The Ninth Apostle’s Bitter Reality

Welcome to this splendid world!

Here, money and power, magic and machinery, Daoist arts and divine techniques, subspace and other dimensions—old and new civilizations clash.

Here lie the thousand-year-old grievances between humans and demons!

The Nine Apostles of humanity and the Seven Sovereigns of the demon race are all renowned figures!

Even the ancient human saints and demon gods who fell in ages past continue to influence the world!

The Southern Everwinter Icefield, the frontline battlefield for both humans and demons!

The Abyss, connected to the Sea of Imaginary Numbers, teems with restless abyssal creatures!

Bizarre and fantastical other dimensions hold myriad phenomena that transcend human comprehension!

Mysterious and eerie subspaces are home to ancient wisdom that traverses planes!

Every day, new heroes emerge!

Every day, new legends are born!

—But what does any of that have to do with you?

Wake up, brother! We’re just pathetic nobodies, risking our lives for scraps!

This damn crappy guild still hasn’t paid me!

Down with these leeches! Brothers, let’s just get it done! Oreo!

——————A righteous speech by the legendary mercenary ‘Carlos the Wage-Collector’ before storming the Mercenary Guild Headquarters.

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On this land, the conflict between humans and demons has raged for a millennium.

The Southern Everwinter Icefield marks the boundary between their territories. Although no large-scale wars have occurred for over two decades, minor skirmishes along this border persist.

Currently, the greatest combatants of both races are the ‘Apostles’ and the ‘Sovereigns,’ with humanity boasting Nine Apostles and the demon race possessing Seven Sovereigns.

Among humanity, the Nine Apostles are revered figures, holding supreme social status, immense power, and unparalleled wisdom—beings ordinary mortals can only gaze up at in awe.

First Apostle, ‘The Grand Capitalist’ Waldo Dochido.

Second Apostle, ‘The Lily Knight’ Van Astarte.

Third Apostle, ‘The Tyrant’ Orokin.

Fourth Apostle, ‘The Celestial Master’ Jiang Lan.

Fifth Apostle, ‘The Insect Princess’ Neerlys Zerach.

Sixth Apostle, ‘The Witch of Illusion’ Semiri Nitrailer.

Seventh Apostle, ‘Neon Glow’ Sakuma Ryoji.

Eighth Apostle, ‘The Saintess’ Aisha Gilles Aurelian Guilliman.

Ninth Apostle, ‘The Warlord’ Corvus Archia Lupercal.

Each Apostle is renowned, possesses extraordinary talents, and wields unique secret techniques. Their fighting spirit and resilience are nothing short of astonishing, and their hidden weapons offer truly unexpected surprises.

Yet, among them, the most popular in the public eye was the Ninth Apostle, Corvus Archia Lupercal, despite being the most junior.

He was the most dutiful, diligent, and courageous of all nine Apostles.

Though he served as an Apostle for only a year before his disappearance, his accomplishments during that time were enough to engrave his name in history.

For instance, he slew the millennia-old sea demon Bangarnon, preventing it from submerging the continent of Australia with a tsunami.

He battled the Sixth Sovereign, ‘Daughter of Calamity,’ who had infiltrated human territory, forcing many powerful demons to concede defeat.

He single-handedly rebuilt the towering border wall of the Everwinter Icefield, suppressing the encroaching demon armies.

He repelled the infamous rogue Sovereign, ‘Gork’s Chosen,’ in a battle that shook the heavens and earth.

He annihilated the demon cultivators who created subspace turbulences, turning their invasion plans into smoke.

His glorious achievements were far too numerous to count. Moreover, he was famously approachable, never putting on airs.

He was the idol of countless children, the sworn brother of countless men, the dream of countless maidens, and the itch in the trousers of countless middle-aged women.

Combined with his striking good looks and exceptional charisma, the upper echelons were eager to use him for propaganda. Thus, in just one year since his debut, Corvus became the most popular Apostle.

“But speaking of which, it’s such a pity about Lord Ninth Apostle…”

“It’s been a full two years since his disappearance, hasn’t it?”

“Disappearing during a mission—that news really struck a blow to public morale when it first broke.”

“And with the Second Apostle also missing, humanity is left with only seven of its Nine Apostles. It’s truly worrying…”

“Ah, but this isn’t something for common folk like us to fret over. Let’s just eat, eat.”

My two colleagues continued to chat and eat, while I felt utterly on edge.

I simply couldn’t bring myself to tell them that “the esteemed Ninth Apostle, ‘The Warlord’ Corvus Archia Lupercal,” was sitting right beside them, frantically wiping up the soy milk he’d sprayed across the table with a tissue.

‘Please, I beg of you, stop talking. Let the past remain buried in the past. I’m not someone worth remembering so fondly…’

“But speaking of that Ninth Apostle…”

‘Damn it, haven’t you talked enough yet??’

“The finals of the Divine Tournament three years ago were absolutely spectacular! I still remember that broadcast vividly!”

‘Yeah, well, it was a battle against my father’s murderer, after all. That bastard was also the world’s most dangerous nuclear ability user.’

“That battle was indeed thrilling. Everyone knew Julius was the head of a terrorist organization, and back then, everyone was buzzing, ‘How can someone like that become an Apostle?'”

“And then Corvus Lupercal pulled off a massive upset. He must have been thinking about the bigger picture, right?”

‘No, no. Back then, all I could think was, ‘If I win this fight, I can go home and be a lazy bum.”

“What was his reported debut battle again…?”

“It must have been the great battle against the sea demon Bangarnon! It was chaos back then; the entire continent of Australia nearly drowned!”

‘Oh god, that fight with the sea demon gave me bathophobia, do you know that? Not to mention that thing extended hundreds of millions of slimy tentacles, trying to lay eggs inside me. I was utterly numb.’

“But the most impressive was still his battle against the demon Sovereign! How many years had it been since an Apostle and a Sovereign clashed before that?”

“They say he severely blunted the demon race’s morale that time. So cool!”

‘Don’t even mention it, don’t even mention it. “Daughter of Calamity” Rimli Muli—I’d remember her even if she turned to ash. I absolutely, positively never want to fight her a second time. She’d just blink, and my skull would fly off. It’s a miracle I even managed to drive her away.’

“He also repaired the border wall on the Everwinter Icefield, the one destroyed in the war fifty years ago, right?”

“Amazing! Honestly, I really envy him, being so capable…”

‘Envy what? I didn’t sleep a wink for an entire week, enduring temperatures of negative one hundred degrees and fighting who knows how many demon grunts, all while lugging millions of tons of bricks and cement around—and I didn’t even get overtime pay!’

“That infamous… ‘Green-Skinned Warlord’ Gorma, I think? His invasion was also repelled by the Ninth Apostle, wasn’t it?”

“Of course! If the Ninth Apostle hadn’t intervened, humanity’s casualties would have been immeasurable.”

‘Please, don’t make me remember that beast. My spine was broken three times, *three times*! It even tore off my d*ck! Luckily, I temporarily possessed a fertility demon, otherwise, it never would have grown back.’

“And that time the demon cultivators messed around and opened up subspace…”

“The reports about that weren’t very detailed, but the Ninth Apostle must have won easily, right?”

‘Easy, my foot! Can you imagine what it’s like to bathe in subspace turbulence? I lost a whole layer of skin!’

‘Stop talking, please, just stop. Every memory now is a painful saga of blood and tears. I was young back then, foolishly tricked and coerced into back-breaking labor. Those are truly unbearable memories…’

“—But if you want to talk about something even more amazing, it’s definitely his group of stunning, beautiful wives!”

“A-pfft!!!!!!!!!!!!!!”

“…………Kos, are you really alright? You’ve sprayed soy milk three times today.”

“I’m… I’m fine… fine…”

‘Stop it.’

‘Don’t make me remember.’

‘I’d rather wrestle Gorma than deal with them.’

“His wives must be pitiful too, surely hoping for their husband’s safe return from his mission?”

‘They probably wish they could tie me up and drag me back to work overtime again.’

“Especially his earliest publicly announced fiancées, the two beloved daughters of Lord First Apostle. Their bond with the Ninth Apostle must be the deepest.”

‘Deep, my foot! My older sister, Jadette, always treated me with a purely business-like attitude, turning a blind eye to her old man’s exploitation. Only weirdos who like ‘unattainable, high-mountain flower ladies’ would be interested in her, right? And my younger sister, Fei, always looked so vacant, impossible to tell what she was thinking. Unless you were the kind of man who just wanted ‘a wife with big enough tits,’ who would even bother with her?’

“Ah, I’m done eating. I’ll go pick up my partner’s aunt now?”

“Alright, everyone head home! See you tomorrow! I need to go watch Chomi-chan’s stream too~”

“Bye-bye~”

Finally, they finished eating. The topic of the Ninth Apostle had completely ruined my appetite… No matter. My PS8, which arrived yesterday, was waiting for me in my dorm. I could finally play the long-awaited Angel’s Soul, GT17, and Biohazard J8! What a thrill! No more having to “cloud-clear” games by just watching VTubers stream them!

Thinking this, my mood brightened again, and I skipped cheerfully towards my single dorm room.

This was the life I wanted.

A nine-to-five job, weekends off, not too demanding, and not needing to earn too much. Just playing games, reading manga, watching VTubers every day, and catching a movie on the weekends.

This alone was enough to make me content.

Unless…

****

The next day—

“Latest intelligence from the City Lord and the military: there’s been unusual activity in the Abyssal Beast Tide! Starting today, Sandra City is entering a state of emergency. For at least the next month, the Mercenary Guild will operate at full capacity! All employees, prepare to clock in at 7 AM, finish at 11 PM, and work seven days a week! Overtime pay will be settled after the situation is resolved!”

The guild leader unilaterally announced this news to all employees.

*Crack.*

I heard the sound of my beautiful dream shattering.