomeas! Sudomeas!” Josh cheered with everyone.

They quickly finished the remaining creatures and treated their wounded.

“Secure the castle. Check if any monster still lurks there! We must prepare should the group that left to forage in the woods tried to return.”

Most of the people left the chamber.

“Don’t you see it now? Without the Lord’s support, we wouldn’t be able to win against them!” Jane approached a young hunter they’ve met in Crestfall. She immediately took a liking in a teenager and convinced him to join today’s expedition. “Why won’t you join us, Bran?”

“I’m not sure…”

It was a pity, that unlike many others from this village, whom they have convinced over the past few days, he still had his doubts and was reluctant to accept the Lord. Josh hoped that today he would finally see his greatness.

Bran stared at the corner of the hall. Josh followed his gaze and noticed a body of one of the villagers. Despite the efforts of Fredrich and his apprentices, one of them hadn’t survived the encounter… a heart-breaking sight, but according to the priest, now the man would be able to serve Sudomeas directly in his realm. It wasn't that bad, right?

“We could be together, Bran…” his sister embraced the hunter.

The priest stood at the middle of the hall, and spoke, his voice booming with power:

“Now, you have witnessed the power that is within your reach. Never again will you have to fear monsters lurking in the darkness. Never again would you be alone. You have listened to my teachings before, you have passed a trial, you have fought side by side with us. Which of you wishes to receive the blessing of our Lord?”

In the group that departed to fight against the gobbears were five villagers who were yet to be granted the Lord's blessing. They were visibly tried; the fight seemed to affect them more than the followers of the Lord; another proof of his blessings. Despite tiredness, three of them eagerly stepped forward. Bran wasn’t in this group.

Fredrich motioned them to approach and kneel. One of the apprentices handed him an ornate cup. The cleric filled it with a liquid from a vial he produced from his robes.

The priest began to chant, blessing the cup in his hands. Flames of the torches flickered, brightened, dimmed and even changed colours as he prayed.

When his prayer was over, he ordered the new initiates to repeat the words after him.

“Majesty,

Faithful me.

Pour yourself

Into me…”

With a dagger, he pierced their arms; the brand each of the faithful received would form there later.

“Grant your powers,

Sate our thirst…”

As they drank from the cup, their faces filled with ecstasy.

“We call thy name…”

“Sudomeas! Sudomeas!” all around the hall, the faithful sang.

“Ease our pain,

Clear the doubts

Within ourselves.”

When the initiation was finished, Friedrich helped them up.

“How are you feeling, sisters, brother?”

“Marvellous.”

“Better than any time before.”

Josh still remembered the feeling of all that strength filling him for the very first time.

“I will lead you to your new brothers and sisters,” one of the women ushered the newest initiates and headed with them out of the hall.

“You have witnessed the initiation,” Fredrich addressed the two remaining villagers. They looked as if they were suddenly awoken from the dream. Surely, seeing Sudomeas granting the faithful his favours awed them. “As Lord favours those who make decisions basing on the knowledge, I will ask you again; would you like to accept his gift?”

After a moment of silence, one of the men answered.

“No. I am glad for the help you are providing to our village, but Shiela is a goddess that I follow…”

Bran only shook his head.

“Bran…” Jane grasped the hunter’s arm, whispering with a plea.

Friedrich sighed.

“I understand.”

He turned and went back into the middle of the hall.

“What are you doing?” Bran asked when Josh and Jane grappled him and pushed forward.

After they spread out throughout the castle, only the most faithful remained in the hall. The rest of them might have not understood… at least not yet.

“Jane? Josh? Release me!”

Even if he was bigger than them, thanks to the blessing, his struggles were not enough to set him free. The second man also thrashed when others led him into the middle of the hall.

“Silence!” Fredrich commanded before he returned to drawing a ritual circle with the blood of slain monsters.

“Shhh… everything will be all right. Trust me,” Jane was trying to comfort Bran, who was currently unable to speak anything. “We will be together.”

Someone gagged the villagers before the spell expired so that the cleric could prepare the ritual without further disturbances.

Despite Jane trying to alleviate his fears, Bran continued to struggle.

Why is he so stubborn?

“Shh…” Josh decided to help his sister. “Let Priest Fredrich focus, preparing the spell requires concentration. Don’t be afraid, Bran, he knows what he is doing.”

His words seemed to have the opposite effect. Josh sighed. At least the gag was muffling man’s voice.

They waited in a pious silence.

Finally, the priest finished.

When he started to chant, even someone so badly versed in magic like Josh, was able to feel mana shifting in the air around them. The magic circle and all its runes started to glow, a clear sign that the Lord was listening to his prayer.

When one of the apprentices gave them a sign, Josh and other faithful joined the prayer, calling the name of the Lord.

“Sudomeas! Sudomeas!”

As their voices aligned and echoes reverberated, vaguely, a different name could be heard inside the hall.

“Asmodeus.”