Heavy steps echoed on the walls as Cassius walked down the spiraling stairs.
Magnus followed close by, but all of his attention was fixed on the multicolored small rock nested between Cassius's fingers.
This was the first time he'd seen it leave the room, and he knew very well the implications of such an action.
'It seems that Ash Harth pushed the leader more than I ever imagined... to have him immediately resort to his final weapon...'
As Magnus's mind kept imagining what on earth that rock was going to be used for, they finally reached a dimly lit chamber.
In the center, blue circles lit up the ground with labels stuck next to each circle denoting the name of a place or region.
"...The famed teleportation circles," Magnus murmured.
"Right. I'm really blessed with talented subordinates." Cassius nodded in appreciation.
"...It's all thanks to the leader's charisma and intelligence that they came to work under you," Magnus replied in a serious tone.
"...Really? But we can't deny their willingness to follow my lead despite the dangers. You have to give credit when it's due, Magnus." Cassius shook his head, as humble as ever.
"Yes, leader."
Despite the seemingly harmonious back and forth, both Cassius and Magnus knew that every talented individual in this cult was chosen by the Astrologer.
Cassius's innate ability wasn't only useful in distinguishing between friends and enemies; it could also scout for hidden talents and give the cheat sheet to persuading them in the form of a complete read on their personalities and all that encompassed it.
Using it, he gradually built a team of loyal followers that later turned into a group, a faction, and now, finally, evolved into a full-blown cult.
These teleportation circles' functionality was just like their name—able to teleport objects to a pre-designed location—and they were built by someone who had an innate ability that allowed him to instinctively understand a unique system that harnessed mana in ways beyond body reinforcement.
He was one of the most precious followers Cassius had ever gotten, but even he paled in front of Magnus.
That was because Magnus had something rarer, so much rarer than mere utility. It was faith.
When he first read his personality, he discovered that Magnus had a predisposition to follow through unconditionally once he put his faith in someone.
Cassius, back then, was still a hero among the Pride army, so it wasn't hard to win Magnus's admiration and get closer to him. From there, as he kept acting as his leader and superior, it wasn't long before Magnus started believing in him as a subordinate and a fellow comrade. And it was then that his disposition went on full display.
Respect turned into admiration, then into belief, and finally into unconditional faith in the man named Cassius Asta.
That faith was so pure that nothing would change it; proof of that was that even after Cassius defected, Magnus still followed. When he established the cult, Magnus even became its vice leader... and when Cassius clearly meant no good to the human race, Magnus did nothing to stop him.
But if it was just this, Cassius wouldn't have put so much importance on Magnus. After all, while it would take more time and effort, manipulating someone to be fanatically loyal to him wasn't out of the realm of possibility with his Astrologer.
No... all of this was just one aspect of Magnus's disposition. The other, more mysterious aspect was his ability to get stronger the more faith he had.
It was like he used faith as some sort of passive energy, like mana, but higher in quality. This, with time, made him stronger... Almost the strongest Cassius had ever seen, aside from that monster in human skin, Shun Morikawa.
Cassius, however, had other plans for this energy aside from it acting as a mere mana replacement.
He subtly glanced at the unassuming multicolored rock in his hands, then sighed softly. The sight was wistful, as if he were reminiscing about something he'd soon leave forever.
"Magnus... for how many years have you followed me now?" He suddenly asked.
"We met for the first time twenty-one years ago, sir, when you saved me and my mother from those bandits, and I've followed you for twenty years."
Magnus didn't get flustered by the abrupt question—or maybe his facial features didn't allow him to. But he still answered promptly all the same.
"...Twenty years," he murmured. "You followed me for that long, then you at least deserve an explanation."
"Sir?"
"...I bet you've always wondered why I went from a proud general to... this?"
"..." Magnus didn't answer, but the silence was confirmation enough.
Even for the ever-faithful man, this enigma managed to break his ever-unquestioning demeanor.
Cassius nodded as if he'd known of his vice leader's silent confusion since the start.
"It all started from a certain mission," he began. "The Narkals' invasions had been getting more frequent, leaving us no breathing room. The demi-human side was also getting restless, leaving us stuck between a rock and a hard place."
He paused, recalling the events of those times.
"...For the demi-humans, we already know their motivations and weaknesses to a certain extent since they're rational beings that can be reasoned with."
"For the Narkals, though..." His lips curled up, but his tone stayed humorless. "We only knew one thing about them for sure. It was their eternal urge to destroy. Even when we tried to study their weaknesses, and succeeded to a certain extent on the individual scale..."
His fist tightened around the rock. "... When they come in endless droves, everything becomes meaningless."
He glanced sideways. "You fought beside me more times than I can count, so you know exactly what I mean, don't you? That hopeless stretch of days spent cutting those things down, only to wake up and find the waves rolling in again like some cosmic joke that refuses to end..."
"...Yes."
Cassius let out a slow breath. "...Humanity's higher-ups knew we'd be overrun sooner or later, so they came up with a plan."
Cassius's voice wavered for a split second, making Magnus all the more curious.
"...The plan was to gather an elite team. Each one would be a champion of humanity. Each one would excel in a field. They would infiltrate deep into the Narkal territories and unravel the mystery of the ever-infinite numbers of those monsters."
"I was one of the chosen." His eyes hardened. "And the only survivor."