Lying Through His Teeth

Jing Yan had overheard the conversation behind him and found it rather amusing.

He glanced again at the description of the sign-in reward he had just received. It seemed that after signing in at the Goethe Hotel this time, he would not only get a Curio but also unlock more options for targets to win over.

The system had already told him what counted as successfully winning someone over: their favorability had to reach 90%. But he still wasn't sure what the reward for succeeding would be. He guessed it would provide some support for his divine power...

Could he also gain the other person's faith?

Jing Yan pondered the idea, then froze, stunned by his own thoughts.

Previously, as a fallen being on the run from the Aeon of Elation, Aha, his understanding of his own Aeonic power had been limited. He could regain the divine power he had lost by signing in, then familiarize himself with it through his own insights and learn to wield some of it. But...

Now he had realized that Aeons could have followers. Perhaps he could use this method to gain power in return.

Of course, that was only a guess.

Even if he couldn't gain power in return from a great many followers, being able to share his power with others would still be a good thing.

After all, other people thought differently from him, so they would probably develop their power in different ways, too.

Natasha, for example.

Or Belobog natives like Gepard.

Apart from the Supreme Guardian, who had already betrayed them in her heart, most people in Belobog believed in Qlipoth, the Aeon of Preservation. Even so, because they followed different Paths, the power they gained wasn't necessarily Qlipoth's power of Preservation.

Those who bestowed power didn't necessarily need their recipients to believe in a particular Aeon. Aeons weren't stingy; as long as someone followed the same Path, that was enough.

But Jing Yan's Path seemed to be an independent one, separate from the Paths of the Eighteen Aeons that had existed before...

Perhaps once someone's favorability toward him reached 90%, receiving his blessing would make them his Emanator.

Emanators could aid an Aeon by completing tasks. As an Aeon himself, Jing Yan should be able to benefit from his Emanators in the same way.

Of course, Emanators varied in strength. Their power depended on the blessings they received from their Aeon.

Some, like the Emanators of Nous, the Aeon of Erudition—certain members of the Genius Society, for instance—relied more on their own intelligence and talent.

For them, a blessing was more like a mark of recognition. Even without one, they had already made great contributions and achievements.

"Don't worry. I'm not a human trafficker." Jing Yan looked up and said to the three members of the Astral Express behind him.

"But I'd still like you to answer my question from earlier."

"Uh... Huh?"

March 7th looked taken aback. Her expression grew tense.

She eyed Jing Yan's back suspiciously, then asked with concern, "What was that thing you said earlier? About enjoying tonight but suffering tomorrow? You don't mean that tonight's fun is just a smokescreen, and after we fall asleep, we'll wake up tomorrow with our kidneys gone, do you?"

"I-I'm warning you, our train isn't to be trifled with! Our navigator, Miss Himeko, is famous throughout the entire galaxy. Even Miss Herta, the owner of the space station 'Herta,' respects her, so..."

At March 7th's words, Stelle and Dan Heng exchanged helpless looks.

For one thing, March 7th was welcome to be suspicious, but did she really have to say all her thoughts out loud?

If Jing Yan really were a human trafficker, would he admit it?

And when March 7th tried to invoke Himeko's name to intimidate him, she kept stumbling over her words. Her nervousness was obvious.

If Jing Yan really were a human trafficker, a kidney thief, he might have been intimidated by Himeko's name and hesitated. But now she'd probably made him even more intent on doing something bad.

Jing Yan didn't seem bothered, though. He just thought March 7th was pretty amusing.

"Well, it's like this."

Jing Yan turned around with a smile and explained, "You're guests in Belobog, and you've come all this way to help us solve our problems, so naturally we should treat you well. But my status makes things difficult. I'm just a little doctor from the Underworld, with no connections in the Overworld. And for certain other reasons, you can stay at the most luxurious hotel in all of Belobog tonight, the Goethe Hotel, but you won't be able to stay there tomorrow night. That's why I wanted to give you a heads-up, so you'd be prepared and wouldn't be too disappointed later."

March 7th's eyes lit up at his explanation. She turned excitedly to Stelle and said, "See? What did I tell you? He's definitely not a human trafficker. If he were, he wouldn't be willing to put us up in the best hotel!"

Stelle, however, just shrugged helplessly and said, "But what if this is already part of an entire operation?"

"Maybe that fancy hotel was built on a pile of victims' bones!" Stelle said, her expression growing inscrutable.

She sounded as if she were telling a ghost story.

"Oh, right." March 7th frowned again, her worries returning.

"Enough of that. Belobog is just ahead."

Jing Yan pointed toward the steel fortress. "From here on, you have to do exactly as I say."

"R-right. Of course," March 7th replied.

She didn't sound particularly cooperative.

It was probably because Jing Yan had trapped the Silvermane Guards earlier, making him look like some kind of outlaw.

"You're going to charge in there and shout, 'Cocolia, get out here!'"

"Then we can enter the city without any trouble, and we'll even get to stay at an inn tonight."

"Uh..." Stelle looked uncertain. She didn't seem to trust Jing Yan.

"So who's Cocolia? And what about you? Why are you walking so fast?"

"I'm going on ahead to wait at the hotel, of course." Jing Yan smiled.

The three members of the Astral Express still weren't convinced.

By now, they had returned to the city's outer defenses.

Jing Yan easily used his ability to slip through. The Silvermane Guards were so caught up in their emotions that they didn't even notice him.

But...

When it was the Astral Express trio's turn, they were spotted immediately and stopped on the spot.

"Where exactly did you come from?" a Silvermane Guard soldier asked sternly.

"From beyond the stars," March 7th replied with an awkward smile.

"By the way, do you know someone named Cocolia...?"