I'm a young god, won't you raise me?

Chapter 49: Chapter 49

I shouted desperately.

If Dominic joined the cult, he’d climb straight to Cult Leader.

If he summoned an Outer God — I didn’t want to imagine what would happen.

I had to take him as a companion. No matter what.

Dominic’s eyes widened slightly at my shout.

But then he readily accepted the offer.

"Very well."

’Dr. Dominic’ has joined as a companion.

He agreed without a second thought, which caught me off guard instead.

He had no idea what I might make him do.

"Aren’t you going to ask what it involves?"

"It doesn’t matter."

A choice appeared.

Explain what mission you will assign to Dr. Dominic.

- Tell him to just follow along quietly.

- Tell him he won’t come to any harm.

- Tell him he might have to kill someone.

- Tell him to join the Cult of the Void Apostles with you.

I picked the third.

"Even if it involves killing?"

Dominic smiled as if amused by the question.

"Because the only thing that matters to me here is you, Roasted Chestnut."

A vague answer, yet clear in its meaning.

The being before me was merely imitating humans through learned behavior.

Having lost his memories, Dominic didn’t know what he truly was. He simply copied human conduct wholesale — expressions, gestures, habits, turns of phrase, even how to react in any given situation.

But none of that touched his essence.

And Dominic felt a certain fondness for me — the only entity in Call-Obo who recognized his peculiarity.

It was a basic, shallow sort of liking. But even that was enough to make him prioritize me over every other NPC in Call-Obo.

’Then maybe I can use him for combat?’

Originally, Dr. Dominic was a support-type companion NPC.

But the current Dominic possessed tremendous power and had no qualms about killing. If I asked him to eliminate someone, he’d do it.

If Dominic fought well under my direction, I could cut down one of the companion NPCs needed for clearing the game.

Originally, I was supposed to recruit a retired soldier NPC as a combat companion — but convincing him was a nightmare. If I could skip that step entirely, my clear time would drop dramatically.

"What do we need to do?"

Lost in thought about how best to utilize Dominic, I snapped back at his question and began my belated explanation.

"I came to Morneveil to investigate a cult called the Cult of the Void Apostles."

As I lectured him about how evil the Morneveil cult was, Dominic listened quietly.

Not because he was outraged by atrocities like human sacrifice — his eyes simply showed curiosity about what his role would be.

When I explained that the final goal was to investigate the cult, gather evidence, and expose their brutal reality, Dominic gave a light round of applause.

I put on my most solemn expression.

"This could be extremely dangerous. So, Dr. Dominic — how about staying with me at the hotel while I’m in Morneveil?"

Naturally, I wasn’t worried about Dominic getting hurt. I needed him for protection.

And I figured it was better to keep him close where I could watch him rather than leave him to his own devices.

"I’d be happy to. But as you know, I can only stay in spaces that accommodate me."

Dominic pointed at himself with a joking gesture.

A 3-meter body didn’t exactly have many comfortable options.

But I had a solution.

"Dr. Dominic."

"Yes, Roasted Chestnut?"

"Do you have any money?"

I squeezed Dominic for funds to use as operating capital.

He might kill me later when he got his memories back.

But then again —

’Given everything I’ve done so far, he’d probably kill me even if I didn’t take his money.’

So I figured I might as well commit to the con and take his cash.

Dominic readily agreed to become my wallet.

As Morneveil’s only psychiatrist, Dominic’s wealth was considerable.

I wondered if it was money the real Dominic had accumulated — but no.

"My patients tend to rely on me quite a bit."

The patients who’d fallen for the fake Dominic had showered him with all kinds of offerings.

He’d even received a car as a gift....

I stared blankly at the gleaming black sedan in his garage.

Considering that cars were exorbitantly expensive luxury items in Call-Obo’s world, it was no exaggeration to say his patients were giving him their everything, heart and soul.

He was already living like a cult leader in all but name.

If a Dominic like this joined the cult, he’d spread his wings and soar.

The future where he rocketed straight to Cult Leader was crystal clear.

’No way in hell.’

I moved to the hotel with Dominic.

It was still auto-movement, but thanks to recruiting Dominic as a companion, this time I didn’t have to walk — we took his car.

Arriving at the hotel in supreme comfort, I walked boldly up to the check-in counter.

And made my demand to the employee.

"I’d like to change rooms. To the most expensive suite you have. Oh, and since we’re adding one more guest, please include an extra breakfast."

The employee’s face registered bewilderment.

Since this hotel was run by the cult, they knew full well I was a broke journalist.

So when I suddenly asked to switch to the priciest suite, he looked completely thrown.

But I needed the hotel’s suite.

It had multiple rooms so several people could stay comfortably, and crucially, the suite had higher ceilings than the other rooms — Dominic wouldn’t have to hunch over.

The employee was eyeing me suspiciously when —

He suddenly burst out.

"Oh, my God! Dr. Dominic!"

Spotting Dominic entering late after parking the car, the employee brightened up.

He leaned almost half his body over the counter to greet him.

Dominic accepted the employee’s fawning welcome with gentlemanly poise.

"It’s been a while. Have you been well?"

"Of course! I can’t believe Dr. Dominic remembers me... I thought you’d have forgotten someone like me..."

The employee’s gaze turned somewhat dreamy. A wide grin stretched across his face.

"So you know Little Lamb. What a remarkable connection."

When the employee heard that Dominic would be staying with me during my time in Morneveil, he gave me the room upgrade at half price.

Delighted at the massive savings, I happily moved to the new room.

This was a suite I normally wouldn’t have been able to access until the very late game, so staying here from the early stages felt incredibly luxurious.

"Thank you, Dr. Dominic. I owe you."

"Not at all."

Dominic surveyed the living room — spacious enough to host a sports day — then asked my permission.

"Would it be alright if I changed a few pieces of furniture?"

Ah.

I’d been so fixated on the ceiling height that I hadn’t thought about the furniture.

There wasn’t a single piece in the suite that Dominic could use.

"Of course. But even if we order, it’ll take a few days, so for now we could connect the sofas and—"

I was about to suggest using the sofas as a temporary solution when I couldn’t finish my sentence.

Creeeak, creeeak, creeeeak.

The furniture groaned as it twisted and grew.

Some pieces even changed material.

Within moments, the suite was filled with furniture transformed to match Dominic’s size and taste.

Having casually accomplished the impossible, Dominic sat down on the sofa with satisfaction.

"I can’t change everything — only things with simple structures."

As he spoke, his blue eyes sank with a dangerous glint.

"I feel like I might have been able to do even more in the past..."

Dr. Dominic is recalling the past.

- Tell him the past means nothing.

- Compliment him — he’s already amazing.

- Ask if he remembers anything about the past.

- Tell him to join the Cult of the Void Apostles with you.

"You’re already more than amazing as you are!"

I picked the second option, terrified he might start remembering the past, and praised Dominic with everything I had.

Even after the choice’s dialogue, I kept heaping on compliments about his incredible talent until my mouth went dry. Dominic seemed pleased enough with my praise to offer a small smile.

"Well then, I’ll tidy up my things and turn in early."

"Today was your first day in Morneveil. You must be exhausted. Get some rest, Roasted Chestnut." freeweɓnovel.cѳm

Forced a smile at his gentle words, I grabbed my bag and fled to my bedroom.

Even after closing the bedroom door, I couldn’t breathe easy for fear he might hear.

’Just how much can he do?’

He wasn’t just a being with raw strength — that made him all the more terrifying.

I wanted to seal him away in Call-Obo forever.

Once my pounding heart settled, I opened my bag, pulled out the contents, and scattered them around in a pretense of organizing.

Then I sat on the small sofa in the bedroom and did what I needed to do out of Dominic’s sight.

’Can I check my own status window too?’

I’d been looking at everyone else’s statuses all this time, but hadn’t thought to check my own.

I called up my status window.

’Han Goyo status.’

A system window appeared before my eyes.

- Han Goyo (Little Lamb) ♥x1

- Journalist

- Acquired Items: Gold (9,999,999G).

- Held Items: Happy Smile Candy, Portable Music Player, Signet Ring That Lost Its Master, Dark Star Fragment (1), Hologram Badge (1).

- Current Status: Fear.

Call-Obo always gave you one extra life when you started.

You obtained additional hearts as you progressed through the game.

Right now, my respawn point was probably set to the hotel.

When I’d played Call-Obo on the Cult Leader route, I’d set my respawn point to the cult’s altar.

And I’d performed a miracle befitting a cult leader — dying and coming back to life.

’Anyway, I only have one heart now. I need to be careful.’

I skimmed through — there was no ability list.

It seemed I couldn’t use Message, Execution, Prohibition, or Divine Protection on myself.

I’d been hoping a little for the Divine Protection ability, so I was disappointed. I checked the rest.

There was a new entry called Current Status, and the item list...

’What the hell is this gold amount.’

My eyes went wide.

I’d spent a decent chunk upgrading the hotel room, yet my gold was maxed out.

Which meant my holdings exceeded the display limit.

’No way... Is this because of Dominic?’

When he’d agreed to become my wallet, it seemed Dominic’s gold had merged with mine.

All this absurd amount of money came from his patients — I had no idea what he’d been doing in Call-Obo.

I wouldn’t be surprised if he’d already been running his own cult.

Checking the Held Items below, I spotted an unfamiliar item.

It was the ring the butlers had given me.

Signet Ring That Lost Its Master: A signet ring once used by someone noble. Those who are not the owner feel a deep sadness when wearing this ring.

It was called a signet ring, but there was no engraving on it.

Even after reading the item description, I couldn’t figure out its purpose.

I studied the plain ring for a moment, then put it back in my inventory.

Sorry, butlers.

Your Master isn’t coming home. He’ll be living in Call-Obo forever.

I apologized silently to the Cat Butler and Rabbit Butler, vowing never to take out the signet ring again.

Then I pulled out the hologram badge Samra had given me.

It had been an inactive item, but once I entered the Trial, it became usable.

Hologram Badge: All things in this world are connected as one.

I activated it and read the description, but it was equally incomprehensible.

Giving up on deciphering it, I attached the badge to the inside of my clothes where it wouldn’t be visible.

I had no idea what it was for, but wearing it couldn’t hurt.

Deciding I’d sorted things out well enough, I wrapped up the first day.

I changed into pajamas and lay down on the bed. A system window appeared.

Would you like to sleep?

- Yes.

- No.

I selected ’Yes,’ and my vision went dark.

Day 1 in Morneveil has ended.

It had been eventful, but I felt like I could manage somehow.

I ended the first day on a positive note.

And then, on the second day.

I died.