Gods and Believers

"The Fallen Creator... fallen..." Alger repeated the words. Alice quietly studied his expression, thinking that this gentleman truly had quite the imagination.

Alice saw him murmur something before saying with a smile, "Mr. Fool, your description is indeed more fitting. According to our observations, among Beyonders who believe in the True Creator—no, the Fallen Creator—the proportion who lose control is far above normal. Most of the rest are lunatics."

They had all gone mad? Alice raised her brows in surprise. She suddenly realized that a god's condition might affect the condition of Their believers.

Then... what about the reverse?

Alice suddenly realized that she had always had a flaw in her thinking.

If the gods were false, That Would Be Fine. But for gods who truly existed, why would They care about the faith of mortals? Not to mention that besides the gods themselves, the churches' holy scriptures also contained biographies of Saints and Angels...

Since becoming a Saint was the beginning of fusing with Divinity, did that mean Divinity, like Sequence Potions, could contaminate Beyonders? And believers could help resist that contamination...

Alice suppressed these unprovable speculations. After all, she was still far from High-Sequence, and she did not have much desire to advance. Perhaps she would never need this knowledge in her life—At This Moment, that was what Alice thought.

Meanwhile, Mr. Fool, who was painstakingly considering how to inquire about the Hermit Order and the Clown Potion, was thinking about his alt account with no hope in sight while quietly setting his sights on Alice.

Mr. Fool was considering the possibility of asking Alice to make purchases on his behalf at the next Tarot Club when Audrey, half sighing and half curious, spoke up. "That sounds terrifying. Hmm, Miss Fate, Mr. Hanged Man, could you explain the various Mysterious Organizations and secret sects in detail? It's difficult for me to come into contact with such things in Daily Life, so I can only learn about them through you. I'll pay a reward. Don't Know what you want?"

"Clues about the School of Life or Beyonders of the 'Monster' Pathway," Alice stated her original request. "If I obtain clues in advance, I'll change it to something else."

Audrey readily agreed, saying that she would keep an eye out for relevant clues.

"I need a sum of money—1,000 pounds, preferably Banknotes without consecutive serial numbers, or freshly mined Gems, calculated according to the monthly average price in the Backlund jewelry market." Alger did not appear overly disappointed. After thinking for a moment, he stated his request.

The offer left Alice somewhat Stunned. What Stunned her even more was that Audrey readily agreed, her tone cheerful and sounding not the least bit troubled by it—she did not even mind Alice listening in for free.

She really was rich. Alice silently sighed, gaining a trace of understanding as to how Audrey could remain so innocent.

Alger was also silent for a long time before giving the location for the exchange. Alice suspected that he was regretting asking for too little.

"Mr. Hanged Man, please go first," Alice suggested. "I'll add anything I can."

"Let's start with Moss asceticism. It was the earliest secret organization. Of course, quite a few people believe that the earliest secret organizations should have been the Church of the Goddess of the Night, the Church of the Earth Mother, and the Church of the God of War."

"What about the other four Orthodox God churches?" Alice asked sincerely.

"Those people must be members of the Church of the Lord of Storms, the Church of the Eternal Sun, or the Church of the God of Knowledge and Wisdom." Audrey refuted him gloomily.

"These truths were buried long ago in ancient history. The only thing certain is that no one has ever said that the Church of the Lord of Storms, the Church of the Eternal Sun, or the Church of the God of Knowledge and Wisdom were once secret organizations.

"All right, let's save time and return to the main topic. Moss asceticism was first founded by several humans who had seen the Blasphemy Slate. They believed in an impersonal god called The Concealed Sage..."

Alger began introducing Moss asceticism and The Concealed Sage. It had once been a highly respected organization, at least until the "Concealed Sage" came alive.

Like a ghost story... As Alice's thoughts wandered, she Remembered the pair of eyes behind Old Neil. She added, "Moss asceticism controls the 'Mystic Seer' Pathway. The Concealed Sage is Suspected To Be the True God or a High-Sequence powerhouse of that Pathway. It intermittently forces knowledge into all Beyonders of the 'Mystic Seer' Pathway, and if they cannot endure it, they go mad."

Alice had heard that Mystic Seers were pursued by the knowledge of The Concealed Sage after Old Neil had been taken away for treatment—clearly, those eyes had come from The Concealed Sage.

After Alger introduced several more secret organizations in turn, Alice pointed out one possible reason why the Witch Sect's High-Level members were all Female. "Hmm... Sequence 7 of the 'Assassin' Pathway is Named Witch."

"Witch?" Audrey's eyes widened in surprise. "Then what would happen if a man drank the Potion? How would he act as a Witch?"

Alger also felt confused and found it Difficult To Understand.

"If a man drinks the 'Witch' Potion, he can no longer be considered a man. In every sense of the word, he will become a 'Witch.'" After saying this, Alice carefully observed Audrey and Alger. To her satisfaction, she saw the confused expressions on both their faces.

As Alice admired her own Results, she thought of the "Concealed Sage" that had come alive because of faith. She also recalled her hypothesis that believers could affect gods.

After they exchanged information for a while longer, Klein announced the end of the Tarot Club.

The next morning, Alice encountered Madam Daly at Blackthorn Security Company.

"Good morning, Madam Daly~" Alice greeted Daily in a lighthearted tone.

"Good morning, Little Alice~" Daily's tone carried familiar flirtatiousness as she held out a hand toward Alice.

Alice had the foresight to stay far away from Daily's wicked hand. "Please spare me—I Guessed you came to see the captain, Isn't It?"

"Oh!" Daily withdrew her hand in disappointment, then smiled again. "I have good news for you, Little Alice~"

"What is it?" Alice asked while warily watching Daily's hand to prevent a sneak attack—ever since they met, Daily had loved patting her head, but she was already a big girl!

"I'm being transferred to Backlund," Daily Replied, but the answer made Alice Become Alert.

Alice knew about Daily's experience. She had only become a Beyonder five years ago, yet she was already Sequence 7. Unlike a Sequence 7 like Alice, who had accidentally swallowed a Potion, Daily had truly advanced step by step, and that meant...

Alice looked at Daily curiously. "Are you advancing again?"

Daily nodded and left, while Alice Fell Into Deep Thought—if Daily's rapid advancement Is Because she had mastered the Acting Method, had the church's High-Level officials decided to transfer her to Backlund because they had Guessed this?

That meant the High-Level officials truly knew of the Acting Method's existence.