[The Author nods for confirmation. The action was a creative decision to further the hero's plot.]
"Why on earth would he do that?" Arken screeched stunning his two followers.
"Well my lord, it's because you have no use for them. You said that the prophecy didn't explicitly mention that a person had to actually use the relics to be powerful. Simply having the knowledge to them was enough. This way, in your belief, you wouldn't be touched lest the knowledge die with you."
Arken swallowed, the information plaguing him with burden and he slumped back.
"And so the price was paid by his followers."
His eyes perked up at the two and he corrected himself, "my followers."
[The Author laments the unfortunate circumstances you've been brought into.]
"Funny thing is, author, I don't really remember hiding anything. Like it never even happened."
"Lord whom are you talking to?" Both Som and Kor asked.
Arken eyed them both and sat up straight, "alright first you two. Names."
"I'm Kor, this is my brother Som," Kor pointed and bowed.
"What's the plan my Lord? Will we take revenge?" Som asked eagerly.
Arken tilted his head and waved his arm, "do you not see what we have with us? You'll take revenge with what? Dust mites? Frigging oaf!"
Som cowered and Kor glared at him for speaking.
"But make yourselves busy. You want a task? Start by cleaning this place. I want it tiptop in no time." Arken tested out his influence and he was rewarded with a barrage of information.
[You have exerted influence for the first time]
"Holy shit this really is like one then, huh?"
Arken sat in deep thought for a moment. It was clear to him he was not hallucinating now. But he had nothing much to go on. Except trust his wisdom and his skills.
"Status," he said and out popped a flurry of information.
[Status:
Class: Orator
Strength: NA
Endurance: NA
Speed: NA
Mana: NA
Species: Human Lv.1
Skills: (usage per level)
Extra
Read between lines
Character assassination
Bookmark
Purist
Narrative Grasp: 0 accumulated]
"These are the most stupid, dumb...what the hell kind of skills are these author? Does everyone else have them too?"
[The Author can't see your status unless explicitly mentioned.]
Arken grinned and shook his head, "isn't that lovely? Well what else do we got here?"
[..
Narrative Grasp: 0 accumulated
Opt: Rally your Temple followers]
Arken had half a mind to follow that last instruction but something stopped him.
"If I go by the old path then all that I invite is old mistakes."
So he chose against it.
[The Author is curious about your thinking]
"Stay curious then, oye you two," he beckoned his loyalists who were dusting the floor when they scrambled to him.
"How was the temple conducted before?"
Som and Kor looked at each other before Kor answered, "it was peaceful my lord. We just wanted to exist. Without trouble."
[The Author insists on the peaceful life too. Furthermore the world of Ambrenia itself is largely peaceful.]
"Peaceful huh? And yet we were slaughtered. If that is peaceful then," Arken smirked, "forget the temple. My misconception earlier was the better version."
"My lord?" Som asked confused.
"We're no longer a temple. From today we are going to be a cult."
[The Author's jaw has dropped]
"Cult, my lord? What is that?"
Arken stared at them both and realized they were serious, "you don't know?"
"First time we are hearing about it lord."
"Think of it as an organization but full of brainwashed people, led by a sheep. Which is me," Arken announced cheekily.
The last words seemed to horrify the brothers more than anything said before,
"No, no my lord you're not sheep. You're a lion, no even better. A God of..."
"Alright that's it. Enough of your nonsense. Back to work now."
[Well done! You've established the first cult of Ambrenia]
[Narrative Grasp skews in reader's favor, accumulated 20 points!]
[The Author is furious about your decision]
"Bugger," Arken groaned and sat back, "I don't want to get killed for something I don't even remember doing. Peace temples will be a step in the wrong direction. Same path, same mistakes. So no, a cult it is."
A beat of silence later this came,
[Author has lost Narrative Grasp equivalent to gains made by reader]
Arken sat up, eyes wide in realization.
"So my gains are the author's loss and it goes around too?"
[Author is fidgeting about the revelation]
"Haa." Arken suddenly barked and the entire space went silent.
"I do have agency here then, right? Right?" He rubbed his neck and nodded to himself.
"The first battle is for control. Always. Everywhere. It's the same. The next battles get easier, depending on how you pass the first one, no wonder my skills are a reflection of that," Arken mumbled to himself.
"Lets see what I got," he stood up and stretched first, his joints screaming silently.
"First....mmm this one, is it Extra? How does it work?" He struggled to make sense of it before asking, "hey Author, help me out here."
But there was only silence in his head. The voice had quietened down or was ignoring him.
[...Author has deemed it unnecessary to respond]
"Guess I'm on my own then," Arken sneered.
Just when he was racking his brains up, the system in his mind spoke up.
[To activate a skill you need to say 'Act' followed by the skill required. Penalties will be imposed upon solitary engagement]
"What? What the hell is solitary engagement?"
[Points used alone is solitary engagement. If shared with your members, it's effectiveness will improve.]
"Uh, ok. The hell does it mean? I need to share points?" Arken turned to look at Som and Kor.
[Enable Cult Sentiency?]
The fuck is that? A sentient cult? What will that do?
But not wanting to avoid all of the prompts Arken gingerly agreed to it.
Nothing happened for a second before a sudden gush of wind blew from somewhere unknown in the depths and all of them covered their eyes.
-Greetings! Welcome to the newborn Cult-
The words hovered in the air where all of them could see it, Arken realized that as Som and Kor too were staring at it.
-Cult has been upgraded to Lv. 1.
Notoriety is yet to be ascertained.
Please be notoriously fiendish for the sake of the cult.-
"My lord, is this your doing?"
Arken wanted to say no but a sense of strange euphoria made him adopt a grandiose aura of purpose.
"What do you think fool? You see anyone else capable of this grand feat?"
Arken looked around for a moment and asked, "so I was thinking how does one go out of here? It's getting stuffy here."
Both of them dropped their brooms and vehemently opposed to it.
"My lord the other temples and nobles and who knows how many enemies will be on the lookout for you. Please don't go."
Arken tried his best to convince them he needed proper air to breathe but gave up soon. Which is when he got the latest news of his extraordinary existence.
[Your skills are activated. Points will be deducted from the Cult repository]