Missing Pieces

They were obviously not kneeling to Mo Tan. As holy knights qualified to guard the chapel, they would have to treat even the lord of Pato City with respect if he came here personally. They were kneeling to the gods they each worshiped...

As an organization inclined toward order and goodness, the Holy Church Coalition had not a single sect with any of the rules Mo Tan had just mentioned. Ordinary people being allowed to worship and pray in the chapel aside, even most people's "evil gods" would not reject anyone who might become a potential believer.

Thus, although their behavior just now had seemed merely a bit overreactive, if they honestly examined their consciences, it could already be considered a violation of doctrine.

Of course, Mo Tan did not care which doctrine of their respective deities they had violated, or whether they had betrayed one or two of them. He had no interest in that whatsoever. He had merely used this small incident to prove something.

Exactly how much influence the Atheist talent could exert on others.

After all, the talent's description was far too vague...

Atheist: You cannot choose a faith because you possess no reverence for any higher existence. No missionary will waste time on you! None!

Since the system had forcibly installed this talent on Mo Tan, it had yet to display any practical effect. From its description, he had roughly guessed that religious figures probably would not take the initiative to seek him out and preach to him, but he still did not know the specifics.

This talent might not affect him much for now, but it was already enough to become a potential hazard. It might cause a series of unexpected changes in some situation at some point.

Although Mo Tan liked and enjoyed seeing changes happen, he hated anything unexpected.

Rational people were not frightening, because their thought patterns were easy to predict...

Smart people were not frightening, because with enough thought, one could discover the ideas behind every step they took...

Madmen were even less frightening. They were already insane, after all~

But someone who was rational and intelligent, while also possessing a sufficiently unpredictable way of thinking, was somewhat frightening.

Devout believers would feel a slight dislike and wariness toward me, but they would not take the initiative to develop intense hostility toward me before I did anything excessive. However, they probably would not believe a single word I said either.

Mo Tan narrowed his eyes slightly. As he looked down at the two guards praying in low voices and asking their deities for forgiveness, he pondered...

Experience, wisdom, and rationality could all possibly correct their behavior. The older man had clearly thought more than the other reckless fool, but he still had not completely blocked the talent's influence.

"Sorry, I went a little too far." Mo Tan walked over to the two men and knelt halfway before them, speaking with a hint of apology. "Some troublesome things happened at home, so I wanted to come to our city's chapel and pray. I had no intention of making things difficult for you two. Perhaps my mother's serious illness has left me distracted, so I overreacted..."

If I take the initiative to show goodwill while they are emotionally vulnerable and display sufficient kindness...

"No, I was the one who offended you earlier." The young holy knight lowered his head in shame. "I didn't expect your..."

"Xiao Luo!" The older knight interrupted him sternly. "Don't get it wrong. We violated the scriptures... You should first feel ashamed that you violated the will and teachings of the gods!"

It works, but it has little effect on people with firm faith. That might be related to my Charm and Eloquence attributes, but I can't verify it yet. What I can confirm is that whether the influence is positive or negative, the stronger the believer, the less effective it is. But the subconscious doubt is more troublesome... Heh... Interesting. That's enough for now...

"Then may I ask if I can go inside?" Mo Tan stood and asked politely. "I want to pray for my family."

The older one had finished praying by then, and seemed to have truly received some kind of response. He sighed in relief and said, "Go ahead, but please follow the rules here."

"About that..." Mo Tan immediately put on an awkward, rustic expression. He fussily adjusted his clothes and hair, as if he were a shy country bumpkin visiting the city for the first time. Turning his face aside, he said quietly, "As for the rules... I'm not particularly..."

This "clumsy" way of easing the awkwardness was far too easy to see through. The knight sighed helplessly and said to the young man beside him, "Xiao Luo, take him inside to pray. I'll keep watch here."

"Yes, Senior." The holy knight called Xiao Luo hurriedly replied, then nodded at Mo Tan. "Please follow me."

The chapels of the Holy Church Coalition actually had few taboos. After all, this was not an independent sect dedicated to a single deity, but a relatively loose alliance. Unless someone openly committed blasphemy, there were not many rules to violate.

But for some reason, that holy knight simply felt that there was something unsettling about this clean-cut young man before him. What if he really could commit blasphemy or something?!

It was better to have someone keep an eye on him.

And that was exactly what Mo Tan wanted to see~

"Sir Knight, I'm really sorry about earlier." As soon as he entered the chapel, Mo Tan smiled at Xiao Luo. "I meant no offense. Please don't take it to heart."

"Not at all!" Xiao Luo immediately waved his hands. "I was obviously the one in the wrong earlier. Besides, I'm still far from qualified to be granted the title of knight by the Holy Church..."

As they spoke, the two reached the center of the chapel. Although the place looked rather plain, its size and area were several times greater than the nearby city lord's residence. The surrounding walls were covered in exquisite reliefs, interspersed with numerous prayers and doctrines of various deities. Every dozen or so steps, there was also an image of a divine miracle, most of them depicting the deities worshiped by the Holy Church Coalition saving people from famine, suffering, drought, floods, mudslides, and all sorts of other disasters...

"Is it really that hard to become a knight?" Mo Tan forced himself not to roll his eyes at the surrounding reliefs and statues. He looked at Xiao Luo in surprise. "Our town has produced several knights. They didn't seem to have quite as much presence as you."

No one disliked hearing praise. If someone truly did dislike it, then either the speaker's words had contained a barb or the flattery had been too clumsy. Everyone understood that much.

Mo Tan's seemingly sincere compliment clearly made the young man a little happy. Given his experience, he rarely had the chance to receive praise from others. Although he gently shook his head, the corners of his mouth still rose unconsciously. "Obtaining the title of knight in the Holy Church Coalition is very difficult. Being granted the name 'Holy Knight' is my dream, but it definitely won't be possible in the next few years..."

As they spoke, the two had reached the center of the chapel. Before them stood a huge statue of the gods. A halo of light filtering through the skylight coated it in sacred radiance, making it appear solemn and holy.

It was said that every statue of the gods in the Holy Church Coalition had been personally blessed by figures above the rank of High Priest from the various sects. Each possessed multiple divine attributes, though no one knew whether that was true.

"Most ordinary people pray here." Xiao Luo first bowed in a manner that probably belonged to some unknown sect, then smiled at Mo Tan. "As for the method, there are many. The gods are merciful and don't make too many demands. Besides, you aren't a believer..."

Mo Tan nodded at him gratefully. "Thank you."

"You're welcome. Then I'll... uh..." Xiao Luo hesitated, seemingly debating something, but finally said, "I'll wait for you a little farther away, then accompany you out afterward."

He had originally intended to say that he would leave first. But looking at this seemingly easygoing and reasonable half-elf before him, he could not shake the feeling that something was off. A faint sense of resistance lingered in the depths of his heart.

We need to offer the Atheist talent some exoneration here. This was not caused by the talent itself. The important point was that whenever Mo Tan logged in as Tan Mo, an indescribable aura always lingered around him. If it had to be described, it was...

Chaos. Utter chaos.

This natural incompatibility with the lawful alignment, combined with the aura of an Atheist in the eyes of the NPCs, made it impossible for anyone to fully trust him.

In any case, the holy knight Xiao Luo left the center of the chapel and went to a somewhat more distant spot, where he casually struck up conversations with people.

Although it was noon and there were not many people coming to worship and pray, many clerics of the Holy Church Coalition had already arrived at the chapel to perform their daily prayers and handle duties such as guarding and cleaning.

Mo Tan, meanwhile, pretended to close his eyes and pray for the "family" he had no idea when he had invented. In reality, his mind was rapidly calculating all the information he had gathered so far...

Dave Sager was a baptized, active believer. He worshiped the guardian of knights, warriors, and judges: Heimall, God of Justice and Courage.

But Dave had betrayed and plotted the murder of his companions from the same class at the knight academy for some plan or other. That was absolutely something the deity he worshiped could not permit.

Dave had not been punished by the gods...

The end of the records had stated that he had always worked toward becoming a Holy Knight. Although he had yet to meet the requirements, the martial talent he had displayed in recent years was far above that of students his age.

Yet he should have been a young man with no outstanding natural talent.

The conditions for becoming a Holy Knight were still unknown, but they should not be a secret. He could find out within a short time.

But even if he found out...

"It feels like I'm still missing two pieces of the puzzle..." Mo Tan muttered, rubbing his forehead. "Making Dave fall apart would be easy. But now that I've noticed such a major inconsistency, simply ignoring it would be too boring. This Unique Quest really has some depth."

Destroy "Hero" Dave. The reward for this quest was three question marks. Mo Tan did not think the system was deliberately being mysterious. It would probably determine the reward based on his degree of completion. Although he did not care about the quest itself, with Mo Tan's current personality, he would naturally strive to get as much fun out of it as possible. And under normal circumstances, fun and difficulty tended to correspond.

Forget it. The harder it is, the better. It's only interesting if there's more of a challenge~

"I knew that guy didn't look like a good person!"

Just as Mo Tan was preparing to end his fake prayer, a deliberately lowered mutter reached his ears.

This was not because Mo Tan possessed extraordinary talent or had undergone special training, nor was it thanks to the half-elf's relatively superior hearing. The "muttering" of that female Half-Orc priestess was simply far too loud.

Nearly everyone in the chapel turned their attention toward her.

"Diaochi!" Xiao Luo, standing beside the mammoth-sized young Half-Orc woman, was almost in tears. His face flushed as he raised his head and shouted in a low voice, "Keep your voice down! Keep it down!!"

"My voice is already quiet enough!" The young woman was completely unaware of the problem. She even wrinkled her nose toward the center of the chapel where Mo Tan stood. "Doesn't he look like some kind of evil cultist with a belly full of crooked schemes?"

Evil cultist?! Crooked schemes?!

Something seemed to flash through Mo Tan's mind...

Two minutes later, in front of the chapel doors.

"I'm really sorry..." Xiao Luo flushed as he spoke quietly to Mo Tan. "That little priestess is a new trainee. She doesn't think before she speaks."

Mo Tan blinked. "That 'little' priestess is almost as tall as the two of us stacked together."

Xiao Luo shrugged at him.

"Don't worry, I'm not offended." Mo Tan smiled faintly. "Speaking of which, I don't even know what an evil cultist is..."

Xiao Luo's expression immediately turned solemn. "They're all terrifying heretics. They're insane and commit every kind of evil. They worship all sorts of despicable evils and give them the name of 'gods.' Some evil cultists don't even have an object of faith. They act purely for the sake of their own deranged desires. Murder and blood sacrifices are everyday matters to them. Driven by their evil thoughts, those heretics will do anything. Even the most evil deities are countless times better than the false images they worship... Mm, I don't want to continue. Even discussing them is a form of disrespect toward the gods."

"Oh?" Mo Tan stopped just before leaving the chapel and turned to ask Xiao Luo curiously. "Then what benefits do they offer? For example..."

Skill activated—Bewitchment

"Can they command monsters? Or greatly increase their talents and abilities in various areas?"

To Xiao Luo's ears, Mo Tan's voice suddenly became incredibly familiar, as if he were an old friend he had known for years and could speak with about anything. Before his mind could react, his mouth had already answered instinctively, "Mm, the abilities of different evil cultists vary wildly. They can pay various prices or conduct cruel rituals to forcibly grant themselves multiple powers, but that's an evil path... Huh?!"

Xiao Luo's eyes suddenly cleared, and he froze in confusion.

By then, Mo Tan was already walking out of the chapel without looking back. "Thanks, buddy~"

He then disappeared into the dense flow of people outside the chapel...

End.