Chapter 159: A Strange Little Chapel

Chapter 159: A Strange Little Chapel

The mysterious leader of the Twilight Hermit Order likes sitting there, quietly watching everyone converse. Once He wishes to do something, consensus can be reached very quickly… This really does fit the characteristics of the Spectator pathway… I increasingly feel that He is Amon’s brother, another son of the Creator—Adam… In the emperor’s later years, after learning many secrets from Mr. Door, he should have been able to make a similar judgment…

While comparing the diary’s description against what he knew and what he had guessed, Klein lowered his gaze and read the rest of the page:

“March 11th. The more I think back on what happened yesterday, the more frightening it feels. A half-human, half-god existence had his fate decided in just a few casual sentences. He did not even have a chance to object. And the composition of that ancient hidden organization makes me believe that, apart from dealing with the Churches of the seven orthodox gods, there is nothing they cannot accomplish. Even overthrowing a nation may not be impossible for them.

“I am truly fortunate to have been brought into this organization. Otherwise, perhaps one day I would encounter an inexplicable and irresistible assassination and die without knowing why!

“An organization like this, hidden behind the curtain, secretly judging others and deciding whether a target lives or dies, makes one feel unable to accept it even by merely thinking about it. Even though I am one of its members, I still feel my heart tremble with fear.

“This world is far more dangerous than Earth. Perhaps simply having naturally high spirituality; perhaps merely reading an ancient book; perhaps normally taking a ship to conduct business; perhaps taking a liking to a beautiful young lady; perhaps loving travel and entering certain castles; perhaps being awakened in the middle of the night by a fight next door; perhaps inventing and creating something meaningful—any one of these might cause a person to die inexplicably and miserably!

“And this is one of the driving forces behind my desire to improve, to work hard at advancement, and to control my own fate. I will definitely succeed. I am the protagonist of this era. Laugh.”

“March 12th. I feel it is necessary to actively search for and collect information on the Fourth Epoch, the Third Epoch, and even the Second Epoch. My experience of joining that ancient hidden organization tells me that countless secrets may be hidden there—secrets that can influence the direction of the current era.

“Unfortunately, such information is outrageously scarce. It is either collected by the Churches or has been destroyed miserably. I feel that relying only on my subordinates will make it very difficult to gain any harvest. The best method is still to raise my Sequence, obtain a higher position within the Church, and gain greater authority.”

From this diary page, it can be clearly seen that the emperor established contact with Mr. Door long after joining the Twilight Hermit Order. Perhaps he was already at a high Sequence by then. Otherwise, he would not have been able to withstand Mr. Door’s ravings… Compared with the emperor, my exploration of history is simply much easier. For the Fourth Epoch, I have his diary. For the Second Epoch, there is the City of Silver. From time to time, I even run into evil spirits formed from the remnant souls of Kings of Angels… Mm. Starting around the middle period, the emperor’s chuunibyou seems to have improved quite a bit…

Maintaining a relaxed posture, Klein turned to the second diary page:

“May 18th. During this period, I keep having nightmares. I dream that I am wearing ancient silver-gray armor, sitting at the edge of a cliff. Before me is black fog silently surging, with no bottom in sight. It is filled with corruption and evil. Merely seeing it will cause one to be affected. By the end, the face of me, who was monitoring the Abyss, had grown pitch-black, complicated patterns. My skin had hardened, and viscous liquid faintly flowed across its surface. My eyes had completely lost all reason.

“This is a reflection of the Abyss. This is a reflection of the Abyss I saw and attempted to enter last month!

“As these nightmares become more frequent, I have discovered that I increasingly tend to generate extreme thoughts. Anger that would usually only make me beat someone up might now make the thought of dismembering the target flash through my mind. In addition, dark-red bumps have grown all over my back, and my body temperature is gradually lowering.

“Is this corruption from the Abyss?

“I must find a way to confirm and resolve this!

“For the time being, I cannot go to the Church. Otherwise, I would be forced to reveal the existence of that primitive island and the Abyss.

“Mm. I can find the priests and bishops of the Eternal Blazing Sun. They should be better at purification!”

“May 19th. Through my connections, I received secret treatment. My entire person suddenly relaxed a great deal, and all the abnormalities from before are improving.

“While feeling happy, I also began thinking about a question. I merely explored the periphery of the Abyss and never came into contact with any high-level devil. In fact, certain items aboard the Black Throne resisted the corruption, yet I was still unconsciously affected and showed signs of degeneration. Those Beyonders of the Criminal pathway must sacrifice to high-level devils from time to time, so the corruption they experience is surely even more severe. After accumulating over time, it can likely no longer be treated. They can only be completely purified together with their aura.

“Likewise, high-Sequence Beyonders—especially angels—should be able to actively exert influence upon mid- and low-Sequence Beyonders of the same pathway, with corresponding range limitations due to differences in level. Once one becomes a true god, one can probably ‘communicate’ throughout the world and the entire spirit world without hindrance…

“Thinking this deeply, wouldn’t I be influenced to some extent by the God of Artisans—no, He should be called the God of Steam and Machinery? This is a little terrifying. It seems only by becoming a demigod can one initially break free?

“Fortunately, since the Fifth Epoch, there has been no example of the true gods leaving the Astral World and descending to the earth. Comparatively, pathways without true gods are not faced with such serious problems.”

“May 20th. After being listless for some time, I have returned to the social scene!

“Damn it. Those bastards mocked me in private, saying that my recent lack of appearances was because I had previously been too wild and weakened my body! Just because I kept having nightmares earlier and could not sleep well, so the circles beneath my eyes were a little obvious?

“Heh. I will let them know what it means to be extraordinarily gifted!”

I wonder what the influence of angel-level beings upon mid- and low-Sequence Beyonders of the same pathway would be like… Ultra-long-distance transmission of ravings? Active attraction of Beyonder characteristics? The divinity to respond no matter where the person is, as long as they recite Their honorific name? When meeting one another, direct corrosion or theft of Beyonder characteristics? If all of these exist, then that is equivalent to a miniature god… No wonder, in the Second Epoch, angels were called subordinate gods…

Klein’s thoughts shifted. He turned over the paper in his hand and began reading the final diary page:

“October 12th. Edwards came to tell me that one knight under him accidentally discovered a strange little chapel. It may be connected to faiths and worship from before the Fourth Epoch.

“That immediately interested me. I rushed at once to this small city called Bemang.”

“October 13th. Bemang is a small city built on a mountain. All of its houses have protruding rounded domes, as if they are wearing white straw hats. It is very distinctive.

“I walked upward along the streets, climbed several flights of stairs, and finally found that strange little chapel. From the outside, it looked like an ordinary residence. Nothing about it was special. Only after walking in could one notice the difference.

“There was only one priest here. He was a warm and restrained middle-aged man, wearing a simple white robe. He had a pale-gold beard that almost covered the lower half of his face, and a pair of clear, light-colored eyes like a child’s.

“He called this place the Creator’s temple. Any living being of any race, any believer of any god, could enter.

“When I heard him mention this, I remembered a previous doubt. Apart from the seven orthodox gods, all other faiths are treated as pagan. They cannot openly build churches. The only exception is the original Creator. Yet no corresponding Church has ever been born, and even chapels are extremely rare!

“In front of this little chapel, there was a crude shrine. Inside it was placed the figure of a man bearing a cross upon his back. This should be the so-called statue of the Creator.

“I sat in the front row and chatted idly with the priest. He told me many different stories.

“He said that in the era when humanity had only just been born, the sky, earth, and sea were ruled by all kinds of mad, bloodthirsty monsters. They were the source of later races such as dragons, giants, and elves.

“These monsters wantonly flaunted their desires, ravaging every place. It seemed they would soon destroy the entire world. At this moment, the Creator awakened, reclaimed the special traits and powers He had bestowed upon them, and granted them to humanity.

“After that, He fell asleep again and left behind a prophecy:

“When madness, cruelty, greed, indulgence, apathy, and bloodthirstiness once more drown the earth, He will awaken and reclaim everything.

“As he spoke, that priest gripped the cross pendant at his chest and began praying silently.

“This kind of myth is completely different from what appears in Church scriptures. There are many parts worth pondering. It is somewhat interesting.”

“October 15th. It has been a day since I returned to Trier, and only now did I realize that I actually forgot to ask that priest’s name!

“Forget it. There will be opportunities in the future. My male sixth sense tells me that I will definitely visit that little chapel again.”

Isn’t this a shortened and vague version of the City of Silver’s myth? Mm, the period from the end of the Second Epoch to the beginning of the Third Epoch… That priest seems to know quite a lot. Or perhaps the organization that passed these myths down generation after generation knows quite a lot…

As Klein’s thoughts moved, the diary in his hand vanished all at once.

Then he lifted his head and looked toward the Hermit.

“Speak.”

The Hermit Cattleya immediately lowered her head and said, “Honorable Mr. Fool, I wish to know where Emperor Roselle’s destination of heart and spirit lies. Is it on that island, or in the depths of the starry sky?”

On that island? The primitive island whose ability to cause Green’s death astonished the emperor? It seems the emperor attached great importance to that island in his later years, and even Bernadette, who was already the Queen of Mysteries at the time, sensed it to a certain extent…

What does the depths of the starry sky mean? The Astral World? Or other planets? The emperor behaved ahead of his time in many ways, so his daughter suspects he might have been an alien?

Although that is a little absurd, it is quite logical. After all, many studies have proven that this place is a planet, that the sun is a star, and that beyond it lies the boundless universe, along with countless star systems… How should I answer? I cannot directly expose the matter of transmigration, but I also cannot say nothing…

After briefly pondering, Klein shook his head with a smile.

“Neither.”