"It does not have to be a devoted, singular, and firm faith. Even a casual believer or someone who has merely prayed once would suffice," the old man explained, frowning. "Only then can your soul establish a connection with a god, and only then can there be any talk of the next step. If you cannot even establish a connection, it is impossible to complete the alienation of a true god. Have you really never even prayed?"
Lynch smiled bitterly and spread his hands.
He had just searched through the body's memories again. It was not just his transmigrated soul; the original owner of this body had no faith whatsoever. He had never been to a church, never prayed, and had never established any connection with any god.
He had not even uttered a single word of praise to a lord.
He was, in a sense, a rare exception in this world.
Because there were twelve true gods in this world who frequently bestowed miracles upon mortals, almost everyone believed in at least one or two of them.
While non-believers were not punished, they were viewed as oddities by those around them.
"Um, is it too late for me to pray now?" Lynch said sheepishly. "For example, praying to the goddess's holy emblem?"
"This is not a game, child," the old man sighed. "Faith can indeed be cultivated. You could listen to our sermons, slowly comprehend and accept the teachings of the gods, change your thoughts and behaviors to align with those teachings, and then pray to the goddess. This process is feasible and not difficult. The only problem is that it requires time. It takes at least several months to change a person's faith through proselytizing. Before that, it is useless to mutter at the holy icon every day."
"But time is the one thing I lack the most."
Lynch scratched his head, yet a strange sense of relief welled up inside him.
He actually did not want to become a Soul Severer of a true god. Listening to Archbishop Trinlais, he could understand that the church's Soul Severers were merely thugs kept by the gods and the church. No matter how gently it was phrased, every subsequent alienation would be a means for the church to control its thugs.
Having transmigrated to another world, Lynch did not want to shackle himself from the very beginning. Therefore, even though this path was easy, safe, and the mainstream of this world, he was unwilling to walk it.
However, not everyone has the courage to choose freedom over life. Without a reason, there was no sense in rejecting a safe and comfortable path.
But it is not that I am being pretentious now; it is simply that I cannot walk this path. That cannot be blamed on me. Besides, taking a more winding road might allow me to see more scenery. You support that too, right, Travel Companion?
【I am merely...】
'Witnessing every choice I make. I know, I know, no need to repeat it.'
He felt much lighter inside. In any case, Mr. V had once mentioned that it might be possible to find a way to become a Soul Severer of a fallen god through secret societies. The path to survival was not yet completely blocked, and there was still a chance.
Although he felt relieved, he still maintained a dejected expression; after all, he did not want to be treated as a lunatic before he was even eroded by the mysterious.
The old man felt quite regretful as well and sighed: "Then there is no other way. With a one-month deadline, it seems you can only try the path of the fallen gods."
Hm? You know about that too? That works out perfectly.
Lynch followed up, "Fallen gods refer to those gods who have fallen, right? They also have Soul Severers? Could you let me understand that in advance?"
For a moment, the old man wore an expression of disgust, but he sighed and explained:
"Yes. At the end of the Fourth Era, there were blasphemers... cough, someone comprehended the characteristics of a fallen god from their holy memories, thus becoming a different kind of Soul Severer. They have no faith in their hearts and lack sufficient awe for the true gods, but essentially, they are still Soul Severers following in the footsteps of gods. They are still warriors who fight against the mysterious, and we are still willing to recognize them as comrades."
Tsk tsk, blasphemers... Lynch showed a subtle expression.
"Alright, I admit that servants of the true gods might have a bit of prejudice against them. Well, perhaps more than a bit. But we do recognize them; we simply feel deep regret for their behavior and way of thinking. Aside from the Watchers and a few special cases, they are mostly a group of lunatics. The extent of their madness is not necessarily lower than that of cultists. This is not a prejudice; I am stating a fact. If you walk this path in the future, make sure you do not become like them."
Yes, yes, of course.
With extensive experience in dealing with teachers, no matter what he thought inside, Lynch nodded vigorously with a humble expression.
"Never mind, you will understand in the future," the old man muttered with annoyance. "Soul Severers of fallen gods indeed do not need faith, as long as they obtain the holy memory of a fallen god."
"Holy memory?"
"It is the echo left behind by a god in the Dreamlands. This memory could be a sound, an item, a scene, or a passage of text..."
Isn't that description just a mystery? It must be the holy mystery that Mr. V mentioned.
Lynch did not voice his thoughts. He instinctively felt that this was likely a taboo topic, touching upon some fundamental issues, so it was better to keep his mouth shut.
"Each church possesses some of these holy memories, and a small number have flowed into private hands, but most are held by those secret societies. However, one thing to note is that you cannot just use any holy memory of a fallen god; you must also identify the god that is most compatible with you."
"Do you know how to determine that?" Lynch felt nervous again, hoping not to encounter another faith-related issue like before, which would lead to a hollow joy.
"I happen to know a very simple test for that, but it is generally only effective the first time; it is not accurate afterward."
The old man leaned forward and stared at Lynch, saying:
"Listen, I am going to ask a question. Do not think, do not hesitate. I want you to answer with your intuition within three seconds. The more impulsive the answer, the better."
Lynch was stunned and nodded.
"Very well, I will begin," the old man said, suddenly quickening his pace. "Name a symbol of a god. Quick, immediately. Three, two, one."
The first second, Lynch thought, how would I know which gods exist?
The second second, Lynch thought, how would I know what counts as a symbol of a god?
The third second, Lynch could not stop to think and blurted out:
"The moon. The red moon."
"Hm? The red moon?" The old man frowned. "Why?"
Indeed, why? Because it accompanied me for I don't know how many years before I transmigrated? Because I couldn't sleep without it shining on me every day? Because the Travel Companion in my head, who accompanies me without any sense of presence, feels very similar to it?
None of these could be used as a reason, and I didn't think that much anyway.
Lynch scratched his head and said in distress, "To be honest, I don't know why either. There wasn't enough time to think of a reason in three seconds, so I just blurted it out. Even if you asked me to think about it now, I couldn't come up with a reason."
"Then that is correct. It means this result is accurate. If you had analyzed a bunch of reasons, it would have been inaccurate instead," the old man nodded. "In the world of the mysterious, logic is often distorted, and the reason is not important. The instinctive reaction of the soul is often the most accurate result. It seems the red moon is the god most compatible with you."
"Does this fallen god really exist?"
"She does exist. The Crimson Lady, Luna, and the Silver Maiden, Artemis. They are the goddesses of the two moons, it is just that the Crimson Lady is unknown to people." The old man seemed to have something on his mind as he pondered, "However, if the one you are truly compatible with is the Lady of the Red Moon, then we really have a problem. Perhaps you could try to find one with secondary compatibility, although that might be more dangerous."
"Hm? Where is the trouble?"
"For some reason, there are very few holy memories left behind by the Crimson Lady. Usually, this indicates that this god was not very active during the First Era. But for most gods, it is only a specific period where holy memories are scarce, whereas the holy memories of the Crimson Lady are scarce overall. This means not only will it be very difficult for you to find an initial holy memory within a month, but every subsequent alienation will also be very troublesome. The benefit, however, is that no one will fight over it with you in the future, because the world might not find a second Soul Severer with the same origin as you."
Truly lacking any sense of presence. The red moonlight of millions of years seemed to flicker before Lynch's eyes again. "Where might I find a holy memory of this Crimson Lady? Those secret societies?"
The old man still looked thoughtful and slightly distracted. Only after a moment did he answer: "To be honest, you won't find it anywhere. You could try the secret societies, or shops that sell mysteries in secret, but the probability of finding it is almost zero."
"I understand."
The corners of Lynch's mouth twitched. He did not doubt the old man's words; there was no need for the old man to lie about something that could be verified so quickly. Suppressing the disappointment in his heart, Lynch stood up.
"I will still go take a look. I have to try to find it; perhaps a miracle will happen. Thank you so much for today, sir."
As he spoke, Lynch took off his hat, bowed, and turned to walk out of the reception room. The moment he turned his back, his expression turned grim.
Will a miracle really happen? Lynch did not believe his own hope. Yet he gritted his teeth and tried to maintain his composure. His hand had already touched the doorknob when the old man's voice suddenly called out from behind.
"Wait a moment." As Lynch turned around, he saw the old man still looking preoccupied, gesturing for him to come back. "There is something I need to discuss with you."
Lynch's heart skipped a beat, realizing that the old man had been acting this way ever since he learned that Lynch would follow the path of the Crimson Lady. It was likely related to his alienation, and perhaps this was the turning point.
He immediately returned to the sofa and sat down, not urging him, just silently staring at the old man.
"The holy memory of the Red Moon is indeed very difficult to find. If you are skeptical, you can verify it yourself later. The probability of finding it within a month, I cannot say is zero, but it is almost negligible."
Lynch pursed his lips and tried to remain silent. Even though it directly concerned his life, he did not want to lose his composure in front of others.
Moreover, the old man did not seem like the type to enjoy teasing people. Since he had called him back, there must be a reason. Therefore, Lynch just kept his eyes lowered, waiting anxiously for the old man's follow-up.
"I will not hide it from you. There is one holy memory of the Crimson Lady preserved in the sanctuary of the Black Night Church headquarters. Just one."
"Hm?" Lynch's breathing slowed for a beat. He looked up sharply, staring into the old man's eyes.
"Do not be surprised. There is a moon at night; could there be anything more normal than that? How could the dark sanctuary not have a memory of the Crimson Lady? I am actually a bit surprised that you did not know."
Lynch had no way to refute that.
"However, I cannot just give it to you. That is the property of the headquarters, and it is already beyond the effectiveness of your letter of introduction. Why should I give it to you?"
"Because you told me all this," Lynch leaned back on the sofa, thoughtful. "This means you can let me obtain it, it is just... speak, what is it that you need me to do? Something that makes you hesitate so much, only making the decision at the very end, and willing to pay such a high price—it likely will not be a small matter."
"Are you not planning to try and find it first?"
"With your status, since you dared to mention it, you cannot be afraid of me verifying it. I believe the probability of finding the Crimson Lady's memory is low, so I might as well hear your request first."
"You are indeed a smart child. I heard you are a private investigator?" The old man looked Lynch up and down. "Investigate a case for me, and I guarantee that the memory of the Crimson Lady will be delivered to your hands."
"What case?"
"The Bester Tunnel incident, including today's incident," the old man said in a deep voice. "I must explain first, this case is very troublesome and highly dangerous. I can guarantee that you will definitely encounter life-threatening situations. I quite appreciate you, so I did not want to get you involved before, but your situation is not optimistic. Since you will die after a month anyway, you might as well put life and death aside and give it a try. As long as you can solve the case and make a great contribution, I will have the justification to give you the memory of the Moon God. What is your opinion?"
Rate on N.U.
